An Unexpected Windfall

"Alchemy spells?"

Samantha snorted a disdainful spark from her nostrils.

"Isn't that just a weak little game of fiddling with bottles and jars? A true Red Dragon should conquer the world with claws and flames."

She said.

Among all dragons, Red Dragons were nearly the most devoted to strength. They took pride in their bloodline and status, and most enjoyed defeating opponents with innate means of attack such as draconic claws, fangs, and Dragon Breath.

When Garos suggested that she learn alchemy spells.

Samantha's scornful reaction was perfectly normal.

Learning required interest above all else; coercion was useless. Garos smiled faintly and patiently guided her. "Do you know how many gold coins an Alchemist of the Lothern Federation can earn in a year?"

As he spoke, he pawed at the Alchemy Engine with his claws.

The metallic clanging sounded like colliding gold coins.

Samantha's pupils widened slightly. Her interest was piqued. "How much?"

Garos said solemnly, "Even the worst Alchemist can earn enough money to pile into a small mountain."

At that, Samantha's tail began swishing unconsciously. She was clearly tempted.

".Really? You're not lying to me, are you?"

She said.

Garos nodded, his expression grave.

"Alchemists can even make gold coins themselves. As long as you study diligently and attain sufficient mastery of Alchemy, you will become wealthy enough to buy an Empire. Adult dragons like Iron Dragon Mother? You could hire hundreds or thousands of them at once to serve you, making them sing your praises day and night."

"Besides wealth, alchemy spells can make you stronger as well. Don't forget the Giant-Arm Miner that made you flee in such a sorry state. Once you master alchemy spells and use them to continuously strengthen and temper your claws, fangs, and scales, I believe that with your talent, one day you will tear the Holy Flame Arbiter apart with your bare claws, making countless Evil Dragons cheer for you, fear you, and prostrate themselves at your feet."

The scenes described in those words.

Struck right at Samantha's deepest desires.

Just imagining it made Samantha's heart race, an electric sensation running from her head to the tip of her tail.

Her chest rose and fell, her breathing quickened, and longing filled her eyes.

Yet she still had misgivings. Hesitating, she said in distress, "But learning spells sounds so troublesome."

Red Dragons were not unintelligent. As the most elite magical creatures, their aptitude and comprehension in magic surpassed that of most spellcasters. They were merely lazy and disliked exerting themselves by thinking.

As a standard pure-blooded Red Dragon.

Samantha also disliked thinking and studying.

Garos asked leisurely, "Do you think learning knowledge is more troublesome, or being hunted by inferior creatures using alchemical tools?"

His question hit the mark, leaving Samantha silent.

Being pursued by creatures as weak and inferior as Goblins was a tremendous humiliation in Samantha's eyes.

"Only countless hammerings can forge indestructible scales."

"Samantha, if you lack the resolve to face trouble—or even torment—then stop dreaming of standing at the apex of all things and ruling the world, because it is destined to remain impossible."

Garos ended with the provocation Red Dragons found hardest to resist.

Sure enough, after hearing Garos's words, the hesitation and concern on Samantha's face vanished at once, replaced by resolve and ambition.

"Garos, my dear brother."

"I'll show you that I, Samantha, have my own resolve as well!"

In a firm, resounding voice, she declared, "I'm going to begin studying Alchemy right now!"

After saying that, Samantha leaned against a towering Iron Fir and curled up in the shadows.

Her eyes were half-closed, but she was not asleep. She began focusing intently, digging deep into the Alchemy knowledge within Dragon Inheritance and studying on her own.

It was a tedious and dull process.

Few dragons would excavate and study the knowledge within Dragon Inheritance on their own while still Hatchling Dragons.

In truth, with a treasure trove like Dragon Inheritance, even White Dragons, the weakest among dragonkind, could achieve something if they cast aside arrogance and sloth and were willing to diligently focus on studying its many kinds of magical knowledge.

If Samantha could persist.

Then although she still could not compare to Garos, surpassing ordinary Red Dragons in growth speed would be a certainty.

Meanwhile.

Garos placed the Alchemy Engine in a hollow in a rock and prepared to begin his daily training. Just as he raised a claw, he noticed that some black, viscous liquid had stained it.

"What is this?"

At first, he did not know what it was.

But the moment curiosity arose in his mind, Dragon Inheritance was naturally triggered, and the corresponding information surfaced in his thoughts.

It had to be said that while Dragon Inheritance caused dragons to pass down flaws such as arrogance and conceit from generation to generation, its existence was also one of the important reasons dragons could stand as apex creatures.

The inherited knowledge was vast and boundless, like a library that had accumulated information over thousands upon tens of thousands of years.

Whenever it was needed, it always responded in time.

"Black Oil flowing out of the Alchemy Engine."

Garos sniffed it and caught a pungent odor, similar to the motor oil he remembered, but with an intense spicy bite.

"Black Oil, a basic energy resource abundantly stored on Bernardo Planet, formed from the bodies of magical creatures over long ages of sedimentation. Mm, it's somewhat like an upgraded version of petroleum."

Garos pondered.

"There should be quite a bit of energy in it."

"The inheritance says it isn't food, but it feels strangely tempting."

After a moment's thought.

Garos raised the claw stained with Black Oil to his mouth and lightly licked it.

It was like licking mustard.

The sharp spiciness surged straight into his nasal cavity.

As Garos swallowed it, he felt as though a small ball of flame had ignited in his belly. His entire body jolted awake, and he raised his head and opened his mouth, involuntarily exhaling a column of fire.

"Now that has some kick!"

Garos stared at the Black Oil on his claw, surprise appearing on his face.

The energy contained in this stuff rivaled the high-grade magical creature flesh he had eaten before.

His Adaptive Evolution did not create things from nothing; it required large amounts of energy to sustain the process.

Garos still remembered his first Adaptive Evolution.

Because he had not replenished enough energy, he did evolve, but it had all relied on his own body's reserves. For the following several months, his entire body had been so gaunt that he was little more than skin and bones, as though a succubus had drained him dry.

Only after eating voraciously like a starving ghost did he gradually recover.

Garos had originally been somewhat worried about the future.

Once he grew stronger and evolution required tremendous amounts of energy, relying solely on hunting ferocious beasts and magical creatures would mean eating who knew how much at once to accumulate enough. The process would be extremely troublesome.

This unexpected discovery let him know that he had found his best source of energy.