Deep in Ser Wilderness, the rock walls of Conifer Valley glowed gray in the thin skylight.
Garos A huge and majestic figure stood in the clearing of the valley, its metallic scales reflecting the early morning light.
He lowered his head and looked intently at the objects placed in front of him: pieces of pure and transparent Black Oil Crystal, as well as several large open wooden boxes next to them.
Inside the wooden box.
They are piled up like a hill, exuding the brilliance of various elements. They are red as fire, blue as ice, and green as the vitality of the forest. They are pure and clear, without flaws or cracks.
These priceless treasures are part of the generous return gift from Princess Lothern Elina.
Putting aside the equally considerable but slightly vulgar gold and silver property, the core of this return gift is five units of first-level Black Oil Crystal, as well as well over a hundred magic gems, each of high quality.
"It's a pity that even with Elina's status, he can't easily produce more Black Oil Crystal."
Garos stretched out his paw, carefully picked up a cold piece of Black Oil Crystal, and played with it carefully on the tip of his paw for a moment.
He could feel the strong temptation of the pure energy contained in it to his instinct.
In the end, he suppressed his original desire to devour it completely, carefully put it back to its original place, and put it away together with the other crystals.
Not long ago, Garos had a communication with the distant princess Elina.
Garos's attitude was very straightforward. He clearly expressed his hope to get more Black Oil Crystal and said that he could exchange it with his share of other return gifts.
However, it is difficult for Princess Elina to do it.
She frankly stated that even as a royal princess, the amount of Black Oil Crystal she can mobilize at one time is extremely limited and cannot meet Garos's requirements.
In peacetime, there might be room for mediation.
But now the situation in Federation is treacherous. Scarce resources as valuable and of extremely high strategic significance as Black Oil Crystal are almost listed as the highest level of controlled materials by major kingdoms, and the circulation channels are strictly blocked. If Elina had not been a royal princess, it would be difficult to take out even one unit of Black Oil Crystal.
"This thing is taken too seriously, and no kingdom will let it escape easily."
"If you want to obtain Black Oil Crystal stably and in large quantities, you must ultimately rely on yourself to establish a considerable level of alchemy industry system, and gradually concentrate and refine it by refining ordinary Black Oil."
Garos was thinking silently in his heart.
Once something like desire is ignited, it is like a boulder rolling down from the top of a mountain. Once it starts, it is difficult to curb its momentum.
Garos clearly remembers that when he was still weak, Hatchling Dragon was lucky enough to drink some ordinary Black Oil, which was enough to satisfy him for a long time.
But things are not what they used to be.
Now he has the resources of Borderlands and Scale-Earth Rift Road. Ordinary Black Oil is no longer scarce for him, and his desire has also subsided.
Naturally, his eyes were fixed on the higher-level energy crystal - Black Oil Crystal.
However, although Princess Elina could not provide a large amount of Black Oil Crystal to show her sincerity, she was not completely unexpressed. She additionally presented Garos with a considerable amount of No. 98 Refined Black Oil.
This highly refined Black Oil is also a treasure that cannot be stably produced by the current Molten Iron Tribe due to its own technology.
Garos Use the sharp claw tip to easily pry open the sealing cap of a barrel of 98 Black Oil.
Instantly, an energy breath that was richer and more mellow than ordinary Black Oil, with a strange burning sensation, filled the air, stimulating his senses.
Without hesitation, he raised his huge head, opened his mouth full of sharp teeth, and took a few swigs!
The scorching energy like liquid flames rushed down his throat, as if igniting the blood in his body.
Immediately afterwards, Garos's strong tail covered with metal scales rolled up dexterously, and rolled up several bright gems containing abundant elemental power from the gem box next to it.
He took a deep breath and swallowed those gems together with another large mouthful of 98 Black Oil.
The elemental energy contained in the gem and the pure power of 98 Black Oil violently intertwined, collided and burned in the stomach pouch!
An indescribable feeling of comfort swept through my whole body instantly.
It's like the most blazing flames exploding in the internal organs, surging and surging!
"Cool!"
The low and contented dragon's roar echoed in the valley.
Garos's body is covered with scales, muscles are knotted, and blood is rushing and roaring like lava.
He would never waste this perfect opportunity.
Bloodburst! Bloodburst!
Accompanied by bursts of loud noises that were as dull as thunder and made the entire valley floor tremble, Garos began an extremely intense and almost masochistic exercise on the spot.
Time passes silently like the wind swirling in the valley.
Soon, a few days flew by.
On this morning, the sunlight was like molten gold, splashing generously on the tundra and coniferous forests of Ser Wilderness, and the sky showed an almost transparent clear blue.
In this quiet and brilliant morning light, Flower Knight Xia'er·Hines, who had been unconscious for a long time, his eyelids trembled slightly, and finally he slowly opened his heavy eyes.
The blurred vision is like glass covered with water mist, becoming clearer little by little.
The first thing he saw was the cold, rough gray rocky ground beneath him.
Then, the field of view slowly moves upward.
A huge, deep silhouette exuding an indescribable sense of oppression gradually focused and solidified in front of his eyes, and finally transformed into the majestic and strong Red Iron Dragon that he would never forget.
"The war has stopped."
Red Iron Dragon's eyes dropped calmly, looking down at Flower Knight who had just woken up and looked extremely weak.
"But this by no means means the end."
Garos continued, with no emotion or anger in his voice. "The timing was not suitable for you and me last time, but now, we can continue the interrupted conversation."
In the past few days, Garos has not just been exercising and digesting energy.
Through the secret visits and investigations conducted by the family members among the Creekwood Town adventurers in the past few days, it can be determined that this Flower Knight--Xia'er·Hines is actually a person with an excellent reputation and is deeply respected and respected by many adventurers.
Not just within the territory of Raymond Duchy.
Because he is friendly, enthusiastic and generous, and has good conduct, even if his own interests are harmed, he is still willing to lend a helping hand to the weak. Flower Knight enjoys a good reputation in the adventurer circle and is recognized as a famous brave man.
Garos asked straight to the point, "What is the relationship between you and Albert Family?"
Xia'er tried hard to calm down his newly awakened trance, and his voice was still a little weak. "I have received favors from the Albert Family."
He paused, supported his still aching body with his arms, sat up reluctantly, and continued, "Count Mills complained to me about the Molten Iron Tribe's tyrannical crimes, and begged me to resolve the matter for the Albert Family and regain the lost ground."
"In order to repay past kindness and to rescue the residents of Creekwood Town who are said to be in distress, I came here. However, after investigation, I finally found that the actual situation is quite different from what Count Mills described."
After hearing these narratives, Garos roughly understood the causes and consequences of the whole incident.
"That's it."
Red Iron Dragon's voice was full of unabashed mockery. "Another disgusting cliche story - a stupid knight who thinks he is righteous, is easily deceived by lies by a cunning and insidious noble lord, and travels thousands of miles to challenge Evil Dragon, just to serve as a cheap tool for the nobles to eliminate the thorn in their side."
"And I, Garos, unfortunately played the role of Evil Dragon in your story who was destined to be punished by justice."
"It's so boring."
Flower Knight doesn't think so.
He has traveled around for many years and has seen countless light and darkness in the world. He believes that he is not a newbie who is ignorant of the world.
"Dear Molten Iron King, I am more inclined to believe that there is some kind of deep misunderstanding."
Xia'er carefully considered the words and kept his tone sincere. "Mills is a philanthropic and kind-hearted lord who is well-known as a virtuous lord in the entire southern aristocratic circle."
"Every year, he spends a considerable portion of his family's income on charity, established several well-equipped orphanages, and adopted a large number of homeless street beggars."
"He is never stingy with measures to combat evil and uphold justice. He always donates generously and supports the Adventurer's Guild and local guards free of charge."
Xia'er's tone was serious as he continued, "Moreover, his attitude towards ordinary civilian farmers in his territory is also extremely kind, without any of the condescending and arrogant attitude of most nobles."
"Because of this, all the people in the Albert Family territory support this benevolent earl from the bottom of their hearts."
Xia'er looked at Garos with a sincere look. "Perhaps some people with evil intentions deliberately distorted the facts in front of the earl and blinded him, which led to the misunderstanding of you and this unfortunate conflict."
"Dear Molten Iron King, I, Xia'er·Hines, are willing to be a bridge of communication and do my best to eliminate misunderstandings between the Molten Iron Tribe and Albert Family and promote reconciliation between the two parties."
Reconciliation?
Could this be a joke?
Garos's huge head tilted slightly.
He clearly realized that the young knight in front of him might have experienced many adventures and seen some things about the world, but his perspective still stayed on the flashy surface, and he was confused by the virtues that the nobles carefully whitewashed, and failed to understand the colder and cruel truth hidden under that glamorous surface.
Talking about charity?
In the distant hinterland of Southern Federation, he also spent huge sums of money to establish Sparkfire Monastery through the secret channels of the Gem Merchants' Guild.
There are also a large number of homeless orphans and abandoned babies.
He gave those children a roof to protect them from wind and rain, food to grow, and books to receive education... In a sense, he also changed the fate of those people.
However, Garos never thinks that his actions are out of kindness.
Behind this seemingly benevolent gift, the price has already been clearly marked.
None of this is free giving.