Dragon's Temptation

The lingering glow of the western sun had yet to fade when stars already emerged beneath the gray-blue canopy in the east.

In the interval where Light and Dark wrestled, Garos soared through the sky with scarlet flames enveloping his wings. After circling briefly, he dove toward the foot of a barren mountain.

The ground was riddled with deep pits of varying sizes.

The mountainside was covered in signs of collapse and fracture.

Cracks like spiderwebs and lightning densely crisscrossed the entire area, nearly everywhere.

This place was Garos's newly chosen Training Ground.

It was relatively remote, surrounded by barren mountains and wasteland, with few resources of any kind. As a result, no powerful creatures roamed here.

As for the place he had frequented before, where he had encountered the Copper Dragon, Garos had abandoned it just in case the aggrieved Copper Dragon returned with her parents to seek revenge.

He folded his wings, and the flames dissipated as the runes on his wing rings dimmed.

High on Black Oil, Garos shook his head, feeling as though he had boundless strength. He took a deep breath, used the Silver Frost Ring to exhale freezing air that hardened the mountainside, then, as usual, slammed into it with his body.

More than a week had passed since the Earth Spiders first brought back Oil Soil.

During that time, tunnels had been dug underground, allowing the Earth Spiders to travel much faster than before. From time to time, they returned with Oil Soil, which Samantha refined through Alchemy into Black Oil that gave Garos an exhilarating rush when he drank it. Though the amount was scarce and limited, it greatly improved Garos's training efficiency.

This one week was comparable to the previous month.

Combined with his earlier accumulation, his efforts had finally paid off.

He felt that he was about to evolve. Aside from the tingling sensation within and without his body, it was as if a blaze burned inside him. The most obvious change was that the edges of his originally gray-black Buffer Scales had taken on a faint, gradient-like branding-iron red. They were not sharp, but they carried intense heat and had become very easy to shatter.

"It seems the energy of the Black Oil stimulated these Buffer Scales to evolve in some unknown direction."

"They can still cushion impacts, but they've become more brittle and easier to burst apart."

"I wonder whether this next evolution will be good or bad."

Garos silently mused.

He could not precisely control the direction of his evolution. However, he had yet to experience any negative evolution. Feeling his gradually weakening Buffer Scales, Garos was not overly worried. Once the evolution was complete after some time, he would know their exact effects.

The Red Iron Dragonet collided with the mountainside covered in solid ice, producing a thunderous, muffled boom.

Some of the outermost Buffer Scales on his body burst and shattered, their spinning fragments gouging deep marks into the ice.

The freezing air emanating from the solid ice fell upon Garos and was swiftly vaporized by his high-temperature scales.

Amid hissing sounds like water and fire colliding, cold and heat grinding against each other, mist rose all around him and enveloped the Red Iron Dragonet. Only glimpses of his scales and claws could be seen through it, appearing and vanishing.

Whenever he had previously collided with the ice-covered mountainside, Garos would feel severe discomfort whenever ice chips or cold air touched his body—a piercing chill like countless needles stabbing him.

But after all this time training,

the icy, stabbing pain remained, though its effects had weakened somewhat.

He estimated that his resistance to ice had improved, at least to some extent.

The last traces of sunset gradually disappeared, and night fully blanketed the sky. While the Black Oil's energy had yet to run out, Garos continued training with his head down. Dull crashes rose one after another without end, echoing through the night.

Meanwhile,

in the Wilderness roughly ten kilometers from the Iron Fir Hills, five adventurers crossed cracked ground atop several nameless low hills, advancing deeper into the Wilderness.

Beneath the brilliant light of the twin moons, time slowly passed.

Before long, after the adventuring party crossed the last rocky ridge, they all noticed a relatively tall hill thickly covered in lush Iron Fir trees.

"The water in our storage rings is nearly gone."

"If vegetation can grow so luxuriantly on those hills ahead, there should be a water source."

The Blonde Warrior licked his somewhat dry lips as he spoke.

Exploring the Wilderness was no easy matter. Over this period, the group had encountered no fewer than ten battles of various sizes. Fortunately, they had not run into any overly powerful beasts or monsters. Other than a few abrasions, claw marks, and the dust of travel, they had suffered no life-threatening injuries.

"Wait."

The spellcaster suddenly spoke, then pulled a white crystal from his robes. It was heating up and glowing red.

In an uncertain tone filled with fear and greed, he said, "There seems to be... there seems to be a dragon's presence in the hills ahead."

At his words,

the other adventurers all sharpened their gazes.

"Havyn, are you sure?"

The Blonde Warrior lowered his voice as he asked.

"This crystal of mine has magic that senses dragon auras. It's a magical item. Whenever it approaches a place where a dragon's aura remains, it emits a corresponding warning light."

The spellcaster Havyn said, "A red glow means it is a fire dragon."

Thinking of dragons' strength and notorious reputation, the white-robed priest said quietly, "Then let's go around these hills. It would be terrible if we ran into a powerful dragon."

The spellcaster pondered for a moment. "Judging from the intensity of the crystal's glow, the dragon living here should not be too powerful."

Without concealing his desire and greed, he said, "If it's a Hatchling Dragon, or a weaker Adolescent Dragon, we have a chance of killing it—or even capturing it alive."

"Should we detour, or go investigate? What do you think?"

The Rogue played with her dagger and said,

"You've all heard about it, right? Not long ago, an Iron Dragonet was presented to the little princess of the Lothern Federation. The reward was more than an ordinary person could spend in ten lifetimes."

The matter had spread widely beyond the Wilderness.

The Necromancer chuckled. "That Iron Dragonet was captured in the Ser Wilderness. Many Evil Dragons dwell in this Wilderness, so there are quite a few Hatchling Dragons surviving on their own. I really want to catch one and turn it into a flesh puppet. I'd hold it while sleeping every day and arm it with the finest materials."

Every dragon represented an enormous fortune.

After some discussion, none of them could resist the temptation of "wealth." They decided to cautiously approach the Iron Fir Hills and investigate. If they confirmed that the target was not powerful, they would attempt a surprise attack and capture it.

If the target was absent, that would be even better. They could set some traps in advance.

Under the night sky, the group slowly approached the Iron Fir Hills.

Once they reached a certain distance, they stopped. The Rogue took out an Alchemy item resembling a telescope and used it to gaze toward the Iron Fir Hills, observing them closely.

More than ten minutes later,

the Rogue's body suddenly trembled, and her breathing grew much heavier.

In her field of vision, the figure of a red dragonet was clearly reflected. It had its rear in the air, scraping at the ground with its claws for some unknown reason. Its scales were as vivid as flames in the darkness, like glittering gemstones.

"Misair, what did you see?"

Noticing her unusual reaction, the Blonde Warrior urged her to answer.

The Rogue strapped the Alchemy item to her waist and could not help smiling, revealing a mouthful of white teeth. "I saw a fortune beyond measure."

The Alchemy relic from the rumored abandoned mine?

Once they caught this Red Dragonet, they would not even need it. This trip into the Wilderness would leave them overflowing with riches.