The Ancient Forest was truly enormous. Even after Luo Yun and Ya Ji had flown for an entire day, the Ancient Tree in the distance had only grown somewhat larger in their view.
They occasionally stopped along the way to forage and drink. Though some fools would occasionally charge up to drive them away, what awaited them was a double-team from the male and female fire dragons.
Especially this Great Jagras that did not know its place. At only sixteen meters long, it was severely injured by Ya Ji's Dragon Charge, then Luo Yun easily bit through its neck.
This effortless battle made Luo Yun realize what kind of monster the Great Jagras he had been harassing for the past five years truly was!
Not only was it larger than ordinary Great Jagras, but its fiery breath did not need to build up flames like this ordinary Great Jagras did. It could breathe fire whenever it wanted, and the stream lasted far longer. He had never seen its throat get scorched.
Most importantly, after this ordinary Great Jagras barely managed to spit out one breath of fire—which Luo Yun's Fire Attraction trait could even absorb—it actually fell into a brief state of exhaustion. Not only did its heat-dispersing membranes retract, it even stood there panting?
This was a fight to the death! It had only used one ultimate move, and it was already spent?
Could anyone believe that?
Without another word, Ya Ji transformed into a giant green truck with a gradient sheen and rammed the panting beast flying. It lay on the ground for a long while, unable to get back up, and Luo Yun walked over, flames wrapped around him, and bit through its neck in a single bite.
That would have been completely impossible with that Great Jagras. Luo Yun had seen that fellow spread its heat-dispersing membranes, breathing fire everywhere. After a friendly exchange with Luo Yun, it could still maintain that state and easily drive away any carnivorous dragons that dared enter its territory.
In terms of stamina, that fellow seemed to be on berserk medicine all day long, as if it had endless energy. It was either fighting or on its way to fight, never showing the slightest sign of weakness.
In terms of defense, even Luo Yun's diving strike, accelerated and boosted by the three traits of Body of Flames and Herculean Strength, could only knock it over and tear open a fairly deep wound. Yet that fellow could roll over and get right back up, launching a counterattack against Luo Yun.
This one could not even withstand a single Dragon Charge from Ya Ji. Its neck was as brittle as a crispy shark snack, snapping with one bite. Even the skin on its neck could be carbonized by the flames surrounding Luo Yun.
He did not know whether this Great Jagras was simply too weak, or whether this was the true strength of an ordinary Great Jagras.
Even Ya Ji found it somewhat surprising.
It was not really Luo Yun and Ya Ji's fault. Their previous nest had simply been in too ideal a location. There were few threats nearby, and plenty of hunting grounds within reach.
The creatures they encountered while hunting were usually monsters lower than them in the Ecological Niche. The moment those monsters saw Luo Yun and Ya Ji, they immediately fled. Even the few battles they had fought had mostly involved driving others away through intimidation.
This Great Jagras had been so bold because it likely believed that, as an adult, battle-hardened Great Jagras, it would have a sure victory against a subadult Female Fire Dragon skilled in land combat and a juvenile Male Fire Dragon. At worst, it should have been able to drive them from its territory.
It had not expected to encounter a Veteran Female Fire Dragon who, at less than nine meters long, could clash head-on in a Dragon Charge with an adult Poisonous Bird without losing ground, along with a Male Fire Dragon who was practically cheating.
That single miscalculation not only made the battle completely one-sided, but also cost it its life.
"Mm... It tastes terrible."
After tearing through the Great Jagras's thick hide, Luo Yun took a bite of meat. He chewed a few times, then did not take another bite.
If Herbivore Dragon meat was rated A-grade—tender, delicious, and crystal-clear—then Great Jagras meat was probably only C-grade. The texture was tough and dry, like chewing on an overcooked steak from his previous life. It tasted bad and was hard to chew, only barely edible.
Ya Ji also stopped eating after one bite. They had stopped at a good water source, and Herbivore Dragons or Diablos generally came here to drink. Since they did not lack prey and were not particularly hungry, waiting a while did not matter.
Luo Yun spread his wings and flew into the sky, while Ya Ji strolled into the nearby woods and lay in ambush.
Just after the two left, a pack of Jagras darted out and began tearing at the Great Jagras's corpse.
Before long, the parts with the best meat and the greatest amount of flesh had been ripped off and carried away by the Jagras. Only half a body and a skeleton remained, waiting for the Hate Birds to arrive.
Within roughly a day, no trace of this Great Jagras would remain on the continent.
No creature would remember it, not even Luo Yun and Ya Ji, who had killed it.
This Great Jagras was merely a minor episode during their migration. Neither Luo Yun nor Ya Ji took it to heart. That night, they casually found a high spot, nestled against each other, and fell into a deep sleep. The next day, they continued their migration.
Such days repeated for five days. On the sixth day, Luo Yun and Ya Ji were forced to fly higher. The closer they came to the Ancient Tree, the taller the surrounding trees and terrain became.
This was different from his previous life. In that world, the importance of sunlight and soil to plants went without saying; the larger a tree was, the smaller the trees around it tended to be.
But in this Ancient Forest, the opposite was true. The closer one got to the Ancient Tree, the denser the vegetation became.
All of this came from the energy unique to this world—Earth Vein Energy. Or, more precisely, the Life Energy carried within the flowing earth veins!
The source of Life Energy could not be traced. More scholars believed it was a gift from nature, and the creatures containing the greatest and most representative amounts of Life Energy were those known as Elder Dragons.
The place where the Ancient Tree had rooted itself was the largest Ley Line Node in the Ancient Forest. Earth Vein Energy was most concentrated here, which was why the plants flourished more vigorously and the creatures living here were also stronger.
The fire dragon population occupied most of the upper regions of the Ancient Tree through their strength and numbers. With the advantage of their location, their hunting range was broader and raising young was safer.
Their only flaw was likely the lack of rivers and streams on the Ancient Tree. Therefore, most fire dragon families chose to build reservoirs beside their nests, collecting and retaining rainwater to meet their need for water.
As foreign fire dragons arriving outside the breeding season, Luo Yun and Ya Ji would be excluded even though they were of the same species. Therefore, if they wanted to build a nest on the Ancient Tree, they either had to fight. If they won, they could not only take over the other party's nest, but no other dragons would come trouble them.
Or they could obediently admit defeat and choose a new nesting site in one of the areas beside the Ancient Tree.
In the world of monsters, the strong could have everything.
Sorry, everyone. My home internet inexplicably went down yesterday and was only fixed today. I'm working hard on writing now, and I'll definitely make up for yesterday's update.
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