Ferrum looked at Moqi. Quite a few of Moqi's scales had been torn off, exposing bare skin beneath. They hung crookedly from his body as he drooped his head, looking like a limp seal—somewhat pitiful and utterly ridiculous.
Ferrum kept a straight face. "How did you end up like this?"
"If you want to laugh, just laugh."
Moqi shot him a glance and said gloomily, "I went to ask the Nurturer. It turned out her original punishment was only meant to have me guard the drying shed for three months, but once she got busy, she forgot all about it. So I squatted there for half a year for nothing and got cornered by that bastard Leijieduolei."
"Leijieduolei?"
Ferrum lowered himself and thought for a moment. "He spent all that time waiting by the drying shed just to pick a fight with you?"
"Yeah. He still remembered that I mocked him before. He calls himself an Iron Dragon, but he sure is petty."
Moqi shook his head. "I was actually fine. The Thunderclap Dragon was worse off. Who knew where he came from, but Leijieduolei beat him badly enough to make him cough blood."
"In Tas. That was the name the Nurturer gave him."
After a brief introduction, Ferrum asked again, "Did Leijieduolei say anything after fighting you?"
"He said even if the Thunderclap Dragon and I attacked together, we still wouldn't be enough."
"Anything else?"
Moqi shook his head. "Nope."
"You're lying."
Ferrum narrowed his eyes at Moqi. "After I defeated Leijieduolei, he's been mocked by the other Dragon Hatchlings. He must still resent it. We're brothers, and he even remembered you making fun of him. Would the thing he cared about most really be something he didn't mention to you at all?"
"Um..."
Moqi hesitated. He had not intended to repeat those words, because Ferrum had been immersed in his own world lately, always keeping to himself. Moqi did not know whether Ferrum still wanted to fight Leijieduolei.
What if Ferrum didn't want to get tangled up with the Iron Dragon anymore?
Wouldn't passing on those words be like throwing him into the fire?
But now that Ferrum was staring at him, with a gaze almost like the Nurturer's, Moqi realized he could not hide anything at all.
"Leijieduolei said that half a year has passed, and he's completely had enough."
Moqi sighed. "Actually, that guy is pretty pitiful too. He lost that one fight and has been stuck with the nickname of disgrace of the dragon flock ever since. Even when he cornered me, he knew not to interfere with my work. If he really wanted to cause trouble, he could've..."
"You've been beaten black and blue, and you still have the mood to sympathize with other dragons."
Seeing him ramble on, Ferrum could no longer hold back his laughter. He rose to his feet. "I'm going to find Leijieduolei."
"Huh?"
Moqi froze, then hurriedly got up as well. He studied Ferrum's expression and hesitated. "Maybe... we should forget it?"
"I know your strength has been improving by leaps and bounds lately, and you can definitely beat Leijieduolei easily. But his two brothers really aren't easy to deal with. Just looking at them makes your heart tremble."
Moqi spoke cautiously.
"Yeah."
Ferrum nodded in agreement and said quietly, "Leijieduolei has always been obsessed with his previous defeat. So have I. He wants to defeat me and erase that shame, while I want to defeat his brother, Hidorivi. I've been waiting for this day for a long time too."
Moqi looked at his sharp, powerful frame, at the bone spikes gleaming coldly in the shadows. After thinking for a while, he still lacked confidence. "Ferrum, Hidorivi... is currently the second-strongest in Ochre Valley."
"Second? Second in what?"
"The strength rankings."
Moqi described it vividly. "Those Iron Dragons do nothing all day but fight. You fight me, I fight you. They fought for an entire year and came up with a strength ranking. Hidorivi is second among the Iron Dragons, so naturally he's second among all the Dragon Hatchlings too."
"Hidorivi is second. Who's first?"
"Jelierion, of course. That's why I said they aren't easy to provoke."
Moqi bared his teeth. "Of the three brothers, Leijie is the only useless one. The other two are seriously strong."
"That's not right. Shouldn't Ladon be first?"
"Ladon isn't in the rankings."
Moqi thought for a moment. "I haven't seen him in a long time. I heard he doesn't play with the Dragon Hatchlings anymore. He's learning how to fight from the Nurturer."
"Learning to fight is good. I want to learn too."
Ferrum responded, then nodded again and made up his mind. "No matter what, I'll beat Hidorivi first."
"There's one more thing."
Moqi reminded him, "The three of them are Ember Scar dragons, after all. They'll eventually become the masters of this land. If we really anger them, our days in the family probably won't be easy later."
Ferrum looked at Moqi for a few moments, then vigorously rubbed his head. "We're not Chromatic Dragons. In the world of Heavy-Metal Dragons, where would all that scheming come from? It's just a fight. Don't overthink it."
"All right, then!"
Seeing Ferrum's firm stance, Moqi's attitude made an immediate one-eighty. He sprang up at once. "They've pissed me off! We have to beat them senseless today! Whether it's Leijieduolei or Hidorivi, from now on, whenever they see a Chrome Dragon, they'll lower their heads! I know where those guys are. I'll take you there right now!"
Sunlight slanted across the gravelly ground. Outside an abandoned mine, Dragon Hatchlings lay around in twos and threes, lazily sunning themselves with their tails swaying.
Even from far away, they could smell the charcoal-like scent clinging to the Iron Dragons.
As they drew closer step by step, Moqi gradually grew nervous. But when he thought of Ferrum beside him, he immediately gathered his courage, lowered his head, and led the way straight inside.
Dragons had a powerful sense of territory. Although the Dragon Hatchlings nominally possessed no property, after occupying this place for so long, the Iron Dragons had already regarded the abandoned mine as their territory. Seeing outsiders approach, they immediately turned their gazes over.
"Don't take another step forward."
An Iron Dragon nearby shifted from a prone position to standing, shaking dust from his body as he stared at the Chrome Dragons. "What do you two have to say by coming here?"
"I'm looking for Leijieduolei."
At the mention of that name, the Iron Dragons gave several low chuckles. But Ferrum continued without pause, "And his brother, Hidorivi Jinheng."
The Iron Dragons stopped laughing, their expressions shifting slightly. The Iron Dragon blocking the way looked Ferrum over twice, then stepped aside and cleared the path.
"Ferrum Solax."
Hidorivi strode forward, passing the Iron Dragon who had been blocking the way. He was large and steady in bearing, and compared with the others around him, his limbs were visibly thicker.
"I remember your name. I heard you've been working hard during this time. Now that you've come here, are you planning to challenge me again?"
"Hidorivi!"
Another Iron Dragon's voice came from nearby. Leijieduolei emerged from Ironwood Forest and growled, "He came for me."
Hidorivi turned his head, stared at Ferrum for a while, then looked at his brother and shook his head. "You can't do it. Let me."
"No."
Leijieduolei's attitude was unyielding. "I lured him here. I've waited for this moment for a long time. Today is the day I wash away my shame. In front of everyone, I'll prove to all dragons who the real disgrace of the dragon flock is."
Leijie rarely defied him like this. Hidorivi narrowed his eyes, and the scales on his face twitched faintly.
But after a moment of silence, Hidorivi finally nodded, giving his brother the opportunity, then walked to one side.
Under his lead, the other Iron Dragons slowly withdrew as well.
"You've said everything you needed to say."
Ferrum stood tall and nodded at Leijie. "Fight."
"Roar!"
Leijieduolei roared and charged forward at once. His heavy body trampled the earth, and the scales all over him crashed against one another with loud clanging sounds.
Ferrum darted forward, cutting in close alongside Leijieduolei. In the instant they crossed paths, the Chrome Dragon's tail and foreclaws shot out without warning, seizing the Iron Dragon's forelimb at the peak of his charge and twisting together with all their strength.
Leijieduolei's bite missed. He was immediately tripped, unable to resist the massive momentum of his own body as he toppled uncontrollably forward.
The Chrome Dragon followed immediately. Almost at the exact moment Leijieduolei hit the ground, Ferrum's claws pressed against the back of his neck.
The metal-like keratin claws pushed forward, instantly splitting scales and piercing skin. The sharp claw tips drew a little blood before stopping.
"You lost," Ferrum said.
Leijieduolei was already stunned. The moment he hit the ground, his vital point had been pinned. An icy sting spread across the back of his neck, as if invisible cold had enveloped him.
This was the first time he had experienced the Chrome Dragon's agility and sharpness. No Chrome Dragon had ever been this fast before, nor had one ever pierced an Iron Dragon's scales and hide so effortlessly.
His pupils trembled in disbelief.
"The duel hasn't even started!"
Leijieduolei shouted, "I wasn't ready yet! I was only trying to change positions just now. That wasn't my real attack."
Still just a Dragon Hatchling...
Ferrum found it somewhat amusing, but he did not argue. He withdrew his claws and released Leijieduolei.
"Fine. I'll give you another chance."
He slowly backed away to the opposite side and said, "If you lose this time, let Moqi beat you up to vent his anger."
Leijieduolei climbed up from the ground, shook the grit and dust from his body, and took a deep breath. He neither roared nor charged. He merely lowered his center of gravity, fixed his eyes on Ferrum's face, and approached step by careful step.
"Don't look at his face. Watch his claws," someone reminded him.
The two dragons faced off for a moment. Then Leijieduolei suddenly exerted himself. This time, he did not charge recklessly. Instead, he feinted with a claw, making a diversion. His true power gathered at his shoulder blade, carrying the full weight of his Iron Dragon body as he crashed down.
Ferrum avoided the claw strike. Seeing Leijieduolei's body bearing down on him, he advanced rather than retreated. He lunged low to the ground and slipped beneath the Iron Dragon's membranous wing.
Leijieduolei's shoulder slam missed. In the instant his center of gravity tipped forward, Ferrum had already reached his back, closing in on the Iron Dragon again like a parasite clinging to bone.
Ferrum's foreclaws climbed onto the Iron Dragon's neck and back. His elbow braced against Leijieduolei's spine, then pressed down fiercely.
Leijieduolei's neck creaked. His balance had already been unstable, and now, under the Chrome Dragon's full strength and weight, his four limbs could no longer support him. His legs buckled at once, and he dropped to his knees, kicking up a great cloud of dust.
Ferrum stood atop the Iron Dragon and stared down at him, his tone calm. "What do you say?"
"I..."
Leijieduolei mumbled indistinctly, "I..."
"I lost."
He was so ashamed that he did not even dare meet the other Iron Dragons' eyes. After admitting defeat, he hurriedly wriggled out from beneath Ferrum's feet, hanging his head as he ran to one side.
"Remember to go find Moqi."
Ferrum's voice came from behind him. Leijieduolei shuddered, but there was nothing he could do. He could only flee even faster in frustration.
Before you continue