Xilong the Boss

Jili lay beside the stream, pressing hard on the still-twitching Roe Deer, her heart brimming with exhilaration and joy.

Roe Deer had become fewer and fewer in Ochre Valley. They were exceedingly wary and swift, vanishing without a trace at the slightest disturbance. Without some special talent, they were truly difficult to hunt.

Today, Jili did nothing but pit herself against these Roe Deer. Only after countless failures did she finally chase one relentlessly along the stream and catch it.

She held the Roe Deer down, panting in small breaths as she warily watched her surroundings.

Lesser Dragons were unlike True Dragons. They did not possess knowledge from birth, nor did they have the powerful bodies of Heavy-Metal Dragons. Though they were awakening magic power, they were still weak.

Therefore, they had to tread with the utmost caution through the valley. Otherwise, trouble would find them easily enough.

At that moment, a burst of chaotic noise came rolling down from the hillside.

Jili froze. She did not even need to look up; just from those shrill cries and that wildly smug commotion, she knew who had come.

Nickel Dragons.

Three or four Nickel Dragons bounced and leaped down to the stream, surrounding Jili on all sides.

They were not large, their scales a dull, lusterless ash-white. Crowded together, they looked exactly like a nest of rats freshly burrowed out of the mud.

The leader arrived first, with a crooked patch of black markings on his head.

Jili recognized him. Bido Xinoz, a scoundrel among scoundrels.

"Let me see. A Thorn Dragon called Jili, right? I remember all the Lesser Dragons' names."

Bido looked rather pleased with himself. Tilting his head, he swept his gaze over the Thorn Dragon's face, then looked at the Roe Deer before her. "Just as expected of a Lesser Dragon—good at hunting, like a hunting hound."

Instinctively, Jili dragged the Roe Deer farther beneath herself and pressed down harder with her claws.

She did not reply. The more one talked to these Nickel Dragons, the more worked up they became. They loved to twist reason into nonsense; saying even one extra word to them was asking for trouble.

"What are you hiding it for?"

Bido leaned closer, righteous greed gleaming in his small eyes. "The Nurturer hand out bloody meat to you every day, and your share is even bigger than ours. Is that still not enough for you? After eating bloody meat, you still jump out to steal our Roe Deer. Shameful. Everything in the valley will be eaten clean by Lesser Dragons like you."

As he spoke, he licked his teeth. "Hand it over. We watched from up there for ages, and we've been waiting so long our hearts are growing impatient."

A low growl rumbled from Jili's throat as she guarded the Roe Deer beneath her.

Yet even so, she knew perfectly well that once these Nickel Dragons had surrounded her, protecting her food would be exceedingly difficult.

She hated Nickel Dragons to the bone. Nickel Dragons were the weakest among the Heavy-Metal Dragons. They did not dare appear before the Royal Strain Iron Dragons, nor did they dare provoke the Higher Species Chrome Dragons and Cobalt Dragons. They only knew how to keep their eyes fixed on Lesser Dragons.

Wherever Lesser Dragons went, these Nickel Dragons bullied them. Like carrion-eating vultures, no matter how they were shaken off or avoided, they could never be escaped.

Jili was furious. She wanted to call for her companions. Some Lesser Dragons were also exceptionally gifted—Afterglow, In Tas, Leisen...

If they were here, they might not be unable to fight these Nickel Dragons.

Seeing that the Lesser Dragon had no sense of the situation, Bido could not be bothered with more nonsense. He flicked his head, and two Nickel Dragons immediately pressed forward, baring sharp fangs as they prepared to seize the prey by force.

A dull thud sounded from downstream.

"Hey."

A Tungsten Dragon approached, slapping the ground with their tail. Their scales were the blue-green of ironwood leaves. "Are you Nickel Dragons targeting Lesser Dragons for bullying again?"

The valley was not large, and there were many Dragon Hatchlings. Running into one another was an everyday occurrence.

Nickel Dragon Bido bared his fangs and turned to look at the Tungsten Dragon.

He felt somewhat annoyed, but he did not answer at once.

Tungsten Dragons ranked fourth among the Heavy-Metal Dragons. They were chiefly skilled at putting on a show, displaying mild and kind natures to please the Nurturer and draw close to the Royal Strains and Higher Species.

For that reason, these Tungsten Dragons received quite a bit of preferential treatment in the valley.

Sometimes even Iron Dragons would bring them along to play, making them rather troublesome to deal with.

Bido did not want to clash with a Tungsten Dragon.

"We're all friends, just playing together. It has nothing to do with you, Tungsten Dragon."

Bido changed his expression, grinning as he glanced again at the Lesser Dragon. "Jili, we've known each other for a long time, haven't we?"

"Who knows you?" Jili growled.

"Let her go."

The Tungsten Dragon pressed closer, lowering their horn-covered head. "You're trying to steal her wild prey. If you want Roe Deer, catch one yourselves!"

Bido narrowed his eyes. One Tungsten Dragon was nothing much; if they truly came to blows, he was not afraid.

It was simply that Tungsten Dragons had many companions. If things dragged on and a Higher Species was drawn over, all kinds of trouble would be unavoidable.

Fortunately, he had plenty of ways to deal with this.

"You've got some nerve."

Bido's expression abruptly changed. He glared fiercely, grinding his teeth. "You even dare point fingers at Xilong the boss's business."

Xilong.

The moment that name came out, the Tungsten Dragon was stunned. "You're bullying a Lesser Dragon here. What does that have to do with Xilong?"

"What do you mean, we're bullying a Lesser Dragon?"

Bido said darkly, "When Xilong the boss fought Hidorivi Jinheng, his wing membrane was broken. We're hunting food in the valley to deliver to the boss so his body can heal faster. But just as we surrounded this Roe Deer, this Lesser Dragon snatched it away. Tell me, how should this be settled?"

The Tungsten Dragon's expression shifted. They stared at the black patch on Bido's head and opened their mouth.

The True Dragon's bearing that had just risen from them actually shrank inch by inch.

"I... I don't believe you."

After hesitating for a while, the Tungsten Dragon still voiced doubt. "There have been too many rumors lately; every kind of story is being told. I heard that yesterday, some Nickel Dragons smashed a Lesser Dragon's nest, also for Xilong's sake. Did Xilong tell you to smash Lesser Dragons' nests? How could a noble Chrome Dragon mingle with Nickel Dragons?"

"That Lesser Dragon built its nest where the boss trains and blocked Xilong the boss's path. Of course it should have been smashed."

Bido replied smoothly, revealing a respectful expression at just the right moment. "Chrome Dragons are naturally noble. Compared to Chrome Dragons, we are like cinders beside gemstones. But Xilong the boss is proud. There are many things inconvenient for him to do himself, so we can only handle them for him."

As he spoke, he took the initiative to press one step closer. "Don't forget: Chrome Dragons, Cobalt Dragons, and Nickel Dragons are all evil dragons. Chrome Dragons are the most evil among the Heavy-Metal Dragons, born to be the leaders of Nickel Dragons. Didn't your Dragon Legacy tell you that?"

The Tungsten Dragon's momentum weakened further.

In the age before the Supreme Dragon Jialagedong had fallen, Chrome Dragons truly were the most evil Heavy-Metal Dragons, fond of slaughter and fervent in destruction.

Nickel Dragons, meanwhile, were the Heavy-Metal Dragons most like Chromatic Dragons. They liked to hide behind the scenes and commit evil through schemes and tricks. As for Cobalt Dragons...

Though Cobalt Dragons were called evil dragons, their reputation was actually fairly good. That would not be discussed for now.

"I..."

After hearing this, the Tungsten Dragon was clearly hesitant. They paused for a while, then said, "Wait here. I know Xilong's brothers, and I'll go ask them now. If I find out you deceived me, I'll come back and settle this with you."

In the end, the green-scaled Tungsten Dragon stiffened their neck, moved their gaze away from the Roe Deer, and quickly left the scene.

Jili lay in the wet mud, her expression changing with tangled emotions.

She listened to the Nickel Dragons and Tungsten Dragon speak, watched the Tungsten Dragon retreat and leave, saw the smug expressions on the Nickel Dragons' faces, and heard them invoke that name again and again. Suddenly, immense fury surged through her, nearly making her tremble.

"Awooo!"

Jili suddenly bit down on the Roe Deer. Without even chewing, she shoved the entire thing into her mouth, doing everything she could to swallow it in one gulp.

"Bastard!"

Bido was startled. A Roe Deer was nothing much, but he had wasted so much breath and finally coaxed the Tungsten Dragon away—only for the wild prey already in his grasp to be eaten by the Thorn Dragon. How could he allow that?

"Spit it out! Damn it... bastard, let go! Let go!"

Several Nickel Dragons hurriedly rushed forward to snatch it away. But once the Thorn Dragon had clamped down, she refused to release it no matter what, continually forcing it deeper into her throat.

"Damn it!"

Bido flew into a rage. He lashed Jili across the face with his tail, then stomped viciously on her head. "You dare steal Xilong the boss's wild prey? Bite her to death!"

Countless fangs and claws rained down. Jili rolled amid the Nickel Dragons' assault, her skin splitting and flesh tearing in an instant as low whimpers escaped her.

Yet she still held the Roe Deer in her jaws, refusing no matter what to let the Nickel Dragons take it.

Xilong the boss, Xilong the boss.

Jili listened as the Nickel Dragons mentioned that name over and over again.

Of course she knew whom they meant: Xiron Solax, a lofty and aloof Chrome Dragon. Through his own efforts, he had defeated Hidorivi Jinheng and risen into the ranks of the Dragonflock's powerful, to the point that even Iron Dragons had to yield him the way.

His deeds had been woven into stories and spread throughout the Dragonflock.

Jili loved hearing Afterglow tell that story most. Every time she finished listening, she begged Afterglow to tell it again, then desperately committed those obscure and profound ancient dragon words to heart. It felt as if she had been stirred by something, as if she herself was not so bad after all.

But now, she was gradually unable to tell. She did not know whether the Xiron Solax in Afterglow's stories and the Xilong the boss in the Nickel Dragons' mouths were truly the same dragon.