Humiliation

The Nickel Dragons moved.

As pack-dwelling Evil Dragons, the Nickel Dragons had developed extraordinary coordination over their long time together. There was no need for commands or communication. The moment the first Nickel Dragon sprang up, the others followed close behind, launching themselves forward less than half a second apart.

Nickel Dragons were a small dragon species, far smaller than medium-to-large Chrome Dragons. During their Dragon Hatchling stage, they were only around one and a half meters long, yet every one of them was as nimble as a wolf pack.

They darted across the uneven gravel ground, grayish-white shadows weaving and crossing as they closed in from all directions.

Fangs, sharp claws, and dragon tails hooked like venomous scorpions.

Bido, the leader, charged at the very front. The black patch on his head had swollen purple, his viciousness laid bare. He pounced fast and hard, fangs aimed straight for Xilong's throat.

Within the shadows of the encirclement, Xilong suddenly turned.

There was no earth-shaking commotion. Bido only saw the Chrome Dragon flicker like a ghost before its outline vanished from his sight.

His pounce landed entirely on empty air, and the fangs that had targeted Xilong's throat lost their mark completely.

Then a cold, ruthless claw edge suddenly slashed straight down beside his cheek.

Bido's eyes flew wide. He had only just landed, but without a second thought, he tucked in his head and rolled directly across the gravel, barely evading it.

Even so, the sharp claw tips still grazed Bido's face, carving a deep, long wound into it.

Blood immediately burst forth, smearing across his entire face.

So fast.

Bido's heart clenched. This was his first time facing one of the powerful dragons in the valley. Such swift claws, such sharp talons—if that strike had landed, would it not have sliced open his throat as well?

At that thought, Bido's expression changed at once. A nameless terror seized him. This felt entirely different from the usual Dragon Hatchling scuffles. This guy... was he actually trying to kill them?

"Chrome Dragons are the most evil Heavy-Metal Dragons. They delight in slaughter and revel in destruction."

A description from the Dragon Legacy suddenly surfaced in his mind.

Bido shook his head, forcibly suppressing the panic in his heart. So what if it was a Chrome Dragon? No matter how vast the gap between dragon species, they were all Dragon Hatchlings now. One against many was no great threat.

A ring formed by five Nickel Dragons—forget Chrome Dragons, even if an Iron Dragon came, they would dare to take a bite out of it.

"Roar—"

Yet before Bido could recover from his thoughts, he suddenly heard a shrill roar of pain.

One Nickel Dragon had rushed too eagerly. Before its companions could get into position to cover it, it still tried to force an attack without anyone drawing the Chrome Dragon's attention.

It paid the price at once.

Xilong's claws were too fast and too accurate. Bido had not even seen how they came down. He only heard a tearing "shhk," like a gleaming blade flashing past and slicing through leather without resistance.

The approaching Nickel Dragon was too slow to evade. Its grayish-white foreclaw had only just stretched out when a colder claw edge sheared it off at the root.

Its sharp right claw was severed just like that. Every claw-toe had been sliced off in an instant, the cut smooth as a mirror, exposing stark white bone within as blood spurted like a fountain.

Only after crashing to the ground did the Nickel Dragon let out a hysterical wail.

What Dragon Hatchling could endure such pain? Its strength collapsed in an instant, and it could no longer even crawl back up.

"Watch... his claws!"

Bido's voice was savage, nearly ground out through clenched teeth.

However, while Xilong focused on attacking, an opening appeared behind him as well.

A Nickel Dragon leaped directly onto Xilong's back, stepping on his membranous wing before viciously biting down on his cervical spine. Hooked fangs pierced through scales and sank into flesh.

This Nickel Dragon was very clever. Before Xilong could turn around and bite it, it immediately sprang backward to escape. Having succeeded with one blow, it showed no hurry to press its advantage.

Thin streams of blood trickled down.

It was Chrome Dragon blood—deep red and scalding hot—running down bright scales and dripping into the filthy, chaotic Shattered Stone Grounds.

The Nickel Dragons immediately erupted into sharp hisses.

They had no time to pity their fallen companion. Instead, they all became wildly excited. Just as Bido had said, so what if Xilong was a Higher Species? He bled just the same.

The so-called second strongest among the dragon pack was, in the end, merely a record of one-on-one fights. Once they truly entered the roaring chaos of battle, who would win and who would lose was still unknown.

The Nickel Dragons let out low growls, all staring into Xilong's eyes, hoping to see panic and fear within them.

The moment Xilong showed such an expression, they would know they were about to win this battle.

Yet surrounded by dragons on every side, Xilong merely slowly twisted his neck. His breathing was long and steady, and there was neither pain nor panic in his eyes.

Instead, there seemed to be a trace of...

Excitement?

There was no time to feel the emotion he revealed, because Xilong moved on the very next second.

He no longer waited in place. He was going to hunt in reverse. Facing the encirclement of four Nickel Dragons as it steadily tightened, he charged straight in without the slightest hesitation.

"Roar!"

The Nickel Dragons roared in response.

Dust filled the air across the Shattered Stone Grounds. Dragon shadows crossed and intertwined, blood spraying in all directions.

The Nickel Dragons' fangs, claws, and tail spikes gradually left more and more wounds across Xilong's body.

Yet as time passed, the Nickel Dragons discovered in terror that the bleeding, wounded Chrome Dragon was not shrinking back with his injuries. On the contrary, he became more and more unrestrained, more and more frenzied.

Xilong neither hissed nor roared. He simply pressed his attack calmly. Of course he was injured, but he traded those injuries for fiercer assaults.

When a Nickel Dragon bit him, he tore a chunk of flesh from it. When a Nickel Dragon clawed off a piece of his flesh, he sliced it open outright.

Amid the thick stench of blood, the Chrome Dragon raised his head to breathe, pouncing and vaulting, charging with a howling rush.

"N-no more fighting."

Xilong had never been afraid, so the only ones left to fear were the Nickel Dragons.

This Nickel Dragon could not help being afraid, because aside from Bido Xinoz, who still stood in the rear, all of its companions had fallen, and it itself was held in Xilong's claw!

"No more fighting!"

It shrieked in a distorted voice. "Boss Xilong, we surrender! We surrender! You can do whatever you want, anything you want!"

But it was already too late.

Gripping the Nickel Dragon, Xilong twisted and sliced, cutting its wing membrane to ribbons before tossing it aside.

Like throwing away a grayish-white rag, he did not look at it again.

The Nickel Dragon hit the ground, gritting its teeth from the pain. The injury was not overly severe, yet blood spread into a great pool in an extremely short time, and the pain was beyond description.

Click, click.

Xilong tightened his powerful hind claws, gripping the gravel ground firmly.

With such support, the Chrome Dragon actually rose upright, walking across the ground on only two hind legs.

Click, click.

Xilong's posture was agile. He slowly shook the blood from his foreclaws, tilted his head, and examined the last remaining Bido Xinoz.

He paced sideways, as leisurely as if strolling through a garden.

His body was also covered in gushing wounds, blood flowing without cease, yet that look in his eyes was like a predator inspecting a flock of sheep.

No, he was simply a mad demon walking into his slaughterhouse!

"Demon..."

Under Xilong's terrifying gaze, Bido completely broke down. He no longer had any ability to resist, only screaming incoherently, "You are a... demon!"

"Demon?"

Xilong considered it, then nodded faintly. "In the world of Chrome Dragons, Evil Dragons should be a name like demons or natural disasters. It should command respect, inspire fear, and even invite hatred. The one thing it must never inspire is a sense of lowliness or contempt."

"You do not count as Evil Dragons. You are only a pack of lackeys."

He suddenly stepped forward, seized Bido by the throat, and lifted the entire Nickel Dragon into the air.

The last trace of fighting spirit in Bido's heart was strangled out. He actually did not dare resist.

Not until Xilong drove his heavy-metal keratin claws into Bido's skull.

"Roar."

Indescribable agony struck. Bido's entire body stiffened as he shrieked, his tail lashing wildly behind him while he flailed all four claws with all his strength, scratching at Xilong.

But Xilong remained completely unmoved. He merely pressed down calmly with his claw, cold golden light flowing through his eyes.

"Ah—"

Bido trembled like a sieve, screaming without stop.

The other Nickel Dragons watched this scene, their bodies trembling as well. Some of them had not yet lost the ability to move, but cowed by Xilong's imposing presence, they did not dare step forward.

After a considerable time, Xilong finally released his claw-toes and threw Bido to the ground.

Bido howled in agony, curling into a ball like a boiled red shrimp, then writhing like an earthworm. He could not hold any posture, wishing only to burrow into the ground.

"I'll take this."

A piece of bone bounced between Xilong's claw-toes. He had actually gouged the black patch from Bido's head out together with a small piece of skull.

"From this day onward, if I hear you muttering my name again, then when we can leave Ochre Valley, I will kill every last one of you lackeys."

Xilong walked away, gradually disappearing into the distance. "That is the promise of a Chrome Dragon."