Ferrum's voice fell silent, and his expression settled. He walked into the center of the field, lowered his body, arched his back, and assumed a fighting stance.
Opposite him, Kelaili was ready as well.
The Cobalt Dragon's limbs sank heavily into the earth. Muscles knotted beneath his scales, and his tail swayed lightly. At its end, a huge blunt tail mace gleamed faintly with an iron sheen.
Cobalt Dragons had very short limbs and necks. This strange body structure made it difficult for them to dodge or pounce in combat. Once a fight began, all they could do was crush and ram.
The flowing breeze gradually died away, and the Ironwood Forest no longer rustled, as though oppressed by the silent standoff.
On one side stood the aloof, icy Chrome Dragon. Though he was two meters long, his frame was not particularly large, even somewhat lean. Yet the bulging joints beneath his claws displayed his savage strength.
Spiked bone cones trembled faintly beneath Ferrum's neck and at the ends of his limbs.
Chrome Dragons' scales were exceptionally weak. These bone cones were their only protection, yet even structures meant for defense carried a ferocious air.
Seen from across the field, that Chrome Dragon resembled an unsheathed blade—precise, sharp, his entire body gleaming with cold knife-light.
The Cobalt Dragon opposite him possessed an entirely different presence.
Kelaili's body was so brawny it could almost be called bloated. Knotted muscles covered him from head to tail beneath thick, block-like scales, as though he wore a suit of armor. His presence was heavy as a mountain, like some colossal beast that had walked out of antiquity, carrying the primal savagery of dragons at their beginning.
Their observation of one another finally came to an end.
Ferrum bared his fangs. His already lowered body sank further, then he sprang forward.
His strides were enormous. When he ran, he resembled a swift great cat, reaching his top speed in mere seconds. He crossed the seemingly vast distance between them like a pale blur, whistling past the Dragon Hatchlings' eyes.
Moqi knew that, even compared with every Dragon Hatchling in Ochre Valley, Ferrum was unquestionably the fastest.
When other Dragon Hatchlings hunted Roe Deer, they often had to lure and ambush them. Ferrum simply did not care. The moment he spotted one, he pounced and grabbed it. When the Roe Deer blinked away and changed direction, he blinked away and changed direction too, treating the chase itself as training. Truly, a Chrome Dragon among Chrome Dragons, a monster among monsters.
"Don't lose."
Moqi clenched the gold coin in his hand, even more nervous than the two Heavy-Metal Dragons fighting on the field.
Ferrum blinked repeatedly, and the Cobalt Dragon was suddenly right before him. He changed directions again and again, charging from utterly opposite angles. Before Kelaili could even distinguish his movements, Ferrum had already circled behind him.
His muscles flowed like water, driving an entire chain of force. Ferrum's claws whistled through the air, aimed straight at the Cobalt-Blue Overlord's relatively vulnerable nape.
No matter what defenses the Cobalt Dragon was known for, if this strike landed solidly, even rock would be pierced through!
With the claws inches away, Kelaili finally reacted.
Fortunately, he was not an unmoving boulder. He immediately lowered his center of gravity, leaving sunken footprints in the ground. Centered on his spine, his entire back tensed and gathered power. Without dodging or yielding, he met the attack head-on.
The Cobalt Dragon unleashed a shoulder slam of immense force, his broad armored back crashing straight forward.
Both sides revealed what made them terrifying. Ferrum's claws merely gouged behind the Cobalt Dragon's neck, yet they immediately tore out bloody flesh.
But it was as if he had struck a solid block of iron. The tremendous backlash spread from his foreclaws into his chest, making his organs spasm and his bones go numb.
Ferrum twisted his body nimbly, swung around, and slid backward close to the ground, bleeding off the force while avoiding Kelaili's possible pursuit.
"Hiss, hiss, hiss."
Thin wisps of smoke rose from his claws. Ferrum lowered his head and discovered that the Cobalt-Blue Overlord's blood had corroded them. Their edges were dulling, and a burning pain spread through them.
Kelaili turned around to face Ferrum again. The muscles behind his neck writhed, forcibly sealing the wound so that it no longer seeped blood.
"I told you."
Kelaili snorted and smiled. "I'm not afraid of your claws."
Ferrum withdrew his gaze from his claws, his expression calm. "You Cobalt Dragons are all turtles."
Kelaili's expression changed. His smile vanished, and he looked a little angry.
Ferrum was not surprised that he had gained no advantage in their first exchange. His orange-yellow pupils flickered as he lowered his body and burst forward again.
He swiftly reached the Cobalt Dragon's side. Then his wing membranes flared wide, and he used air resistance to slide sideways, dragging the power of his whole body into a sweeping slash.
Kelaili had no time to react. He had no idea where the Chrome Dragon would come from. He only let out a muffled roar as the muscles throughout his body instantly tightened. Those block-like scales all flipped upward in reverse, bristling like a frightened hedgehog.
At a glance, they resembled countless cold, slightly curved reverse blades.
Ferrum's claws were too fast and too sharp, directly slicing off an entire section of Kelaili's wing membrane. Yet at the same instant, those upturned scales caught and locked them in place.
As Kelaili's muscles twisted violently, a terrifying tearing force erupted. Ferrum's keratinous claws collapsed amid the dense serrations, and blood sprayed out like a gushing spring.
Even under such agonizing pain, Ferrum remained calm to the point of coldness. He neither screamed nor roared. He merely made a swift decision, sacrificing the tips of four claws to forcibly wrench free and retreat explosively.
Kelaili seized the opportunity and gave Ferrum no room to catch his breath. The strongest overlord among the Cobalt Dragons bared his teeth with a low growl and rose into a seated posture. Those ferocious scales trembled again, ringing out with a dense clatter like bursting beans.
"Whoosh, whoosh!"
The next moment, the scales shot violently from Kelaili's body like bolts loosed from crossbows, like a thief's throwing knives. One after another they burst forth, blanketing Ferrum and locking him in.
Among the watching dragons, Hidorivi narrowed his eyes.
Near his jaw lay a hidden, savage blood scar. In their earlier battle, Kelaili had used his launched scales to cut open part of his windpipe, leaving Hidorivi unable to fight no matter what. In the end, he could only show weakness and admit defeat.
That was why he had warned Ferrum, telling him, "Watch out for his scales."
But the Iron Dragon could not evade such an attack. Ferrum could. His figure raced beneath the scales' lock, pushing his speed to the limit. He twisted and darted without warning, sometimes crouching low, sometimes leaping high, moving in every direction through three dimensions without even giving Kelaili a chance to predict his route.
Beneath the storm-like barrage, Ferrum streaked forward at high speed, enduring immense pressure as he closed in on Kelaili once more.
Seeing that the flying scales were ineffective, Kelaili finally abandoned the move. After all, he could not fire every scale from his body. If he did, he would become a lamb bleating as it awaited slaughter, utterly without protection.
After the fight, I'll have to collect those scales again, Kelaili thought.
Battles between Heavy-Metal Dragons had always been brutal clashes of flesh and force. In another savage exchange, a ferocious wound appeared on Kelaili's chest. At the same time, he repeated his old trick and crippled Ferrum's kicking hind claw.
The two finally pulled apart, falling into a brief pause for breath.
Ferrum stood atop a rock, a faintly thoughtful expression on his face.
He looked at his foreclaws. The claws remained, but the keratin at their tips had been ruined, robbing them of their former sharpness. Thin strands of blood still seeped out without end.
He more or less understood Kelaili's fighting style now. The Cobalt-Blue Overlord was like a war fortress, using defense as offense. He intended to trade injuries again and again, crippling Ferrum's proud claws and fangs until he was driven into a corner.
"He's a good opponent."
Ferrum drew a deep breath, swallowing an immense volume of air into his lungs.
That scorching savagery surged up again. His rushing blood granted him unending strength, and surging vitality filled his chest, leaving Ferrum feeling both exhilarated and fulfilled.
He extended his damaged claws and slowly reached behind his neck. Then he tugged hard, ripping out a sharp bone cone. Flesh still clung to its base, but the Chrome Dragon gripped it with all his strength around the finger bones, holding it backward in his claws like a crimson dagger.
Ferrum lowered his body again. It trembled slightly, from pain, but even more from excitement.
Kelaili saw this scene, raised his head, and let out a heavy, vicious roar at the Chrome Dragon.
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