The Feeder's Task

When Xilong arrived at the gathering place, he found that many Dragon Hatchlings were already waiting there, hopping about and crying to be fed.

After quite a while, the small Kobolds finally filed out of their shacks.

They carried rocks of different shapes but similar sizes, carefully placing them before the Dragon Hatchlings before retreating as if fleeing.

Though Kobolds were born devoted and loyal to dragonkind, the scents in this place were far too chaotic. Great dragons, little dragons, True Dragons, Lesser Dragons—everything was mixed together, leaving them dizzy and staggering even as they walked. They could only keep their distance in reverence.

Xilong withdrew his gaze and looked at the rock before him.

The stone was a dark mingling of reddish brown, coarse in texture, its surface veined like blood vessels as it lay heavily pressed into the mud.

It was a piece of Hematite Ore.

Xilong reached out with a claw and prodded it twice. Heavy-Metal Dragons favored metal, and of course he liked ore as well. But liking it was one thing—this was mealtime. Surely they were not supposed to fill their stomachs with something this hard?

Not long ago, he had been thinking that the Lineage would not make Dragon Hatchlings eat dirt and gnaw trees. Had things really changed in barely half a day, replacing the daily measured portions of flesh with stones?

Above them, Jiazhuosa surveyed the Dragon Hatchlings, her gaze slowly sweeping over them, likely confirming the number of young. After a stretch of silence, she finally spoke.

"Six-month-old Dragon Hatchlings may begin training."

The Nurturer's voice was even. "These ores contain a certain amount of iron, yet they are not as hard as true blocks of iron. Now, I want you to bite them into pieces."

"The ancestors of Heavy-Metal Dragons believed that while Dragon Hatchlings had not fully developed, they could absorb the metallic elements within ore through the training of chewing it, making their fangs sharper and harder."

Every little dragon sat up straight, and silence fell for a moment.

Jiazhuosa bent down and picked up a piece of iron ore in her jaws. It was nearly as large as a Dragon Hatchling, yet between the Young Dragon's upper and lower jaws, it seemed insignificant.

The sound of the ore shattering was faint. What was heavy was the thunderous crash of teeth colliding, like two steel plates slamming together.

With a single bite, the Young Dragon crushed the ore. Her back teeth slowly ground, ruthlessly pulverizing both stone and metal between them.

After a while, Jiazhuosa finally opened her fangs. Fine powder seeped from between her teeth and fell onto the terrace, piling into a tall mound.

"Only this counts as perfection."

Having finished her demonstration, the Young Dragon sat upright again and looked around. "I will not force Lesser Dragons. But Heavy-Metal Dragons must at least bite their ore into six equal portions. Those who fail will receive no flesh for the next three days. This is your first training as Dragon Hatchlings. Let me see what you can do."

As soon as the Nurturer's words fell, Xilong saw Ladon make the first move from some distance away.

That Iron Dragon's full name was Ladon Longtan. He was currently the largest and strongest among the Dragon Hatchlings.

His scales had clearly gained a sheen, no longer bearing the dull matte look of young scales, as though he wore armor over his body. His fangs and claws had already taken impressive shape. Though he was only six months old, he did not resemble a juvenile at all, instead carrying something of a great dragon's imposing air.

Ladon bit down with force. The fin-like bony ridges along his spine flared violently, and the muscles in his neck bulged with every bite. The ore burst beneath his tremendous strength with cracking sounds. His breathing was heavy, and his chewing thundered loudly.

"Ah, at a time like this, I suddenly really want to become a Lesser Dragon."

Beside him, Moqi covered his head with his claws and let out a mournful sigh.

Though it looked hard to bite into, after hesitating for a moment, Moqi finally picked up the ore and stuffed one of its corners into his mouth. At the same time, the other Dragon Hatchlings began moving as well.

Before long, low hisses rose and fell throughout the valley.

Xilong saw a Nickel Dragon bite down too hard. Being the frailest to begin with, its mouth was immediately cut open by the ore.

They shrieked continuously in pain, spat out several mouthfuls of bloody saliva, then stared fearfully at the ore in hesitation, unable to continue for a long time.

Xilong withdrew his gaze and remained still in silence.

He thought of what had happened earlier.

Not long ago, Leijieduolei had lost to him and been mocked by the Dragon Hatchlings as "the shame of Iron Dragons," yet he had still sworn with absolute confidence that, after some time had passed, he would trample Xilong beneath his feet again.

It was not because Leijieduolei possessed extraordinary talent or worked especially hard, but simply because of the suppression inherent in dragon species.

As the royal species among Heavy-Metal Dragons, Iron Dragons had always faced Purple Dragons, Gold Dragons, and Red Dragons—the strongest members of other draconic races—as their rivals, rather than little dragons ranked beneath them like Xilong and the others.

Dragon inheritance told Xilong that rank could not be changed, and that the gap in talent was inevitable. Iron Dragons were destined to be powerful; Chrome Dragons and Cobalt Dragons were one degree weaker, while the other two kinds of Heavy-Metal Dragons were weaker still.

Because of this understanding, most Dragon Hatchlings could accept being effortlessly defeated by Iron Dragons with perfect peace of mind.

But Xilong was unwilling.

He had not been in this world for very long, and at present he had no grand ideals or ambitions. There was only one thing—

He did not want to fall behind the kind he lived alongside day and night, nor was he willing to be effortlessly suppressed and defeated by dragons his own age simply because they had waited to grow.

Because of that small unwillingness, Xilong had always been searching for ways to grow stronger. He had tried training his muscles, tried injuring and mutilating himself, and had even tried eating dirt and gnawing trees.

Unfortunately, some methods were completely useless, while others produced only meager results.

Still, he was willing to try. Jiazhuosa had said chewing ore could strengthen one's teeth, so naturally Xilong did not doubt her. So long as there was a chance to improve, he would take it seriously.

Just like those exercises that had produced little effect, Xilong persisted with them every day.

Xilong opened his fangs and began to bite.

This was the first time he had gnawed something so hard. It was far sturdier than the claws and scales he bit during fights. The moment he began wrestling with it, the vibration from his teeth spread from their roots all the way into his jawbone.

The edge of the ore was coarse and embedded itself in his gums, immediately drawing out a trace of bloody sweetness.

It hurt.

Xilong did not stop. He pinned the ore with his foreclaws, shoved one end into his mouth, pressed half his body over it, tensed his tail, and ground it with his back teeth.

Cracks appeared in the stone beneath his steadily increasing force. Before long, the cracks spread, and under the Chrome Dragon's repeated pressure, a piece finally broke away.

A strange flavor spread through his mouth. Beyond the bloody taste was the cold, damp taste seeping from the ore, carrying the bitterness of metal.

Xilong lowered his eyes and slowly ground with his teeth, tasting the ore. To his surprise, it had a certain flavor to it, as if some hidden ancient craving in his bloodline had been gently uncovered at one corner.

Time passed, and the sounds of biting in the valley grew sparse. More and more hatchlings gave up midway.

Several Nickel Dragons had stopped completely. Their mouths burned so fiercely that they could not endure it at all. They simply pushed their ore aside and curled up to show they accepted punishment.

Elsewhere, Moqi had only just bitten his ore into two pieces when three of his teeth snapped.

He hesitated and looked from side to side. First he looked at the Nickel Dragons who had given up, then he glanced at the silent Xilong beside him. After pondering for a long while, his eyes shifted.

He copied Xilong's posture and pinned the ore beneath himself, but instead of biting it, he secretly exerted all his strength and tried to break it directly with his claws.

Several times, the Nurturer's gaze swept over him. Moqi immediately stuffed the chunks he had broken off into his mouth. In his panic, he even swallowed them whole, pretending he had bitten them into powder and absorbed them.

From the corner of his eye, Xilong saw the fellow straining until his whole body looked miserable, lying there and twisting left and right, drenched in sweat and unable to sit still.

It was worth mentioning that, though the Nurturer had not forced them, one Lesser Dragon was actually imitating them and biting ore as well.

Behind Moqi, beyond the rows of Dragon Hatchlings blocking the view, a Thunderclap Dragon could be seen hunching low, its spine bent as it chewed slowly. Its progress was impossible to see, but the rise and fall of its back showed that it was still trying.

The best performers were still the Iron Dragons.

They developed faster than other dragon species. Their bodies were strong and their teeth even harder, and the relevant knowledge in their inheritance told them that the Nurturer's words were true. Thus, every one of them worked especially hard.

Seeing this, the pressure in Xilong's heart increased.

Because illness had tormented him in his previous life, he was actually very capable of enduring pain, which was why he had persisted. Yet he had not expected that not a single Iron Dragon would give up either.

Though they were all merely juveniles, they still displayed unyielding fighting spirit, each biting their ore into six pieces before stopping and completing the Nurturer's task.

Jiazhuosa looked down over the whole scene, her expression calm.

She was not surprised by the Iron Dragons' performance. Chewing ore was originally an Iron Dragon tradition. The little ones should have been able to crush ore at six months old; succeeding was only natural, while failing was what should not have happened.

Then she saw Xilong still working. This little Chrome Dragon had also completed the target, yet he continued, seemingly wanting to do even better.

Jiazhuosa watched for a while and nodded lightly, but said nothing.

Ladon was also watching Xilong.

By then, all the Iron Dragons had finished their training, but only Ladon had achieved the "perfection" Nurturer had described.

Expressionless, he looked down at the Chrome Dragon still gnawing away. He opened his fangs, and ore powder seeped from the gaps between his teeth, falling like drifting sand to the ground.

Xilong ignored those gazes.

His mouth was a mangled mess. Sharp grains rolled about inside it, as if someone had thrust a pointed knife into his mouth and stirred wildly.

The broken stumps and cracks in his teeth were horrifying to behold. The fierce pain spread through his nerves across his entire face, and some fine powder choked its way into his throat, truly giving him a sensation like being scorched by fire.

Xilong was much slower than the Iron Dragons. In the end, he still failed to grind the ore into powder, leaving behind many chunks neither large nor small.

But he could not continue any longer.

His teeth had all been damaged, losing their former sharpness and hardness. They could no longer grind ore. No matter how much he persisted, it would be futile and would only injure himself.

At last, the Chrome Dragon stopped, his mouth full of blood.

He opened his mouth and breathed heavily. Blood ran uncontrollably along his lower jaw, staining the sandy ground a dark red.