The Half-Year Deadline

The afternoon sun hung lazily overhead, baking the drying shed until it gave off the dry scent of grass and wood, mixed with the pungent fragrance of tobacco leaves that drifted into his nostrils in waves.

Moqi lay sprawled on the open ground outside the drying shed, idly swishing his tail. It traced unconscious lines through the mud, drawing crooked shapes.

Sounds of play and roughhousing drifted from afar, faint and indistinct, as though they had floated over from Eaglebeak Cliff.

Moqi's ears twitched. He immediately got up, craning his neck to peer in that direction.

He saw nothing.

He withdrew his gaze, rolled over on the ground, and lay on his back watching the sky for a while. Then he flipped over onto his belly again, casually plucked a handful of grass beside him, and rubbed it between his claws. He felt as restless as if cats were scratching inside him, uncomfortable all over.

"This is miserable."

Moqi scratched his chest twice and let out a heavy sigh.

Back then, driven by greed and curiosity, he had cautiously stolen several bundles of tobacco leaves from the Gray Dwarves' drying shed. He had thought no one would notice, only for the Nurturer to catch him almost immediately and tie him to a rock wall for a beating.

The beating would have been one thing, but the Nurturer had also issued an order: whenever the Gray Dwarves went down into the mines each day, Moqi had to guard the drying shed. If any more tobacco leaves went missing, all of it would be blamed on him.

Moqi had been deeply unwilling, but he did not dare disobey the Nurturer's command. He could only remain near the drying shed every day.

And just like that, more than half a year had passed in the blink of an eye.

At first, those annoying Dragon Hatchlings had learned about it and often come over to mock him. Plenty had also tried sneaking around and causing trouble by stealing the tobacco leaves, leaving Moqi scrambling. But after enough time passed, everyone grew used to it and gradually stopped bothering to come. At last, his days became peaceful.

He did not actually find staying here particularly humiliating, nor did he hold a grudge against those troublemakers. But guarding the place day after day was truly exhausting to a dragon's patience. It was unbearably boring, leaving Moqi agitated and depressed every day.

He wanted to roam the mountains and plains like before, and he especially wanted to take part in the Racing Competition.

Ever since Ferrum had withdrawn from the races, the former situation where one dragon dominated without any suspense had vanished. Eaglebeak Cliff had instead become livelier, the competition fiercer, and the races more interesting than ever.

The Dragon Hatchlings nearing one year old had begun to reveal their own strengths. Relying on the Chrome Dragons' unique precision and agility, Moqi had gradually begun taking the lead in races and had even won first place several times. That sense of accomplishment only made him more enthusiastic.

Later, the young dragons of Eaglebeak Cliff had gathered together and copied the Iron Dragons' method of ranking combat strength, creating a Racing Competition ranking as well.

Moqi knew full well that he had no place in Ochre Valley's combat rankings, but he had a real chance of competing for the racing rankings. If he could take first place ten times, he could carve his name into the large stone slab at Eaglebeak Cliff's starting line. Just thinking about it felt impressive.

If he succeeded, he could invite Ferrum out for a challenge afterward.

Ferrum had not raced in half a year. Though he was a legend of Eaglebeak Cliff, he was bound to have grown rusty. By then, they would run neck and neck, evenly matched, until Moqi relied on his astonishing understanding of the mountain paths to claim victory by milliseconds... Ha ha, ha ha.

Thinking of that, Moqi could not help growing smug.

Speaking of Ferrum, they both bore the surname Solaxus and carried exactly the same blood. Yet Ferrum's talent was clearly greater. From the moment he had hatched, he had displayed obvious differences from the others. Not only were his claws and fangs sharper and his growth faster, but he was also exceptionally intelligent and hardworking. He trained without pause every day, and his strength had recently advanced by leaps and bounds. He could hang from a cliff with a single claw, leaving Moqi utterly dumbfounded.

Yet over the past half year, Ferrum seemed especially busy. Every time Moqi went to ask him to play, he said he had no time or that he wanted to rest.

Without a playmate, Moqi was naturally unhappy. Whenever he had the chance, he followed behind Ferrum to see what he was actually doing.

He discovered that the guy not only climbed cliffs every day, but also ran to Bay Lake to swim and dive, beating the water with his membrane wings. Then he went into Ironwood Forest to step onto ropes, swaying as he walked across them.

Good heavens. Forget trying it himself—just watching made Moqi's eyes feel dry and his entire body weary.

Speaking of walking ropes in Ironwood Forest, there had been an extra incident.

That rope had originally only been a zipline the dwarves used to transport supplies quickly. Moqi and Ferrum had discovered it together half a year ago. Ferrum had cautiously stepped onto it to test it and said it seemed sturdy enough to bear a Dragon Hatchling's weight, so he had planned to add it to his training regimen.

But when Ferrum truly stepped onto it, he had only struggled a few times on the zipline to maintain his balance before it snapped at once. The wooden stakes at both ends and the narrow bridge collapsed with it, crumbling apart and plunging into the stream below.

Disaster had struck.

When the Nurturer learned that the bridge had been destroyed, Ferrum naturally received a vicious beating. Moqi, standing nearby, was scolded too badly to dare utter a word.

But when they returned a few days later, they found that the Gray Dwarves had already repaired the wooden stakes. They had driven Ironleaf Wood trunks, so large that two people would have needed to wrap their arms around them, deep into the earth. The thin, fragile hemp rope had also been replaced with glossy sinew cord.

It was military material used for making ballistae and catapults, exceptionally tough. Unless someone deliberately cut it with a sharp blade, it would be almost impossible to damage.

Because Dragon Hatchlings were everywhere in the valley, metal items were generally stored away properly. Though sinew cord was not iron chain, it was far more valuable.

From then on, Ferrum's life became ever more disciplined. His strength visibly grew greater, and he became larger as well.

Now whenever Moqi went out, the Dragon Hatchlings no longer called him by name. Instead, they called him Ferrum's brother, and some directly called him Ferrum's little brother.

In truth, Moqi had hatched even earlier than Ferrum. But if the two stood together now, no one would say that gray, dull-scaled, smaller Moqi was the elder brother. More than that, they would probably seriously question whether the two were even related by blood.

Having a brother like that was truly...

Wonderful!

He did not feel jealous in the slightest. Instead, he felt delighted and wished Ferrum would become stronger and stronger. Ideally, Ferrum would swat down Hidorivi and Jelierion with one slap, then challenge that monster with absurdly powerful blood.

If he succeeded, Moqi would be able to hold his head high as well, strutting past those Iron Dragons. From then on, whenever he saw them, he would look at them out of the corner of his eye!

It was just that recently, a Thunderclap Dragon had somehow kept following Ferrum around. Whatever Ferrum did, the Thunderclap Dragon did too, as though it wanted to steal his brother away. Thinking of that made Moqi a little unhappy again.

Time passed bit by bit, and the angle of the sunlight gradually shifted. The grass roof of the drying shed cast long shadows across the Red Earth, while footsteps and voices began to come from the mines. The Gray Dwarves had finished work and were making their way down the mountain paths in twos and threes.

Moqi immediately stopped daydreaming. He looked up at the sky and felt there was still some time before dinner, enough for him to play a few rounds in the Racing Competition.

Before he had even finished the thought, he was already on his feet, stretching his limbs and eagerly heading toward Eaglebeak Cliff, his tail swinging happily.

Just as he was about to head up the mountain, the path ahead was suddenly blocked.

Leijieduolei stood there with his membrane wings slightly spread, his scales gleaming dark iron in the evening light. His gaze fell from above onto Moqi.

He was unhurried, as though he had been waiting for a long time.

"Have you finished the Nurturer's work?" Leijieduolei asked.

"Of course." Moqi stopped. "What do you want?"

"Good. Then you're finished."

Leijieduolei rolled his neck. "I remember every word you said when you mocked me. Now that I'm standing in front of you, you're asking what I want?"

Moqi's heart skipped a beat. He glanced around but found no one to help him. "I don't want to fight."

"But I do."

Leijieduolei took a step forward. "Don't say I'm bullying you again. One on one—if I don't beat you until you can't crawl today, I'll give you the Ember Scar surname."

"Who wants your surname? If you want to fight, then go find—"

Before Moqi could finish, Leijieduolei moved.

The Iron Dragon's massive body barreled forward like a toppling boulder. Moqi twisted aside to evade, but failed to get clear and was knocked flat to the ground by Leijieduolei.

Before he could fully rise, a gale howled behind him. Knowing the Iron Dragon's pursuit had arrived, he did not hesitate. As he turned and twisted, he swung a claw straight behind him.

Moqi's response was undoubtedly correct, but his strength was too weak. His claw strike only tore off a few of Leijieduolei's scales and failed to budge the Iron Dragon's body.

Leijieduolei seized Moqi's left and right shoulder blades like two iron pincers clamping shut, lifting the Chrome Dragon straight into the air.

Moqi hurriedly kicked his hind legs, only to discover that the difference in their size meant he could not even reach Leijieduolei.

The Chrome Dragon's agility was useless under direct suppression. Leijieduolei let out a low roar, slammed Moqi hard into the ground, and followed with savage stomps.

Moqi's entire body ached terribly, yet he could not escape. He could only cover his head, curl into a ball, and endure the beating while cursing Leijieduolei and his brothers over and over in his heart.

A black-and-yellow figure lunged in from the side.

The Thunderclap Dragon struck from a tricky angle, cutting in from behind Leijieduolei's side. It was unexpectedly fast, its body rushing low against the ground. The instant it closed in, the yellow patterns on its back flared brightly, tiny arcs of electricity flashing across them as it slammed solidly into Leijieduolei's ribs.

Leijieduolei was knocked half a step sideways. He released Moqi and turned around.

"A Lesser Dragon?"

Leijieduolei stared at the suddenly appearing Thunderclap Dragon, blasting two streams of white vapor from his nostrils. "Looks like I've been mocked for too long. Even a Lesser Dragon bastard dares bare its fangs at me."

"I said I would fight back someday."

The Thunderclap Dragon did not even look at Moqi on the ground. It only stared at Leijieduolei's face, lowering its body into an attacking stance as the patterns on its back glimmered faintly.

"I remember you now, Lesser Dragon."

Leijieduolei bared his fangs and growled. "But even the two of you together are no match for me."

Three exchanges in a row.

The Thunderclap Dragon was not slow and possessed some skill, but its strength was still lacking. It could not inflict effective damage on the Iron Dragon.

On its fourth attempt to attack, Leijieduolei had already predicted its movements. He allowed it to strike his back, then turned and raised a clawed foot, kicking the Thunderclap Dragon directly into the nearby mud pit.

The Thunderclap Dragon lay on the ground, struggling to rise, but Leijieduolei's huge jaws snapped down right after it.

The Iron Dragon was immensely strong. He bit down on the Thunderclap Dragon's back and lifted it entirely off the ground, then violently shook his head and smashed it against rocks and trees.

The Thunderclap Dragon did not make a sound. It only tried every possible way to claw at the Iron Dragon's neck. Not until it was covered in wounds and bleeding without end did Leijieduolei release his fangs, fling it to the ground, and spit out the broken scales and flesh in his mouth.

If he had truly been ruthless just now, he could have bitten through the Thunderclap Dragon's spine outright. But that was strictly forbidden by the leader.

Iron Dragons were not like Evil Dragons, unable to control their savagery. For Leijieduolei, this was already enough.

"One bastard, one fool. You two deserve to be together."

Leijieduolei looked down at Moqi and said viciously, "Go find that brother of yours. Tell him the half-year deadline is up. I've had enough. Tell him to come to the Iron Dragons' abandoned mine and reclaim the title of disgrace to the dragon clan."

With that, he turned and left without looking back.

"Hey."

After a moment of silence, Moqi finally sat up while clutching his head. He moved his limbs and felt soreness everywhere. Looking at the Thunderclap Dragon lying in the mud, he said, "Where did you come from...?"

The Thunderclap Dragon lay on the ground, panting for a long time.

It was much more badly injured than Moqi, but it did not stay where it was or speak to Moqi. Once it had regained some strength, it stood again, staggered away, and left on its own.