"..."
Xiluo stared at the Red Dragon Whelp, pondering for a moment before he spoke.
"If we have to fight, let's have Lady Barbara witness it. With her there, we should have someone to treat us if we go too far and something happens."
The Young Green Dragon knew quite a few spells and could also use some basic healing spells.
Most of these healing spells could only stop bleeding and restore stamina. They were not particularly powerful, but they were enough to guard against accidents.
"Of course! And not just Lady Barbara! All the other dragons, too! I want them to witness you losing to me with their own eyes!"
Gordon bared a mouthful of sharp teeth and fangs, brimming with excitement.
"Then it's settled. Let's find out who's truly the strongest!"
Xiluo narrowed his eyes.
Once they had finished speaking, the two dragons went back to find Barbara and explained the situation.
The young adult female dragon was somewhat surprised by their request, but she agreed in the end.
Unlike the tragedy involving the little white dragon Allen, she would be supervising them herself this time. She was confident she could keep either dragon from suffering an accident.
The duel was set for five days later.
Before long.
News that Xiluo and Gordon were going to duel spread everywhere among the wyrmlings, who gathered together in lively discussion.
"Did you hear what Allen said? Xiluo and Gordon are going to have a real showdown!"
"I heard, but I don't know whether it's true."
"It's true! I checked with Xiluo earlier! The duel is in five days!"
"Roar, roar, roar! Those two are finally willing to have a duel! Who do you think is stronger?"
"Xiluo, of course! His Breath Weapon! His speed, strength, and mastery of spells are all flawless. How could a mere red dragon possibly stand a chance against him?" a blue dragon wyrmling immediately roared.
"Not necessarily... Gordon's really strong, too. Haven't you noticed? The scales around his neck and the upper parts of his limbs are getting darker and darker. His bloodline mutation is getting more pronounced, too. It looks even more pronounced than Xiluo's."
"Tch... You clueless blackscale. Looks like your brain hasn't finished developing!"
"Bastard! What did you say? So what if I think Gordon's stronger?"
"You can't even see the simple, obvious fact that Xiluo's stronger, and you still claim you're not stupid?"
"No! Gordon's stronger!"
"Idiot! Xiluo's stronger!"
A blue dragon wyrmling and a black dragon wyrmling pressed their heads together, shouting at each other.
The blue dragon wyrmling had the upper hand, however. The single horn on his nose pushed the black dragon wyrmling back again and again.
Off to the side, Alicia and the other dragons silently watched the scene before them.
The little black dragon Martha spoke softly.
"Alicia, Koraman, what do you think about this?"
"Those two bastards! They look down on us so much! They'd better both end up badly hurt, just like that white dragon! I hope they both end up lame!"
"What we think doesn't matter at all."
Alicia's face was expressionless.
She thought the same as Koraman! It would be best if both of them ended up with lame legs and broken bones! But Barbara had only recently torn her down so thoroughly that she really did not feel like saying much.
Amid this lively discussion, night soon fell.
Xiluo had just fallen asleep.
In his daze, he arrived in the Mystery Sea once more.
A passage of black text appeared as well.
[Breeder]: You successfully raised a herd of Ground Luo Beasts. They grew healthily, until one day, they would become your food. Gained 5 achievement points.
"I actually unlocked another new achievement. That's quite a surprise... My showdown with Gordon is in five days. Should I redeem a talent?"
Xiluo was a little surprised at first, but quickly regained his composure, then looked down at [Rapid Healing] and [Sharp Claws and Teeth].
He did not think much of either of them and had originally had absolutely no intention of redeeming them.
But Gordon was putting him under considerable pressure.
The Red Dragon Whelp was the same level as him, level 6. His only lead was an Elite-+ rating.
Although he had performed far better than Gordon against the Frost Giant Eagle, elemental advantages had indeed played a large part in that.
In a showdown against the Red Dragon Whelp.
His lightning element gave him no advantage.
Lightning and fire had some similarities to begin with.
In ancient times, many people had believed lightning was heavenly fire.
Because both possessed the property of high temperatures.
This would greatly weaken the high-temperature aspect of Xiluo's lightning power. A red dragon's resistance to high temperatures was not something a blue dragon like him could match.
As for its paralyzing effect, it worked against ordinary creatures, but against a red dragon, with its tough hide, thick flesh, and already formidable magic resistance, that was hard to say!
Of course, as a blue dragon, he also had some resistance to a red dragon's flames, but it was nowhere near a red dragon's.
Overall, blue dragons were at a slight disadvantage against red dragons.
This also left him feeling uncertain about the real showdown in five days.
It seemed he still needed to improve his combat strength to ensure victory.
Xiluo turned his gaze toward [Sharp Claws and Teeth]. This talent should have an immediate effect, increasing his combat strength as soon as he redeemed it.
He still thought little of [Rapid Healing].
Even healing several times, or over ten times, faster did not count as immediate combat strength.
It merely shortened the healing time of an injury that originally needed a month to a few days.
But was that useful?
In a real battle? Such a fight might last only a few minutes, or ten-odd minutes, or several dozen. Within such a short time, a recovery talent really would not be much use.
Of course, the most important thing was that [Sharp Claws and Teeth] was cheap!
He would still have 10 achievement points left after buying it, and his only target at present was [Storm Breath].
He slowly focused his gaze on [Sharp Claws and Teeth].
Soon, the black text changed.
Current Achievements: 10 Current talents: [Breath Enhancement] [Strength] [Rapid Growth] [Sharp Claws and Teeth]
The Mystery Sea warped.
In his daze, Xiluo felt a wave of discomfort. His teeth and claws felt itchy, waking him up.
In the pitch-black night.
Inside the hollow of the giant tree.
The young blue dragon lowered his head, his glowing draconic eyes fixed on the claws of his forelimbs.
Dragon claws resembled eagle talons. Sharp and sturdy, their hardened keratin could easily tear through a creature's skin and flesh.
An ordinary adult dragon's claws were no less sturdy than steel, and were even a cut above it.
A wyrmling's claws were longer and wider than an adult human's index finger.
The entire keratin layer was bluish-black, and the tips had been worn somewhat rounded by walking over a long period.
At this moment, these keratin layers were actually trembling constantly, gradually shaking loose from his limbs.
Traces of pain came from where the claws joined the keratin, and trickles of blood kept seeping out alongside the trembling layers!
Under Xiluo's gaze.
Every pointed claw formed from keratin fell away.
New pointed keratin claws pushed out through the flesh.
They underwent Rapid Growth at a speed visible to the naked eye, soon becoming as thick and dark as the previous claws.
Xiluo carefully examined his bloodstained new claws. Compared with the old ones, their tips were clearly sharper and keener. In the faint moonlight, he actually discerned a cold glint, along with a reflective sheen.
(End of chapter)
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