The Siege

"Virix, Blue Dragons have always been the strongest wyrmlings in the oasis, but ever since that Red Dragon arrived, everything has changed."

"As a direct descendant of the great Storm Fang, are you really going to stand by and watch him lord it over the Blue Dragons?"

"We ought to join forces and make that muscle-brained fool understand that only unity and wisdom can be called true strength."

Among the raised sand dunes at the edge of the oasis lay the Blue Dragon wyrmlings' nests.

When they rested, they always liked to bury their entire bodies in the sand, leaving only the horns on their snouts and their two nostrils exposed.

Few ever set foot here, but tonight it received a group of uninvited visitors.

Several Green Dragons and Black Dragons came together and stopped outside the raised dunes, spitting venomous words at Virix.

The Blue Dragons were already dissatisfied with Sol, so why would they disagree? At this point, they no longer cared if they were called cowards who could only gang up on others. All they wanted was to give that hateful Red Dragon a thorough beating.

Shadows of three colors rose quietly from the oasis and flew straight toward the towering Gobi Desert on the other side of the river.

At that moment, Xisitana and Kalpu were fast asleep in the caves they had dug for themselves.

Two Green Dragons climbed along the Gobi cliffs to the cave entrances. Their eyes glinted with cunning as they opened their mouths and spewed out great clouds of pale green poison fog.

By the time the two unfortunate wyrmlings realized what was happening, their heads were spinning and their limbs had gone stiff. They were dragged out of their caves like dead dogs.

Looking at the wyrmlings around them, all staring at them with ill intent, Xisitana and Kalpu could not help showing a trace of panic.

"What do you want?"

"Damn it, a sneak attack? Fight us fair and square if you've got the guts!"

The Green Dragon in the lead glanced at them disdainfully, raised his long neck proudly, and waved a claw forward. His companions immediately rushed in and began punching and kicking them.

"You fools, blame your companion. This only happened because of his arrogance and bullying."

"We're going to teach you a lesson today. The next time you see us, remember to tuck your tails between your legs!"

In this desolate Gobi Desert, water was unquestionably the source of life.

Although the wyrmlings living in the oasis had hunted down nearly all the prey there, it was still easy enough to find some creatures by expanding the search area.

On the riverbank far from the oasis, Sol found a group of giant crocodiles.

They looked somewhat like the Nile crocodiles from his previous life, but they were much larger. Some adults could even grow to thirty feet long. Their keratinous scales were pitch-black and hard, and they seemed to carry a faint draconic aura.

His human soul made it somewhat difficult for Sol to understand just how hungry and thirsty someone would have to be to choose to go after crocodiles.

But that did not stop him from viewing them as excellent prey. His sharp gaze locked onto one of the smaller ones, and he drew his spread wings in slightly before diving at great speed.

A fierce wind roared against him as he crossed several hundred meters in almost an instant. The next moment, he was above the crocodile, his powerful forelimbs stamping down hard on its spine.

This was a method used by most birds of prey when hunting.

The force of the fall could snap the prey's spine outright, leaving it completely unable to resist.

The crocodile Sol had targeted was nearly twenty feet long and somewhat bigger than he was, yet it let out only a heavy, muffled grunt before dying on the spot.

The surrounding crocodiles were startled. They raised their heads and roared angrily at Sol.

Seeing that these clueless creatures seemed ready to resist, Sol sent the abundant magic power within him surging into a particular region of his mind, where it transformed into a strange wave of mental power and spread outward.

Every crocodile caught by the wave saw Sol's body grow larger and larger before its eyes. An invisible pressure struck their minds, making their hearts race and their muscles twitch uncontrollably.

This was the fierce aura True Dragons were born with, also known as Frightful Presence.

True Dragons generally began to awaken it in their juvenile stage. Red Dragons and Gold Dragons might awaken it somewhat earlier, while White Dragons had to wait until adulthood to master it.

Loading the Creature Template had not only accelerated Sol's physical development, but also allowed him to master abilities that should only have awakened at older ages.

With just a glance from him, the surrounding crocodiles fled in panic, too frightened to disturb his meal any further.

As he swallowed large quantities of flesh, the hunger in his body gradually subsided.

The pure life energy converted by the Monster Template surged through his flesh, making his bones and muscles denser and giving him a stronger affinity for magical energy.

The meal lasted over an hour. Sol ate nearly every edible part of the crocodile, which weighed close to a ton.

The powerful digestive and absorption system of a True Dragon was on full display. All the food he ate was converted into pure energy and nutrients in a short time; his belly did not even bulge.

"Finally, I'm full. The changes brought by the Rock Jagras Monster Template should all be over now. My strength seems to have improved somewhat again."

After eating and drinking his fill, Sol raised a claw and clenched it hard. He could clearly feel a powerful force surging through his flesh.

He focused his attention on the personal information on the wheel in his mind and found that his Challenge Rating had indeed changed from 6+ to 7.

Some juvenile dragons only had this Challenge Rating, while the weaker White Dragons needed to reach adolescence to attain it.

"This is only the lowest-grade Monster Template. If I could get a few high-grade ones, wouldn't I be invincible below the legendary level?"

At that moment, Sol felt his future was bright. He beat the broad, heavy wings on his back and flew toward his nest with a roar of wind.

A flying speed that could rival a Blue Dragon's, combined with flying skills that surpassed a Black Dragon's, allowed him to travel extremely quickly. Before long, he was back within the oasis.

However, while Sol was still over a thousand meters from the Gobi Desert, a series of notifications that his Mental Power Essence Fragments had increased suddenly flashed in the prompt box beneath his field of vision.

Some creatures were directing strong emotions at him. After a moment's thought, he knew they must mean him harm.

The oasis lay within the Blue Dragon clan's territory, and apart from their dependents, it was almost impossible for other intelligent creatures to approach.

That left only the wyrmlings who also lived in the oasis. Why were those fellows watching him instead of sleeping in the middle of the night?

A faint question flashed through Sol's mind, but his absolute strength meant he paid it no heed. Like a heavy bomber, he landed on the flat ground atop the Gobi cliffs amid the rush of wind.

"You've finally come back."

"You sure kept us waiting."

Shrill, piercing roars rang out as figures of various colors crawled from the dark shadows.