The Serel Wilderness was as scorching hot as ever, as if it were perpetually stuck in summer.
The ground was parched, dust filled the air, and the bright, vicious sunlight poured down from high above, falling upon the circling Garros and illuminating his current form.
Compared to a year ago.
Garros's body length had increased by nearly half a meter—not a massive growth—now measuring approximately six point six meters.
However, the heaviness of his frame had grown significantly; his limbs were thick and powerful, his back and chest were solid and strong, and even his neck appeared thick and hard.
The entire dragon was incomparably robust; even through a layer of scales, one could still feel the majestic, hard muscles beneath, as if they were cast from steel and iron.
Among Dragonkin with powerful physiques like Red Dragons and Gold Dragons.
Few Young Dragons could match Garros's level of strength.
The current Garros, in terms of physique and posture, was essentially the 'Mike Tyson' among Young Dragons of the same age.
And that wasn't all.
The most significant change was undoubtedly Garros's pair of dragon wings.
First was the wingspan, which reached a full fifteen meters, more than double Garros's body length. Furthermore, the wing membranes were covered in a layer of fine dragon scales that at first glance looked like plumage, stacked and inlaid; as they swept through the air, they perfectly guided the airflow, preventing it from becoming an obstacle and instead turning it into propulsion.
The wing membranes connecting the base of the wings to the torso—the part that used to feel the most painful during wing flaps—had tripled in thickness.
Layered with folds, they resembled hundred-tempered steel that had undergone forging and hammering.
At the edges of the wings, a layer of exceptionally sharp material with a metallic luster had grown; it could easily slice through air and sever biological bodies with ease, making the entire dragon wing resemble a giant guillotine, radiating a dangerous and awe-inspiring sharpness.
During this past year.
Strength training was secondary; Garros had spent almost day and night, whenever he had free time, tempering this pair of dragon wings, and his efforts had paid off.
After a recent evolution.
The current Garros could already soar through the sky relying solely on his wings, and his flight speed far exceeded that of Dragonkin of the same Rank.
His Life Rank hadn't changed, remaining at Rank 7.
However, Garros felt he could now take on two of his former selves.
"I need to verify the results of this evolution."
"I choose you, Earth Storm Bear."
Gazing through the clouds, Garros looked down at the ground below and saw a super giant bear dwelling among the hills. It stood eight meters tall, covered in brownish-yellow, steel-needle-like fur, looking like a magnified and enhanced version of an ordinary grizzly.
The Earth Storm Bear before Garros's eyes was Rank 8, yet it was not something the previous Rank 8 Basilisk could compare to.
The Earth Storm Bear is one of the more powerful types of magical beasts, with a certain probability of reaching Legendary status.
Not only did it have a strong body, but it also mastered many earth-based spell-like abilities.
While not quite on par with Dragonkin, it was enough to crush the vast majority of magical beasts of the same Rank.
Down in the fir forest of the hills.
The Earth Storm Bear was using its back to rub against a century-old hemlock to scratch an itch, sending bark fragments flying like a rainstorm.
The purpose this time was to verify his current strength, not to hunt.
Garros did not choose a sneak attack; he directly surged his Dragon Fear, announcing his arrival to the Earth Storm Bear.
With a flap of his wings, the airflow and Dragon Fear mixed together, forming ripples almost visible to the naked eye that swept over the Earth Storm Bear.
The Earth Storm Bear, which had been rubbing and scratching with a face full of pleasure, suddenly froze. Then, its fur stood on end like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, and it looked up at the sky.
In its vision, a black dot was rapidly enlarging, diving toward it.
Scales, horns, claws, tail, wings. It was a dragon! Though looking at its size, it couldn't be called giant; it was just a Young Dragon.
The Earth Storm Bear was highly intelligent; facing a Young Dragon, it felt no fear. Instead, it reared up on its hind legs and roared at Garros.
The earth and stone in front of it suddenly bulged, condensing into boulders.
It lifted a paw and stomped; five or six massive boulders shot up into the sky, smashing toward Garros.
Facing the first one, Garros did not dodge or evade, instead smashing into it head-first.
Boom!
The rock was like tofu, shattering into pieces under the impact of Garros's horns. The subsequent fragments scraped against his scales, leaving only a few dusty marks.
Four pieces remained.
Although he could have smashed through them directly, Garros did not act recklessly again.
His huge and strong dragon wings swept up, whipping up gusts of wind. The entire dragon seemed to dance in the air, weaving through the gaps between the four boulders with agile movements, graceful as a roaming dragon.
Strength, speed, defense. Garros did not want to have any weaknesses and tried to develop all aspects together.
Having dealt with the Earth Storm Bear's first wave of counterattacks, Garros approached the upper side of the lush hills, while the Earth Storm Bear was at the bottom.
He folded his wings and dove along the slope through the canopy.
Oak branches screeched against his scales, and wherever the blade-like wing edges swept, rows of ancient trees were severed at the base like stalks of wheat.
The Earth Storm Bear roared and slammed its giant paws onto the ground, causing ten Earth Spikes to erupt from the soil.
However, the Young Dragon suddenly tucked his wings and curled his body, his dragon tail sweeping across and snapping the cluster of Earth Spikes in half. The resulting rock fragments embedded themselves into tree trunks like bullets.
The Earth Storm Bear thrust its paws into the ground, flipping up a three-meter-thick rock slab and hurling it at Garros again.
Garros advanced rather than retreated; his wing edges sliced into the gaps of the rock slab, and with a sudden flap, he sent the entire slab flying a hundred meters into the air.
Sunlight cast mottled shadows through the suspended boulder. The Young Dragon took the opportunity to strike from the boundary of light and shadow, closing in on the Earth Storm Bear in an instant. His claws lashed out, tearing through fur and flesh to sink deep into the bear's shoulders, then he flipped in mid-air, forcefully throwing the nearly twenty-ton beast like a tattered sack.
The tumbling bear snapped seven oak trees before coming to a halt.
Roar!
It roared and hissed, suddenly grabbing a broken log and throwing it into the air.
Yellow Demonic Energy enveloped the log, causing it to explode into a rain of sharp splinters as it neared Garros, whistling through the air as it swept toward him.
Garros's dragon face remained steady; his huge wings suddenly unfurled, sweeping away the sky full of wooden splinters.
Occasionally, a few landed on his body, but they were unable to pierce his hard dragon scales.
Only areas like his eyes required a bit of attention.
"My turn!"
The Earth Storm Bear had used many spell-like abilities in one go and was now panting heavily, while the Young Dragon's stamina didn't seem to have dropped at all as he accelerated his wing flaps to close in.
Heavy Rock Armor!
Gazing at the approaching dragon, the Earth Storm Bear stomped the ground and roared. The earth and stone centered around it suddenly seemed to come alive, surging like a current of water, flowing up its legs and covering its body almost instantly, condensing into hard armor with a granite texture.
Garros's right dragon wing extended flat at the same time, slicing through the air like a guillotine with a piercing shriek as it slashed toward the Earth Storm Bear.
The Earth Storm Bear simultaneously raised its most heavily armored arm to smash against the dragon wing.
Clang—Squelch!
The sound of clashing metal rang out first, sending sparks flying, followed by the sound of a Sharp Weapon severing flesh.
The Earth Storm Bear wailed as the armor on its arm was shattered almost instantly by the dragon wing; the tough fur and flesh beneath were torn open, and the bone was severed.
In the instant Garros and the Earth Storm Bear's figures crossed, half a bear arm flew into the air, trailing blood.