Whoosh, the flowing wind in the sky, stirred by the massive wings of the Red Dragon, created subtle air vortices, and the strong wind pressed down even the thick branches entangled with ancient vines in the forest.
The Red Dragon, accompanied by the strong wind, landed on a low hill in the forest, then sniffed around, and only after finding no signs or traces of other invasions or damage, did he fold his wings and cross the top of the low hill.
The Red Dragon clawed at the rocky wall of the low hill, pushing aside the densely covered vine leaves on the cliff of the low hill, revealing a wide and deep cave, and then he crawled inside.
Kadilos, that was the name of this Red Dragon. He had now passed the most dangerous and highest mortality rate period of a Chromatic Dragon's life, the infancy, and had arrived at the second highest mortality rate period of a True Dragon's life, the youth.
The former was due to being weak. Although True Dragon s are naturally born with a higher starting point than most other races, a Chromatic Dragon in its infancy, with well-coordinated elite adventurers equipped with excellent weapons, could still easily overturn a Chromatic Dragon.
Even some powerful transcendent magical beasts could treat ordinary Chromatic Dragon Young Dragon as prey; the True Dragon Might of a Young Dragon could not scare those wild monsters.
The youth period, on the other hand, was due to recklessness. At this stage, where True Dragon strength undergoes a leap, many Chromatic Dragon reaching the youth period experience an extreme increase in confidence and greed, along with the strong aggressiveness inherent to Chromatic Dragon, as their body size rapidly expands.
Most of the protagonists of the many True Dragon -slaying tragedies on the Ekania Continent were those Chromatic Dragon in their youth. According to incomplete statistics by those bored human Magician, only about one-fifth of each generation of Chromatic Dragon could survive the youth period.
And within this one-fifth, the Black Dragon who liked to nest in swamps and the Blue Dragon who lived in groups in the desert accounted for the vast majority, and those Green Dragon who only liked to stay in their forests as twisted gardeners also accounted for a portion.
The highest mortality rates were for the Red Dragon and White True Dragon, far exceeding the proportion of the other three True Dragon species.
The reasons for the Red Dragon's deaths are obvious; Red Dragon, who loved to be bandits, would be overturned by swarming True Dragon -slaying teams and adventurers after invading a few human towns, and then, without even seeing the princess, would become market commodities and collectibles in someone else's treasure house.
The White True Dragon, even when hiding in desolate glacier regions and preferring to dig their homes in remote corners of glaciers, seemed to have an excessively humble existence.
There would always be countless, relentless True Dragon -hunting teams and adventurersbothering them, dragging them out of their sleeping caves, and then slaughtering the White True Dragon like pigs.
This kind of True Dragon not only failed to gain the respect of other True Dragon s who were also True Dragon, but was also despised by other races.
Kadilos, this Red Dragon, after being driven out of the Dragon Nest by his True Dragon mother in his youth, also passed through the extremely distant grasslands, that polar glacier region covered in ice and snow all year round.
He convinced a teenage female White True Dragon with his reasoning, enslaving this White True Dragon as a servant. His daily activities were to enjoy the White True Dragon's prey and the White True Dragon's body, and life was very comfortable for a period of time.
If it weren't for the fact that the glacier climate was not suitable for Red Dragon growth and would have negative effects on the Red Dragon, Kadilos would have wanted to build a Dragon Nest and live in the glacier.
"Tsk tsk," Kadilos, this Red Dragon, showed a lewd smile that only True Dragon s could understand, while smacking his lips. His body, which had already reached over eighteen meters after just passing his teenage years, also swayed involuntarily, clearly recalling some beautiful things.
"It's a pity about that obedient White True Dragon dog. I shouldn't have eaten her to replenish the consumption during the hibernation period," Kadilos muttered to himself, his bone-white fangs still hanging with a trace of flesh and blood fragments from his recent hunt.
Solitary True Dragon s always have various eccentricities. Kadilos, this Red Dragon, who liked to talk to himself, was considered a True Dragon with a relatively healthy mind.
"But that True Dragon has more than one female True Dragon, and Lord Kadilos is already a bit impatient to enjoy their wonderful taste!" The Red Dragon's deep red eyes showed a strong sense of possessiveness.
Wandering, solitary True Dragon s are always more cautious than True Dragon s who live in groups. The Red Dragon Kadilos also developed this habit during his years of solitary wandering.
He would never stay in one place for more than three to five years after establishing a Dragon Nest. Once it exceeded three to five years, the Red Dragon's aura would leave strong traces in that place, making it easy to track.
But it was already the sixth year since Kadilos came to this place to build a Dragon Nest. The Red Dragon, who should have abandoned his Dragon Nest and left, changed his mind after entering the youth stage. He felt that his powerful strength could already make him the lord of this place.
He wanted to establish a monster kingdom of his own, enslave all creatures he saw, exploit all slaves, and vent his bestial desires on all females. This was the thought of most Red Dragon, and Kadilos was no exception.
However, before Kadilos could begin his path of conquest, his territory had already been invaded by other True Dragon s.
Kalon's Dragon Clan Territory had expanded too quickly in the past two years. In previous years, Kadilos was still in his teenage years, so he was relatively low-key and his territory did not border the True Dragon Group's territory, so neither side discovered information about the other.
But now Kalon's True Dragon had gradually expanded to the doorstep of Kadilos, this Young Red Dragon. Although True Dragon s do not need to urinate on the border of their territory to mark it, Black Dragon Rosani and White Dragon Kamide have done plenty of that.
These two nasty fellows marked the entire border adjacent to Red Dragon Kadilos's territory with the scent of their urine.
Fortunately, Kadilos, this Red Dragon, didn't have his brain completely filled with magma. When he occupied territory in his teenage years, he didn't dare to boldly mark his territory, but instead tried his best to hide himself. How could these weak Young Dragons dare to mark territory alone?
This Red Dragon, with his not-yet-fully-hardened mind, speculated that there must be a True Dragon family behind these Young Dragon. Perhaps behind the True Dragon family was an Adult Blue Dragon, as only those fellows liked to pick up and hatch eggs laid by various colored Dragons, and then raise them to adulthood.
But in his subsequent observation, he found that the most powerful True Dragon in this True Dragon was only a teenage Blue Dragon. That Blue Dragon, as the leader, was quite diligent, flying over the Dragon Clan Territory every few days to patrol their territory.
And among the scents marking the territory, the aura of this teenage Blue Dragon was the most concentrated, which proved Kadilos's idea.
"Tsk, I'll observe for a few more days. If it's confirmed that the leader of that True Dragon is that weak Blue Dragon, then this True Dragon doesn't deserve to occupy such a vast territory. They should all become powerful Red Dragon, my Kadilos's vassals. Only the Great Red Dragondeserves to possess those beautiful and seductive female True Dragon and that fertile territory,"
Kadilos, this Red Dragon, still maintained the caution of a solitary evil True Dragon. He quietly narrowed his eyes and muttered, "At that time, should I directly challenge that weak Blue Dragon and become their leader, or should I just rush in and take them all down? Let me think, what would be more imposing, to show the demeanor of me, Kadilos, the Great Red Dragon!"
The Red Dragon smacked his lips, his thoughts again jumping to the dilemma of which female True Dragon to go for first.
...…..
"Even so, I will not easily take risks. Rashly entering other planes is a very dangerous thing," Kalon shook his head. Although True Dragons are uniquely endowed in adapting to worlds, entering other planes almost never results in severe suppression or influence.
But Kalon never believed that True Dragon s were invincible. Besides, he was just a Young Dragon, with vast and bright room for growth and a future. There was no need to take risks for some lost magical knowledge; the benefits gained were simply not proportional to the risks faced.
If the benefits gained were far greater than the risks faced, Kalon might have considered it for three more seconds before refusing, but now, Kalon almost immediately refused the Squinty-eyed Mage Hiusir's suggestion without thinking.
"Kalon, we certainly won't ask you to rashly enter those powerful, dangerous planes. In fact, based on some historical remnants we've recovered, we've mastered many plane coordinates."
"Under our organization and analysis, the planes represented by these plane coordinates all have rough records and danger level classifications. We will first explore the lowest energy level planes, and we can also share this knowledge with you."
Magician Hiusier began to move his lips, Red Dragon are natural conquerors, with endless desires for conquest. Although Kalon was not driven by the will and desires of a Red Dragon, the instinct of desire always existed, unless Kalon was not a Red Dragon.
"Moreover, our first exploration target was specifically chosen for you, Kalon," Hiusir's Mimi Eye struggled to open wide, trying to show his sincere gaze,
"This plane has been named 'Green Field Forest' by us. Due to the limitations of the Green Field Forest's native plane, this plane has almost never produced powerhouses of the Saint level since the Magic Empire's exploration. It belongs to the lowest tier in terms of energy level and danger level among all plane coordinates,"
"Such a plane, logically speaking, you Magician could also easily explore. Your High-level Mages are not few in number, wouldn't you be able to walk sideways in that plane? The suppression experienced by High-level Mage shouldn't be very great," Kalon slightly narrowed his eyes, finding a loophole in the Magician's words.
The Squinty-eyed mage shook his head and said, "Although that plane is very small and its strength is average, almost all the land in the plane is covered by dense forests. The number of natives in the forest is almost infinite, and those natives are all variations of native elves born from the plane, whose strength is also enhanced to a certain extent in the forest,"
"Under such terrifying numbers, even a High-level Mage, if they are not careful, will be killed by arrows and spears from who knows where. After all, a Magician's magic power is not infinite, and their mental power will also be consumed."
Kalon nodded. This situation was indeed very troublesome. Even if a Saint-level Archmage went there, a single spell that could kill hundreds or thousands of native creatures would be useless. Unless he could possess the mighty power to suppress the entire plane, otherwise the endless consumption would be enough to make these Magicians drink a pot.
In such a situation, the True Dragon and the True Dragon's dependents, on the contrary, had a great advantage. As long as the True Dragon's dependents put on excellent iron armor, they could slowly sweep through those native residents one by one. With the spell blessings and enhancements from these Magicians, there was no need to fear the spellcasters born among those native residents.
As for the True Dragon, if it was truly as the Magician said, the arrival of the True Dragon was no different from the arrival of a war machine.
The scales on Kadilos's body now had such excellent defense that even his own sharp claws required a lot of effort to cause damage, and this was because the True Dragon's attacks were naturally endowed with the same magical properties as their bloodline origin.
Moreover, the Red Dragon's surface protection was not only that layer of scales that looked like a work of art, but also an elemental protection layer and a magic shield, which was the quality a True Dragon who specialized in magic should possess.
Also, the Red Dragon's True Dragon Breath and spells naturally countered this forest environment.
Of course, what actually made the Red Dragon a little tempted was the almost infinite native population of that plane. What the Dragon Clan Territory lacked most now was population. A sufficient population was the foundation for the development of the territory. Without enough population, any idea was just empty talk.
But the Magician's next words instantly made Kalon's heart stir.
"The most important thing is that that plane is a paradise of forests and plants, so many Trees of Life have been born. Approximately every five to six hundred miles, there is a Life Tree growing, and those Life Trees, Kadilos, we can give them all to you. We only need one as research material!"
The Magician uttered words that were comparable to the temptation of a devil, and Kalon instantly felt his heart beat faster.
The Life Tree, a sacred object unique to the Elf race, had other benefits aside from simply planting these Life Trees, the entire Dragon Clan Territory, within the range that could be influenced by the Life Tree, would become a prosperous land.
Not only would crops grow prosperously, leading to greater harvests, but even the newborns in the territory would become smarter, physically stronger, and the survival rate of infants would also become higher. This was simply the best aid for territorial development.
The Elves' utilization of the Life Tree was simply a waste of natural resources. They were always thinking about those leaves, branches, and life water. In Kadilos's view, those Elf tribes were a form of freeloading, but what they were freeloading off of was the Life Tree.
Thump, thump, thump,
Kalon's red claws tapped on the hard stone table. If the situation of that plane was as the Squinty-eyed mage said, then he could indeed find an opportunity to go there.
All original capital accumulation was accumulated through plundering others. Relying on the slow development of the Dragon Clan Territory would take a very long time. Although kalonwas a True Dragon, a long-lived species looked up to by mortals, he would not refuse a shortcut to development.
Moreover, if he could successfully establish a foothold in the Green Field Forest, then he could use the resources of the entire plane to support the True Dragon's territory.
It was fine that Kadilos hadn't made a decision yet, but once he did, his ambition would not be so limited. He would not be satisfied with just the knowledge and inheritances left behind by those Magic Empires, nor with those native Elves and Life Trees.
He wanted to swallow the entire plane, treating the entire Green Field Forest plane as the territory's backyard and resource reserve base.
"I have to say, Squinty-eyed mage, you have convinced me. You have successfully touched my peace-loving heart," Kalon said with a smile, completely unaware of how to write the word shameless.
"That's great! With your cooperation, our exploration will surely go smoothly!" Magician Xiusierwas overjoyed, and at this moment, he no longer cared about the three words "Squinty-eyed mage" in Kalon's speech.
"However, I have two demands," Kalon raised two fingers, saying with a faint smile, "The first demand is that the location for establishing the plane teleportation gate will be chosen by me, and the departure time as well."
"That's not a problem," Magician Hiusier readily agreed to this condition. The Magician came to seek genuine cooperation and did not care about these minor details.
"The second demand is that after entering the Green Field Forest plane, every exploration activity and action you all undertake must be approved by me. I don't want to be dragged down by teammates as foolish as pigs!"
"That's also not a problem," Magician Hiusier agreed without hesitation. These cooperation conditions were not harsh, which made the Magician, who had been prepared to be heavily fleeced, secretly breathe a sigh of relief.
"Hmm, that's good. However, I recently want to set up a laboratory for spell experiments, and I have no experience. But before the laboratory is built, I'm not very confident about leaving the territory," Kalon sighed softly.
"Here it comes, as expected. When dealing with True Dragon s, one cannot overestimate their moral standards," Squinty-eyed Mage Hiusir's eyebrow twitched. A Magician's laboratory was not cheap. If a laboratory was built according to a complete configuration, even these wealthy Magicians would be shocked by the speed at which those shiny gold coins disappeared.
"This, this of course, we will help you, Kalon," Magician Xiusier gritted his teeth, but still agreed to the Red Dragon's 'polite request'.
"Very good, then, happy cooperation!" Kalon smiled, clapped his hands, and stood up, ready to leave.
"Wait, Kalon, Lord of the True Dragons," Countess Bartoli, who had been listening quietly, rose and called out to Kalon, stopping his departure. She held her head high and strode purposefully to stand before Kalon.
Her tall stature, nearly 1.8 meters, was considered good among humans, and even more so among women, making her stand out like a crane among chickens. But in front of Kalon, who was about 3.5 meters tall, the Countess could only look up.
"Oh, do you also have something to discuss with me, beautiful lady?" Kalon stopped, looking at the full-figured lady in front of him, his gaze openly appreciating the unique plump beauty of a woman.
Countess Bartoli tilted her head back, her short hair falling behind, revealing a pair of round and fair ears like gold ingots. She spoke, "I wish to pledge my loyalty to you. As a token of my sincerity, I can lead all the soldiers and commoners loyal to me within my earldom to come and submit. I hope to gain a certain status under the True Dragon's command!"
Kalon's eyebrows raised. He actually didn't understand why Bartoli, as a human noble and a Countess of a great noble family, would abandon everything to pledge allegiance to him. Even if the Red Dragon was confident, he didn't believe these humans would be like those monsters, easily submitting to the Red Dragon's majesty.
So Kalon asked, but the answer he received was quite unexpected.
"She has fallen into the void of life, sliding towards nothingness. Who told her that her mind wasn't smart enough yet she liked to overthink? So she needs another kind of life to seek meaning in life. In short, she's too well-fed!" Magician Hiusier spread his hands helplessly, answering for the Countess first.
Bartoli smiled, revealing a mouthful of sparkling white teeth, and a hint of madness gleamed in her eyes, which rippled like clear water. She said softly, "I like an exciting life, and I detest a boring one, but I'm unwilling to give up the dignity of a noble and become those dusty adventurers!"
"Alright," Kalon nodded. He was very familiar with this kind of questioning the meaning of life. When he first arrived in this world, he also went through a period like this until his free will gradually solidified, and he discarded those negative thoughts. A more determined goal also emerged in his heart.
"Perhaps in the future, I will also have a battle group organization composed of women under my command," Kalon thought. In the northern kingdoms that advocated martial prowess, those women were not weaklings. Ordinary thieves who dared to underestimate these women would have their brains spilled out by these fierce women.
Moreover, the situation within the Dragon Clan Territory was even more so. Not only were there many female adventurers and powerful female warriors, but those monster kin, apart from reproduction, never deliberately distinguished between male and female.
"However, I don't need you to bring back all the soldiers and commoners loyal to you. You should bring back those who are neutral and oppose you," Kalon's lips curled into a strange angle. He stared into the short-haired Countess's beautiful emerald green eyes and said, "When you bring those people back, that will be the moment you swear allegiance to me!"
Countess Bartoli clearly did not expect the demand Kalon put forward. Although her large eyes held a hint of doubt, she still lowered her head slightly, revealing her fair and slender back of the neck. "Yes, I will do as you wish!"
Kalon turned, spread his wings behind him, and leaped into the sky. Then, in mid-air, he dispelled his Dragonborn form and transformed back into a massive Red Dragon.
Whoosh,
The strong wind from the Red Dragon's flapping wings bent the fruit trees in the orchard. His body swept over the foot of the mountain, above the heads of the newly formed Imperial Guards.
These tall Imperial Guards, each clad in iron armor, with their heads also covered by sealed helmets, revealing only their eyes.
Their weapons were heavy broadswords. The Imperial Guards stood at the foot of the mountain, watching every creature that attempted to approach the Dragon Nest. Though few in number, they exuded an imposing aura of steadfastness.
"Bring Yug to me," the Red Dragon's low Dragon Language accompanied his massive body as he swept past, then ascended, rising straight to the peak of the mountains. The roaring wind made the crimson cloaks behind the Imperial Guards flap loudly, like red banners fluttering.
"Yes," the Imperial Guards knelt on one knee, propped on their broadswords, and shouted in unison amidst the clanging and clanking of their iron armor.