The morning air was slightly damp, and the early mist had not yet fully dissipated.
Karl didn't join the conversation; instead, he was busy organizing his gear, ensuring he was ready to face any sudden battle at a moment's notice.
Verbal encouragement wasn't his style. Once he confirmed everything was ready, Karl simply stood up, walked over to Erin's side, and patted her on the shoulder. That was more than enough.
Turning around with a smile for Karl, Erin swung her backpack onto her shoulders and said, "There's no point in overthinking things at this stage. Let's head out for the Glavenus Tribe first!"
"Yes, according to the message brought by the Grimalkyne messenger, the Glavenus Tribe has decided to host an unprecedented Glutton Festival to celebrate the Azure Star Dragon taking up permanent residence in their village." Sophia, who had been scribbling away in her notebook, paused her quill and looked up with a smile. "Erin, I know you're going to love it."
"Is it because the Glutton Festival is completely filled with food?" Aiden chimed in from the side, teasing her. "The only thing this girl ever cares about is delicious food, isn't it?"
"Who said that?!" Being slandered like that by her companion made Erin's face instantly flush bright red. She anxiously defended herself, "There's also the research—and my partner!!"
What followed was a bunch of mumbled, incoherent rambling about how "when you're feeling lost, you should just eat" or "humans only live to eat"... In short, it was a jumble of half-baked excuses that made the Admiral and the others burst into hearty laughter.
She was getting defensive—but the more defensive she got, the more it proved Aiden was right.
Karl remained silent, merely smiling.
Amidst the hectic research operations, his partner's lively personality always managed to soothe his nerves quite a bit.
Watching these juniors roughhousing with such vibrant energy, the Admiral, who had been standing at the edge of the camp with his arms crossed, couldn't help but let out a booming laugh. However, if one were to look closely into his eyes, they would notice a deep sliver of worry lingering at the bottom of his gaze.
"The Admiral's anxiety"—now there was a novel concept. Just about every hunter believed their leader was a powerhouse completely immune to stress, a man who feared nothing under the sun. No matter what kind of peril he faced, he would confront it head-on, as if no obstacle could ever slow his stride.
But that was merely a facade. As the leader of the Elder Dragon Research Commission, the Admiral's seemingly boisterous and carefree exterior actually masked a deeply meticulous mind, one that fulfilled his core responsibilities flawlessly. He was a man who housed a tiger in his heart but could still finely sniff the fragrance of a rose.
Young hunters like Karl and Aiden assumed this trip was simply a courtesy visit to the Azure Star Dragon—a chance to look this Forbidden Monster in the eye and ask exactly what he intended to turn the New World into. To that end, the Admiral had even brought along an entire wagon full of gifts. It didn't look like a prelude to battle in the slightest, so their mindsets remained incredibly relaxed.
However, from the perspective of the Admiral and the Commander, they cared far more about the underlying meaning behind the invitation brought by the Grimalkyne messenger. The messenger's exact words were that the "Glavenus Boss" had finally returned to his most loyal Glavenus Tribe, and that the guardian deity of the Glavenus Tribe was once again by their side, meaning a grand celebration was absolutely mandatory.
So, did this mean the Azure Star Dragon intended to permanently reside within the Glavenus Tribe?
He would no longer wander aimlessly across the continent like he used to, nor did he seem to plan on hunting Elder Dragons anymore. He didn't even show any intention of retreating into the Leyline Corridors to hibernate.
Every single action of a Forbidden Monster exerted a massive influence on the surrounding ecosystem. The Admiral and the Commander had to ponder what kind of consequences this shift in the Azure Star Dragon's behavior would yield, and how it would impact the operations of the Research Commission.
And then there was the gravest, most critical question of all: As things stood now, could their research even continue?
The mysteries of the Elder Crossing hadn't been solved in the slightest, yet new enigmas were cropping up one after another. It felt like standing at a fork in the road where nobody knew which path was the correct one. The oppressive weight of this unknown reality inevitably bore down heavily on their minds—especially for those who bore the ultimate responsibility for the lives of the entire Commission.
The stagnation of their research, the very meaning of survival, the wars breaking out among newly born intelligent races, the choice of whether or not to intervene... Though they were all hunters, the Research Commission was facing a bizarre predicament that hunters of the Old World could never even begin to fathom.
Given the sheer intensity of the tribal warfare raging within the Ancient Forest, the Commander had even been forced to issue an order recalling all Commission members to prevent accidental casualties. The entire research operation had ground to an absolute standstill.
Reflecting on this, the Admiral couldn't help but sigh silently to himself. No matter how lost he felt, he could never show it in front of the crew. If even he were to panic, the subordinates below him would be utterly at a loss for what to do.
He couldn't help but wonder if, thousands of years ago in the Old World, when Lynians like the Felynes—who possessed a modicum of intelligence but were relatively weak in strength—first attempted to integrate into the massive, human-dominated societal framework, their leaders had also suffered through these exact same anxieties, filled with confusion and dread.
They must have worried about what fate would befall their species, whether they would be enslaved, or if their lives would be constantly threatened by death. But now, the tables had turned. The ones forced to ponder these existential questions were the humans.
Every human who still remained on the New World to this day—be they hunters, scholars, Wyverians, or Felynes—now had to confront a deadly serious reality.
After experiencing this sequence of chaotic upheavals, the entire New World, no matter how one looked at it, could practically be considered the private domain of the Azure Star Dragon.
Furthermore, unlike the Forbidden Monsters the Hunter's Guild had discovered and recorded in the past, the Azure Star Dragon's operational patterns were exceptionally active. His range of activity was incredibly vast, completely unlike other Forbidden Monsters who nested in their isolated territories year-round, entirely out of reach of ordinary humanity.
What the Admiral and the Commander feared most wasn't just the Azure Star Dragon's cataclysmic strength, but rather the profound intelligence he displayed. The Azure Star Dragon was currently the only monster confirmed to possess independent thought and capable of mature, logical reasoning. He was even suspected of mastering a body of knowledge known exclusively to monsters.
From past to present, based on the planning, strategy, and sheer commanding authority over other creatures that the Azure Star Dragon had exhibited, this Forbidden Monster could easily be dubbed a "Monster King." He possessed more than enough power and wisdom to enforce whatever grand designs he envisioned.
Just look at the current Glavenus Tribe. Those Grimalkynes, who originally only understood basic hunting and gathering and spent their days fretting over raw survival, now resembled a highly disciplined military force, fiercely loyal to the Azure Star Dragon.
When one factored in the power of evolution wielded by the Azure Star Dragon—a Forbidden Monster symbolizing evolution itself—it became highly likely that these new Lynian tribes currently locked in heated conflict were actually subjects being groomed by this Monster King.
Right now, these new Lynian races had only evolved from common, ordinary small creatures. In the future, it was very possible that Lynian offshoots evolved from Large Monsters might emerge.
Just thinking about entities like "Rathalites," "Nargacugans," or "Great Jagrasites"—monsters that were already inherently powerful, now gifted with intelligence on par with humans—made the Admiral's scalp tingle with dread. That would be far too terrifying.
Perhaps Lynian races evolved from Large Monsters were exactly the kind of clansmen the Azure Star Dragon truly desired? His true subjects?
Hypotheses like these were still kept strictly confidential, but even so, they caused the Admiral and the Commander so much grief that they could barely stomach their meat.
In a world teeming with dangerously powerful monsters everywhere, humanity had already paid countless prices just to survive to this day; it was an incredibly arduous existence. If those mighty beasts managed to break free from the shackles of pure instinct and gain intelligence rivaling humanity's, what would they do then?
Where would humans fit into such an environment? How could they protect themselves and civilians from the claws of hostile, intelligent Large Monsters?
And most importantly, if Lynian races evolved from Large Monsters actually came into being, what would happen if they left the New World and migrated to the Old World?
Could the ecosystem and human society of the Old World even withstand that kind of shockwave?
The Admiral's gaze couldn't help but fall upon a Grimalkyne who was busily preparing for the festival. Oh, they should be called Xeno-veined Grimalkynes now. That particular Grimalkyne was balancing a wooden platter twice its own size on its head, piled high with thick cuts of meat, both fatty and lean.
The heavy wooden platter pressed down so hard that the Grimalkyne's posture was completely hunched over, yet its movements were brimming with drive. Its face beamed with joyful contentment as it chanted a little work slogan to itself while hauling the load.
There wasn't just one or two Grimalkynes like this; these blue cats were absolutely everywhere, and not a single feline was idling.
"Hurry up, hurry up! Get everything ready, meow! Don't let anyone go hungry, meow!"
"Add salt! Add salt, meow! You dummy, meow! After adding salt, you have to ladle the broth again, meow!!"
"No, no, no! This flavor is still way too ordinary, meow! Think harder, we have to make the Boss's absolute favorite meal, meow!!"
As the cacophony of shouting blended together, the Admiral was entirely certain that these Xeno-veined Grimalkynes were serving the Azure Star Dragon completely of their own free will and sincerity. Furthermore, they derived an immense sense of self-fulfillment and happiness from the process. But what about humans?
In the eyes of the Azure Star Dragon, were humans any different from these Grimalkynes?
Probably not, right? After all, the Azure Star Dragon had always maintained an attitude of refusing excessive contact with humans in the past. Could it be that the future of humanity in the New World lay in becoming dependents of the Azure Star Dragon, just like the Grimalkynes of the Glavenus Tribe?
But was that kind of existence truly the life meant for humanity?
Yet if one claimed that such a life was bad, wouldn't humanity be acting hypocritically toward the Wyverians or Lynians like the Felynes? There was no logical reason why Wyverians and Lynians could adapt to it, but humans couldn't.
At the end of the day, he was a warrior. The Admiral turned these thoughts over and over in his mind until it felt like his left and right brains were locked in a civil war. The burly man's brow furrowed so deeply it never once relaxed, rendering him utterly unable to immerse himself in the Glavenus Tribe's festive atmosphere.
Under the protection of Kulve Taroth, the Glavenus Tribe had luckily avoided any severe damage from the continuous string of earthquakes over recent years. As the excavator and maintainer of the Leyline Corridors, Kulve Taroth could easily balance the bioenergy flowing through the earth. Consequently, this region had become a rare safe haven, drawing a massive influx of wildlife seeking refuge.
The creatures that proved difficult to deal with were promptly speared to death by the Grimalkynes and turned into meat, while the cooperative and useful ones were kept around to serve as helpers for the tribe.
The drastic environmental shift drove a massive number of foreign Grimalkynes from other areas to flee here. However, given the dense concentration of Xeno-attribute energy within the Glavenus Tribe, it didn't take long for these outside Grimalkynes to be corrupted and transformed into Xeno-veined Grimalkynes.
By this point, there were no longer any black-furred, white-necked felines left in the entire Glavenus Tribe. Glancing across the crowd, they had all turned into blue cats. Whenever they grew slightly agitated and hissed, they would shoot stiff, razor-sharp hairs from their backs.
Both the Bughunters and the Protectors were long a thing of the past. Yet, even though all the Grimalkynes now shared a similar fur color, a clear hierarchy had still emerged among the felines of the Glavenus Tribe.
At the absolute top were naturally the shamans who could understand the language of dragons; they were responsible for conveying the will of all the dragons, including Asterion. Right below them were the Dragon-Chosen Warriors—and speaking of them, one couldn't help but mention Heiguo.
As the very first Grimalkyne to be corrupted by the Xeno-attribute energy, Heiguo had certainly enjoyed a good run for a while.
But as the Xeno-attribute energy expanded, more and more Grimalkynes became corrupted, and Heiguo gradually lost his uniqueness... especially now that every single Grimalkyne had turned into a Xeno-veined Grimalkyne. The Xeno-veined Grimalkyne clan, which originally allowed ordinary members to share a table with the Dragon-Chosen Warriors, had directly disbanded on the spot. The structure reverted to the old ways, where only the absolute finest Xeno-veined Grimalkynes could earn a spot among the Dragon-Chosen Warriors.
With that, Heiguo lost his status as the head of a tribe. Fortunately, as a pioneer, his strength was still superior to that of an average Xeno-veined Grimalkyne. Consequently, he simply remained within the ranks of the Dragon-Chosen Warriors, successfully securing his employment.
Positioned just below the Dragon-Chosen Warriors were the artisan Grimalkynes who had returned after apprenticing under the Research Commission. Capable of providing the tribe with production and combat tools, they were immensely respected by their fellow felines.
Below them, there wasn't much differentiation among the remaining Grimalkynes; whether they were responsible for gathering or combat, they were all treated the same... Oh, actually, if one wanted to get technical, a distinction did exist: the native Grimalkynes of the Glavenus Tribe always looked down on those who had joined the tribe later. One could only conclude that social hierarchies exist no matter where you go.
"Here you go, meow. That will be two thousand zenny total, meow," a Xeno-veined Grimalkyne said from behind a stall, handing a platter of fruit to the hunters and reaching out its paw for payment.
"That expensive?!" Erin couldn't help but widen her eyes. "That's enough to buy several meals of well-done steak!"
"Of course it's expensive, meow!" The Grimalkyne instantly grew indignant, placing its paws on its hips and puffing out its chest. "These are newly discovered Ice Crystal Grapes, meow! I risked my life to harvest them, meow! They're absolutely worth the price, meow!"
In the Ancient Forest of today, new things were discovered every single day—some edible, some not. Many Grimalkynes relied on this exact trade to make a living.