"The power of my Wing Slash at full speed is immense; I'm afraid even my own defense wouldn't be able to withstand it."
Garros thought silently to himself.
The armor on the Earth Storm Bear, though rock-like in texture, was harder than ordinary metal or steel. Furthermore, the armor on its arms was the thickest, and its own fur, flesh, and bones were by no means fragile.
But even so, it was severed in a single stroke by Garros's dragon wings.
During the entire brief process, he felt almost no resistance or lag.
His body traced an arc through the low air, his sharp claws leaving long gashes in the ground as he steadied himself at the other end. In the next second, his limbs crouched slightly, and the muscle fibers beneath his dragon scales twisted like steel wires, bursting with overwhelming power.
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His dragon wings flapped to accelerate.
Garros sprinted across the ground, crushing the surface step by step. The blade-like edges of his dragon wings cut through the trees along the way with a grand momentum unlike that of a hatchling, as he charged once more toward the Earth Storm Bear for the kill.
This battle was primarily to test the current strength of his dragon wings.
As for the self-sacrificing impact skill like Great Desolate Dragon Meteor, Garros was already well-versed in it.
Intense pain radiated from the severed arm. Faced once again with a Dragonkin of such formidable dragon might that seemed unstoppable, the ferocity in the Earth Storm Bear's bones vanished. Instead of a roar or howl, it let out a whimper.
Then...
Garros, who was sprinting at full speed and attempting to split the Earth Storm Bear in half with his dragon wings, watched in astonishment as the bear whimpered and threw itself flat on the ground. It assumed a cowering posture of non-resistance, with its rear in the air and its head lowered, almost entirely buried in the dirt.
Swish!
Just as he was about to collide with the Earth Storm Bear, the hatchling, who was almost at point-blank range, suddenly soared upward.
Garros rose in a straight line, changed direction in mid-air, and landed steadily, choosing not to kill the Earth Storm Bear.
Feeling the strong winds cease and the dragon might dissipate...
The Earth Storm Bear quietly raised its head and looked at the hatchling walking toward it step by step.
"Wua wula!"
It let out whimpering sounds, its eyes showing human-like fawning and fear.
Monsters possess high intelligence, and a monster like the Earth Storm Bear has an IQ no lower than a human's. They are intelligent creatures and are born knowing how to speak some Giantish.
Giants are the sworn enemies of Dragonkin.
As the saying goes, the one who knows you best is always your enemy.
The dragon heritage contains the Giantish language, so Garros could understand it.
Noble Dragon, please spare me—that was roughly the meaning of the Earth Storm Bear's words just now.
"The Legacy says that Earth Storm Bears are fearless and will fiercely attack even Dragonkin. I don't know about others, but this Earth Storm Bear is different from the recorded descriptions. It seems the dragon heritage cannot be entirely trusted."
Garros looked at the Earth Storm Bear, lost in thought.
"But the battle was too brief. I haven't fully determined the strength of my dragon wings."
His eyes narrowed slightly, and a dangerous glint appeared in Garros's dragon pupils.
The Earth Storm Bear keenly captured this and immediately stuffed its head back into the dirt like an ostrich, its body trembling. Its attitude was: 'Kill me if you want, I won't look and I won't resist.'
Seeing it like this, Garros lost his killing intent.
He didn't have any subordinates to serve him yet; perhaps he could subdue this Earth Storm Bear.
He stepped forward.
Garros reached out a claw and lightly patted the Earth Storm Bear's head.
The other party first trembled in fear, then raised its head to see Garros's calm, emotionless gaze.
"Choose to submit, and I can give you a chance to live."
Garros said in somewhat rusty Giantish.
"It is my honor."
The Earth Storm Bear nodded like a chick pecking at grain, agreeing very decisively.
Garros's prowess had shocked it.
An Earth Storm Bear capable of living alone in the wilderness is no fool. Although it couldn't be certain what kind of dragon the opponent was, it could judge by Garros's size that he was only a hatchling. That was why the Earth Storm Bear had acted so bravely at first, without a shred of fear. As a result, it lost a bear arm in the instant of contact. If it took a few more hits, it felt it would surely be dead.
After a brief exchange, Garros learned the Earth Storm Bear's name—Mobel, a male Earth Storm Bear.
Having saved its life, the Earth Storm Bear picked up its severed arm and pressed it against the wound.
Earthy yellow energy swirled around it, temporarily bonding and connecting the parts together.
The Earth Storm Bear's regeneration was not weak; after resting for a while, this bear arm would be usable again.
"Are there any monsters nearby with a level similar to yours or slightly stronger? I haven't had my fill yet."
Garros asked the Earth Storm Bear.
The Earth Storm Bear nodded and pointed a bear claw toward the south.
"In this direction, a Red-Scaled Python is entrenched. I have fought it many times, and we are evenly matched."
As it spoke, a glint of schadenfreude appeared in the Earth Storm Bear's eyes.
The Red-Scaled Python was its arch-rival. The two had fought many times over territory and resources, and the Earth Storm Bear had many old scars left by the Red-Scaled Python.
"Lead the way."
Garros took directly to the sky.
The Earth Storm Bear broke into a stride on the ground, running south with great strides. Under its guidance, Garros soon discovered the Red-Scaled Python's nest.
It was coiled around a Giant Cedar tree, its body almost as thick as the trunk, and its scales were fiery red.
Its biological Rank was also 8, the same as the Earth Storm Bear.
The difference was that the Red-Scaled Python was a Vicious Beast with little intelligence.
Target locked, the hatchling at a hundred meters altitude tensed his muscles. Simultaneously, he spread his blade-like wings wide and dove toward the Red-Scaled Python with a whistle.
In less than a minute...
As the dragon wings swept past, the massive head of the Red-Scaled Python soared into the sky. A rain of blood splashed down, landing on Garros and adding a touch of ferocity to his appearance.
"A Rank 8 Vicious Beast can't even last long against me."
Garros flicked his dragon wings, shaking off the blood.
Although he could fight above his level so easily, he felt no arrogance or complacency. Dragonkin were top-tier monsters to begin with; being able to do this was only natural.
life rank was merely a reference and could not truly measure combat power.
Garros kept in mind that arrogance and conceit were the primary sins that got Dragonkin killed. He could not lose himself because of temporary strength.
Besides, he wasn't truly powerful yet. In this wilderness, at most, he had some means of self-preservation. He was still very, very far from being able to do whatever he wanted without restraint.
For one thing, Iron Dragon Mother could slap him to death with a few strikes.
And an adult Dragon like Iron Dragon Mother couldn't even be called an overlord in the Serel Wilderness.
Shortly after, Garros left the Earth Storm Bear in that area; he didn't bring it along and returned to the Sinkhole Territory by himself.
The reason was simple.
Given Iron Dragon Mother's personality, she wouldn't allow an uncontrolled Earth Storm Bear in her territory and would forcibly enslave it, since Garros hadn't used Dragon Vein Transformation on it.
Dragon Vein Transformation—a process where a Dragon bestows its own essence blood upon another creature, transforming it into a dragon-vein creature that is loyal from the bottom of its heart.
Compared to subordinates, Garros focused more on himself. He was currently still a hatchling in a period of rapid growth. Giving away essence blood would slow down his own growth rate, and he wouldn't drag himself down for the sake of a subordinate.
An Earth Storm Bear that hadn't undergone Dragon Vein Transformation...
Its verbal submission was unreliable; it could simply flee without listening to Garros.
However...
Survival in the wilderness was difficult and full of dangers. Even he needed to be cautious. A monster like the Earth Storm Bear wouldn't leave its familiar territory unless absolutely necessary.
If it really ran away, it didn't matter.
Garros subduing a subordinate was just something he did in passing. Deep down, he didn't care much. At most, he would kill it if they crossed paths again; if they didn't, he wouldn't give it a second thought.
Furthermore...
On one side was the peril-filled wilderness and a life of wandering and flight; on the other was a powerful Dragon backer with extraordinary potential.
With the Earth Storm Bear's intelligence, it knew how to choose.
When he returned to the Sinkhole Territory, the sky was still bright, and the sun continued to radiate high heat as usual.
"Garros, Mother wants us to go to her dragon nest together."
Just as he landed on the cliff edge, the two hatchlings came over and spoke to Garros—more accurately, they were now two young dragons.
As a year had passed, the bodies of Red Dragon Sister and Iron Dragon Brother had both grown significantly, and their age group had reached the young dragon stage.
"Summoning all three of us at once... it's been a long time since something like this happened. I wonder what Mother has to announce."
Red Dragon Sister blinked her eyes, somewhat curious.
"Hehe, maybe Mother has prepared some delicious bloody meat for us to enjoy together."
Iron Dragon Brother tilted his head, guessing happily.
You two fools, have you already forgotten what happened to me a year ago?
Garros shook his head slightly.
He remained silent and flew toward Iron Dragon Mother's dragon nest, with the two young dragons following closely behind, excitedly tagging along.