Rayder decided to give it a try—maybe he could finally shut off the irritating alert sound.
After some fumbling and a bit of cursing under his breath, he succeeded. The noise disappeared, replaced by the eerie silence of the jungle. With the alarm silenced, Rayder's heartbeat gradually returned to normal. His nerves, stretched thin by the chaos around him, slowly began to settle.
Now that he was no longer overwhelmed by fear, Rayder began observing the battle raging below from his perch atop the tree. Initially terrified by the bizarre and terrifying creatures fighting beneath him, something inside him shifted. Rather than tremble in fear, he found himself cheering quietly, even praying that all of them—monsters, abominations, and horrors—would simply tear each other apart.
Minute by tense minute, the life-or-death battle continued. Finally, after what felt like hours, the clash ended.
The victors? The green venom ants. Vicious, relentless, and numerous, they stood triumphant amidst the battlefield of twisted, deformed corpses. But despite their victory, they did not move toward Rayder. It seemed the pressure radiating from him—Dragon King's Pressure—instinctively repelled them. Instead, the ants collected the bodies of both their fallen and the slain enemies, dragging them away in groups back into the forest.
As silence reclaimed the jungle floor, a wave of relief washed over Rayder. He exhaled deeply, slumping against the tree trunk. He had survived—barely.
Once his breathing had steadied, he quickly checked on Kidora's incubation progress.
11.7%.
His eyes widened in surprise. The battle had yielded significant growth for the hatchling. Still, Rayder sincerely hoped he'd never face such a life-threatening ordeal again. Surviving once was more than enough.
After half an hour of observing his surroundings and confirming the danger had passed, Rayder cautiously descended from the tree. His limbs trembled slightly from fatigue and adrenaline. But he was alive.
Having survived such a brutal test, Rayder made a decision: from now on, he would only rest in the treetops. The jungle below was far too dangerous.
With renewed wariness, he continued his journey through the dense forest. Every step was taken with care. The shadows, the rustling leaves, even the wind—all felt like potential threats.
Oddly, after a few hours of walking, he noticed something strange. His body felt lighter. Stronger, even. His steps no longer dragged, and his energy had noticeably increased. Curious, he opened his personal panel:
Name: Rayder
Gender: Male
Age: 11
Bloodline Talent: Ancient Valyrian Dragon King Bloodline
Skills: Dragon Rider; Dragon King's Pressure
Everything looked the same.
"Am I imagining things?" he muttered. But he didn't dwell on it. In this forest, reality often bent around the strange and unexplainable.
Rayder pressed on.
For seven grueling days, he trekked through the jungle. Fortunately, he didn't encounter any more deformed creatures. That alone was a blessing. Still, his nightly routine of climbing into trees and tying himself down to sleep remained unchanged. He wasn't going to take any chances.
Then, on the ninth day—finally—he saw the edge of the forest.
Rayder stood still for a moment, soaking in the sunlight pouring through the trees. He had made it out. Relief overwhelmed him. But even as he stepped onto open land, he knew his journey wasn't over.
To locate the exact position of the Broken Volcano—home of the dragon's lair—he needed height. So, he climbed the nearest tall mountain.
From its summit, the world stretched before him. Far in the distance, towering over the horizon, stood a massive volcano spewing smoke into the sky.
"That's it," he whispered. The Broken Volcano.
Without hesitation, Rayder descended the mountain and set off. But he soon discovered the journey would be far more difficult than he had expected.
What had seemed like a short distance from above turned out to be deceptive. The terrain was harsh, the paths winding and treacherous. What should have taken days turned into two months of relentless travel.
Along the way, Rayder stumbled upon something unexpected—the skeletal remains of a giant dragon.
As before, the system within him absorbed the magical energy from the dragon bones. However, unlike the last time, Rayder didn't immediately leave. Instead, he chose to rest and recover.
That's when disaster struck again.
Just as the dragon bones crumbled into dust, the ground nearby began to tremble.
Then—they came.
Dozens, maybe hundreds, of deformed creatures burst from beneath the earth. Their faces were grotesque, their movements erratic, their presence overwhelming.
Rayder froze. Panic clawed at his chest. He had seen many horrors in this world, but this... this was something else.
His instincts kicked in before his thoughts could. He ran.
This time, the terrain was different—open plains stretched around him, offering no trees to hide in. But this lack of obstacles worked in his favor. Rayder's speed increased, and he managed to stay ahead of the swarm.
Still, the creatures chased him relentlessly, their howls echoing behind him. They were faster than before. Smarter, perhaps. Or maybe just more driven.
After what felt like hours of running, Rayder spotted a narrow cave in the distance. It was his only hope.
He didn't hesitate.
Diving into the cave, he immediately pushed boulders and debris to block the entrance. Then he collapsed against the wall, gasping for breath, sweat pouring down his face.
But he couldn't afford to rest. The creatures were outside—he could hear them clawing, snarling, trying to break through.
A long stalemate followed. For an entire day and night, Rayder fought a brutal tug-of-war for survival.
Whenever the creatures broke through the barricade, he fended them off with every last ounce of strength. When exhausted, he rested for minutes, then resumed the battle again. Over and over.
Finally—mercifully—the assault ended.
Rayder stood in the cave, drenched in blood and sweat, his body trembling. But around him, the twisted corpses of his enemies littered the ground.
He had won. Barely.
Checking his system, he saw the update:
Incubation Progress: 27.1%.
A massive gain. But Rayder didn't care. He had never been so close to death. From that day on, he swore: if he ever saw dragon bones again, he'd run in the opposite direction.
One more month of exhausting travel followed.
Then—at last—Rayder stood at the foot of the Broken Volcano.
He stared up at the massive structure, his chest rising and falling with emotion. His eyes burned, and tears welled up unbidden.
Three months of danger. Pain. Survival.
And he had finally arrived.
He took a deep breath, trying to compose himself. Before him rose a towering volcano, blackened by ash and wreathed in smoke. The air around it shimmered with heat, and the earth rumbled softly beneath his feet.
This was no ordinary mountain. It was a beast of stone and flame, and inside—his destiny waited.
Determined, Rayder began to climb.
The slopes were treacherous, the rock brittle and sharp. A single misstep could spell disaster. He climbed slowly, gripping tightly, scanning every inch of the terrain.
Then, surprisingly, he found stone steps carved into the mountainside.
They were ancient, worn by time, but clearly not natural.
Rayder's heart skipped a beat.
Someone—or something—had been here before.
And now, he would follow the same path into the heart of the volcano...
Øóffer going on for diamond tier
pàtreøn (Gk31)