The blazing sun hung high in the sky, its stinging light pouring down like molten gold, baking the entire wilderness until it was searing hot.
The surface temperature continued to rise, and the air shimmered with distorted heat waves. Distant mountains flickered in and out of view through the haze, their outlines as blurred as a mirage. In weather like this, many creatures found the heat unbearable and rarely ventured out.
The dragons living inside the ring-shaped sinkhole were an exception. As fire-type dragons, this intense heat actually made them feel more spirited and active than usual.
It had been over a month since Garlos's last negotiation with the Iron Dragon Mother. As a hatchling in a growth spurt, Garlos had been diligently training to strengthen his body. Over the past month, his frame had grown noticeably sturdier. His dragon scales looked as though they were cast from steel, and the muscle fibers hidden beneath would coil like steel cables when he exerted force, ready to burst with formidable power at any moment.
"Break time is over! Go mine for me!"
Near the cliffside, Garlos curled his tail and flicked two stones, hitting the Iron Dragon Brother and Red Dragon Sister square on their heads.
The two hatchlings looked up indignantly. "We've only rested for an hour!" they protested righteously. "Garlos, this is abuse! Based on the same mining hours, even Mother's Kobold servants get to rest for two hours!"
The Art of Manipulation
The Iron Dragon Mother did indeed have servants—a tribe of Kobolds specifically dedicated to mining for her.
Hearing their complaint, Garlos's tail struck the ground, sending sparks flying as he strolled over to the two hatchlings. He looked down at them and asked, "Do you know why you can never beat me? Why you're always pinned under me, trampled, and repeatedly humiliated?"
The two hatchlings looked at each other, confused.
"Because you lack ambition!" Garlos loomed over them, his shadow engulfing them. "As noble True Dragons with dragon blood flowing through your veins, you actually compare yourselves to Kobolds?"
Garlos shook his head, his eyes filled with pity and disappointment. "Useless trash who can't even compare to Kobolds... you truly disgrace the blood of True Dragons."
"Bullshit!" the Red Dragon Sister roared in fury. "I am a hundred times stronger than a Kobold!"
The Iron Dragon Brother was equally enraged.
Garlos's expression softened slightly, and he grinned. "Talk is cheap. Prove it to me. Show me your determination. Show me the strength and resilience of the dragon race."
"Hmph, don't underestimate us!"
The two hatchlings snorted coldly and immediately dove back into the mine shaft they had previously opened with renewed vigor. They were determined to make Garlos realize they were nothing like Kobolds; they vowed to make him look at them with respect.
Radical Provocation—a specialized tool against the dragon race.
Dragons, being proud and arrogant by nature, find provocation the hardest thing to endure.
The Iron Dragon Mother's Return
Garlos watched the two hatchlings disappear into the mine. "If only the Iron Dragon Mother were as easy to fool as they are," he sighed.
As dragons grow in age and experience, they gain better control over their instincts. An adult dragon like the Iron Dragon Mother was far more intelligent than these hatchlings. As for those two... right now, they were as gullible as fools.
If dragons like them grew for another year, became young dragons, and were eventually driven out by their mother to live alone (as per normal development), it was hard to imagine how they would survive in this world full of hidden dangers with their "weak and play-loving" personalities.
Suddenly, a violent gust of wind swept past. Garlos looked up to see the silhouette of the Iron Dragon Mother soaring through the sky, her wings spread wide. Her massive frame and rolling "Dragon Awe" (majesty) cast a thick shadow on the ground. Her wingspan, nearly forty meters wide, caused dust to fly and pebbles to vibrate.
A dark, blurry mass was dropped by the Iron Dragon Mother. It hit the ground with a deafening thud, shaking the earth like an earthquake. The impact created a deep crater with dense cracks spreading outward as a cloud of dust rapidly expanded.
Flapping his wings to disperse the dust, Garlos took a closer look.
Lying in his field of vision was a Great-Horned Savage Bull. It weighed dozens of tons, with layers of thick muscle and a pair of massive horns, its body covered in hard armor. This was a fierce beast with a biological level of 10 or higher—exactly the high-quality "blood food" Garlos needed.
The Iron Dragon Mother was honoring her deal with Garlos by providing him with regular, high-quality meals. This was specifically for him.
As for the other two hatchlings, while Garlos pressured them to mine, they weren't exactly slaves working day and night. They still received food from the Iron Dragon Mother upon returning to the nest. The Iron Dragon Mother was cold but respected rules; she was a competent provider who didn't mistreat her young, though she didn't show them much favoritism either.
The Sensation of Evolution
After dropping the prey, the Iron Dragon Mother didn't linger and returned directly to her lair.
"Time to eat."
Garlos withdrew his gaze, took a deep breath, and began tearing into the carcass of the Great-Horned Savage Bull. Even with teeth tempered by chewing metallic ores, he couldn't bite through the bull's armored hide in one go; it took several forceful tears.
The beef was incredibly fresh, as tough and chewy as if the bull were still alive. With every mouthful, Garlos felt a warm sensation spreading through his body—a rich replenishment of nutritional energy.
By the time he had finished nearly half the meat, a numbing, tingling sensation suddenly emerged from within him, surging through his body like a tide.
"This is the feeling." Garlos's eyes lit up with joy.
He had eaten a massive amount of beef. Even with a "Dragon's Furnace" iron stomach, he had felt uncomfortably full moments ago. But as the tingling sensation spread, the fullness vanished, replaced by an even stronger craving for food.
The hatchling took a deep breath, opened his maw wide to reveal rows of dragon teeth, and tore off another large chunk of meat. He chewed a few times and swallowed. The meat turned into a warm breath almost instantly, flowing toward his limbs and bones—concentrating specifically on the areas Garlos had been training recently: his scales that frequently hit the ground, his horns that struck the mountainside, and his tail that lashed against the rocks. It also included the muscles that absorbed the counter-shocks, his internal organs, and more.
However, there was no visible change to Garlos's body yet, though the "electric" tingling sensation remained constant.
Evolution isn't completed in an instant, Garlos thought to himself. It happens when I have accumulated enough adaptation and have sufficient energy. Then, over the following period, I will make rapid progress and gain the corresponding evolution based on my recent accumulations.
Over the past few years, he had been pondering the nature of his talent. Every creature technically possesses the power of adaptive evolution, but under normal circumstances, it takes millions of years of slow transition. Garlos, however, could compress that time infinitely.
The key was that his evolutionary talent was also growing.
Perhaps one day in the future, I'll be able to complete an adaptive evolution in an instant—or even evolve directly in the direction I desire.
With that thought, Garlos pushed himself to finish the entire bull, which weighed many times more than he did. The numbing, tingling sensation became exceptionally intense and rich.