After hunting in the abandoned mine and discovering the colony of Rock-Crushing Worms...
Garros did not head straight back to the Sinkhole Territory under the Iron Dragon Mother's protection. Instead, he continued to circle above the clouds, gazing down at the boundless wilderness, searching for magical creatures and Vicious Beasts to hone his combat skills while scouting for a suitable territory to occupy in the future.
It is worth mentioning here.
Magical creatures are simply magical organisms; as a Dragonkin, Garros is actually considered a top-tier magical creature. As for Vicious Beasts, they are ferocious beasts that have undergone evolutionary mutations.
Most magical creatures possess innate skills similar to Spells and generally have high intelligence. Vicious Beasts, on the other hand, mainly rely on their powerful physical attributes and have low intelligence.
During the better part of the day.
Aside from the initial Rock-Crushing Worms, Garros hunted a total of five targets.
A Basilisk, a Fire-Breathing Crocodile, a Red-Eyed Giant Rhino, a Dire-Claw Owlbear, and a Giant-Clawed Rock Crab.
Two magical creatures and three Vicious Beasts.
Due to the environment of the Serel Wilderness, the inhabitants were primarily earth and fire-attributed creatures.
Including the Rock-Crushing Worms, these six hunts allowed Garros to gain a clearer understanding of his own strength.
He was now a Rank 7 lifeform.
When facing the Rank 6 Dire-Claw Owlbear, Garros relied on his inherently powerful Dragonkin physique—which he had further strengthened through day and night training—and killed it with a single collision.
While fighting the Fire-Breathing Crocodile, also a Rank 7 magical creature, Garros utilized the fire resistance inherited from his Red Dragon and Iron Dragon Bloodlines. He took a direct hit from its high-temperature flames, yet it only left a few scorched marks on his scales. In return, his Flame Dragon Breath instantly turned the Fire-Breathing Crocodile into charcoal.
Other magical creatures or Vicious Beasts of the same Rank were no match for Garros either.
Even the thick-skinned Red-Eyed Giant Rhino was left half-dead after being struck by Garros in a high-altitude accelerated dive.
Currently, 'Great Wild Dragon Meteor' was Garros's most powerful offensive technique besides his Dragon Breath.
For other wyverns, such a self-sacrificing attack would be dangerous; if not handled properly, they could severely injure themselves. However, Garros had been 'banging' mountains and the earth every day and had even evolved a set of Buffer Scales, making him long since proficient in its use.
Those at lower or equal Ranks were all very weak.
Only the Rank 8 magical creature, the Basilisk, managed to cause him some slight damage.
Its petrification ray hit Garros, turning a small area of the dragon scales on his arm guards and the flesh beneath into stone. However, that was the extent of the injuries the Basilisk could inflict on him.
He estimated.
That although he was only Rank 7, he should be able to hold his own even against Rank 9 Vicious Beasts or magical creatures.
Ordinary Dragonkin can fight above their Rank, and the physique Garros developed through Adaptive Evolution made him a standout even among Dragonkin.
However, Garros did not possess the overly arrogant and conceited personality common to other Dragonkin.
Unless necessary or driven by sufficient benefit, he would not rashly challenge creatures whose Rank was significantly higher than his own.
With his innate Dragonkin talents and Adaptive Evolution, he could grow increasingly powerful through steady development.
There was no need to put himself in a dangerous situation for the sake of momentary pride.
The arrogance and conceit inherited from the ancient era when Dragons ruled everything had caused countless Dragonkin to perish before they could fully mature.
Returning to the topic at hand.
Besides the Vicious Beasts and magical creatures he hunted.
Garros also discovered several suitable habitats for living.
The good news was that these habitats were either fertile with lush vegetation, had clear lakes teeming with birds and beasts, or possessed steep terrain that was easy to defend and hard to attack.
The bad news was that, just like the abandoned mine occupied by the Rock-Crushing Worms, they all already had masters.
Numerous creatures lived in this wilderness, and suitable habitats were scarce and in high demand; basically, they were all occupied by powerful beings.
The territory Garros coveted most was nestled against a mountain and by a river, with beautiful scenery and abundant food resources.
Unfortunately, it was occupied by a pride of Manticores.
The average Rank of an adult Manticore is 5.
In a one-on-one, knight-like duel, Garros could even give them a 'two-claw' handicap.
But that pride of Manticores was quite large. From his high-altitude survey, there were about thirty of them. Not only were there two leaders—one male and one female—but they were also massive and looked different from normal Manticores, as if they had undergone some mutations.
He noted the locations of the territories he liked.
Garros thought to himself that perhaps by the time he left the Iron Dragon Mother's protection, he would be strong enough to replace the original lords.
As the sun was about to sink into the embrace of the distant mountains and the evening glow stained the sky like burning clouds.
The young dragon ended his expedition, soaring through the sky illuminated by the setting sun to return to the Sinkhole Territory.
Since he had technically reached the age of expulsion, although Garros lived in the Sinkhole Territory, he no longer shared a dragon nest with the Iron Dragon Mother.
He simply settled down by the cliffside where he performed his daily exercises.
He had just returned.
He saw the Red Dragon Sister and Iron Dragon Brother lazily soaking up the last rays of the sun, lying on their bellies outside the mine tunnels to rest. Their eyes were half-closed, and their tails swayed back and forth behind them, looking very comfortable.
Both of them were lazy and undisciplined by nature, lacking Garros's level of self-discipline.
Initially, they thought they had discovered the secret to Garros's strength, so they spent their free time imitating him by ramming into mountains and the ground with great enthusiasm and high morale.
And indeed, it was so for the first few days.
The two dragons were full of passion, 'banging' mountains and the earth whenever they had time, unlike before when they would just wander aimlessly or lie down for a nap when they had nothing to do.
But as time passed, their true natures were hard to change, and their enthusiasm began to wane.
Just a short while ago.
When it was time for the Red Dragon Sister to train by ramming mountains as she had done several times before, she hesitated. She thought she should balance work and rest, take a nap to recharge her spirit before starting, so she went to sleep.
When she woke up, it was a bit late, and the cool night breeze made her feel slightly uncomfortable.
She figured that if her condition wasn't right, the training wouldn't be effective, so she decided to wait until daylight to start.
When daylight came and the morning air was at its freshest, the Red Dragon Sister felt that in such wonderful air, she should be soaring through the sky, enjoying the thrill of flying high and looking down at the world. Thus, she once again put training out of her mind.
After a few such instances.
She completely lost interest in training.
As for the Iron Dragon Brother, he was different from the Red Dragon Sister and didn't go through the same mental journey.
—Once, he flew too high and didn't adjust his angle properly when hitting the ground. His dragon face made intimate contact with the earth, and the impact was so severe that his mouth and eyes were still crooked, giving him a dazed and squinty look.
After that incident, the Iron Dragon Brother also gave up.
In fact, although it wasn't as effective as Garros's visible evolutionary adaptation, if they could have persisted in honing their bodies by striking rocks and the earth, their scales would have become more or less harder, and their bodies more resilient.
Even though they were forced by Garros to mine.
After a month, their claws and teeth were sharper than before, and their muscular strength had increased slightly.
Ordinary Dragonkin actually possess evolutionary capabilities far beyond other creatures; it's just not as obvious or efficient as Garros's.