Samantha spiraled down from the sky.
In her sharp claws, she carried a Vicious Beast that looked like a muscular wild bull, slamming it onto the ground.
"My dear brother, I felt like you were about to wake up, so I went hunting in advance. You must be hungry, right? Eat this to tide you over."
Samantha said.
So considerate? Garros gave the Red Dragon an surprised look.
This wasn't the Samantha he remembered.
In reality...
During these past few days while Garros was resting and recovering from his injuries, Samantha had been circling and patrolling the sky. She had seen too many powerful Vicious Beasts and monsters that she couldn't handle alone, keeping her nerves constantly on edge and unable to relax.
When Garros was around, she didn't feel much. She could just peacefully study Alchemy, play with ants, and do whatever Garros ordered. Life was calm and easy, barely different from being under the protection of the Iron Dragon Mother.
It was only when Garros temporarily stepped back that she realized just how much reliability and security he provided.
Garros devoured the bull-like Vicious Beast, but he was still not satisfied; the hunger in his belly persisted.
"A pity there's no more black oil."
"Otherwise, I could have a jar after waking from my slumber and wouldn't have to be so desperately hungry."
Ever since the source of black oil was gone, Garros particularly missed its taste.
It wasn't addictive, but its benefits for Garros were hard to ignore.
"It would be best to find a channel—a channel to obtain black oil steadily."
Garros thought to himself.
Since things were as they were, he would have a taste of Faerie Dragon scale powder first to invigorate his spirit.
In terms of mental stimulation and enhancement, the effect of fairy scale powder was even stronger than black oil.
Garros turned his head toward Fairy Dragon Vera and beckoned her with his claw.
Since it wasn't the first time, Fairy Dragon Vera understood Garros's meaning perfectly. She flew above him, fluttering her butterfly-like wings. Scale powder fell in a rustling shower, and Garros inhaled, swallowing every bit of it into his mouth.
Buzz!
In an instant, it felt as if a warm current surged from the top of his head straight down to his tailbone.
The world in Garros's eyes became clear, shifting into a warm tone. His perception was more than doubled, his spirit was invigorated, and his thoughts flowed without any obstruction.
Garros was very self-aware.
Whether it was an Iron Dragon or a Red Dragon...
The impression they gave other people or other Dragons was never one of primary intelligence.
And in fact, that was the case.
Garros knew well that as a Red-Iron hybrid, his IQ was unremarkable. He had no great advantage; it wasn't low, but it wasn't particularly high either.
Terms like 'monstrously brilliant' or 'high intelligence' didn't apply to him. His greatest advantage, besides his Adaptive Evolution talent, lay in his ability to restrain his desires and negative emotions.
But after using the fairy scale powder...
Due to the rapid operation of his mind, his clear and sharp thoughts, and the emergence of small details he had previously ignored, Garros couldn't help but feel a certain way.
—I am incredibly smart right now.
"I should have waited until I was researching the steam eruption of the Cliff Snake Dragon to use the fairy scale powder."
"fairy scale powder should be used for strategic thinking and perception enhancement during combat, excavating Legacy Spells within the Bloodline, or starting the study of professional knowledge."
"Using fairy scale powder just for a momentary spiritual boost is an extremely wasteful act."
The incredibly smart Garros thought rapidly, a light of wisdom radiating from his dragon pupils.
"Vera, give me some more scale powder."
He said.
The Faerie Dragon blinked and continued to flap her wings, shaking down even more scale powder.
Garros did not use this scale powder immediately. He collected it and hid it close to his body within the crevices of his inner scales so that he could use it immediately when needed later, without the Faerie Dragon necessarily being by his side.
A moment later, Garros swept his dragon wings and soared into the sky to hunt for food.
"Hey little one, let me taste your scale powder too."
After Garros left, Samantha was also curious about the taste of the Faerie Dragon's scale powder and spoke up.
"No way. I am Garros's servant. Without his permission, I cannot make decisions on my own."
The Faerie Dragon shook her head and refused.
Why did that tone sound a bit proud?
Samantha approached nonchalantly, and then, while the Faerie Dragon wasn't paying attention, she darted her tongue out and licked the Faerie Dragon's wing.
"Hey! What are you doing!"
Covered in the Red Dragon's wet saliva, the Faerie Dragon retreated to a distance.
She wasn't exactly afraid; she knew Samantha wouldn't eat her.
On the other side, after Samantha licked a bit of fairy scale powder, her spirit also became excited. Her thoughts moved rapidly, and she felt herself becoming smarter.
But she didn't take the opportunity to study Alchemy.
She quickly went to an ant nest, her mind conjuring a rich 'Red Dragon Queen' plot. Due to her highly sensitive spirit, the fantasy almost became a hallucination, and she began to tease the ants.
"O Giant Ants of Destruction awakened from ancient times, you dare to invade the territory of the great Red Dragon Queen!"
"Hehehe, things are becoming interesting."
"Are you the King of the Giant Ants of Destruction? Ignorant of the gap in power, face my Dragon Flame!"
Samantha was high, immersed in her hallucinations.
The Faerie Dragon flew around Samantha and quickly understood Samantha's game, syncing with her brain waves, and then enthusiastically joined in.
Meanwhile...
Garros flapped his wings and streaked across the sky, his sharp gaze overlooking the land.
After a few days of rest...
The Explosive Scales on his body had grown back. This layer of dragon scales fell off easily, but it also grew back very quickly. When his speed hadn't increased to a certain point, the red glow didn't show, appearing mainly black-gray, making him inconspicuous against the grayish-blue sky of the wasteland.
Unless it was a creature with exceptional perception...
Few could discover a Red Iron Dragon soaring high above their heads.
Under the blazing sun of the wasteland, a group of Steel-Maned Spined Beasts was rolling in a mud pit in a forest clearing.
This was a Vicious Beast shaped like a wild boar but much larger than an ordinary one. Its shoulder height was a full two meters, and its length was nearly seven meters. Its thick, metallic mane could cushion incoming attacks or be fired out like arrows. Its skin was coated in armor formed by hardened tree resin and mud, looking extremely defensive.
In the surrounding area, this group of Spined Beasts were the sole overlords.
When they moved in a pack and charged, other Vicious Beasts and monsters had to yield the way.
Therefore...
They were happily and relaxedly rolling in the mud, nudging each other playfully.
Until a soul-shaking shriek rang out.
When Garros's wings flapped at high speed, the feather-like fine scales on the wing membranes guided the airflow, producing a terrifying shriek like the coming of the Grim Reaper. The sound alone was enough to make most creatures tremble with fear.
The Spined Beasts were no exception.
These 'overlords' felt fear under Garros's Dragon Might and tried to scatter and flee.
But it was already too late.
The sounding of the shriek meant that Garros was already at full speed.
Whoosh! He dove, his sharp claws gripping the back of a massive Spined Beast. That layer of hard armor was like a thin walnut shell under his dragon claws, shattering with a single grab.
His heavy body pressed down, and another claw struck the head of the Steel-Maned Spined Beast.
The massive force caused the skull to burst.
The Spined Beast shuddered and its body went limp.
This Level 7 Vicious Beast was instantly killed by Garros.
Without eating on the spot, Garros picked up the heavy Spined Beast and took to the sky again. After a short while, the other Spined Beasts gathered again, not fleeing from the area.
The loss of just one member...
Was not enough to make them choose to relocate their territory.
Groups of Spined Beasts like this were scattered around Coniferous Valley, along with Thunder-Horned Sheep, Heavy-Armored Rhinos, and Earth Crocodiles. All were good food sources.
When Garros hunted, he wouldn't just focus on one of them but would constantly rotate his hunting targets.
On one hand, he could change his own taste.
On the other, more important hand, it was for sustainable development, to prevent these herds from fleeing too far away.
The Spined Beast had plenty of meat and was excellent prey. After this meal, Garros finally managed to soothe his sense of hunger.