"You should cultivate your own strengths instead of obsessing over the mediocre aspects that every Red Dragon excels at."
"Only then can you stand out and make the name of the Red Dragon Queen famous far and wide in the future."
"Think about it carefully: a wise Alchemy Dragon or a stupid, barbaric Red Dragon Lord who only knows how to fight—which one is more distinctive and easier to remember?"
Garros whispered softly.
"Vera thinks a wise Alchemy Dragon is better; there are way too many violent Red Dragons," the Faerie Dragon said, nodding her head vigorously.
Opposite them, Samantha's head was held high, almost pointing toward the sky.
Being clever and wise, she thought about it carefully and felt that Garros's words made a lot of sense.
"A true powerhouse should decide victory from thousands of miles away."
Garros struck while the iron was hot, guiding her patiently.
"Imagine a scene like this."
"An army of adventurers attempts to crusade against the Red Dragon Queen, but before they can even get close or see her true face, they are completely wiped out by the Red Dragon Queen's alchemy army, leaving them to cry out in regret and despair."
"Those originally hostile organizations would surrender one after another to the Red Dragon Queen's wisdom and power, offering their awe and endless treasures."
Listening to Garros's words, Samantha unconsciously began to fantasize, finally shivering with a jolt of excitement.
"Mm, I agree with your ideas."
She spoke, her gait becoming reserved as she deliberately adopted a steady, mature pace. Her eyes turned profound and mysterious, making herself look as if she truly possessed great wisdom.
The idea of building an alchemy army also took root in the Young Dragon's mind.
She couldn't wait to return to her Alchemy Workshop and get to work.
Immediately after, Garros flew back to his cave nest on the cliffside, resting his head on his tail and covering his body with his dragon wings.
"Given the intensity of the battle with the Diamond Giant, will it stimulate the Awakening of my Dragon Qi?"
Garros thought to himself.
To awaken Dragon Qi before reaching young adulthood and become a Martial Dragon, besides daily training and accumulation, the key lay in a selfless, life-or-death struggle.
Once Dragon Qi was awakened...
Garros's skills would become more diverse, his foundation deeper, and his combat power would undoubtedly soar.
However, he didn't hold too much hope; there was no record in the Legacy of an individual Awakening Dragon Qi during the Young Dragon stage.
Slowly closing his eyes, Garros began to rest.
For dragonkind, there was no better medicine than sleep. Sleep could dispel his fatigue and allow his injuries to heal faster.
Three days later.
Under the cover of night, the Gnoll Haken led a team of scouts from his clan, scaling the cliffs at the border of the Quenchfire Highlands.
The Quenchfire Highlands appeared flat overall, but the ground sloped upward at a certain angle. Following the highlands northward led to a vertical boundary like a precipice, over nine hundred meters high.
These Gnolls' territory was located outside the northern border of the Quenchfire Highlands, around a large river past the precipice.
It was called Stony Beach.
Although they lived on Stony Beach, the Dominator here was not a Gnoll, but a young Iron Dragon.
The Longtail Clan of Gnolls and a clan of Kobolds, both fearing and admiring the power of dragons, together pledged their loyalty to the Iron Dragon at Stony Beach.
Their Iron Dragon Lord was ambitious and not satisfied with just Stony Beach.
The Iron Dragon Lord possessed strategic vision, believing the Quenchfire Highlands to be a strategic point that was easy to defend, hard to attack, and offered a wide field of view. Thus, he viewed the Quenchfire Highlands as an object of conquest and planned to occupy it.
However...
The appearance of the Stone Giants disrupted the Iron Dragon's plans.
Stone Giants from an unknown origin had set up camp and built a base on the Quenchfire Highlands.
Wary of the Stone Giants' prowess, the Iron Dragon did not dare to act rashly, but he was unwilling to give up his grand blueprint for creating a wilderness Empire, so he kept a close watch on the Quenchfire Highlands.
Until a few days ago.
It was as if a meteorite had fallen from the sky, crashing into the Quenchfire Highlands. The impact point seemed very close to the Stone Giant camp, or perhaps it had landed directly on it.
It caused quite a commotion.
That piercing crimson light could be seen from a great distance.
This anomaly was discovered by the Iron Dragon, who had been secretly observing the Quenchfire Highlands.
So, he dispatched Gnoll scouts to investigate the Quenchfire Highlands.
Haken the Gnoll led the scout team, walking cautiously across the Quenchfire Highlands. Their paws made no sound on the gravel and grass, and their ears twitched from time to time, alert to any movement in the surroundings.
Time passed slowly in the tense atmosphere.
The night grew darker, and the moon's clear light was obscured by dark clouds.
Darkness surged from all directions, making the Gnolls highly alert and cautious, not daring to be negligent.
A few minutes later, the dozen or so Gnolls stopped in their tracks at the edge of a massive circular crater, their bodies trembling slightly.
"Is... is this where the meteorite landed?"
"But there's no sign of a meteorite at the bottom."
Gnolls possessed darkvision, allowing them to see their surroundings clearly even in the thick of night.
"Perhaps it wasn't a meteorite."
Haken lowered his voice and said, "It might be something those Stone Giants did."
At the mention of Stone Giants, another scout shrank back in fear and said, "Let's go back and report this information to the Dragon Lord."
"Fool! Such worthless information will only make the Dragon Lord angry."
Haken licked the corner of his mouth and looked toward the Stone Giant camp, saying, "At least we need to find out if the Stone Giants were behind it. Those big guys have dull senses; if we're careful, we won't be discovered."
The Iron Dragon Lord used both favor and authority, rewarding subordinates who performed meritorious deeds.
Haken felt his fangs becoming loose and brittle, and his body was slowly weakening. He knew he was aging, gradually approaching his later years and death.
He was not resigned to this.
He hoped to gain the Iron Dragon Lord's appreciation and earn the chance for Dragon Vein Transformation.
Knowing the Iron Dragon Lord's style of doing things, he was willing to take the risk.
Immediately following that.
Haken led the scouts to slowly approach the Stone Giant camp.
However, as they drew closer and could see the situation inside the camp, their eyes widened in unison, filled with shock.
There were no Stone Giants in sight.
In their place were several sturdy and powerful Ogres.
Those Ogres were more burly than their usual kin, all of them being rare elites.
Most terrifyingly, they were systematically dismantling the remains of Stone Giants, throwing the fragments of their bodies into a boiling Symbiotic Pool.
"Something's not right."
Haken tucked his tail between his legs.
"These aren't ordinary—"
"Look out! We've been spotted!"
The Gnoll scout on the left suddenly cried out in alarm.
A thick spear fell from the sky, piercing a Gnoll's body and pinning it to the ground.
The Ogre Ugo stood on the high stone wall, staring straight at the bushes where the Gnoll scouts were hiding. He sniffed his nose, a cruel smile appearing at the corner of his mouth.
"These stone lumps don't taste good; these little rats arrived just in time."
He leapt directly from the stone wall, clutching a massive metal battle-axe enhanced by Alchemy Runes, and began sprinting toward the Gnolls with thunderous steps.
Behind him, even more Ogre Warriors joined the charge.
Their heavy bodies trampled the earth, making the ground tremble incessantly.
These massive fellows charged like rhinos; they weren't slow, but were actually quite fast.
The world's impression of Ogres was that they had great strength but were slow in movement. This was true, but only for flabby Ogres, not these Ogre elites.
The Gnoll scouts fled in panic.
The Ogres threw boulders or other weapons from behind to disrupt the Gnolls' escape rhythm, and their own sprinting speed was very fast. It wasn't long before they caught up.
"Stupid Ogres!"
Seeing the Ogres approaching and realizing he couldn't outrun them, Haken the Gnoll actually stopped.
He turned to face the Ogres, puffing out his chest with his fur standing on end, and roared with bared teeth, "We are loyal to the great Iron King! A noble and invincible dragon!"
"How dare you offend us!"
Ugo, the leader, was stunned for a moment.
The other Ogres also stopped, looking at each other.
Seeing their reaction, Haken the Gnoll grew bolder and said arrogantly, "Hmph! Hurry up and apologize, beg for forgiveness!"
"Otherwise, the Iron King will trample your territory and kill you all! You'll be turned into wilderness trash!"
After a few seconds of silence.
Ugo took a large step forward.
"Fine, then please forgive my offense!"
Even as he spoke, he swung his giant axe—which was longer than a Gnoll's life—and brought it down hard.
His pupils shrinking, Haken's deathly pale face could be seen even through his fur. He stood there like a wooden chicken, his body stiff, not even daring to move.
The Ogre Ugo was the elite of elites.
In the entire Bone-Chewing Clan, he was only weaker than the Gluttony Demon Karu.
Ordinary Young Dragons were no match for him, let alone a common Gnoll scout leader.
Boom!
The battle-axe struck in front of the Gnoll, leaving a deep furrow in the ground.
"Tie them all up! Take them away!"
Ugo said in a gravelly voice, "Awaiting the judgment of the great Lord of the Crimson Wings!"
Lord of the Crimson Wings, Deathwing, the peerless Ominous Star. These were the honorary titles for Garros within the Molten Iron Clan.
Lord of the Crimson Wings?
It's all over!
It seemed this group of Ogres also had a dragon above them! That title sounded just like a dragon's. The Gnolls' last reliance was gone, and they completely lost their will to fight.
The Ogres, fierce as wolves and tigers, captured the Gnolls in an instant and took them back to the camp.