The tribal leaders forged in blood and fire might be plotting alone, or they might be forming covenants in the shadows.
The horn of war will be blown at the latest before the Molten Iron Tribe fully integrates the south and digests the fruits of its victory.
This is the countdown to life or death.
Otherwise, facing the thriving Molten Iron Tribe, the other tribes can only wait for death.
Thinking of this, there were no ripples in the depths of the Red-Iron Dragon's pupils.
He was no longer that Young Dragon who had to be cautious about everything; he remained prudent, but not everything could make him feel fear.
Under his instruction, the Molten Iron Tribe was also making preparations to deal with the impending war.
When the time comes.
If he loses, the accumulation of these years will be destroyed, but it would just be starting over; Garros would never let his own life fall into danger.
If he wins, Garros will be crowned as the King of the Borderlands. This land is generally barren and backward, but as long as he can stand at the apex, he can still enjoy a massive allocation of resources and grow faster.
At this moment, the kin saw the arrival of the Red-Iron Dragon, paused what they were doing, kowtowed, prostrated on the ground, and shouted in awe.
"Praise the Dragon Lord!"
"Loyal! Faithful!"
"."
Garros nodded slightly: "Continue doing what you are supposed to do."
The kin on the assembly line continued to work.
Those who had just been rotated out looked satisfied, eating the nearly unlimited supply of food in large gulps.
The intensity of the assembly line work was high, no easier than fighting, but the Molten Iron Tribe was very considerate and prepared sufficient food for these kin, allowing them to eat and drink their fill without having to worry about food.
In The Borderlands, where resources are limited and people can starve to death.
This treatment already exceeded that of many grassroots kin.
The Gnolls and Kobolds were basically fighting to work on the assembly line, and they were grateful to Garros, feeling heartfelt admiration and gratitude.
"Goblin, why does my Alchemy Rune etching always fail?"
From another Alchemy Workshop came the voice of Red Dragon Samantha.
Since conquering the Black Iron Plain, because this stronghold had a large number of Alchemy Workshops and the temperature and environment were suitable, Samantha moved directly from the Sulfur Hills to here, making it more convenient to manage and command the various assembly lines.
Garros turned his head to look.
He saw Red Dragon Samantha stretching her arm out in front of the Grand Artificer, pointing at a scale on it.
Alchemy Rune etching is a more Advanced technique than ordinary carving, capable of more deeply amplifying and strengthening the etched object using Alchemy Runes.
Red Dragon Samantha was learning and trying to etch defensive runes onto her scales, but she had failed more than once.
"I have been very careful, but why can I not succeed?"
The Red Dragon asked.
A dim blue light shot out from the construct's eyes, scanning the Red Dragon's scales.
With just one glance, the intelligence left behind by this Advanced Alchemist understood where the problem lay.
The light retracted into its eyes and then instantly expanded.
A scale of Red Dragon Samantha was magnified countless times, its surface gullies like rolling mountain ranges.
"Dragon scales are not the flat surfaces seen by the naked eye; they have a more microscopic structure."
He said: "You need more subtle observation to establish a three-dimensional geometric model."
The Grand Artificer gestured with his finger, using Demonic Energy to outline bright green thin lines. Following that, the green lines flowed like rivers, winding along the natural texture of the scales, avoiding all obstructions, and finally forming a complex, exquisite, and natural rune circuit.
"Nature is the optimal rune substrate; forcing a transformation is not as good as following the texture."
The Grand Artificer said mechanically and calmly.
Nature is the optimal rune substrate?
Samantha had not found similar words in her Legacy. In her Alchemy Legacy, there was also no mention that when performing Alchemy Rune etching, one needed to consider that dragon scales are not flat.
These were new pieces of knowledge not in her Legacy.
Although she did not want to admit it in her heart.
But Red Dragon Samantha knew very well that the intelligent Alchemy Golem in front of her had profound Alchemy attainments and was a very good mentor.
It was not the first time she had consulted the intelligent Alchemy Golem.
Every time, the Grand Artificer could see through the fire, pointing straight to the essence of the problem, using simple language to unravel her doubts, making her suddenly enlightened and clear-headed.
Garros heard this conversation and nodded slightly.
It was not in vain that he had spent effort on the war with the Golden Tooth Tribe; just obtaining the allegiance of the Grand Artificer was of immeasurable value.
[Do not give me gold, give me the fire that turns stone into gold]
Garros also quite agreed with this sentence. This Grand Artificer construct was essentially an educational intelligent Alchemy Golem; he would continuously train Alchemists for the Molten Iron Tribe.
The Legendary praise from the Golden Tooth Tribe Goblins for him was really not an exaggeration.
If he had not been trapped in The Borderlands during his lifetime and held back by his tribe, he would have had a high probability of becoming a true Legendary.
After understanding the key to Alchemy Rune etching, Samantha began to try.
The Grand Artificer was not idle; he patrolled the territory, guiding every Alchemist who encountered problems, tirelessly and diligently.
Garros did not stay here for long.
He flapped his wings and soared into the sky, arriving at the hinterland behind the Black Iron Plain, circling in the sky with a joyful smile on his dragon face, looking down from above.
On the dark, gloomy plain, countless figures were like tiny worker ants, shuttling between the veins of the earth.
The miners lined up in long queues, shouting low and rhythmic chants, sweating profusely as they used thick crowbars and heavy oak hammers to drive the steel drills, which were deeply wedged into the strata, deeper inch by inch.
In the center of the mine pit stood several steel constructs.
They were monsters spliced and welded together by steel and metal.
They extended metal arms as huge as pillars, with heavy steel drills hanging from the tips, clanging! Clanging! Clanging! Smashing into the depths of the earth.
With every impact, the ground trembled dully, and oil mixed with mud sprayed out from the drill holes, drenching the Minotaur slaves operating the winches below.
Wyvern Swarm, Kora Giant Eagle.
Centaur, giant wolves, and various elite cavalry.
A large number of soldiers patrolled and guarded the ground and the sky, not letting any creatures approach, and there were countless hidden sentries and scouts around.
Moreover, the noise and movement of the Black Oil Field were limited to the scope of the Black Oil Field, constrained by magic arrays jointly constructed by warlocks and shamans, and would not spread to further places.
"What a wonderful scent."
The Red-Iron Dragon took a deep breath, able to smell the faint scent of black oil exposed to the air.
This Black Oil Field was just the most miniature one, but the reserves were very rich for a tribe. Although the Goblins had already mined and utilized it for a period of time, because they did not even dare to mine the Black Oil Field before their rise, its remaining reserves were still sufficient.
After some more time.
Using the mined black oil to create a pool belonging to Garros would not be a problem.
"However, compared to the scale of the Black Oil Field I saw in the Serel Wilderness back then, it is still too small."
The Red-Iron Dragon's eyes flickered as he thought.
The scene of the Black Oil Field he saw while adventuring in his childhood—those tight and powerful garrisons, those massive Alchemy machines that bowed to the earth like pilgrims to pump out black oil—left him with no small psychological shock.
By comparison.
This Black Oil Field of the Molten Iron Tribe was too small, and the mining methods were also very backward.
"There is an even more Advanced solid form of black oil."
"It is mentioned in the Legacy that a hundred tons of black oil can only be concentrated into a small piece of Demonic Energy Stone, which is the main energy source used by Legendary Alchemy Golems."
"I really want to taste the flavor of a Demonic Energy Stone; I wonder how powerful it would be."
"Unfortunately, although there are black oil resources now, the Alchemy industry of the Molten Iron Tribe cannot do this, nor do they have purchasing channels."
Garros licked his lips, yearning in his heart.
In any case, he finally had his own Black Oil Field and no longer needed to be like he was back then, needing to trade with insects like Earth Spiders for a little bit of black oil, letting them steal oil for him, and having to run away immediately after being discovered.
However, the fact that the Molten Iron Tribe has a Black Oil Field still needs to be hidden and cannot be exposed blatantly.
For such strategic resources, no country would complain about having too much.
Just like when Garros knew the Golden Tooth Tribe had a Black Oil Field, he was immediately preparing for war. Once it is discovered that a tribe in The Borderlands actually has a Black Oil Field, the Molten Iron Tribe will inevitably invite a crusade.
After admiring and patrolling his Black Oil Field for a while.
Garros returned to the Dragon Valley.
It was already noon, and the sunlight poured down from the sky like liquid gold, plating the valley and also plating the Red-Silver Dragon resting on a rock slab, making her dragon scales shimmer and shine, looking magnificent.
"The Molten Iron Tribe is growing day by day and will sooner or later be exposed to the eyes of the Silver Dragon. I should raise Deborah's favorability as soon as possible; for the time being, I should not have to face an adult Silver Dragon."
Garros thought to himself.
"Hey, Metallic Dragon."
The Red-Iron Dragon called out: "Wake up, it's riddle time."
Hearing the word 'riddle', the Red-Silver Dragon's ears pricked up, waking from her nap, then she blinked her eyes, looking at Garros with anticipation.
Garros cleared his throat and said in a chanting tone:
"I burn but have no ashes; I fall but am always climbing."
"Shepherds use me to mark the moment the flock returns to the fold; the wise use me to measure the trajectory of fate's flow."
"I have never spoken, yet I witness the beginning and end of all epics; I was originally cold embers, yet I ignited the first campfire of civilization."
As the last syllable fell, he looked at the Red-Silver Dragon.
This riddle was not complex; it was quite straightforward.
"Stars!"
Deborah's pupils suddenly contracted into brilliant thin lines, and she replied.
The Red-Iron Dragon nodded and said: "Correct."
Pausing for a moment, he looked straight into the Red-Silver Dragon's silver pupils, chuckled, and said: "However, your innate scale radiance is much more vivid than those dead things in the sky."
The Red-Silver Dragon's tail stiffened into a silver spear with a'swish', and the next second it hung down softly as if its bones and tendons had been pulled out.
"Re, really?"
"Tha-thank you for your riddle and praise; I like it very much."
The Red-Silver Dragon said in a low voice, not daring to look directly into Garros's eyes, but she couldn't help but peek at him with her peripheral vision, feeling her heartbeat accelerating, and her scales feeling numb and itchy.
This method of first provoking thoughts with a riddle and then crushing defenses with praise.
Especially when that praise came from the mouth of the seemingly ferocious and violent Red-Iron Dragon, wrapped in the unique scorching aura of the Red-Iron Dragon.
The contrast made her almost completely unable to resist.
Favorability +100!
Favorability +100!
Although he could not see such information, the Red-Silver Dragon's reaction was seen by Garros.
[Dragon Taming Art · Copper Dragon Chapter]
[Whether it is provocation or praise, adding a riddle can always make a Copper Dragon overjoyed]
Garros refined the Dragon Taming Art a little more.
×=×
PS: Requesting Power Stones!
15PS = 1 Extra Chapter.
30PS = 2 Extra Chapters.
50Ps= 3 Extra Chapters.
75PS = 4 Extra Chapters.
100Ps = 5 Extra Chapters.