Kalon's body was now exceptionally large, with a wingspan of over twenty meters, a size comparable to some low-lying castles built by human nobles.
When he soared through the heavens, it was as if a castle was flying, and because his wings and body structure differed from ordinary dragons, his flight speed far surpassed that of other dragons.
When he flew at full speed, he could even break the sound barrier, and the strong winds unintentionally stirred by his wings during flight could knock over small, weak creatures like Green Goblins and Kobolds.
However, hunting didn't require full-speed flight, as that consumed too much stamina and magic; Kalon merely glided leisurely high in the sky, meticulously searching for his prey.
The intelligent and communicative ferocious species were ignored by Kalon; although these creatures were robust and yielded much meat, they had already been incorporated into the Dragon Nest's defense system by the dragons, making them allies.
He quickly spotted his target: a lone prairie bull elephant.
This bull elephant was over seven meters long, one of its two yellow-stained tusks was broken, and its body seemed somewhat unsteady, clearly a down-and-out individual who had lost in the summer's struggle for mating and leadership rights with other bull elephants.
Such creatures were difficult to raise, requiring vast amounts of grass to gain even a little meat.
If not for the extremely small number of these creatures, they would have long been hunted to extinction by these dragons to protect the ecological balance within their territory.
However, such lone bull elephants were not within Kalon's protection; although these creatures possessed immense size, strength, and long tusks, if isolated, they would also be preyed upon by the carnivorous ferocious species of the prairie.
Better to fill a dragon's belly than feed other beasts.
Kalon moved agilely in the sky, swooping down like an eagle descending from the heavens upon its prey, his sharp claws deeply piercing the body of the bull elephant, which had not yet sensed danger and was still coiling food with its trunk.
Although these giant elephants were measured in tons, the Red Dragon's strength lifted it with ease.
His Dragon body's powerful claws, like iron hooks, pierced through the giant elephant's spine, lifting it like an eagle snatching a rabbit, and he flapped his wings, flying towards his lair.
Although there weren't many creatures on the prairie that could threaten this Red Dragon now, the Red Dragon had become exceptionally cautious; he wouldn't eat defenselessly in the wild, he would bring his food back to his lair to enjoy slowly.
Bang, the heavy prey was thrown by Kalon onto a rock next to the volcanic crater, and Kalonbegan to enjoy his dinner.
After being replenished with sufficient food, Kalon jumped into the lava lake that nearly filled the entire volcanic basin, and this lava had already begun to flow out of the basin through relatively low-lying terrain.
Fortunately, these lava flows solidified into strips and blocks not far after flowing out, due to mixing with sand, gravel, and mud, as well as various drying factors; over time, these solidified lavas would also become part of the rock forming this mountain peak.
Kalon first enjoyed a refreshing swim in the scorching lava lake, washing away any occasional traces of prey blood and skin flakes between his scales.
Then he stopped, preparing to cast a protective spell for his lair, a inherited spell he had awakened when he transformed from a Young Dragon to a juvenile dragon.
This spell was 'Awakened Dream as One,' which created an alert spell similar to an all-encompassing protective shield within a certain range.
Although this spell had no destructive power, it was exceptionally important for dragons.
Because under the obstruction and alert of this spell, any creature, even including astral and ethereal beings, entering the spell's alert range would be detected, and then would awaken the Dragon's active perception.
This spell was more important to dragons than other destructive spells, because each time a dragon transitioned to the next age stage, when its bloodline grew again, it needed to enter a long period of deep sleep, and the stronger the dragon, the longer the sleep.
However, even adult dragons or even Legendary dragons, if careless after entering deep sleep, could be killed by other creatures intent on slaying dragons; there were many such examples in Kalon's inherited memories.
This innate spell, emerging from the growth of the bloodline, always felt like a lottery to Kalon; fortunately, Kalon was blessed with good luck this time, drawing this extremely useful spell.
However, this spell required a continuous supply of energy from the Dragon's own magic, and it was originally cast on the Dragon itself.
But Kalon intended to use the abundant magic in the volcanic lava lake as the energy node for this spell, and the spell would be cast over the entire volcanic basin, encompassing Kalon's lair and the entire mountaintop.
This way, Kalon would have an extra layer of security when sleeping in the lava lake in the future.
As a spell awakened from the Dragon bloodline, its casting method was different from other magic; the Red Dragon only needed to use his will to control the magic within his body and resonate with the spell seed within his bloodline.
Then, a faint, invisible ripple rose from the Red Dragon's feet and spread in all directions, then enveloped the entire volcanic lava lake like a cover.
This spell was extremely concealed, very difficult for any creature other than Kalon to detect; even masters skilled in stealth and concealment would find it hard to notice traces of 'Awakened Dream as One' without prior knowledge.
Kalon also excavated a wide, downward cave on the higher side wall of the volcanic basin, which would be his cave for storing his treasures.
A high threshold blocked the flowing and erupting lava, but immediately there was a passage leading straight down, which amounted to a natural trap.
Unwittingly entering the Red Dragon's cave would only lead to a fall into the deep cave; if any lucky adventurers managed to break through the encirclement and reach this place, their carelessness might lead to their demise in this simple trap.
After digging a passage approximately a hundred meters long downwards, Kalon avoided the lava channels spewing magma and dug a wide cave into the mountain's interior.
This cave was extremely dry due to its proximity to the high-temperature lava channels.
Kalon then used his talent for controlling the earth to thoroughly reinforce the cave, strengthening its stone walls to a degree where even his own Dragon claws could not easily damage them.
Then he spat out the rare ores and various gems he had treasured in his storage stomach, among them a fist-sized, crystal-clear, blood-red fire-attribute magic gem, which Kalon had found deep underground.
Finally, Kalon used Dragon Language to draw magic, casting a spell on these treasures that almost all dragons must learn – Treasure Guard.
Under the effect of this spell, if these treasures were taken without Kalon's permission, anyone attempting to take even a tiny bit from the hoard would experience nausea and vomiting.
To avoid vomiting, one could only put down the treasure, otherwise the effect would intensify and gradually become so heavy that it could not be moved.
Of course, if the person's strength was greater than Kalon's, they could also find a way to avoid this effect.
After completing this series of protective measures, Kalon confidently climbed up the passage and then re-entered the lava lake, which constantly churned with sulfurous fumes and flames.
These abundant fire-attribute magical energies surged into the Red Dragon's body, causing a wave of drowsiness to wash over the Red Dragon's mind.
So he closed his eyes and sank his entire body into the lava lake, finally able to rest peacefully.
The massive and volatile fire-element magic, which would be overwhelming for other creatures or even other dragons, enveloped the Red Dragon's body, making the peacefully sleeping Red Dragon seem as if he were being nurtured in an embryo.
Those energies, wild to the outside world, became docile under the Red Dragon's body, transforming into gentle, trickling energy that began to permeate every scale and every inch of skin on the Red Dragon.
The Red Dragon's scarlet-gold scales became even more supple under the rush of abundant energy, with a faint glow of fire subtly rising.
Nourished by the firelight, these scarlet scales slowly deepened in color.
Other magical energies mixed within these fire-attribute magics were pushed away by the Red Dragon's firelight, compressed within the churning lava lake, and gradually solidified under the immense pressure of the overly abundant fire-attribute magic.
Tiny crystals, as time passed, began to float in this ceaselessly flowing lava lake, emitting an unusual radiance, like precious gems.
But even the most precious gems in the world could not compare to these crystals, because these crystals were pure magic crystals formed from other types of magic under immense pressure.
These were the magic gems considered extremely precious even by mages, not only providing the energy needed for a mage's cultivation but also essential materials for many magic arrays, especially high-level spells, which particularly required such gems containing pure magic.
Only some earth and metal attribute magics could approach the Red Dragon's body under such abundant fire element compression, and were absorbed one by one by the sleeping Red Dragon.
This stemmed from the Red Dragon's awakened talent as the King of Earth and Metal, which spontaneously absorbed the necessary elemental magic for growth.
The Red Dragon's body, floating in the lava lake, also slowly grew with the nourishment of massive elemental magic; under his overlimit growth talent, the massive magic, as if attracted by a black hole, began to slowly gather with the Red Dragon's body as the center.
An elemental storm began to form in the lava lake, centered on the Red Dragon.
At first, it was just like a gentle breeze passing over and stirring the splashing lava, but as time went on, these heavy lavas and impurities trapped within the lava began to rotate like a slowly churning vortex.
Affected by the Red Dragon's power, countless surging lavas from the underground lava channels overflowed, splashing outwards in the churning vortex, turning the entire volcanic crater into an extremely dangerous forbidden zone.
Excess lava accelerated the overflow from the lava lake, and bubbling, high-temperature, sulfur-emitting molten rock flowed down the mountain from the summit.
The rising hot wind and sulfurous fumes gradually enveloped the entire mountaintop.