The sun had already set far beyond the horizon, and the moon had just risen, but the territory at the foot of the Dragon Nest Mountains was never engulfed by darkness.
In the distant forest, birds that should have been resting flapped their wings and flew low, sweeping across every part of the sky.
Beasts that should have returned to their lairs moved with light steps through the forest, gazing at every inch of the land. These creatures were the eyes and mouthpieces of the True Dragon's, with active members always guarding the True Dragon's lair.
The camps of several monster clans at the foot of the Dragon Nest Mountains, enclosed by giant wooden palisades, blazed with fire. Torches and lamps made from a special resin found in the forest could burn for the entire first half of the night, and then the on-duty Dependents would replace them with new lights, ensuring the Dragon clan's Nest was always surrounded by light.
Even assassins skilled in shadow stealth would find it almost impossible to break through the heavy defenses of the Dragon clan's Nest and set foot on the True Dragon's mountain peak.
The Centaur camp held a bonfire feast every night. These warrior races, who loved indulgence and battle, seemed to possess endless energy, just like a True Dragon. Even after a difficult battle, these warriors still displayed their wild and untamed nature.
From every corner, there came the chanting of Female Centaur, which, though not melodious, was pleasant enough to hear, along with the loud roars of wild male Centaur Warrior. Compared to their calm and collected demeanor on the battlefield, these Centaur seemed to truly enter the battlefield at this moment.
As for the Kobold, nighttime was their active period. Although these monster Dependents, who were particularly keen on causing trouble in dark caves, did not have a tradition of feasts, their traces were found everywhere in the forest.
After receiving the Dragon clan's protection, the Kobold Tribe developed rapidly. Now, every important resource and territory in the Dragon Territory has traps and warning devices set up by these Kobold. They are now the Giant True Dragon's capable assistants, though not in terms of combat power.
Only the camps of the Ogre slaves and Green Goblin were relatively quiet. Although both races were relatively chaotic creatures, they did not have enough freedom within the Dragon Clan Territory. They needed to prove their value to the Dragon clan to gain the Dragon clan's attention and favor.
Kalon descended from the high mountain with the True Dragon's, and a strong True Dragon's might spread. In the forest, birds landed, beasts lay dormant, and Dependents fell silent, and all was quiet.
The True Dragon's came to the temporary camp of the Jackal Tribe, an open space cleared under the control of the Centaur Tribe. Many Gnoll, led by their leader Yug, knelt down nervously to greet the True Dragon.
"Noble True Dragon, the supreme master of the Jackal Tribe," the Gnoll leader Yug knelt down, burying his head deeply like the fiercest hyena on the grassland.
Dragonkin Centaur Chiron also arrived upon hearing the news and bowed to the True Dragon.
"Noble True Dragon, my Lord Kalon!"
But the eyes of these True Dragons were not on the Dependents in front of them. They looked at the treasures of the Gnoll, piled up in the open space and transported by Earth Dragon and carts.
A sparkling light flickered in the eyes of every Giant True Dragon, shining like a bright beam even in the brightly lit camp.
The greed of the Evil True Dragons made these True Dragon eye the Gnoll guarding the treasures, revealing their sharp claws and teeth. Female Red Dragon Klenaya and Green Dragon Antagena even stepped forward, sweeping away the annoying Gnoll with their tails and True Dragon claws.
The other True Dragon's also followed beside the Red Dragon, excitedly scanning the treasures accumulated by the Gnoll through plunder, looking as if they were about to make a move.
Kalon, however, was not as impatient as the other True Dragons. He first motioned for the Gnoll leader Yug and Dragonborne Centaur Chiron to stand up, and then turned his gaze to the wealth piled up like a small mountain in the open space.
The True Dragon's innate talent for appraising treasures immediately reacted and evaluated.
Some statues of monsters and deities, hand-carved by Gnoll or excavated from underground, were rough and simple yet well-formed. Kalon even found subtle spiritual light on some of the statues, which could only be described as barely acceptable, suitable as collectibles for those poor wandering True Dragons.
Some magical protective jewelry made by Gnoll Spellcaster based on their magical abilities were useful, but for the Giant True Dragon, the value of these magical items lay more in the fact that their materials were gemstones.
There were also some millet seeds cultivated by Gnoll using a type of foxtail grass found on the grassland. This was a quite mature grain crop seed.
Although it was considered worthless in the True Dragon's treasure appraisal instinct, it was precious enough in Kalon's eyes, so Kalon changed the Dragon clan's evaluation and designated it as a high-value item.
This not only showed that these Gnoll had the ability to cultivate grain seeds, but also that they could provide quite useful value to the Dragon clan.
Moreover, this millet-like grain crop could also be planted in the Dragon Clan Territory. As a locally cultivated grain crop, it almost did not need to adapt to changes in soil and water to be planted in the land cleared in the forest.
There were also some crude armors and weapons. These Gnolls were not skilled in smelting and casting, so these weapons and armors were evaluated as useless. The crude technology limited the effectiveness of these weapons and armors, but they were better than nothing.
There were also many coins that the Gnolls had plundered and dug up from who knew where. They appeared to be ancient treasures, and these coins had different designs from current coins.
But these gold, silver, and copper coins were things the Giant True Dragon liked. Even if some coins were covered in rust, they would soon regain their luster in the Dragon clan's Nest, an effect from the True Dragon's themselves.
All treasures could have a long lifespan beside a True Dragon, just like the True Dragons themselves. Only when deprived of the True Dragon's power would these treasures and wealth be eroded by time. This was also one of the reasons why a True Dragon's treasury was coveted.
In Kalon's inherited memories, in a distant era, a Legendary Mage specifically used treasures to tempt a True Dragon and signed a contract with a Silver Dragon, allowing the Silver Dragon to guard his treasury, and the price the Mage paid was all the treasures in the treasury.
Because this Silver Dragon coveted the Legendary Mage's treasury too much, she willingly became a mate with this Legendary Mage. Kalon did not know whether the Silver Dragon profited or the Legendary Mage lost; only the parties involved knew best.
The most abundant remaining items were the oddly shaped, honeycomb-pitted gold nuggets and some unrefined, unsmelted, unpurified gold ore, as well as naturally formed, uncut various gemstones.
The eyes of these True Dragons lingered on these items. Every True Dragon possessed the ability to appraise treasures, and besides, they didn't even need this ability; they could see the value of these items with their naked eyes.
Gnoll leader Yug also stood beside the True Dragons, introducing the origins of these items to the True Dragons.
"The Jackal Tribe discovered a considerably large mine at the bottom of the Dragon Lizard's lair, which not only has abundant gold ore but also various associated precious ores and gemstones. However, we Gnoll do not have the talent to distinguish ores, so we only mined some gold,"
Gnoll Yug secretly looked at the Red Dragon. The Red Dragon's reaction was not as eager and impatient as the other Giant True Dragon. "I will dedicate this mine to the Dragon clan as the Gnoll's offering to the Giant True Dragon."
Kalon nodded, "Tell the location of the mine to Kobold Bagg. He will handle this matter for the Giant True Dragon. These unrefined ores will be sent to the Kobold Tribe, and they will arrange the subsequent refining and smelting."
Then the Red Dragon turned to look at the True Dragon who could no longer hold back, a faint smile appearing on his spiny face. "According to the True Dragon's original agreement, these treasures belong to all Giant True Dragon, and all members have a share."
Little Female True Dragon Klenaya let out an excited low growl, her long neck unable to stop lingering over the treasures, constantly sniffing their aura.
The other True Dragons also gathered around happily. The steady Blue Dragon Dos also blinked his large eyes, revealing a longing expression.
Kalon divided these coins, gold nuggets, and gemstones into several parts. Since it was not the True Dragon's annual agreed-upon dividend time, almost all the treasures were divided equally.
Then the Red Dragon set aside the largest portion of gold coins and treasures. "Rosani, although the Gnoll's treasures are their voluntary contribution, you contributed the most, so you deserve the most."
Roar,
Black Dragon Rosani let out an excited low growl, eagerly stepping forward and using his slender True Dragon claws and long tail to encircle his share of the treasure.
"Chiron, step forward. These are the spoils of war belonging to your Centaur. The Giant True Dragon will not forget the dedication and sacrifice of their Dependents. These are also what you deserve," Kalon set aside a treasure almost equal to Black Dragon Rosani's and motioned for Chiron to come forward and claim it.
"Praise the great True Dragons, thank my Lord," the Centaur did not refuse or show false modesty, but knelt in salute, then motioned for his warriors to carry the spoils back to the tribe.
"This part belongs to you, Klenaya," Kalon allocated the remaining almost equal treasures to the Female Red Dragon. Klenaya jumped up and pounced on her share of the treasure.
"Akzi, Dos, Camid, Germott, Antagena, these are your shares," Kalon allocated the rest of the treasures. These True Dragons all squeezed in, swallowing their treasures into their crop. No True Dragon would politely refuse treasures; they were True Dragons, not idiots.
Finally, Kalon allocated the largest portion to himself. This was a rule established at the beginning of the True Dragon's agreement, so even if the True Dragon coveted the treasure in front of Kalon, which was almost more than all the True Dragon combined, they were all well-behaved and honest, because the Red Dragon was holding his Dragon claws, much larger than a sandbag, eyeing them menacingly.
"Very good, the Gnoll's offering has pleased the Dragon clan," the Red Dragon turned and looked down at the Gnoll leader Yug, saying, "Now I am very happy. Speak, what is your request? Perhaps I can satisfy you and give you the reward you deserve!"