Chapter 91: Survival Game

“Garos, you look even more fearsome than before.”

The words of the fairy dragon, Long Weila, reached his ears.

Garos remained silent.

Long Weila spoke the truth—he indeed looked more and more like a dread dragon, and this was not Garos’s wish.

Though he felt his current appearance was cool and fierce, it was also too ostentatious, inconsistent with his own cautious nature.

Unfortunately,

Whether it was the dual bloodline of the Five-Colored Dragon Chief and the Iron Dragon Chief, or the traits he had evolved himself, all exuded a strong, glaring aggression and hostility.

This was typically what dread dragons possessed.

In contrast, benevolent or neutral dragons like metallic dragons or gem dragons had fewer sharp spines, no wings or tails that looked instantly like weapons, and overall favored a style of “majestic power.”

“With my current form and posture,”

“any Zhengyi or order-aligned organization that discovers me will surely cry out for my destruction and launch an immediate purge.”

Garos shook his head, thinking.

Though he still did not believe himself to be the dread dragon of popular legend, he no longer troubled himself over it.

He had come to terms with it.

Whether dread dragon, benevolent dragon, or mistaken for some other monster—it didn’t matter. This world ultimately spoke only through fists and power.

As long as they didn’t disturb him or threaten his life, he had no reason to care.

Conversely,

Once Garos felt his life was threatened,

he would go to any lengths, use any means, to erase the threat—otherwise, he could not rest easy.

“Why am I not a hybrid dragon?”

Samantha’s gaze settled on Garos, sweeping over his jagged, fearsome spines, wings, and tail—her eyes filled with longing and envy.

In the red dragon’s eyes,

fearfulness was an absolute compliment.

According to dragon aesthetics, metallic dragons aside, five-colored dragons and other dread dragons would undoubtedly see Garos as possessing the “Primordial Dread Form.” Once he reached youth and his sexual maturity, the moment he emitted a mating signal, no female dragon could resist his allure.

“Samantha, it seems you’ve done well managing your territory while I was gone.”

Garos’s tail lightly tapped the ground, sending up a few sparks.

As he descended in a spiral, he noticed changes in the Needleleaf Valley.

Defensive fortifications had been added on the perimeter: deep trenches with slow-flowing lava, lines of ironwood pines reinforced with metal spikes, and sentries patrolling key points.

Samantha lifted her chin and hummed happily.

She exhaled two plumes of sulfurous smoke and said, “You think I’m some lazy dragon who only sleeps? No—I’m now a hardworking dragon like you, having claimed two of my own monster vassal tribes.”

“The fire lizards can spit lava; those trenches were dug by the giant fire ants.”

She pointed her claw toward the alchemy workshop.

“In alchemy, I’ve learned to make Flame Pearls—each explosion can blast a giant rhino into the air.”

Glancing at Garos, she added, “I don’t have many Flame Pearls, and my materials are limited—I can’t waste them, like blasting myself for fun.”

As she spoke, her eyes grew wary, as if guarding against Garos.

Clearly,

Samantha didn’t want Garos using her Flame Pearls to satisfy his own perverse interests.

She had once guessed that Garos might have grown stronger through such training—but now, seeing his appearance, she dismissed that idea. If strength like Garos’s could be gained through mere training or self-mutilation, dragons would have long since ruled every plane and world.

She attributed Garos’s power to positive mutations from his hybrid bloodline, not years of accumulated training.

Garos paid no mind to this misunderstanding.

Flame Pearls that could blast a giant rhino? He had no interest—unless they could blast a dragon.

Garos gazed at Samantha, lost in thought.

“In these six years, has the Needleleaf Valley faced any danger? Faced powerful beasts or monsters? Been discovered by intelligent tribes? Or attacked by adventurers?”

He asked.

If not for a sense of threat, how could a red dragon’s lazy nature have led her to focus on territorial defense?

Garos’s sharp mind detected something amiss.

The fairy dragon Long Weila circled Garos once, then hovered before him, puffing out her chest proudly: “A group of big ogres have been expanding—I was the first to spot them while playing outside.”

It was Long Weila who first discovered the ogres’ trail.

After telling Samantha, she flew high to scout—and was shocked to find the ogre tribe expanding at an astonishing rate. From above, the wilderness revealed that the ogres’ territory grew visibly every day.

“Ogres.”

Garos was initially puzzled, but his thoughts shifted. “Are they the Bone-Chewer Clan?”

Before he fell asleep, the Bone-Chewer Clan had already shown strange behavior—all ogres gathered within their territory as if preparing something. Garos had planned to investigate, but the sudden onset of Dragon Slumber changed his mind.

Now, hearing Long Weila’s words, it was easy to connect the ogres with the Bone-Chewer Clan.

The red dragon nodded seriously.

“In just six years, this clan has expanded at least threefold.”

“They’ve already seized the Eastern Horned Ram pastures—close to the Needleleaf Valley.”

Ogres possess superior strength, stamina, and defense. Though slow-moving, they need only three days of marching to reach the Needleleaf Valley from their eastern stronghold.

Garos fell silent for a moment, then bared his fangs in a grin.

“Interesting.”

The herds of Horned Rams, Steel-Bristle Spine Beasts, and Armored Giant Rhinos around the Needleleaf Valley—all were, in Garos’s eyes, his own pastures, his own territory.

Not dragons, not giants, not organized armies.

A band of ogres dares to seize his land? Do they really think Garos is some gentle, easygoing dragon?

Instantly, Garos considered flying straight there and slaughtering every last ogre.

This Dragon Slumber had made Garos stronger, and intensified the fierce emotions within his Red Iron Dragon bloodline.

Huh!

He took several deep breaths, his gaze gradually calming as he skillfully suppressed arrogance and agitation, beginning to think more coldly and rationally.

“The Bone-Chewer Clan’s sudden savage expansion must have some backing.”

“First, scout the situation—then decide.”

As the saying goes: know yourself and know your enemy, and you will win every battle.

Garos never fought without confidence.

He had grown and evolved over six years—far stronger than before, with greater survival assurance—but this did not mean he could rampage recklessly through the wilderness. He still needed caution; he must not let his surge of power cloud his judgment.

“Samantha, you’ve done well.”

Garos gave the red dragon a slight nod. “Continue reinforcing the Needleleaf Valley’s defenses. Arm your vassals with alchemical tools—prepare for any ogre ambush.”

“What about me? What about me?”

The fairy dragon spun in circles, excitedly asking.

“You assist Samantha.”

Garos grinned. “You two love games, don’t you? This one—called War, called Survival—will be a thousand times more thrilling than playing with ants.”

After learning what Samantha had discovered,

Garos flared his wings, soared into the sky, and vanished swiftly into the night.

Samantha’s description could never match the truth—nothing compared to seeing with his own eyes, investigating firsthand. Garos trusted only himself.

But there was no rush.

Garos first hunted near several nearby pastures, feasted quickly, filled his body, and brought his post-sleep state to peak condition before soaring toward the Bone-Chewer Clan’s territory as he remembered it.

(End of Chapter)