Chapter 349: “Mystery”
“Hmph, is it because they haven’t grown fully yet? There aren’t even one thousand eight hundred here.”
Jie Jie finished counting the large and small spines on the Extinction Dragon’s body, there were only over a thousand of them, many spines had broken off and hadn’t regenerated yet.
As frog was a must-try ingredient in the swamp area, he came this time to catch some frogs to take back, but unexpectedly found the exhausted Extinction Dragon.
The Flame King Dragon was quite sensitive to the smell of gunpowder, and he also saw at a glance those crossbow arrows stuck in her body.
Apparently, the Extinction Dragon had encountered the second-phase team and clashed with them.
Back then, he was so focused on leading Nana away that he overlooked the fact that the Extinction Dragon wasn’t far from the second-phase team, making the possibility of an encounter quite high.
His sharp insight made him lift the Extinction Dragon’s chin again, revealing a rather obvious wide scar.
Although hunters are small in stature, their weapons are not much different in size from the claws of monsters, and battling powerful hunters is akin to fighting monsters. Hunters are also very agile and can use various troublesome props.
This scar was clearly made by a Great Sword slash; he could almost see the Master Swordsman dragging his Great Sword, initiating a sweeping upward cut.
Ah, perhaps the support personnel from the first phase team have already joined up with the second phase team, it would be worth checking out.
With that thought, Jie Jie transformed into a Míng Dēng Lóng, his weight causing his slender limbs to sink into the swamp, but it didn’t take much effort to pull them out.
Claws piercing into the durable body of the Extinction Dragon, Jie Jie grabbed her and flew up, his massive wings flapping through the air, quickly reaching the predetermined drop-off location.
In the middle of the wasteland and the forest, the mountain range to the north, near the Grand Canyon, it would be best to head directly north.
Setting down the Extinction Dragon, she soon woke up, seemingly due to the forceful landing and a step on her. She stared wide-eyed at the ghostly white monster before her, her tense body emitting a low growl lacking vitality.
The massive Míng Dēng Lóng sat down, Jie Jie relaxed as he watched her cautiously restore her strength during the standoff, then flee clumsily towards the Coral Land Plateau.
Transforming into a Fire Dragon and soaring into the sky, he flew towards the direction of the Ancient Tree Forest.
Spending more time collecting ingredients wouldn’t be much of an issue, right? After all, this isn’t about seasoning.
Thinking back to the bottle of seasoning that exploded last time, he still felt somewhat heartbroken.
Before arriving at the Investigation Team Base, Jie Jie specially stopped by the top of the Ancient Tree to drink water, and also met the current family of Fire Dragons residing there.
It wasn’t his offspring; the Male Fire Dragon was yelling noisily at him, putting on a show of bravado but unwilling to appear weak in front of his wife and child.
Jie Jie strode away confidently, leaving the Male Fire Dragon boasting to the Female Fire Dragon, who slightly folded her wings to allow him to approach and touch their children.
From the air, he could see the Starship in the distance, along with the three ships of the second phase team sailing on the sea, approaching the shore near the base.
The Flying Bird landed on the ship and entered an inconspicuous porthole, while the Smoky Snow Weasel strolled around the flagship boldly. The first ones he saw were the Dragon Person Youth and the Commander exchanging words on the deck.
Being management talents, they indeed had plenty to talk about. However, when they spotted him, their eyes seemed glued to him, unable to look away.
Jie Jie stood upright and calmly waved at the Commander.
The Commander blinked, forcing a smile, but his wave was inevitably tinged with awkwardness.
Clearly fond of him, he didn’t want to part ways due to the difference in lifespans, but seeing the other party remain youthful while growing abnormally larger in size inevitably evoked some strange emotions.
“These past two days, I’ve searched the ship but haven’t seen it, and now it appears suddenly.”
The Dragon Person Youth’s finger rested on his chin, combining his mystical conjectures with his explanation to the human youth beside him.
“Is that so? But perhaps it’s not a calamity, it might be a stroke of luck. After all, we’re here for the disasters recorded in history.”
A burly arm draped over both of them from behind, the blond man raised his right hand and cheerfully waved at Jie Jie.
“The Grand Team Leader.”
The Dragon Person Youth nodded in acknowledgment.
“I’ve discussed with the leader of the second phase team, there will be more phase teams and more resources to organize in the future. You two should get along well, everyone’s food, clothing, and daily necessities depend on your coordination.”
He slapped his hand and then placed it back on the Commander’s shoulder.
“You don’t need to complain about being busy all the time.”
“Do you think you can continue being a hands-off manager?”
The Commander crossed his arms unhappily.
“Just that, I’m really interested in that guy. Despite his small stature, his entire body is filled with strong and solid muscles. I can’t even imagine how dangerous he must be at his peak.”
“That’s an Ancient Dragon that wants to prey on the Flame King Dragon!”
The Grand Team Leader’s face was filled with intense emotion.
An Ancient Dragon that preys on other Ancient Dragons—something he’d never heard of before! Such a special monster, pursuing it might just unravel the mystery of the Ancient Dragons’ migration!
“Hmm, I believe the Investigation Team will be very busy in the coming days. The scheduling of command authority, the influx of a large number of personnel, and the mobilization of supplies—I think these all require the participation of the Grand Team Leader.”
The Dragon Person Youth glanced at the Commander and then at the Grand Team Leader, siding with the Commander.
“That’s right, exactly.”
Seeing the new colleague supporting him, the Commander’s attitude grew stronger.
“Ah, alright, alright, I won’t set off immediately no matter what I think, but you won’t be able to stop me when I decide to go later.”
Watching the sudden shift in the Grand Team Leader’s demeanor from sighing to dejection, the two exchanged glances, speechless.
“Hmm~ We’re almost there. I was surprised when I heard about it, but seeing it now is truly unbelievable.”
The second phase team leader also stepped out of the cabin, gazing at the twin peaks where the Starship rested, amazed beyond measure.
“That’s true, what a great terrain and position. Even if it hadn’t run aground, we would have planned to build a base there.”
The Grand Team Leader spoke, tiptoeing closer to the Smoky Snow Weasel.
Jie Jie sharply turned his head, seeing him reach out to touch him, nimbly darting away but not intending to keep his distance. Instead, he circled around his feet.
Their conversation didn’t exclude him, and he understood their current speculation about him—that bad luck leads to frequent encounters with strange events—”mysterious.”
“You still won’t let me touch you, remember when you could stand on my shoulder? Now you’re only good as a scarf.”
Comparing the remembered size with the present Smoky Snow Weasel, the Grand Team Leader gestured and laughed.
Inside the Guide Insect lamp, the Guide Insects were glowing with a faint blue light.
Jie Jie shook his body, feeling the emotions in the surrounding people’s words; the glow inside the Guide Insect lamp wasn’t important anymore.
The ships gradually approached the shore, and the investigators of the first phase team put down their work, eagerly awaiting on the shore.
The scale of support from the three ships meant that the ten years of hardship would soon become a thing of the past.
Jie Jie stood on the ship’s railing, the extremely enlarged Smoky Snow Weasel waving to the crowd below, where the Elgar cat stood. The Commander moved closer behind him, somewhat worried he might fall off the ship.
