Chapter 32: Uh-oh, I Totally Croaked Myself…
This was the confidence that wings gave to Fire Dragons!
As Jié Jié watched the Fury-Eating Terror Tyrant below sway precariously, he marveled at the sheer advantage of air superiority.
The extremely keen vision of the Fire Dragon allowed her to see the festering sores on the Terror Tyrant’s body and the frailty of its circulatory system.
A creature like this, perpetually teetering on the brink of collapse and constantly needing to feed, just didn’t seem right. There were too many loopholes.
Every creature today must have gone through an immense timescale of evolution, with natural selection washing away their flaws.
Even if there might still be minor imperfections in their design, they wouldn’t be so self-destructive as to always risk annihilation.
All of this was undeniably real, so there must be a reasonable explanation for the Terror Tyrant’s condition.
Jié Jié stared at the out-of-control dragon energy emanating from the Fury-Eating Terror Tyrant and realized this was the answer.
Without the constitution of an Ancient Dragon but cursed with its ailments—what a tragic fate!
While Jié Jié was lost in thought, the Male Fire Dragon seized the moment during the Terror Tyrant’s panting and extended his claws toward its head.
That was the most ferocious part of the Terror Tyrant, but don’t forget—it was also its weakest point.
Was it still fierce or merely a last gasp?
Once again, the Terror Tyrant bit down on the Male Fire Dragon’s claw, but this time it lacked the strength to throw him to the ground. It could only futilely spew the uncontrollable dragon energy.
Perhaps if it had survived, over time it could have adapted to this state of dragon energy and become a true Fury-Eating Terror Tyrant.
But there would be no such chance. With a powerful flap of his wings, the Male Fire Dragon yanked his claw free and gouged out one of its eyes.
Jié Jié swooped down again, avoiding the mad thrashing of the Terror Tyrant’s head. The sharp talons, aided by the downward force of his wings, carved a nearly fatal gash across its already scarred flank.
The Terror Tyrant’s body was already riddled with wounds and rotting flesh—essentially softened.
By the time the dragon energy gushed forth from the long wound, Jié Jié had already ascended higher into the sky.
The churning black-red dragon energy poured out like blood, leaving the Terror Tyrant drained of vitality.
In the end, none of them touched it. At the apex of the food chain, it collapsed under its own affliction.
Its death was due to hormonal imbalance causing loss of control over dragon energy, which in turn exacerbated the imbalance. So, it probably died from its own illness, right?
The battlefield was surrounded by a desolate scene of broken grass and trees, either trampled or scorched.
Fire Dragons rarely pursued Terror Tyrants like this; the risks were too great. If bitten down from the sky, facing grappling and crushing bites while having their wings broken meant certain death.
Fire Dragons valued their aerial territory above all else.
Both Fire Dragons landed on the ground. The Male Fire Dragon roared at the corpse of the Terror Tyrant, now wreathed in dissipating dragon energy.
Jié Jié, however, quietly observed the remains, inching closer for a better look.
It was truly disgusting—a full array of symptoms: decay, burns, ulcers, abscesses.
She noticed the flow of dragon energy slowing, but the corpse rapidly inflated.
Flapping his wings, Jié Jié stepped back.
Sure enough, when the corpse swelled to a certain extent, an explosion occurred.
“Boom!”
Chunks of foul flesh flew everywhere, even splattering the Male Fire Dragon.
“Aaarrgh!”
Apparently repulsed, he spat a fireball onto the exploded corpse, then soared upward, flapping his wings to retreat.
Still flapping, he approached Jié Jié, but unlike before with his previous mate, he didn’t roughly mount her.
Instead, he landed and began fluttering his wings, gradually closing the distance to Jié Jié.
Jié Jié turned her head to look at him. His body was also covered in scars, his shell riddled with cracks and white streaks, his wings slightly twisted and deformed, making his courtship dance somewhat comical.
Silently, she edged away, moving closer to the Terror Tyrant’s corpse to search for what she wanted.
Among clots of dark purple blood, a deep light gazed up at the sky.
Grimacing, Jié Jié pulled the shimmering light from the clot of blood.
It was indeed a Dragon Gem. She looked toward the Male Fire Dragon to observe how the gem reacted to other dragon species.
The Male Fire Dragon showed no greed for the Terror Tyrant’s gem; instead, it seemed uneasy about it.
Jié Jié lowered her head and stared at the Terror Tyrant’s gem, feeling absurdly as if it were staring back.
Truly unsettling material.
She shook her head, pondering briefly, then scorched the gem with a little flame.
The gem retained its luster, and without hesitation, she swallowed it whole.
Instantly, Jié Jié’s body erupted with black-and-red dragon energy, scaring the Male Fire Dragon who was trying to get closer.
The glow faded quickly, revealing that the Female Fire Dragon had visibly grown larger.
And her emerald-patterned shell now featured subtle hints of black, yet remained vibrant.
Regaining her senses, Jié Jié lowered her head. The increased distance between her and the ground confirmed her size increase.
Her limbs felt stronger than ever after consuming the Savage Jaw Dragon Gem, and her overall physique was enhanced.
But there was a price.
She felt a little hungry, a little destructive.
But human wisdom and glory illuminated her form, allowing her to restrain herself.
As for the rest of the Terror Tyrant’s materials… A flick of her tail reduced them to powder. Once she had collected enough, she paid them no more mind.
She would never want to become a Terror Tyrant.
“Roar~”
Jié Jié turned her head. The seasoned Male Fire Dragon resumed his courtship dance, now more urgent.
Judging by appearance, her size should now be comparable to his, though her wingspan still lagged behind.
“Hrrr.”
Jié Jié growled softly, flapped her wings, and slowly flew toward the Ancient Tree, glancing back at the Male Fire Dragon.
Understanding the need for ceremony in courting a powerful opposite sex, the Male Fire Dragon followed her with obvious intent.
Jié Jié’s allure far surpassed that of his current mate, who was merely strong—not young or beautiful.
If Jié Jié were to defeat his old mate, he’d support the swap with a hundred percent enthusiasm!
As Jié Jié flew, thinking about what lay ahead, she felt a bit like a jerk—but didn’t realize her companion was equally disloyal.
But isn’t survival of the fittest better than being called a jerk?
Flying until noon, circling half the Ancient Tree, Jié Jié finally found the position of the balcony from a few days ago.
Mainly because exploration of the Ancient Tree wasn’t thorough enough, she thought and rethought, and concluded that this platform was best suited for battle.
As for the higher canopy, the Male Fire Dragon likely nested there. Memories of being lower in status resurfaced, reminding her she didn’t want to face a double-team from Fire Dragon couples.
Back then, there weren’t even Defense Teams—
Landing startled a group of small animals.
And a large monster.
The Flying Thunder Dragon lying in its nest gawked at Jié Jié, ready to roar.
But when Jié Jié’s seasoned Male Fire Dragon squeezed in behind her, it silently swallowed its roar.
With graceful poise, it turned away, leaving only a limp tail trailing off into the distance.
“ROAR!”
The Male Fire Dragon screeched and dove toward the retreating figure, but the narrow path left by the fleeing Flying Thunder Dragon offered no opportunity. He could only turn back and torch its nest with a fiery breath.
PS: Today I’m just a one-update beast. Lately, I’ve been trying to adjust my schedule; feeling groggy all day is really bad.
