Chapter 43: Stillborn
The rain grew heavier, the emerald-green dome unable to bear the weight of the downpour, and the wind blew the rain inside.
Jie Jie dragged the Scratcher Bird, leading the baby dragons along the mountain, and the Ancient Dragon Person did the same.
Though they had completed a friendly first contact, both human and monster kept a very cautious social distance.
The rain drowned out the Ancient Dragon Person’s muttering. Even if it hadn’t been covered up, Jie Jie couldn’t understand anything from the rustling leaves.
A recessed rock kiln covered with vines appeared below the mountain, some old traces indicating that this place was created by monster activity.
It must have been from an impact. It’s perfect for sheltering from the rain.
On the inner side of the rock wall were some exposed crystalline minerals. A single punch from the Sky Dog Beast shattered them, but lacking the relevant knowledge, he found it hard to determine what these minerals were.
These minerals are different from the crystals at the bottom of the lake; currently useless.
“…”
This time, Jie Jie clearly heard the sound emitted by the Ancient Dragon Person, seeing his staff pointing at the dragon egg held by the tail of the Sky Dog Beast.
“What do you mean?”
Jie Jie just let out a confused “grunt?” and then placed the egg on the ground.
One of the eggs wobbled a bit when released, leaving Jie Jie unsure. He specifically pointed at this egg towards the Ancient Dragon Person, then pointed at the Fire Dragons.
The Ancient Dragon Person nodded.
Jie Jie placed this egg separately to one side and quietly waited, not knowing whether the rain would stop first or new life would be born first.
It seemed the humid environment made the eggshell as silent as a swamp. This egg no longer moved even once.
Recalling the changes in the eggs during the birth of the Fire Dragons, the baby dragon inside this egg should indeed be ready to hatch.
But the eggshell wasn’t dry; instead, it felt a bit cool due to the humidity.
Jie Jie held the egg in his arms, trying to raise its temperature.
The Ancient Dragon Person approached closer, probing the gender of the monster before him.
Some organisms, after losing their offspring, may indeed exhibit the behavior of nurturing adopted eggs or even stones out of sadness.
The intelligence displayed by the monster before him was definitely not like that of an ordinary monster.
When facing him, this intelligence expressed itself through kindness, but when facing the Scratcher Bird, it was utilized for aggression, quickly killing it.
Being hostile towards creatures of the same system or larger size, yet showing kindness to smaller ones—there are indeed such creatures in the ecosystem.
After living in the Ancient Tree area for so many years, there hasn’t been any mention of such creatures in conversations with his own kind. Individual cases aren’t enough to represent an entire species.
Seeing much, he firmly believed this to be individual wisdom rather than a species’ habit.
Regrettably, under the covering of fur, he couldn’t determine the gender of this monster.
With the gender unclear, the vague mystery made him even more curious.
The Ancient Dragon Person stepped closer to observe the egg, but his observation of the egg remained cautious and subtle. Most creatures protect their eggs extremely fiercely, especially female monsters during breeding season who exhibit extreme aggression.
There was no doubt that the Fire Dragon egg in the monster’s arms had little hope of hatching now. Any creature caring for a non-kin species is bound to make mistakes.
After pondering for a moment, Jie Jie’s intuition also told him that the baby dragon inside the egg had perished.
He handed the dragon egg over to the Ancient Dragon Person, placing it in front of him, pointing at the egg with one claw, then pointing at the several young fire dragons.
He was confirming his guess with the Ancient Dragon Person.
“…”
After a bout of muttering, the Ancient Dragon Person nodded.
“…”
Jie Jie fell into silence, regret outweighing the faint sadness.
So how should this egg be dealt with? Crack it open and take a look? Eat it?
In his previous life, when eating chicken eggs, he didn’t like embryos developing into young forms and being turned into food—didn’t like eating them nor seeing them. Generally, he avoided them and wouldn’t interfere with others eating them either.
The egg was pushed towards the Ancient Dragon Person. This egg was already half the size of an old Dragon Person. He wondered if the Ancient Dragon Person could carry it away, or leave it behind if he couldn’t.
The Dragon Person didn’t pick up the egg but also didn’t show any refusal like when faced with meat.
Jie Jie then looked at the other eggs. The young dragons that should have been born were about done. The remaining ones that hadn’t hatched were likely weaker or dead eggs.
Not properly protected against this heavy rain, weaker young dragons would find it harder to survive.
After comparing, he sent two more eggs that were probably stillborn to the Ancient Dragon Person.
Even if they survived, they’d be weak. Too many would be hard to raise.
At this point, only two dragon eggs remained that could be used as ingredients.
The rain continued, water gathering on the ground forming small streams flowing in the direction they came from. Jie Jie washed the meat oil off his hands with this water.
There was no dry firewood here for Jie Jie to start a fire, so one dragon egg was eaten raw.
The rain lasted quite a while, long enough for the Ancient Dragon Person to push the eggs through the water and leave, taking only one egg with him.
Not long after he left, the rain grew heavier again. That small figure might get swept away by the rain.
Places where one could avoid the rain also attracted more mosquitoes. These monsters weren’t afraid of bites; a big one could simply be slapped dead.
The rain lasted long enough for a day and night to pass, giving Jie Jie time to digest the Scratcher Bird carcass.
As the rain curtain gradually subsided, sunlight pierced through the clouds and shone outside.
The ground outside shimmered with ripples, looking somewhat like a lake.
Jie Jie led the baby dragons out of the rock kiln, looked up, and saw a rainbow hanging across the sky.
On a whim of alien souls, the Male Fire Dragon raised his wings, piercing through the body of the Sky Dog Beast, causing everything in his pocket to fall to the ground.
The baby dragons were temporarily abandoned as Jie Jie soared through the post-rain sky, continuously approaching the rainbow bridge.
The scenery of the Flooded Forest in the New Continent reappeared after a few days.
The clear blue rivers blended with the lush green forests, was it the river winding through the trees, or the trees standing in the river?
Many water-retaining slopes formed layered lakes, which were the core of this ecological community.
Though not as spectacular as the Ancient Tree Forest, it had its own ecological system—a content not seen in the game. There should also be some monsters not seen in the game, right?
As for that rainbow, it seemed taller than the Ancient Trees. Thinking of the baby dragons left on the ground, Jie Jie had to give up.
Back on the ground, transforming back into the Sky Dog Beast, an enthusiastic Jie Jie kneaded another set of carrying poles for the Iron Pot and Porcelain Bowl, bundling them together, stuffing all the scattered props along with the last Fire Dragon egg into a vine bag.
Then transforming back into the Male Fire Dragon, he carried one set of poles in his mouth and another in his claws, turning himself into a double-winged aerospace mother machine with twice the load capacity, charging towards the Flooded Forest.
