The seven consecutive days of heavy rain gradually subsided, finally tapering off into fine silver threads. The coniferous forest was soaked in a hazy mist, with every dark green pine needle dangling a diamond-like raindrop.
Samantha lay prone inside her cave, beneath her a bed of stacked crystal coins.
They were white, black, green, blue, and red—five colors in total.
"Oh, I don't hate the rainy season so much anymore."
She rolled over, feeling the wonderful sensation of her scales rubbing against the crystal coins. Listening to the fine sound of the rain, she felt extremely pleasant.
In the past, whenever the rainy season arrived...
Samantha would hide in her destitute lair, cursing the damp and gloomy weather.
It was different now.
The crystal coins beneath her were all her wealth.
Following the order of the Chromatic Dragons...
White Crystal Coins were the lowest grade, followed by black, green, and blue.
The Red Crystal Coins, which shared the same color as Samantha, were the most precious.
As the only Dragon Alchemist in the Molten Iron Clan and the one in charge of the important duty of minting crystal coins, Samantha received high compensation and had become wealthy.
She gradually began to enjoy the feeling of lying on a pile of treasure, watching and listening to the rain, falling asleep to its sound.
After lying there for a while, Samantha grew drowsy and was just about to fall asleep.
Boom—a sound like the roar of an engine rang out, giving Samantha a jolt and waking her up instantly.
"That annoying Garros."
She muttered under her breath.
The sound just now wasn't the engine of an Alchemy Golem, but Garros's heartbeat. More accurately, it was the pumping sound of Garros's heart after using the Blood Burst Technique.
As time passed, the roaring sound gradually ceased.
Samantha fluttered her eyelids, yawned, and burrowed deeper into the treasure pile, finding a comfortable position to try and sleep again.
Zzzzt!
An intense sound, like ten thousand bolts of lightning striking at once, rang out, giving Samantha another jolt and completely banishing her sleepiness.
"Ah, damn you, Garros!"
She crawled out of the cave and flew to where Garros was, wanting to voice her dissatisfaction at being woken up.
However, when she saw the strong, fierce figure enveloped in golden lightning, looking excited and wild, all the dissatisfaction in her heart immediately dissipated.
This appearance and posture were simply too unfair; even a Metallic Dragon would find it hard to resist.
Without disturbing Garros, Samantha flew back to her cave and fell into a peaceful sleep to the sound of wind, rain, and lightning.
After some time.
Garros finished his training and took off the heavy armor he was wearing.
Yes, he had a suit of armor.
The style was rough and primitive, appearing somewhat poorly made. Its only merit was—it was heavy.
This was equipment Garros had specifically commissioned a Red Dragon Sorcerer to forge after measuring his size. It utilized high-density heavy metal Ore, and the weight of the armor alone could almost crush a White Dragon of the same length as Garros.
He didn't wear this armor for defense; it was mainly to use the weight to further enhance his training effects.
During these days, Garros frequently used the Blood Burst Technique and Frenzied State. Through these two extreme states, combined with wearing the heavy armor to suppress his body, he strengthened his physical capabilities.
The evolution process of the Frenzied State was a long-term endeavor that would happen naturally when the time was right.
He didn't have many other sensations during training.
As for now, as Garros frequently used the Blood Burst Technique, he felt his heartbeat becoming increasingly powerful. His heart seemed to be undergoing some kind of evolution, which had only just begun.
He placed a claw on his chest.
Through the thick scales and muscle, Garros could faintly feel the strong, powerful thumping of the heart within.
"I wonder if it can complete its evolution before I turn twenty-five."
He thought to himself.
If he could evolve a 'Blood Burst State' that was perfectly attuned to his body, the effect would surely be more formidable than using the Blood Burst Technique through an Alchemical Item, granting him a third stage after the Frenzied State.
The Frenzied State was 'anaerobic,' while the Blood Burst State was essentially risking one's life, but the boost it provided would certainly be immense.
However, Garros wasn't desperately craving the Blood Burst State evolution; he just let nature take its course while training in that direction.
Undoubtedly, its consumption would be even higher.
Without Awakening Dragon Qi first, even if he evolved the Blood Burst State, he probably wouldn't be able to use it normally. It could only be used for a final, last-ditch struggle in a desperate situation.
Another thing worth mentioning was...
The spines on Garros's body, due to long-term combat and daily training—a constant cycle of breaking and regenerating—were now also undergoing some form of adaptive evolution.
He noticed that his spines had recently begun growing faster and faster.
In the battle with the Frost Behemoth, many of the spines on Garros's body had shattered, yet they had grown back in just one day.
And it wasn't just in the original places.
On his neck, back, chest, elbows, shoulders, and tail—places where there were originally no spines—sharp spines began to grow. In the areas that already had spines, they became denser and sharper, with hardness and regeneration superior to the spines of a normal Red Dragon.
Garros had tested them on Vicious Beasts; just a light brush could leave the target a bloody mess.
With the growth of these denser and sharper spines, he now looked more distinctive and even more ferocious, straying further and further down the path of an Evil Dragon.
"These spines should complete their evolution faster than the dragon heart."
"I hope they will show a powerful effect when the time comes."
Garros felt happy and expectant about this.
He no longer cared about becoming more sharp and aggressive.
Living in the wilderness all these years...
Had changed his perspective somewhat.
As long as he could become stronger, looking like an Evil Dragon was nothing. If a huge benefit was placed before him, Garros wouldn't mind acting like an Evil Dragon for a bit.
He composed his thoughts.
Garros began to sharpen his dragon wings.
Screech! He pressed his dragon wing down and dragged it across a massive metal block that looked like an anvil yet served as a whetstone. Red-hot sparks flew with a screeching sound.
A good weapon needs constant sharpening.
So did Garros's dragon wings. Those wing bones, as sharp as blades, would become even keener and glint with a cold light after being whetted.
A few minutes later.
Garros suddenly stopped.
He pulled a Communication Stone from the inner layer of his scales, which carried a report from the Werewolf Warlock Frostfang.
Nicks Caravan had braved the misty drizzle and arrived at the Scale-Earth Rift Road with a shipment of goods.
Nowadays, even heavy rain could not completely stop the merchants' footsteps.
The Molten Iron Clan would periodically clear the Vicious Beasts and monsters around the trade route, making the Scale-Earth Rift Road exceptionally safe.
Although the trade route garrison of the Lothern Federation would do similar things, because the trade routes were vast and had numerous branches, it was difficult for the garrison to look after all the subsidiary roads.
In most cases...
The garrison would only intervene quickly and conduct a sweep after a major incident occurred on a certain road, such as a serious attack or destruction.
Furthermore, the sapient beings of the Molten Iron Clan no longer engaged in looting and killing.
Any caravan entering or leaving the Scale-Earth Rift Road had no need to worry about safety. Moreover, they could trade with the Molten Iron Clan to obtain high-quality Ore and biological Materials here.
Some merchants speculated that a lord had likely consolidated the monsters here and imposed regulations, leading to the current situation.
This lord remained behind the scenes and never appeared in person.
However, not many merchants delved too deeply into it.
As long as they could make money, they didn't care what was actually happening behind the scenes.
As for the few merchants who tried to investigate the situation, they vanished silently into the vast wilderness.
Overall, the number of caravans traveling through the Scale-Earth Rift Road had doubled.
Among them, the number of caravans under complete control was not many; most were free caravans engaging in normal trade with the Molten Iron Clan.
And among the caravans deeply tied to the Molten Iron Clan, Nicks Caravan was the fastest growing and was now the largest in scale.
Every time they arrived, they brought things that Garros needed or wanted.
"Inquire with the caravan about the situation in the Permafrost Tundra."
"Nick might not know personally, but with a merchant's eyes and ears, he can gather the relevant information more quickly."
"Besides that, I have enough black oil for now. Samantha's armor is a hassle to put on and still isn't heavy enough. I need an Alchemical Item that can increase my own gravity."
Like the weight Spell used by the Stone Giant back then.
Used in different scenarios, it would aid Garros's daily training.