Evolving by devouring from a young dragon

In a valley of the Crimson Mountains.

The clanging and clattering of chisels echoed continuously.

Alduin felt a pang of emotion as he watched the kobolds dig out pieces of ore, carry them up from underground, and then return to repeat the process.

It's been a year since I left the Dragon's Nest, and I've finally returned to my old profession...

This world is indeed far too hostile towards dragons.

He thought that after leaving the dragon's nest, he would transform into a young dragon and steadily reach the fifth rank. As long as he didn't provoke humans, he could walk around with impunity. However, he never expected to run into obstacles everywhere.

After leaving the Black Barrier Swamp, he relied on the Shadow Dragon's talent for stealth and his evolved dragon wings with flow channels to fly with minimal movement, carefully avoiding human towns and staying away from the mercenary groups that were eager to take advantage of his dragon.

However, the surrounding forests were almost entirely marked by human and dwarf inhabitants, making it extremely difficult to find a suitable place to live.

After a month of searching, they finally found a deserted mountain and thought they could settle down, but they didn't expect there to be another giant dragon there.

Alduin's physical strength has already surpassed that of a typical fifth-tier dragon, and after the mutation of the devoured magic technology, his magic reserves and recovery speed are approaching those of a sixth-tier dragon.

Therefore, he didn't take that stupid silver dragon seriously at all.

Just as he was about to slap it away and have a treat for himself, the guy showed no sportsmanship and used a magic item to escape.

But since it had already run away, Alduin, despite being a dragon, didn't intend to exterminate it and chose to let it go, considering that dragons were already nearly extinct in the world.

Actually, we can't catch up...

Who knew that guy would be so ungrateful?

What does it mean to go home and find your mother when you can't beat someone?

After leaving home, he realized that his parents would hold an umbrella for him when it rained, instead of letting him get wet.

Why are fifth-tier metal dragons allowed to stay in the dragon's nest, while the five-colored dragons are being driven out of their territory?!

Perhaps because it was afraid of making too much noise and attracting the attention of the Eye of the Sky, the adult dragon did not use its full strength.

However, he was still seriously injured, but his strong physique saved his life.

After that, he began searching for a habitat, traveling far and wide, hunting monsters to heal his injuries, and even encountering a group of human adventurers.

Although there was a fifth-tier human among them, the opponent was still no match for him. He also devoured a batch of magical technology, and his strength increased greatly once again.

It must be said that magical technology has greatly helped his evolution; the only problem is that it is something that can't be obtained by chance.

Magic technology is a technological product that incorporates magic.

In Alduin's inherited memories, these magical items were formerly known as alchemical artifacts.

Therefore, not everyone can afford it...

I was just lucky to have encountered it.

"Snap!"

Alduin swallowed the ore mined by the kobolds, a hint of regret flashing in his eyes.

After he grows into a young dragon, these miscellaneous minerals become completely useless for his evolution.

However, he had other purposes in making the kobolds keep mining.

If someone were to delve into its stomach, they would discover that the ores swallowed by Auduin were not being digested by gastric juices; instead, the stomach was like a furnace, constantly breaking down and purifying the ores.

Once the refining was complete, Alduin slightly opened his mouth and suddenly spat it all out.

He nodded in satisfaction as he looked at the irregular metal blocks and gems.

It wasn't because it was fun, but because I was short of money.

Back in the Black Barrier Swamp, because there was a complete magic crystal vein, it could easily purify top-grade magic crystals using its evolved acid.

So at that time, they had no idea of ​​the true value of the magic crystal.

It wasn't until he plundered the magic crystals from those humans that he realized not everyone could afford top-grade magic crystals.

Thinking about this, Auduin felt deep regret.

If I had known the world would be like this, I shouldn't have asked for such a high price when I made the deal with the Dragon Father and Dragon Mother...

It's impossible for me to find a magic crystal vein right now, so I can only make money by refining miscellaneous ores every day.

"Black Claw, come here!"

Alduin roared at a kobold in the distance.

Upon hearing Alduin's voice, the kobold smiled, rubbed his hands together, and quickly stepped forward.

"Master, what are your orders?"

He knelt down on the ground, bowed his head, and spoke respectfully.

Alduin looked down at the obedient kobold, his face cold but his heart satisfied.

"Go and sell these metals and gems."

Alduin gave the order to the kobold.

Now he earns magic crystals by selling these refined metals and gems. Although his income is not as high as before, he can still earn a top-quality magic crystal every month because of the large quantity.

One top-grade magic crystal is equivalent to ten high-grade magic crystals, which is also equivalent to one hundred ordinary magic crystals...

The kobold in front of him looked up, patted his thin chest, and made a promise.

"Master, don't worry, I guarantee we won't be discovered by humans."

Alduin nodded; he was fairly confident in the kobold's abilities.

Six months ago, when he first arrived here, the local inhabitants—the kobolds—led their tribe to join him.

They even offered to help him mine, without asking for any payment, only asking that he provide them with shelter.

Since no compensation is required, a mere verbal promise is all it takes to freeload a bunch of loyal laborers.

Auduin granted their request.

Then the kobolds began mining, refining the minerals themselves, and then reselling them for magic crystals.

Furthermore, the kobold in front of them was quite shrewd. In order to avoid arousing suspicion from humans that there were too many metals and gems, he sold them in different batches and to different towns.

This practice has continued to this day, and these kobolds have not shown any signs of suspicion when conducting transactions.

Because this skinny kobold was different from the other low-IQ kobolds and acted very intelligently, Alduin paid a little attention to him.

And they gave him a name—Black Claw.

It has no other meaning than that his claws are black, unlike the brown claws of other kobolds.

He wanted the magic crystals in order to exchange them for human magical technology weapons, which he would then devour to increase his own strength.

However, those magical weapons are not so easy to obtain. Low-level ones are relatively easy to acquire, but high-level ones, namely fifth-level and above magical weapons, are not only expensive but also controlled by the empire, making them extremely difficult to purchase.

So far, all he's managed to get is a Tier 5 magic rifle from those evil goblins, and it's even a third-hand one...

However, looking at the kobolds with their heads bowed before him, Alduin snorted in dissatisfaction, his voice icy: "Have you been slacking off lately? Why is the ore production so low this month?"