Evolving by devouring from a young dragon

Alduin chose the Rotten Swamp, a territory located at the bottom of a vast basin.

This basin is known as the sinking basin.

It is precisely because the area is high on all sides and low in the middle that the water flows to the bottom of the basin, thus forming this swamp.

In the subsidence basin, besides the decaying swamps, there are other environmental tectonic plates.

Alduin spread his enormous wings, his dark figure disappearing into the night, revealing only his pair of dark golden vertical pupils, which stared coldly at the ground.

From this vantage point, the entire decaying swamp is laid out before you.

The dog-headed people were still busy digging ditches to divert the putrid acid from the center of the swamp to the outside, creating a natural defensive barrier.

The Shadowscale Lizard disappeared into the darkness, swimming silently on the surface of the swamp, vigilantly surveying every area.

Since I have nothing to do right now, I might as well go and find out what's going on with my neighbor next door.

Alduin looked down at the thriving, decaying swamp at his feet and pondered these thoughts.

Then, Auduin spread his dragon wings and flew swiftly towards the northwest.

To the northwest of the decaying swamp, a sudden high ground rises up.

The surface of the highlands is covered with charred volcanic rock and dense basalt, with cooled lava textures embedded between the rock layers.

It is reasonable to speculate that this highland is the remains of a long-dormant ancient volcano.

The terrain here is so high that it rises hundreds of meters above the swamp. Standing on the edge of the high ground and looking down, you can see the putrid mud and miasma below.

It was precisely because of its commanding position that Auduin chose this place as his primary target for exploration.

He concealed himself in the shadows, silently watching the Ash Highlands below, refraining from any rash action.

The entire Ash Heights lay spread out before him.

The entire highland was formed by the accumulation of cooled basalt, igneous rock, and volcanic ash.

The ground was scorched and cracked, barren of all vegetation, except for sparse heat-resistant plants such as fire moss, sulfur crystal grass, and charred bone fern, which stubbornly grew.

The air was dry and scorching, filled with a faint smell of sulfur, which contrasted sharply with the damp and cold miasma of the swamp below.

The surface is dotted with fluorescent light, which is the exposed fluorite sulfur crystals.

Perhaps because it was nighttime, there were not many traces of monsters.

But Auduin had enough patience to occasionally flap his wings slightly and hover in the air to maintain flight.

About an hour passed.

Alduin's dark golden vertical pupils twitched slightly, locking onto the crater ruins with their central depression.

There was some movement there.

In the ruins of an ancient volcano, a group of red-skinned orcs are gathered together, using lava to cook and share their prey.

Unlike ordinary orcs, they are over two meters tall, with sparse body hair but exceptionally developed muscles, and obsidian-colored fangs that are shorter and thicker than those of ordinary orcs.

As Auduin looked at the figures gathered around the crater, relevant information flashed through his mind.

Emberfang Orc.

A variant of the orcs.

Orcs live in tribes, worship force, and have always regarded humans as their mortal enemies, waging war against them for generations. They can be said to be humanity's archenemy.

However, as the human race grew stronger and expanded step by step, the orcs' power gradually declined, and they gradually faded from the continent's view.

All orcs worship a single god—the One-Eyed God.

Legend has it that this god taught the orcs that the world is cruel and only the strong can survive.

He endowed the orcs with a strong physique, enabling them to survive in wastelands, caves, and seas.

However, throughout history, orcs have developed into many different branches.

Some still have the iconic green skin and live a primitive life of eating raw meat and drinking blood;

Some shed their wildness, learned to use tools and magic, and developed from tribes into city-states;

Some even actively mated with humans, giving birth to a subspecies of half-orcs, possessing both human intelligence and orc physique...

The Emberfang Beastmen are a group that inhabits the area surrounding the volcano.

They are constantly exposed to the power of geothermal heat and lava, giving them a reddish complexion and a more violent temperament than ordinary orcs.

Over the course of their long evolution, the deity they worshipped gradually shifted from the traditional one-eyed war god to the fire god who wields fire and rebirth.

Auduin silently processed this information.

On the edge of the crater, there are many houses built of huge stones.

At the edge of the crater, a wall made of huge stones stands out.

Auduin's vertical pupils narrowed as he carefully observed the situation inside the walls, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes.

Inside the walls, a group of dragon-like creatures were kept. They were as large as dragons, but their structure was completely different from that of dragons.

Ordinary dragons have four legs and two wings, but these creatures have four wings with sharp claws growing directly from the sides of their wing roots, making them look strange and fierce.

This is a Winged Beast.

They are named for the strange patterns that cover their skin.

These Ashfang Orcs can actually tame Winged Beasts...?

Auduin narrowed his vertical pupils slightly, silently evaluating this "neighbor" in his mind.

Winged Beasts can grow up to twelve meters tall, with a strength of around the sixth rank, and are extremely difficult to tame.

This tribe seems to be quite powerful...

Auduin withdrew his gaze, thought to himself, and then turned and left.

After the battle with the copper dragon, he realized that although he was very strong, he would hardly be able to cause any trouble in a one-on-one fight.

It seems that the previous idea of ​​building an elite legion was too idealistic.

The most urgent task is to first consolidate the power of the people under his command and strengthen his foundation.

These Emberfang Orcs are a good choice.

However, they are naturally unruly, and it would be difficult to control them if I went there rashly.

Most importantly, they openly raise several sixth-tier winged beasts, so their hidden strength must be even greater than that.

Moreover, he has yet to meet the chieftain and high shaman of the Emberfang tribe, both of whom have always been the top combat forces of the orc tribe.

After Alduin left, the Emberfang tribe...

A burly orc, clad in rough animal hides and carrying a giant axe, strode heavily toward an old man.

He suppressed his usual fierceness, awkwardly slowed his pace, and respectfully bowed his head, asking, "Prophet, the sacrifice is approaching; has the divine given any guidance?"

The old man was dressed in a colorful totem robe, and beneath his towering feathered crown, his cloudy yet sharp eyes did not look at the warrior, but rather at the bone staff in his hand.

After a long silence, he slowly uttered a few words: "Keep it as usual."

This seemingly frail old man is none other than the spiritual pillar of the Ember Fang tribe—the Great Shaman.

The burly orc breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this, but then, as if remembering something, hesitated before speaking: "Prophet, about that black dragon..."

The high shaman remained calm, his gaze fixed on the bone staff for a long time before he slowly said, "God says, there's no need to pay attention..."

Beneath the crater ruins, a nearly liquid golden flame flows silently, pure and without a trace of impurity.

If you venture deep into the flames, you will see a giant egg, its entire body as red as pigeon's blood and shimmering with a warm luster, slumbering within the heart of the flames.

……

In the north, in the wind-eroded Gobi Desert, a figure stared at the spot where Auduin had just disappeared. After a long while, he turned around and disappeared into the depths of the Gobi Desert.