Evil Red Dragon

Chapter 78 Severe Beating

Cyril's earth magic was indeed powerful. Although he spent most of his time in the Stone Forest's lair building mazes and thinking about how to arrange the city walls, he would only occasionally go to the mines to help. However, the mining efficiency of the mines still increased several times over.

The furnaces in the smelting area burn day and night, with 25 furnaces lined up along the stream, each emitting blazing flames.

The heatwave was so intense that even the most heat-resistant trolls had to take turns every hour, otherwise they would be roasted by the astonishing heat and their skin would peel off.

Gru stood on a high platform in the center of the smelting area, looking down at the bustling scene below.

His brows were furrowed.

Although production has reached 5 tons of pig iron per day, this is far from enough.

The master wanted every warrior to wear heavy armor and wield steel weapons, but 5 tons of iron was only enough to forge 10 sets of full plate armor for orcs, or 100 battle axes.

"Still slow."

Gru muttered to himself.

The orcs and trolls were shirtless, their sweat glistening in the firelight.

They used long-handled iron tongs to clamp baskets full of iron ore and put them into the furnace.

Others stepped on the blowers, the animal-hide air bladders emitting a dull whooshing sound, injecting more air into the fire.

"leader."

Rag ran over from beside a furnace, his face blackened by the flames: "The third batch of molten iron is almost ready. Should we prepare the molds now?"

"Get ready."

Gru nodded: "Today's target is 10 tons."

"yes!"

Rag turned and ran away, shouting orders to the demons.

Gru stepped down from the platform and came to a furnace that had just been extinguished.

The molten iron inside the furnace has solidified into iron ingots.

He reached out and picked up a piece; it was heavy and its surface was covered with impurities.

This kind of iron can only be considered crude iron.

Further refinement is needed to forge armor and weapons.

"How's the forging area coming along?"

Gru asked one of the orc craftsmen beside him.

"It's finished, Lord Gru."

The orc replied respectfully, "As per your request, we have opened up a new area downstream and brought in fresh water. The quenching pool has been dug, and the forging platform is almost complete."

"Take me to see it."

The refining area is located about 300 meters downstream of the smelting area, near a fast-flowing stream.

The terrain here is flat, and a clearing of about 2,000 square meters has been created.

More than twenty orcs were building a makeshift shed, using wood and animal hides to construct a roof to shield them from the sun and rain.

In the center were ten huge forging tables, each with an anvil and hammer beside it.

The most eye-catching feature is the row of quenching pools.

The pool is built of stones, about two meters deep, three meters wide, and five meters long.

The clear stream water is channeled into the pool, and the surface of the water ripples with light.

"not bad."

Gru nodded in satisfaction.

Soon, the trolls pulled steel from the smelting area and sent it to the forging area to forge batches of heavy armor. Weapons such as battle axes, war hammers, and heavy crossbows armed the trolls and orcs to the teeth.

Alchemy workshop.

Odette is explaining a complex rune structure to Kula.

The orcish high shaman sat cross-legged on the ground, his rough, large hands carefully holding a small carving knife, outlining lines on a snake scale.

His movements were slow and focused, with fine beads of sweat constantly seeping from his forehead.

This was a completely new challenge for Kula, who was used to wielding battle axes and casting shamanic spells.

"Here, the nodes for magic flow need to be smoother."

Odette pointed to a spot on the snake scale: "If the transition is too abrupt, the flow of magic will be blocked, and the entire rune loop will fail."

Kula nodded, took a deep breath, and readjusted the angle of the carving knife.

As the carving knife moved, magic seeped into the snake scales.

Kula's learning speed amazed Odette.

This orcish high shaman had an extremely profound understanding of magic.

He can keenly perceive subtle changes in the flow of magic and precisely control the output of magic.

More importantly, he has amazing patience and focus.

This contrasts sharply with Oliveira.

Odette couldn't help but sigh when she thought of that little female dragon.

"I did it!"

Kula suddenly spoke.

Odette snapped out of her daze and looked at the snake scales in his hand.

A complete and sturdy rune is engraved on the surface of the palm-sized snake scale.

With smooth lines and clear nodes, the magic flows smoothly through the loop, emitting a faint earthy yellow halo.

Level 1 enchantment: Durable.

Although it was the most basic enchantment, Kula mastered it in just three days.

"Congratulations, Lord Kula."

Odette said sincerely, "You are very talented."

Kula carefully held the snake scale, as if it were some rare treasure.

"Many years ago, my teacher told me that the only path for orcs is through battle."

Kula said slowly, "He said we are born to be warriors, and those things made of magic are toys for elves and humans. We can't learn them, and we shouldn't."

He looked up at Odette: "But now I know he was wrong."

Odette remained silent.

She could understand Kula's feelings.

Racial divisions and prejudices are deeply rooted in this world.

The hatred between orcs and elves has lasted for thousands of years, and both sides have their hands stained with each other's blood.

She, a half-elf, was teaching an orc high shaman the art of enchanting.

This is ironic in itself, but also a breakthrough.

Kula, worthy of being called a great orc shaman, immediately put aside his hatred for the elves after learning Odette's identity and devoted himself wholeheartedly to his studies.

"Knowledge has no race."

Odette said softly, "Magic is just a tool; the key is how you use it."

Kula nodded, carefully putting away the enchanted snake scale: "I will continue to study. Not just for myself, but also for the children of the tribe."

As they were talking, the workshop door was pushed open.

Kargath entered with several shaman apprentices, each with a look of dejection on their face.

"Teacher, we failed again."

Kargath raised the iron sword in his hand. The runes engraved on the blade were blurred, and the magical fluctuations were chaotic, clearly indicating that there was a problem with the enchanting process.

Kula took the iron sword and examined it carefully.

"Mana output is unstable."

He pointed out the problem: "You were distracted when you were working on this point, causing the magic to flow intermittently. Enchanting requires complete concentration; any distraction will affect the result."

Kargath lowered his head: "I...I was too hasty—"

"There's no use in being anxious."

Odette walked over and said gently, "Enchanting is a skill that requires patience and practice. You've only just begun to learn, so failure is normal."

She took the iron sword and gently stroked its blade: "Moreover—this sword itself has a problem."

"question?"

"The material is too poor."

Odette explained, "Ordinary weapons cannot withstand the infusion of magic. You see, the metal around the rune marks has already developed tiny cracks. Even if the enchantment is successful, this sword won't last long before it shatters."

So why was Oliveira able to succeed?

The shaman apprentices looked at each other in bewilderment.

"What should we do then?"

"We need better materials."

Odette said, "Or it could be forged into an alloy by incorporating other high-quality metals."

"Furthermore, the higher the quality of the weapon, the higher the level of enchantment it can support."

She thought for a moment and added, "And there are those like Miss Oliveira, who use special methods to refine iron from pig iron."

When Oliveira was mentioned, Kula's expression immediately became somewhat strange.

Yesterday he witnessed Miss Oliveira being dragged into the dragon's lair by her master, followed by screams and pleas for mercy.

Although I don't know exactly what happened, it's definitely related to enchanting.

"Why is Miss Oliveira able to enchant so quickly with such a high success rate?

"She took a shortcut."

Odette shook her head helplessly: "She uses dragon flame to refine iron essence, then forges it into weapons and enchants them. The effect is very good, but the cost is that it consumes dozens of times more materials."

Kargath's eyes widened: "Dozens of times?!"

"So, Miss was reprimanded by her master."

Odette couldn't help but shudder when she recalled Alecto's gloomy expression at the time.

Why was Oliveira able to enchant so quickly?

After being pressed by Alecto, Oliveira reluctantly revealed the truth:

She knew this from the beginning; the weapons she used for enchanting were actually forged by her after refining iron essence from a ton of steel with dragon flame.

Her thinking was simple: the steel belonged to Alecto, but the gold coins she received were her own, so as long as the enchantment was successful, it didn't matter how much wasted it was.

Oliveira's wasteful behavior was simply stepping on Alecto's sore spot.

So she successfully got another beating from Alecto.

But she didn't care!

Although it hurts, it's all worth it to get gold coins!

Kargath and the others exchanged glances: "So, what do we do now—"

"Keep practicing."

Odette said calmly, "Even if the enchanting fails, it's still valuable experience. Try again after you've fully grasped the basics."

She looked at Kula: "Lord Kula, what do you think?"

Kula pondered for a moment, then nodded in agreement, saying, "Miss Odette is right. A weak foundation will cause everything to crumble. Let's start with the simplest things."

He turned to the shaman apprentices: "Continue practicing the sharp runes today. Each of you should complete ten inscriptions. Failure is okay, but be serious."

"Yes, teacher!"

The apprentices responded in unison, their fighting spirit rekindled.

As Odette watched this scene, a warm feeling welled up in her heart.

This feeling of imparting knowledge and witnessing growth is much more meaningful to her than when she was at Star Moon Academy.

There, knowledge is monopolized, hidden, and used as a tool of power.

Here, knowledge is shared, disseminated, and used in practical construction.

Perhaps this is the system the master was referring to? It feels pretty good.

Meanwhile, Goron is also preparing to break through to level five.

At the edge of Chifeng Territory, a burly figure sat cross-legged on a rocky platform, dragon blood surging in his veins, his heart pounding like a drum.

The reserves are sufficient; all that's left is the right opportunity to unleash them.

And now, the time has come.

Goron opened his eyes, his pupils glowing a dark red.

He stood up, stretched his neck, and felt the muscles undulating beneath his skin, each contraction delivering an explosive force.

Dragon blood transformed his body, making him stronger than ordinary orcs, but it also instilled in him a deeper longing.

A thirst for battle, a thirst for blood.

Not far away, several orc warriors patrolled by, and when they saw Gronn, they all stopped and looked at him with awe.

Their chief is different now.

The dragonborn aura made Gronn appear even more majestic and dangerous.

What burned in those eyes was no longer just the ferocity of an orc, but also the arrogance of a dragon.

"bring it on----"

Goron let out a low roar, and the dragon blood within him exploded like ignited explosives.

The pain appeared suddenly and then escalated into excruciating pain in an instant; every nerve was screaming.

Goron felt as if his body had been thrown into a furnace, burning from the inside out.

The skin begins to redden, the muscles swell, and the bones grow.

Goron's height began to increase, gradually growing from three meters to four meters, five meters, until it barely stopped at six meters.

His size doubled, his shoulders became wider, and his arms became thicker.

The trend of beggarification continues.

On either side of his forehead, dragon horns began to grow, signifying his further awakening.

His eyes were completely replaced by dark red, and two red lights flashed by.

An unprecedented sense of oppression emanated from Goron, a feeling akin to facing a resurrected beast.

The orc warriors who were passing by retreated, their faces showing fear, but they dared not make a sound, for fear of disturbing Gronn.

Goron suddenly roared to the sky!

"roar-

"The roar was like a dragon's cry, echoing through the forest."

The sound waves created a shockwave, causing Zhou Yi's orcs to stagger and fall.

And the moment the sound faded, Goron completed his final transformation.

He opened his eyes and looked down at his body.

Am I now a half-dragon?

A terrifying size, covered in dark red dragon scales, and thick, sharp arms—

He could feel the surging power beneath each scale, far exceeding his own strength at level four.

He broke through to level five.

The breakthrough brings not only an increase in strength, but also a completely new ability.

Goron took a deep breath and focused his mind into his body.

The next moment, boom!

Flames erupted from his body, coiling around him and clinging to him like armor.

Goron could sense every bit of the temperature of the flames on his body.

He can control them.

With a thought, flames spread along his right arm, condensing into a phantom of a flaming battle axe in his palm.

Although it was just a phantom, it radiated scorching heat, and the air distorted around the axe blade.

"This is----"

Goron looked at the flaming battle axe in his hand, a hint of apprehension flashing in his eyes.

He dispersed his battle axe, the flames returned to his body, and he stretched out his right hand with his five fingers spread.

A wisp of flame dances in the palm of your hand, as docile as a pet.

If he so desires, this wisp of flame can instantly expand into a raging inferno that burns everything.

Fire control.

This is a talent bestowed upon him by the red dragon bloodline, and also one of the abilities brought about by his half-dragon transformation.

Goron clenched his fist, and the flames went out.

He felt his blood surging with joy.

It's very strong, at least 10 times stronger than before the breakthrough.

And this is not the limit.

In his semi-dragon form, his strength, speed, defense, stamina, and attack are all enhanced in every way.

More importantly, his fire control ability gives him mid-range attack capabilities, freeing him from being limited to close combat.

He tried to throw a punch, the air crackled and popped, and the force of the punch created a shallow groove in the ground several meters away.

"This power—"

Goron never imagined he would possess such an ability; surprise, confusion, and bewilderment—a mix of emotions welled up within him.

Before Gorondo could even experience it, a feeling of weakness arose, and his half-dragon transformation instantly dissipated on its own.

The surging power within the body, like the receding tide, slowly recedes back into the depths.

The feeling of fullness and burning heat began to subside, and most of the dragon scales on its body turned into sparks and dissipated into the air.

The enormous body, which had swelled to six meters, began to shrink rapidly, like a deflated sack, accompanied by the soft cracking of its bones and joints.

The dragon horns covering its forehead gradually shrank and eventually returned to their normal size.

After a few breaths, Goron returned to his normal size.

"The ability to control fire—is still there."

With a slight thought, Goron conjured a stable flame of oath in his palm.

The flames slowly took shape according to his will, sometimes elongating like a spearhead, sometimes condensing into a sphere.

He extinguished the flames with satisfaction and stretched his limbs.

Breaking through to level five and unexpectedly awakening a controllable half-dragon transformation, all of this signifies that he has truly become a core member of the Dragon Lord Alec Sheep's retinue, standing shoulder to shoulder with Gru and Kula.