Red Dragon Monster Hunter Template.

This makes the effects of the [Ore Tempering] and [Thermal Energy Gathering] abilities far more powerful on Thor than on the Rock Dragon.

The minerals that should have covered his body in a thick layer were gradually extracted and absorbed by him, slowly seeping into his scales and bones.

Inside that thick throat, strange ring-shaped tissues began to grow, with natural magical patterns shimmering on them, capable of gathering and compressing the flowing magic.

The surging power of his bloodline, propelled by immense vitality, suddenly crossed a threshold at a certain moment, completely entering a new level.

The fire and earth magical elements that were already converging towards this underground cave became even more restless and began to surge into Thor's body at an accelerated pace.

A large amount of elements accumulated in his body, which he could not absorb in time. As a result, the temperature in the entire cave continued to rise, the surrounding rock walls were baked red, and the parts that were in contact with his body began to show signs of melting.

…………

In his dazed state, Thor heard a piercing scream.

It seemed someone was repeating a name over and over: Moras! Moras! But who was this guy? He didn't know him at all.

The memories within the Dragon's Legacy began to be released further as his bloodline concentration increased and he grew older.

A wealth of magical knowledge gradually surfaced in his mind, much of which involved techniques for manipulating the two magical elements of fire and earth. This allowed him to naturally, almost instinctively, begin to master low-level magic of these two attributes.

However, what lies more in the techniques of manipulating the soul: cutting, refining, controlling, and planting a seed of mental demons in the heart of a being.

How could such a thing exist in his own dragon heritage? Could it be that one of his ancestors, a red dragon, had once worked as a sorcerer, or that his bloodline contained the blood of the abyss?

However, considering that Tiamat's divine kingdom is located in the Nine Hells, it's not surprising that the five-colored dragons possess some devilish methods.

Thor quickly put this doubt out of his mind, even sealing away the knowledge that surfaced in his mind, and continued his deep sleep.

After the first month, his size increased from nearly 7 meters to 8 meters; after the second month, it grew to 9 meters; after the third month, it grew to 9.5 meters, and finally stopped at a length of just over 10 meters.

To provide the necessary nutrients for the body's transformation and bone growth, Thor's muscle growth rate was slowed down.

Its once robust body had become completely emaciated, and the outline of bones was revealed beneath its thick, metallic scales. If it weren't for the wrong color, one would easily mistake it for a black dragon.

In the sixth month of his slumber, Saul suddenly felt a strong hunger and abruptly opened his eyes from his sleep.

It seemed as if lava was flowing in its golden pupils, radiating outwards a tangible flame.

He seemed a little dazed after just waking up, looking at the somewhat unfamiliar surroundings, and it took him a while to fully come to his senses.

The once spacious underground cave now seemed rather cramped. The surrounding walls were covered with obsidian formed from melted and solidified rock, and the ground beneath their feet still glowed a deep red.

"I actually slept for almost 6 months. Doesn't it normally only take 1 to 2 months for a hatchling to grow into a baby dragon?"

But these were all trivial matters, and Thor quickly put them out of his mind. The hunger in his stomach made him not think much about it, and he plunged into the narrow mine shaft above.

Following the previously dug passage, they soon encountered a large amount of scattered and piled-up rocks, completely blocking the entire cave.

Looking at the safety measures he had taken before falling asleep, Thor didn't have the time to dig it up again bit by bit.

Although his body was emaciated and desperately needed nourishment, the magical power within him was more abundant than ever before.

As his blood vessels and heart began to function, a large amount of magic surged into his throat, where it converged and compressed through rings of tissue in his trachea, transforming into a dazzling orange-red ray that burst forth from his open mouth.

Because the Rock Dragon's internal organs are not fully developed and it lacks control over energy, it has a more than 50% chance of failing when attempting to unleash its heat ray breath.

However, Thor's body completely filled this missing link, allowing him to wield this terrifying weapon as freely as a giraffe.

The orange-red rays struck the rocks ahead, causing the surface to turn red and melt almost instantly, piercing a large hole. The rays continued their relentless advance, unstoppable.

With Thor's continuous spewing, even a rock layer tens of meters thick could not be stopped and was completely penetrated.

The terrifying breath that once pierced through mountains by the Armored Warrior has reappeared in this unfamiliar world, separated by a great distance.

Chapter Seventy-Five: Spells

When he emerged from the cave, it was already broad daylight. After nearly half a year, Thor took a deep breath of fresh air, and an indescribable sense of physical and mental pleasure instantly swept over him.

He spread his wings against the gentle breeze and was surprised to find that his wingspan was nearly 26 meters, more than 2.5 times his body length.

The back of the wings is covered with thick, deep red scales that shimmer with a metallic sheen, while the edges are a fiery blue-black. On the inner side of the wing membrane, large blood vessels are clearly visible, with bright streams of light flashing among them, outlining a wondrous pattern that resembles rising flames.

With a gentle flap of his enormous wings, Thor's already massive body lifted off the ground, and he soared rapidly into the distance, following the rising air currents.

I remember when I first fell asleep, it was only early autumn. But when I woke up, the whole winter had already quietly slipped away, and the season had already turned into late spring.

This is undoubtedly the most vibrant time of year – vegetation grows wildly on the ground, herbivores with their young roam in herds, and a scene of thriving life is everywhere.

Thor felt so hungry he could swallow an elephant whole, so he decided to hunt another of those woolly mammoths he had eaten before.

Unfortunately, their luck wasn't good this time. After searching for several hours, they only encountered some small animals. The herd of bison in front of them was the largest prey they had found so far.

The burning hunger in his stomach made him decide to stop searching. He slightly tucked his broad wings in and began to swoop down rapidly.

The crimson figure that fell from the sky instantly caught the attention of these already wary herbivores, who immediately took off running.

However, they were ultimately a step too slow.

In the next instant, a magnificent bull was crushed by Thor's foot, its spine snapped, and it crashed to the ground. His pale golden eyes swept around, then he slammed one of his forepaws down on the ground.

He instinctively mobilized the earth element in the ground, and a sharp cone, seemingly carved from rock, suddenly emerged from the ground beneath another bison. Propelled by subsequent eruptions of earth element, it rapidly grew upwards, instantly transforming into a thorn over a meter long, resembling a slender fang, which pierced through the bison's body.

This is Earth Spikes, one of the spells Thor awakened during his slumber.

Generally speaking, after a true dragon grows from a fledgling to a young dragon, it can usually awaken one to three basic spells, depending on its species, lineage, and the concentration of its own bloodline.

Thor, thanks to his unique advantages, awakened a total of six abilities at once: [Burning Hand], [Fireworks], [Manipulation of Mortal Fire], [Mudstone Armor], [Earth Spikes], and [Control of Small Creatures].

Although these spells did not significantly enhance his strength, they were not as powerful as his innate breath control, his strong physique, or the spell-like abilities he acquired from various monster templates.

However, in certain special circumstances, it may produce unexpected and remarkable effects, enriching his combat and survival methods to some extent.

Thor finally felt some relief from his hunger after swallowing two bison whole, bones and all.

His body, which was originally skin and bones, had become noticeably fuller in just over an hour, as if it had been inflated like a balloon.

He licked the blood from the corner of his mouth, then focused his attention back on the giant spinning wheel in his mind.

Having been out of the public eye for nearly six months, the spiritual essence I've accumulated is pitifully little, with only a few points remaining in the balance column.

Thor simply exchanged them all for dragon crystals, stuffing them into his mouth one by one, crunching loudly as he chewed, while glancing at his personal profile on the side of the roulette wheel.

Skipping over the irrelevant information, only two things truly captured his attention:

Age: Second-generation Red Dragon Hatchling (Bloodline Purification in Progress)

Challenge Level: 12+

This is a level of challenge that many young dragons can achieve. If it were the White Dragon, known as the shame of dragons, it would need to reach adulthood to possess such strength.

If we add the abilities Thor gained from the monster template, as well as the increases in strength, speed, and various resistances after bloodline purification, this challenge level could probably be adjusted for a considerable amount of positive impact.

Thor felt that with his current strength, even if he encountered that cheap mother again, he could escape even if he couldn't beat her.

The young blue dragon named Leilia, though longer than him, measuring over 40 feet (about 14 meters), was still uncertain in a fight.

"With my current strength, I should be able to occupy a small piece of land and begin building my own territory. So, where should I set my sights? Somewhere in the wilderness, or..."

After gaining a general understanding of the growth in his various abilities during this period of slumber, Thor began to consider his next course of action.

Ordinary dragons build territories for a more comfortable life and to accumulate more treasure.

But for Thor, his primary goal is to gather enough intelligent beings to provide him with a continuous source of spiritual essence.

After a brief moment of thought, he finally decided to leave the wilderness and head towards the border with areas of human activity.

Humans are undoubtedly the most numerous intelligent beings in the entire material plane, and their innate intelligence is 10 points, providing more essence fragments than various orcs, kobolds, goblins, and the like.

As long as one's name can spread among mankind, it will surely bring a continuous stream of spiritual essence to oneself.

However, doing so also carries risks and may attract the attention of powerful human beings. He needs to carefully weigh the pros and cons himself.

Having made up his mind, Thor flapped his wings again and soared into the sky.

In Dragon Legacy, there is only a rough, simplified map of the entire wilderness and surrounding area, so Thor is not sure of his exact location and just keeps flying eastward.

Sometimes when they get tired of flying, they will land and rest for a while; if they encounter suitable prey, they will take the opportunity to hunt and have a hearty meal.

Thanks to the dragon's powerful digestive system, all the food it eats is quickly converted into the nutrients its body needs.

His originally thin body quickly became fuller again as time went by, and his thick, dark red scales were stretched out again, revealing a clear muscle outline.

After flying for about a week, at noon that day, a continuous mountain range appeared in Thor's field of vision.

If that were all, it wouldn't seem worth paying special attention to. But when his gaze moved downwards, he discovered more than a dozen long ruts and a large number of hoof prints the size of a palm on the soft ground below.

These are clearly traces left by some kind of wagon or cart, and in such large quantities, they could not possibly have been caused by creatures in the wilderness.

Looking at the direction these traces lead, they point straight to the continuous mountain range ahead. With Thor's sharp eyesight, he could even see the valley in the middle of the mountain range that seemed to have been cut off horizontally.

Chapter Seventy-Six: Gnolls and Goblins

The wilderness, the mountains, and the valley with its tire tracks flashed through Thor's mind, instantly making him decide to make it his next nesting place.

With his wings flapping vigorously on his back, he began to accelerate towards the mountain range. At the same time, the magic power within his body surged, ready to deal with any possible sudden attack.

If I'm not mistaken, that canyon is likely a passage connecting the wilderness to human civilization. Although it may not be a main road, there are still quite a few convoys traveling through it.

Greedy merchants brought salt, ironware, refined flour, and spices from the human world to trade with various tribes in the wilderness in exchange for animal hides, jewelry, magical materials, and various precious herbs.

This is a highly profitable business that relies on human productivity; a single round trip can yield at least 10 times the profit.

However, just as humans are full of cunning in this transaction, the wilderness inhabitants, who worship strength, are more enthusiastic about seizing things by their own strength than about obtaining what they want through exchange.

As a result, barring any unforeseen circumstances, this mountain range is likely already teeming with bandit races such as goblins, gnolls, and orcs.

If that's the case, it's good news for Thor—he has a suitable nesting site, and a ready-made group of followers waiting for him to tame.

…………

As the saying goes, "looking at a mountain makes a horse run itself to death," the mountains and hills ahead seemed close at hand, but it still took Thor several tens of minutes to finally reach his destination.

After seeing the entire mountain range, Thor couldn't help but feel somewhat disappointed.

This place was not what he had imagined, with towering peaks thousands of meters high. Instead, a series of undulating hills stretched out, their rocks a dark gray-black color, with many areas covered in yellowish-brown sand, and their heights were all around one thousand meters.

Thor decided that he should first find the intelligent beings here and get more specific information from them.

The enormous young dragon soared in the air, its wingspan exceeding 26 meters, casting a large shadow that symbolized death.

Following the principle of proximity, Thor first flew towards the valley that ran across the mountain range. Low hills swept past behind him, and soon the faint sounds of fighting reached his ears.

…………

Kagal, the gnoll, swung his flail with all his might, striking the goblins before him head-on.

Survival in the wilderness is always difficult, with harsh environments, scarce food, and competition from various evil creatures.

Large tribes like centaurs and minotaurs are better off; they have their own pastures, thousands of cattle and sheep, and thick clothing that protects them from the cold wind.

However, most races that do not engage in production and rely on primitive hunting for survival can only struggle to survive in the cracks of the wilderness, just like wild beasts.

The Bloodfang Clan is a large gnoll tribe with nearly 100 members, including the cubs.

As the leader, Kagal possesses a challenge level close to four, making him a formidable opponent among the lowly wilderness creatures who lack formal training and rely solely on instinct to fight.

Not long ago, they successfully robbed a caravan passing through the canyon, extorting over a thousand kilograms of dried meat and grain with their formidable "strength".

Unfortunately, before they could even use these supplies to satisfy their hungry stomachs, another group of bandits living in the mountains arrived after hearing the news.

Under normal circumstances, Kagar wouldn't even consider goblins a threat. Standing nearly two meters tall, with sharp claws and teeth, they could easily crush these green-skinned dwarves who were barely a meter tall.

In previous encounters, these cowardly fellows merely used their numerical advantage to seize some spoils of war.

But recently, for some reason, a group of huge creatures have appeared among these goblins—they are also nearly two meters tall, but they are much more robust, and their skin has a strange blackish-green color.

They seemed to have no reason or sense of pain, their eyes were bloodshot, and once they entered the battle, they fought with reckless abandon, causing the jackals to retreat in defeat.

Kagal absolutely refused to give up the supplies he had looted this time—the precious food was enough to feed many cubs.

Just as Kagal was becoming increasingly violent, his hair almost completely stained red with the stench of goblin blood, a terrified scream suddenly rang in his ears.

"Look what's in the sky!"

"Dragon! It's a red dragon! Run!"