Red Dragon Monster Hunter Template.

What is this thing? Why does it feel its blood surging, a strong desire rising from the bottom of its heart, as if if it takes a few more breaths, something will be conceived and born within it?

Then, as if possessed, the dog-headed man barked excitedly and quickly climbed onto the platform at the cave entrance.

The kobolds behind them were quickly affected as well, their faces showing a dazed expression as they stood at the cave entrance taking deep breaths.

Thor's keen senses quickly alerted him to the unusual behavior of the kobolds. He only glanced at them briefly before understanding the reason for their presence.

He didn't intend to stop these guys; after all, it was just waste expelled from his body, and if these inferior creatures wanted it, he would let them have it.

He truly lived up to his reputation as the most benevolent red dragon in history, having already advanced his "salary" to his retinue before they even started working.

If that old bastard Bahamut found out about this, wouldn't he immediately issue a divine decree and bestow upon himself the title of "Chosen One of the Holy Dragon"?

With these random thoughts swirling in his mind, the impurities in his magic and bloodline energy dissipated, making Thor, who had just eaten his fill, feel a bit hungry again.

So he simply exchanged some dragon crystals and various metal ores, stuffing them into his mouth like candy.

A rich energy emanated from within the body, was digested and absorbed, filling the void left by the loss of impurities, and the pure bloodline energy and magic power within the body also began to quietly increase.

In a way, isn't this another form of bloodline purification?

Chapter Eighty-Eight: Dragon Vein Kobolds

A group of kobolds were absorbed in the magic and bloodline energy impurities draining from Thor's body, when suddenly, without warning, a change occurred.

A dog-headed man, younger than his kind and covered in rust-red scales, seemed to have something churning and writhing inside him, and his veins suddenly bulged.

A sharp pain suddenly exploded from within its body, causing it to collapse to its knees, its legs buckling. It opened its mouth wide, trying to cry out in pain, but couldn't even squeeze out a sound.

In the next instant, a burst of blazing flame erupted from its body, enveloping its entire form in a ball of orange-red fire.

Its tattered clothes were instantly burned to ashes, and flames licked wildly in all directions. The kobolds around it dodged in panic, barking in terror.

Thor, who had been keeping his eyes closed, suddenly opened them, his golden pupils fixed on the kobold in the flames, clearly sensing a surge of magic within it.

The dog-headed man's fine scales, instead of being damaged by the flames, became even more vibrant and dazzling.

The two bone spurs on its head that stretched diagonally backward were also growing longer and thicker at a visible speed, eventually turning into two segmented horns like those of a goat.

As the flames gradually subsided, the kobold's appearance had been completely transformed, its form entirely altered.

Its originally rust-red scales turned as red as blood, and its body became taller and stronger. Its head, which looked like a mixture of a crocodile and a dog, also gained a bit of the majesty of a dragon, and its whole body emitted a faint magical fluctuation.

True dragons have always had an eye for beauty, and it is said that some dragons can even appreciate the unique charm of a mud monster.

At that moment, Thor suddenly felt that the little thing in front of him was quite unique, but the next second he shivered and stopped the far-fetched thought from his mind.

It seems this kobold has quite the potential. Stimulated by the magic and bloodline energy impurities it emits, it actually activated the thin dragon blood within its body, becoming a dragon-blooded kobold.

This is a natural spellcaster. Depending on the type of dragon blood activated in their body, they can naturally awaken corresponding spells, just like a warlock.

If we could form a kobold warlock band from the Dragonvein, that would seem like a good idea, since it wouldn't require any extra effort from me.

The thought flashed through his mind, and Thor immediately let out a low growl.

"Being able to successfully activate the dragon blood within you, it seems that you, a tiny creature, do possess some talent."

The dragon-vein kobold, still kneeling on the ground, finally came to its senses upon hearing the sound. It carefully experienced the changes in its body, and the overwhelming joy in its heart almost made it dizzy on the spot. It shouted wildly.

"Thank you for the Dragon Lord's grace! I will dedicate the rest of my life to mining the most precious minerals from the earth and building the most magnificent lair for you. I swear to be loyal to you to the death and never betray you!"

This fervent atmosphere immediately infected the other kobolds around them, who all knelt down and prostrated themselves before Thor, shouting every word of praise they could think of.

The pride and vanity inherent in his dragon bloodline made Thor feel no annoyance at hearing these nauseating words; on the contrary, he sincerely agreed, as if it were his natural disposition.

The constantly flashing fragments of essence below the line of sight further intensify this pleasure.

…………

Not long after they joined the fold, some members evolved thanks to the Dragon Lord's blessing, which made Thor almost a god-like figure in the hearts of these kobolds.

During the subsequent expansion of the cave, these kobolds showed even greater enthusiasm, waving their pickaxes with fervor, as if it were a great honor for them.

When Thor woke up, he found that the jagged bumps and irregularities in his nest had completely disappeared. Although the overall size had not changed much, it looked much better.

He examined himself again and found that both his magic and the power surging in his bloodline seemed to have become purer and could exert a stronger force than before.

I never expected these Dragon Slayer Fruits to be so effective. I just don’t know if they only work on me or if they can work on all dragon creatures.

If it is the latter, then it will probably no longer be just a means to enhance strength, but will become a powerful weapon capable of subverting the entire world order.

Hearing the constant clanging and banging sounds around him, Thor's gaze couldn't help but fall on the skinny kobolds.

In a broad sense, these creatures could also be classified as dragons. Why don't we try them out first?

After all, the stronger the creature, the more essence fragments it can provide. If all kobolds could evolve into dragon-blooded kobolds, he could earn hundreds of essence points every day even if he did nothing.

However, it should be noted that in addition to the dragon-attribute energy, the Dragon Slayer Fruit also contains a terrifying poison that an ordinary kobold would definitely not be able to withstand.

Therefore, it is necessary to dilute it first, and then gradually increase the amount to allow them to gradually adapt.

Thoughts raced through his mind as Thor climbed up from the platform in the center of the cave, his scales rubbing against each other, producing a clanging sound like metal striking metal.

Upon hearing the commotion, the kobolds immediately stopped what they were doing and knelt down in Thor's direction.

Thor nodded in satisfaction at that loyal look, raised his paw, and growled in a low voice:

"You tiny creatures, stop what you're doing with your claws and put aside your cave expansion plans. Now, put your surveying and tunneling skills to use and dig a well for me around here!"

Such inconsistent behavior would have caused resentment in most creatures, but the kobolds simply responded obediently and began to gather their tools and the rubble they had dug up.

Thor stepped out of the den, flapped his large wings, and flew towards the gnoll camp.

Having been in this mountain range for so long, it's time to start expanding our territory.

Since there's a dangerous abandoned underground city to the south, let's head north first and completely unify those chaotic and evil creatures.

Thor quickly swept past several low hills and soon arrived at a rocky outcrop nestled between two mountains.

As the last rays of the setting sun shone down, one could see makeshift huts haphazardly built from withered grass, animal hides, and branches. Some gnolls were lounging lazily against rocks, while others were busy around the campfire in the center of the camp, turning over the sizzling food that was roasting—the goblins that had been wiped out earlier.

In the wilderness, no food is wasted; the flesh of animals, the flesh of intelligent beings, and even the flesh of their own kind are indistinguishable to many creatures.

Chapter 89 Expansion

"You bunch of lazy bums and good-for-nothings! A pack of filthy stray dogs, get out here! I have something to tell you to do!"

A high-pitched dragon roar suddenly resounded through the sky, startling the jackal-men who were leisurely basking in the sunset. They scrambled to their feet in a panic.

Even those gathered around the campfire reluctantly put down their food and rushed to the open space in front of the camp.

When Thor landed on a huge, protruding rock, accompanied by a howling wind, all the gnolls had almost finished gathering, lying haphazardly with their tongues lolling out, looking like a chaotic mess.

Looking at this group of scatterbrains, Thor felt a surge of anger rising within him.

While this is indeed the nature of chaotic and evil creatures, it should never be the behavior of his retinue.

"Now, who among you is the new leader? Step forward!"

With a roar, a gnoll, noticeably larger than its companions, stepped forward tremblingly.

"Great Dragon Lord, it is I, Liemo... who have seized the new leadership position."

This is a female gnoll. Because they are transformed from hyenas, females in this species are often much larger and stronger than males.

Thor glared fiercely at the gnoll with his golden eyes, growling a threat.

"If I ever see you all behaving this lazy way again, you can go and keep company with those dead goblins!"

The surrounding gnolls shuddered at these words. The one Thor was staring at trembled uncontrollably and quickly replied, "Yes!"

Seeing this, Thor withdrew his gaze and roared in a passionate voice.

"This mountain range is inhabited by too many evil creatures and filled with too many chaotic sounds."

Now that I'm here, all the different voices should disappear completely, leaving only one—my voice!

Now go north and deliver my orders to those evil creatures: Before sunrise tomorrow, come down to my lair and submit to me, or else await being burned to ashes!

The jackals, who had been trembling with fear just moments before, roared with excitement upon hearing this. Their instincts, ingrained in their very bones, fueled their constant thirst for blood and slaughter.

With a flap of Thor's wings, the gnolls on the clearing scattered and rushed impatiently toward the tribes of other creatures in the vicinity.

This night was destined to be anything but peaceful. The arrival of the red dragon had already attracted the attention of other creatures.

When the gnolls arrived as messengers, the various tribes responded differently: some, intimidated by the red dragon's power, chose to submit; others, confident in their strength, intended to fight to the bitter end.

However, many tribes, unwilling to submit to the red dragon and lacking the strength to resist, had no choice but to flee overnight.

This is also a true reflection of the reality for most small tribes in the wilderness: they have no fixed abode, and even if they manage to establish themselves in one place, they can only embark on a wandering journey again when stronger creatures appear.

Thor ignored the creatures that chose to flee. Although the more followers he had, the more essence they could provide, not all creatures were worth subduing.

It's important to know that both gnolls and kobolds are creatures with extremely high reproductive rates.

They often give birth to many cubs at a time, and they reach adulthood around the age of 10. Theoretically, their lifespan is comparable to that of humans, with kobolds even living to 120 years old.

However, due to the harsh wilderness environment, their average lifespan is less than 30 years, so their numbers are not very large. Once conditions are suitable, their numbers will quickly explode.

After sending the gnolls away, Thor returned to his lair.

He is just waiting for the sun to rise tomorrow so that he can completely wipe out all the races in this mountain range that refuse to submit.

This was a trivial matter to him. At this moment, what he was really thinking about was still that abandoned underground city in the south.

Just four mental attacks provided him with nearly five hundred units of mental energy essence, which shows how powerful the creature hiding in the shadows was.

Thor was eager to figure out what that thing was and what its current state was. Only by understanding these things could he feel at ease.

However, it was absolutely impossible for him to go back to that abandoned underground city again. After all, a wise man does not stand under a dangerous wall, and curiosity often kills the cat.

So, should I send my gnolls and kobolds to investigate and then report back to me?

Or, could you actually prepare for both possibilities?

Of the five spells Thor awakened in his childhood, four corresponded to his own magical elements, while the remaining one, "Control of Small Creatures," belonged to the realm of mind and soul.

This might be because he fused with multiple monster templates, making his mental strength far stronger than that of a typical red dragon of the same age, and this, combined with the remnants of that undead creature, resulted in a mixed reaction.

In fact, after the soul energy of that undead creature was drained, the memories in its soul became pure information, which was then spat out by the turntable.

Having never been particularly interested in them before, Thor had sealed these memories, along with the Dragon Legacy, deep within his mind. Now, however, he could finally revisit them.

He delved into the deepest recesses of his mind, beginning to search for useful information within the vast ocean of memories.

Under normal circumstances, this would be a very long process.

However, the more memorable something is in a person's memory, the more dazzling its brilliance becomes.

And for a lich, what could be more impressive than magical knowledge?

If I had to pinpoint anything, it would probably be hatred and those unattainable treasures.

Following those shimmering fragments of memory, Thor quickly found all the knowledge related to magic in the undead creature's memories.

He would set aside the more advanced content for the time being, and discard anything that required specializing in negative energy. He only needed to learn the parts about the soul and spiritual power.

Red dragons are born with higher intelligence than humans, and coupled with Thor's own powerful mental strength, he quickly gained a basic understanding of this topic.

Based on his awakened "controlling small creatures" spell, he only needs to learn a few more minor spells to combine them into an ability that allows him to share vision and hearing with the creatures he controls.

This inexplicably reminded Thor of the centaurs who had once hunted him down, one of whom, like a druid, could control a falcon.

It's been a few years since I last saw them, and I do miss them a bit. I wonder where they are now. I might ask them sometime when I have time.

Thor began to ponder what kind of creature he should control, and all things considered, birds were undoubtedly the best choice.

But his main purpose was to explore the abandoned underground city, and the sudden appearance of a bird seemed too out of place.

Let's try using a bat first! There are bats in that dungeon, maybe we can fool them?

Having made up his mind, Thor opened his eyes in the darkness and gently tapped the stone platform beneath him with his hard fingernails.

The crisp sound carried far and wide, and soon after, a kobold walked in.