Red Dragon Monster Hunter Template.

When Thor took a bite, he felt something was wrong. The expected sweet taste of flesh and blood did not come. Instead, it felt like he had bitten into a tough piece of rubber, or an invisible force field, without any taste.

But he still twisted his head violently, and his sharp dragon teeth tore a large chunk of flesh and skin off the giant bear's shoulder, which he then swallowed with a tilt of his neck.

The next moment, a pale blue essence flashed before my eyes again, adding a notification.

The missing piece on the giant bear's body healed and disappeared instantly with just a flash of light, as if it had never been injured at all.

However, Thor's keen eyesight allowed him to notice that the giant bear's body seemed to have shrunk imperceptibly by one point.

"I thought it had really gotten bigger, but it turns out it's just an inflatable pillow."

Having figured this out, Thor couldn't help but smirk, only to be met with a ferocious kick from the giant bear.

The right leg, as thick as a pillar, kicked him hard in the abdomen, instantly denting the crimson scales. His massive body was also forced backward, leaving two deep dents in the ground.

However, this level of attack was not enough to cause any real damage to Thor; the intense pain only fueled his ferocity.

He slammed his upright forelimbs back to the ground, and his tail lashed out like a steel cable, striking the pursuing giant bear in the face.

With a loud "crack," like a clap of thunder, the faint light scattered from the giant bear's face and was absorbed into Thor's body.

Several more essences were added to his account. This situation, where every attack yielded something, made Thor feel as if he were facing not an enemy, but a moving human treasure trove.

This made his gaze towards the old bear-man become somewhat more affectionate, and his attacks became even more ruthless.

As a wise creature with a long lifespan, a true dragon is not like a wild beast that fights solely on instinct.

Over the long course of time and through generations of accumulation, the Dragon's Legacy contains not only various magical knowledge but also unique martial arts techniques.

Thor's Dragon Legacy includes a fighting style called "Destruction Torrent," which he has never studied in depth, but he has occasionally browsed through in his spare time.

As his claws, tail, wings, and head swung incessantly, almost every part of his body became a deadly weapon.

The flames swirling around it would cause continuous burns when they collided with the old bear-man's body, and combined with his thick scales, Thor was able to act recklessly without any defense.

As the two colossal beasts battled, the ground roared and trembled continuously. Houses that had miraculously survived the previous attacks were now completely destroyed, causing the beastmen hiding inside to flee in terror.

At this point, the old bear-man began to regret his previous decision.

If this freak doesn't like this camp, let him destroy it. Why does he have to jump out and stop him?

The beast spirits he had defeated in those previous attacks were equivalent to the efforts he had made over the past ten years, and the losses were still increasing.

Each time he is struck hard, a beast spirit within the old bear will dissipate and take the damage in his place.

With each beast spirit lost, the size and strength of the giant bear he transformed into decreased, making him even less of a match for Thor, thus causing the damage he suffered to deepen further.

This created a vicious cycle, like a snowball rolling downhill, leaving the old bear feeling miserable but unable to find a way out.

Ultimately, it was the limitation imposed by his bear-human origins. If he were a pure human and could inherit the holy spirits of the Wild Society, he would never be so frustrated as he is now.

Even if all else fails, if one had a few powerful magical weapons capable of piercing the red dragon's scales, the situation would be different.

…………

The tiger-man, who had been injured by Thor earlier, now saw the old bear-man's predicament.

The brief rest made him feel that his physical condition had recovered somewhat. A flash of scarlet appeared in his orange-yellow pupils, and he rushed forward without thinking.

He swung the giant sword, which was taller than a man, with one hand, and when he found an opportunity, he slashed at Thor. However, Thor did not dodge or avoid it and raised his claws to block it. Thor clenched his five fingers and held it tightly in his palm.

A trickle of scorching dragon blood slid down the blade, and under the burning flames enveloping his body, the blade that touched his palm quickly turned crimson.

The burning pain in his palm caused cold sweat to instantly break out on the tiger-man's forehead.

He resisted the urge to let go and pulled hard, only to find that the greatsword in his hand seemed to be welded to the red dragon's claws, and wouldn't budge.

“You lowly bastard, I haven’t even come looking for you yet, and you’ve delivered yourself to my door.”

"Since you're so eager to die, then I'll grant your wish!"

A thunderous roar echoed in his ears, startling the tiger-man. He looked up and met the red dragon's golden eyes.

Chapter Ninety-Seven: Another Draw

As Thor slammed down with his other forepaw, the surging magic within him instantly transformed into an invisible wave that gushed into the ground.

The fine stone tips, like blades of grass breaking through the soil, suddenly sprang up from under the tiger-man's body, instantly transforming into sharp spikes more than two meters long and as sharp as fangs.

Even though the tiger-man managed to twist his body with all his might at the critical moment and avoid most of the vital points, his legs, arms and other parts of his body were still pierced by the ground spikes.

Blood instantly stained the yellowish-brown spikes red. As the spikes dissipated into earth elemental light, the tiger-man's tall body fell heavily to the ground as if its bones had been removed.

It's quite something that a creature with a challenge level of only around ten managed to injure itself twice.

It's a pity he died young. If he had survived, that alone would have been enough for him to brag about for generations.

Thor turned his head with a ferocious grin, looking at the old bear-man rushing towards him from the other side. With a flick of his long tail, he grabbed the tiger-man by the neck and lifted him up.

"I never thought that bastards like you would value friendship. Could this guy be your illegitimate child?"

It's ridiculous that a bear would give birth to a wildcat.

Seeing the tiger-man's chest still rising and falling slightly ahead, the old bear-man who was rushing forward quickly stopped, fearing that Thor might strangle the tiger-man's spine if he was displeased.

At this point in the battle, the outcome was already clear. Although he still had the strength to fight, he was no match for the monster before him.

Seeing that all was lost and his companions had been captured, the old bear-man felt powerless and dejectedly lowered his head.

"You've won! Red Dragon! I wonder if you can spare our lives? I'm willing to exchange all my wealth for it."

Any act of conquest brings pleasure to the bloodline of the red dragon, and the old bear-man's show of weakness at this moment also makes Thor feel a surge of joy.

He exhaled a heavy breath, and two long plumes of thick smoke, streaked with sparks, hit the old bear-man, turning his golden-brown fur charcoal black.

"You're only trying to negotiate with me now? Don't you think it's too late? Even if I kill you all, all the wealth will still be mine."

The old bear-man calmly shook his head and spoke.

"The wealth I'm referring to isn't gold and jewels, but rather the spirits of these wild beasts that I've collected and nurtured for most of my life."

I can see you desperately need them. You may be able to kill me, but I can also return them to the wilderness before you can absorb them.

Thor abruptly lowered his head, staring at the old bear-man who had returned to his normal size. His golden pupils instantly shrank into dangerous slits.

"Damn old man, are you threatening me?"

A tremendous sense of oppression suddenly descended, and the old bear-man broke out in a cold sweat, fearing that the red dragon might go berserk and act recklessly. He quickly explained.

"No! No! I was just stating the pros and cons to try and save myself."

"If you spare us, I will immediately offer you all the spirits of the wild beasts, leave these mountains, and never be your enemy again."

Thor fell into deep thought after hearing this. He focused his attention on the huge roulette wheel in his mind and found that the essence balance below had reached 879 points.

If you can devour the remaining beast spirits on this old bear-man, you can immediately extract a mid-level monster template.

But this does not mean that he must be coerced by the other party. The so-called return to the embrace of the wilderness may not be as attractive as the pull of the wheel in his mind.

The reason he was deep in thought was that he was wondering whether the so-called spirit of the beast and the monster template he had extracted were the same thing.

After all, their outward appearances are so similar, except that the monster template is more purely magical.

But if there really is a connection between them, then the knowledge of the way of the wild in the old bear-man's mind is extremely important to him.

In that case, perhaps we could spare their lives?

"You think you can buy your lives with just this? That's not enough!"

"How about we try another suggestion? Kneel down and submit to me, swearing your allegiance to me for life. Only then will you have a chance to live."

Upon hearing this, the old bear felt a deep sense of shame welling up inside him, causing him to clench his fists and tremble slightly.

But looking at his companion hanging in front of him, coupled with his own strong desire to survive, his lips twitched, but he couldn't utter any words of refusal.

"Yes! Great Dragon Lord, Brug hereby swears to the spirits of the wilderness, for all eternity..."

The humiliating voice echoed in the air, and Thor could sense that among the many realms that constitute this world, there seemed to be a subtle ripple.

This made him even happier, and with a flick of his tail, he tossed the half-dead tiger-man to the old bear-man.

"Now hand over all the beast spirits within you! Then go and gather the remaining beastmen in the camp. I want to see you with them assembled at the camp gate before sunrise tomorrow!"

The old bear-man carefully caught the flying tiger-man with both hands and nodded silently.

One by one, points of light began to flicker and emerge from his body, and upon closer inspection, one could even see the hazy animal silhouettes within them.

Upon gaining their freedom, these beast spirits emitted joyful fluctuations, eager to scatter and escape.

However, as Thor opened his mouth wide and inhaled sharply, the spinning wheel in his mind emitted a powerful suction force, instantly sucking them all into his mouth without leaving a trace.

Mental Essence +23.

Mental Essence +17.

Spiritual essence...

In the blink of an eye, his essence balance broke through the 1000 mark and continued to rise, eventually settling at 1214 points, a truly fruitful achievement.

Looking at the string of numbers, Thor felt a surge of joy. He glanced down at the old bear-man who seemed to have aged more than ten years in an instant, flapped his wings, and flew back to his den without looking back.

The rolling hills were left far behind, and soon the cave entrance on the cliff came into view.

After plunging into the lair, Thor first exchanged for a large amount of dragon crystals and various ores, which he then swallowed whole.

This is to ensure sufficient energy replenishment during the subsequent loading of monster templates, so that one no longer has to endure that burning, heart-wrenching hunger.

He then silently offered a few prayers to that old man Tiamat, hoping that He would grant him some good luck in the future.

With everything ready, Thor focused his attention back on the giant wheel in his mind, and a full 1000 points of essence transformed into a beam of starlight, crashing hard into the fourth wheel.

The light flickered like neon lights, finally settling on...

Chapter Ninety-Eight: The King of the Sky

The leaping light spots settled on the squares, where a simple sketch of a dragon with outstretched wings and head held high was clearly depicted. The rich, crimson paint flowed in the field of vision, looking like clusters of leaping flames burning brightly.

Thor recognized it at a glance; it was Rathalos, the king of the skies from Monster Hunter World.

While this race may not be the strongest in the Monster Hunter world, it is definitely the most successful.

Their wide distribution, high reproductive survival rate, generally strong adult form, and numerous extremely powerful subspecies all contribute to their important place in the entire ecosystem.

If there is any monster that has the highest compatibility with the red dragon, it must be the Rathalos and its subspecies.

Congratulations! You have obtained the [Rathalos] monster template. Do you want to withdraw immediately? Yes/No.

A flicker of joy crossed Thor's mind. He scrolled down to the very bottom of the prompt and, sure enough, saw the match rate—an unprecedented 90%.

He immediately chose to withdraw the money, and the air in front of him began to ripple violently like water. A ball of light containing the essence of the male fire dragon appeared.

The monster looked down at Thor, who was lying on the stone platform, and then let out a silent roar. With a sudden twitch of its wings, it charged straight down at Thor.

The fierce aura seemed to be about to devour him, but Thor paid no attention and let the ball of light crash straight into his body.

In the next instant, a powerful surge of heat erupted from his body, as if the red dragon bloodline within him was roaring with excitement, and his body temperature began to rise rapidly, like surging magma flowing through his limbs and bones.

Both are fire-elemental creatures, and fire dragons are monsters with extremely high adaptability and are very prone to benign mutations.

The abilities of the two began to complement each other, causing the purification process of Thor's bloodline to accelerate dramatically.

The fusion with the Rathalos monster template was successful. The abilities such as [Tough Scales], [Sharp Fangs], and [Powerful Claws] were too low compared to the original version and have been converted into pure life force.

The [Flame Bag] has been retained.

[Venomous Claws] has been retained.

[Rapid self-healing] has been retained.

[Strong and durable wing muscles] have been retained.

Legendary king of the sky, its hind claws contain deadly poison, allowing it to fly continuously for days without sleep. It can spew out ever-changing high-temperature flames from its mouth, which can burn the throat but heal instantly.

Thor began to feel a sore and swollen sensation coming from the thick wing roots on his back. His entire throat and upper stomach, which was used to store and gather magic power, felt numb and itchy. The sweat glands on his four feet felt like they were being pricked by countless fine needles.

As time went on, the fire element in the surrounding environment surged and gathered more and more fiercely. In a certain instant, with a "whoosh", flames suddenly burst into flames on his head, wings, chest, tail tip and limbs.