Red Dragon Monster Hunter Template.

The gray dwarf priest only saw a flash of red before his eyes, followed by a wave of scorching heat. A ferocious claw grew larger and larger before him, eventually squeezing him into its palm.

The oppressive feeling coming from all directions made him feel like his bones were groaning. The high-temperature flames ignited his robe. Just as he was about to beg for mercy, Thor squeezed him hard.

With a "smack," Thor felt as if he had crushed a plump tomato, its bright red juice splattering all over his claws.

He casually tossed the gray dwarf priest's corpse forward, flicked the blood off his forepaws, and a burst of orange and blue flames swept over, instantly turning the scales on his claws crimson and shiny, without a trace of blood.

This sudden turn of events left many of the gray dwarves stunned, unsure whether to continue their resistance.

Thor stared at the terrified, ashen faces, a sinister grin spreading across his face. He growled again, asking:

"Now, can anyone tell me why you're on my territory? Remember to tell the truth, or this will be the consequence of any trickery you try!"

But after he finished speaking, there was no response for a long time. The previous gray dwarf priest was a cautionary tale, so who would dare to speak casually?

The red dragon blood flowing through his body made Thor impatient to wait any longer; a few seconds later, his eyes narrowed dangerously.

"I'll count to three. If no one answers by then, you're all dead!"

Chapter 116 The Heart of the Mountains

Around 5,700 years ago, a group of grey dwarf slave hunters, led by grey dwarf land seekers, accidentally discovered a rift leading to the surface world.

They followed the crack to the surface, where they found themselves in a desolate wilderness, but fortunately, there were rolling hills in the distance. Upon exploration, they were pleasantly surprised to discover that the area was exceptionally rich in mineral deposits.

In the course of their continuous excavation and mining, they also built a magnificent underground city on this land. Until one day, they discovered a peculiar gem—the Heart of the Mountains.

This is a product formed from a large amount of earth elemental magical energy, and according to legend, it was formed from the blood flowing from the Earth Mother Goddess.

Its immense energy can even gradually petrify surrounding objects; and its dazzling appearance has earned it the reputation as one of the most beautiful substances in the world.

These grey-skinned dwarves were just as obsessed with mineral treasures as the real dragons.

After discovering the Heart of the Mountains, they immediately set out to dig it out at all costs, and even built a huge plaza around the place where it was discovered.

However, when the pickaxe fell and the hard stone shell was chipped away bit by bit, what was revealed to all the gray dwarves was not a dazzling gem, but a terrifying curse.

Many of the weaker members died instantly, and even some of the more advanced professionals could only hold on for a few more minutes.

The entire underground city was thus turned into a dead zone. Only a few lucky ones managed to escape, but they never dared to return and fled into the Underdark without looking back.

…………

These were the stories Thor heard from these grey dwarves. He couldn't tell how much of it was true and how much was false.

But at the very least, the stone tablet's bizarre petrification ability and its invisible mental attacks are basically consistent with the story's description.

In other words, this was yet another disaster caused by these greedy dwarves digging and plundering recklessly. They really don't learn their lesson; even though they almost brought about the extermination of their race, they still can't change their habits.

Thor exhaled two plumes of mocking smoke from his nostrils, his molten gold pupils surveying the remaining gray dwarves before him, and he growled again.

"I never imagined that your ancestors, the ancestors of these insects, had such rich experiences. What a show! It added some fun to my boring afternoon."

So here's the question: knowing that the underground city is shrouded in a terrifying curse, what gave you the courage to return?

A scorching wind, accompanied by a low growl, swept over them, and every gray dwarf staring at those eyes that seemed to churn with lava felt their legs tremble.

A gray dwarf fire mage, dressed in a robe with many pockets, his hair tied in numerous braids, and a thick belt adorned with various bottles and jars, stepped forward with a stiff upper lip and answered.

"This is knowledge passed down from our ancestors. We don't know if there's a curse on that underground city. But our race is facing extinction, so the only way to survive is to try and acquire the treasures and magical weapons inside..."

Thor, with his sharp mind, immediately noticed the inconsistencies in his answer.

If it weren't for me, these gray dwarves wouldn't have faced the crisis of extinction. But before that, they had already tried to enter the abandoned dungeon.

In other words, besides themselves, there were other dangers constantly pursuing them. Could it be the drow elves, or the beholders, that drove them out of the Underdark and relentlessly pursued them?

It couldn't possibly be one of those mind flayers that haven't appeared on the surface for a long time, could it?

No wonder these dwarfs knelt down so quickly; they were a pack of stray dogs being chased.

Seeing that Thor was lost in thought and did not respond, the gray dwarf fire mage spoke again cautiously.

“We can take you to the rift that leads to the Underdark. Once we blow it up, those drow elves will definitely not be able to get through.”

The humble voice brought Thor back to his senses, and he immediately shook his head upon hearing it.

Blow it up? Why blow it up? A passage to the Underdark is, in a way, a valuable treasure.

It is important to know that most rare gems and metals come from underground, where all sorts of strange magical materials can grow in environments filled with energy radiation.

Light-based resources, fresh fruits and vegetables, practical tools, and luxury goods on the surface are also best-selling products in the Dark Region.

If you can make at least ten times the profit by selling goods from the human world to the wilderness, then you can make more than a hundred times the profit by selling the same goods to the Underdark.

However, there are certain hard requirements to do this business. If you're not strong enough, you might get swallowed up whole.

But once you have enough strength, this becomes a super gold mine that can make you rich every day.

Thor was undoubtedly very confident in his own strength, and he didn't even consider those lowly black bastards a threat.

By controlling this rift leading to the Underdark, he would have another channel to spread his fame and acquire more essences.

Even when one's strength is greater, venturing into that chaotic underworld oneself is not out of the question. The wails of those powerful and evil races at the moment of their death would surely be even more pleasing to the ear.

Thoughts raced through his mind, but Thor simply bared his white fangs at the grey dwarves and growled in a low voice.

"You don't need to worry about the crack. Just tell me its location, and I'll handle it."

According to your grey dwarf tradition, from this moment on, you are all my slaves!

Now, go south from here until you see a terraced field full of crops. Tell the creatures there my name, and someone will tell you what to do.

The gray dwarves, who thought they were doomed, were surprised to find themselves alive. They breathed a sigh of relief after surviving the ordeal.

Hundreds of people scrambled to pack their things, even discarding some less important luggage, for fear that if they were too slow, Thor would see it as rebellion.

After all, the previous gray dwarf priest served as a cautionary tale. He had lied, and even some of his own kind had been burned to ashes. Nobody wanted to repeat the same mistake.

Shortly after the gray dwarves left, Thor's black-feathered eagle flapped its wings and gave chase.

Controlling small creatures is indeed a very practical spell. Although it has no direct killing power, it is extremely useful for reconnaissance, tracking, and surveillance.

Who would notice a falcon soaring a thousand meters in the sky? After all, at that distance, they look like tiny black dots.

After dealing with the gray dwarves, Thor turned to look at the cave leading to the abandoned dungeon, his eyes showing great interest.

Earning only a dozen or so essence points a day is far too slow. The sealed, unknown creature was patient, but Thor lacked that patience.

Since the other party is not attacking him first, he has no choice but to take the initiative.

Chapter 117 Exploiting Freebies

Even now, Thor still doesn't know what the creature sealed in the abandoned dungeon looks like, or what it is.

He hadn't figured out how to provoke the other party. Should he bombard the stone tablet? Only a fool would do something like that.

Now that we know that the other party was likely sealed by a powerful being from long ago using the heavy earth elemental power of the Heart of the Mountains, the problem becomes simple: we just need to reinforce the seal a little.

For example, inject a little pure earth element magic into its seal.

…………

Once the grey dwarves, under the watchful eye of the black-feathered eagle, successfully reached Thor's territory in the middle of the mountains and reunited with his evil creatures, he severed his control over the black-feathered eagle and began searching for new creatures to use for casting spells.

With a flight speed far exceeding that of ordinary creatures, as long as Thor could control the blazing flames on his body, catching a few birds would be no difficult task for him.

He doesn't even need to physically approach these fragile creatures; he can simply get close and cast a spell to control them.

In no time at all, Thor successfully caught a bird with brownish-red feathers that looked like a large dove.

Speaking of which, this guy is one of the main prey of the Black Feather Eagle in the wild. After being controlled, it stared at Thor with its round eyes, looking dumbfounded.

If it had encountered a gold or silver dragon, its silly appearance might have garnered its sympathy and allowed it to escape with its life.

Unfortunately, Thor was a red dragon. He tapped the wheel in his mind, and a piece of yellowish-brown earth crystal appeared out of thin air. He pried off a small piece and stuffed it into the silly goose's paw.

Then the reddish-brown dove took flight, slipped through the narrow crack, and soared above the ruins of the underground city.

It flew all the way to the towering stone monument, loosened its grip, and the shimmering fragment of earth crystal landed on the monument.

The pure earth elemental power, originating from the same source, caused the earth crystals to disappear the moment they came into contact with the stone tablet, just like snow falling on a lake.

Time seemed to stand still at this moment, and the flapping dove turned into an insect frozen in amber.

A massive spiritual force reverberated through the air. Even from a distance of over twenty kilometers, and with the body of a bird acting as an obstruction, Thor could clearly feel the intense anger.

It's been too long! It's been sealed for far too long! So long that time has become unrecognizable, so long that it's forgotten its own name. Now, just when a sliver of possibility for breaking the seal was seen, someone dared to come and reinforce it!

boom!!!

The next instant, the frozen air surged again, and the dove in the air exploded into a cloud of blood mist.

Thor felt as if he had heard a silent roar, and the entire mountain range in front of him seemed to tremble, but when he looked closely, everything returned to normal.

When he focused his attention on the area below, his eyes were immediately drawn to a light blue notification message.

Mental Essence +375, this is an unprecedented new high.

It seems my idea was right. A tiny fragment of earth crystal is just a drop in the ocean compared to the energy contained in the Heart of the Mountains.

However, it is an undeniable fact that it can indeed enhance the power of the Earth Mother Goddess's blood and make the seal more stable.

Faced with the rage of the sealed creature, Thor simply grinned, revealing a merciless sneer.

If a sealed creature could come out, it would have done so long ago. What good would it do to cause a huge commotion?

He immediately caught another bird, controlled it with magic, and made it grab a small piece of earth crystal and burrow into the narrow crack once more.

However, this time, as soon as Asuka appeared, an invisible mental shock came crashing down on her.

The bird in mid-air suddenly stiffened, and the tiny, shimmering gem on its claw plummeted straight down, smashing into a bloody pulp.

Another notification flashed by: Mental Essence +51.

It seems that the sealed creature has not lost its mind. After its rage, it quickly calmed down and did not squander its power.

Although Thor felt a little disappointed about this, having a few dozen points of essence was still much better than before.

Soon, he caught a third bird. This time, he didn't even need the earth crystal fragments. After the bird entered the crack, it went straight for the corpse of the previous bird.

Then, another mental attack came, this time with even less essence, only 38 points.

After three attempts, Thor stopped sending out birds.

There's a right and wrong way to fleece people. If you fleece them too much at once and they become exhausted and lying down, then you'll lose more than you gain.

After all, the greatest motivation for living things to persevere is the sight of hope.

An experiment was once conducted on rats and hope. A group of rats were thrown into a smooth bucket of water. Without any intervention, they would give up struggling in about fifteen minutes and eventually drown.

If you use a different batch of rats, rescue them after they have struggled for fourteen minutes, dry them off, give them food, let them rest, and then put them back into the water. Repeat this process several times.

When they were thrown into the water for the last time and not retrieved, they survived for more than fifty hours.

Therefore, if Thor keeps sending out birds, the sealed creature will, like the first batch of rats, feel unable to intercept them and eventually give up and abandon the struggle.

However, if it is sent out again after a period of time, it may feel that the number of birds that Thor can send out each day is limited, or that it needs time to recover from the mental shock it has received, thus creating a false hope.

This way, it will actively attack every time it sees a bird.

By the time it realizes that all its efforts have been in vain, it may have already been drained dry and completely lost its value.

…………

In Thor's view, sending three birds into the abandoned dungeon every day to fleece the sealed creature should be a reasonable number of times.

In this way, although the daily harvest of essence is not much, only about a hundred points, the advantage is that it is continuous and can be extracted continuously.

Before leaving, Thor risked returning to the cave leading to the abandoned underground city, moved several boulders around, and blocked the entrance with only a small crack.

In this way, small birds can enter, while keeping out some unsuspecting creatures.

Furthermore, with birds patrolling every day, it would be impossible for the sealed creature to be unsealed by other creatures.

Looking at the mental energy balance in his mind, which had exceeded five hundred, Thor felt that in a few more days, he should be able to draw another intermediate monster template.