The cavern trembled faintly.
Not violently… not like an earthquake.
But like something ancient had **stirred** beneath the earth.
John slowly opened his massive draconic eyes.
Golden pupils narrowed.
The glowing veins of mana inside the cave walls pulsed softly, lighting the underground chamber in shifting shades of blue and violet.
For a moment, he remained completely still.
Listening.
Feeling.
His senses had grown terrifyingly sharp over time.
Every vibration through the stone.
Every shift in air pressure.
Every flow of mana.
Nothing escaped him now.
Yet the tremor he felt just moments ago…
…was different.
Not natural.
Not random.
It felt like something had **awakened**.
John exhaled slowly, releasing a thin stream of black smoke from his nostrils.
"Something changed…"
His deep draconic voice echoed quietly inside the cavern.
His enormous body shifted slightly as he raised his head.
Since his last evolution, his body had grown again.
