Translator: AnubisTL
The Sierre Wilderness lies on the border of the Atlantis Continent, bordered to the north by the Permafrost Tundra, to the south by the Lothurn Federation, and to the east and west by the Rust Mountains and the Boiling Sea, respectively.
Dense forests, towering mountains, and crystal-clear lakes can all be found within the Sierre Wilderness.
However,
In the eternally hot and arid Sierre Wilderness, sulfurous fissures, rugged hills, and abandoned mine shafts are far more common. The earth here is rich in magical metal ore, a resource that once led the nations to wage brutal wars over its control.
Approximately eight hundred years ago,
The southern nations engaged in ceaseless warfare over the Sierre Wilderness, causing widespread devastation, frequent natural disasters, and making survival difficult for many intelligent species, their cries of anguish echoing across the land.
Until a human king arose, a master of strategy, magic, and statecraft.
He led his legions to sweep across the southern nations, forcing them to sign a peace treaty. Under the leadership of his kingdom, Lothurn, he established the Lothurn Federation. Though not as powerful as an empire, the Federation far surpassed ordinary kingdoms in strength.
With this, the Sierre Wilderness War of Conquest finally came to an end.
Under the leadership of the Kingdom of Lothurn, the southern nations divided the Sierre Wilderness among themselves through negotiation and division. After centuries of mining and excavation, the wilderness's mineral resources were far less abundant than before. Many veins had been depleted, greatly diminishing its importance in the eyes of the nations.
However...
Even now, some unmined veins remained in the Sierre Wilderness. These areas were often guarded by outposts and strongholds of the various nations, complete with stationed armies.
"I can't get close to any Lothurn Federation outposts."
"If I went, I'd just be handing them magic materials. They'd immediately be broken down to craft all sorts of magical artifacts, or I'd be enslaved and imprisoned, living a life of utter misery."
Amidst the drifting clouds and winds above the wilderness, Garos gazed westward toward a large Fire Marrow Stone Mine occupied by a Lothurn Federation outpost.
The iron dragon maid had long coveted this Fire Marrow Stone Mine, her heart filled with longing.
Iron dragons are not purely fire-type, but their attributes are still related to fire. If an iron dragon were to consume a large quantity of Fire Marrow Stones, its growth rate could be greatly accelerated.
However, even an adult giant dragon like the iron dragon maid could only watch enviously, daring not to act rashly.
The Lothurn Federation is home to numerous Legendary powerhouses, any one of whom could strip the iron dragon maid bare.
Legendary status is a life level above biological level 20, representing a leap and sublimation. Level 20 is the dividing line between the mundane and the Legendary.
If dragonkind avoid premature death, they are destined to become Legendary—the only question is when.
For humans, Legendary powerhouses are one in ten thousand. Only those with exceptional talent can achieve this status, but due to humanity's vast population, the total number of Legendaries remains significant.
On the planet Bernardo, humans are the race with the most Legendary powerhouses.
Dragons, giants, elves, and other races have fewer Legendaries than humans. However, when facing a human Legendary in a one-on-one battle at the same level, the latter would be committing suicide.
"Fire Marrow Stone Mines. There are many such veins in the Sierre Wilderness."
Garos thought to himself.
The ores in the iron dragon maid's Heavenly Pit Territory were scattered and fragmented, far from qualifying as true veins. Moreover, they were impure and riddled with impurities.
Even so,
Garos could clearly feel the abundant energy contained within the ores as he consumed them, which significantly promoted the growth and development of his scales, claws, fangs, and bones.
"Unfortunately, all known veins, regardless of size, already have owners."
"Even the iron dragon maid couldn't claim a vein. For now, I can only fantasize about it and focus on what's at hand. I should first hone my combat skills."
With the Heavenly Pit Territory as his center, Garos circled the skies above, scanning for targets.
Time passed slowly. The sun began to slant westward, but its glare remained blinding, radiating scorching heat across the entire Sierre Wilderness.
Deep pits and collapsed areas dotted the landscape, particularly around abandoned mine shafts.
Three gray hyenas padded slowly along the edges of a pit, their limbs moving in a cross-legged gait. Their ears stood tall, and their eyes darted warily in all directions.
After finding no other creatures nearby, the gray hyenas lowered their heads to lick the salt crystals seeping from the rock crevices.
These beasts, covered in heat-resistant spines, were absorbing the salt their bodies needed.
But they didn't know...
A cruel and cunning predator had set its sights on them.
The Rock-Crushing Worm—a creature that favored abandoned mines and normally fed on slag and metal.
It resembled a worm covered in a black chitinous shell, nearly twenty meters long and as thick as a barrel. Inside its mouth, rows of spiraling teeth could effortlessly crush rock into powder like a stone grinder, and tearing through flesh was child's play.
The patterns on its shell blended perfectly with the surrounding rock fissures.
As the Rock-Crushing Worm's shell scraped against the rock walls, seismic waves traveled through the rock layers, sensing movement within a kilometer radius. It detected the presence of the gray hyenas.
It burrowed through the earth, slowly closing in on its prey.
Soil and rock parted before it like tofu, and the ground above bulged slightly, leaving a long trail.
One minute later.
The gray hyenas had nearly finished licking and were preparing to leave.
The strongest gray hyena suddenly turned its head, noticing the rapidly rising and approaching earth disturbance. Instinctively, it sensed danger.
Awooo!
It let out a warning roar to alert its companions and leaped sideways.
Too late.
The Rock-Crushing Worm's tail suddenly thrust upward, shattering the rock and earth like brittle crackers.
Its colossal body erupted from the ground, its shadow engulfing the surface rocks as it lunged with lightning speed, its jaws snapping shut.
Grind!
Its rock-grinding mouth clamped onto two gray hyenas. The rotating spiral fangs within instantly shredded their fur and bones, swallowing them whole amidst a mist of blood.
The remaining strongest hyena whimpered and fled without hesitation.
The Rock-Crushing Worm raised half its body, spraying a web of acidic liquid from its mouth in an umbrella-like arc. The liquid landed on the fleeing hyena, instantly dissolving its fur and flesh with a hissing sound.
The worm slowly crawled to the hyena's side and swallowed it whole into its abyss-like maw.
It had consumed three gray hyenas in quick succession.
Instead of burrowing back underground, the Rock-Crushing Worm crawled onto a flat rock and lazily basked in the sun.
These creatures primarily lived underground.
But they occasionally surfaced to let sunlight stimulate their carapaces, shedding damaged sections and growing new, harder shells.
Under the sun's rays, the Rock-Crushing Worm lazily rolled over.
Unfortunately for it, it didn't know...
...that a crueler, more cunning predator had its eyes on it.
(End of the Chapter)
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