Beneath the Red Dragon

Chapter 22: Chapter 21: Antajena-brand Voice Tube

The sun rose, heralding a new day. This once unnamed mountain range might have had travelers passing by who casually named it, but the Giant Dragons were unaware of this, and they did not care. They arrived here, and thus it became the Dragon Nest Mountain Range.

Since the arrival of the Giant Dragons, this mountain range had long become a forbidden zone for all nearby creatures, even the birds in the sky dared not fly over it.

But today it suddenly became very lively. The valleys where the Juvenile Dragons’ nest was located had turned into a construction site. Black Dragon Rosani, White Dragon Gomot, and Camid were expanding this now somewhat narrow valley, which reached nearly a kilometer high and several kilometers wide. Once expanded, it would become the exclusive Dragon Nest for the juvenile dragons within this Giant Dragon Race.

The three dragons only needed to open up one side of the cliff. They clung to the same side of the several hundred meters high cliff, their hard and sharp Dragon Claws digging deep into the stone wall, carving the stone wall into neatly shaped blocks. Large portions of rock kept falling from one side of the cliff to the ground.

While the three dragons rested, many Dogman’s Beloved who had been waiting for a long time would push carts made from large logs cut from the forest, transporting these stone blocks to the settlement area in the forest outlined for the Dogman Tribe by Karon. These stones would be used to construct the Dogman dwellings and low walls.

Another group of Kobolds used carts to transport refined gold and silver ores along with many gemstones into what was originally Karon’s cave. Now, Karon’s body felt cramped in this deep mountain cave. He only needed to remove the stone wall used as a screen, but he thought his cave was perfect as a Treasure Vault.

His cave had been specially renovated by the Red Dragon, the high and spacious cave walls had been melted by the Red Dragon’s flame into smooth, marble-like walls, and the flat ground was even firmer than that compacted by a steamroller, with melted crystals forming a smooth, glossy surface that could serve as a mirror.

The stone wall originally serving as a screen could effectively block the view; just install a door at the entrance of the cave, and it would become a relatively simple Treasure Vault. As for security, if the treasure trove surrounded by the Dragon Nest ever became insecure, it would mean the Dragon Group had lost its ability to resist.

It must be said that the accumulated treasures by the Dogman Tribe over countless years surpassed Karon’s imagination. Due to time constraints, many treasures in the Dogman Tribe’s underground vault were not moved at the time. Now they were being transported one cart at a time into the Treasure Vault, piling up into small mountains in the vast deep cave.

Kleyna and Blue Dragon Doss, tasked with protecting the relocation and transportation team of the Dogman Tribe, watched the enormous treasure pass under their eyes, somewhat regretting not asking Karon for more treasures in the beginning. The greed of the Giant Dragon knew no bounds, but the two dragons merely pondered it in their minds, recalling the crippled Akzhi, and dared not think further.

The forest was no longer silent as before. Nearly a thousand Kobolds were divided into three groups; not only did they labor hard, but more than three hundred remained to construct the tribe’s future dwelling camp near the riverbank. As the Beloved of the Dragon Group, the once weak Kobolds who could only dig cave communities underground now had the qualification to occupy a piece of land on the surface.

The age-old giant trees of the forest were cut down one by one. The giant trees, averaging tens of meters in circumference and embraced by several people, appeared especially tough against the simple tools of the Kobolds. Fortunately, one giant tree could be used to build several simple dwellings for the short-statured Kobolds.

Many strong Dogman Warriors used roughly crafted iron and copper axes, along with quite a few stone axes, to cut the fallen giant trees into planks and cylinders, constructing one short wooden house after another under the leadership of the Dogman Sorcerers and chiefs.

Karon and Green Dragon Antajena squatted on the clearing cut out in the forest, watching the busy Kobold camp, getting a sense of well-ordered territorial development.

Green Dragon Antajena would choose to build a nest in the forest in the future; this was the natural preference of Green Dragons. Therefore, Karon planned to let Green Dragon Antajena supervise the Kobold camp.

But Green Dragon Antajena clearly did not understand why Karon valued the Dogman Tribe so much. In the eyes of the Giant Dragons, the weak Kobolds were actually dispensable Beloved, with no strong combat power. The Dogman Sorcerers’ feeble strength could only tickle the Giant Dragons.

Seduced by sloth, Antajena tilted her head to look at the distracted Karon, posing her question. ”Karon, why bother with these weak Kobolds? Although they have excellent mining skills, Dragons only need to collect regularly. There is no need to waste time and effort managing these weak Kobolds.”

Although Karon was already the actual leader of the current Dragon Group, the Young King of the Giant Dragon Race, he did not deliberately put on a dignified air, acting as usual, so the Juvenile Dragons spoke frankly to him.

Of course, Karon would not tell the truth to the Green Dragon, that he valued the Kobolds because they could accumulate energy for him, and he needed to settle them quickly to make them truly submit to him to gain more Power of Thought.

So, Karon thought for a moment, then crafted a reason and explained: ”The Dogman Tribe is simply our first group of Beloved. As the Juvenile Dragons grow over time, more Beloved will be taken in the future. If we show our friendly attitude towards Beloved from now on, it will be much easier to accept other Beloved later, reducing unnecessary battles.”

”Moreover, stable order will allow the Beloved to create more wealth and profit for us. Look at those human nations; the more powerful and wealthy countries place more importance on stable order. Only when life and livelihood are guaranteed will members within the territory focus on creating wealth. In this way, the Dragon Group will become richer.”

Karon discreetly drew a grand vision beside the Green Dragon, ”Moreover, if weak humans can establish nations, why can’t more powerful Giant Dragons have civilization, have their own empire? These Beloved are our wealth; we should value them as we cherish our wealth.”

This grand vision obviously enticed the Green Dragon, Antajena’s emerald pupils gleaming with green light as she gazed at the Red Dragon beside her, her tone growing enthusiastic, ”Do you have such distant goals, Karon, you’re indeed the strongest and smartest Giant Dragon in the Dragon Group.”

”Why not?” The Red Dragon’s tone turned enticing, waving his Dragon Claw at the land beneath and saying: ”Look at the leaf-covered land at your feet, the most fertile humus soil, the most ideal for planting in the world, favored by the Goddess of Harvest. This will be the farmland that sustains the Dragon Group, and this farm is vast and boundless.”

”And that climate-pleasant, lush, and fertile grassland, teeming with countless running beasts, will be the pasture of the Dragon Group. This pasture, endless and boundless. We only need to take in more Beloved to manage the territory, which will become the cradle of civilization, the cradle of wealth.”

The young female dragon Antajena inhaled deeply, engrossed in Karon’s description of the future vision, completely ignoring the powerful monsters and tribes living around the Dragon Group Territory, many of which even Young Dragon Carlette dared not provoke. Perhaps because time always stood with the Giant Dragons, Karon naturally ignored them too.

Karon’s words were not entirely empty; he did have such intentions, especially now that his enhanced energy sources were also tied to the submissiveness of Beloved, which was also a motivating factor for him.

Moreover, a Green Dragon who loves to manipulate hearts and is adept at implying might quietly spread his words within the Dragon Group, and the Giant Dragon Race would gradually share the same goals and actions, greatly aiding the cohesion of the Giant Dragons, encouraging a more unified Dragon Group with shared objectives and demands, which was Karon’s aim.

Karon knew full well that only with solid foundations under his control, he could handle many unforeseeable surprises and dangers in the future. After all, fame is as risky for dragons as it is for fat pigs; once he embarked on this path of seeking strength, it would inevitably be a journey of continuous conquest.

”Hmm?” Karon felt something and turned his head, his dragon eyes darting everywhere. Just moments ago, he felt the sensation of being watched, but after scanning around, he found nothing, so he shook his head, dismissing it.

Such an experience in the forest was not surprising, perhaps just some animal passing by, curious enough to take a glance. If only Riven were here, she was an elf of the forest, with a larger sensory range than the still juvenile Green Dragon Antajena. Looking at the silent Green Dragon, Karon couldn’t help but feel that it was livelier when Riven was around.