Bear School Astartes

”But you gained something as well.”

Lann nudged the Flame Princess Dragon’s horn crown lying on the ground with his toe.

”You lost a pair of Ice Attribute Dual Blades, but with these materials, you can make another pair of fire attribute ones, and at Ancient Dragon Level, no less.”

”It’s not that easy.” Wende shook his head, letting Gaffi, who was climbing up and down on him, take off his helmet.

”Ancient Dragon Level weapons need to be like your Greatsword. Besides the regular body materials of an Ancient Dragon, you at least need a corresponding Ancient Dragon Jade to truly be at that level.”

”Otherwise, my Ice Chain Sword wouldn’t have any Ancient Dragon’s Blood inside.”

With the departure of the two Sun Flame Dragons, the temperature of the entire second arena dropped slowly, but at least it wasn’t rising anymore.

The Hunters and the Elu Cats’ ’Cold Drinks’ were more than enough to handle it.

So, except for Wende, who was injured in the hand, Gaffi, Rong Buqiu, and Lann roamed around the arena for a little while.

They collected some mane and scale powder shed by the Flame King Dragon and Flame Princess Dragon during their fight.

These two Sun Flame Dragons not only looked like big cats with wings but fought almost like them too.

When the fight got a bit intense, they made a mess of fur all over the place.

There wasn’t enough mane to make equipment with, and the quality wasn’t good either.

However, it could be handed to the Ecological Research Institute as research material for archiving.

Even though the Extinct Dragon had a claw half-eaten by the Flame Princess Dragon here, after it became stronger and its body spikes turned blackened and steel-like, these spikes seemed harder to fall off.

So on the scene, there was only a small pool of Ancient Dragon blood left from where half a claw had been torn away.

Gaffi lay next to that pool of Ancient Dragon blood, digging through the blood-soaked soil while seemingly teaching Rong Buqiu how to handle the hunting scene more efficiently.

The two little cats meowed to each other.

Meanwhile, Lann walked up to a patch of still-burning blue-purple flames.

This was the spot where the Flame Princess Dragon had pressed her claw before leaving.

Even an inadvertent touch could leave flames burning on the rock without any combustibles, making the ground at the flame’s center glow and soften.

The embedded, tenacious nature of the Flame of the Flame Empress Dragon was indeed terrifyingly destructive.

Perhaps just passing by could create a terrifying, long-lasting burning trail on the earth.

Of course, within the Sun Flame Dragon’s species, this trait was completely harmless.

They probably found mere high temperatures less effective than a direct physical slap with their bodies.

Who knows why the Flame King Dragon was so intimidated by the Flame Princess Dragon.

Maybe that’s just how couples are.

Lann mused, letting his thoughts wander.

In his hand, he gripped the hilt of the heavy Muddy Stream·Destruction, while the broad sword blade and tip plunged with a ’sizzle’ into the softened ground amidst the blue-purple flames.

The massive weapon, over three meters long, was angled into the flames, with the hilt still remaining in Lann’s grip.

From his hand, the leather between the sword hilt and the inner side of his gauntlet emitted a ’creaking’ sound, a squeezing noise that made one’s teeth ache.

Eventually, the thick sword hilt seemed to shatter, cracking open, revealing a deep glow of fire within those cracks.

Like flowing lava.

Combat Skill: Residual Fire!

Residual Fire, the slight remnants left by the Ember Kings who inherited the Primordial Fire of the Flame World, is instinctively inclined to burn everything and sustain itself, even as residue.

Unlike when dealing with the Profound Saint Elderidge, where it would spread across the entire sword body, this time, the fissures were limited to the hilt, near Lann’s palm.

The blue-purple flames left by the Flame Princess Dragon were siphoned in a spiral around the broad blade of the Muddy Stream·Destruction, growing smaller and smaller.

Lann only drew out the Greatsword after the last hint of blue-purple fire had vanished.

His hand, covered with the dragon-scale leather gloves, stroked the darkened sword body, emitting a pleasant and soothing friction between the leather and steel.

By using Combat Skill: Residual Fire, he drew a bit of the flame, no longer controlled by the Flame Princess Dragon, into the Muddy Stream·Destruction for storage.

While the storage time wouldn’t be long, as the Residual Fire would ultimately burn this flame clean,

this ’storage time’ was more than enough for Lann to observe and understand this type of flame, eventually incorporating it into the Curse Fire.

The Flame King Dragon’s flames primarily exhibit high temperatures and explosive combustion characteristics, which hold little meaning for Lann.

After all, when it comes to pure physical impact, the Dragon Flame, obtained from Smaug and already absorbed, is far more potent.

Yet the Flame Princess Dragon’s embedded, immensely adhesive flames were much more intriguing to him.

On several patches of land burning with blue-purple flames, Lann consistently used Muddy Stream·Destruction to keep these fire samples for his studies.

Once the fire sites left by the Flame Princess Dragon were thoroughly cleared, the Elu Cats also nearly completed their material collection.

Gaffi and Rong Buqiu, the two Elu Cats, lifted the broken crown horn of the Flame Princess Dragon and waved towards the Hunters, signaling the withdrawal.

With the help of the Great Healing Potion, Wende’s hand recovered quickly, though the flesh and skin inside the gauntlet was probably still stuck to the burned gloves, making it only slightly movable.

He finally didn’t have to hold the Ice Chain Sword that had melted into two iron rods.

As they walked out of the transit base, the two Hunters and two Elu Cats looked back.

The cylindrical mountain didn’t resemble a volcano about to erupt, no longer spewing out hot, blurred air and sparks.

The overall situation has calmed down.

-----------------

”Did your hand get burned inside there?” Aibo was organizing supplies for Wende, and though a bit serious, he spoke without tension. ”Then you’ll have a tough time the next couple of days.”

It was evident that such injuries weren’t a big deal for the New Continent Expedition Team.

”It’s just a matter of two days,” Wende shrugged. ”It’ll heal quickly.”

In fact, if the burn hadn’t been inside the gauntlet, after drinking a [Mega Healing Potion], Wende might have been able to use the burned area normally by the end of the day.

The Flame of the Flame Empress Dragon was particularly unfriendly to wound recovery.

”Let’s rest here until you can move freely, it’s only a couple of days anyway.”

The Dragon-man Race scholar in charge of the camp clapped his hands as he spoke.

”There’s no problem with resting to heal.” Aibo clasped the strap slung across his chest, slightly frowning, ”But your space here is already limited, we’d better move a little further to find another camp.”

”No, no need, we’re about to leave too.” The Dragon-man Race scholar continued clapping, clearly signaling to the camp’s people.

He smiled with a bit of excitement.

”We need to quickly evaluate the losses at the ruins, to expedite the swift rebuilding of the transit base, and those traces of the three fighting ancient dragons in the second arena... Ah! I’m getting excited!”

Not only him, but the original members of the former transit base lounging in this small camp, were now eager to start working.

People who crossed the seas to this world and stayed in the New Continent for decades wouldn’t stay unless they truly loved this slice of nature.

So Aibo wasn’t very surprised, he just playfully helped them move items, watching them head back to the fire-ravaged ruins in the valley.

Lann and the others rested at the camp until the next day, and by then Wende’s hand could already be taken out of the gauntlet.

So, they set off today to return to the Star Base on the edge of the Ancient Tree Forest.

When Lann patted Qilin’s carefree face, munching on a Great Ant Mound Wasteland cactus, he felt a sense of relief.

He was thankful for having kept it afar yesterday.

Otherwise, with the original chaos of three Ancient Dragons clashing, who knew what would happen if another Qilin popped in?

Whether the Extinct Dragon left or not, the Flame King Dragon and the Flame Empress Dragon certainly wouldn’t separate.

By then, the hill where the transit base was located might truly become a lake of magma, a volcano crater.

Lann had considered using the transformative [Yakxi Rune] to see if he could negotiate with the Ancient Dragons.

But that was merely an impractical thought.

Originally, he could talk with Qilin because of the hothead Golden Lion, who provoked both of them, leading to their first cooperation.

Subsequently, with a foundation of collaboration and trust, Qilin, itself seeking growth and experience from Lann, came on its own accord, and they eventually became friends.

And now, to have Lann converse with other Ancient Dragons...

Though the Ancient Dragons are wiser than the average human, for one, they don’t regard any creature outside themselves too highly.

Secondly, besides the young Ancient Dragon Qilin, who hasn’t even been born for a decade, those adult Ancient Dragons that have lived long in the wild think too differently from humans.

If humans struggle to persuade each other, how could they persuade Ancient Dragons?

When the message ”you need to leave” reaches their mind, in their perception, they are already being challenged over territory.

What else is there to say but start a fight?

Thus, Lann didn’t want to exert himself on that. If they had to fight, they’d fight directly.

With the help of the flying wyvern and Qilin, they soon returned to the Star Base and personally reported the mission results to the Commander-in-Chief.

Only until now, did the issues of the transit base seem satisfactorily resolved.

”Not only the Flame King Dragon, there’s even a Flame Empress Dragon in heat and an Extinct Dragon getting involved...”

The Commander-in-Chief rubbed the white beard on his black face with two fingers, contemplating.

At the same time, he glanced behind him. The Sword Master sitting on the chair was visibly stirred upon hearing the news about the Flame King Dragon and the Flame Empress Dragon.

But in the end, he could only suppress it.

The Star Base must always have a Hunter on standby who can handle Ancient Dragons to ensure basic safety on this New Continent.

Hence, if Lann hadn’t arrived for this mission, Wende would have had to go alone, leaving the Sword Master at the Star Base.

This was considering the Sword Master’s age, albeit with crucial skills and experience retained, he could best ensure both his combat effectiveness and the base’s security by staying sedentary.

It did somewhat suppress his Hunter’s spirit, though.

Yet Lann didn’t feel any sentimentality towards the Sword Master.

After all, when Wende rested, the Sword Master could move freely.

He seemed rather determined regarding the investigation and hunts concerning the Sun Flame Dragon type Ancient Dragons, so opportunities would undoubtedly arise in the future.

On the other hand...

”There are still some issues I think I should clarify.”

On the bridge, acting as commander, Lann spoke seriously to the Commander-in-Chief.

”Do you remember the blue light points I mentioned the last time I left?”

”I recall.” The Commander-in-Chief frowned seriously, ”You said those normally invisible points of light seemed to be indicating something. What’s wrong? Did you see them again?”

”Not only did I see them,” Lann raised his eyes, ”there are more of them now.”