Chapter 48 Abilities
Brian widened his Dragon's Eyes, gazing at the Illusory River, invisible to the naked eye and undetectable by Detect Magic.
He took a deep breath, the time-infused river water blending with the natural ice river water, seeping into his body in thin streams. This solitary inhalation absorbed more time-infused river water than the total of four or five previous breaths.
His connection with the River of Time had grown stronger with this growth.
‘The Acceleration State effect of Time Manipulation should have also enhanced.’
Brian didn't rush to leave the Dragon's Lair, silently exploring his newly acquired abilities.
Dragons don't immediately master new abilities upon waking from slumber. They needed time to understand their state and fully grasp their grown power.
In the Dragon's Lair, Brian eagerly embarked on a series of self-explorations.
He relished the journey of slowly uncovering the unknown, piece by piece, and discovering the truth.
A day later, the ice-covered river surface still saw relentless snowfall, accumulating on the ice. If the snowstorm continued, the snow would gradually turn into thicker, heavier ice.
Suddenly, the sound of rushing river water faintly echoed through the Ice Layer.
The hard ice layer appeared to have been struck by a heavy object, initially revealing dense cracks before shattering with a loud bang, sending ice and water splashing in all directions.
A majestic and powerful figure emerged, his dragon body exposed to the falling snow. Snowflakes swirled down onto Brian's scales but failed to cling, swiftly sliding off.
Despite the thick, swirling snowstorm, no snow accumulated on Brian's body.
He departed the Dragon's Lair not only because he had grasped his newfound abilities, but also for a rather straightforward reason.
He was hungry.
The slumber had consumed all his stored nutrients. After exploring his abilities and coming to his senses, Brian felt so hungry he could eat dirt.
Fortunately, he had instructed the Arctic Ice Spirits to catch and freeze four or five Giant Hoof Yaks for him to eat upon waking.
Normally, Brian wouldn't want to eat such stale meat. The taste and texture were poor, and even if frozen, nutrients would still be lost.
But now, he was too hungry to care.
With a surge of Dragon's Might and a majestic dragon roar, Brian commanded the Arctic Ice Spirits to bring the stored meat.
Upon witnessing Brian's transformed appearance, the Arctic Ice Spirits were taken aback, their eyes now filled with even greater reverence.
The reputation of True Dragons was legendary among all Intelligent Creatures, with numerous tales circulating, but the Arctic Ice Spirits had never encountered a True Dragon known for growing as swiftly as their Lord, particularly a White Dragon.
A powerful master was a cause for celebration among subordinates, especially those with dragon blood.
The strength and potential of Dragonline Creatures would flourish under their master.
The Arctic Ice Spirits couldn't contain their joy, expressing respect and admiration for Brian's progression.
"Great Lord, your wings shall span the entire extreme north Ice Field." "Your name will reverberate across Noah Continent, recognized by all.
...
Brian devoured the food voraciously while listening to the Arctic Ice Spirits' somewhat exaggerated praises.
Although it was a bit awkward, being praised so earnestly felt quite good.
After finishing the stored food, Brian looked at Roy and said in a deep voice, "Reassemble the Hunting Team and start hunting."
Roy nodded, happily replying, "As you command, great Lord."
The Arctic Ice Spirits remained unaffected by the snowstorm, in fact, their power only heightened in such conditions. While the Terror Lizards were less effective, the White Hounds proved to be adequate.
After a brief pause, Brian addressed Roy, saying, "Demonstrate your current strength. Show me how much you've progressed.
The strength gap among Arctic Ice Spirits wasn't large, allowing Roy to represent the others to some extent.
Roy nodded, his expression becoming serious.
In his mind, he might incur Brian's displeasure if he showed too weak a performance.
Not just any creature could qualify as a dragon's subordinate. With Brian's rapid growth, those who were too weak to even fulfill his basic needs might risk being cast aside.
Under Brian's tranquil gaze, Roy raised his arms and grasped his left arm with his right hand, pulling forcefully.
Roy tore off his left arm, which instantly transformed into a sharp Ice Crystal spear, emanating a chilling aura with a pointed tip.
As clusters of Ice Crystal sprouted from the severed left arm and rapidly regenerated, though appearing slightly pale in color and less hardened than other body parts, Roy seized the Ice Crystal spear and charged at Brian.
As he rushed forward, he swung the spear, manipulating the surrounding elemental forces to unleash a storm of ice needles, hundreds of them cascading down on Brian, with Roy in hot pursuit. Brian's eyes betrayed a hint of surprise.
He had not paid much attention to the Arctic Ice Spirits' strength fluctuations.
Witnessing Roy's formidable display, he realized that Roy had made significant progress from his previous feeble state, when he could only conjure ice daggers.
The ice needle storm shattered upon hitting Brian, leaving no marks.
At the same time, Roy shouted and raised his arm like a bow, thrusting the Ice Crystal Spear at Brian.
Brian extended a Dragon Claw to block the spear. With a sharp sound, the spearhead cracked but did not shatter.
Roy felt as though he had struck an iron wall, unable to penetrate no matter how hard he tried. The intense recoil caused dense cracks in his arm.
"Lord, this is my strongest attack," Roy declared.
Roy lowered the spear, his face slightly dim, nervously speaking to Brian.
Upon noticing a small white spot on his Dragon Claw scales, Brian thought back to the elemental fluctuations caused by the ice needle storm and estimated Roy's strength to be that of a lower-tier two-ring Mage.
Despite this, there was still room for improvement for the Arctic Ice Spirits. True intelligent elemental beings possessed the strength of at least a mid-tier Mage.
With their current progress, they may soon reach the threshold of elemental beings' strength.
"Not bad."
Brian neither praised nor blamed, leaving Roy guessing with a simple, indifferent comment.
This made the anxious Roy become tense, fearing the worst.
Brian thought for a moment and said to Roy, "Focus future hunting on Magical Creatures or medium to large beasts. I need higher-grade food."
Brian wasn't tired of the Giant Hoof Yak, a breed of cattle that were unfazed by snowstorms and had delicious, marbled meat that Brian savored.
But with his recent growth, ordinary beast meat couldn't provide enough nutrition.
He needed food with elemental energy in its blood to grow faster.
Roy quickly nodded, determined to prove his worth, and solemnly said, "Don’t worry, my Lord, your loyal subordinates will never let you down."
Brian nodded slightly, flapping his Dragon Wings and disappearing into the blizzard.
Although he had eaten, he was still hungry. He felt the urge to hunt Magical Creatures himself to satiate his increasing dragon appetite and put his newly acquired abilities to the test.
