Beneath the Red Dragon

Chapter 78: Chapter 32: Karon’s Magic

Karon’s body is now extremely massive, with wide wings stretching over twenty meters. Some low castles built by human nobility are only about this height.

When he soared high above the sky, it was as if a castle was flying. Due to the unique structure of his wings and body, different from ordinary Giant Dragons, his flying speed far surpassed that of other dragons.

When he flew at full speed, he could even break the sound barrier. The gusts inadvertently stirred by his wings in flight could blow over small, weak creatures like green-skinned goblins and kobolds.

However, full speed wasn’t necessary for hunting, as it consumed too much physical strength and Magic Power. Karon would simply glide leisurely at high altitudes, carefully searching for the prey he needed.

Those intelligent and communicative ferocious species were ignored by Karon. Although these creatures were strong and provided a lot of meat, they had already been incorporated into the defense system of the Dragon Nest and were considered allies.

Soon, he found his target: a lone male plains elephant.

This male elephant was over seven meters long, with a broken ivory stained yellow, and its body appeared somewhat unsteady. It was clearly a desolate loser from the summer competition for mating and leadership rights with other male elephants.

This creature grew with difficulty, requiring large amounts of grass to grow just a little meat.

If it weren’t for the fact that their numbers were too few to sustain the ecological balance of their territory, they would have long been hunted to extinction by these Giant Dragons.

However, this solitary male elephant was not within Karon’s protective range. Although it had a massive size, strength, and long ivory, if it were alone, it would be preyed upon by other carnivorous ferocious species on the plains.

Rather than letting it become food for other beasts, it was better to fill the belly of a Giant Dragon.

Karon skillfully maneuvered in the sky, diving down like an eagle pouncing on its prey, with sharp claws piercing deeply into the body of the male elephant, which hadn’t yet realized the danger, as it was using its trunk to curl up food.

Although the massive elephant’s weight was measured in tons, the Red Dragon’s strength lifted it with ease.

The dragon’s powerful four claws pierced through the giant elephant’s spine like iron hooks, lifting it like an eagle catching a rabbit, and flew towards his nest.

Although not many creatures on the plains threatened this Red Dragon, he had become particularly cautious. He wouldn’t eat without protection in the wild but would bring his food back to the nest to enjoy slowly.

With a bang, the heavy prey was thrown onto a rock beside the volcano’s crater by Karon, and he began to enjoy his dinner.

After replenishing himself with enough food, Karon jumped into the Magma Lake, almost filling the entire volcanic basin. The magma began to flow out of the basin through relatively low terrain.

Fortunately, these magmas soon solidified into blocks for reasons like mixing with sand and soil and air-drying. Over time, this solidified magma would become part of the mountain’s rocks.

Karon first took a delightful swim in the scorching Magma Lake to cleanse his body of occasional bloodstains from prey and scale dust.

Then he stopped, preparing to cast a Protective Magic over his nest, a legacy spell awakened during his transformation from a Juvenile Dragon to a Young Dragon.

This Magic was called ”Awake Dream Alike,” forming a perimeter of a full-range protective shield, a vigilant Magic.

Though this Magic wasn’t destructive, it was particularly important for a Giant Dragon.

Because under the barrier and vigilance of this Magic, any creature, including Star Realm creatures and Ether creatures entering its perimeter, would be detected, awakening the dragon’s active perception.

This Magic was more crucial than other offensive spells for a Giant Dragon because every time they transitioned to the next age, bloodlines further growing, they needed to enter long periods of sleep. The stronger the dragon, the longer the sleep.

Even adult dragons and Legendary Dragons could accidentally get killed by those who sought to slay them during their sleep, with numerous examples in Karon’s inherited memories.

This talent spell emerging from bloodline growth seemed like a lottery to Karon, but fortunately, he drew this highly useful Magic.

However, this Magic required the dragon’s Magic Power for sustained energy. Initially, it was cast on the dragon itself.

But Karon planned to use the abundant Magic in the volcanic Magma Lake as the energy node for this Magic, casting it over the entire volcanic basin, encompassing Karon’s nest and the entire mountain top.

This way, Karon would have an additional layer of security while sleeping in the Magma Lake.

As a spell awakened from the Giant Dragon’s bloodline, its casting differed from typical Magic. The Red Dragon only needed to use his will to make the Magic Power within his body resonate with the Magic Seeds in his bloodline.

A faint, invisible ripple rose from beneath the Red Dragon’s feet, spreading in all directions, enveloping the entire volcanic Magma Lake like a dome.

This spell is extremely concealed, making it difficult for any creatures other than Karon to detect. Even those masters skilled in stealth would find it hard to discover the subtle traces of it without prior knowledge.

Karon dug out a wide downward-facing cave on the higher side wall of the volcanic basin, which would be the cave where he would store his treasures.

The high threshold blocked the flowing magma, but immediately a passage led straight down, functioning as a natural trap.

Entering the Red Dragon’s lair without knowledge would result in falling into the deep caves. If a fortunate adventurer somehow reached here, they might still fall prey to this simple trap out of carelessness.

After excavating a nearly hundred-meter-long downward path, Karon avoided the lava channels spewing magma, and dug a spacious cave into the mountainside.

This cave, due to its proximity to the lava channels radiating high temperatures, was excessively dry.

Karon used his innate earth-controlling ability to properly fortify the cave, reinforcing its stone walls to a degree even his dragon claws could not easily damage.

Then he regurgitated the rare ores and various gemstones stored in his stomach. Among them was a fire attribute magic gemstone, as large as a fist and as clear as crimson blood, a splendid find Karon had discovered underground.

Finally, Karon invoked magic power through Dragon Language, casting a spell over these treasures—Treasure Guard, a spell nearly all giant dragons must learn.

Under the effect of this magic, if anyone tries to take even a tiny item from the treasures without Karon’s permission, they would feel nauseous and vomit.

To avoid vomiting, one must put the treasure down, otherwise, the effect will intensify, eventually becoming too overwhelming to carry.

Of course, if someone’s strength surpassed Karon’s, they could find a way to avoid this effect.

After completing these protective measures, Karon confidently crawled up the passage and re-entered the magma lake, continuously belching sulfide fumes and flames.

The abundant fire attribute magic power surged into the Red Dragon’s body, inducing a drowsiness in his spirit.

So he closed his eyes, his entire body sinking into the magma lake to settle in for a well-deserved rest.

The vast, tumultuous fire elemental magic power that overwhelmed other creatures and even other giant dragons cosseted the peacefully sleeping Red Dragon, cocooning him like an embryo being nurtured.

The energies, so turbulent to the outside world, were subdued beneath the Red Dragon’s body, transforming into a gentle stream of power that began to seep through every scale and inch of skin.

The Red Dragon’s crimson scales shimmered golden under the ample energy, becoming even more lustrous, with a faint glow of firelight rising.

Bathed in this glow, the crimson scales were gradually deepening in color.

Other magic intermingled with the fire attribute magic was also repelled by the Red Dragon’s fiery aura, compressed in the churning magma lake, gradually condensing under the intense pressure of the fire attribute magic.

Small crystals began to float within the restless magma lake over time, emitting a strange radiance, resembling precious gemstones.

However, even the world’s most precious gemstones couldn’t compare to these crystals, as they were pure magic crystals formed from other types of magic species under immense pressure.

These are what are considered extremely precious magic gemstones even in the eyes of mages, not only providing for a mage’s cultivation needs but also serving as essential materials for many magic arrays, especially high-tier skills that particularly require such gems filled with pure magic.

Only some earth attribute and metal attribute magic could approach the Red Dragon’s body amidst such abundant fire elements and were absorbed by the slumbering Red Dragon.

This stemmed from the awakening of the Red Dragon’s natural talent as the King of Earth and Metal, instinctively absorbing the necessary elemental magic power for growth.

The Red Dragon’s body, floating in the magma lake, slowly grew as it absorbed immense elemental magic power, with magic amassing around it like a black hole, centering around the Red Dragon.

This began forming an elemental storm in the magma lake centered on the Red Dragon.

Initially just like a gentle breeze agitating the splashing magma, over time, the heavy lava and impurities in the magma began to swirl slowly as if stirred by a slow-moving vortex.

Influenced by the Red Dragon’s power, countless rising magma streams in the underground lava channels overflowed, spewing from the swirling vortex, turning the entire volcanic crater into an extremely dangerous forbidden zone.

Excessive magma hastened the overflow from the magma lake, and the flowing lava filled with heat and sulfur began to spread down from the mountaintop.

The steaming hot winds and sulfur fumes gradually enveloped the entire mountain.