The southern forest was different.
Not merely deeper and darker, but older. The trees in this forest grew like living towers, twisted with age. There was moss on every surface, and the earth beneath your feet was soft and uneven, filling with the fossilized remains of what once lived here. The streams in the forest were ink-dark, moving silently with no obvious wind, and the shadows appeared to shift even when there was no air moving.
John's wings bore him easily over the dense canopy. His vision swept the underbrush with Predator's Instinct, picking up on the trace pulses of life hidden beneath. He felt the presence of monstrosities, some small, some larger, but most of them were timid. Too timid. Too many had fled from his previous hunting excursions, leaving behind a scant population.
The deeper he journeyed, the more he recognized how small his own knowledge had been of this forest. This was a land unsettled, untouched by other dragons, unevaluated in power by humans or intelligent beings. The scent of giants, of creatures larger than he had known back in his own territory, stirred deep in his nostrils. Something awakened inside of him—a spark of anticipation, of hunger, of a compelling sense of wariness.
"Finally… Tier 5s should appear here, and maybe something stronger." The amber gleam in his eyes sparkled in the dim light. "Time to grind. Time to earn Tier 6."
---
## **Hunting in the Southern Wilds**
John landed silently on a large rock that rose slightly above the forest floor. Below him, a pack of large wolf-like beasts scrambled through the underbrush. They had coarse, dark fur, and their eyes sparkled with a vestige of intelligence. This was clearly Tier 4, nearing Tier 5 in power.
He let the air from his lungs escape, lighting his **Dark Flame Breath**, but he did it carefully—enough to burn, but not enough to destroy. It took one blast to kill the leader wolf, sending the pack running in terror.
[EXP Gained:
Predator's Instinct Lv. 7 → Lv. 8
The other wolves rallied together, growling, baring teeth, but as soon as they realized he was there, they froze, mentally weighing the uselessness of an attack.
John's claws dug into the rock. "Good. I can develop my skills against this pack and work on my technique," John said.
Into the fight he leapt, claws slicing expertly through flesh. Every move strengthened his **Aerial Mastery**, every strike reinforced **Scale Hardening**, and with every bellow, he solidified his dominion over this fresh territory.
Taken from:
[Scale Hardening Lv. 5 → Lv. 6]
[Aerial Mastery Lv. 4 → Lv. 5]
The forest shook a little with every flutter of his wings. The smaller creatures scurried away, and even the more cautious predators of Tier 5 observed from the shadows.
---
## **Tier 5 Threats**
A Tier
Hours of grinding with low-to-medium-level creatures, but John finally felt that there was something bigger at play. Some sort of power vibe that he had never experienced before. Not random, but calculated. Controlled. Deadly.
It was a Tier 5 predator, a huge lizard with armor. It stepped from the shadows, its scales catching the dim light, reflecting a deep, dark hardness, with a spiked club on the end of its tail. It did not run, unlike most beasts. It observed him, thinking, waiting.
John's **Predator's Instinct** activated. He sensed its power—not overwhelming, but enough to drive him closer to his own limits.
"Good, finally," he grunted, stretching his wings. "We'll see how capable you are."
The lizard charged, and John met it halfway. Claws met scaled flesh, with sparks spattering everywhere, as fire erupted from his throat. The lizard bellowed, thrashing about with a swinging tail full of spikes, making it necessary for John to dodge with precision.
Every strike, every counter, every move sharpened his reflexes. The fight went on with a ferocity that lasted merely moments. John pushed every available advantage, striking with **Dark Flame Breath** to damage the lizard and **Aerial Mastery** to dodge the fatal blows.
The final, crushing blow to the lizard's head concluded the fight. John landed, a little winded, but victorious.
[EXP Gained:
[Level Up: 51 -> 52]
[HP: 7,800 →
[MP: 6,100 –
He stretched his claws. Monsters of Tier 5 were within his reach, but the deeper he went, he realized how deep the danger that the southern forest entailed.
---
## The Unease Returns
John continued wandering, leaving behind the slightly scorched remains of the Tier 5 lizard. Something still didn't feel right.
The southern forest was alive in a way that would never occur in the territories to the north. The trees rustled with a motion that he couldn't see. The shadows danced on their own, even though the wind barely stirred. Tremors radiated from his claws as he walked.
He stopped, sniffing the air. **Nothing overt.**
And yet.
There was a presence there—cold, calculated,
John's eyes narrowed. "I can feel you," he muttered. "Show yourself."
The forest didn't answer.
But the air thickened. There came a low, thrumming vibration, a barely noticeable tremor that, to a dragon attuned to life, is unmistakable.
Faolan flexed his wings and claws. Pride swelled within him—dragon arrogance, forged from triumphs past, but he didn't go charging in. He honed his senses. Every step, every movement, every flutter of his wings became calculated.
"Whoever—or whatever—you are…I will know you before you strike."
---
## The Unexpected Appearance
Then came the event.
There was a shadow in front of him, impossibly large for a Tier 5, 6, or any creature he had encountered before.
Something loomed in front of him, concealing the setting sun as if it were a living mountain.
John froze. The **Predator's Instinct** erupted wildly.
This was not normal.
Not natural.
Something extraordinary.
The monster entered a clearing. Its massive body was bescaled, with jagged, darkened scales glistening on its skin. The monster's limbs were four, clawed, muscular, and huge, digging into the earth with every step. Its head was broad, with a crest of horns, orange-red, fire-filled eyes glowing with malevolent energy. Its tail thrashed behind it, a lash of iron.
John's heart thrummed, not with fear, but with something far deeper. Respect.
Predator Detected: Tier 7
"A Tier 7 monster. This predator is unlike any he has ever confronted.
It concerned him. Not with rancor. Not with fright. But with a predatory gaze that bored into him, sizing him up, anticipating his actions, estimating the worth of dispatching him—of letting him live, on its own terms.
John breathed slowly. The forest seemed to be waiting, along with John. Even the wind seemed to have stopped.
This was a creature of a different order altogether. Killing Tier 5s had been child's play for him. Tier 6s had challenged him, stretched him to his limits—but this. this creature exuded power with his very presence.
John flexed his claws, his tail twitching with anticipation. "He's going to burn," John said, his fire raging, his
"You're stronger than anything I've faced here," he muttered. "But I don't back down."
The Tier 7 monster did not roar. Did not attack. It merely watched, with unfocused gaze, with the hungry ambiguity of a predator sensing prey.
John's amber eyes sparkled, mirroring the fire that he saw in the creature's gaze. His tail lashed, a subtle signal of a wariness that tempered his surge of pride, his arrogance.
It wasn't your average hunt.
This is the first real test.
It's a trial that might destroy him, or maybe make him even stronger than he is now.
The forest around them was quiet, too quiet, as if the trees themselves realized the immensity of what was happening.
John let out a puff of smoke. "I won't run."
He stretched his wings, preparing for the attack. Fire laced his throat. Claws lengthened. The heart calmed.
Tier 7 stared.
John stared back.
The two predators, apex predators in their own right, engaged in a silent duel of wills. Neither of them had taken a step, but the tension electrified the air. Even from a distance, John sensed his own heart pounding back at him in the forest. It was a reaction that shouted that this creature might kill him with a single touch. It also shouted that he might be capable of meeting that creature. The southern forest had increased in age, darkness, and danger with his presence. Yet a spark of opposition had been introduced with John's power that had not been there before. The Man had come to a crossroads. A threshold. And somewhere deep within the south, there had been a sense that an ancient, powerful, and intelligent entity had taken notice of him, and had been trying to see if this young dragon was worthy enough.
---
Leave some Powerstones to keep me motivated
50 Powerstones= 1 extra chapter