Chapter 115: The Fire Dragon!

The dinner was somewhat awkward. Rod could clearly sense Alice’s change in attitude toward him. Used to her fierce demeanor, he was now suddenly acting like someone who cared about him, which indeed made Rod a bit unaccustomed to it.
“That guy was injured today, so he definitely needs time to recover! Hehe, I heard tomorrow is a day of extreme yin. With his injuries plus the influence of that day, his abilities will be greatly reduced. Boss, we must not miss this opportunity!” The conversation from the table next to them caught Rod and the others’ attention at that moment.
“Yeah, boss, all the other organizations and mercenary teams are already getting ready. We can’t fall behind. I think we should set off as soon as it gets light tomorrow. We can’t stay behind. After all, that guy is injured now, his abilities are greatly diminished. Hehe, there must be plenty of treasures in that cave. If others get to eat the meat, we can’t even have some soup?” another person said excitedly.
“Shut up, speak quieter! Do you think not enough people already know?” The first person to speak glanced around nervously before lowering his voice.
Hearing this, everyone at Rod’s table felt a mix of amusement and exasperation. How could such a loud voice go unnoticed? It seemed they had reacted too slowly. Besides, it seemed many of the others present also knew about this and weren’t interested at all. Listening carefully, it seemed a large portion of them were discussing it. Moreover, even if they tried to speak quietly in such a place, how could they avoid being heard? It was almost a joke.
“Boss, what’s your decision?!” After a while, seeing no reaction from their leader, the two grew anxious and hurriedly spoke to the person sitting in the middle.
“No!” With just that simple word, before the sound even faded, the two became anxious again.
“B-But boss, this is a great opportunity! How can you…?”
“Idiots, I haven’t finished speaking yet. Why are you in such a hurry? I said we can’t wait until dawn—get ready now. We need to arrive before anyone else. Hehe, we must succeed this time!”
The words that followed left the two stunned, and even Rod and the others behind them could only smile bitterly. It seemed the leadership set a poor example.

“What are they talking about? I’ve been in Iron Bar Town for some time now, and there have always been so many people here. It seems like many people are discussing that thing—what exactly is it?” Rod asked doubtfully, frowning and looking at the others around him.

“That thing? I advise you not to even think about it. It’s a sacred-level existence. Not to mention you, even many imperial-level experts dare not think about it. It’s said to be a sacred-level being close to quasi-divine!” As soon as Rod finished speaking, Anderson’s cold voice rang out, like a bucket of cold water poured over Rod’s head.

“It’s actually a fire dragon close to quasi-divine level! No one knows why, but that high-ranking, top-tier magical beast chose to live in the central part of Collins Forest. It was discovered a year ago, but the outcome is predictable. As a being close to quasi-divine level, with dragon bloodline, terrifying dragon speech magic, powerful physical attacks, and abnormal defense—even sacred-level warriors can’t gain any advantage against it.

As you know, it’s in the nature of dragons to collect wealth and treasures. That’s why many people are envious of what’s in that cave. Countless people have tried to take it over the past year, but none have ever returned.” Kiro patiently explained to Rod.

“A being close to quasi-divine level? At the peak of sacred level? A golden-level Earth Bear can already be brought to such a sorry state—let alone such a powerful being. More importantly, even any dragon of the same level could defeat an Earth Bear, but their defense is far more abnormal, and their attacks are much stronger! A being close to quasi-divine level—presumably even quasi-divine human warriors can’t fight against it. No wonder it can live there safely for a year!” Rod thought to himself, deeply shocked.

“I heard that the dragon is about to lay eggs in the next few months, so many people are taking advantage of this opportunity to seek profit. After laying eggs, its strength will drop by nearly three levels. That’s when it’s at its weakest. The period around egg-laying is also when it’s weak, which is why so many despicable people are drawn here!” Alice added.

The dragon is laying eggs? Hearing this news, Rod’s eyes lit up, and his heart skipped a beat. Hehe, seems quite interesting. No wonder there are so many people in Iron Bar Town lately. I guess that’s why there are usually so many people around.

At that moment, Rod developed a strong interest in that fire dragon. What did a dragon egg look like? And what was a giant dragon like? Thinking of this, he began to imagine. Was it a lizard or a dragon? It left him puzzled.

“Is that dragon about to lay eggs?” After a while, Rod asked, looking at the others.

“What… what do you plan to do? You’re not planning to try to profit from this, are you, Knight Rod? I never thought you’d be such a person. You’re… despicable!” Alice’s reaction was astonishing. As soon as Rod spoke, her expression changed drastically. She glared at him, her little face turning red as she scolded him.

To be honest, this girl looked pretty when she was angry. After seeing Alice’s true nature, Rod never denied that she was indeed beautiful. Although she fell short compared to Lucia, their beauties were different. Especially when angry, Alice’s beauty was still very attractive.

“You’d better not go. What do you think will happen even if your strength declines? Even if it does, you still have at least Saint-level strength. Even if I heard that two Saint-level warriors have joined, if that female dragon really gets angry, there will surely be countless casualties. Going there will only add more danger!” A sense of foreboding spread, and Kiro hurriedly spoke up, having vaguely guessed Rod’s thoughts.

“Cough, cough, cough, just kidding. How could I go to such a place? With my abilities, I couldn’t even get there. I guess even a small creature could kill me!” With a bitter smile, Rod said helplessly.

Indeed, with his current state, he was powerless even if he wanted to go. But if allowed, he really wanted to go once. Even if it wasn’t for those so-called treasures or dragon eggs, he wanted to see what dragons in this world looked like.

“That’s good!” Kiro breathed a sigh of relief. He was afraid that this reckless guy might actually go, which would be troublesome. But for some reason, he always had a bad feeling, as if something would happen. However, upon closer inspection, Rod seemed to be just as he said—lacking the ability to go.

The atmosphere became rather dull in the following time. Everyone was listening to the discussions around them, with more than half of them talking about that fire dragon.

“A bunch of death-defying fools!” Anderson dismissed it all with a cold snort.

He finished dinner in a hurry: “Cough, cough… Um, I’m not feeling well. I’m going to my room to rest first. Hehe, you guys should rest early too. Go ahead and take care of your tasks—don’t worry about me!”
After dinner, Rod found an excuse to return to his room under the suspicious looks of the others.
Hearing Rod’s voice, Kiro felt something was off, but he couldn’t figure out what. After a moment, he could only force a wry smile, thinking he was overthinking things.
…
“A Fire Dragon?” Back in his room, sitting on the bed without resting or practicing, Rod was still thinking about the previous topic.
A being close to divine level… What attracted him the most wasn’t anything else but that dragon egg—a priceless treasure. After all, it hadn’t hatched yet. If he could hatch it, it would be like obtaining a divine weapon for himself right now.
As a Silver Warrior, he could cultivate beast souls, and newborn young beasts were the best choice—having the highest compatibility with their master and the fastest growth rate. Another reason why young beasts were valuable was that they were easy to tame, especially those that had just hatched. The moment they saw him, they would undoubtedly regard him as their parent. Then, if he could build a strong bond with them, making them abandon their physical form and become soul forms for him to absorb and tame as his own beast soul, it would be the easiest thing in the world.
“But I…” Looking at his own body, Rod sighed inwardly. Although he really wanted to take a chance, his physical condition was the biggest obstacle. At this moment, Rod’s thoughts were entirely focused on the Fire Dragon Egg.
Sighs could be heard from time to time in the room. Clearly, Rod wasn’t willing to give up this slim chance or let it slip away.
“Creak…” A clear sound came as the door slowly opened. He quickly pulled his thoughts back and looked ahead—it was Alice. She had come to his room? His mind was filled with confusion.
“Ah… You, you bastard, scoundrel, thug!” But soon, a scream and a roar followed.
Back in his room, Rod, who was thinking while treating his wounds, was sitting on the bed wearing only underwear, with the rest of his body exposed. Seeing this, Alice’s face turned red.
She quickly turned away, her mind blank, filled only with the scene she had just seen—Rod’s naked body. At that thought, her face grew even hotter.