Knowledge

In reality, the tasks that the "Dragonling Nurturer" assigned to Yongrong were merely things that his kobold servants couldn't accomplish and that he himself was reluctant to do. These tasks included purifying water sources, preventing potentially fatal disputes among the dragonlings, and monitoring abnormal behaviors within the dragon brood.

These tasks weren't particularly challenging, and Yongrong performed them with ease.

Life proceeded in an orderly fashion. Every day, Yongrong learned about dragonkind from the "Dragonling Nurturer." Quis, being a malevolent dragon, had limited patience and was not inclined to elaborate, offering only brief explanations. This, however, gave Yongrong ample time for independent thought.

As mentioned before, Yongrong was only a casual player in his previous life in "Star Realm," with limited knowledge of the various races in that world. Even though he was now endowed with a wealth of knowledge through the Dragon Heritage, much of what Quis taught was new to him.

"Our life," Quis once said, "is like a river filled with treasures. Time brings these treasures to the surface and delivers them to us with the currents. Meditation, however, is an active process of diving beneath the surface to search. You might find something, or you might not."

"The process is tedious and can be both difficult and painful. If you find yourself mastering meditation, you might consider learning an ancient language—Draconic. It could help in uncovering more about yourself."

The Dragonling Nurturer's voice deepened, his form receding into the darkness. "I'm tired. That's enough for today."

Yongrong bowed his head in respect and left.

The discovery of a dragon's skull bolstered his confidence, but extracting arcane power from it was not easy. Whether it be alliances of kin and friends or servitude of vassals, nothing came easily, especially for a young dragon.

Yongrong's current plan was to build his strength and then leverage it to reach the stars beyond the mists. This was why he was so eager to learn from Quis.

The young blue dragon stretched his neck, exhaling two puffs of white breath, before returning to the clearing. He enjoyed the refreshing cool breeze of the morning and strolled over to a puddle.

The "Water Purification Spell" he had awakened to during his dragonling stage, as the name suggests, was a basic spell for cleansing water sources. He also possessed other basic abilities like "Water Creation" and "Pollute Water."

The water in the pond bubbled as if boiling, and Yongrong felt the flow of magic within him, focusing intently on the sensation.

This situation, where a dragon starts working from a young age, was rare among the Blue Dragon clan. Normally, Blue Dragons nurtured their young until they reached adolescence. Adolescent dragons were then expected to serve their clan in return for meager compensation.

Upon reaching adulthood, the new generation of dragons gained the right to choose their paths. They could join the family to bring it prosperity or set out alone to forge their destinies.

Of course, more extreme options existed. Adult offspring could challenge the clan leader, seeking to usurp their position, seize the family's fortress-palace, servants, pastures, hunting grounds, priority mating rights, wealth distribution rights, and more.

Such challenges were rare. As the paragons among chromatic dragons, Blue Dragons grew stronger with age. Challenging a clan leader meant facing a force akin to a natural disaster.

Like Red Dragons being known as "Fire Dragons," Green Dragons as "Forest Dragons," and Black Dragons as "Skeleton Dragons," the Blue Dragons also had their epithet— "Storm Dragons."

In the common perception of mortals, Blue Dragons were associated with deserts. However, recent studies by dragon scholars had found that many Blue Dragons nested along coastlines.

In fact, Blue Dragons favored any region prone to frequent storms—hurricanes, tsunamis, dust storms... any environment that could spawn disasters was likely to have Blue Dragons.

The moniker "Storm Dragon" aptly illustrated the power of Blue Dragons, who arrogantly believed the title well-deserved, constantly vying with Red Dragons for the title of supreme chromatic dragon.

Blue Dragons ridiculed Red Dragons as "ignorant, reckless fools," while Red Dragons derided Blue Dragons as "cowardly pack animals." The constant warfare between them left the other three chromatic dragons disregarded.

After finishing his daily tasks, Yongrong was preparing to try the meditation technique Quis had described when he noticed a young Blue Dragon gazing at him from a distance, seemingly waiting for him.

Recognizing the dragon as Hel Nikleton, the unfortunate one who had been bitten on the head by a spine beast, Yongrong approached.

"Yongrong."

Only when Yongrong drew near did the young dragon speak. "I'll help you if you need anything."

Getting a malevolent dragon to express gratitude was difficult, but this was indeed a gesture of thanks. Yongrong stopped and smiled at the young dragon. "Okay."

"May I ask what you discussed with Lord Quis?"

Hel and the "Dragonling Nurturer" shared a surname, indicating a direct familial connection, but Hel still addressed Quis with respect. Blue Dragons were like that—whether they were hatchlings picked up and nurtured like Yongrong or direct descendants like Hel, the clan's iron rule of respecting strength and looking down on weakness applied to all.

"I asked him about knowledge not included in the heritage," Yongrong replied honestly.

Hel stared at Yongrong for a moment, then remained silent. He was somewhat surprised. Dragons normally didn't possess such a strong thirst for knowledge. Moreover, Yongrong showed no sign of surprise or pride after Hel offered his assistance—a calmness uncharacteristic for a dragon of his age.

What Hel thought, Yongrong couldn't be sure. After their brief exchange, the two young dragons parted ways. Yongrong found a spot to lie down, coiled his body, and began trying to meditate.

"Dragons are natural spellcasters, akin to sorcerers. We don't need spell preparation or incantations; a simple act of will is enough to cast a spell," the Dragonling Nurturer's voice echoed in his mind. "While wizards use meditation to accumulate arcane energy, sorcerers meditate to tap into the magical power in their blood."

As Quis had said, it was indeed a difficult and painful process. Meditation required clearing the mind, a challenging feat for chromatic dragons, also known as malevolent dragons, because they were prone to involuntary dark thoughts like greed, lust, conquest, and bloodlust.

In truth, meditation was not originally intended for dragons. It was a practice of elven and human spellcasters, which somehow found its way to metallic dragons and then to chromatic dragons. Even metallic dragons struggled with it, let alone malevolent ones.

But Yongrong managed it. His soul was human, possessing a mature mind, so the meditation techniques of humans and elves were not too difficult for him. The only trouble was the malevolent dragon blood, but he could combat that with his strong will, pushing away distractions.

The monotonous and dull meditation brought no joy. The young Blue Dragon tried for several days without uncovering any "treasures" or sensing an increase in magical power. However, he did feel a subtle improvement in his control over his body.

Even a glimmer of hope was worth pursuing.