Chương 45: Reborn as the Dragon: — Chapter 45 - Flame Arrow Tower

Just as Bolikri made his suggestion, Grey Wolf's already massive body expanded again, growing from just over two meters to two and a half. His muscles swelled into something monstrous, and more black scales pushed through his hide. The effect of absorbing true dragon heart-blood was immediate. Grey Wolf's level hadn't gone up, but the attribute points he gained per level had.

His panel made it plain: [Name: Grey Wolf (strong)] [Gender: Male] [Race: Gnoll Leader (Black Dragon's Vassal)] [Level: 15 (Tier 2) (11–20)] [HP: 3300] [Strength: 30 (+3. 7) | Attack: 674] [Constitution: 30 (+3) | Armor: 330] [Spirit: 5 | Magic Resistance: 50] [Skills: Pounce, Frenzy, Spread Rabies, Sneak Attack, Pack Decree, Feed Shit, Soul Siphon Strike (Dragon Ancestry has granted the Gnoll Leader a new ability, permanently increases the Gnoll Leader's Strength for every human killed)]...

Before the dragon blood, Grey Wolf's Strength and Constitution had both sat at 15. Now he was earning two attribute points per level. For the Gnoll race, that was a terrifying leap. Su Nian pulled his gaze away from Grey Wolf and settled it back on Bolikri.

"Yellow, tumor-like plants. Edible. Very filling?" He raised his head and blew an excited smoke ring. Could there actually be something like potatoes in this world? If there were, that would be incredible. Potatoes had too many advantages to count: massive yields, almost no cultivation difficulty, versatile enough to serve as a staple. And most importantly, no matter how you cooked them, they were delicious. Boiled, fried, mashed, roasted, impossible to ruin.

Su Nian had been born in a country that treated food as an art form. He'd crossed worlds. He'd become a dragon. There was no universe in which he was going to let his stomach suffer for it. If he couldn't even achieve culinary freedom, every transmigrator who'd come before him would be laughing at him from across the void. Bolikri saw his Black Dragon master's expression light up and couldn't help it, an excited grin spread across its own face, tail wagging furiously behind it.

"You're good, Bolikri." Su Nian's voice carried approval.

"If we actually find what I'm looking for, I'll reward you properly. Now — where exactly did you find this plant?" Bolikri didn't dare waste a second. It dropped flat to the ground, head low, words tumbling out in a mix of whimpers and barks:"Report, Master. I found it by accident near Silvermoon Swamp. I was starving at the time — I could tell it was edible, so I dug one up and bit into it."

"Crispy at first. Then a faint sweetness on the back end. Unfortunately, I couldn't stay long, so I dug up what I could and ran while eating. That area belongs to the Rock-Armored Crocodiles." This narrative has been purloined without the author's approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.

"They're vicious magical beasts. A single Kobold has no business provoking them." That really does sound like potatoes. Su Nian lowered his head and thought. Silvermoon Swamp was far, even flying there and back would eat half a day. He decided to shelve it for now. It wasn't that he was afraid of Rock-Armored Crocodiles. They were Tier 2 magical beasts, roughly on par with the Gnolls. The only real headache was that beasts who lived in a swamp could dig in and make themselves very hard to root out.

His best hope was that the otherworldly "potatoes" weren't actually growing inside the swamp. Otherwise he'd have no choice but to get thoroughly annoyed at those slimy, ugly crocodiles. He pushed the thought aside. He didn't want to kill Bolikri's enthusiasm.

"We'll go look for the plant tomorrow," he said.

"There are other things I may need you for today." He turned and walked back into the dragon's lair, retrieved the Flame Arrow Tower blueprint, and stepped back outside. [Ding! Host detected in open terrain. Host possesses Flame Arrow Tower blueprint. Blueprint quality: Purple. Remaining uses: 5. Please confirm construction location for the Flame Arrow Tower.] A green ghost-image popped into his vision, like the placement indicator from a Warcraft game.

Through it, he could make out the vague shape of the finished structure: roughly eight meters tall, red-tiled dome, solid stone construction.

"So it just needed open ground." Su Nian looked down at the blueprint in his hand. A glimmer of satisfaction passed through his dark gold eyes. Yesterday, inside the dragon's lair, the system had flagged insufficient conditions and refused to activate it. He'd assumed it was a material shortage at first, but the panel hadn't listed any required materials. It was last night, half-asleep with Anna in his arms, that the answer had clicked: the terrain itself was wrong.

He spread his wings and flew to a tall jagged cliff nearby. The cliff had a wolf-tooth silhouette. Together with the formation across from it, the two cliffs formed something close to an arch. This was the only route into the core of the dragon's lair. Su Nian shifted the placement frame onto the cliff, adjusted position and angle until the outline turned green, and confirmed. The ground moved.

A simple foundation materialized on the cliff face, and the system's prompt came again immediately: [Constructing Flame Arrow Tower requires: Stone, 10 tons | Wood, 3 tons | Workers, 20 | Food, 5 kg | Construction time: 12 hours] [Available worker races: Human (construction efficiency +20%) | Kobold (building defense +20%) | Goblin (building mutation rate +20%) | Dwarf (all building attributes +10%)] [Note: Workers must be provided by the host. Construction begins automatically once workers enter the foundation. Upon completion, workers will have relevant memories cleared and be returned.] Popular Science Section (skippable) [The following describes the general characteristics of Gnolls as they exist in this world. The Gnolls serving under the protagonist will gradually change as draconification progresses.] Adult Gnolls stand five and a half feet tall (1. 8 m) and weigh around 300 pounds (135 kg), with heads shaped like hyenas. Their skin runs green-gray to black-green, darker around the muzzle area.

Most Gnolls have filthy dark-yellow or gray-red manes. Their natural lifespan is roughly 35 years.

Standing upright, this humanoid creature reaches about the same height as a Dark Elf. Fluffy gray-green fur covers its body. The head is pure hyena, yellow teeth, blood-red eyes. Gnolls are hyena-like humanoids and can reach seven feet at their tallest. Gnolls within the same clan tend to look alike, sharing reddish-brown, black, gray-green, or yellow fur. Eye color spans from pale bluish-white to deep blood-red, usually small and set close together.

In damp environments, they produce a distinctive and unpleasant odor. Leadership in Gnoll tribes goes to the strongest. The top spot is held through intimidation, threats, and brute force. When a leader dies, the survivors fight for dominance. If the struggle runs too long or kills too many, the tribe fractures into smaller groups and scatters. Strength is the only currency this society recognizes. The strongest and deadliest Gnoll leads. The weakest are, practically speaking, emergency rations.

Living in Gnoll society is a constant high-stakes performance. Any hint of weakness invites destruction. Progress, under those conditions, is almost impossible.

"Brutes" refers to the largest, most aggressive Gnolls in a tribe. They are the elite. Their strength earns them more food, and the food makes them stronger still. Assassins lack raw power, but their cunning and skill with ranged weapons make them essential. Their mastery of poison carves out a permanent place for them in the tribe's hierarchy. Poachers rank slightly lower, filling the roles of scouts and trackers.

Then there are the Watchers, Gnolls who, without following shamanic doctrine or druidic tradition, have still forged a connection to natural forces. They use nature magic to support other combat units and serve as field commanders during coordinated hunts. (As per tradition — power to Anna.) ➤ Next: The Kobolds' Bizarre Roll Call