"Lord Elio, what's going on here?" The small black dragon, Caesar, asked nervously, his limbs, wings, tail, and even his head firmly restrained on the experimental platform. Around him were humans dressed in white robes, holding various bizarre magical instruments. A few humans were already comparing knives and pliers against his body, creating a rather terrifying scene.
"Kid, didn't you say you wanted power? This is your first step to gaining that power," replied Elio, who had shrunk his size to discuss with a bald-headed human alchemist. He turned to look at the uneasy Caesar and smiled.
"But the teachers never mentioned this method for gaining power! There's nothing like this in the inherited memories either."
"This is a path I've discovered. A path suitable for dragons," Elio said, recalling the private meeting with Muria, where Muria had explained everything to him. Looking at his newly recruited follower, Elio organized his thoughts before continuing, "To many ignorant lower creatures, we dragons are considered the most perfect beings. But in my view, dragons have far too many flaws.
Take us black dragons, for example. We can only exert our full combat power in swamps and shallow waters. Once we move to other environments, like volcanic regions or deep seas, our combat power declines as we fail to adapt perfectly to those environments.
Moreover, there are numerous forces that can severely restrain us. Humans have even created anti-dragon weapons using materials that can counter us. How can a creature with such weaknesses be considered perfect?"
"But, Lord Elio, if we ascend to legendary status or become ancient dragons, all these issues you mentioned could be easily resolved!" Caesar retorted.
"Legendary? Ancient dragon?" Elio sneered. "You make it sound so easy. Do you know that out of a thousand black dragons, maybe one might become an ancient dragon? And do you know how long it takes to live to become an ancient dragon? Eight hundred years! Tell me, are you confident you'll live to eight hundred?"
"No," Caesar shook his head. In this brutal world, even gods could fall, so how could a dragon guarantee an eight-hundred-year lifespan?
"Then how do we deal with these lethal weaknesses before becoming ancient dragons?"
"…By training hard," Caesar suggested.
"Nonsense! Our dragon heritage gives us superiority over most creatures of our level, but as a trade-off, our advancement is slower than almost any other species. So, the quickest way to eliminate our weaknesses is through modification—using knowledge and magical technology to enhance our bodies and eliminate our flaws."
As he spoke, Elio's eyes lit up with fervor. He remembered a battle where he fought a sea beast in the vast ocean. His breath attack was mostly ineffective against the beast, and he had to engage in close combat to defeat it.
After that fight, a thought lingered in his mind: if he had the red dragon's flame breath or the blue dragon's lightning breath, he could have won without close combat. If he could possess all dragon breaths, he would be invincible in any terrain, without fear of anything resisting his attacks.
Having such an idea wasn't unusual, but Elio discovered that there was a group of humans in Synapse capable of turning his idea into reality. Naturally, he flew to the upper cloud islands to find them, and one of the elders, after hearing his wild imagination, immediately agreed to modify his body. Thus, he became what he is today.
"So, if you want to eliminate a dragon's weaknesses, the only way is through modification. Not every dragon can become an ancient dragon, but any dragon can modify its body to reduce its weaknesses," Elio concluded, sharing the thoughts Muria had guided him to develop.
"Then, Lord Elio, what have you and these humans planned for my modification?" Caesar asked anxiously.
"You've seen Elio's five types of breath, right?" A bald alchemist, who had been listening, smiled as he asked, his eyes gleaming with fascination. To have a dragon willingly lying on his experimental platform was a dream many alchemists pursued their entire lives, and now two dragons had done so. If he successfully modified this dragon, more would follow.
"Do you want the power to breathe five types of dragon breath?" The shiny-headed alchemist offered the tempting possibility.
"I want that," Caesar quickly nodded without much hesitation, having already witnessed Elio's power.
"If you do, then lie still and don't struggle. Since we don't have many successful cases yet, our modifications will be conservative to avoid unexpected outcomes.
First, we'll extract some of your scales, flesh, and blood. Don't worry, this won't harm you much. We need these to cultivate the organs necessary for the other four types of breath, which we'll then transplant into you to ensure they don't cause rejection."
"Next, we'll inject a primary black dragon bloodline enhancement serum we developed. It'll help your body grow better and faster, with no side effects. Do you accept the injection?" The bald alchemist described the benefits in an enticing tone. Working under a half-dragon boss meant he couldn't force a dragon to do anything unwillingly, or he'd face serious consequences.
"We've also recently mastered a new technology. Using your scales and blood, we can create a perfectly fitted exoskeleton armor. This armor will grow with you, merging with your flesh, providing you with defense that no dragon of your age could tear apart."
After some thought, the bald alchemist tempted Caesar with another offer, but then he said something that made the young dragon's spirits sink. "However, this technology is resource-intensive, so we can't provide this exoskeleton armor for free. If you want it, you'll have to pay a price."
"I don't have money," Caesar replied, crestfallen.
"No money needed. Just sign this contract," the bald alchemist said, placing a pre-prepared contract in front of the young dragon.
"Exoskeleton armor? When did you guys develop this? Why didn't you tell me?" Elio, uninterested in the little dragon signing the contract, widened his eyes and grabbed the person in charge, a look of displeasure on his face.
"We just developed it recently, but the core technology wasn't ours; it was given to us by His Highness Muria, so it's not our fault."
"His Highness Muria? Where did he get such technology?" Elio wondered but quickly dismissed the thought. "Never mind that. Start collecting my scales and get me one of those too. Let's see how it works."
"Based on your size, the armor would cost about fifteen hundred cubic elemental crystals. You need to pay a twenty percent deposit before we start making it," the person in charge replied.
"Fifteen hundred cubic? You might as well rob me!"
"Robbing wouldn't be as quick," a researcher adjusting his crystal glasses on his nose muttered.
"Get out of here!" The lead researcher glared at the talkative one before turning back to Elio with a reserved smile. "It's not that we don't want to make it for you for free, but with your size, the resources required would bankrupt our entire lab."
"You guys missed your calling as merchants," Elio grumbled, remembering how they had tricked him into signing a century-long experimental contract when he volunteered as a test subject. For the next hundred years, he was obligated to participate in experiments that posed no risk to his life or future.
"Just wait; I'll go find a dragon to lend me some money…"
…
While the large black dragon was undergoing bio-modifications with the little black dragon at the research institute on the upper cloud islands, Muria sat on his throne, motionless, seemingly lost in thought.
In reality, Muria's attention was elsewhere, as his consciousness was being guided into a vast ocean-like database by a certain spirit.
"Cassio, have you found any useful technology for me yet?"
"Not yet. None of this technology is currently suitable for your Synapse."
"There's so much information here," Muria's consciousness walked through the seemingly infinite space, surrounded by various light clusters of different sizes and colors.
These light clusters were the crystallization of intelligent civilizations, collected by the Titans since ancient times from the void world. This was part of the Titans' heritage, and now Muria had been granted access to explore it.
"So far, I've only found one exoskeleton implantation technology." Muria reached into a light cluster, and the knowledge contained within flowed into his consciousness.
"A city of canopies? One tree per city? This technology seems more suited for elves, not much use to me."
Bored with searching for useful knowledge, Muria started chatting with his spirit, trying to understand some important things. "Cassio, after I reach the fourth tier of legend, I'll be assigned a world and gain the right to cultivate an army. How does the clan assign this world to me?"
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