Chapter 305: Classification of Dragons
Having indulged in a hearty breakfast of Douluo Continent's local cuisine, Qi Han was naturally too full to continue tasting other delicacies.
Although the trip wasn't in vain, he still had to adjust his original schedule.
Upon returning to Han Shi, Qi Han prepared cat food for Pururu before rubbing his chin in thought.
Practicing Dinghu Shangsu was out of the question—he had already decided to postpone it until after the food festival, so there was no need to rush.
However, there were still several hours before the restaurant would open for lunch, which left him feeling a bit conflicted.
But soon, a sudden thought struck him, and his eyes lit up.
That's right! I almost forgot.
Qi Han recalled the dragon meat he had tasted at Nine Dragons Delicacy yesterday—something he had never eaten before. At the time, he had made up his mind to research dragon-based ingredients further.
However, with everything that had happened afterward, he had completely forgotten about it—until now. This was the perfect opportunity.
With that thought, he quickly headed upstairs to retrieve his Douluo Continent Ingredient Encyclopedia and settled into the dining area to study.
For a while, the only sound in Han Shi was the soft crunching of Pururu chewing on his food, and the place fell into a serene silence.
Time passed quickly when immersed in the sea of knowledge.
It wasn't until Ru Yi called out to him that Qi Han snapped back to reality—lunchtime was fast approaching.
After an entire morning of studying, he had gained a thorough understanding of the anatomical structure of dragon species and had roughly figured out how dragon-based ingredients were classified.
Dragons were an extremely broad category of creatures. Theoretically, any beast with even a trace of dragon blood in its veins could be classified as a dragon-type entity.
Based on the concentration of dragon blood, dragons could be roughly divided into three categories: Sub-Dragons, True Dragons, and Sacred Dragons.
Sub-Dragons were creatures with dragon blood that had begun to exhibit some dragon-like characteristics.
For example, the Hellfire Dragonfish Qi Han had previously used to prepare Jade Dragon Tendon belonged to the sub-dragon category. Its dragon traits were primarily seen in its elongated body and scales, which had begun to evolve toward dragon scales.
If it were to reach a hundred-thousand-year level or even higher, it might develop four claws and transform into a true dragon—though that was uncertain.
While there were many types of sub-dragons, the most numerous and common were lizard-type sub-dragons.
These creatures naturally possessed four limbs and a long body, which gave them some resemblance to dragons. This allowed them to better carry dragon blood and evolve, giving them a competitive edge over other sub-dragons. Among all sub-dragon species, lizard-type sub-dragons had the highest potential for dragon transformation.
Because of their sheer numbers, lizard-type sub-dragons had been given a distinct name—Earth Dragons.
The reason for this name was simple: all lizard-type sub-dragons lacked the ability to grow wings.
Their dragon blood was too weak to support the evolution of true dragon wings. Though they were strong, they were incapable of flight.
True Dragons were a tier above sub-dragons in terms of bloodline purity.
However, the distinction between sub-dragons and true dragons wasn't purely an abstract measure of bloodline strength.
The defining trait of true dragons was their ability to break free from their original beastly form.
What counted as "breaking free" depended on the sub-dragon's original form.
For example, for a lizard-type sub-dragon, simple changes like thicker limbs, stronger scales, or a longer body were just progressions of its existing form—not true evolution.
For lizard-type sub-dragons, breaking free from their original form had only one true criterion: growing dragon wings. Only by developing a completely new body part—one they had never possessed before—could they be considered to have reached the threshold of a true dragon.
However, this criterion applied only to Earth Dragons. Other sub-dragon species had different requirements.
Bird-type sub-dragons, for example, were naturally born with wings. Therefore, they couldn't be judged by the same standard. Instead, their advancement to true dragon status was marked by the growth of an additional pair of claws, transforming them from two-limbed creatures into four-limbed ones. Additionally, their feathers would completely turn into scales.
Fish-type sub-dragons, on the other hand, had a different requirement. For them, evolving into a true dragon meant growing four claws and developing dragon scales across their bodies.
From the perspective of true dragons themselves, sub-dragons were not considered part of their kin. At least, dragons would never acknowledge sub-dragons as members of their species. However, once a sub-dragon transcended its form and became a true dragon, it would finally be recognized by dragonkind. This was the reason behind the term true dragon.
Once a dragon-type spirit beast reached the level of a true dragon, its dragon bloodline became strong enough to support its growth beyond the 100,000-year threshold. As long as it matured safely and underwent further evolution, achieving the 100,000-year spirit beast level was not particularly difficult.
The tier above true dragons was Sacred Dragons—beings that were essentially the stuff of legend and had nearly vanished from Douluo Continent.
A Sacred Dragon was defined as a dragon with an absolutely pure bloodline.
According to legend, before the Dragon God fell, the Dragon Clan was the supreme ruler of the Divine Realm, while humanity was merely its vassal. The Dragon God wielded dominion over nine elemental forces and held the power of creation.
The Dragon God divided these nine elemental forces among nine subordinate Dragon Kings, each of whom mastered one elemental power. Among them, only the Mountain Dragon King, who wielded the power of earth, did not leave behind descendants. The remaining eight Dragon Kings had bloodline heirs, and these pure-blooded descendants were the Sacred Dragons.
Sacred Dragons were not only genetically pure, but their control over elemental forces was innate and unmatched. This made them exceptionally powerful and the true aristocracy of the dragon race.
At the peak of their dominance, Sacred Dragons could reach the million-year threshold purely through their racial potential, automatically ascending to divine beast status.
However, as the Dragon God succumbed to madness and was slain by the Asura God, his power was split in two, and the human gods took control of the Divine Realm, driving the Dragon Clan into exile. This marked the decline of the dragon race. Even so, the bloodlines of the Nine Dragon Kings did not completely vanish; instead, they were scattered across different planes of existence.
After this downfall, the laws of the universe restricted the path for spirit beasts to become gods. Even if a spirit beast possessed the bloodline of a Sacred Dragon and reached the million-year divine beast level, it would still perish midway due to the terrifying tribulations of heaven and earth.
Among the dragons still recorded in the Douluo Continent Ingredient Encyclopedia, there was only one Sacred Dragon-level being left on Douluo Continent—one Qi Han was very familiar with:
The descendant of the Dark Dragon King, the Golden-Eyed Black Dragon King—Di Tian!
Aside from him, no other dragons on the Douluo Continent had reached the level of a Sacred Dragon.
Of course, this was excluding the Silver Dragon King, who had been lying dormant on Douluo Continent for eons.
As one of the two halves of the Dragon God, the Silver Dragon King's bloodline was infinitely close to that of the Dragon God himself. In her prime, she was stronger than a first-class god, and even the Douluo Continent Ingredient Encyclopedia didn't include her as an ingredient.
After finishing the entire section on dragons, Qi Han had only one thought:
Recording Di Tian in a food encyclopedia is the most ridiculous thing ever.
With a sigh, he slowly closed the Douluo Continent Ingredient Encyclopedia and collected his scattered thoughts.
Glancing toward the seven employees standing outside the restaurant, he got up and walked toward Han Shi's glass door.
It was time to start the lunch service.
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