The wind had grown colder as Spirit Sky flexed his massive wings, snowflakes caught midair around him, frozen in space for a brief moment before drifting away. The Mutation Block had been broken, but Aurora's work was far from done. She knelt beside him, her eyes scanning every inch of his obsidian scales, now threaded faintly with cosmic starlight.
"Balance the four elements," she whispered, her voice carrying the weight of command. "Space, Soul, Undead, Ghoul—they must act as one. If even one falters, your body will consume itself."
Spirit Sky pressed his snout to her palm, the Blood Contract between tamer and dragon resonating with latent energy. Space around them rippled, small distortions bending light and shadow. Time seemed to slow as the four absorbed essences merged into him, reshaping his body and spirit. His wings stretched wider, claws elongated, and fangs glimmered faintly with ghoul-infused lethality.
His aura intensified:
Space: now capable of bending localized areas, warping terrain and perception.
Soul: sensing multiple threats, masking presence, predicting attacks.
Undead: chilling aura corroding defenses, slowing opponents' recovery.
Ghoul: draining vitality while enhancing recovery and stamina.
Aurora's gaze never wavered. "Test your limits. Learn the synergy. Every battle from now on is a calculation."
The first trial of the newly evolved Lord Tier came in a deep valley hidden beneath the snow: the Nightmare Eclipse Drake, a Legendary Elite Lord Tier dragon with Space and Soul affinity. Its massive black scales shimmered, eyes glowing with ethereal intelligence, wings stretching wide enough to cast the valley into shadow.
"Observe first," Aurora instructed, crouched behind a ridge. "Space warp to confuse. Soul fog to mask approach. Strike only when openings appear."
Spirit Sky rippled through space, vanishing from sight before striking from behind. Ghoul energy corroded the drake's defenses, Soul fog masked movement, and Space distortions warped perception, throwing the creature off balance. Hours of precise strikes and evasions later, Spirit Sky punctured the drake's heart, absorbing its essence.
[Spirit Sky → Level 42, Mid Elite Lord Tier]
Aurora's next challenge was deliberate and strategic. Two bonded Lord Tier dragons, known as the Twin Shadows, roamed a ridge. Both slightly stronger than Spirit Sky, they tested not only power but tactical adaptability.
Voidfang: radiated Space and Ghoul energy
Soulreign: exuded Soul and Undead
Aurora guided Spirit Sky like a master chess player. He warped Space to avoid coordinated strikes, drained Voidfang with Ghoul energy while masking movements with Soul fog, and struck Soulreign's weak point with Undead chill and precise fangs. The three-hour battle tested stamina, elemental synergy, and strategic calculation.
By the end, both dragons lay defeated, essence absorbed. Spirit Sky hovered, wings outstretched, aura pulsing with cosmic and spectral energy.
[Spirit Sky → Level 44, Late Elite Lord Tier]
Between battles, Aurora returned to the White Dragon Tribe's sacred grounds. Ancient tomes whispered elemental lore, elder spirits spoke of mutation as sacred growth. Each dragon was a conduit of elemental harmony, a living embodiment of the cosmos, and Aurora's priestess lineage allowed her knowledge inaccessible to ordinary tamers.
She taught Spirit Sky to sense latent fluctuations, detect predator signatures, and anticipate attacks. Even the environment—ice, snow, wind—became a weapon, manipulated with Space and Soul synergy.
The Phantom Lord Drake appeared suddenly, scales dark as void, eyes gleaming with malicious intelligence. Faster, stronger, and more cunning than anything Spirit Sky had faced.
Aurora's commands were surgical: warp, dodge, absorb, strike. Space distortions collided, Soul fog masked movement, Ghoul strikes drained vitality, Undead chill corroded defenses. Spirit Sky twisted midair, claws slashing, fangs sinking into vital points. Hours of relentless combat ended with the Phantom Lord falling, leaving Spirit Sky hovering, wings extended, aura thrumming with raw power.
[Spirit Sky → Level 46, Early Lord Tier]
Aurora calculated carefully. Spirit Sky was nearing the peak of Elite Lord Tier, but mastery required more than raw power. Higher Lord Tier dragons awaited—creatures whose physical evolution intertwined with spiritual ascension.
They descended into the Starlit Abyss, a canyon carved through aeons of elemental chaos. Snow, stone, and faint starlight intermingled, creating a battlefield where Space and Soul energies naturally converged. Aurora scanned every cliff, knowing that the abyss harbored Elite Lord Tier dragons capable of coordinated elemental attacks.
The Obsidian Star Serpent emerged first, serpent-like, scales black as midnight, eyes radiating Space and Soul energy. Every movement warped surrounding air.
"Space warp to evade frontal strike. Soul fog to mask approach. Ghoul to weaken tail, avoid head. Undead to corrode defenses," Aurora instructed.
Spirit Sky vanished, striking exposed joints with fangs and claws. Ghoul energy drained life, Soul fog masked movement. The serpent fell; essence absorbed.
[Spirit Sky → Level 47, Mid Lord Tier]
Two more Elite Lord Tier dragons followed: Eclipse Talon (Space + Undead) and Phantom Wing (Soul + Ghoul). Aurora's mind orchestrated every move:
Lure Phantom Wing into narrow pass
Split Eclipse Talon with Space distortions
Combine Ghoul and Undead energy to drain and slow
Over hours, Spirit Sky warped through reality, Soul fog masking presence, striking with surgical precision. Both dragons fell; essence absorbed.
[Spirit Sky → Level 48, Late Lord Tier]
The final trial of the Starlit Abyss: Spiritfire Leviathan, massive, wings nearly ten meters, Soul and Ghoul elements capable of absorbing attacks. Aurora's instructions were precise: every element balanced, every strike timed.
Spirit Sky danced through Space distortions, Soul fog masking approach, Ghoul energy draining vitality, Undead aura slowing regeneration. A precise strike to the core ended the battle. Essence absorbed.
[Spirit Sky → Level 50, Mutation Mastery Complete, Late Lord Tier]
Spirit Sky's transformation was breathtaking. Scales shimmered with embedded constellations, veins of purple and silver energy pulsing beneath the surface. Wings tipped with spectral talons glimmered with all four elements. Eyes gleamed with intelligence and raw power: one blood-red, one swirling cosmos. Aura radiated:
Space: warping perception, subtly bending reality
Soul: sensing hidden threats, masking himself, predicting attacks
Undead: corroding defenses, slowing foes
Ghoul: draining vitality while enhancing stamina
Aurora studied him, recognizing the culmination of a year's strategy, precision, and relentless training. Beyond mutation mastery awaited:
Higher Lord Tier dragons (Level 51–55) for further evolution
Environmental mastery over multiple elemental terrains
Strategic perfection for survival against coordinated attacks
Spirit Sky rested nearby, wings flexing occasionally, aura radiating power. Aurora's icy blue hair whipped in the wind, eyes scanning distant peaks, already calculating next moves.
The path to true Lord Tier dominance was set. Every battle, every strategy, every essence absorbed would shape Spirit Sky into a creature capable of standing among the greatest dragons in history.