After meeting at the street corner, the two exchanged information on the attitudes of the Hunter's Guild and the Dragon Cult.
"I didn't expect them to have such a consistent opinion on this matter," Yodora said dejectedly.
"It's too early to draw conclusions," Li Fan informed her.
"Haven't both sides already stated their positions?" Yodora asked, confused.
"The main purpose of this visit is to convey the stance of the Chief Hunter Squad and issue a warning. It will be when the Forbidden One shows signs of appearing that they will make their decision," Li Fan explained.
Both the Hunter's Guild and the Dragon Cult possessed extremely keen insights into the movements of the Forbidden Ones. Naturally, they would not want to provoke them before their appearance, so their willingness to assist was an unusual state of affairs.
"So that's how it is... Wait, wasn't the Black Dragon always in the ruins of Shul-Tzuren? Why would there be talk of signs of its appearance?" Yodora asked, puzzled.
"Unlike the Ruiner Nergigante, observational records of the Black Dragon are very unstable. What is currently certain is that its absence from Shul-Tzuren is the norm, hence the talk of signs of its appearance," Li Fan informed her.
"What strange habits. Where does it go when it's not in Shul-Tzuren? With its size, it can't possibly hide, can it?" Yodora inquired.
"Perhaps another dimension," Li Fan speculated.
"Such an incomprehensible monster... If you have nowhere to go tonight, would you like to come to my place?" Yodora suggested.
"No, I haven't seen the cats on the ship in a long time. Dilu and I will go check on the Crimson Glow first," Li Fan replied.
"Alright, I'll find you at the port tomorrow." The team then parted ways.
The night air in the East Dondurma Airfield was peaceful and serene. Li Fan and Dilu didn't spend much time at the airship dock before finding their own shimmering, conical airship.
"You can lower them now, meow!" Pochi, who was directing the lowering of cargo containers, poked his head out from the hull and shouted. Upon seeing the familiar figures of Li Fan and Dilu, Pochi's eyes widened. "Li Fan! Dilu! You're back, meow!"
*Clang! Clang! Clang!*... The ship's bell rang. Pochi, Felyne, and the entire chef team gathered on deck.
"This deck is cleaner than when I was here. It seems you haven't slacked on maintenance even during long voyages. Each of you gets a reward of 20,000z," Li Fan said, satisfied after a brief inspection of the Crimson Glow's condition.
"Hooray, meow!" Felyne led the charge as the cats jumped up joyfully.
"Is this large cargo container being lowered into the refrigerated storage?" Li Fan asked, noticing the cold air emanating from the open cargo hold on deck.
"Yes, meow, it's all fresh raw meat," Pochi confirmed.
"It must be for Pidan, right?" Li Fan inquired.
"Not just Pidan... I'm so excited to see you, meow, I haven't had a chance to report something. That smooth spike you asked me to put in the incubation chamber actually hatched a monster."
"Ah? So soon?"
"It was actually just four days ago, meow. It's very aggressive and has an enormous appetite, so we've had to keep it locked in the incubation chamber. Since the door to the incubation chamber is about to give way, we've had to increase its feeding," Pochi said, lowering his head with a weary expression.
"A juvenile Nergigante... Heh heh, take me there." Li Fan chuckled, rubbing his hands together. He had always had a weakness for cute monster younglings.
"Even though it's just a juvenile, it's still very dangerous, meow," Pochi warned.
"It's alright."
Not long after, one person and two Felynes entered the ship's passageway. In front of the incubation chamber, Pidan, whose shell was a sickly white, was stretching its neck, tearing at the wooden slats nailed to the door to prevent the juvenile Nergigante from escaping.
"Pidan! Stop being naughty, meow!" Hearing Pochi's voice, Pidan was initially unfazed, but upon seeing Li Fan approaching, it let out a yowl and ran away.
"Sigh~ You've had a tough time lately." Li Fan patted Pochi's shoulder.
"It's been okay, meow. Gigginox helps during the day, and Pidan is very afraid of Gigginox. Plus, watching Pidan grow day by day gives me a sense of accomplishment," Pochi informed him.
*Crash! Crash!* With a few swift movements, Li Fan tore down the wooden slats blocking the door and opened it.
*Roar! Roar!*... From under the table where the egg incubator was placed, fierce, soft roars could be heard. Li Fan crouched down to look. A juvenile beast, resembling a hedgehog and huddled in the corner, was warily watching him with its four paws planted on the ground.
"Feeding is the start of building a friendly relationship... Pochi, do you have any thawed raw meat..." As Li Fan spoke, the little creature's wide yellow vertical pupils suddenly contracted, and it charged towards him.
"Munch~ Munch~..." Li Fan, fumbling, confirmed that the needle-like sensation couldn't actually penetrate the Nergigante's armor and scooped it into his arms.
*Hoo~ Hoo~*... Rhythmic snores filled the air.
"Uh... It's asleep already, meow? How did you do that?" Pochi asked, astonished.
"I don't know." Li Fan, somewhat bewildered, began to gently rock it.
"To make such a wary juvenile fall asleep so quickly, meow, it seems only..." Dilu, taking notes, tilted its head in thought.
"Don't write anything strange, Dilu."
"Only someone who fully understands a monster's habits and possesses great affinity with monsters can do this, meow... Is it okay to record it like this?" Dilu asked tentatively.
"Oh, so that's what you think. Then it's fine."
"Do you have a different idea, meow?" Dilu asked curiously.
"No... Since it's a youngling of Nergigante, let's call it 'Little Nergigante'," Li Fan said, cradling Little Nergigante with one arm and using the other to rub its un-armored belly.
"With such a cute youngling, what if Nergigante doesn't know how to raise it? Or what if Nergigante doesn't have the habit of raising offspring at all?" Li Fan mused as he rocked it.
The next afternoon, the Crimson Glow departed from the East Dondurma Airfield. Sailing in one direction, they arrived at an uncharted jungle area three days later. They trained diligently in the mornings, led combat drills with the monsters that had gathered there in the afternoons, and rested early in the evenings. After about a week of such intensive preparation, Li Fan decided to give the monsters a day off.
Reggie, who loved younglings, took Pidan, Xiao Xi, and Little Nergigante to play by a wild pond. Pidan had a peculiar habit of eating Elder Dragons' insects, while Little Nergigante would chase and kill them. Noticing this, Reggie stopped releasing the Elder Dragons' insects to prevent the two mischievous youngsters from causing further trouble. Xiao Xi, compared to the two lively younglings, was a bit slow, but was very interested in the red and black lightning that Reggie could generate.
*Rustle~ Rustle~* A sudden gust of wind rustled the trees. Birds in the forest took flight in panicked chirps. Feeling a terrifying pressure approaching, the three little ones by the pond couldn't help but look up.
*Whoosh~* Nergigante flew past at high speed, followed by a swarm of large Elder Dragons. The lush, quiet jungle was soon bathed in a pale pink glow.
"Uh... Even though they're members of the monster team, why do I feel an invisible pressure when I see Nergigante?" Yodora asked curiously, observing from the air.
"Perhaps Nergigante now possesses the potential to become a Forbidden One," Li Fan speculated.
The team had been stationed there for a week, and Nergigante had only arrived late because there were too many areas needing ecological balance at the moment. Li Fan had anticipated this, but the intensity of the improvements brought about by the ultimate host during this time was beyond his expectations.
*Bang!* Nergigante landed, and the swarm of Elder Dragons formed a circle in the air, circling continuously.
*Rustle~ Rustle~ Rustle~* The three younglings peeked out from the bushes. After observing from a distance, Pidan and Xiao Xi simultaneously turned their heads and looked at Little Nergigante in the center. Little Nergigante raised its claws, which were covered in small gray spikes, to its eyes. After repeated comparison, it was stunned.
*Dash!* Little Nergigante leaped with all its might and shot out from the bushes. Pidan and Xiao Xi, after a moment of astonishment, also chased after it. Nergigante, who was listening to battle deployment, sensed something approaching and turned its head.
*Plop~* Little Nergigante pounced and landed on Nergigante's right front claw. Nergigante's tense muscles suddenly relaxed, and its outward-facing spikes began to droop. Its fierce eyes softened.
"It seems my worries were a bit excessive. Nergigante does care about its younglings," Li Fan said, relieved. Otherwise, purely artificial rearing might lead to the loss of certain traits, and releasing it into the wild was too dangerous. To ensure the youngling had a healthy growth environment, tribal inheritance was the most reliable.
Nergigante then turned its head and looked at Li Fan with Little Nergigante.
"It's not easy for you to reunite, so I won't intrude." Li Fan, sensing something was wrong, tried to retreat, but Little Nergigante jumped down from its right front claw and ran towards him.
*Roar~ Roar~*... "We can't hug right now, it'll be misunderstood. Go away..." Li Fan quickly turned his back. However, Little Nergigante ran around to the front and, belly up, lay down skillfully at his feet. Nergigante, watching from afar, was stunned, and a look of relief appeared in its eyes.
"Sigh~ Monster younglings really aren't something you can just pet casually." Li Fan sighed, holding his forehead.
Late at night, with less than seven days remaining until the Elder Dragon's arrival at Shul-Tzuren, Li Fan had to travel to the New World to bring Xiao Ming, Shan Shan, and Bing Bing Zi to the Old World to prepare for battle. Since Hu Hui, who had achieved an anomalous overcome, had increased her flight speed, Li Fan decided to go alone, as he felt Yodora and Dilu didn't need to suffer. Three days later, Li Fan returned to the wilderness camp.
"It should be okay to release Shan Shan, right?" Yodora suggested. Xiao Ming and Bing Bing Zi's appearance would severely affect the surrounding ecosystem, but Shan Shan clearly wouldn't.
"Shan Shan disembarked when we passed through the village of Honoka," Li Fan replied, smelling of burnt lake.
"What did Shan Shan go to the village of Honoka for?"
"To get her equipment... It should be ready by now," Li Fan said uncertainly.
"So that giant metal door was made for Shan Shan," Yodora realized.
"The village of Honoka was just a stop. Shan Shan still needs to pass through two more ruins, arming herself continuously while rushing to the battlefield." The remains of the Snake King Dragon could not be transported by sea, so Shan Shan could only start with a shield and scavenge for equipment. Fortunately, the various attempts at constructing ruins had given her rich experience, and building a sufficiently reliable giant ruin on her own was not difficult.
"Will Xiao Ming suddenly appear, meow?" Dilu asked tentatively, looking at Qing Tian crawling on the muddy ground.
"No, the Poké Ball has the potential to conceal its presence. Making Xiao Ming suddenly appear on the battlefield is the best option," Li Fan informed them.
"That puts my mind at ease, meow."
"Should we observe their encounter?" Yodora inquired, having pondered this question for some time.
"Let's rely on the Guild's observation reports. If the other party has some unconventional sensory method and directly targets the team for an attack, we'll be too passive," Li Fan said. Observation was a crucial part of a subjugation operation, and the Guild's professionalism in this regard was unquestionable. Furthermore, Li Fan felt that if the encounter happened too early and the outside world was completely unprepared, it would trigger many unimaginable situations. The team, waiting patiently, continued their daily training. As the sun rose and set, the day of the Elder Dragon's arrival at Shul-Tzuren quietly approached.
*Thump! Thump!*... In the Shul-Tzuren Guild's observation post within a cave, the tremors of footsteps had been audible for three days. The dozens of top investigators the Guild had sent to reinforce this location had become accustomed to sleeping amidst the shaking. However, even after completing their rotations today, no one chose to rest. Instead, they changed positions to continue their vigil, aiming to supplement their observational angles.
*Thump! Thump!*... The Elder Dragon stepped into the outskirts of the city, a place littered with rubble and debris. The tremors caused by its steps made the already unstable, dilapidated city walls constantly collapse and fall. About two hundred meters from the city gate, the Elder Dragon stopped, stood upright, raised its neck towards the black clouds that obscured the sky, and let out a roar.
*Roar! Roar!*... As the massive sound waves spread, dust and stones from the city walls cascaded down. After the roar ended, a deathly silence fell upon the city, and everything seemed to come to a standstill. After a long while, an elderly investigator, who had been observing from a prone position, let out a sigh and reported the situation observed through his binoculars: "The Elder Dragon's roar received no response. No anomalies occurred."
*Scribble~ Scribble~*... The investigator responsible for recording, after finishing his notes with a quill, finally relaxed his tense expression.
"The Elder Dragon is facing forward! The top of the city gate arch!" For the investigators, who needed to remain hidden and calm at all times, this reminder was undoubtedly too loud, but no one corrected it at this moment. The elderly investigator followed the direction indicated and saw a black, dragon-shaped silhouette gradually appearing in the shadow cast by the city wall.
"Impossible... It wasn't there just now..." The elderly investigator muttered, suddenly realizing that this was not the time to delve into the matter. Accurate observation and recording were the most important tasks at hand. The dragon-shaped silhouette's slender neck extended from the shadow, and its head, adorned with several symmetrical horns, tilted to the side, fixing its gloomy purple eyes on the Elder Dragon.