[Cooked Thunder Wolf Meat (Average)]
[Cooked Poisonous Serpent Meat (Average)]
While Alphox was feasting on the [Perfect] meat he cooked using his [Black Flames], Alex instead decided to indulge himself in the average one.
The food, though it was rated [Average], was in fact really tasty, much more than most stuff you could find the in the real world.
Food in [Universal Descent] would soon become the new norm once real life trades were established, though that one wouldn’t have any buffs.
After finishing his meal in under 15 minutes, Alex felt the effects of the meat.
Ding! Ding!
[+Lightning immunity for 12 hours.]
[You have been poisoned, but received a 1.1x agility boost for 12 hours.]
Thankfully enough, Alex had the [Poison Resistance], thus stopping the effects of the poison.
A 1.1x agility boost was actually pretty damn good, and though it wasn’t much, just think about if he had over 200,000 points in agility.
Alphox after eating had almost seemingly received none of the effects, since they usually transfer to pets, but not to beings like dragons and stuff.
Alex would need something bigger and better to buff Alphox.
In fact, Angels and Devils had special foods that could grant them permanent buffs the more they ate them.
“Well,” Alex said, stretching and brushing crumbs from his gear, “let’s get going.”
Alphox didn’t respond immediately.
Instead, the Primordial Dragon stiffened, his nostrils flaring as he sniffed the air.
His eyes, like glowing rubies, narrowed to sharp slits.
“I sense something,” Alphox rumbled. His voice carried a low growl, vibrating with both anticipation and menace.
Alex blinked, alarmed. “What kind of ‘something’?”
Alphox didn’t answer.
“They’re actually here…” he whispered.
“!!!” After hearing Alphox said that, Alex immediately knew what he was talking about: dragons.
And as to how he could sense them while Alex didn’t, it was because dragons could detect each other’s draconic energy.
Alphox, who is Primordial Dragon, also had that capacity at a way higher level than a normal dragon.
Meaning that he noticed them before they noticed him.
“Alright, human, get ready.”
In one swift motion, he reached for Alex with a massive claw and tossed him onto his back.
“Hold on,” Alphox commanded.
“Hold, wait, what are you?” Alex barely managed to secure himself against the dragon’s jagged scales before Alphox took off with a powerful beat of his wings.
The ground disappeared beneath them as they soared high into the sky, the wind howling around them.
“I could’ve walked, you know!” Alex shouted over the rushing air.
Alphox ignored him, scanning the horizon with intense focus. “The scent and aura is unmistakable. Dragons. Three of them.”
The words sent a jolt through Alex.
His pulse quickened as he processed the information. “What level are we talking about?”
“No idea,” Alphox said, his tone almost eager, “Their draconic energy is strong, though.”
As said before, the reason why most dragons and people wouldn’t fight a Primordial Dragon was because even their [Draconic Energy] was enough to inflict [Fear] on them.
“Comforting,” Alex muttered.
His mind raced as he flipped through his inventory and skills, mentally preparing for the impending encounter.
Moments later, Alphox began his descent, angling toward a rocky plateau below.
The terrain was as hostile as the creatures that inhabited it: jagged rocks, and cracks emitting faint trails of smoke.
And in the center of it…
“Oh shit,” Alex examined the three figures, “Be careful.”
“Mphm,” Alphox let out a puff of black flames from his nostrils.
The sight was both awe-inspiring and terrifying.
Three colossal dragons lounged on the plateau, their crimson and golden scales shimmering like molten metal.
Their eyes, glowing with an inner fire, lazily scanned their surroundings.
[Kaelthor, Ember Wing Fire Dragon – Mythical Boss – Level 600 – Tier 6]
[Vorrak, Infernal Flame Dragon – Mythical Boss – Level 600 – Tier 6]
[Zyrran, Electric Dragon – Mythical Boss – Level 600 – Tier 6]
A system notification pinged again.
[Warning: You have entered a high-danger zone. Proceed with caution.]
“Three of them,” Alphox murmured as he landed gracefully on the edge of the plateau. “What a lovely reunion.”
Alex hopped down from Alphox’s back, crouching behind a rock for cover.
His eyes darted between the dragons, studying their movements.
As Alphox stepped forward, the dragons turned their attention to him as they had noticed him in the sky and also landing on the ground.
For a moment, there was silence, an eerie pause where the air seemed to tremble with tension.
“Hm,” Alphox smiled, “I’ll give you the honor of being my experience, you weak dragons, you should be grateful to me, Alphox!”
“…”
The dragons looked at one another for a few seconds, and then, one of the dragons, the largest of the three, let out a booming laugh.
“Alphox?” Zyrran chuckled too, “That dead pest?”
“No chance he’s back,” Vorrak laughed too, seemingly taking this like a game.
“I thought he was dead for good!” Kaelthor completed.
Alphox’s tail flicked in annoyance, his crimson eyes locked onto the laughing dragons.
The plateau trembled slightly under his weight as he stepped closer, his presence radiating a raw, oppressive energy.
“Dead?” Alphox growled, his voice like rolling thunder. “Do you three fools even understand who stands before you? I am Alphox, a Primordial Dragon, feared by gods and devils alike!”
Kaelthor snorted, his ember-like scales glinting in the sunlight.
“Primordial? You? That title doesn’t belong to you anymore, Alphox. Your strength is gone, your power diminished. You’re nothing but an empty shell, a shadow of your former self.”
Zyrran cackled, sparks of lightning crackling along his jagged horns.
“Didn’t you hear? The Primordial Council has already replaced you. A dragon stronger, mightier, and far more deserving of the title now sits where you once did.”
Vorrak smirked, his molten breath creating waves of heat that distorted the air. “Face it, Alphox. You’re nothing now.”
“What the FUCK are you talking about,” Alphox, having been dead all these years, was confused: wasn’t his place as a Primordial Dragon set in stone?
Why did they replace him?!
The mocking words struck Alphox like a hammer.
His claws dug into the rocky ground as his wings flared wide, casting a massive shadow over the plateau.
The aura of a predator, of a king who refused to kneel, burst forth like a tidal wave, shaking the very air.
“You dare… mock me?” Alphox roared, his black flames leaking from his maw.
The fury in his voice carried a primal weight that made Alex’s knees almost buckle despite being behind cover.
“You think a council of cowards can decide my fate? I am Alphox, the Shadow Dragon! I bow to no one! I will kill them all!”
In an instant, Alphox launched himself forward, his massive wings propelling him like a missile toward Vorrak, the Infernal Flame Dragon.
The force of his charge cracked the plateau beneath him.
“Die!” Alphox roared, claws outstretched.
But the dragons were ready.
Kaelthor intercepted him mid-flight, his ember wings flaring as he twisted and struck Alphox’s side with a precision strike from his tail.
The force sent Alphox off course, his attack narrowly missing Vorrak.
-16,271,904!
Before Alphox could recover, Zyrran was already on him, a bolt of electricity surging through the air and slamming into his exposed flank.
“Pathetic,” Vorrak sneered, landing heavily on Alphox’s crumpled form.
His molten claws pressed down on the Primordial Dragon’s back, pinning him with overwhelming strength.
“This is the great Alphox? A weakling, easily crushed beneath my claws?”
Alphox struggled, his body trembling with rage and pain. freewebnvel.com
Black flames flickered around him, but they were faint, his power unable to match the combined might of the three dragons.
Alex watched from his cover, his fists clenched tightly.
His mind raced as he took in the scene.
Alphox was pinned, vulnerable, and clearly outmatched.
The three dragons weren’t just strong; they were coordinated, experienced, and unrelenting.
The dragons advanced, their attention fully focused on Alphox.
“End of the line, Alphox,” Kaelthor growled, his jaws opening to unleash a stream of molten fire.
But before the flames could reach their target, Alex stepped out from behind the rocks, his eyes cold and resolute.
“No,” Alex said firmly, standing between Alphox and the advancing dragons.
The dragons paused, their gazes shifting to the lone human who dared to stand in their way.
“Foolish mortal,” Zyrran sneered, his voice crackling like thunder. “Do you truly think you can stop us?”
Alex didn’t waver, his voice steady as steel. “You’ll have to go through me first.”