The Fire Wyvern group was getting more and more competitive, and moreover seemed to be running farther and farther in a certain direction—this, Logan did not know, or rather, even if he knew, at most he would silently keep an eye on how the situation developed from the side.
The ecological model that develops in nature is the most suitable model. He admitted he had no way, in nature's repeated selections, to find that single best answer; what he could do was, at critical moments, make some appropriate decisions to maintain this seemingly solid yet in fact fragile new ecological environment of the Ancient Tree.
There was a piece of good news for Logan these past few days: with Ahtal-Ka's help, the new nest at the top of the Ancient Tree had been completed.
A nest built entirely from wood stripped from the branches of the Ancient Tree not only had stronger resistance to flames, but was also very hard and durable.
And Ahtal-Ka, having finished all this, seemed to have finished observing Logan as well; swaying off while making off with the remaining timber, it took the Research Commission's archaeology team—long prepared on this side—back to the Ancient Ruins Basin.
Without that guy who would take a little time every day to sneak around and observe in secret, Logan as a whole dragon was much more at ease.
Every day, aside from hanging in the sky as a second sun, and occasionally teaming up with Aki to bully the Chameleos who came here to scrounge, the rest of the time he was either slacking off or developing his new moves.
He planned to use this way to better control his body and the surging energy within it.
Only, the development of new moves had to have something to use for testing. Back in the Elder's Recess, because of its unique ecological model, he could take those ordinary monsters to practice as he pleased, so long as he didn't start a massacre.
But in the Ancient Forest, the number of monsters here was indeed greater than in the Elder's Recess, yet in this dense forest they were harder to find.
As for the other Fire Wyverns in the Fire Wyvern group…
So, a certain Mother Chameleos who had been loafing around the Ancient Tree and mooching became the best choice.
Over the next several days, Logan made her understand that this was the Ancient Tree, not Astera.
Every Mandragora, or other medicinal herb, that she put into her mouth could not be eaten for free!
...
On a clearing near a stream not far from the Ancient Tree—this place had become a rugged, uneven open area because of the battle between Logan and Kushala Daora back then.
There was not much vegetation, nor many living creatures, and coupled with the open terrain, this became the best battlefield for Logan and Chameleos.
Of course, that was on the premise that this kind of "battle" between the two of them could really be called a battle.
A few scales wreathed in flame shot into the dense fog below and exploded with a boom; after that, a large number of fragments bearing calamity flame scattered through the fog with the sound of rending air.
Immediately afterward came Chameleos's very put-on croaking.
"I'm hurt, gwa; I can't fight anymore today, gwa!"
Saying this, Chameleos also revealed its form within the fog under Logan's exasperated gaze.
And say this for it: to make Logan believe the authenticity in its cry, it even forcibly tanked several of those scale fragments bearing calamity flame.
The sharp fragments, with absolute high temperature, sliced open Chameleos's scales and tore a thin layer of flesh beneath.
Even if Mother Chameleos was only deliberately putting on such a posture, this also showed that Logan's new move could still cause a certain amount of damage to an Elder Dragon that had not made preparations, since in any case, it counted as breaking through the defense, didn't it?
As if seeing the flames on Logan gradually go out.
Mother Chameleos's big eyes rolled; inwardly rejoicing at having muddled through again, and feeling an itchy pain on its body, before even activating its invisibility it instinctively spat out new medicinal mist to wrap itself.
In the next second, the tiny wounds on Chameleos's body healed at a speed visible to the naked eye in an instant; there was not the slightest scratch even on the scales. This exaggerated healing ability—without knowing about treatment for deep wounds—judging only from this external wound's healing time, already rivaled Nergigante's recovery speed.
"Gwa!!" (Crap! I forgot to go invisible, gwa!!)
Almost in the next second, Chameleos reacted to the fact that it was still under Logan's gaze; as if a little secret had been discovered, it flusteredly activated its invisibility state and vanished from Logan's perception.
Up in the sky, Logan's eyes narrowed slightly. Was this clumsy acting of Chameleos's not also revealing a new piece of information to him?
Using Chameleos to test his moves, apart from valuing Chameleos's Elder Dragon-level vitality and various exaggerated attributes, Logan was also, while actively showing off his muscles to this ally, probing its current state.
After all, it was an old monster that had lived for hundreds of years, and had mixed with the Research Commission for so many years.
Chameleos was no longer that ignorant country shut-in it had once been.
Between allies, showing off one's muscles and probing each other was the most normal thing—it could also boost each side's confidence.
Thus, after roughly understanding from Logan's small moves the things he currently displayed, Mother Chameleos likewise, inadvertently, revealed a new side of itself.
Both sides were progressing, and this alliance was still quite solid.
"The poison mist is no longer merely poison? That exaggerated healing ability."
Today's test had ended. Looking at the thick mist below that still had not yet dispersed, Logan flapped his wings, carrying a wave of hot air, and soared toward the sky.
Within the thick mist, a beetle about half a meter long, seeing no movement, crawled out from the soil.
A scent with a deadly allure drew it up from underground.
Its not-very-intelligent head shook as it raised itself, came into contact with the mist Chameleos had used to heal itself, and greedily inhaled.
The next second, it toppled to the ground; its originally dark eyes instantly turned white. Flesh buds rapidly sprouted and swelled from the thin membranes at its joints, then exploded with a bang, spraying out large amounts of green blood undergoing a terrifying reaction from toxin saturation.
The entire beetle turned into nutrients, and soon, amid a series of shattering bursts, became fragments that nourished the land.
Medicine and poison have never been separate; a medicinal mist capable of instantly healing a monster on Chameleos's level was, to other living creatures, deadly venom.
It was a new type of medicinal mist—more terrifying than the respiratory or neurotoxic poisons of the past, and even harder for antitoxins to counteract.
Not to mention, Chameleos was an expert in poison. Of these medicines, how much was medicine and how much was poison?
It was all within a single thought of its own.
This was Mother Chameleos's direction of mutation—a new subspecies that had never appeared before, and was almost impossible to reproduce.
The medicinal mist soon dissipated, leaving only pools of unrecognizable flesh and large quantities of multicolored blood upon the ground.
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