The bard fantasized again.

Chapter 119 Mastering Breath (Bonus Chapter 23 Today, Please Subscribe!)

As one of the signature powers of the true dragon, only by mastering the extremely powerful weapon of [Breath] can one be considered to possess a certain level of combat capability.

Most baby dragons, however, are not in the same predicament as Iu when they are born, where they are left without anyone to teach them.

At least in my memory, many dragons would tutor and educate their offspring during their early years until they mastered the power that was rightfully theirs.

Without this crucial element, Iu would have to rely on his own exploration to master any innate talent.

At best, Tang Qi was using some potentially inaccurate knowledge to try and help it understand the essence of [breath].

"Eat some more, eat some more. This is an 'eggshell cake' that Kuru specially ordered to apologize to you."

He held the little dragon, who had collapsed in his palm, and repeatedly tried to persuade him.

Iu's belly was visibly bulging, and its two golden eyes, once fixed on the egg-shaped cake that was as tall as a person, couldn't help but want to flap its wings and leave this cave:

"Ugh!"

Isn't it enough that it forgave the kobold?
Why would you subject yourself to such cruel 'eating torture'?!

Actually, there aren't many problems with this cake.

To make the cake even greasier, Donkey urged Chuck to add a lot of mozzarella cheese, maple syrup, and even condensed milk and butter, among other sweet ingredients.

This, ironically, made the cake taste rather unpleasant.

However, it seems that it was too overfed, which prevented it from even having the strength to fly.

A rising pulling force had only lifted it a few centimeters before it was thrown back into Tang Qi's palm.

Normally, a dragon's daily food intake is about 30% of its body weight, but in order to store energy, it will usually eat more, reaching the threshold of 50%.

But it seems that because he was born recently, he was very light.

All he does every day is eat and sleep, and his appetite isn't very strong, which is why Iwu has only managed to swallow a third of the cake so far.

Tang Qi patiently guided him:
“Come on, swallow it whole, and then spit it all out.”

He certainly didn't mean to mistreat Iu.

However, vomiting is an indispensable part of exhalation.

Anyone who has dissected a dragon knows that the dragon's stomach is divided into two parts: the stomach chamber, which is responsible for digesting food, and the upper stomach, which is responsible for storing energy.

When food passes through the esophagus into the stomach, it is crushed by the bony plates arranged within. This crushing force can even easily destroy steel.

The digested food is then enveloped by stomach acid, infused with energy stored in the upper stomach to aid digestion, and even converts inorganic matter into energy, which flows back into the upper stomach for storage.

The so-called "breathing" is simply the act of vomiting, in which the energy stored in the upper stomach is expelled in one breath.

'Indigestion' is actually one of the most effective ways to achieve the effect of 'vomiting' without harming the body.

Now, as Tang Qi scoops out pieces of cake and feeds them to Iwu, it seems to gradually begin to feel something—

To this end, it stretched its slender neck, opened its mouth wide to reveal its tiger teeth, and drew in the invisible air currents in the windless cave, causing the mushroom in front of it to sway toward the little dragon, until the air currents gathered in its throat into a pitch-black singularity.

It contains a powerful force field energy, which is clearly a sign of exhaling breath.

Even when energy is concentrated at a single point in the lower abdomen, it still seems unable to grasp the feeling of unleashing the entire mass of energy at once.

Tang Qi quickly stopped playing the piano, trying to encourage Xiaolong:
"I'll make you an even bigger cake tomorrow, and I'll mix in more than a dozen kinds of delicious cheeses!"

The thought of eating these cakes with their sweet, creamy fillings again tomorrow made Iwu feel like her entire digestive system was going to freeze.

The energy accumulating in its upper stomach seemed to be flowing back out of its nasal cavity, revealing a grayish-white force field of airflow:
"Roar!!!"

With a roar, the black singularity in its throat exploded, and with a thunderous roar, a cone-shaped ray, carrying a gale and repulsive force, shattered against the stone wall in front of Iu.

A deafening roar erupted in an instant, shaking the very ground.

The stone wall, struck by the repulsive force, shattered. Fortunately, the "Alert" effect allowed Tang Qi to first lie prone among the mushrooms on the ground, curling up to avoid being hit by flying rocks.

When Tang Qi stood up with lingering fear, he saw that the stone wall in front of him had sunk several meters inward, and when he touched it, there was still a lingering heat from the intense friction.

"Ouch..."

Iu, who poured out all the energy in his stomach, did not feel elated by this enormous power.

It let exhaustion take over its mind, slowly closed its weary eyes, and when gravity carried it safely to the mushroom patch, it quietly fell asleep.

Tang Qi, on the other hand, looked excited.

I carefully picked up the little dragon and let it sleep in my arms, secretly clenching my fists:
"It's done!"

Clearly, Iu has not yet fully mastered this breath power.

But its power is undeniable.

After a month of testing, it finally completed the transformation from nothing to something.

The next step is to let it experience this vomiting sensation repeatedly until vomiting becomes a regular occurrence.

This will certainly require more practice.

But the rewards are considerable—

After all, once the team's overall strength improves, I'll be able to have a more comfortable life.

But the increasingly melancholic music drew Tang Qi's thoughts back to reality.

Bathed in the glow emanating from the Ring of Glory, he saw the mushrooms begin to sway collectively. A month of learning had enabled these mushrooms not only to sing according to their own emotions, but also to perform them with different melodies.

In other words, a rich music library makes their emotions more distinct and accurate.

For example, the mournful tune they are humming now sounds more like a complaint that Tang Qi destroyed their home than 'sorrow'.

Since Tang Qi granted Chenxi the right to move freely, the Holy Knight has now gone to the Deep Well District of Dragon Gold City and is no longer guarding him.

This prevented him from expressing his most direct apology to the mushrooms.

After calming them down with harmonious music, she quickly wrapped Iwu into a ball and climbed out of the cave.

Realizing that the council lords might covet the 'dragon egg', Tang Qi did his best to cover for Iu to avoid being discovered.

He climbed into the backyard, locked the door to the cellar, and listened to the bustling voices inside the Golden Oak. They seemed undisturbed by Iu's breathing, and he breathed a sigh of relief.

Using the newly built back door of the tavern, he went up to the second floor, settled Iu in his room, and then carried the lute back to the tavern.

Over the course of a month, Catherine renovated and expanded the entire house, making it more like the Golden Oak in Starpine Town, consisting of a spacious lobby and a bar.

The bar is connected to the kitchen, where she has hired several helpers, mostly women from Xingmei Town.

In addition, there is a private room in each of the four corners of the pub, provided for guests looking for a quiet place to drink, and it is now full.

Perhaps for adventurers, the gimmicks of 'haunted house' and 'star plum wine' were indeed enough, causing the profits on the first day of opening to far exceed Catherine's expectations.

However, not everyone will be satisfied with this:
"Damn it, I came here specifically for the Star Plum Wine! And now you're telling me today's quota is sold out!?"

"I'm so sorry, sir. As you know, the production of Star Plum has also been affected by the orcs' influence."

To ensure that every guest can enjoy our town's Xingmei wine, we have had to limit its sales.

Catherine is a seasoned tavern owner, and running a business is second nature to her.

She had already decided to do it even before Tang Qi proposed the 'hunger marketing' strategy.

Otherwise, the plum wine stored in the cellar wouldn't even last a month.

But the alcoholics who were attracted to the scene were not willing to buy it.

The soft tunes hummed by the mushrooms around him couldn't soothe the restlessness in his heart.

"Then I've made a wasted trip?"

Catherine gave a polite smile:
"Would you also like to try some other alcoholic beverages? Besides Star Plum Wine, we also serve beer and Dwarf Spirits—"

If you really want to try the star plum flavor, Golden Oak also has some special blends to choose from.

For the average drunkard, that smile alone is enough to quell most of his anger.

"Oh? What about, for example?"

"For example, [Black Snake]. Valencia orange juice, mint leaves, bourbon whiskey, chili flakes, and half a tablespoon of star plum jam, topped with a cinnamon stick."

With its rich and full-bodied flavor, it's a fine wine that can be savored for a long time.

"Hey, I've heard of this guy. They say he's a tough guy who came out of the great desert. Is that really the name of a drink?"

"Of course, you can consider it a feature of our bar—we use the names of some of the bar's legendary drinkers as the names of our cocktails, which always gives them a unique character."

"So Black Snake also drank here? Could you write down my name too?"

"You can leave your name on that wooden board first, and when someone mentions you someday, I will make you a glass of wine that suits you perfectly."

"Ha, that's great! Anyway, let's start with a cup of [Black Snake], I really need to taste this sandalwood forest venomous snake."

The adventurer excitedly drew his dagger and went to the wooden board in the tavern to carve his name.

Seeing that Catherine had some free time, Tang Qi slowly approached:

"Right? That's a great idea."

It allows every adventurer who comes for a drink to find a sense of belonging that is uniquely their own.

"I have always believed in you."

Catherine smiled.
"I've even figured out the formula for Don Qi Weinberger, so when do you plan to become a legend?"

"After I publish this book?"

"Have you found a publisher yet?"

"Not yet, I'll try my luck at Longjincheng tomorrow."

Tang Qi didn't intend to talk too much about his publishing setbacks.
"Is there food in the kitchen?"

"I saved you a pork chop."

"I'll eat first, and we'll talk later."

Tang Qi doesn't know how to mix drinks, and with the mushrooms singing, there's not much need for him, the bard, right now. Staying at the bar would only be a hindrance.

Hurriedly slipping into the kitchen behind Catherine, he saw that the entire kitchen was bustling with activity. Without disturbing Ambi, who was focused on frying fries, he found a stool, sat down, and began to enjoy his pork chop rice with plum sauce.

But before he could even taste half of it, the noise from the bar exploded in his ears—

"What did you say!?"

(End of this chapter)