Ancient Dragon in Arknights

From Nesario's own senses—he felt himself roll off the bed.

I was just lying in a soft blanket, and then, in the middle of a deep, blissful sleep, I suddenly crashed into the hard floor.

"Wait a minute... isn't this—"

"Nesario!"

As soon as Nesario opened his eyes to take a look, he noticed that the pattern and color of the floor were different from those in his room—but before he could finish speaking, a surprised voice rang out from behind him.

Nesario turned his head and realized that he had indeed fallen next to the bed, but this bed did not belong to him—this was a room on Azure Star.

The room, entirely constructed of wood, was very spacious. Hard rock served as the main body of the walls, which were reinforced with wood. The expansive space was even divided into two levels. In the center of the room was a huge dining table, and directly opposite the dining table was a large bed—the blankets and sheets on which were very much in the style of a hunter, and some even looked like monster fur.

Azure Star, who had just woken up from her sleep, was lying by the bedside, looking at Nesario with surprise.

Chapter 116 The Hunters Return

Seeing her "dead" teammate come back to life as he had said, Azure Star was naturally overjoyed. She was afraid that Neltharion had not survived but had been killed by Nergigante.

"Great, you're okay."

Azure Star is incredibly powerful; she dares to fight even the most terrifying monsters. However, she simply cannot accept the tragedy of her teammates dying before her eyes. Fortunately, Nesario is still alive.

"It's good that you're worried about me, but... I'd better go out first. You have a great figure!"

Nesario scrambled to his feet, then quickly slipped through the door and disappeared.

Upon hearing his words, Azure Star realized that it was midnight, and she had just been sleeping.

Looking down, sure enough, the blanket had slipped halfway down, and her entire upper body was covered only by an undershirt, with the rest of her skin exposed.

However, compared to the shyness and panic of a normal girl, Azure Star was noticeably calmer—hunters train at a very high intensity during their daily training, and no one wears heavy armor then, so female hunters sometimes dress quite lightly. Speaking of which, her usual Qilin suit is quite revealing.

"Ha ha..."

Azure Star rubbed her hair; this was truly an awkward reunion.

Turning our gaze to the doorway, Nesario was admiring the night view—Azure Star's room was in a great location, situated in the center of the research team's base, but it wasn't enclosed; one could see the sea at night just outside the door.

The tides surged in from the horizon, and the bright moon hung high in the sky, its light mingling with the waves and painting the beach. The golden sand of the daytime became incomparably sacred and serene.

The image he had just captured flashed through Nesario's mind—a well-trained body!

Yes, the glimpses of spring on Azure Star did not arouse any romantic feelings in Neltharion; on the contrary, he was incredibly curious about Azure Star's training methods. The perfectly balanced physique of muscles and fat he had just seen was truly impressive. He could only say that she was a powerful hunter who could stop dragons. Her fair skin exuded a healthy and powerful beauty.

"How is it? The ocean at night."

"It's so beautiful, it's breathtakingly beautiful, a masterpiece of nature."

As if to confirm Nesario's words, several sea dragons suddenly burst out of the sea, splashing up huge waves before disappearing again.

Dressed neatly, Azure Star walked out of the room to Nesario's side, and the two of them were enjoying this hard-won moment of relaxation.

"Is Nergigante dead?"

"No, we searched again, but you and Nergigante were nowhere to be found."

"call..."

Neltharion knew that there would likely be another showdown between him and Nergigante; and it was very likely that this would be the last one!

"Azure Star, I am in very bad shape; the Nergigante has not been without its effects on me."

"As expected... The scholars are asleep now. If you're not in a hurry, tell me first; of course, if you are in a hurry, I'll go wake them up now."

Nesario showed no signs of impatience, leading Azure Star to conclude that he still had something to say, and there was no need to rush.

"The spikes of the Nergigante pierced my body, and they were not completely removed—that thing continued to multiply inside my body, even piercing my body twice; and once... I almost lost consciousness and became a vessel for the Nergigante."

"!"

How could this be? Azure Star wasn't a professional scholar, but she could still understand the current emergency situation.

"Scholars have made progress in their research on Nergigante...they might have an opportunity."

"Well... but I still have to ask you. If... I lose control, just kill me. At least don't let me become a complete puppet of Nergigante."

Neltharion had a hunch that when his soul drifted to the New World, the remnants of Nergigante would follow, giving both sides an advantage.

Neltharion's physical body is immortal and indestructible; what he loses is his spiritual power. Nergigante, on the other hand, returns to its homeland to fight—after a battle between the two, perhaps only one consciousness will return to Terra.

'Hopefully, Fisher won't go back to the dorm, or he'll be the first one in trouble.'

Azure Star then stopped sleeping. She took a bottle of energy drink from the supplies and drank it all in one gulp. After that, Nesario began exploring the Survey Corps' base at night. In fact, many people were still awake. After all, the Survey Corps was just a base, not a fortress.

If a monster attacks at night while everyone is asleep, who will stop it?

So many of the officers on duty, upon seeing Neltharion again, all expressed their concern—the hero who defeated Nergigante, whose disappearance had saddened many hunters.

"Oh! The three of you!"

In the dining area on the third floor of the stronghold, Nesario stumbled upon three Palicoes feasting.

The once bustling area was now deserted, with only a few of the dozens of stoves burning, and only four or five Palicoes tending to the stoves.

This is the hardest area in the entire base, bar none. After all, the head chef and all the culinary cats ensure that so many people have three meals a day. They work very hard.

"Oh! Nesario meow, where did you come from?"

"I'm... at the door of my room on Azure Star. What about you?"

"We're right here, meow. Come on, try it! This meat is really good!"

The three kittens enthusiastically handed the roasted meat to Nesario and Azure Star, for which Nesario thanked the cats who were cooking.

"At this point, this is really troublesome."

"It's okay, meow. It's just the right time to make everyone a midnight snack. Night shifts are tough, and all we can do is serve up delicious late-night snacks."

Ah—Nesario wants to stay with the Survey Corps forever once again.

Look at this admirable camaraderie: the hunters fight on the front lines and stand guard at night, while the logistics department provides full support.

The research base continuously studies the roles of various environmental organisms and plants, striving to provide assistance to hunters in terms of safety, medicine, and hunting; the artisan workshop forges steel billets thousands of times, allowing no flaws, so that each piece can protect hunters; and the kitchen even provides late-night snacks.

"Although the mission was a bit dangerous, this treatment was absolutely worth it."

"Haha... Actually, the last time we hunted Nergigante was quite special. Normally, our missions are all group operations."

That would be best; Nesario certainly doesn't want him and Azure Star to be a couple again.

Chapter 117 Incurable

The night was very quiet, and even the beautiful night view could become boring after a while. Nesario, Azure Star, and the three Palicoes passed the time together. During this time, Nesario explained that a strange change had occurred to him.

"The spikes of the Nergigante will rapidly activate and split when they encounter high-energy substances, and even tend to evolve into biological tissue. This is the result of scholars' research. It has remained in your body and is difficult to eradicate."

Although Azure Star is not a professional scholar, she is a hunter—and as a hunter, understanding the habits and ecology of monsters is the most basic requirement; as the latest enemy she has encountered, Azure Star has never stopped learning about Nergigante.

"I see. In other words, I should avoid contact with high-energy substances in the future."

"Yes, that's right. In addition, you also need to eliminate the part of Nergigante, otherwise your life will not be guaranteed."

Neltharion's situation is truly unique, a feat that is unlikely to be replicated—the reproduction of Nergigante requires extremely high energy, a condition that a human body cannot meet. However, Neltharion is not a pure human; he is also a unit with high energy.

Unfortunately, this energy is higher than that of humans but lower than that of ancient dragons, so the Nergigante molecules in his body are in a state of stunted development.

Normally it remains silent, but once it encounters external energy stimulation, it will become active again until it completely takes control of Neltharion's body.

Time passed slowly, and the silvery moonlight that once illuminated the earth gradually faded away—at the edge of the ocean, a new sun was slowly rising, the sunrise heralding the start of the next day.

The massive survey team slowly awoke under the morning light. The cooking team, the exploration team, the craftsmen, and the scholars all woke up from their sleep and washed up with water drawn from the waterfall. After getting dressed, their first destination in the morning was, of course, the dining area.

"Oh! Lord Star, what's wrong with you today... Ah! Lord Nesario!"

"Both heroes who defeated Nergigante are here!"

"Nesario, it's so good to see you safe and sound."

"..."

Azure Star's partner, the receptionist, greeted the two of them warmly, her energy seemingly more abundant than the rising sun.

You can tell from the pile of breakfasts she has.

"I just woke up to this good news. Looks like today will be a lucky day. Welcome back, Nesario."

The Commander-in-Chief was also in the breakfast group. He thanked Neltharion for his great achievement in defeating Nergigante, but Neltharion was not particularly moved by it.

It merely repelled Nergigante, and still had some strength left; it couldn't be called a victory, it could only be said that it escaped with its life.

However, Nesario did not dislike the Commander-in-Chief. Azure Star told him that after he disappeared, the Commander-in-Chief even gathered people to search for him, which shows that he was a leader who cared about his subordinates.

"Commander-in-Chief, there is something I need your help with."

More than honor, Azure Star cared about Nesario's health. Rather than waiting for the scholars to finish their work, she planned to directly ask the Commander-in-Chief for help; this matter was urgent!

"What is it? If you two need any help, the entire investigation team will do everything in our power."

"It's related to Nergigante, Neltharion's body..."

Nesario originally planned to wait until the scholars were ready before bothering them. As for directly requesting the Commander-in-Chief, he absolutely did not need to go through the trouble. The investigation team had a lot of work to do every day, and the Commander-in-Chief was not a scholar. Everyone has their own expertise, and the Commander could be responsible for command and planning.

To Nesario's surprise, after learning about the situation, the commander-in-chief quickly issued an emergency order, and the scholars were rapidly assembled.

Even more unexpectedly, upon hearing about Nesario's current condition, the scholars showed no resentment whatsoever; in fact, they were all quite excited.

"Hmm... there's no change in appearance either."

"Is the problem probably internal?"

Several scholars carrying breakfast hovered around Nesario, and many pieces of equipment were being tested; they could only rely on their naked eyes to make judgments.

"Based on previous research on the Nergigante thorns, those cells would rapidly activate upon contact with high-energy substances, and would quickly become inactive and die if energy was insufficient. This is slightly different from your condition; it's probably an adaptation."

"First, let's look at some of the observations we've made."

After brainstorming, a comprehensive medical examination plan for Nesario was finalized in no time.

His hair, nails, skin, blood, and mucous membranes were all taken. I believe it won't be long before the responsible scholars discover the anomaly.

As the observation concluded, the scholar broke out in a cold sweat and asked Nesario in disbelief: