Reincarnated as a blue dragon, he collided head-on with a wizarding civilization.

The shallow-water crocodile made the first move.

It kicked off with all four limbs, and its four-meter-long body shot out at a speed completely disproportionate to its size.

The massive, grayish-brown body left a trail of afterimages on the pebble beach. Its gaping maw opened nearly 180 degrees, revealing two rows of sharp, serrated teeth, and it lunged at Motu's forelimbs.

This is the most classic hunting method of crocodiles: bite their prey, drag it into the water, and let it roll and die.

Once bitten, the three-ton bite force will instantly crush bones, and then the entire body will spin, tearing the prey to pieces.

Motu did not retreat.

His right claw rose, and the scales instantly turned metallic.

Its black iron body was revealed, and from the tips of its claws to its wrist bones, every scale shone with a cold, hard bluish-gray luster, with sharp edges and faint bronze-colored patterns on its surface.

The lines spread along the direction of the finger bones, like some kind of ancient forging marks, gleaming with a deep, dark light in the sunlight.

He didn't use any fancy moves, just a simple punch to the crocodile's upper jaw.

"clang--"

The deafening clang of metal striking metal echoed through the valley, rippling the water's surface.

The moment the dragon claw collided with the crocodile skull, Motu clearly felt the immense force transmitted up his arm bones, but the bronze-colored patterns deep within the bone glowed slightly, completely neutralizing the rebound force.

His body remained motionless, while the shallow-water crocodile's entire head was smashed down, its snout slamming hard against the pebbles, splashing up a spray of gravel and water.

The shallow-water crocodile shook its head, a hint of surprise flashing in its yellowish-brown vertical pupils.

A dull pain shot through its palate, a pain not from a superficial injury, but from the dull ache of bones being struck by a heavy hammer.

It shook off the pebbles and mud from its mouth, pushed off the ground with its tail, spun half a circle, and its two-meter-long giant tail swept across with a whooshing sound.

This time, we're going all out.

Wherever its tail swept past, pebbles were sent flying, crashing against the surrounding tree trunks with a crackling sound, scattering debris everywhere.

Motu still didn't dodge.

He raised his left forelimb, and a bluish-gray metallic sheen instantly spread from his shoulder to the tip of his claw. The metallic scales, which were only controllable by first-tier magical beasts, firmly covered his entire left claw, gleaming with a cold, hard matte light under the sunlight.

He steadily held his left claw horizontally in front of him, neither dodging nor avoiding, and met the ferocious tail strike head-on.

"boom--"

The impact was even more powerful than before, like two heavy iron hammers colliding, causing the surrounding air to tremble slightly.

Motu swayed slightly, its right claw digging into the ground, carving deep grooves that revealed bone into the hard pebble layer, in order to stabilize its center of gravity.

However, only a faint white mark was imprinted on his metallic left claw scales; there was not even a slight dent, let alone a crack.

Shark White, who was hiding behind him, poked half his head out, his vertical pupils wide open.

"This is the true fighting power of our Dragonblood race!"

It couldn't help but let out a shout, its three layers of serrations wide open.

The shallow-water crocodile's pupils contracted violently.

The tip of its tail is tingling.

What does it feel like to hit a metal plate with all your might?

That's exactly how I feel right now.

The blue dragon didn't even use any magical techniques; it simply stood there, enduring the attack with its body.

It finally understood.

I can't beat them.

This blue dragon's defensive capabilities far exceeded its expectations.

Its proud tail lashes out like a hammer blow against an iron wall.

And the other side hadn't even actually launched an attack yet.

In competitions of the same level, the gap between dragon-blooded and non-dragon-blooded races is so vast that it is despairing.

Only one thought became clear in the shallow-water crocodile's mind: Run!

It suddenly turned around, exerted force with all four limbs, and rushed towards the river.

Once it gets wet, it becomes its home turf.

In the water, it can make any opponent of the same level suffer greatly.

But Motu didn't give it that chance.

A dark blue arc of electricity shot out from between his claws, moving with lightning speed, and struck the hind leg joint of the shallow-water crocodile with pinpoint accuracy.

"Crackling sound—"

The moment the electric arc struck, the muscles in the shallow-water crocodile's hind legs suddenly stiffened, and the nerves at the joints were directly paralyzed by the lightning magic.

Its hind legs went numb, and its whole body fell forward, its belly scraping against the pebbles for more than two meters, leaving a shocking bloodstain.

It struggled to get up, but the second arc of electricity followed immediately.

This time, Motu didn't hold back.

An electric arc extended from the tip of his claws, like a dark blue chain, wrapping around the belly of the shallow-water crocodile.

The paralyzing effect unique to lightning magic seeped into the muscles and nerves, disintegrating the beast's resistance from within.

The shallow-water crocodile's four legs twitched violently, but it couldn't muster any strength at all.

It opened its mouth as if trying to bite something, but the muscles in its mouth were also spasming, and it could only make indistinct gurgling sounds.

Motu walked up to it.

Bow down.

Looking down.

Fear finally surfaced in the shallow-water crocodile's yellowish-brown vertical pupils.

It wanted to back down, to lower its head again, and to flip over a few more fish as an apology.

But its body was no longer under its control; the paralyzing effect of the lightning magic was still ongoing, and it couldn't even close its eyes.

Motu raised his right paw.

The scales on the claw tips were all metallic, with a bluish-gray luster as cold and hard as iron.

He pressed the tip of his claw against the throat of the shallow-water crocodile, where the crocodile's scales are thinnest, with only a thin layer of skin covering the trachea and blood vessels.

"Don't--"

A vague thought emerged from the shallow-water crocodile's mind, intermittent, like the last struggle of a drowning person.

Motu's eyes remained completely expressionless.

The claw tip pierced in.

Fresh blood gushed out.

The crocodile's body twitched violently a few times before slowly relaxing.

The brownish-yellow vertical pupils lost focus, dilating and reflecting the sunlight filtering through the gaps in the tree canopy.

The pebble beach fell silent.

The river continued to flow, washing over the pebbles on the bank with a soft, rustling sound.

Shark White peeked out from behind the dead tree, stared blankly for a few seconds, and then rushed over in three steps.

Its vertical pupils shone like two lamps, and its three layers of serrations were all spread wide, as if it were grinning from ear to ear.

It circled the crocodile's carcass twice, poked its still-warm belly with its paw, and kicked its once-arrogant tail.

"Dead?" it asked.

"Dead," Motu replied.

"Is he really dead?"

"He's really dead."

Sha Bai remained silent for a second.

Then it leaped up, twisted its body in mid-air, and landed with a thud of its tail on the pebbles, letting out a joyful, almost howling cry:

"Hahaha! You old bastard! You've finally met your match! You stole my snake! You stole my Frost Serpent! Go ahead and try again! Try again!"

It pounced on the crocodile's carcass, kicking and stomping it while muttering curses, venting all the resentment it had accumulated over the past month.

Not satisfied with kicking it a few times, it opened its three-layered serrated edge and bit the crocodile's tail.

"Click—"

Its teeth pierced through the scales, but the crocodile's tail was too thick, and it only managed to bite in a small portion of it.

The carcass of the shallow-water crocodile twitched instinctively, and its tail lashed out violently.

"Snap—"

Shark White was hit squarely, his whole body flew out and rolled twice on the pebble beach, lying on the ground covered in dust.

But instead of getting angry, it chuckled and spat out half a piece of meat from the crocodile's tail as it laughed.

"That felt so good! So satisfying!"

Motu ignored it.

He crouched down, used his dragon claw to cut open the shallow-water crocodile's chest cavity, rummaged around inside for a moment, and pulled out a fist-sized crystal core with a pale blue halo.

First-tier water-type magic core.

The magic within was pure and gentle, unlike the violent dark crystal core of the Shadow Panther.

A pale blue light flowed slowly inside the crystal core, like a small, sealed ocean.

"Shark White." Motu tossed the crystal core between his claws. "Catch."

Shark White was climbing up from the pebbles when he heard this and paused for a moment.

It stared at the crystal core that shimmered with a pale blue light in the sunlight, its vertical pupils suddenly dilated, and its breathing became rapid.

The three layers of serrations involuntarily widened, and drool dripped from the corners of his mouth.

"For me?" Its voice trembled slightly.

"Otherwise what?"

Motu tossed the crystal core over.

"We had an agreement."

Shark White hurriedly caught it, cradling the crystal core in its paws as if it were a ball of fire.

Its eyes suddenly turned red, truly red, with bloodshot veins appearing around its vertical pupils—a surge of some ancient instinct within the dragon's bloodline.

"I knew I'd made the right choice following you!"

Its voice was hoarse, with a sob in it.

"Motu, I told you following you was the right choice!"

Motu didn't reply, but simply raised his chin slightly.

Shark White took a deep breath, put the pale blue crystal core into his mouth, tilted his head back, and swallowed it.

The moment the crystal core entered its stomach, its body suddenly froze.

A surge of powerful water-based magic erupted from its abdomen, rushing along its blood vessels and meridians to its limbs and bones.

The shark-white scales suddenly bristled, and a pale blue light seeped from the gaps between the silvery-white scales, as if something was about to burst out of its body.

It let out a low roar, braced itself on all fours, arched its body, and flipped open the scales on its back to reveal the muscles writhing violently beneath.

"Ugh... Ugh—"

The white shark's body began to swell.

It's not the kind of violent, tearing growth, but a gentle yet firm expansion.

Its size is increasing at a visible rate, its shoulders and back are widening, its limbs are getting thicker, and its tail is getting longer.

The silvery-white scales continuously shed and regenerate during the expansion process. The new scales are thicker than the old ones, and their edges have a faint blue sheen.

Its snout is also changing. The bloodline of the Megalodon begins to appear under the stimulation of magic. The third row of serrated teeth on the upper jaw slowly extends outward, interlocking with the original teeth to form a more ferocious bite structure.

The whole process lasted about the time it takes to brew a cup of tea.

As the last surge of magical energy subsided, Shark White slowly opened his eyes.

A fleeting pale blue light flashed in its vertical pupils.

It stood up, shook its scales, and felt its new body.

It was a size bigger than before, its size was now similar to Motu's, and its limbs were full of explosive power.

It tried to lift its claws, the scales at the tips gleaming slightly.

Although it cannot yet metalize like the Motu, its defensive capabilities far surpass those of the Sludge Belcher.

"I……"

Shark White lowered his head, looking at his reflection in the water, and murmured to himself.

"I've reached the first rank?"

"It has reached the first rank." Motu nodded.

Shark White was silent for a moment, then suddenly raised its head and let out a long howl towards the sky.

The howl contained six years of pent-up frustration, the anger of having his prey stolen last month, and all the resentment from struggling in this dark forest.

With all three layers of serrations fully extended, the vocal cords deep in his throat vibrated, emitting a roar unique to dragons, with a metallic quality.

The whistling sound echoed over the river in the dark forest, startling a large flock of birds into flight.

Motu stood quietly beside it, watching it.

When Shark White finished yelling, he lowered his head, panting heavily. His eyes were still red, but his mouth was stretched to his ears.

"Motu," it said, "I feel like I could take on ten of them!"

Motu glanced at it: "Then go find ten Mudbloods and try fighting them."

"Then forget it."

Shark White immediately shrank his neck and gave an embarrassed laugh.

"I just advanced, so I need to play it safe. I'm not the kind of arrogant dragon who doesn't know his own limitations."

It looked down at the carcass of the shallow-water crocodile, and the three layers of serrations split open again.

"But this old thing's crystal core is really good."

It patted the crocodile's belly with its paw, making a dull thud.

"It was worth it, that Frost Serpent from last month was definitely worth it!"

As it spoke, it bent down, opened its three-layered serrated teeth, and bit the tail of the shallow-water crocodile, picking up the entire four-meter-long crocodile carcass.

The corpse was larger than its body, hanging heavily at its mouth, its tail dragging on the ground, carving a shallow furrow in the pebbles.

Shark White, carrying the corpse in its mouth, mumbled indistinctly:

"Let's go, take it back as food! The meat of a first-tier magical beast is enough for us to eat for several days!"

"Such a big old crocodile must be more nutritious than the fish and shrimp in the river!"

Motu glanced at it: "You can carry it?"

"nonsense!"

Shark White rolled its eyes, but because it had an alligator in its mouth, the eye roll looked particularly comical.

"I'm at Tier 1 now! Tier 1, do you even understand? What's this little bit of weight compared to that?"

As it spoke, it deliberately puffed out its chest, only to be thrown off balance by the weight of the crocodile carcass and nearly fall over.

Motu ignored it and turned to walk downstream along the riverbank.

Shark White, carrying the crocodile carcass, followed behind, trotting along happily.

After taking a few steps, it suddenly stopped, put the crocodile carcass out of its mouth, and looked back at the river bend.

"What's wrong?" Motu asked without turning his head.

"fine."

Shark White picked up the crocodile again and said indistinctly.

"I just think...this place is nice. I'll come here for a bath when I have time. It's much more spacious than where we live."

It paused, then added:

"But we need to get rid of that old crocodile's smell first. I don't want to soak in its bathwater."

That old man is so careless; he throws leftover bones everywhere, making this pit smelly and foul!

Motu did not respond.

He was always amazed and speechless by Haku's occasional whimsical ideas, but this was already considered one of the smarter ones among Haku.

And so, the two dragons walked along the riverbank, one in front of the other.

The white shark carried the crocodile carcass in its mouth, its tail held high, its silvery-white scales gleaming like pearls in the sunlight.

It takes a few steps and then changes its mouth to adjust the crocodile's center of gravity, but it never lets go.

After walking for about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, Motu suddenly spoke.

"Shark White".

"Um?"

Shark White poked its head out from behind the crocodile's tail, with half a crocodile leg in its mouth.

"Do you remember that rocky area from before?"

Shark White was stunned for a moment, and almost dropped the crocodile leg from its mouth.

Of course it remembers.

That rugged, rocky hillside, with gray rocks piercing the sky like bone spurs. And there was that dark red, murky-eyed dragonborn kobold that had chased them halfway up the mountain.

That was one of the few times they had fled in such a sorry state during their years of hunting in teams.

"Remember."

Shark White put the crocodile carcass down, wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth with his paw, and his voice became serious.

"What? You want to...?"

"It owes us a life."

Motu said in a calm voice, as if he were simply remarking on the pleasant weather.

"It's time to collect them."

Shark White's vertical pupils lit up.

It lowered its head, looked at its silvery-white scales, and then at the faint white mark on Motu's side.

A few days ago, they were chased all over the place by that dog-headed man, afraid that if they were too slow, they would be beaten up again.

now--

"OK."

Shark White grinned, its three layers of serrated edges gleaming coldly in the sunlight.

"Then go and collect it."

It picked up the crocodile carcass again, its steps more powerful than before, displaying a more domineering demeanor.

The two dragons gradually disappeared along the riverbank, vanishing among the ferns and vines that shrouded the dark forest.

Behind them, a pool of blood and a few broken scales remained on the pebble beach, gradually losing their luster in the sunlight.

The river still flows, washing over the pebbles on the banks, making an unchanging sound.

Further away, in the direction of that rocky hill, gray rocks stand silently, like a group of prisoners awaiting judgment.

Those with dragon blood are inherently vengeful.