230: The Land of Dragons

Since everyone here is a dragon, I won't use || while he speaks.

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Scandinavia. 

The last time John had been here was with Fleur—back then, a shady merchant had scammed them, causing both of them to be sent flying to this place. 

It was also here that John met Heinrich, but after Heinrich ambushed Amohan and got chased around, John ended up getting dragged into the mess as well. 

Shoow~

The dragon convoy flew at a high altitude, avoiding many potential troubles along the way. 

Woosh~

Breaking through the clouds, John saw a valley in the distance with a ring-like formation. 

That was the Valley of Perpetual Rest.

As Amohan returned to its own territory, the dragon visibly perked up, its entire spirit revitalized. 

With such a massive team—four fire dragons—there weren't many creatures foolish enough to pick a fight with them. 

"That's the Valley of Perpetual Rest," Amohan said, flapping its wings. "Dragon Speaker, you'd best turn into a dragon. That place isn't very friendly to wizards." 

John nodded and stood up on Amohan's back. 

His exposed skin transformed into scales, and horns emerged from his forehead. 

Leaping off, he descended through the clouds, his body gradually enlarging. 

Under the sunlight, his deep emerald-green scales shimmered like glazed crystal.

"Roar—" 

As soon as John revealed his dragon form, several female dragons let out thunderous roars. 

The meaning was simple—things along the lines of "So handsome!" "Husband, look at me!" and "I'm your long-lost mate!" 

These were already mother dragons, yet they were acting like school girls who'd just seen the most attractive dragon alive. 

Amohan scoffed at them in disdain, but then its own eyes lit up, making John feel a little uncomfortable. 

"Dragon Speaker, your appearance is absolutely top-tier, even among all dragonkind." 

John's dragon form perfectly matched fire dragons' aesthetics—his long, powerful tail, fierce dragon horns, and razor-sharp teeth. 

In the world of dragons, the larger the creature, the more powerful it was. 

Among the dragons present, only Amohan could compare in size to John. 

But overall, John was still bigger. 

His current size exceeded 55 feet—undoubtedly fitting the definition of a giant dragon. 

"Why does it feel like I'm being followed by a bunch of female delinquents?" John shuddered. 

As he flew in front, the female dragons behind him stared intently, unblinking. 

The unsettling feeling almost made him want to shift back to human form.

Good news: there are dragon ladies. 

Bad news: they are actual dragons. 

Young John really couldn't handle this. 

Upon entering Breathless Valley, the female dragons finally restrained their gazes a little. 

As soon as he stepped into the valley, John felt an ancient and wild aura radiating from the surroundings. 

The circular mountain walls separated this place from the outside world, creating a secluded sanctuary where dragons resided. 

At the center of the ring stood a jagged mountain peak. 

"That is the Dragon Homeland, the sacred land of dragons," Amohan explained beside John, as if the female dragons had come to a mutual agreement to let her do the talking. 

"It is said that an ancient dragon perished here, and this peak was formed from one of its horns." 

The valley was teeming with fire dragons—at a glance, there were at least a thousand. 

This number was more than ten times what could be found in Romania. Fire dragons carved out caves within the valley to serve as their dwellings. 

Amohan's old home had already been taken over by a Norwegian Ridgeback. 

Originally, the Ridgeback had planned to act tough, but then it saw five giant dragons approaching.

Especially with John leading the group—his sheer size instantly crushed the Norwegian Ridgeback's courage, sending it scurrying away with its tail between its legs. 

After reclaiming her home, Amohan began introducing John to the situation here. 

"The Dragon Homeland is inhabited by Guardian Dragons. They are elders—rarely leaving this place—but they are immensely powerful and responsible for testing dragons." 

"Passing the test earns you your true name." 

Kicking a small dragon aside, Amohan led John inside. 

The dragon cave wasn't particularly large—after all, Amohan lived alone, so she didn't need much space. 

There weren't any treasures inside, just a few crystal pillars growing from the ground. 

The legend that dragons liked shiny things wasn't false. 

Amohan's eyes lit up instantly, and she pounced onto a massive crystal pillar. 

That was her bed. 

"The test begins on the fourth day after the full moon in April—that's the day the legendary ancient dragon perished." 

Lounging on the crystal pillar, Amohan became completely lazy. 

Seeing him like this, John wasn't surprised it had been ambushed by Heinrich back then. 

At the same time, he started to ponder. 

A full moon, huh? The night he left the Forbidden Forest had been a full moon. 

They had flown for three days. 

That meant… tomorrow was the test.

John stepped outside to see the three fire dragons, each carrying a small dragon of their own. 

The maternal instincts of female dragons naturally drove them to raise young dragons. 

Standing on a protruding rock platform, John overlooked this land inhabited solely by dragons. 

Every kind of dragon could be seen here. 

An Australian Opaleye had gotten into a conflict with the Norwegian Ridgeback that had been chased away earlier. 

The two dragons spewed fire at each other, and the situation quickly escalated. 

Before long, they were locked in battle, fighting from the ground to the sky. 

The Norwegian Ridgeback took a direct hit from the Australian Opaleye, its scales torn open by sharp claws. Blood splattered through the air as it was sent hurtling toward John's direction. 

The three small dragons had seemingly taken John as their father and were playing right at his feet when the injured Ridgeback came crashing toward them. 

He couldn't dodge—the little ones wouldn't survive the impact. 

So, with one powerful swipe, John's massive dragon claw grabbed the Norwegian Ridgeback by the neck and slammed it into the stone wall. 

Boom!

Chunks of rock crumbled from the impact, and the Ridgeback plummeted down. 

This scene sent a wave of shock through the Australian Opaleye below, while the commotion drew the attention of nearby dragons who had been resting. 

John's towering form and menacing dragon horns sent a clear message to the fire dragons around him—he was not someone to be trifled with.

Some battle-hungry dragons were eager to move. In dragon society, fighting was a way to establish one's status. 

So, naturally, some dragons wanted to challenge John. 

However, the moment that thought arose, it vanished just as quickly. 

John watched as the fire in the dragons' eyes dimmed, and one by one, they lowered their heads. 

"What's wrong with them?" he asked, confused. 

Amohan replied, "They fear your strength… because you have four mates." 

"Eh..?" John was completely dumbfounded. 

Dragons had an incredibly keen sense of smell, and they had caught the scent of several female dragons on John. 

Some male dragons gazed at him with awe and reverence—after all, female dragons were notoriously difficult to tame. 

For a single dragon to have four mates? That was practically a powerful rizz lord! 

At that moment, a green dragon flew over, its eyes filled with admiration. 

"Honorable great dragon, your strength fills me with respect." 

The green dragon was just one step away from outright begging to cling to John's leg. 

John was speechless. 

Then, the green dragon's gaze shifted past John and landed on Amohan, its expression instantly turning into one of utter longing.

It seemed that among dragons, Amohan was considered quite the beauty. 

Another dragon, a massive red one, flew over. It was nearly 50 feet long, with a tail lined with vicious spikes, exuding a fierce and intimidating presence. 

Like the green dragon before it, the red dragon's gaze locked onto Amohan. Then, it turned to John and bellowed, "I challenge you to a dragon duel!" 

A dragon duel? 

What was that? 

Keeping his expression neutral, John studied the red dragon. To him, it radiated an aura of pure aggression. 

"This 'dragon duel' you're talking about… is it like the fight between those two earlier?" 

Not understanding, John simply pointed at the Norwegian Ridgeback still sprawled on the ground. 

"Don't compare me to those two weaklings," the red dragon declared haughtily. "They were just playing around like hatchlings. This is different. If you lose, you have to give up the female dragon." 

…So dragon society is this straightforward, huh? 

John quickly pieced together what a dragon duel was—it seemed to be a method of determining ownership. 

In simpler terms, robbery. 

But among dragons, this kind of robbery was perfectly legal. The victor could seize not only mates but also territory, hoards, or anything else they desired. 

Truly, dragons had a charmingly simple and honest way of settling disputes.

"Sorry, but I can't agree to that. Amohan is not my possession after all."

Despite the red dragon's provocation, John remained calm and composed.

With an even tone, he added, "However, if you want to fight me, I can certainly oblige."

He was actually quite interested in testing the strength of these dragons.

Back in the first Triwizard task, he had observed fire dragons—beasts that even adult wizards struggled to handle alone.

Would his own dragon body be able to withstand their fangs and claws?

John was quite eager to experiment.

However, his attitude led the red dragon to misunderstand, taking it as blatant disdain.

"You dare joke with me!!"

With a furious roar, the massive dragon lunged straight at John.

John's eyes lit up. He mirrored the red dragon's stance and charged as well.

A deep, resounding boom echoed as they collided.

John raised a claw, but the red dragon lunged, sinking its teeth toward his neck.

Its fangs struck his scales, sending a jolt of pain through his neck. In response, John swiped his claw across the red dragon's body, sending it flying.

Rubbing his neck, John frowned.

Because of his human instincts, he usually fought using his hands and feet.

That made him forget—among dragons, their deadliest weapon was their venomous fangs.

Fortunately, the bite wasn't too deep—John's scales had remarkable defensive capabilities.

"That wasn't a joke. You chalanging me is a fucking joke!—RoooOOaar!!"

With a powerful flap of his wings, John shot toward the red dragon.

The red dragon adjusted its stance, its cheeks glowing red-hot as it unleashed a breath of fire at him.

Flames roared.

Heat surged up John's throat as he countered with his own dragon breath.

Unlike the red dragon's dispersed flames, his fire was concentrated and precise. In less than a second, his crimson blaze tore through the opposing flames, completely engulfing the red dragon.

A dragon's anguished wail echoed through the air as John landed on the ground.

When the fire dissipated, the red dragon's scales were charred black.

Using fire spells in dragon form… the power increases significantly.

John narrowed his eyes. Ancient magic combined with a fire dragon's body—his attack was strong enough to burn even a fellow dragon.

He strode toward the red dragon and pressed a heavy foot onto its head.

"Break its horns!" Amohan's voice rang out excitedly.

John felt the red dragon tremble beneath him.

With humiliation in its voice, the red dragon roared, "Kill me if you must!"

For a dragon, nothing was more humiliating than having its horns broken.

A hornless dragon would never be able to hold its head high again. John wasn't fully aware of this custom, but from the fear and shame radiating from the red dragon, he could tell it was a devastating disgrace.

"You brought this upon yourself," John spoke calmly as his claws gripped the red dragon's horns.

The red dragon was utterly terrified now.

"No! Don't!"

It tried to struggle, but John needed to establish his dominance. This was the way of nature and he had to show that he sits at the top.

Crack.

With sheer brute force, he snapped off both horns. The red dragon let out a heart-wrenching wail.

ROooooAaaaR—!

John held the two broken horns in his claws and let out a thunderous roar to the surrounding dragons.

This was the stance of a true victor.

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