Chapter 90: The Path of the Crimson Scale (Part Three)
Chapter 90: The Path of the Crimson Scale (Part Three)
The afterglow of the setting sun could no longer shine into the valley; Wyvern Valley was filled with shadows, and the wyverns flew in the darkness, emitting noisy screeches.
Mantou's movements became increasingly skilled, almost forming muscle memory. He climbed the steep cliff walls and soon found the wyvern that was nearing exhaustion again.
"Roar roar——"
Seeing this troublesome human approaching again, the wyvern let out a strained screech, flapped its wings, and prepared to leave. But it had expended too much energy; even taking off was difficult.
"You think you can get away again?"
"Hehehe, stop struggling and let me ride you obediently."
A sly smile appeared on Mantou's face, and the lasso in his hand, like an auto-tracking device, accurately looped around the slender neck of the wyvern.
"Roar..."
This time, the wyvern didn't spend much energy struggling, only letting out a wail, allowing Mantou to tighten the rope and skillfully mount its back.
If not for the protection of scales, the wyvern's neck might have been chafed to the point of bleeding.
"Alright, alright."
"Another day of riding a wyvern."
Mantou patted the side of the wyvern's neck, then took out a spray and gave its head a thorough spritz.
The wyvern slowly stretched its wings, attempting to glide in the air, but soon couldn't hold on and crashed heavily to the ground.
"Roar——"
The wyvern used its last bit of strength, raised its head, and let out a long howl, then lowered its head and ceased any futile struggles.
The human on its back made this adolescent wyvern feel despair. For three whole days, this human had been trying to ride on its back, and no matter how many times he was thrown off, he would return.
Once, the human even fell from a height of a hundred meters, smashing into a pulp on the ground; it thought it had finally escaped this torment.
But unexpectedly, in less than half a day, the human returned to the valley unscathed and full of vigor, once again lassoing it and attempting to ride on its back.
This made it question its dragon life.
"Wow, I did it!"
Seeing the wyvern bow its head, Mantou was overjoyed, feeling immensely satisfied. He had been trying day and night here for three days and finally succeeded.
He tried to stroke the wyvern's head; this time, it didn't bite or even screech, just presented a posture of resignation.
Maybe it was tired of resisting, or perhaps it had truly submitted.
Mantou felt the texture of the wyvern's scales, sensed its pulse and breathing, experiencing a sense of relief after hardship.
Looking at the wyvern lying on the ground with eyes closed from exhaustion, he said to it:
"Should I give you a name..."
"Wife?"
"No, that's a bit vulgar, and you seem to be male."
"Big Dragon? That sounds a bit rough."
"Since I'm called Mantou, I'll call you... Noodle, since your neck is so long and slender."
Mantou cheerfully patted the wyvern's head.
"Noodle!"
"Roar..."
The wyvern slightly raised its head, letting out a weak response. It seemed indeed tired of resisting but had also submitted; the two were not mutually exclusive.
"Mantou, what kind of lousy name did you come up with!"
Singo descended nearby, riding his wyvern.
He had tamed his wyvern on the second day; according to him, he communicated using dragon language he secretly learned from the kobolds, which Mantou doubted.
Mantou protested, "Noodle has such a good meaning, unlike your crappy name."
Singo said proudly, "My mount is just called Wyvern, original flavor, what's wrong with that? Look at Ash; he just calls Pikachu Pikachu, didn't give it some silly name like Mantou Baozi."
Mantou cursed, "Stop making excuses for your lack of naming creativity, Singo."
Singo ignored him and said to Alger, who was supervising nearby, "Instructor Alger, we've completed the trial; can we advance now?"
Mantou stroked the wyvern's neck and said excitedly, "Crimson Scaled Conqueror, activate!"
"You can."
"You really... exceeded my expectations."
The usually taciturn Alger couldn't help but sigh; such talent was not just rare but beyond common sense.
"Eagle!"
Alger called softly.
A giant draconic eagle with a wingspan of nearly ten meters cast a massive shadow, then descended from the sky, making the two envious.
Alger skillfully mounted the draconic eagle, and without instruction, it flapped its wings and flew.
Without looking back, he said:
"Follow me; I'll take you to meet the master and complete the advancement ceremony."
Singo followed closely, riding his wyvern.
"Wyvern, let's go."
The wyvern seemed to know what was about to happen, excitedly raised its head and roared, flapped its wings, and followed closely.
Singo had used this to persuade the wyvern to submit; after becoming a Crimson Scaled Conqueror, it could also receive the precious bloodline blessing, gaining powerful abilities like their leader.
But at this critical moment, Mantou's "Noodle" faltered; it only weakly lifted its wings, indicating it was too tired to fly.
Mantou patted Noodle's neck side, almost in tears, even suspecting it was deliberately retaliating:
"Come on, Noodle, you need to get up."
"If you don't fly now, they'll leave!"
"Noodle" seemed annoyed by the urging, let out a low growl.
It struggled to flap its wings, taking great effort to ascend into the air, wobbling as it flew, making Mantou on its back feel constant turbulence.
The other two had already pulled far ahead.
"Wait for me——"
"Can't you consider a newbie on the road——"
Mantou shouted from afar, riding the bumpy wyvern.
Their commotion attracted the attention of many minions, especially seeing humans on the backs of wyverns; it was like seeing ghosts, feeling incredulous.
On the Rock Fortress, a hobgoblin guard patted his comrade's shoulder, pointing to the sky.
"Look!"
"What's that?"
"Isn't it just a wyvern—wait, there's a human riding on its back!"
"Th-they actually succeeded?"
The hobgoblin guard spread his hand to his comrade: "I win, one hundred copper coins."
The other guard cursed, "Did we even bet? Asking me for money, get lost!"
Then, the hobgoblin guard enviously watched the humans riding wyverns, muttering, "These two humans are about to soar to the sky..."
"Tell me about it; previously, Commander Doro sent six trusted aides to take the trial; four died, two fled, and Chief Steward Langpu mocked them for a long time."
"Tsk tsk, didn't expect these crazy beasts could be ridden by people."
"Yeah, I thought their brains were filled with slime."
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