Chapter 256 - 161: Panlong Jade Willow

Once this Dragon Egg hatched, the World Dragon—legendary for having a body as magnificent as a small town—would be like a fortress that could move freely across land and sky.

A fortress like this, with a Guardian Beast as its core, could be considered the most precious Foundation Level resource for any faction.

Zhong Yi had given Tao Niannian a new lease on life and rescued her from her dire circumstances.

Tao En felt it was necessary to do something for Zhong Yi in return.

"Sir Zhong Yi, since you already know of the World Dragon's existence, I won't go into excessive detail."

"Please, Sir Zhong Yi, accept this World Dragon Egg."

"If you wish to have a powerful World Dragon in the future, Sir Zhong Yi, then please provide this World Dragon Egg with ample resources."

"Raising a World Dragon Egg's Quality is far more difficult than increasing its Tier."

"However, raising its Quality while it's still inside the Dragon Egg yields better Exclusive Traits than raising its Quality after it has hatched."

"I read in some ancient literature that certain World Dragons can acquire an Exclusive Trait that conceals their form."

"An invisibility-type Exclusive Trait like that is enough to change the course of a war."

"I actually bought that piece of ancient literature I was studying at the time, and I've kept it well-preserved to this day."

As Tao En spoke, he went into a back room and began to rummage around.

Zhong Yi couldn't help but marvel. The Ability called All Things Exploration, which the Soul-Controlling Flower had given him, was simply too powerful.

Before this World Dragon Egg hatched, even someone like Tao En, who was once a Five-finger Peak Creator, couldn't discern what kind of Abilities the creature inside possessed.

Zhong Yi had no need to look at Tao En's collection of ancient texts to corroborate his words.

After all, the Exclusive Trait this unhatched Cloud Ridge Boundary Dragon gained upon reaching Silver Quality—Shadow Stealth—was an excellent concealment Ability.

Furthermore, the Ghost Cloud it condensed using its own Energy was exceptionally good at hiding its aura and tracks.

After entering its stealth state, it would also gain a boost to its movement speed.

It could freely increase its speed while in its stealth state, with the increase being dependent on its rate of Energy consumption.

If the Cloud Ridge Boundary Dragon was willing to expend a massive amount of Energy, its speed could even multiply several times over.

Normally, for a colossus to soar through the sky or charge across the land, it would need to consume an immense amount of Energy.

The larger the creature, the more Energy its daily movements require.

This has always made resupplying colossal Guardian Beasts a major challenge for the Guardian Beast Masters who have Contracted them.

However, thanks to its Basic Skill, Domain Orbit, after bonding with a designated world, the Cloud Ridge Boundary Dragon would draw upon the world's Energy to move—whether floating in the sky or running on the ground—rather than consuming its own.

This meant the Cloud Ridge Boundary Dragon didn't need to activate Skills to move, allowing it to cruise through the sky or walk on the ground at a stable, constant speed.

If one wished to build the Cloud Ridge Boundary Dragon into an indestructible battle fortress or a mobile city, its Basic Skill, Domain Orbit, was the key to making it possible.

Without the Basic Skill Domain Orbit, even if the Cloud Ridge Boundary Dragon were built into a war fortress, the Energy required for movement would be impossible to sustain.

Some massive Creatures, just to sustain the Energy required for movement, spend nearly all their waking hours foraging for food.

In the Guardian Beast World, very few Guardian Beast Masters Contract elephant-type or whale-type Guardian Beasts.

Guardian Beast Masters who have Contracted these types of Guardian Beasts often have one to two fewer Guardian Beasts than their peers.

This wasn't because these two types of Guardian Beasts were especially difficult to raise, but because their daily upkeep was far more expensive than that of other Guardian Beasts.

Both of this Cloud Ridge Boundary Dragon's Exclusive Traits were outstanding.

However, compared to Shadow Stealth, Zhong Yi valued the Exclusive Trait Chain Defense even more.

The Cloud Ridge Boundary Dragon could activate all non-living objects attached to its body and link with them.

It could use the Defense Ability and other defensive properties of these objects to enhance its own Defense Power.

As long as one had the money and resources, and was willing to spend a fortune to build upon the Cloud Ridge Boundary Dragon's body using sturdy materials with Energy-absorbing and buffering properties.

Then, the massive Cloud Ridge Boundary Dragon would never have to fear being focused down by enemy units, despite its huge size and immense strategic value.

Even a Five-finger Peak Creator like Tao En lamented that the Dragon Egg before him, which nurtured a Cloud Ridge Boundary Dragon, was a bottomless pit.

Zhong Yi could foresee that raising the Cloud Ridge Boundary Dragon in the future would consume a massive amount of resources.

But no matter how many resources it consumed, raising such a strategically significant and miraculous creature was worth it to Zhong Yi.

Others couldn't form a Contract with a creature like the Cloud Ridge Boundary Dragon, but thanks to his Soul Taming Seed, Zhong Yi could do so while it was still an unhatched Dragon Egg.

The Soul Power required to Contract a Cloud Ridge Boundary Dragon surely wouldn't be greater than the Soul Power he had spent Contracting the Hundred-Eyed Moon Demon and supporting it to bloom so many Moon Eyes Flowers.

Since Tao En had gifted him the Cloud Ridge Boundary Dragon's egg, Zhong Yi stored it directly within his Soul Base.

Not long after Zhong Yi put the Dragon Egg away, Tao En emerged from the back room and quickly walked over, presenting the ancient text in his hands to Zhong Yi.