The Mighty Dragons Are Dead

The capture of the Landwalker Bird was successful, and as dusk approached, Liszt dismissed the curious members of the Knight Order and began to ponder how to tame the Landwalker Bird.

This was not a horse that, upon defeating it, one could simply ride it.

It was a low-level Dragon Beast, perhaps not yet mature, but its magic power was already abundant. Through the Eye of Magic, Liszt could see the blue magic radiance, indicating that it was a Wind System low-level Dragon Beast. Wind System Magical Beasts were generally known for their incredibly fast running speeds, a fact that the Landwalker Bird's performance had proven.

"It can't yet cast magic; otherwise, the capture would have been much more difficult."

"But how to tame it? Without the emotional bond and conditioned reflexes forged from rearing it from a young age, it's impossible to tame it quickly like I did with the Earth Matron. Especially considering its current state of hostility towards me, it's even harder to subdue," Liszt mused as he stood in a pen, observing the Landwalker Bird huddled in a corner.

The Landwalker Bird had been unbound, but was confined in a warehouse converted into a pen within the castle.

At first, when Liszt entered, the Landwalker Bird had tried to attack him, but after a few punches imbued with Dou Qi from Liszt, it shrank back into its corner and dared not meet Liszt's gaze directly.

This allowed Liszt to study it in peace.

Using the Eye of Magic, he observed the magic power within the beast's body to see what differed from typical Magical Beasts: "There's no doubt that this peculiar bird is the low-level Dragon Beast Landwalker Bird, the reward from the Smoke Mission. It seems to be in its fledgling stage, with magic power that appears somewhat stagnant and incoherent."

When it came to researching Magical Beasts, Liszt dared to consider himself the foremost expert on Coral Island.

After all, he spent all day studying the Blizzard Beasts.

He had an entire set of experiential notes on Douson's transformations, and now he also had extensive notes on the Eight Tiny Ones, understanding clearly the changes in the magic power within Magical Beasts. He also had a mass of observations and records on Elves' magic power, and even that of Sea Serpents.

Therefore, he quickly identified some traits in the Landwalker Bird's magic power that were different from typical Magical Beasts.

"Its magic power seems to fall somewhere between that of Magical Beasts and Elves. Analyzing the rate of dissipation, its magic power decays much slower than that of Magical Beasts. Could this situation be judged by the degree of solidity of the magic power itself?" Liszt speculated internally.

He had summarized the properties of magic power from different species.

The magic power of Dragons was undoubtedly the most wondrous, able to be inscribed for a long time without dissipating. The Fire Dragon on Black Horse Island, despite being dead for who knows how many years, still had magic power that could manifest as a Magic Little Fire Dragon.

The degree of solidity was very high, nearly perpetual.

The magic power of Elves was undeniably second only to that of Dragons. Through the Cordyceps, they released magic power that constantly affected the surrounding flora. Although it couldn't be inscribed for the long term, it could slowly imbue the environment. While different from the Dragons' magic power in terms of solidification, the effect was similar.

The magic power of Magical Beasts was definitely a bit inferior, solely leading to the activation of magic spells.

By comparison, human Dou Qi was the most pathetic, as it was constantly dissipating, virtually impossible to stop - despite this, the utilization of Dou Qi by humans could not be said to be poor because it held endless possibilities for executing various Combat Skills.

Dragons were like the epitome of solidified magic power, even representing certain rules.

Humans were naturally devoid of magic power and incapable of storing it for extended periods, yet they had an endless array of cultivation methods to refine magic power (as Dou Qi is a form of magic power).

It was as though they were two extremes.

Liszt even had a bold guess, "The infinitely variable Dou Qi, when combined with the most wondrous magic power, might spark an extraordinarily delightful chemical reaction? Perhaps this is why Dragon Knights are invincible in the world?"

There wasn't too much theoretical evidence to support his conjecture.

The existence of Dragon Knights was a phenomenon currently inexplicable.

He shelved his thoughts and focused on the magic power of the Landwalker Bird: "It seems that magic power has reached a critical point, which reminds me of when Douson evolved, stimulated by the Bloodline Fruit... Could it be that this Landwalker Bird is also on the verge of metamorphosis? Does it hope to use the Elf Bug's magic power as a breakthrough?"

The more he thought about it, the more likely it seemed.

Otherwise, there was no explaining why the Landwalker Bird, even while surrounded, kept a longing gaze fixed on the Elf Bug.

"What a pity, I won't use Elf Bugs to feed the Landwalker Bird." Every Elf Bug not only represents its underlying value but also embodies beauty.

He thought of Jela and wondered if the Thorn Minor Elf, after losing his restraint, might rebel within the castle.

"If I can't use Elf Bugs, how can I stimulate the metamorphosis of the Landwalker Bird?" Liszt stroked the Space Gem and pulled out a vial of Thorn Magic Potion, "Could a magic potion have the same effect? The stimulation of external magic power should be able to replace the magic of an Elf. It's worth a try."

In fact, there was no need for further conjecture.

As soon as he took out the Thorn Magic Potion, the Landwalker Bird reacted, its body tensed up, and its eyes fixated on the crystal tube in Liszt's hands.

"Cluck!"

"You want this?"

"Cluck!"

"Let me ride you, and I'll give it to you."

"Cluck!" The Landwalker Bird dodged Liszt's approach, but its gaze remained on the Thorn Magic Potion.

Liszt thought for a moment, took out a small Jade Box, poured out a bit of the Thorn Magic Potion, and offered it to the Landwalker Bird. The bird looked at Liszt's outstretched hand, pecked quickly, snatched the Jade Box away, then threw back its head and drank the tiny bit of magic potion that was less than the size of a fingernail cap.

After drinking it, it extended its tongue and licked the Jade Box until it was nearly broken before reluctantly tossing it aside and calling out to Liszt again, "Cluck!"

"Want more? If you want more, let me ride!"

After several temptations, the Landwalker Bird, succumbing to allure, finally allowed Liszt to seize the opportunity and mount it. Its broad, plump body was very suitable for riding, and its thick feathers were extremely soft, especially the patch on its neck and back, which was just like a natural saddle.

The Landwalker Bird, upon being ridden by Liszt, immediately wanted to lash out.

However, the next moment, it quickly steadied itself and allowed to be ridden because Liszt already had the remaining half-tube of Thorn Magic Potion close to its mouth.

The allure of the Thorn Magic Potion was irresistible to it. It grabbed the crystal tube, tipped it back to drink the potion, then cleaned the tube thoroughly, contentedly calling, "Cluck!"

It temporarily forgot that it still bore a person on its back.

"Good, just like that. Ride, and you get a potion. Got it?" Liszt smiled smugly, taming a low-level Dragon Beast was just that simple.

Unlike a simple beast or Magical Beast, the Landwalker Bird exhibited higher intelligence, which precisely made it very susceptible to temptation.

Riding meant a magic potion.

If you want the potion, you have to be ridden.

Simple logic quickly imprinted on its clever mind.

Riding the Landwalker Bird around the enclosure a few times, once he found that it had adapted to being ridden, Liszt shouted outside, "Thomas, open the door to the enclosure."

The door was opened.

The Landwalker Bird burst out in a flash, shaking Liszt on its back, showing signs of a wild outburst. Liszt hastily took out a new vial of Thorn Magic Potion and instantly stabilized the Landwalker Bird. He then used the potion to guide it to change direction and head back toward the enclosure.

Finally, after another vial of Thorn Magic Potion was used up, the Landwalker Bird obediently entered the enclosure.

"Successfully tamed!"

Liszt left the enclosure smiling, looking at the reluctant Landwalker Bird and feeling good: "Success in acquiring a low-level Dragon Beast as a mount, a few more training sessions, and it should be completely tamed... The only issue is having to use magic potions to tame it, which is a bit costly."