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MHD Chapter 145: Meanwhile, Chameleos Fights a Lock
🕑 Added 2025-08-27 20:30:13 +0000 UTC[Record: The Fire Wyvern King of the Ancient Tree appears to possess the ability to completely command the Fire Wyvern pack of the Ancient Tree. Years of leading the pack have given it the presence of an ‘Overlord,’ a pressure so intense it can even affect hunters.]
After finishing the entry, the Wyverian scholar flipped to another page in the female compiler’s notebook, pointing at one of her sketches.
“Here—you wrote that when the Fire Wyverns gather, the temperature rises, and their flames ignite the very sky, burning away the clouds. Sigh…”
The Wyverian scholar let out a long breath.
“They are Fire Wyverns, not Elder Dragons. They do not have the ability to alter the heavens.”
The young compiler’s cheeks flushed with embarrassment.
“That was… just embellishment. But when the Fire Wyverns do gather, the temperature really does rise. In fact, during winters, the settlement in the Wildspire Waste never feels cold when the Fire Wyvern pack is there.”
“I know. That peculiar phenomenon had already drawn the attention of the Research Commission. From the soil samples we collected, we found levels of fire-elemental energy far exceeding the norm. At first we thought it coincidence, but now it seems the Fire Wyvern pack of the Ancient Tree may have undergone some unknown mutation.”
[Record: The Fire Wyvern pack of the Ancient Tree may possess the ability to attract fire-elemental energy, thus reshaping their habitat to a certain extent. The exact cause remains unclear.]
“Now, let’s move on to this. The Fire Wyvern King’s body has recently undergone a special development. Its wings, likely due to absorbing excessive amounts of bioenergy from the land, have mutated—becoming better suited for flight, and seemingly capable of manipulating airflow. Its scales have begun shifting toward a silvery-white hue.
“Taken together with investigation records from recent years, we can infer that the Fire Wyvern King is in the midst of transforming into a rare subspecies. Its body is undergoing specialization in both flight and flame, making it a ‘special,’ ‘tempered’ individual whose ecological threat level approaches that of an Elder Dragon.”
“Or perhaps an unknown Elder Dragon, one resembling a Fire Wyvern in appearance, capable of leading them!”
The Wyverian scholar read her words aloud, enunciating each one, then raised his head and looked straight into the female compiler’s eyes.
“Are you sure this passage isn’t describing an Elder Dragon? And consider this—there are scales of the Fire Wyvern King preserved here in Astera. From every angle of analysis, it is indeed a Fire Wyvern, not some unknown Elder Dragon.”
“This was supposed to be… independent ecological speculation,” the female compiler muttered, her voice growing smaller and smaller. It was obvious that even she felt her last remarks had been a little excessive.
“I told you to speculate, not to invent. You—forget it. The first half of your notes still counts as a reasonable hypothesis, so I’ve recorded that. As for the rest, go read more of your seniors’ field notes. Learn how they conduct observations and keep their records.”
The Wyverian scholar no longer wished to continue the lecture. He handed the notebook back to her without saying anything overly harsh.
Everyone had to grow in their own time. She was still young—if she studied the notes of other compilers, she would surely come to understand how a proper ecological record should be made.
The young compiler accepted the notebook, quickly tucked it away, then bowed deeply with her face burning red before dashing off. At that moment, she wished she could crawl into the nearest hole and disappear.
The Wyverian scholar shook his head, organizing his own records. He went back to reread the contents from start to finish, and the longer he looked, the less convinced he felt.
Why did these extracted details seem so far-fetched?
Could a Rathalos truly accomplish such feats? Or could it really be—an Elder Dragon that only resembled a Rathalos in form, one capable of commanding the Fire Wyvern pack?
The thought surged within the Wyverian Scholar’s mind, and once it arose, it was hard to stop. He quickly ordered all records concerning Logan’s sightings to be gathered and arranged along a timeline. Once he reviewed them in order, he finally uncovered a startling truth.
Logan’s growth trajectory was nothing like the normal process of biological evolution. It couldn’t even be classified as a typical mutation.
The earliest record had come from the Admiral himself: a Rathalos with fire-specialized abilities. Later, the scales Logan shed exhibited the unique property of absorbing flame energy to increase hardness. At the time, if not for the Second Fleet Master using a forging method designed specifically for Elder Dragon materials to temporarily block the energy circuits within the scale, it would have been impossible to use it normally.
“Possessing a stable and balanced temperament, an intelligence capable of communication with humans, a symbiotic relationship with the Grimalkynes—and even revered as a god by them. He now commands a collective of Fire Wyverns, creatures that were never known to form true groups. And on top of that, he has developed specialized adaptations for flight."
"A complete energy circuit, scale traits that utterly defy biological law… If we disregard his Rathalos-like appearance and habits, then this could very well be considered a not-yet-mature Elder Dragon!”
“Perhaps it’s really as that girl said—an unknown Elder Dragon with an appearance remarkably similar to a Rathalos!”
Without realizing it, the Wyverian Scholar had already filled more than half a page of his large notebook.
“In nature, there are many creatures that are poor at raising their own offspring. They secretly place their eggs in the nests of species whose juveniles have a similar appearance, tricking the host into incubating and raising them. Such creatures usually develop toward one of two extremes."
"First, during the juvenile stage, they violently kill their ‘siblings’ one by one to ensure sufficient food and care. Once grown, they often turn on the foster ‘parents’ as well before leaving the group. Representative species: Yian Garuga and Yian Kut-Ku."
"Second, by relying on their resemblance and superior abilities, they forcibly bind themselves to the group and eventually become its leader. However, this typically only occurs between subspecies and their base species."
"Thus, it cannot be ruled out that there exists an unknown Elder Dragon, one that—before reaching maturity—bears an outward resemblance to a Rathalos. Through such reproductive strategy, it could trick Rathalos into raising its offspring."
"If that is the case, then the reason why Rathalos in the New World have suddenly displayed nearly complete group behavior in recent years finally makes sense.”
Satisfied, the Wyverian Scholar reread his notes, feeling as though he had returned to his younger days as a field ecologist.
Accurately extracting the underlying “truths” from both compiler and hunter records was not something just anyone could achieve.
Carefully putting away his notes, he thought ahead to the next meeting—he could submit them then, to make others take this seriously. After all, this might be the only Elder Dragon ever to show a friendly attitude toward the Research Commission!
...
After completing his routine patrol of his “new territory,” the plantation, a Chameleos prepared to test out the new lock on the warehouse. Suddenly, its nose twitched with an itch. Thanks to its powerful self-control, it easily suppressed the urge and, with lofty steps, made its way toward the warehouse.
It absolutely had to challenge that new lock today!
...
Ancient Forest.
Three days had already passed.
For Logan, those three days had been equal parts painful and joyful.
If it had to be put into a single sentence: for the past three days, every single hunt outside had been arranged entirely by Aki.
He had never imagined there would come a day when his stamina would fail him like this.
Fortunately, what brought him comfort was that Rathalos, as apex creatures, did not resemble the great beasts of his previous life, where the stronger they were, the shorter the duration.
If it were like a tiger—done in just over twenty seconds—Logan would have collapsed long ago.
Every time he returned to the nest to bask in the sun, he would often catch the kind of knowing glances that only “those with experience” could give. After all, the Rathalos of the New World were known for keeping harems—this feeling, they understood very well.
