Slowly drawing his energy back in and driving away the Radiant Crystal Butterflies that were continuously purifying Terastal energy across the surface of his body, Logan's physique visibly shrank by a layer.
Shara Ishvalda's attack methods relied very little on elemental attributes and possessed extremely high resistance to energy. The Radiant Crystal Butterflies, whose physical defenses were nowhere near as impressive as their energy resistance, would not last long in combat against Shara Ishvalda.
After all, that creature's vibration-based attacks were wide-area, large-scale assaults—powerful enough to directly shatter the mountain ranges of a small island. Aside from enduring them head-on, there was basically no better solution.
Rather than making such a pointless sacrifice, it was more cost-effective to leave these Radiant Crystal Butterflies—which had grown stronger and more active after being influenced by his abilities while purifying Terastal energy for him—on the Ancient Tree, thereby enhancing the Ancient Tree's overall strength.
Finishing today's Mosswine in just a few bites, Logan let out a low growl under Tonkotsu's puzzled gaze, then quickly spread his wings and flew out of the nest. He left behind only Tonkotsu, standing helplessly in place, a paw stretched out as if wanting to say something.
Just as Logan flew out of the Ancient Tree and began determining the direction of Origin Isle, he saw Aki returning after finishing her territorial patrol.
The moment she saw Logan preparing to cover his entire body with a Terastal membrane, she immediately knew what he was about to do.
With a turn of her wings, she swiftly changed direction and flew in front of Logan, blocking his path.
Slightly parting her jaws, her throat filled with a deep, low rumble.
Previously—whether it was the battle against Nergigante in the Wildspire Waste, or the fight in the Elder's Recess not long ago—Logan had left Aki behind. This time, she had caught him red-handed, and no matter what, she insisted on going with him.
Aki was highly intelligent, and she understood that Logan's behavior was, in a sense, also a form of protection.
But this kind of protection truly hurt her. Among Fire Wyvern couples—especially subspecies and special species—when facing an enemy, regardless of how strong the opponent was, husband and wife would typically face it together; even in death, they would die together.
Yet ever since Logan molted into an Elder Dragon, he had changed—so much so that whenever something dangerous came up, he would keep it from Aki and go alone.
Aki was not the kind of ordinary Rathian who knew nothing in the past. She, too, was an Elder Dragon. When Logan fought other Elder Dragons, she could sense the energy fluctuations released by their clashes, so Aki was very clear about the risks Logan faced in battle.
The moment she thought about her mate facing enormous risks alone while she had become dead weight—unable to help at all—Aki felt deeply stifled.
Her instincts told her to rush over and face it together, but reason told her to guard the Ancient Tree well. This place would be the safest harbor for Logan after he was injured.
In the end, reason overcame instinct. Aki forcibly restrained her impulse, and in the days when Logan was absent, she managed the Ancient Tree in perfect order. Then, once Logan returned, she would lead the Radiant Fire Wyvern guard team and push the Ancient Tree's defensive capability to the absolute limit.
But this time, she truly could not hold herself back anymore. That was why she instinctively moved to block Logan—blocking her other half, whose body had already grown far larger than her own, someone who had grown to the point that she now had to look up at him.
Only… this time, the one they were facing was Shara Ishvalda—
Judging purely by raw strength, it might only contend for a spot among the top five Disaster-level Elder Dragons. However, its combat style was a textbook weakling killer. Ordinary Elder Dragons, without highly specialized defensive capabilities, were not even qualified to take part in a battle against it.
Aki… truly possessed extraordinary talent. With the enhancement of the Symbiosis trait, she had forced her way into becoming an Elder Dragon. Yet even the Flame Rath couple ranked just below Aki were, to this day, still only Elder-Dragon-level creatures.
Relying on the long lifespan of Elder Dragons to slowly grind forward, Aki's endpoint would certainly not stop at her current level of strength—but that was a matter for the future.
When facing Shara Ishvalda, Logan had ample confidence. Even if he could not win, his life would not be in danger. But he could not guarantee that Aki would survive such a battle.
Therefore, in response to Aki's proactive request, Logan, after careful consideration, decisively refused her to her face.
There was no detour, no attempt at softening the blow. He stated it plainly and directly: this was not a battle Aki could take part in. With her current strength, she would only distract him.
After all, they were monsters. Sometimes, laying the cruel truth out in all its bloody clarity was the most direct solution.
This would not affect the bond between Logan and Aki. Being able to walk hand in hand to this point, they had long since tempered sufficiently strong emotional endurance. Moreover, given the innate obstinacy of Fire Wyverns, only this approach could completely extinguish Aki's thoughts.
Sure enough, after hearing Logan's answer, Aki's expression froze. Then, with dimmed eyes, she slowly lowered her head and flew to the side, yielding the path.
After taking a deep look at the instantly dejected Aki, Logan reaffirmed his resolve once more, spread his wings, and flew forward.
As he passed by Aki, her body stirred. Her wings beat rapidly as her entire form circled Logan twice, after which she flew onto his back. Her powerful hind claws gripped the thick scales along his back, and her spined jaw rubbed gently against the top of his head. Amid the rasping sound of scales brushing together, she let out soft, low murmurs.
Only after her body had taken on enough of Logan's scent did she slowly disengage, flying back to the Ancient Tree without looking back.
Logan turned his head to look at Aki's slightly lonely silhouette, took a deep breath, and let the Terastal membrane cover his entire body. With a violent sonic boom, he rapidly shrank into a single red dot in the distance.
Deep within the palace nest of the Ancient Tree, Aki hurried inside and looked at the red Terastal crystals growing along the corners of the walls.
These were crimson Terastal crystals that had grown after excess energy—overflowing when Logan actively constructed an internal energy circulation—was filtered by the Ancient Tree.
At this moment, the Radiant Crystal Butterflies that had separated from Logan were fluttering through this area. However, the energy purity of those Terastal crystals was such that even they could not remain perched on them for long, and could only absorb the energy by moving around the surrounding space.
Accompanied by heavy footsteps, Aki's pair of vertical pupils stared fixedly at those Terastal crystals, her mind filled with Logan's sharp, utterly unrelenting voice.
In the end, she clenched her teeth. Amid the panicked flurry of the Radiant Crystal Butterflies darting in all directions, she opened her blood-filled maw and bit down on a chunk of searing crimson Terastal crystal.
Feeling that exaggerated surge of energy explode inside her mouth, Aki clenched her jaws shut. Her teeth rapidly crushed it before she swallowed it down whole.
In the very next second, within her stomach—which was capable of devouring scorching minerals and possessed an extremely exaggerated digestive capacity—terrifying crimson energy erupted.
In just an instant, Aki felt as if that energy were a band of marauders sweeping in, breaking through all the energy organs within her body at once, forcibly expelling and suppressing the energy inside her.
The sensation—like her body was about to be torn apart—almost made her cry out in pain.
Yet the image of Logan kept flashing through her mind, along with that cold gaze of his. In the end, Aki forcibly swallowed the cry.
She lay down where she stood, closed her eyes, and tried to resist the pain in her body in this way.
As the crimson Terastal energy ravaged Aki's body, under the influence of the life energy within her, it also began to show faint signs of integration.
This was the only way Aki could think of—one that might allow her to catch up, as quickly as possible, to the partner who was growing farther and farther away.
She wanted to stand at Logan's side—whether in peace or in danger.
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