Chapter 268 - 269: The Killing Instinct
Zhu Minglang’s heart was filled with lingering fear.
In fact, all of this happened in just a few seconds, and Zhu Minglang, a Monarch Level Dragon Shepherd, never would have thought that he himself could have nearly fallen victim to a trap set by a few Mourning Dragons!
Indeed, in nature, no matter the level of the creatures, everyone should maintain a sense of awe; they are weak yet proliferate, they are strong for a reason, and they cause all the demons and spirits around to dare not show themselves, and there’s a reason for that!
The towering wooden gates slowly reopened a crack, and Zhu Minglang walked gently inside.
He was still immersed in the terror of the three Mourning Dragons, while the Pear Blossom Gully Guards who were near the wooden fort’s gates were all looking at Zhu Minglang as if they were looking at a monster!
In Pear Blossom Gully, they had many strong individuals, including both Divine and Mortal beings and Dragon Shepherds, but even if they formed a team and carefully laid out their plans, killing a single Mourning Dragon was extremely difficult.
This visitor, however, had killed three ambushing Mourning Dragons before everyone had the chance to react!
Such a powerful guest!!
They should be welcomed warmly!!
“He killed three Mourning Dragons, he killed three Mourning Dragons!”
Someone within the village was the first to shout this out loud, and soon after, people surrounding the village came flocking over, treating him like a hero!
Zhu Minglang was also dizzy.
Seeing the incredible excitement of the people around, it wasn’t that he had been careless and nearly capsized in the gutter, but that these Mourning Dragons were indeed extremely difficult to deal with, and it was very difficult to kill them!
“This is our new City Lord from Runyu City, who came to help you after seeing the distress letter from Pear Blossom Gully,” Hu Bailing hurriedly introduced to the people from First Village.
“Zhu Warrior, we are truly grateful for your help. If you hadn’t come, we wouldn’t have even known that three Shadow Funeral Dragons were lurking right outside our door. You saved the lives of the entire patrol team that would have passed by here tomorrow!” At this moment, a middle-aged man with a face full of wrinkles came up, clasping Zhu Minglang’s hand and expressing his gratitude incessantly.
Zhu Minglang glanced to the side and saw a patrol of twenty young men and women; the young man with the beast-fur cap who had questioned them at the gate was also among them.
“These Mourning Dragons are indeed terrifying,” Zhu Minglang said.
Clearly, the people from the First Village of Pear Blossom Gully were also unaware of the Mourning Dragons right outside their gates.
Every day at dawn, they would send out a patrol team to the wild cliffs and mountains near the village, and it seemed the Mourning Dragons had grasped the patrol schedule of their fort, planning to ambush the team.
Unfortunately for the Mourning Dragons, Zhu Minglang and his group had arrived just as night fell…
What was particularly frightening upon further thought was that these Mourning Dragons hadn’t attacked as this group passed by; they apparently realized that there were quite a few people with high cultivation bases among them, and a hasty attack might have resulted in all the dragons being counter-killed.
They chose the moment when the wooden gate opened and only one or two people were left outside to appear; their target was very clear—it was to kill the last person in the group!
Such meticulous planning, such skillful hunting cooperation, was even more terrifying than some trained assassins!
Even some humans with simple thoughts and little experience seemed somewhat foolish in front of their intelligence.
“Mourning Dragons are natural hunters, born for slaughter. According to the sayings from the Church, Mourning Dragons once served the God of Death, and slaughter is in their very bones, other creatures are mostly born for survival, evolution, and reproduction, but Mourning Dragons are born only for killing, and any living thing in their eyes is prey, even if it means perishing together, they won’t hesitate to pounce,” the middle-aged man with the wrinkled face said.
Including humans, the first instinct is also survival.
Mourning Dragons’ primary instinct is to kill.
How can such dragons not strike terror into the hearts of all living beings in this world? No wonder the people of Runyu City would sigh and express such deep fear whenever Mourning Dragons were mentioned.
Zhu Minglang had experienced it personally.
To kill him, they would stop at nothing.
Even when facing the Divine Green Holy Dragon and the Ice Morning White Dragon, who had higher cultivation bases than themselves, they would charge without a second thought.
This instinct for slaughter already flouted the natural laws of survival, and to make matters worse, Mourning Dragons were highly intelligent and lived in groups.
In Zhu Minglang’s opinion, if Pear Blossom Gully had been weaker or less vigilant, it wouldn’t take long before the tens of thousands of people there turned into skeletons!
“Previous generations of Mourning Dragons didn’t seem to be this terrifying,” Hu Bailing said, furrowing her brow.
“This generation of Mourning Dragons has become more powerful. It seems they have evolved even more bizarre hunting abilities. Did you see that shadow? That’s something new,” said the uncle.
“In addition, there are other Mourning Dragons with different abilities, such as the Polluted Night Sacrifice Dragons. Their breath spreads through water sources, turning all drinkable water into a kind of poison. Once someone drinks this water, they not only cannot sustain life but also become delirious, performing actions that help the Mourning Dragons kill,” said the young man with the beast fur hat.
“Contaminating water sources, beguiling people’s hearts?” Nan Yuso asked in surprise.
These two abilities were rarely seen in Demon Spirits or Demon Spirits. What kind of lineage did these Mourning Dragons have to inherit such frightening powers?
Water source contamination.
This ability was particularly malicious.
All creatures need water; even the strongest beings must drink sufficient water within three days, or else they cannot harness their divine power.
That means if a single Polluted Night Sacrifice Dragon accidentally enters the village, the entire place would be in a dire situation.
Realizing this, Zhu Minglang now understood the young man with the beast fur hat’s actions in closing the gates; indeed, he could not risk the lives of the entire village.
“These are just the Mourning Dragon abilities we are aware of. There are other Mourning Dragons with terrifying killing talents, and it’s said these are not only appearing in our Pear Blossom Gully; some towns and villages in the Tea-colored Ground have also suffered,” said an enormous patrolling youth.
“Do you know their approximate numbers?” Zhu Minglang asked.
The uncle with the folds, the young man with the beast fur hat, and the others all shook their heads.
They could not be sure of the exact number of Mourning Dragons. Their Pear Gully Guards had the best defenses and had still lost over a thousand lives. The situation was even worse in the other larger villages, and it was uncertain whether they were still alive.
“Our situation here is somewhat better; at least we’ve secured the water source and have enough food. We are unable to help the other villages…” the uncle with the folds said.
“Chieftain, chieftain!” At that moment, a man dressed in a leather outfit came running hurriedly.
The uncle with the folds turned around and upon seeing the man’s pale face, he instinctively displayed a grave expression—it seemed like there was more bad news.
“The brothers transporting water to the second village may be in trouble, a bloodied carrier pigeon from Geng Fengnong has returned,” the man reported.