Chapter 15

The dry and cold climate of autumn made every ray of sunlight seem precious and warm.

On the rippling lake surface, Zhu Minglang stood solemnly at the edge of a wooden pier extending into the lake, watching the fast-moving blue-spotted fish demons in the water, and then glanced at the little crocodile dragon lying exhausted beside him, almost on its back.

“Clack clack clack clack~~~~~~~~~~”

A group of blue-spotted fish demons quickly flicked their tails, splashing water around the little crocodile dragon, full of mockery.

These damned blue-spotted fish demons...

They were extremely fast, far more agile than the wild grouper fish by the river. Despite their large numbers and being so close, every time the little crocodile dragon lunged at them, they would dodge in perfect coordination, leaving the little crocodile dragon empty-handed.

An entire afternoon of chasing, not a single blue-spotted fish demon was caught. No wonder no one would take on this mission; it was much harder than it looked!

“Don’t be discouraged, don’t be discouraged. It’s just that our method isn’t quite right. I’ll study these blue-spotted fish demons and we’ll try again tomorrow!” Zhu Minglang comforted the little crocodile dragon.

The little crocodile dragon hung its head in dejection, probably not expecting to be so useless, to the point where even the blue-spotted fish demons could mock it.

If this continues, when will it be able to match the waterfall dragon?

...

As night fell, Zhu Minglang still locked the door and headed to the Dragon Storage Hall.

The little creatures in the Dragon Storage Hall actually had some extraordinary attributes that set them apart from wild beasts. Moreover, most of them had just hatched or were still in their infancy, making them easy to tame and raise, and the best choice for most aspiring dragon tamers.

However, even after artificial selection, the chances of them becoming dragons were still very small.

As some of the little creatures in the Dragon Storage Hall grew and no one was willing to take them away, they would mostly be released.

Tonight, Zhu Minglang was helping Old Mr. He release some of the larger, destructive, and aggressive little creatures. They couldn’t just let them stay here and freeload for the rest of their lives, could they?

Busy for the first half of the night, Zhu Minglang found that releasing them was not an easy task. After all, most of the creatures to be released were still aggressive, and they had injured or killed other little creatures in the Dragon Storage Hall...

“You can go back when it’s light. There’s a resonance bell over there. Don’t ring it unless there’s a breakout of the young spirits. The elderly need their sleep, and if they are disturbed once, they might not sleep well for a month. The meat silkworms you want are at the back of the hall. Take as many as are delivered; not many young spirits eat this stuff, and I don’t know who brought these inferior insects to supplement the food supply.” Old Mr. He instructed Zhu Minglang.

“Alright, Mr. Old, you go back and rest.” Zhu Minglang nodded.

“I left with a certain number, and I must return with the same number, not one less.” Old Mr. He said.

“Don’t worry, I won’t let any of the little guys be missing.” Zhu Minglang replied.

...

Following Old Mr. He’s instructions, Zhu Minglang patrolled every hour to prevent creatures with “weasel” tendencies from stealing young spirit eggs. Afraid of any accidents, he patrolled more frequently.

While patrolling, Zhu Minglang unexpectedly discovered a pond where a group of young blue-spotted fish spirits were being raised.

The academy was being too perfunctory, just catching a few young blue-spotted fish from the lake to make up the numbers!

These young blue-spotted fish spirits were slightly different; their spots were more translucent, and they already had long whiskers even at a very young age.

“So that’s it. When they gather, they use the movement of these whiskers to alert their companions of danger. This way, the other blue-spotted fish demons can dodge the little crocodile dragon’s attacks in advance!” After observing for a while, Zhu Minglang suddenly understood.

“But purely in terms of speed, the blue-spotted fish demons are much faster. Little Black Tooth needs to train in the waterfall vortex, to get used to the water resistance and improve its speed!”

...

Sharpening the axe doesn’t hinder the chopping of wood. The next afternoon, Zhu Minglang didn’t rush to let the little crocodile dragon outsmart the grouper fish demons. Instead, he went to the waterfall vortex where they had been sucked in.

After two days of feeding, the little crocodile dragon had grown to about 1.2 meters, and its physique was clearly much stronger than before.

The waterfall vortex, with its strong resistance and suction, was an excellent method for physical training.

“Today’s goal is not to be swept away...”

For safety, Zhu Minglang found a long rope and tied it around the little crocodile dragon’s body. If it couldn’t hold on, it could use this to relieve the pressure.

The little crocodile dragon was very determined. For the entire afternoon, it hovered at the mouth of the waterfall, never being swept away by the strong current. This training method made its newly grown black crocodile skin much stronger.

On the third day, Zhu Minglang still didn’t take the little crocodile dragon to catch the grouper fish demons.

After eating a full basket, the little crocodile dragon seemed to have grown even larger. Zhu Minglang increased the training difficulty, not only requiring the little crocodile dragon not to be swept away by the waterfall vortex but also to swim upstream against the current and quickly escape the hidden vortex.

“Great, you’ve completed today’s task. You no longer need the safety rope. Eat more tomorrow morning, and we’ll try to attack in the strong resistance of the waterfall current!”

After another night of guarding, Zhu Minglang received two baskets of large meat silkworms.

But the little crocodile dragon had grown to 1.5 meters in just a few days, and it was estimated that it would soon reach the length of an adult. Its appetite had also increased from one basket to two!

Zhu Minglang started to worry.

His temporary job might not be enough to feed the little crocodile dragon. He needed to find more work to do.

...

On the seventh day, the little crocodile dragon finally managed to attack in the strong current. So, Zhu Minglang and the little crocodile spirit appeared confidently at the lake pier again...

The lake water was clear, and the grouper fish demons were indeed overpopulated. They no longer stayed near the submerged rocks but often swam on the surface, flicking their tails and long whiskers.

“Attack!”

Zhu Minglang pointed with his hand, as if commanding a thousand troops.

The little crocodile spirit’s black body dove into the lake, lunging at a fat blue-spotted fish demon at three times its previous speed.

The blue-spotted fish demon was startled and dodged in a panic.

At the same time, the other blue-spotted fish demons reacted, dispersing like ripples before the little crocodile dragon could get close.

The little crocodile dragon was much stronger than before, but chasing the blue-spotted fish demons was like chasing its own shadow. Just as it was about to touch them, they would scatter!

“Black Tooth, scatter them, then chase the isolated one!” Zhu Minglang shouted.

The little crocodile spirit heard the command and immediately changed its attack method. Instead of lunging directly, it used its body to scatter the blue-spotted fish demons’ ripple formation, causing some of them to panic...

Sure enough, a young blue-spotted fish demon made a mistake. It was scattered and isolated from the group, no longer receiving direction from the whiskers of the other blue-spotted fish demons, and swam around in confusion!

“Ao!!!”

The crocodile teeth attacked, cleanly biting the panicked blue-spotted fish demon!

The black teeth clamped tightly onto the smooth fish demon, and the little crocodile dragon excitedly leaped out of the water, throwing its prey high into the air to show its hunting success to Zhu Minglang on the pier!

“Haha, we did it!!” Zhu Minglang’s face was full of joy.

Although he had slain ancient demons and destroyed giants before, for some reason, catching a small blue-spotted fish demon made him even more elated.

Perhaps this was change.

In a long, dark expanse, a glimmer of light can ignite hope.

Similarly, when a person has an expectation in their heart, even a small change can make them feel a surge of excitement.