Chapter 788: Gems and Crystals

The large island, nearly as large as Wallpaper Coral Island, floated alone on the open sea, with no surrounding islands as Liszt had hoped.

Not even scattered islets were in sight, only a few coral reefs here and there.

Of course, Liszt wasn’t disappointed with this island. The exploration fleet had only patrolled the nearby waters a few times and hadn’t ventured further out. There might be no islands within a hundred kilometers, but beyond that, who knows?

The island still had no name.

He considered naming it "Spark Island," symbolizing the first spark in the founding of the Flame Kingdom. But he hesitated, fearing that if no suitable archipelago was found nearby, this lone spark might seem laughable. So, for now, he simply referred to it as "New Island."

After arriving at New Island with Acheronides aboard the *Flame*, they made a quick inspection of the island and its surrounding waters before hastily returning to Flame Territory.

The island wasn’t going to vanish—the spirit bugs, magic herbs, and magical beasts weren’t going anywhere.

With the territory’s daily affairs keeping him busy, there was no spare time to devote to New Island, especially with the approaching war demanding extensive preparations.

Once the war began, the territory’s trade would take a hit.

The post-war serf trade and other matters also needed preparation now to avoid shortages later.

And so, the days flew by, and soon it was late March.

The Sapphire Duchy finalized the date for the Great Sea Battle. The knightly orders would gather at Ironhoof Island’s Oxhoof City on April 4, rest for a day, and then launch attacks on the various fleets of the Kingdom of the Eagle and their major harbors.

Flame Territory’s fleet mobilized swiftly.

The Ironhoof City, Black Horse Island, and Flower Knight Orders began boarding ships for training. Unlike land charges, this battle would require knights to fight aboard vessels, with boarding actions being the main tactic.

Marcus, who had been deputy of the Thorn Knight Order, was reassigned as deputy commander of the Flower Knight Order to assist Liszt in training.

As for Liszt himself, he had already departed with Acheronides for Dodo Island. The only reason for this trip: the Lightgreen Gem Dragon had awakened.

Because of their mental connection, Liszt knew the moment the dragon stirred.

By the time they arrived at Dodo Island, the Lightgreen Gem Dragon, having slumbered for half a year, was shuffling weakly along the shore. Despite the life-sustaining potions Liszt provided, its vitality had waned. Now, it was too weak to even fly.

The *Flame* anchored on the beach, and Liszt signaled for Acheronides to wait aboard while he approached the dragon alone.

The Lightgreen Gem Dragon turned its head, its dragon eyes filled with complex, almost human emotions. Though the mental battle had erased the imprint of the First Dragon Knight, some memories could never be erased. It was still a four-hundred-year-old adult dragon with its own will and temperament.

"Roar!"

As Liszt drew near, the dragon let out a soft growl—without hostility—they were now linked by the Dragon Tooth Platform, their minds intertwined.

This was their first proper meeting as dragon and rider. A rush of thoughts passed between them, faint resistance flickering before dissolving entirely.

Liszt took a deep breath, leaped onto the dragon’s back, and settled onto the Dragon Tooth Platform.

The Lightgreen Gem Dragon offered no resistance.

In an instant, the dragon-rider resonance completed, merging their minds and synchronizing their thoughts. Liszt could clearly sense the dragon’s complex emotions, just as the dragon perceived his dominating will. Strictly speaking, Liszt still held the reins of their shared mental world.

Though dragons possessed intelligence and mental strength rivaling humans, this one had been conquered in the mental battle, inclined to submit.

"Lightgreen Gem Dragon, our minds are one. I feel your weakness and understand your needs. Whatever happened before, we are now bound. You will be my companion, cared for by me, as we journey through this endless world together!"

"Roar!"

"You want bone-brewed liquor? Done!"

"Roar!"

"You want magic potions, jade, and monster beast meat? Done!"

"Roar!"

"You want an undisturbed dragon lair? Done!"

"Roar!"

"You refuse to unleash bloodline-contagion ability because you're severely injured? Done!"

"Roar!"

"Rest easy, big guy. I can provide everything you need. But you must also fulfill my demands—remember, fighting is what you must do, standing by my side in battle. Production—Lightgreen Gem Dragon ore—you must infect them. Cultivation—we’ll train together to break through the Dragonrider's limits!"

"Roar!"

The Lightgreen Gem Dragon’s cry was charged with excitement. Man and dragon had reached an agreement. Liszt soon disembarked from the Dragon Tooth Platform and unloaded loads of supplies from the Flame ship, including copious amounts of monster beast meat, a small quantity of magic potions and supplementary medicines, and a batch of bone-brewed liquor brewed with flowers.

Bone-brewed liquor was a specialty of the Kingdom of the Eagle’s royal family. Liszt couldn’t obtain the recipe, but he could roughly approximate it by brewing bones in other liquors.

As for jade—

He couldn’t provide it for now, as his territory lacked jade mines. The small reserves he had were needed to supply the spirit bugs. Coral Island did have a jade mine, but the five-year yield cycle hadn’t yet passed, so the mine didn't yet belong to Liszt. Moreover, the output of Coral Island’s jade mine was too small to meet the Lightgreen Gem Dragon’s needs.

After the dragon-hunting campaign, Liszt had inquired with the Sapphire Duchy about how the Sapphire Dragon produced gemstones.

The answer was that whether it's blood, scales, breath, or even waste, they could, over time, form crystal veins, from which a small number of gemstones would emerge. But to obtain large-scale gemstone mines, one either had to use dragon blood as a catalyst, spilling it upon the earth to form deposits, or use jade as a medium, allowing the gem dragon to produce jade-laced breath. This special breath, combined with the earth, would form gemstone mines. Coupled with the dragon’s constantly radiating magic power, crystal veins would steadily accumulate, and within them, gemstones would form.

Thus, raising a gem dragon was no walk in the park.

But compared to the gemstone mines obtained, these costs were insignificant.

Moreover, a dragon’s greatest value lay in its combat power—just one dragon could secure the enduring prosperity of a dragon-keeping family. It was like a truck driver spending considerable resources to maintain the vehicle—fuel, upkeep, fees, insurance, and so on—yet that single truck could sustain an entire family’s livelihood.

Compared to raising spirit bugs, the cost of raising a dragon was enormous, but so were the rewards.

"Eat up, recover quickly. When the time comes, I’ll send you to the new island, where you’ll stay for a while. When I found my kingdom, I’ll build you a lair to your satisfaction."

"Roar!"