Black Hearted Mage

Kaisas repeated his monotonous life day after day, working tirelessly to dig fire crystals during the day and quietly entering a state of meditation at night. Hours passed in a flash. In this way, time passed quietly, and when the entire vein was finally completely mined, more than three years had passed.

Over the past three years, despite Caesar's tireless daily efforts, his own strength hasn't improved significantly. However, the puppy that accompanied him has undergone a noticeable transformation. The once cute little dog has grown considerably, a full size larger. Its short, dark red fur remains, a subtle yet understated color. Four strong, sturdy legs support its body steadily, and when it stands, its back almost touches Caesar's knees.

The puppy has broad shoulders and a wide back, short legs and a tail, small triangular ears, and a large mouth that, when fully opened, gives people a chilling feeling.

The puppy's teeth are even more impressive. Its upper and lower rows of sharp fangs are flat, tapered, and slightly curved backward, creating a unique arc. Furthermore, each fang is lined with fine serrations. When the puppy opens its mouth to reveal these fangs, it creates a visually intimidating and terrifying impression.

A typical dog's front teeth, called incisors, are typically flat and used primarily for cutting food. However, this puppy's incisors are unique; they are sharp and pointed, like tiny daggers. These incisors now make it a master at hunting salamanders. Once a salamander becomes its prey, the puppy's tough hide is torn to shreds, leaving it a horrible sight. Once valuable, the hide, after being so damaged by the puppy, would likely fetch less than half its original price.

"Damn dog, the entrance to the Earth Dragon's lair is in the lava river?"

Preparing to leave the southern continent, Caesars wanted to take the earth dragon's eggs away, but the puppy leading the way led him to the lava river.

The pup whined and pointed a paw at the lava river.

"You idiot, go see if you can steal the eggs. If you can't, don't force it!"

As Caesars gazed upon the surging, incandescent river of lava, a feeling of helplessness welled up within him. Despite possessing a powerful magical shield, it seemed so fragile and powerless against the searing heat of the magma. In less than five seconds, the Grand Mage's seemingly indestructible shield would completely melt under the scorching heat of the magma.

At that moment, the puppy nearby let out a soft whimper. Without hesitation, the chubby figure leaped directly into the boiling lava. It swam nimbly, seemingly unfazed by the terrifying heat. Furthermore, it even occasionally opened its mouth and swallowed a few mouthfuls of the scorching lava, as if enjoying afternoon tea.

As the puppy drew closer to the other side, it suddenly plunged deep into the lava. The entrance to the Earth Dragon's lair lay hidden beneath the surface of the lava river. At this moment, Caesars, fully aware of the formidable power of the monster he was about to face, dared not delay even a moment and began rapidly casting various buffing spells on himself, hoping for a smoother escape.

You know, Earth Dragons are superb beasts. They're on the same level as Magisters, and their strength is truly unmatched among the beasts of Roland Continent. Whether it's physical defense or magical defense, or their devastating physical attacks or their astonishing fire magic attacks, they leave other beasts far behind.

Even more terrifying was the fact that the magic cast by a mage usually had a range of only forty meters, but the Earth Dragon's flames could reach over fifty meters, and it was also a spell attack with an extremely wide range. Facing such a powerful monster, Caesars had to be extremely alert.

A few minutes later, Caesars heard a deep, jarring roar. It carried an indescribable sense of oppression. A moment later, flames erupted from two locations on the ground across the lava river. Those were likely the ventilation holes in the ground dragon's lair.

From the two cylindrical pipes, flames shot out over ten meters high, followed by a large amount of gravel and dust, like two chimneys with thick smoke billowing out. The smoke and dust rose dozens of meters high, and the sound of puppies howling could be heard from within.

Elemental wings quickly unfolded, and Caesars flew at high speed into the column of dust. The puppy was fearless, its only weakness being its fear of heights.

In the scorching smoke and dust, the dark red puppy kicked its four short legs and cried helplessly. Caesars approached quickly and used his magic hand to grab it firmly.

At that moment, a loud sound of cracking rocks erupted from below. Cracks began to appear on the volcanic ground, spreading outward in a spiderweb-like pattern. As the cracks widened, a massive bulge appeared on the ground, which continued to rise.

The elemental wings flapped rapidly, like two powerful arms, driving Kaisas up like an arrow. There was no doubt that the earth dragon in the nest below had been completely enraged and was now frantically ramming and trying to break free from the constraints of the nest.

With a dull yet violent noise, an immense head emerged from the ground. This enormous head was terrifying and terrifying, sending chills down your spine. Immediately afterwards, the ground began to collapse in small areas, and the once solid volcanic rock surface instantly turned into ruins.

The ground dragon extended its razor-sharp claws, ferociously tearing at the iron-hard volcanic rock. Each scratch sent countless rubble and dust flying, its force simply beyond imagination. Under this ferocious charge, the ground dragon finally succeeded in breaking through the numerous obstacles of its lair and bursting forth in its entirety.

Just then, the cries of puppies reached the ground dragon's ears. To its keen hearing, these sounds were as conspicuous as a bright light in the darkness. Following the source of the sound, the ground dragon easily spotted Caesars in the air.

A closer look at the ground dragon revealed its extraordinary size. From a distance, it resembled a giant salamander, over thirty meters long. However, upon closer inspection, there were many distinct differences between the two. For example, the ground dragon's body was covered in thick, hard scales, but these scales were not smooth and round, but rather had sharp, angular shapes. Furthermore, several short horns, like bone spurs, sprouted from its head, adding a touch of ferocity and ferocity.

The ground dragon raised its head, and its neck suddenly became twice as thick. With an extremely angry roar, a beam of orange flame rushed towards Caesar.

Kaisas was already over a hundred meters above the ground, but he could still feel the surging heat. The intense heat triggered a rising wave of air, affecting even his elemental wings. He flew quickly north, while the giant beast pursued him from the ground.

"Stop barking, damn dog! My ears are going deaf! The Earth Dragon is chasing us! We need to use the volcano to stop it!"

The once small and dainty puppy had grown considerably. The once spacious backpack now seemed overcrowded and could no longer accommodate its growing body. The creature stretched out its two furry front paws and placed them with great effort on Caesar's broad shoulders.

As time went on, the puppy not only grew in size, but also gained weight. As a result, even though Caesars possessed powerful magic to support flight, he could only barely fly a hundred or two hundred miles with this heavy creature.

At this moment, Caesars was speeding through the air like a flash of lightning, and the magic power in his body was like a flood, depleting at an astonishing rate. However, the giant beast on the ground below showed no signs of giving up and continued to pursue them relentlessly.

At that moment, Caesar's attention was suddenly drawn to a massive object appearing in the northeast—a massive extinct volcano. With a sudden thought, Caesar decided to use the volcano to block the sight of the earth dragon behind him, thus giving himself more opportunities to escape.

In a flash, Kaisas tried his best to fly towards the huge extinct volcano. Finally, after a lot of hard work, Kaisas succeeded in getting rid of the earth dragon's pursuit and disappeared from the beast's sight.

Immediately, Caesars sped off into the distance. Not long after, he landed in a relatively safe spot. But as soon as his feet touched the ground, he felt a chill on his neck. Puzzled, he instinctively turned his head to look. He saw the puppy with its eyes closed, its mouth wide open. A long string of saliva hung from the corner of its mouth, flowing directly onto his shoulder.

Seeing this, Caesar was immediately furious and could not help cursing: "Shut up, you damn dog! Look at what you have done, you have stained my magic robe again! Get out of here! You are so good! As my buddy, you actually want Master Caesar to carry you on his back to escape. Humph, when you grow up enough, I will use you as a horse to ride!"

The puppy now weighs dozens of pounds, and its heavy body makes people gasp for breath. Even carrying it on their backs has become quite difficult. You have to know that this guy is still in the larval stage, and it will take at least hundreds of years before he reaches adulthood.

The puppy suddenly leaped up and landed lightly on the ground. This guy was becoming more and more cunning. Its bright eyes darted around, glancing left and right, but it refused to look directly at Caesar. It was as if the clear saliva stain on Caesar's shoulder had nothing to do with it.

At this moment, the angry roar of a ground dragon echoed from afar, resounding through the sky. Caesars knew it was not a good time to stay here for long. After all, the ground dragon had an extremely keen sense of smell, and the unique scent emanating from the puppy would sooner or later be detected by it.

After the short flight, Caesars's magic power had been depleted by more than half. He had no choice but to continue his desperate run. The Southern Continent was a dangerous and treacherous place, and he couldn't afford to waste even a single ounce of his precious magic power.

"Run, you damn dog! If you don't get rid of that ground dragon before sunset today, forget about getting a single bite of food!"

While Kaisas roared, he quickly cast the Swiftness and Agility spells. After doing this, he turned around without hesitation and galloped towards the north, his target being the edge of the vast swamp.

The thought of having to walk over a thousand miles through the Rocky Mountains while carrying this fat dog on his back made Caesars eager to hunt a white crocodile. Later, when he came to the southern continent, he could take a raft and not have to carry this fat dog on his back.

At night, on the edge of the Great Swamp, Caesars, without a fire, ate dried meat and cheese with his puppies. After a simple dinner, he wanted to take a nap. Just as he took out the thick animal hide mat, he heard a roar in the distance.

"How many eggs did you steal, damn dog?"

Just as Caesars was puzzled, the puppy was about to open the storage ring.

"You idiot, don't take out the Earth Dragon's egg. That giant will be able to sense it immediately. Come on, let's keep going. There must be something wrong with the fire the Earth Dragon is spewing. It can use it to track you!"

Kaisas quickly packed up and immediately headed east. The puppy turned its head and sniffed its own scent, as if it had sensed something.

Caesars walked east, and the puppy suddenly ran south. It must have found a way to remove the smell.

In the early morning, the puppy had already caught up with Caesars. When Caesars asked, the puppy said that it went to bathe in the lava river to wash away the smell left by the earth dragon.

More than ten days later, the man and the dog reached the Rocky Mountains again. The initial section of the road was relatively flat and undisturbed. As they continued deeper, they encountered sheer cliffs and bottomless canyons.

"You damn dog, why are your legs shaking?"

Kaisas followed the puppy and couldn't help laughing.

When they reached the cliff path, the puppy's strong and short legs became disobedient and began to tremble. The puppy was very afraid of heights. When it looked at the deep canyon, it hid behind Caesars in fear.

Kaisas took out a piece of fire lizard leather and spread it flat on the ground.

"Lie down, you damn dog! I'll wrap you up in leather so your saliva won't get on my shoulder!"

The puppy was very dissatisfied with this, and lay on the leather with a humming sound, allowing Caesars to wrap it tightly.

"You idiot dog, don't try to be so gullible. If you have the guts, walk the path along the cliff by yourself. If you miss a step, you'll be turned into a pile of dog meat!"

Kaisas said with a smile.