Reclining comfortably in the back seat of the luxury business van, Lucian couldn't help but marvel at the situation. In this world, having money really did make all the difference.

  He had been in this world for quite some time now, yet he had never experienced a ride this smooth or a seat this plush.

  Up front, the driver kept his pace steady as he asked, "Where to, sir?"

  Lucian thought for a moment before replying, "Head to the Material Exchange Market first."

  "Understood. Right away," the driver said, his foot gently pressing down on the accelerator.

  Just then, something stirred against Lucian’s chest. A small, black head poked out from the collar of his shirt, letting out a soft, high-pitched chirp. It sounded like a complaint, as if she were annoyed at being cooped up in such a stuffy spot.

  Lucian chuckled and sent a private thought her way. Just bear with it for a bit, Nyx. I offered to let you stay in the pet space, but you refused. If you insist on being out here, you’ll just have to deal with hiding in my clothes.

  The sight of a tiny head emerging from Lucian’s chest gave the driver quite a start.

  Catching a glimpse in the rearview mirror, he asked nervously, "Sir... what exactly is that in your shirt?"

  "Oh, just my pet lizard," Lucian lied smoothly. "Don't worry, she’s harmless. I’ll keep her under control."

  The driver relaxed at that, losing interest. In this world, keeping low-level monsters as pets was a common hobby.

  He had no way of knowing that the creature nestled in Lucian’s arms was a dragon capable of bringing the entire world to its knees.

  "Ang!"

  Being called a lowly "lizard" clearly didn't sit well with Nyx.

  She began scrambling outward with all her might, seemingly determined to prove she was anything but a common reptile. However, before she could fully emerge, Lucian pressed his palm against her tiny head and shoved her back into his shirt.

  The reason Nyx was currently no larger than a human palm was due to a brand-new change in her attributes and skills upon reaching Level 10.

  Black Dragon King · Doomwing (Growth Stage)

  Level: 10

  Gender: Female

  Strength: 1356

  Agility: 1004

  Spirit: 1324

  Endurance: 1403

  Skills:

  Black Dragon Scale (Passive, LV3): The naturally hardened skin of the Black Dragonflight. When elemental attacks strike the scales, their damage is reduced by 70%.

  Black Dragon Bloodline (Passive, MAX): The blood of the Black Dragonflight grants a natural, absolute immunity to negative effects. Negates all debuffs.

  Black Dragon Physique (Passive, LV3): A physique born for slaughter. Self-healing and stamina recovery are increased by 700%.

  Magma Breath (Active, LV3): Continuously breathes fire in a forward cone, damaging enemies while simultaneously healing the user.

  Jaw Strike (Active, LV3): Lunges forward a set distance, slamming into the enemy with a reinforced dragon jaw. Causes a Stun effect.

  Form Shift (Active, MAX): A Growth Stage member of the Black Dragonflight can alter their physical form.

  Available Forms: Petite Form, Combat Form, Dragon of Ruin Form, World-Ender Form.

  Petite Form: Shrinks the body significantly, drastically reducing energy consumption.

  Combat Form: The standard dragon form used for balanced combat.

  Dragon of Ruin Form: Strength attribute is halved, while Spirit attribute is doubled.

  New Skill: Incinerate All (Active, LV1) — Flaps wings to release a molten storm, dealing devastating damage to all surrounding enemies.

  New Skill: Magma Burst (Active, LV1) — Summons a pool of magma at a target location, trapping enemies and dealing massive continuous damage.

  World-Ender Form: Spirit attribute is halved, while Strength attribute is doubled.

  New Skill: Earth Shatter (Active, LV1) — Slams both forelimbs into the ground with immense force, creating a shockwave that deals horrific damage and stuns enemies in front.

  New Skill: Roar of Terror (Active, LV1) — Unleashes a primal roar that deals massive damage and causes long-duration stunning to all nearby enemies.

  Though it was only a single level jump from 9 to 10, the transition from the Infancy Stage to the Growth Stage had caused Nyx’s overall power to skyrocket.

  The attribute growth was the largest increase per level he had seen yet. Her four primary stats had all shattered the four-digit ceiling, averaging out to around thirteen hundred points each.

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  It was nothing short of terrifying.

  Beyond the raw numbers, the most significant change of the Growth Stage was the appearance of the new skill: Form Shift.

  Nyx’s current small and adorable appearance was her Petite Form.

  This state allowed Lucian to enjoy the simple pleasure of "petting" his dragon again. It also made traveling with her significantly more convenient; he could simply pop her in a pocket and be on his way, rather than having to lock her away in the pet space all day.

  The Combat Form was her standard dragon state, the one she had used to battle enemies previously. In this form, her attributes remained perfectly balanced and potent.

  As for the other two forms, they were a massive surprise for Lucian.

  Just from the skill descriptions, he could tell that these two forms allowed Nyx to specialize, deciding whether she needed to output overwhelming physical force or devastating magical destruction.

  Nyx's four main attributes were remarkably balanced. Aside from her Agility, which lagged slightly behind, the others were neck and neck.

  Because Black Dragons were a race that naturally excelled in both physical and magical combat, her Strength and Spirit—the attributes determining physical and magic attack power—were quite similar.

  The World-Ender Form and Dragon of Ruin Form, however, gave Nyx’s attribute growth clear directions.

  Both forms functioned by sacrificing half of one primary attribute to double another. Overall, her total attribute sum still surged significantly. Without a doubt, Nyx became much stronger after shifting forms.

  In future battles, Lucian could choose to have Nyx transform into the Dragon of Ruin Form or the World-Ender Form based on the enemy's specific weaknesses.

  For instance, against the physically immune Holy Blight from before, Nyx could simply switch to her Dragon of Ruin Form.

  Even though she would sacrifice half her Strength, her Spirit would skyrocket to a terrifying value of over 2,600.

  With a single blast of Magma Breath, the Holy Blight probably wouldn't have lasted ten seconds before being completely incinerated.

  By the same logic, if she encountered an opponent with high magic resistance but low physical defense, she could shift into her World-Ender Form. Who could possibly withstand a Strength attribute of 2,700?

  If the enemy had balanced attributes, Lucian could still have Nyx fight in her Combat Form.

  Her incredibly high Strength and Spirit made her a match for any foe.

  Furthermore, Lucian’s research into the skill descriptions revealed that the abilities in Dragon of Ruin Form all utilized the word "terror."

  It was clear that the two additional skills in this form—Incinerate All and Magma Burst—were definitely more powerful than Jaw Strike and Magma Breath.

  At the same time, the two skills under the World-Ender Form both featured crowd-control effects, making her much more specialized for close-quarters combat.

  Both forms had distinct characteristics. If utilized properly, Nyx's combat effectiveness would leap to a whole new level.

  Lucian still hadn't tested just how terrifying the current Nyx truly was.

  It seemed he would have to wait until The Awakening Trials to let her really cut loose.

  Soon, the luxury business car dropped Lucian off at the Material Exchange Market.

  Lucian told the driver to wait at the entrance for a moment before stepping inside the market.

  The market was mostly filled with material hunters who looked like ragged beggars. There were also a few professional Mercenary Groups and servants from major families who had come to purchase materials.

  They were all there for the same purpose—material trading.

  On the outskirts were individual sellers. Many material hunters had set up stalls and were haggling loudly with potential buyers.

  Selling materials at a stall could net a bit more profit, but Lucian didn't want to waste too much time here.

  After all, he wanted to get home quickly to keep his aunt from worrying.

  Lucian headed further in to the Material Exchange Market’s official transaction windows.

  They accepted any and all materials. Of course, the prices were slightly lower.

  The institution made its profit through the price difference between buying and selling.

  Lucian walked up to a window and dumped all the materials from his inventory, asking the staff for an appraisal.

  When the staff member saw the sheer amount of valuable materials, which even included teeth from a Level 25 Mini-BOSS, they were instantly stunned. They didn't look down on him at all despite his youth and his disheveled, hunter-like appearance.

  Someone capable of hunting a Level 25 Mini-BOSS was definitely an elite in Riverport City.

  The staff hurriedly invited Lucian to a luxury VIP room to rest while they sent people to count and value the materials.

  Finally, after twenty minutes of tallying, Lucian received a total of over 280,000 Draco-marks.

  The money was transferred directly into his card. Once he confirmed the transaction, Lucian left and had the House Sterling driver take him back to the bun shop.

  After getting out of the car, Lucian dismissed the driver and walked into the shop.

  The shop door was still slightly ajar, but as soon as he entered, he noticed the first floor was deserted. Many things were exactly as he had left them, and the stove clearly hadn't been lit in a long time.

  Had she really not opened the shop these past few days?

  Feeling a bit confused, Lucian called out toward the second floor, "I’m back! Are you home?"

  As soon as the words left his mouth, a commotion erupted from upstairs.

  Urgent footsteps followed as Kara, her hair loose and disheveled, rushed down the stairs, nearly tripping in her haste.

  "Lucian?! You're finally back?!" When she saw him, the tears started flowing. She lunged forward and pulled him into a tight hug, sobbing.

  "You reckless child... how could you go into the wild without even telling me? Do you have any idea how worried I've been?"

  Lucian never expected such an intense reaction upon his return.

  Feeling the warmth of her embrace, he said awkwardly, "Look, I'm fine... You should let go. I've been roughing it in the wild for days and haven't showered. I'm covered in mud and dirt—I'm getting you all dirty."