This assured summary made Ian raise an eyebrow.
"How can you be so sure that no more legends will emerge in the future?" He seemed to have guessed something but still needed confirmation from someone in the know.
"Legend isn't just a title but a realm unreachable by humans; it's harder to achieve than greatness, and slaying a Giant Dragon is the necessary path to becoming a legend."
"Bathe in our blood, absorb our innate Magic Rune, and humans can break the limits; thus, the Path of Legends will appear." The Ancient Giant Dragon's answer confirmed Ian's suspicion, while also explaining from the side why human wizards are always eager to team up and challenge dragons.
"This is truly... rare knowledge."
Ian digested the information he obtained from the dragon, the ability of pure-blooded Giant Dragons to help humans break limits clearly resembles how the Invisibility Beast's skin can make an Invisibility Cloak.
The saying goes, 'If you carry treasures, you invite trouble.'
Their extinction is evidently related to this.
Indeed, the power of Ancient Giant Dragons is unmatched by ordinary wizards, but for humans, as long as the reward is significant enough, even the most perilous mountain will eventually be climbed by them.
And so,
Ancient Giant Dragons went extinct.
Perhaps those mixed blood dragons are the last proof of the Ancient Giant Dragons' existence; realizing this, Ian couldn't help but feel a mix of unspeakable emotions.
"Still, it's terrifying that upright apes are like this."
As he sighed,
Ian realized a problem.
"The traditional Dragon of England was killed by the Four Founders, and you died of old age, rounding it up, doesn't this mean the Four Revered Founders cut off my path to becoming a legend in the future?"
Just as mentioned before.
The Little Wizard's focus can sometimes be so sharp.
...
Understanding the secret news.
Ian pondered over the founders for a moment.
Ian temporarily bid farewell to his future number-one mount and made his way from the gloomy Ancient Castle along a winding, rocky, moss-covered path towards the fairy-tale-like forest.
Compared to the eternally dark and gloomy witch's abode, the boundary between the Ancient Castle and the town is strikingly distinct, as if some peculiar power has separated the dreary world from the sunny town.
Before long.
Ian reached the boundary.
At this junction, the gloominess of the Ancient Castle and the brightness of the forest seem to be split by an invisible line—on one side, the heaviness and depth of history, on the other, the lightness and dreaminess of nature.
Ian stepped out.
Entering Ariana's domain, with a piece of Teacher Morgan's freshly torn warm dress fragment in hand, he didn't waste any travel time and immediately began learning.
The advanced magic of Soul Stealing is called Soul Capturing and Exorcism, a domain truly related to souls; it's quite profound. No wonder even the Queen Sister finds it challenging to explore new territories within it throughout her life.
"I bet there's more inside."
While on his way, Ian couldn't resist taking out the research, not without reason.
Witch Morgan gave her apprentice a new assignment; even though he hadn't started learning yet, Ian could already deduce that this assignment likely involved more than just reviving Bone Dragons using Ancient Dragon souls.
"Could it be the Ultimate Secret Technique of Biological Alchemy, creating true life?" Ian pondered along the way, knowing that if he's only learned the magic of reviving Bone Dragons without comprehending more knowledge and deeper magic within, he might not get new fragments of Morgan's dress next time.
It's a form of teaching.
Also, a test.
Every time it's the same.
"Could it be that so long as the corpse is still warm, I could use it to resurrect the deceased?" Ian approached the familiar town along the forest path. The trees here towered into the sky, sunlight filtering through the leaves, forming patches of golden light on the soft mossy ground.
The air was filled with freshness and the scent of flowers, while birdsong echoed through the forest, melodious and in stark contrast to the stillness of the Ancient Castle.
"You're actually not in the town?"
Looking up, Ian saw Pandro picking fruit while Ariana counted them under the tree, and the sunlight cast on them resembled a medieval forest picking scene.
Some dreamlike beauty.
"Pandro wants to brew some wine, saying it will be useful for next year, but he won't tell me exactly how." The girl looked up at Ian, her tone carrying a touch of helplessness.
"He just likes to be so mysterious, old folks are all like this." Ian swiftly moved to stand under the tree right as Pandro was about to slip down from it.
Perhaps out of pity, or maybe a little late, Ian just extended one of his feet covered in green thorns, placing it precisely on the path Pandro would slide down from the tree.
"Not playing fair! Sneak attack!"
Pandro landed butt-first on Ian's shoe, the green thorns pricked his rear, prompting a yell while his face instantly turned bright red.
It was a redness born from pain.
However, this flush didn't last long as green began to spread from his rear, like ink dropped into clear water, spreading across his entire body.