If it was a magical gemstone, then it would need a replacement with the same magical properties... Garon slowly approached the rhombus-shaped white crystal, refraining from any rash actions for the time being.
Garon chose it not only because he was attracted to it, but also because he considered the ice-attributed magic power it contained.
With every breath a dragon took, it would absorb elemental energy from the world. Most of this elemental energy would wash over the dragon's body and then dissipate, promoting the growth of the dragon's scales and flesh. However, some would remain stored within their bodies, able to react with certain unique substances within the dragon, and be spewed out as a deadly weapon when needed – this was dragon breath.
Therefore, dragon breath was not purely a magical ability or a spell-like ability. Ordinary spell resistance was difficult to apply against dragon breath, making it a hard-to-counter, powerful attack method.
Ignoring the good dragons and gem dragons for now, among the evil dragons to which white dragons belonged, the ranking order based on the average strength of the species was red dragon, blue dragon, green dragon, and black dragon. Their breaths were fire, lightning, poison mist, and acid, respectively.
These four types of dragons resided in volcanoes, sand seas, jungles, and abysses, among other places.
The white dragon, living in the ice fields, was the last in line, ranking at the bottom, and was also the dragon species that most often contributed to some adventurers earning the title of dragon slayer.
The breath of white dragons was a solidified form of ice-attributed magic power.
Frost dragon breath, or ice dragon breath, icy dragon breath... different places had different names according to different habits, but the meaning was the same.
Garon paced back and forth, his brow furrowed (the arched dragon skin above the dragon's eyes was the dragon's brow).
"Use breath to spew out a piece of ice crystal with the exact same shape as the white crystal, and also adjust the magic power concentration to prevent the White Dragon Mother from noticing anything amiss..."
These seemed like things a dragonet couldn't do.
"Just take an ordinary gemstone without magic power?" Garon was somewhat unwilling.
Immediately, his gaze firmed, and he opened his dragon mouth.
Just as a fish was born knowing how to swim, with only instinctive manipulation, Garon successfully exhaled a wisp of frost dragon breath.
"How would I know if I don't try?"
"Even if it doesn't succeed now, there will always be opportunities in the future."
If the White Dragon Mother knew that Garon was so concerned about her treasure, she would definitely curse him as an unfilial son.
"Just consider it accumulating experience and practicing."
That's what he thought, but as the dragonet grew older, the White Dragon Mother's vigilance would only deepen.
Therefore, Garon still hoped to succeed this time.
Garon took a deep breath, extended his dragon claws, exhaled streams of frost onto them, and then, by adjusting the rhythm of his breathing, as well as the opening and closing of his dragon mouth, the amount of magic power he output, and other methods, he controlled the frost to condense into the shape he wanted.
Because the White Dragon Mother could return at any time, Garon's brain was running at high speed, almost to the point of smoking.
Under such circumstances, Garon was surprised to find that he seemed to possess an unusual talent for the subtle manipulation of magic power, far surpassing that of ordinary dragons.
The usually proud magical energy was surprisingly obedient and docile under his control.
This challenge, which he thought would be the most difficult, was not as hard as Garon had imagined.
His skills improved rapidly. The frost in his mouth concentrated in one area, going from irregularly condensed ice crystal chunks at the beginning to a decent rhombus shape in just a few minutes.
"Turns out I'm a little genius!" Garon paused his movements, took a breath, and examined the rhombus-shaped ice crystal in his claws.
The appearance was already the same as the white crystal, but the degree of transparency was still a bit lacking. At first glance, they looked the same, but a closer look would reveal the difference.
Garon crushed it with force in his dragon claws and then opened his mouth to eat it, not wanting to waste it.
Running to the nest entrance and looking outside, the White Dragon Mother's figure was still nowhere to be seen in the silver-clad world.
Garon stayed at the nest entrance, occasionally looking outside, while slowly adjusting the transparency of the dragon-made ice crystal.
During this time, the little female dragon Hill's tail twitched, showing signs of waking up. Garon went over again and added another dragon headbutt, making Hill's eyes roll back and faint again.
A few more minutes passed, and Garon looked at the rhombus-shaped transparent ice crystal at the tip of his claws, a satisfied expression on his face.
He glanced outside the nest, then immediately moved to the depths of the nest, carefully pinching the magic crystal with two dragon claws. Throughout the process, Garon held his breath to avoid touching other gemstones.
If the piled-up treasures were disturbed, the White Dragon Mother would definitely inspect them carefully at the first opportunity.
Picking up the magic crystal, Garon then slowly placed the imitation ice crystal he had created back in its original place, his movements gentle, giving off a feeling of a tiger delicately sniffing a rose.
"As expected of someone from the Flower Kingdom, the talent for imitation comes naturally without a teacher!" Garon held the beautiful and crystal-clear magic crystal and gently sniffed it.
Hmm, the magic crystal had no smell.
Tilting his neck back, opening his mouth, Garon released his dragon claws, and the magic crystal fell entirely into his seemingly bottomless mouth.
Glug... Garon swallowed hard, and his empty stomach instantly felt a sense of fullness.
At the same time, streams of coldness rapidly grew from his stomach, surging like streams, flowing to all parts of his body. Wherever the streams passed, there was a slight throbbing, as if countless small hands and countless small mouths were gently massaging him.
White dragons loved the cold, and this was a very comfortable feeling for Garon.
It was like on a slightly tipsy summer afternoon, after finishing a day's work, going to a gentle and soft girl for a special full-body massage, and then drinking a full gulp of ice-cold carbonated beverage afterwards.
The whole body felt so refreshed that it was unforgettable.
"Awooo..." Garon's eyes narrowed slightly, and he couldn't help but let out a lingering dragon roar.
"I need to digest and absorb this magic power as soon as possible."
Dragon scales had a powerful ability to resist magic, especially the corresponding magic of their own attributes. Adult dragons were immune to most spells, making them the nightmare of many mages.
As long as Garon kept his dragon mouth tightly closed, even if the White Dragon Mother was in front of him, it would be difficult for her to detect the surging ice-attributed magic power within his body.
However, Garon didn't want to appear too unusual.
His size and unique appearance were already conspicuous enough. If he kept breathing strangely through his nostrils, it would probably arouse the White Dragon Mother's suspicion.
Garon wouldn't underestimate a White Dragon Mother who was nearing adulthood, so he quickly ran to the edge of the howling wind at the nest, quietly lay on the ground, fully absorbing the magic power emitted by the magic crystal, while observing the White Dragon Mother's whereabouts.
As the furnace-like dragon stomach dissolved a portion of the crystal, it would emit waves of frost magic power, making Garon roar comfortably.
This magic crystal was not high-grade, and it was located at the edge of the White Dragon Mother's collection, but for a dragonet who had just been born, it was definitely a top-quality item.
More than ten minutes later, in Garon's vision, a faint white shadow braving the flying snow rapidly flew towards the nest entrance located on the cliff face, hundreds of meters high. Its figure gradually became clearer to the naked eye.
It was the White Dragon Mother.
Noticing the White Dragon Mother's imminent return, Garon's heart suddenly tightened.
Although he felt that the White Dragon Mother couldn't detect the magic power within his body through the magic-resistant dragon scales, he was still guilty after all, and Garon wanted to make the crime as perfect as possible.
Immediately, Garon vigorously digested the magic crystal within his body. The rapid, concentrated waves of magic power surged through him repeatedly in a short period of time, making his whole body numb to the point of being somewhat exhausted.
Watching the White Dragon Mother's figure getting closer and closer, about a quarter of the crystal within Garon's body had not yet been digested, and at the White Dragon Mother's speed, she would probably arrive in less than thirty seconds.
Garon was anxious.
"Faster, faster, faster!"
The White Dragon Mother's figure was already very clear. Even through the flying snow, Garon could see her cold, pale yellow pupils.
In an instant, the ring-like circle of dense black scales around his neck flashed with a deep light.
In his vision, the ice and snow world that filled the sky came to a standstill. Time froze at this moment, like a silent picture with the pause button pressed. Garon could clearly see the snowflakes suspended in the air, the cold wind swirling the snow, and the lifelike, stiff White Dragon Mother in the cold wind.
"What happened?"
In a daze, Garon raised his head.
He seemed to see an illusory river that submerged the entire sky, the water within carrying an arcane and mysterious aura, flowing endlessly at a constant, unchanging speed.
A huge dragon-shaped phantom hovered above it, like the master of the illusory river, watching him with its pair of platinum-colored, dazzling dragon pupils.