Nie Yan was hidden by a black cloak, so no one paid him any heed. Furthermore, with so much noise in the background, no one heard the exchange between him and the Beast Tamer.
A few players from Alliance of Mages were chatting nearby. Their equipment was fairly high quality. They were most likely elites. A Warrior, carrying a large egg in his hands, approached one of the Beast Tamers.
This group was likely here to hatch a flying mount.
"What did they say? What kind of flying mount is it?" one of the Mages asked.
"It's a Wind Serpent."
"It's a pity Wind Serpents are low rank flying mounts, but they're still pretty decent. It wasn't a waste for Crazy Magic to buy it from Angel Corps, even if it cost a fortune."
"How did Angel Corps get their hands on so many flying mounts?"
"I think from the newly released map, Gryphon Woodlands. They already ran that place several times. They only managed to get a few flying mount eggs after their 1,000-man expedition teams wiped more than 30 times. If it wasn't for the Century Financial Group, they wouldn't sell it to us at all."
"Is Gryphon Woodlands really that difficult?"
"Of course, didn't you hear what I just said? Just imagine..."
This group of players from Alliance of Mages quietly whispered amongst themselves.
As the Beast Tamer gently stroked and caressed the egg, a small serpent broke out of the shell. It had a pair of transparent wings growing on its back, flapping up and down non-stop as it floated in the air. It was quite small, looking exactly like a miniature version of the Wind Serpent that Tang Yao had encountered before. Similar to the Netherthunder Eagle, it could also change its size. Those with no knowledge of flying mounts would never realize that this little snake was actually a powerful creature.
"It hatched!" an Alliance of Mages player excitedly cried out.
The group played with the Wind Serpent and chatted for a while before leaving the pet shop together.
Watching their backs disappear behind the pet shop's entrance, Nie Yan had a pensive look on his face. For Angel Corps to be willing to give away a flying mount, a lot of machinations had to be going on in the background. It seemed Alliance of Mages was really putting everything on the line here. However, a Wind Serpent was an ant-like existence compared to a Darkwing Dragon. Even if Alliance of Mages brought out several flying mounts, Nie Yan would still thoroughly crush them.
Seeing much fewer people in the shop, Nie Yan spoke to the Beast Tamer, "I'd like to hatch this egg."
Nie Yan handed over all the crystals and the Darkwing Dragon Egg to the Beast Tamer.
"T-this is a dragon egg...?" the Beast Tamer stammered. He cautiously accepted the Darkwing Dragon Egg, then wholeheartedly devoted himself to pouring the energy of the crystals into it.
As the Darkwing Dragon absorbed the energy within the crystals, they gradually transformed into useless rocks.
Nie Yan felt the life energy within the egg growing stronger by the second. The creature inside was rapidly growing. A moment later, with a slight tremble, it started breaking out of its shell.
「Peck! Peck! Peck!」Cracks spread across the shell.
Nie Yan's eyes lit up with excitement.
A new life was about to be born!
The Beast Tamer was fully concentrated on the hatching process.
At this moment, the other players in the shop started taking notice. They curiously stared at the egg in the Beast Tamer's hands. This was their first time seeing such an egg, so their interest was piqued. They wondered what kind of creature would hatch. Looking at the Beast Tamer, his expression was quite anxious as sweat dripped from his forehead.
"What is that?"
"Who knows, probably a flying mount. Just a while ago, two people came to hatch their flying mount too. Right now, there are more and more flying mounts."
"I bet it's just an ordinary flying mount. Hiding himself with a cloak, does he think he's a big shot or something?" a player harrumphed. He was clearly having a case of sour grapes.
Nie Yan ignored these players. He was solely focused on the egg in the Beast Tamer's hands. The tightness in his chest grew more and more intense.
Since Nie Yan was covered in a black cloak, no one could see his expression which was filled with nervousness and expectation.
Obtaining a flying mount was a far-fetched dream for many players. In the previous timeline, Nie Yan could only gaze in envy as others rode on their flying mounts. However, now he would finally have his own.
With a loud crack, the Darkwing Dragon finally broke out of the egg. It curiously gazed around at the world. Its eyes resembled black pearls and shone with intelligence. It flapped its wings and started flying up.
The Darkwing Dragon looked like a large bird. However, it had many of the distinct characteristics of a dragon. It was a type of winged dragon. Its entire body was onyx black, with a fat round belly, a pair of powerful claws under its wings, and strong legs brimming with strength. Its speed both in the air and on the ground wasn't to be underestimated.
Compared to a true dragon, the Darkwing Dragon was a bit smaller.
An uproar erupted in the pet shop.
"What creature is that!?"
"It kinda looks like a bird?"
"No, a dragon?"
The players were all guessing.
As the Darkwing Dragon flew around, it eyes swept through the players in the shop before finally stopping on Nie Yan. It could feel a sense of kinship from him. It flapped its wings and flew over to him before landing on his shoulder and nestling itself against his neck.
A peculiar feeling arose from Nie Yan's heart. He could feel a connection with the Darkwing Dragon, allowing him to give it orders.
Seeing players gathering around him, Nie Yan quickly recalled the Darkwing Dragon into his pet space, then made his way out of the pet shop.
Seeing Nie Yan's back, the players started ferociously discussing with each other.
"That was a dragon, right? Who the heck was that guy?"
Only now did players think to check the flying mount leaderboards. Several new entries had appeared, and occupying the top spot was the Darkwing Dragon.
"Damn, it really was a dragon."
"What an unbelievable guy!"
"Maybe that was Nirvana Flame? I heard he obtained an amazing flying mount egg, but couldn't hatch it yet."
The Darkwing Dragon was a fairly high-rank existence even among dragons. It boasted powerful darkness magic, and though its close combat ability was average, it was still far stronger than an ordinary dragon. At the same time, its magic and physical resistances were some of the highest out there.
Reading the information found online, the players in the pet shop felt even more shocked.
Some of them couldn't help but imagine how amazing it would be if they could walk out of the door and ride off on their own Darkwing Dragon. However, such thoughts were followed by deep sighs. Let alone a Darkwing Dragon, they couldn't even afford an ordinary flying mount!
Nie Yan returned to his villa and brought the Darkwing Dragon back out.
The Darkwing Dragon started flying around and curiously inspecting the room. If they were outdoors, it could grow tens of times in size.
Undying Scoundrel and the others were currently resting in the villa. Seeing the Darkwing Dragon flying around, their faces were dumbstruck.
"Boss! You hatched the Darkwing Dragon!?" Undying Scoundrel exclaimed. He gazed at the Darkwing Dragon flying around.
"Yeah." Nie Yan nodded.
Undying Scoundrel and the others quickly checked the flying mount leaderboards. Just like they expected, the Darkwing Dragon was firmly seated at the number one spot. After all, it was a powerful dragon, one of the strongest existences in Conviction!
No one knew how strong the Darkwing Dragon was. However, everyone could confirm that at this stage of the game no other flying mount was its match! It was the undisputed ruler of the skies!
The Asskickers United players became even more confident of their chances of victory in the Realm of Death. With a powerful dragon on their side, what was there for them to be afraid of? It was the perfect time to go to war!
Nie Yan checked the Darkwing Dragon's information page.
Darkwing Dragon: Flying Mount
Attack Type: Dragon Breath / Physical
Armour Type: Divine
Health: 250,000
Defense: 12,000
Magic Resistance: 1,000
Poison Resistance: 1,000
Physical Resistance: 1,000
...
The information page contained every stat and detail. Nie Yan only did a brief scan. He would go over them more closely later on. However, he could confirm that the Darkwing Dragon was far stronger than any ordinary flying mount. For example, even if it had to fight three of Tang Yao's Netherthunder Eagles at the same time, it would still easily come out on top.
"Boss, show us the Darkwing Dragon's stats!" Undying Scoundrel pleaded. He'd been guessing about its strength long enough, he wanted to know!
"Yeah, Boss! We want to see!"
Nie Yan looked around the room. Everyone here was a trusted comrade. After thinking a bit, he shared the Darkwing Dragon's stats.
Undying Scoundrel and the others gasped in amazement.
"1,000 Magic Resistance... I bet my spells won't even leave a scratch on it!" Undying Scoundrel sighed.
"You'd be a freak if you did manage to deal any damage. Did you look at the Darkwing Dragon's defense type? It's Divine Armour! I'm guessing only attacks from catapults and ballistas can really damage it!"