The storm, perhaps due to the arrival of Astra, an existence of the same Level, temporarily reined in a trace of its fury.

The cloud cover was no longer so low and oppressive.

The wind, too, seemed to have grown a little gentler.

Astra didn’t immediately let out a roar. It just hovered quietly a thousand meters high in the sky, its massive eyes, like two Suns, calmly gazing down at the storm-shrouded cape below.

It was waiting.

Waiting for the master of this territory to reveal itself.

Raylo’s heart leaped into his throat.

He knew that what came next would be the first and most direct confrontation between the two Catastrophe Level powerhouses.

Only after this clash would he earn the right to communicate with the Flowing Wind Giant Dragon, a Catastrophe Level Giant Dragon.

"ROAR!"

A long, high-pitched, yet weary and sorrowful roar echoed from the depths of the cape, from atop its tallest and steepest peak.

And then.

Before Raylo’s stunned gaze.

From behind a mountain peak thousands of meters high.

A massive, green-scaled head slowly emerged.

Two Dragon Horns, as crystal-clear as Jade, radiated a faint halo under the dim sky.

A pair of massive, green eyes, like two bottomless lakes, slowly opened.

Its gaze held vigilance, caution, and the fury of an intruder violating its territory.

The Flowing Wind Giant Dragon.

It had finally revealed itself.

Its gaze met Astra’s in the sky.

In an instant, Raylo felt as if a great mountain was pressing down on him.

In that moment, the air completely solidified.

A silent standoff between Catastrophes had begun.

Time seemed to stretch infinitely in that moment.

The air seemed to turn to mercury.

Standing on Astra’s back, Raylo felt as if his every heartbeat was as loud and clear as a drum.

Two Catastrophe Level wills were clashing.

One was the will emanating from Astra: a wild Thunderbolt will, like a sea of lightning—domineering and majestic.

The other, from the Flowing Wind Giant Dragon below, was a destructive will like an endless storm—furious and chaotic.

The two wills furiously intertwined and collided in the unseen space.

There was no earth-shattering sound, no world-destroying burst of energy.

Yet this silent clash was more perilous than any tangible battle.

Raylo could even "see" the space around them ripple under the pressure of the two wills, sending out circles of visible, transparent ripples.

Below, the Flowing Wind Giant Dragon’s enormous body finally revealed itself completely from behind the mountain peak.

Its body was over a thousand meters long.

Its green body, as if sculpted from the most perfect Jade, possessed a streamlined beauty that was both elegant and brimming with a sense of Power.

It spread its green Dragon Wings.

"WHOOSH!"

A hurricane, more violent than any before, centered on it and swept out in all directions.

The dark clouds in the sky were churned by this hurricane like boiling water.

On the sea’s surface, massive waves hundreds of meters high rose up like water walls reaching for the heavens.

This was a display of might, and a warning.

In this way, it declared its indisputable sovereignty over this Domain to the uninvited guest, Astra.

Faced with this apocalyptic scene, Astra’s reaction was surprisingly calm.

There wasn’t the slightest ripple in its massive, Sun-like eyes.

"RUMBLE!"

A low rumble of thunder emanated from within its body.

The next moment.

Brilliant arcs of silver-white lightning erupted from its body, unfurling into an ocean of Thunderbolts.

All the raging gales and colossal waves surging toward it were silently annihilated through Decomposition the moment they touched this Thunderbolt Domain.

The storm raged, the Thunderbolts unending.

A dozen or so seconds later.

As if by some tacit understanding, the two Catastrophe Level Giant Dragons simultaneously withdrew their world-destroying Power.

The world-sweeping storm gradually subsided.

The lightning filling the sky also slowly dissipated.

Raylo let out a long sigh of relief.

He discovered that these Catastrophe Level powerhouses, who stood at the apex of the world, seemed to have an unwritten rule for their first meetings.

First, they would unreservedly display their catastrophic might, engaging in a brief and direct confrontation.

It was both a test and a declaration.

A declaration of their own Power, and an acknowledgement of the other’s status.

Then, the hostilities would cease, and they would begin to communicate as equals.

"Rooaaar..."

Astra let out a long, drawn-out roar.

This roar was no longer as domineering as before, but had become much more peaceful.

Following the script Raylo had taught it, it began to communicate with the Flowing Wind Giant Dragon below.

"Hnnngh..."

The Flowing Wind Giant Dragon responded with a deep, low roar.

Its voice still carried caution, but the intense hostility had dissipated considerably.

Raylo listened quietly.

Although he couldn’t understand the language of the Giant Dragons, he could sense the conversation’s progress from the shifting spiritual fluctuations of the two beasts.

From initial caution and probing, to surprise and suspicion midway, and finally, to that burst of intense emotional fluctuation.

Raylo knew that Astra had successfully conveyed the purpose of their visit.

After their exchange.

The Flowing Wind Giant Dragon below shifted its massive green eyes away from Astra for the first time, and its gaze fell upon the tiny human on its back—Raylo.