"Glug glug."

The dark, inky water in the Nourishment Pond gave off an unpleasant stench that filled the entire basement. However, Merlin's massive shifted form was thoroughly enjoying the nourishment provided by the various precious materials in the Nourishment Pond.

This was already the eighteenth portion of Nourishment Pond materials, but Merlin still had not achieved the fourth-form shifter. The amount of time consumed had exceeded Merlin's expectations.

Nevertheless, since there were still materials remaining, Merlin continued to brew the formula. Currently, Merlin's shifted form had grown once over, and two solid lumps were protruding from his back. The longer he soaked in the Nourishment Pond, the itchier the lumps behind his back became as if they would soon burst open.

Merlin knew that this was a unique characteristic of almost becoming a fourth-form shifter. Once he had achieved the fourth-form shift, the Blood-eye Dragon would be able to manifest its true "dragon" trait, which consisted of two wings. Once those two lumps on his back burst open, they would become wings.

Most importantly, the Blood-eye Dragon was ultimately still a Vipera Dragon, so it possessed some characteristics of dragons. Of course, the Blood-eye Dragon's strongest ability was its "Blood-eye" but it would only appear upon achieving full-shift.

Regardless, just the manifestation of wings would be extremely beneficial to Merlin at this stage. It would also give him a conspicuous edge. In addition, a fourth-form shifter of the Blood-eye Dragon would possess terrifying abilities, worthy of challenging the full-shifters of low-tier almighty beasts.

The water in the Nourishment Pond was still bubbling frantically when Merlin resumed brewing.

"Boom."

Suddenly, there was an explosion in the Nourishment Pond. Merlin's face revealed a look of agony. His massive body began to expand, to the point that he could hardly fit inside the Nourishment Pond.

However, what was more terrifying was that the two lumps on his back had burst open without warning. From inside the lumps, a pair of powerful wings emerged.

"Fourth-form shifter!"

Merlin was extremely excited. Finally, he had achieved fourth-form shifter. This would mark the beginning of his fight against the mighty existence in this world.

If he proceeded one step further and achieved a full-shifter, then he would become even more fearsome. Once a high-tier almighty beast bloodline had achieved full-shift, it could wield the true power of a high-tier beast and become an irrefutable "disastrous" existence – one enough to unleash a disaster upon an entire country!

Merlin gently flexed his hands. He felt tremendous power, belonged exclusively to him. As for the wings, despite the massive form of his body, the wings felt very sturdy. Even then, Merlin was slightly worried about whether they could carry his massive body.

After some thoughts, Merlin decided to give it a try outside.

So, Merlin left the basement and returned to the manor. Currently, the Count's Manor had been restored to its former glory. Even some details had been well-executed. It gave Merlin a sense of returning to Boulder City once again.

"Good job, who decorated this?"

Merlin was very satisfied. This was the work of a very meticulous person who understood his thoughts.

"Sir Leon, I decorated it. I heard that Sir Leon used to be the old master of this manor, so I found someone to restore its original look. I hope that Sir Leon likes it."

The person who answered was the beautiful woman who had knelt in front of the manor to welcome Merlin.

"Very well, you're very meticulous. Let's keep this look, then. Boulder City will not be invaded anymore. All of you here will be under my protection."

Merlin looked at the woman before him as well as the other women in the vicinity. All of them looked delighted. Although they had been forcibly kidnapped by Blackbat, right now, all they wanted was a safe refuge. Since Merlin had killed Blackbat, he was the most suitable.

Merlin was not concerned about these women. He stepped out of the manor and instantly wielded his fourth-form shift. Then, he stretched out his wings. The wings were so huge that they blocked the sun.

"Swoosh."

With a gentle flap of his wings, Merlin's massive form took off and flew up into the air. Surprisingly, despite the smaller size of his wings compared to the rest of his body, they contained immense strength that allowed him to fly easily. Moreover, his speed was very fast, and his movement was very nimble.

According to legends, the real Great Dragon was the overlord of both the sky and the land. Other than the oceans, everywhere else was controlled by the Great Dragon. This was the reason the Great Dragon had left behind so many legends.

However, those legends remained as legends. The Great Dragon did not appear again, and those with the Great Dragon bloodline dwindled close to none. Even the Vipera Dragons became extremely scarce. After all, the Vipera Dragons were also high-tier almighty beasts.

Merlin continued to soar in the air, relishing the Blood-eye Dragon's power. Suddenly, his gaze swept around and discovered a few suspicious-looking individuals around the castle.

"Hmph."

Merlin knew that most likely, these were spies sent by some other rebel army. After all, Merlin had successively destroyed the Python Army and the Blackbat Militia. Even Orsato and the full-shifter Blackbat died by Merlin's hands. Naturally, this made the other rebel armies anxious and they wanted to verify the situation.

"Swoosh."

Merlin flew down rapidly. The enormous shadow cast by his massive body immediately alerted these suspicious individuals that they had been discovered. Their faces turned as white as a sheet.

"It's Leon, quickly escape!"

However, even before they could wield their beast forms, Merlin flapped his wings and stirred up a violent gale that blew them into a crumpled heap.

"Boom."

Merlin's massive body was filled with authority as he affixed these three people with a stern glare. His wings were splayed wide open, blocking out the sun.

Merlin asked icily, "Go ahead, tell me who sent you?"

The men shrank timidly. They seemed afraid, dared not speak.

"Thud."

Merlin stepped forward and sank his feet onto one of them. The other two immediately blanched and said, "It's General Wellington!"

"Wellington? The rebel army leader who has a low-tier almighty beast bloodline, and similarly, achieved the level of full-shifter?"

Merlin still remembered some of the intelligence he had collected from the Investigation Team. Wellington was also once closely monitored by the royal family. After all, he was also a full-shifter and his influence had expanded quickly. Thus, he became a great concern to the royal family.

"Get lost. Go back and tell Wellington, I won't give him any trouble. However, if he's looking for trouble, I won't mind paying him a visit."

Merlin said harshly. He believed that his warning would be effective. After all, he had Blackbat as precedent.