This battle had also made him realize the value of Trunk Strength and tail sweeps.
And so...
Evolution Paths: 1. Self-Healing (...+) 2. Large Size (...+) 3. Claws (Incomplete) 4. Trunk Strength (...+) 5. Divine Dragon Tail Sweep (...+)
At the same time, he recognized the importance of a well-rounded evolution.
If only his body size increased while his hardware and software lagged behind...
Then encountering an even larger carnivorous dinosaur might lead to another agonizing struggle like today’s.
A larger body size naturally required more energy intake, but only the living got to have the last laugh.
For now, the majority of his energy would still be funneled into Large Size.
The rest would be distributed across his panel for a well-rounded evolution.
That way, as he grew larger, he would have ample confidence and fear no adversary.
He tore through his meal like a whirlwind.
After finishing the roundhead dinosaur, there was still no trace of any apex predators in the vicinity.
A few small and medium-sized dromaeosaurs lingered nearby, but he no longer feared them.
Nowhere near the size of the three he had just slain, they posed no real threat.
Besides, the carcasses of three dromaeosaurs—each over three meters long—sprawled across the ground, serving as an unmistakable deterrent.
Any scavenger hoping to reap the spoils would have to check his condition first.
Thanks to the effects of Self-Healing, however, his body had already recovered considerably.
From a distance, his blood-drenched aura of slaughter, his robust physique, and the calm composure of a sovereign forged through life-and-death combat were on full display.
All of it struck dread into the lurking dromaeosaurs, sending them scurrying back.
Having survived that life-and-death struggle, he was no longer the serpent he once was.
He had also gained valuable experience battling dromaeosaurs.
Haoyuan's mindset had undergone a fundamental shift.
Fortunately, no large carnivorous dinosaurs arrived to contest his kill.
Haoyuan finally let down his guard.
In the blink of an eye, the fourth day arrived.
The roundhead dinosaur and the three dromaeosaurs were finally fully digested.
The two-meter-long roundhead dinosaur had yielded 15 points of energy.
Meanwhile, the three dromaeosaurs had provided a staggering 105 points of energy—a colossal amount compared to his past meals.
This came as a surprise to Haoyuan.
After all, dromaeosaurs had hollow bones; in terms of body weight, they were nowhere near as dense and heavy as herbivorous dinosaurs of the same three-meter length.
Why had they yielded so much energy?
Even 70 points would have left him pleasantly surprised!
“Could carnivorous dinosaurs be special? Do they provide different energy compared to herbivores? High risk, high reward?”
Haoyuan pondered for a moment before shaking his head.
“Or perhaps dromaeosaurids are simply unique.”
Regardless, the hefty energy return brought him considerable comfort.
“My desperate battle wasn’t in vain after all.”
In this encounter with the dromaeosaurs, his limited repertoire of attacks had left him completely on the back foot.
Constriction Strength could only be applied once he actually coiled around an opponent...
That was far too difficult.
“Sigh, claws really are important.”
Haoyuan sighed deeply.
Then, a thought struck him.
“Wait, that’s not right. Claws are mainly used for close combat, but aside from agile creatures with diverse attack patterns like dromaeosaurs, do any other dinosaurs actually use their claws?”
With that realization, his perspective broadened considerably.
“Large carnivorous dinosaurs have tiny arms that are utterly useless in battle. Their ultimate weapon is that massive, solid skull with its horrifying bite force!”
“So in truth, my conditions are basically the same as theirs.”
“If our bite forces are comparable, I even have constriction on top of that!”
Haoyuan’s eyes lit up instantly!
“Holy crap! What's this? Why does it suddenly feel like the advantage is all mine?!”
His heart thumped wildly!
“Thinking about it carefully, all I really need to do is grow bigger!”
“Dromaeosaurs are only small-to-medium predators, powerless against overwhelming size. So as long as I grow large enough, won’t dromaeosaurs become trivial insects?”
“As for those bipedal, sluggish large carnivores, unless they bite me in half with a single chomp, won’t they be easy prey once I wrap them up in a constriction?”
“Holy hell! Who knew it was that simple?!”
Haoyuan was practically beside himself with excitement!
“Looks like surviving in the age of dinosaurs isn’t so tough after all.”
“Then my future roadmap is straightforward.”
The more he ate, the larger he grew. The larger he grew, the more he could eat.
An infinite loop.
Energy would multiply exponentially.
“Large Size remains top priority.”
“However...”
Once his size increased, he would encroach upon the ecological niche of large carnivorous dinosaurs.
The probability of running into them would rise dramatically.
Haoyuan raised his gaze.
It felt as though he could see right through the forest to the massive apex predators lurking in the shadows.
“Large carnivores possess terrifying bite force. Without enough mass and thick enough hide, surviving their jaws is impossible.”
“To nip the threat in the bud, my defense must increase as well, and my body needs to be strong, supple, and slick!”
“In the end, everything needs an upgrade. Only by maxing out all my attributes can I go toe-to-toe with those killing machines!”
Over the next eight months, Haoyuan’s size surged, swiftly reaching a colossal eight meters in length.
His growth rate began to taper off.
The rest of his body’s attributes rose accordingly.
Yet new problems arose in tandem.
“My movements have gotten sluggish.”
This was an unavoidable hurdle for large snakes.
The larger the body, the slower the movement.
They could only rely on instantaneous bursts of explosive speed to ambush prey.
When it came to an outright chase, their endurance fell short.
“And my energy consumption has skyrocketed.”
With a larger body, the basal energy required to maintain it increased significantly.
The energy expended on a single hunt already equaled the total energy provided by a 1.2-meter dinosaur.
“Hunting small dinosaurs will actually run an energy deficit. I have no choice but to hunt bigger game.”
“I can’t let my size increase any further for now.”
Haoyuan shook his head and sighed.
Growing any bigger would place him firmly in the crosshairs of large carnivorous dinosaurs.
Worse, his speed had dropped.
He would essentially be a walking free buffet.
Once his skull was crushed in a single bite, he would have no chance to fight back.
For those apex predators, doing so was well within their capability.
The sheer bite force packed into their massive skulls was nothing to scoff at.
“I’ll max out all my attributes at the eight-meter mark first before worrying about growing larger,” Haoyuan thought to himself.
An eight-meter length, a girth as thick as a barrel, uncanny burst speed, and devastating Constriction Strength.
With these qualifications, dominating the ecological niche of herbivorous dinosaurs under four meters was well within his reach.
Anything beyond that would be pushing his luck.
After all, herbivorous dinosaurs were truly massive, heavy, and thick.
Even rhinos in his past life had reached three to four meters in length.
One could only imagine how terrifyingly mass scaled with size.
The following spring.
In the season of rebirth, Haoyuan awoke once more from his slumber.
His body size had not changed.
His Constriction Strength was nearing the upper limit for a body of this length.
Maintaining such a massive volume of muscle consumed far too much energy.
Haoyuan had no choice but to halt the increase of his Constriction Strength.
Thick scales also hindered his agility, placing another burden on his body.
Thus, once they reached a satisfactory level, Haoyuan ceased further scale development.
While scales could theoretically evolve to be lightweight, thin, and hard, that would consume excessive energy.
Right now, the most pressing issue that demanded his energy was overcoming the sluggishness brought on by his massive size.
Rate on N.U.
