As time gradually passed, it witnessed not only the hunters' slow growth but also the mountain of new world investigation reports piling up. After successfully defeating the thunder dragon, Bai Feng returned to the camp, weary from battle, only to be stopped by the commander. "Cyan Blue Meteor? Valstrax?"
"Yes, based on the eyewitness reports... never mind, let the editor explain it to you."
"Aibo, here's the situation. I've been working with scholars from the Ancient Dragon Ecology Research Institute, analyzing a vast amount of data. This dragon species was once deemed extinct; however, there have been recent sightings near the Dragon's History Institute, specifically during the test airship incident." The Tyrannosaurus Prime pulled out a new notebook.
"According to previous observation notes sent from the Old Continent, the Valstrax we observed this time is likely a unique individual." The Tyrannosaurus Prime flipped to the page about Valstrax. "What they observed was a flight mode utilizing dragon attribute energy emissions, consistent with previous ecological speculations about Valstrax. However, this time, what we observed was not purely dragon attribute energy emissions."
"It has an etheric quality, Kubo!" Kubo, unable to return to Eorzea, was forced to stay in the camp, providing hunters with information and assistance related to ether magic—even if it wasn't particularly useful.
"And there's a certain special dragon energy attribute. In simple terms, its energy release is significantly greater than that of normal dragon attributes, which means..."
"According to the records, its speed will be much faster," the Ancient Dragon researcher said, jumping onto a pile of books. "Much faster, and it also means it can fly for a longer duration."
In the past, the dispersal records of Valstrax indicated that while they flew quickly, their flight time was relatively short. At most, they could sustain flight for 2-3 hours before needing to land to cool their wings and feed. This gave the Hunter's Guild the opportunity to divide into multiple teams, set up ambushes in advance, and force it to continuously fly and relocate, eventually driving it into a predetermined battleground where elite hunting squads would deliver the final blow.
This is also how hunters in reality hunt flying wyverns and elder dragons. In fact, the hunting squads that players control are merely handling the final "cleanup" phase of the operation. Long before that, other hunters from the Hunter's Guild have already spent considerable time, effort, and resources setting up traps based on reconnaissance missions, gathering intelligence, and identifying the creatures' habitats. They exhaust the dragons' stamina to a certain extent, and only then do the hunting squads step in to deliver the final blow. In other words, much of the work is completed off-screen by others.
The saying "one minute on stage, ten bald heads behind the scenes" perfectly encapsulates the situation. Now, the habitat and flight speed of this unique Valstrax make it extremely difficult for the support team of hunters to exhaust its stamina, let alone confine it to a single hunting ground. This means a large number of personnel must be mobilized, forming a massive 16-member hunting party instead of the usual 4-member squad. If we include the assisting Palicoes, the actual number of hunters deployed in combat reaches 32, divided into four teams stationed or deployed in four different areas.
Furthermore, it requires a large-scale hunting group composed of hundreds of hunters from the previous four squads to encircle and restrict its movement range. The hunting party will then launch a series of attacks, dealing enough damage to ultimately defeat this elder dragon and seize the Ether Crystal it holds. As for the Ether Crystal, regardless of whether it might summon monsters from Eorzea, the mere fact that it emits a large amount of ether particles, which enhance the size and strength of monsters, is enough to classify this operation as a large-scale mission that must be executed in the short term.
"Moreover, based on trace comparisons, this Valstrax has been observed using some of the hunters' weapons, and it is also the true culprit behind the recent 'Thief Wyvern' incident."
"It's intelligent..." Bai Feng and the Commander both felt a headache coming on. A powerful monster isn't terrifying because hunters never rely solely on brute force—those who do don't last long. But an intelligent monster is a different story. It means it can think, evade, and counter-ambush. Forget about whether the hunting squad might fail; it's even questionable whether the support team can handle the preparatory work for the hunt.
"On the bright side, according to intelligence from the Dragon's History Institute, Valstrax's primary attack methods include pouncing, wing blade slashes, dragon energy blasts, and high-speed flight collisions—similar to most flying wyverns. However, its speed and agility far surpass that of at least half of the flying wyvern species." Fewer than half of the flying wyverns can perform agile maneuvers like lifting half their body and tilting mid-flight to evade hunters' arrows or jump attacks. "Moreover, Valstrax's wings are both sturdy and lightweight, allowing them to be swung at high speeds, akin to a dual-wielding hunter entering a frenzied state..."
Bai Feng was no longer just experiencing a headache; his entire body ached. The most crucial point was that Aibo was describing the "normal Valstrax," not the "Cyan Blue Meteor" they were about to face.
"However, this is based on Valstrax's unique wings. The Valstrax we encountered this time is likely an extremely elderly individual, which aligns with the characteristics of most elder dragons during the Elder Crossing." The Tyrannosaurus Prime flipped to a sketch of the monster based on previous sightings. "As a result, its wings are now covered in dragon energy crystals or carapace. This continuously growing carapace is something Valstrax must grind down and remove, as it affects their flight agility and makes their wings heavier, hindering their ability to swing them and control their flight posture."
"So, this time, we might be dealing with an elderly dragon—experienced, powerful, but its body has become sluggish due to these circumstances. Hmm, perhaps we can exploit that," the Swordmaster remarked. He was a master swordsman urgently summoned from the Old Continent, rumored to have "danced face-to-face with the King of Elder Dragons." His armor, covered in scars and repairs from battles with powerful monsters, was a testament to his strength. "But those crystalline wing plates likely aren't just making it heavy and slow, are they?"
"Well, according to the fragments we recovered from the trails guided by the Scoutflies..." the Fourth Fleet's technical expert began, "their hardness and toughness surpass any material we currently know. The workshop's reconstructed target test results showed that..."
"Slashing shots are ineffective?" The hunters present let out panicked murmurs. "Are piercing shots and armor-piercing shells also useless?"
"Yes, not entirely ineffective, but since this is a simulated target made of Ratha steel, not the actual wing plate material... even if it works, it would require repeatedly hitting the same spot to cause fractures and significant damage. As for whether it can fully penetrate, that depends on how thick its wing bones and plates are."
Honestly, the juvenile dragon's wing plates, reinforced with dragon crystals and Ether Crystals, combined with the excreta from its indiscriminate eating habits, have been sintered into something akin to metal-carbide ceramics. Yes, the same material used in tank composite armor. Theoretically, if the hunters were to pull out a 120mm tank cannon and fire a sub-caliber, fin-stabilized armor-piercing round, it might just penetrate.
"Even worse than that! But, on the flip side, if we can harass it enough to provoke it into throwing the crystal..."
"The mission will be over. We weren't here to hunt the elder dragon in the first place, and... judging by its behavior, it's likely nearing the end of its life. It's probably stealing hunters' supplies because it can no longer hunt on its own."
"That's right. According to Valstrax's ecology, if their wing plates grow to this length and extent, they'll break them off themselves to prevent them from sealing completely. It's like how Lagombi actively gnaws on metal ore to grind down their overgrown teeth. So, even if we leave it alone, it will eventually die from being unable to hunt due to the ever-growing wing plates." Aibo summarized, "So, our main objective is to force it to throw out that crystal, but..."
"Is it that powerful?"
"Yes. Not only does it throw objects, but it also hurls hunters' weapons, and the impact is terrifyingly destructive. It's capable of causing massive damage even to a Nergigante. The recent Deviljho rampage might have been its way of compensating for its declining hunting ability."
After examining the remnants of the two "Piercing Dragon Cannons," the Swordmaster fell silent. If it were to hurl that massive crystalline shard, even the Palicoes might not be able to bring the hunters back. It could very well result in another name being added to the Hall of Five Dragons. Yes, unlike in the games where there are no casualties, real-life hunters aren't always rescued by their Palico partners. In fact, the reason every hunter is now paired with a Palico is because the standard White Felyne Rescue Team can't always retrieve them in time.
Those hunters who couldn't retreat in time became nothing more than a cold, lifeless name in the Guild's records. This has never been a romantic job; it's a profession where one fights against nature with their life on the line, especially when facing elder dragons that are nearly impossible to kill. In reality, while it may seem like every generation of the game requires fighting a few elder dragons, the actual appearance of an elder dragon and the necessity to drive it away is an extremely rare occurrence.
There are those that had to be driven off because they blocked trade routes (Zinogre), those that spread deadly diseases and had to be eliminated (Frenzy Virus), those that nearly destroyed an ancient border tower (Yama Tsukami), and those that flatten everything in their path (Lao-Shan Lung). Essentially, these are all situations where the Guild was left with no choice but to act.
For the vast majority of hunters, their entire career might pass without ever encountering an elder dragon. In fact, it's not uncommon for hunters to lose their lives to creatures like Great Jaggi or Velocidrome—"not even the Palicoes could save them" is not an impossible or low-probability outcome. However, even so, the Hunter's Guild does its best to provide support and rescue operations. And this time, the hunters involved are far from novices—they are the elite of the elite, carefully selected. This has significantly reduced the mortality rate in the recent series of hunts, and so far, there have been no fatalities.
"The workshop will do its best to upgrade the existing forging equipment to produce a batch of specialized gear for you. However, you'll need to gather as many wing plate materials as possible during the preparation phase for the hunt (Rank 10 Gold Material: Valstrax's Crystalline Wing Shards, 23333)." This way, the equipment of the New World hunters can also be updated. At the very least, those Long Sword users won't have to suffer from constantly sharpening their blades after a few strikes. Long Swords are sharp and excellent for slashing, but they're prone to chipping and are difficult to maintain.
"Also, try to collect as many of these feather-like old scales as possible (Rank 10 Copper Material: Valstrax's Blue Scales)," said the elderly woman from the Fourth Fleet. "I can attempt to extract some dragon elemental energy using the traditional art of the Wyverians (alchemy) to enhance the Elder Seal effect, improving the ability to suppress elder dragons. The specifics will depend on the workshop's capabilities." (Elder Seal Charm III: Elder Seal - Large)
"On my end, I've thought of a new piece of equipment that could be used, but it requires you to lure it into a canyon." The workshop proposed creating a flying squirrel-like glider suit, allowing hunters to glide from high altitudes and directly approach Valstrax from behind, either knocking it to the ground or forcing it to shed its burden (the crystal). "Additionally, I'll need a large amount of Tobi-Kadachi wing membranes, so I'll have to ask the Fifth Fleet leader for that."
"No problem, I'll do my best to gather the necessary materials within half a month."
Meanwhile, the juvenile Valstrax, sleeping peacefully in its nest, remains blissfully unaware that it has become the target of a new elder dragon hunting event posted on the Guild's bulletin board. It's even being treated as a high-priority DLC-level mission for a 16-hunter team. It also has no idea that its wing plates have already been earmarked as the primary material for Rank 10 equipment. After testing the strength of the wing plate fragments, the workshop has even drawn up blueprints—though currently, they only include designs for Sword & Shield, Charge Blade, Lance, Dual Blades, and Long Sword. Other weapon types will have to wait until more materials are obtained.
That said, the final outcome likely won't differ much from hunts against Zorah Magdaros or Kulve Taroth. At most, the hunters will deal some damage, but they'll still end up being taught a harsh lesson in hunting. They might only manage to chip off a few scraps in the process. However, considering the size difference, those scraps should be enough to craft one or two weapons. Combined with other types of materials, it should be possible to upgrade everyone's gear to some extent.