Slaying the Dragon

Having found 12 eyes of Ender through your travels, you prepare to enter through the mysterious portal they've led you to. Before entering though, some nagging feeling in your head tells you some empty bottles may be of use on the other side.

A desolate island with 12 pillars and a powerful Dragon awaits. With each roar, the Dragon releases its magical essence upon you. While painful, your empty bottles seem to be able to contain some of its power. You're certain this power will come in handy later.

With the protector defeated, it's time to venture into the outer End islands. Strange tree-like cities can be found in this otherworldly place, their inhabitants long gone and replaced by animated boxes. You loot their chests, seeing no value in leaving precious treasures behind. In one such chest, you happen upon an Ender Upgrade smithing template. It tells of how an Ender Ingot infused with great power can be used to enhance Diamond Equipment.

You've spent days crossing the barren landscape without seeing a material suitable to craft into an ingot. Though... you've never ventured below the islands. Perhaps you may find something of interest down there?

Strange Crystals hang from beneath the End islands. They're not particularly rare, nor overly common, but breaking them is a hassle as they seem to teleport randomly upon being disturbed. Either way, with some of these Endshards and some Popped Chorus Fruit, it seems you can craft and Ender Ingot.

While the Ender Ingots by themselves can't seem to be crafted into anything of use, you feel it may be possible to infuse them. Perhaps combining the Dragon's Breath with a certain vessel might allow you to transfer it's innate power into the ingots.

Having worked the Ender Ingot into a Diamond Pickaxe at a Smithing Table (after wisely making a copy of the smithing template), you decide to return to the End to collect more of these Endshards. Infused by the power of the Ender Dragon, your new Ender Pickaxe makes short work of the Strange Crystals, whisking their shards into your inventory before they can teleport away.

You're curious as to the abilities of the other equipment you can forge from this strange new material. You pray you've collected enough Dragon's Breath, as one breath can only infuse 3 Ender Ingots.