Chapter 42: Communication

The three dragons followed Xiang Lun into the room, while the snow fox and Ivan stood guard at the door. The atmosphere inside remained relatively calm.

Wu Shao and Xing Huai had essentially trespassed into the Academy and hidden themselves in secret. To address this, Yan Si took the initiative to explain that they had returned to Cangyuan Continent precisely to investigate the dragon breath they had sensed.

In addition, Yan Si had discovered the alchemy he had once created for Ming Xue and wanted to know if it was related to resisting the miasma fog.

Beyond that, they had no other motives.

Wu Shao grew a bit emotional, claiming that he had tracked it down for a long time and was the one who had suffered the most, while Xing Huai relied on her half-baked astrology and Yan Si had simply stayed at the Academy without going anywhere.

Yet in the end, they had all found Ming Shuang together.

Since Ming Shuang was Ming Xue’s child, that made Xiang Lun Ming Shuang’s grandfather. Wu Shao set aside his earlier hostility toward him and casually mentioned that their journey had gone smoothly. Once they brought Ming Shuang back to Dragon Island with them…

Xiang Lun kept his expression calm. He had already anticipated this turn of events.

So much had happened that night that he felt somewhat weary. His voice lacked its earlier vigor, but it still brought silence to the room.

If they wanted to take Ming Shuang back to Dragon Island… unless he was dead?

Wu Shao immediately wanted to retort, but Yan Si stopped him.

Pretending not to have heard those words, Yan Si asked, “Dean Xiang, has Ming Shuang always been by your side?”

Xiang Lun shook his head. “I only met Little Shuang that day at the peak of Netherworld Mountain.”

“Those eyes…” He sighed softly. “The moment I saw them, I knew he was my grandson.”

With matters having reached this point—as long as they didn’t try to forcibly take Ming Shuang away from him—Xiang Lun had no choice but to stop hiding certain details.

He admitted that he hadn’t known about Ming Shuang’s existence before, nor had he understood why Ming Xue would entrust her child to a stranger. He also revealed the issues with Ming Shuang’s current physical condition.

The flood of information left the three dragons silently processing it for a moment.

“That young man named Xuzhi?” Wu Shao couldn’t help saying. “No wonder he seemed somewhat familiar. Since Ming Shuang grew up by his side, his actual age must exceed a hundred years. But why would Ming Xue do that? Could it be that this man stole…”

Ming Shuang’s birth time was still uncertain. He had said he slept for a very long time before awakening, possibly because time in the storage space had been frozen.

Xing Huai shook her head. “Ming Xue would never allow something like that to happen. As for the reason, perhaps she foresaw the future through astrology.”

Yan Si remained silent. Xiang Lun glanced at the three dragons. “So this was Ming Xue’s choice. She never told the Dragon Clan about Ming Shuang’s existence, which means she didn’t want him returning to the Dragon Clan.”

“How can you be so sure Ming Xue didn’t want Ming Shuang to return to the Dragon Clan?” Wu Shao said in a low voice. “How do you know Ming Shuang himself doesn’t want to go back? You’re his grandfather, sure, but you haven’t spent many days with him either!”

Xiang Lun looked at him coldly. “That’s still more time than you’ve spent with him.”

Wu Shao was momentarily at a loss for words and glared back.

Xing Huai took out the dragon egg again and quietly lost herself in thought.

To prevent Xiang Lun and Wu Shao from arguing, Yan Si changed the subject. “The alchemy in the storage space can, in theory, allow a mixed-blood dragon to grow up smoothly.”

The fundamental reason the Dragon Clan had no mixed-blood dragons was that the process of a dragon egg absorbing natural energy couldn’t support the growth of mixed bloodlines.

But with Yan Si’s alchemy and Xiang Lun’s space magic, this problem could be solved—though Yan Si hadn’t realized that particular application back then.

Now that Ming Shuang had left the storage space, he still needed slow conditioning to restore his suppressed true form.

In other words, his true form needed to grow anew.

“And it’s best to use healing technique regularly to assist, keeping the flow of magic power smooth,” Yan Si continued. “In short, everything must be handled with caution.”

The clan had no experience raising mixed-blood dragons, but fortunately, Ming Shuang’s condition was currently stable.

He hadn’t grown up in the Dragon Clan and had never met his kin, yet he had still matured well.

“Yes,” Xiang Lun nodded. “Though he is a Silver Frost Dragon who inherited Ming Xue’s ice magic, his constitution is somewhat weak.”

Another brief silence fell over the room as the three dragons simultaneously recalled the unique nature of ice magic.

The only thing capable of resisting the heavenly disaster of miasma fog was ice magic.

Yet ice magic was exceedingly rare, and powerful practitioners were virtually nonexistent. Years ago, Ming Xue had once repelled the miasma fog, but her condition had been dire by then—her body at the end of its tether.

At that time, the miasma fog hadn’t yet reached its current extent, and many hadn’t taken it seriously.

Ming Shuang’s emergence could very well be the key to resisting the heavenly disaster, yet he was a mixed-blood dragon born with innate deficiencies.

Thus, neither Xiang Lun nor the three dragons brought it up. They would never force such a heavy burden onto the still-young Ming Shuang.

Xiang Lun reflected that the Dragon Clan had shown some foresight, leaving Cangyuan Continent so early to seek new territory elsewhere.

New Dragon Island was likely free of miasma contamination and certainly wouldn’t allow other races entry, lest the fog be carried there.

As for the fact that the Dragon Clan hadn’t had a dragon egg hatch in nearly a century, the three dragons naturally wouldn’t reveal that to outsiders.

Wu Shao frowned deeply. “Isn’t Xing Huai wood element? Can’t you heal Ming Shuang?”

“Me?” Xing Huai looked up. “I haven’t studied healing technique.”

She possessed wood magic but disliked healing technique, so she had pursued astrology instead. The magic she typically used was offensive in nature.

Xiang Lun rubbed his temples again. “Xuzhi has a talent for light magic… He can heal Little Shuang.”

Even now, thinking back, Xiang Lun still found it hard to believe…

Xuzhi could actually convert someone else’s magic talent entirely into his own?

The glow in Xuzhi’s palm at the time—Xiang Lun had clearly sensed it as top-tier light magic, identical to Bai Telie’s.

This man was truly dangerous… and exceptionally good at disguising it.

If not for the storage space being inside Xuzhi and his close relationship with Ming Shuang, Xiang Lun wouldn’t want such a dangerous figure near Ming Shuang.

But with Bai Telie dead, Xuzhi was now the only top-tier light magic practitioner on the entire continent.

Who could have imagined that before this, he had been merely a 7th Tier earth element beast tamer?

Xiang Lun held back repeatedly. For Ming Shuang’s health, he temporarily refrained from mentioning what Xuzhi had done that night.

Wu Shao pressed, “How strong is he?”

Xiang Lun closed his eyes, feeling inexplicably drained as he uttered two words: “Top tier.”

The three dragons fell silent for a moment and raised no further objections.

Yan Si recalled the evening; Xuzhi’s presence had been subdued throughout, perhaps deliberately so. When they arrived, everyone had focused on the front hall and overlooked him.

The old man who had trapped the front hall—wasn’t he light element? And seemingly top tier as well.

What a coincidence… Xuzhi was top-tier light as well?

Xiang Lun had no desire to dwell on the matter. He only said that he would handle the mess from his mistakes and resolve it himself.

Wu Shao stroked his chin. “Just who is this Xuzhi? Is his amnesia real or fake? Did his body revert to youth? Or did he use some method to preserve his appearance? And what exactly is the contract between him and Ming Shuang?”

Like Xiang Lun, the three dragons accepted Xuzhi’s presence—barely—only because the storage space was inside him. Ming Xue must have trusted him deeply.

“I know a beast tamer proficient in contract techniques,” Xiang Lun interjected. “When he returns, he can examine Ming Shuang and see what kind of contract it is. If it can be undone, all the better.”

After the incident with Bai Telie, he would be even more cautious. And with three Dragon Clan members present, Ming Shuang was safer than ever.

At that moment, Xing Huai suddenly spoke up. “Can that storage space accommodate other dragons or dragon eggs?”

According to Xiang Lun, Ming Shuang had once kept several magical beasts with him inside, so other Dragon Clan members should be able to enter as well.

Yan Si immediately grasped her implication. She wanted to know if the storage space could help the clan’s dragon eggs hatch successfully.

But Xiang Lun shook his head. “Without maintenance, the storage space is even hard to open, let alone enter. And it can’t be removed from Xuzhi’s body.”

Xing Huai’s hand paused as she stroked the dragon egg. “Can’t we find some way?”

Over the years, the clan had tried every method imaginable, yet no dragon eggs had hatched.

The storage space had allowed a mixed-blood dragon to grow smoothly, though. Perhaps…

No matter what, it was worth a try.

Though Xiang Lun found it a bit odd, he didn’t think much of it. “I have no way. Operating the storage space requires massive amounts of magic power for support. Why not use alchemy again?”

Xing Huai turned hopeful eyes to Yan Si, who pondered before replying, “I’d need to study it first. No guarantee I can replicate it.”

Another brief silence settled over the room. By now, both sides had shared nearly all their information.

Finally, Xiang Lun had Ivan prepare guest rooms so the three dragons could stay in the courtyard.

But no one was likely to sleep that night. Wu Shao and Xing Huai simply stayed overnight in Yan Si’s room for convenience in talking.

“Why not take a harder line?” Wu Shao grumbled. “We want to take Ming Shuang with us—can Xiang Lun really stop us?”

Yan Si advised, “He is Ming Shuang’s grandfather, after all, and advanced in years…”

Xiang Lun was over three hundred and fifty years old. When he said they could take Ming Shuang only after he died, he likely meant it literally, not as a threat.

He had only Ming Shuang as family now. His son, Xiang Yuan, had been an utterly ordinary human with a mere century lifespan and had passed on long ago.

“Fine…” Wu Shao thought for a moment. “Should we head back and inform the clan about finding Little Dragon?”

Let the other dragons in the clan share in the joy?

Wu Shao had originally thought that if they couldn’t bring Ming Shuang back to Dragon Island, the clan members could at least come to Cangyuan Continent to see him.

But now the miasma fog was growing more severe. The more members of the Dragon Clan who returned, the more intense magic elements it would sense, potentially accelerating its outbreak.

Moreover, the dragon egg still couldn’t hatch, and all the dragons believed the miasma fog was to blame.

The miasma fog’s aura had polluted the Dragon Clan’s territory. It had polluted the dragon egg and even the dragons themselves, like a curse that would persist until the entire Dragon Clan perished.

New Dragon Island, by contrast, was a completely pristine land. Many dragons believed that staying there long enough would cleanse the curse-like pollution, which made them even more reluctant to set foot on Cangyuan Continent.

No matter what they chose, however, and no matter how many dragons were willing to return, they all had to visit Dragon Island first to deliver the news.

Xing Huai spoke first. “I want to stay here. I want to see if that storage space can still be opened.”

Yan Si chimed in. “Then I’ll have to help. Dean Herl is proficient in alchemy too, but not as much as I am.”

Wu Shao was speechless for a moment. “So that just leaves me? I don’t want to go back either. I want to protect Little Dragon.”

In the end, no one wanted to head back to Dragon Island right now. The island was far away, and a round trip—plus relaying the information, answering the clan’s questions, and arranging meetings for those who wanted to see Ming Shuang—would take an unknown amount of time.

Besides, contacting the clan at this moment didn’t seem all that urgent.

Yan Si made the decision. “Let’s put it off for now. There are still some things we haven’t figured out.”

Like Xuzhi’s identity and the reason Ming Xue had done what she did.

When Xiang Lun had revealed that Ming Xue hadn’t chosen the Dragon Clan, the three dragons had felt a twinge of hurt.

They were kin, after all, yet they hadn’t even known about Ming Shuang’s existence.

That said, if they had known, given the dragons’ temperament, they never would have allowed a young dragon to wander outside. They would have snatched him back, no matter what.

But now… Ming Shuang was an adult. He could make his own choices.

Even if he was a mixed-blood who hadn’t grown up in the clan, he was still a member of the Dragon Clan.

At a time like this, all three dragons wanted to spend more time with him—to lavish the best care and protection on this hard-won, one-of-a-kind young dragon in their midst.

The three dragons shared similar sentiments, though each had their own nuances.

On the other side of the courtyard’s corridor, Xiang Lun lingered outside Ming Shuang’s door for a moment before turning to leave.

But at that very moment, Ming Shuang was still lost in his dream.

He hadn’t used the mental link in a long time. Perhaps because his mana capacity had grown, the dream lasted much longer than before, and he didn’t feel tired at all.

Ming Shuang spoke to Xuzhi—or perhaps to himself. “Now I have a grandpa and clansmen. I also have a master, a brother, and a partner…”

The dream had gone on for so long that while he wasn’t sleepy, his mind had grown a little fuzzy. He had counted Xuzhi three times over.

Xuzhi stroked his silver hair. “Are you happy?”

Ming Shuang leaned into his arms and nodded. “Happy!”

“If Dragon Island really exists,” Xuzhi continued, “would you want to go see it?”

“Yes,” Ming Shuang replied without hesitation. “I’d bring Grandpa and Master back with me…”

No sooner had the words left his mouth than Xuzhi leaned down and kissed him. “You’re not allowed to call him Master.”

The kiss landed on his cheek. Ming Shuang’s fingertips curled tighter around Xuzhi’s sleeve as he dazedly corrected himself. “Bring… bring Brother and my partner back.”

He had still counted twice.

Xuzhi had kissed Ming Shuang many times in the dream. Ming Shuang was both accustomed to it and not—like after too many kisses, the sensation began to feel different.

Dazed and muddled, Ming Shuang savored it innocently, his ear tips turning faintly pink.

Xuzhi didn’t miss that subtle shift. He pulled Ming Shuang closer and kissed the tip of his ear.

Ming Shuang burrowed deeper into his embrace, muffling a yawn. At last, he grew sleepy.

~~~

The next day, the three dragons arrived early in the front hall, waiting for Ming Shuang to wake.

Ming Shuang stirred early as well. The prolonged mental link from the night before hadn’t affected him at all during the day.

After washing up, he deliberately consumed two magic stones to shapeshift, intending to meet his clansmen in human form.

Ivan and the snow fox were already waiting outside the door. Ming Shuang rummaged through his wardrobe, finally selecting a new outfit and hurriedly changing into it.

Xuzhi straightened his collar and sleeves, soothing him. “Don’t be nervous. Your clansmen like you very much.”

It was the truth. The three dragons had arrived just in time the night before, and none of them seemed to harbor any ulterior motives.

The youngest, Xing Huai, had even hugged Ming Shuang, but she’d looked at him entirely like a junior—and she’d called him the dragon egg’s big brother.

Xuzhi felt much more at ease. It was just a pity that these three dragons, each wielding top-tier magic, were right there in front of him, and he couldn’t continue experimenting with plundering their power.

If anything happened to his clansmen, Ming Shuang would surely be upset.

Ming Shuang nodded and looked up at Xuzhi. Unbidden, he recalled the dream from the night before.

Xuzhi had been completely different from his usual dream self—or rather, exactly the same as he was outside the dream.

Ming Shuang wanted to ask if he remembered last night’s dream, but it felt unnecessary.

As he hesitated, he noticed Xuzhi frowning slightly. Xuzhi’s eyes were downcast, his breathing subtly arrested, as if he felt unwell.

Ming Shuang immediately thought of his previous collapse. “Master… Brother, what’s wrong? Are you feeling unwell?”

Xuzhi forcibly suppressed the mana disorder stirring within him. The faint dizziness vanished under the circulation of his light magic.

A slight headache lingered, but it wasn’t serious.

“It’s nothing,” Xuzhi reassured him. “Now that I have light magic, I can heal myself.”

It was an unexpected boon, even if he wasn’t sure it would always work perfectly.

Ming Shuang remained worried. He reached out to touch the side of Xuzhi’s face and, finding his temperature normal, let out a small breath of relief.

Xuzhi gazed at the Ming Shuang before him. His headache eased bit by bit.

This time, he hadn’t lost consciousness. He could sense a strange surge of emotions within his body.

It felt similar to the destructive urge that came every time he acquired a new innate talent—the craving to plunder and devour everything. Light magic couldn’t heal that.

Suddenly, Ming Shuang pressed an ice ball into Xuzhi’s hand.

The ice ball was wrapped in mana, making it resistant to melting. Xuzhi held it, and a measure of calm settled over him.

~~~