Qingluan Clan Land.
In the tranquil night, the Taiyin hangs high in the sky.
The girl, with delicate wings that resemble shimmering silk spun from jade, sways gracefully in the moonlight, adorned by shining frost.
She sits on a branch of the tallest tree in the clan land, her long legs gently swinging, holding a big-headed doll in her arms.
Is she… lost in thought?
Ying Bing gazes at the moon, her eyes dazed, almost like a flawless jade carving.
Before she can pull back her thoughts, the branch sinks ever so slightly. The visitor… is that blue-clad girl!
After spending a few days together, Ying Bing has already learned her name.
Luan Qing.
Dinglingling—
Luan Qing’s meaning is:
“We’re setting off! The old clan leader sent me to notify you.”
“Okay, thanks.”
Ying Bing nods.
Luan Qing, however, stands there hesitantly, her expression wavering, as if she wants to say something but is too shy, burying her head into her own pair of wings.
“Is there something you need help with?”
Ying Bing’s melodious voice seems to carry more softness than usual.
After hesitating for a moment, Luan Qing shakes her bell in a peculiar rhythm.
It’s a bit choppy; had it not been for Ying Bing learning a bit of music during this time, she might not have understood it at all.
“Can you help me hang this on the Affection Tree at the Floating Temple?”
Luan Qing’s face is filled with hope:
“I heard that as long as you hang your wish on the Affection Tree, your destined one will show up soon, and then I can finally speak!”
“Oh…”
Ying Bing reaches out to take it but finds that Luan Qing has given her two silk pouches.
Luan Qing shakes her bell with a smile:
“You already have your destined one! But hanging the pouches on the Affection Tree will also bless you with happiness…”
“…..”
Ying Bing falls silent for a moment, opens her mouth, but before she can speak…
“Little Ice Girl! Where are you? We need to set off!”
Shang Qin Qing’s voice comes from afar.
“Coming.”
Ying Bing lowers her eyes for a moment, her pale, slender fingers finally clutching the silk pouches, sliding them into the big-headed doll.
With her wings spread wide, the girl leaps into the night sky.
…….
Meanwhile.
The fish-bone boat glides across the waves, creating a splashing sound that scares all the unknown beasts in the jungle into a frenzy.
“Wow, long time no see.”
Li Mo sits on the eye socket of the fish-head, gazing at the familiar giant moon, the Taiyin divine pattern on his Dantian glowing faintly.
Having spent the past few days in the Black Water Marsh—home to the Ming Jiao Clan—it’s been nothing but overcast or cloudy with rain. He hasn’t seen the moon in ages.
The Taiyin shines cold and serene, just like it always does.
It’s like countless times before when he raised his gaze to catch a glimpse of the moonlight.
Hmm.
Little Li, lost in thought, yet it doesn’t hinder his observation of the divine intent of the Taiyin.
Within this little world, the Taiyin hangs just as high, seemingly connecting in some way to the moon of the outside world.
Fully automatic soul-scrubbing, observing divine intent.
“Lord Sky Flood Dragon?”
“Li… Mo brother?”
A voice suddenly comes from behind, jolting Li Mo back to reality.
He turns to find Murong Xiao and Wu Daming.
“What are you guys doing up at this hour? You’re going to scare a dragon to d*ath!”
Murong Xiao scratches his reflective bald head:
“I thought big brother Mo could see me.”
“I was just deep in meditation, you know, focused like a hawk. Don’t you remember how serious I am about my practice, Murong brother?”
Li Mo states with righteous indignation, then coughs lightly and asks:
“What’s up?”
“I’m hungry.”
Murong Xiao hasn’t eaten again tonight.
He’s a vegetarian, but the Ming Jiao Clan’s vegetarian dishes are mainly just water plants used for toothpicks.
“Ahh, I picked some wild chives on the way; let’s roast them!”
“That’s not… okay.”
“Hmm… right, Buddhists consider chives to be similar to meat….”
“Wait, Brother Li, today is the first day of my vow of celibacy; it’s crucial, I absolutely cannot mess it up again.”
“…..”
In the end, Murong Xiao still ended up eating roasted chives. It’s not only because the roasted chives smelled too good.
Li Mo told him that since today is the first day, eating chives wouldn’t change that. Tomorrow would still be day one, and the days of abstaining wouldn’t decrease.
Also, tomorrow wouldn’t magically turn into yesterday.
Buddha would never say you gave up halfway!
Murong Xiao thinks Brother Li makes a good point; he seems to understand Buddhism better than him, definitely has more insight.
“Smells amazing.”
“Go on, eat up. Daming, do you want some? Adding some cumin and spicy pepper?”
Wu Daming was about to nod when Li Mo shook his head and said:
“Better not; once you finish, it’s gonna rain.”
In the Ming Jiao Clan, it’s forbidden to cough at random while journeying in the South Border.
“Oh right, some water clan passed by earlier and sent you gifts.”
While munching on chives, Wu Daming looks enviously at the amazing young Li Mo.
“Ahem, just pile them over there.”
Li Mo points towards a corner of the fish-bone boat cabin, where heaps of gifts from various water clans, and even some from other tribes, are stacked up, all seeking connections.
They’ve been passing through, and the scene is just as lively as when he was announced as a top-tier husband-fighting soul in Yunzhou by the Qianlong List…
“Are you not going to take a look? You should consider carefully.”
“What’s there to see?”
Li Mo isn’t very interested.
But Wu Daming is persistent: “For instance, this one, this crystal coral sent by the Giant Whale Clan. Though it’s a bit on the large side, it’s….”
“How big?”
“True form is… around forty feet?”
“Too little?”
“Uh… maybe you’d like to take a look at this one from the Sea King Squid Clan…?”
The powerful water clans heading to the Floating Temple are not limited to just the Ming Jiao Clan.
There are even those who traveled all the way from the South Sea, having heard of the feats of the Sky Flood Dragon, and the Ming Jiao Clan, unlike certain tribes, is more flexible.
Some clans only allow inbreeding to ensure pure bl**d.
Even more so for the Qingluan, who are waiting eagerly for their destined encounters.
The Ming Jiao Clan isn’t so strict about the species of their partners.
You can tell that just by looking at Murong brother sitting there munching on chives.
“Daming, tell me honestly, have you set your sights on someone?”
Li Mo asks casually: “Why are you only introducing those massive sizes?”
“I think strong males should pair up with strong females; what do humans call it… oh, ‘living off soft rice’? That’s so cozy! Big brother Mo, I’m completely thinking of you!”
Wu Daming goes on as if it’s the most natural thing in the world.
Otherwise, how could he pull off being an actor dragon?
Li Mo is silent for a moment:
“Where’d you learn all this?”
“There are often storytellers by the riverside in South Gate City. I frequently listen to a story called ‘The Overbearing Empress Falls for Me’. It makes a lot of sense!”
“Less of that nonsense; those are all fairy tales. Do you even know what sci-fi is? Just like how Ming Jiao dragons don’t sneeze when it rains, it’s absurd.”
“Respect the teachings…”
“Hmm?”
Li Mo glances at Wu Daming, who stands tall with rugged features typical of dragons, now seeming to harbor dreams of being Wu Daming’s cute counterpart.
His fist clenches reflexively. Strange.
The next morning.
In the distance, they can see a grand ancient temple sitting atop a mountain, seemingly radiating holy light amid the mist.
The Floating Temple.
Once Little Li gets off the fish-bone boat, he runs into a major conundrum.
Without even stepping off the boat.
From afar, he sees a massive crowd of water clans gathering at the dock, most of them female with water clan traits, all exquisitely dressed and bearing treasures from their tribes.
Some of them aren’t even there to seek the Celestial Divine Jade at the Floating Temple.
So what are they after?
If it’s a drop of True Dragon bl**d!
Even a faint trace!
As long as it exists, there’s a chance for a resurgence—there’s a chance to leap through the dragon’s gate!
The scene is extraordinarily grand.
Little Li, calculating strategy, inhales cold air lightly.
“Oh no, they’re all coming for me.”
