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"How would I know?" the Fallen Dragon retorted irritably. "I don't even have consciousness."

Though it said so, it vaguely understood why deep down, it thought to itself.

Even after its fall, stripped of intellect and forced to exist in this degraded state, the pride of the dragon race made it unbearable to remain trapped in the Red Bone River like one of the reanimated corpses. So, driven by instinct, it sought to escape this prison set by its own kind and break free from its shackles.

The young qilin listened but didn’t press the issue further, instead turning its gaze back to Ning Yuzhou.

The Fallen Dragon also stared at Ning Yuzhou, growing wary. It suddenly realized that despite this human’s apparent weakness, he was not to be underestimated. With just a few words, he had deduced the situation. Though merely a mortal, he gave off an unsettlingly dangerous aura.

Ning Yuzhou smiled faintly and said, "We didn’t come today to discuss this with you. We only wanted to ask why, after arriving in the Underworld, you chose to come to the Sea of Undying. Is there something here we don’t know about?"

The Fallen Dragon remained silent, watching him.

The rain had stopped at some point, and a bone-chilling wind swept across the lake, carrying an eerie chill.

Ning Yuzhou sighed softly. "Does this place have something to do with the crimson rain of the Red Rock Forest?"

The Fallen Dragon stiffened, its dragon eyes widening as they locked onto him.

Seeing it on the verge of losing its temper again, the young qilin scampered over and gently bit onto the dragon’s tail fur. "Long Yi, don’t be angry! Brother Ning is a good person—a really, really good one! I still need their help to find my body later."

The dragon’s rage was forcibly suppressed. It snorted two jets of dragon flame from its nostrils, creating a gust so strong it nearly sent the Celestial Divination Umbrella flying.

Wen Qiao and Ning Yuzhou had already noticed that the Fallen Dragon seemed to hold some restraint for the young qilin.

As fellow divine beasts, the Four Divine Beasts were said to share a close bond. Now, seeing how the Fallen Dragon held back its temper for the young qilin’s sake, it was clear their relationship held weight.

Once the dragon had calmed, the young qilin urged, "Long Yi, you still haven’t answered Brother Ning’s question."

Long Yi remained silent.

Just then, an overwhelming and menacing presence suddenly erupted on Moon-Gazing Island.

Instantly, every living being on the island instinctively turned toward the source of the presence.

Before Wen Qiao could react, the Fallen Dragon let out a mighty roar and soared into the sky, streaking away.

"Wait for me!" The young qilin latched onto the dragon’s tail, calling back to Wen Qiao and Ning Yuzhou, "Brother Ning, Wen-jie, hurry and climb onto Long Yi!"

The Fallen Dragon: "..."

Wen Qiao glanced over but didn’t immediately follow the young qilin’s suggestion to mount the dragon, nor did she rush to chase after it.

There were still others present—they couldn’t just abandon them to follow the Fallen Dragon.

The dragon’s speed was astonishing, vanishing into the distance in mere moments.

Only after it had disappeared did the two finally allow their strained bodies to relax, then fell to the ground.

Ning Yuzhou took out a Spirit Restoring Pill and swallowed it, then turned to Wen Qiao. Her brows were slightly furrowed, her lips pressed together as if deep in thought.

He reached out and gently touched her head. When she looked up, he automatically smiled at her.

Then her slightly cold hand grasped his, and she said with dead seriousness, "Husband, the Fallen Dragon seems to hold a lot of grudge against you. Next time you encounter something you can’t fight, just run. Don’t waste time arguing with them," she added firmly.

Ning Yuzhou: "...I couldn't possibly outrun them either."

"Then hide in the pocket dimension."

Hearing her resolute words, even willing to reveal her spatial ability to keep him safe, his chest grew warm, and he smiled softly, saying gently, "Then I'll be more careful next time. Chui, you..."

He wanted to ask if she was afraid something might happen to him. But meeting her limpid, guileless eyes, he suddenly didn’t feel the need to ask.

Yet Wen Qiao, having spent so much time with him, could read him like a book and knew exactly what he wanted to ask. Without hesitation, she said, "I don’t want anything bad to happen to you—not so much as a scratch... What if your hair turns white?"

Ning Yuzhou: "What did you say?"

"Nothing." Wen Qiao came back to herself, scratching her head sheepishly. "Maybe it’s just the illusions I saw in the canyon earlier—I overthought things."

Ning Yuzhou simply watched her without speaking.

After resting for a while, Wen Qiao hurried to check on the others.

She found that they had only fainted due to the Fallen Dragon’s crushing pressure, which had disrupted their qi/blood flow and caused internal injuries. Relieved, she quickly fed them Spirit Restoring Pills and transferred some qi to them.

Soon, Wu Xiongan and the others woke up one by one—except for Wen Yi.

Upon waking, they first scanned their surroundings. Not seeing the Fallen Dragon, they froze in shock.

"Where’s the Fallen Dragon?" Wen Tuti asked. "Sister, where did it go?" Knowing the dragon’s nature, they had expected some retribution, yet apart from the injuries from its crushing pressure, nothing else had happened.

Wen Tuti found it very strange.

"Did it leave with the young qilin?" Shi Wuming inquired. He knew the Four Auspicious Beasts were on good terms. As long as the Fallen Dragon retained its sanity, with the young qilin mediating, it wouldn’t easily attack them.

Ning Yuzhou approached and said, "It went that way."

The group bombarded him with questions, but Ning Yuzhou offered no explanation. Seeing they had mostly recovered, he decided they should go investigate.

Ning Jichen, carrying the still-unconscious Wen Yi, looked at his son with concern, hesitating to speak.

Ning Yuzhou gave his worried father a reassuring smile, wordlessly reassuring him.

They flew toward the opposite side of the lake.

This was the Fallen Dragon’s territory—a domain of the mighty dragon race. No ghosts or monsters dared linger here, not even the ghostly avian creatures from the sky. Thus, they could advance unhindered.

The Fallen Dragon was too fast. By the time they reached their destination, its figure had already vanished.

Ahead lay a massive crater, bottomless in its depth. Thick gray mist billowed from within, obscuring what lay below. And the suffocatingly ferocious presence they had sensed earlier emanated from this very pit.