Chapter 23

Chapter 23

As Hong Rong finished speaking, the Blue Dragon immediately frowned. He looked at Hong Rong with an unfriendly expression, as if he were an idiot. "The Dragon Lord is a male dragon. How could he be pregnant? Have you lost your mind?!"

The Blue Dragon cursed. Others might not know, but didn't they—the old dragons who had watched Huo Wuyan grow up—know his temperament well?

That boy is aloof, eccentric, arrogant, boring, and wears a stern face all day. There isn't even a single woman around him. What woman would dare approach him?

His father crawling out of the grave to lay another clutch of eggs would be more likely than Huo Wuyan having a child!!

Having been provoked by that damn old turtle just now and now being teased by a junior, the Blue Dragon grew angrier. Before Hong Rong could speak, he grabbed his cane and struck Hong Rong twice, hard, until Hong Rong yelped in pain. Only then did he feel a bit relieved!

He straightened his slightly messy beard and muttered under his breath, "Why aren't you out cultivating properly? Instead you're here making fun of an old man. Get lost!"

"And 'the Dragon Lord is pregnant'! If you're going to make something up, at least make it believable!"

With that, the Blue Dragon couldn't be bothered to deal with Hong Rong any longer. He hurried into the mountains with his cane. He had spent too long sunbathing with the old turtle today and hadn't yet burned incense for the Dragon God. He mustn't miss the auspicious time! What a sin!

Seeing his disbelief, Hong Rong pouted and quickly followed the Blue Dragon up the mountain. "Elder Blue, Elder Blue, listen to me!"

Several elder dragons were sprawled on the mountain in their true forms, sunbathing. Their expressions were lazy, their gazes dull, like lazy fish just waiting to die, completely lacking the arrogant demeanor of the former overlords of the cultivation world!

Without cubs, the boring days of facing possible extinction at any moment had long worn away their sharp edges.

Hong Rong took a deep breath, gathered his breath, and announced loudly, "Everyone! I have news of a cub!!!"

Upon hearing the word "cub," the group of elder dragons who had been dozing with half-closed eyes suddenly lifted their large heads and looked at Hong Rong looking dazed. "?"

Seeing the elder dragons staring at him eagerly, Hong Rong immediately became animated and said vividly, "Seniors, listen to me!

Just a few days ago, we suddenly received a message from the Dragon Lord, so I traveled thousands of miles to the human territory. Then I discovered that the Dragon Lord had lost his virginity!"

The elder dragons: "??"

Hong Rong coughed. Amidst the confused yet eager gazes of the elder dragons, he put on a profound air. "The Dragon Lord ordered me to investigate information about a human woman. I accepted the critical mission, but I discovered that the woman was already pregnant. In her womb, she carried the Dragon Lord's offspring!"

The elder dragons: "???"

But Hong Rong had already continued, "However, heaven does not always comply with wishes. A group of vicious villains coveted her spiritual root. They used despicable means to imprison her and intended to cut open her belly to take the spiritual root! At the critical moment, the Dragon Lord swooped down and made a dramatic rescue!"

The group of elder dragons listened dumbfounded, even forgetting to doubt for a moment. They stared intently at Hong Rong with rather complex expressions.

After a long while, one dragon timidly asked, "Is it true? You're not making fun of us old folks, are you?"

They really couldn't associate Huo Wuyan with the heroic dragon saving a beauty that Hong Rong described...

Hong Rong nodded solemnly. "Of course it's true. Who would dare joke about the Dragon Lord? Do I have a death wish?"

With these words, the elder dragons who had been full of suspicion were now mostly convinced. Indeed, even if Hong Rong were as bold as a lion, he wouldn't dare slander Huo Wuyan in the dragon clan's territory!

Thinking of this, the group of elder dragons instantly became visibly excited!

Hong Rong then recounted the previous events in detail to the several elders. The sentimental old dragons almost shed tears of joy. They clasped their hands in prayer, their expressions ecstatic to the point of madness. "Dragon God above! Dragon God bless! Dragon God has shown himself!"

"After so many years, our clan finally has a cub again! Heaven has finally taken notice!"

They also have a cub now!

They no longer have to envy the old turtle next door!

The Blue Dragon had countless words to say, but as soon as he opened his mouth, he let out a wail and tears rolled down his cheeks.

The leading Azure Dragon looked at Hong Rong with blazing eyes. His murky eyes held a mixture of expectation, excitement, and anxiety. He rubbed his hands excitedly and stuttered, "Since she's pregnant, why didn't the Dragon Lord bring the young lady back? It's so dangerous outside!"

Upon hearing this, Hong Rong let out another low sigh. He glanced secretly at the dragons and said cautiously, "It's a long story. Miss Lu's cultivation is still shallow. Her body can't handle long journeys right now. So the Dragon Lord and Qing Nong sent me back to get the Xun Dragon Pearl to protect Miss Lu's heart channel. Elders, what do you say..."

Hong Rong was still a bit nervous. Although the cub was precious, the Xun Dragon Pearl was a treasure of the dragon clan. He worried the elders might not hand it over without seeing the Dragon Lord.

However, before he finished speaking, the Azure Dragon immediately chimed in. He was so happy his teeth showed and his eyes narrowed, his old face creased into a smile like a wrinkled chrysanthemum. "It's just the Xun Dragon Pearl? Take them all! Wait, I'll go open the forbidden area right away and get it for you!"

"Not just the Xun Dragon Pearl—if Miss Lu and the cub need it, I'd even be willing to give them my own dragon pearl to play with like a marble!!!"

Hong Rong: "..."

With that, the Azure Dragon quickly grabbed his cane and hurried up the mountain. The group of elder dragons also rushed back into their caves to pack their belongings. As if presenting treasures, they dug out all the jewels and spiritual herbs they had been reluctant to eat or use on ordinary days and stuffed them into Hong Rong's hands, wanting to give them to the unborn cub!

They practically wished they could place all the treasures in the world before the cub!

Hong Rong looked at the elder dragons. They were all smiling, completely lacking their usual domineering and majestic demeanor. His eyes widened in astonishment. Even though he knew these dragon seniors might be very happy, seeing them so excited still felt somewhat absurd...

Are they this crazy?

After drinking the herbal medicine brought by Qing Nong, Lu Yuanyin felt a bit drowsy.

Seeing this, Qing Nong hurriedly left the room. Before leaving, he whispered, "Miss, rest for now. Everyone in the inn is one of us. If you need anything, just ask the innkeeper. If that doesn't work, send me a message. Don't be polite!"

Lu Yuanyin was a bit surprised. She hadn't expected the inn to belong to Huo Wuyan and his people...

She nodded. After hesitating for a moment, she said softly, "In a few days, I want to attend the Four Directions Alchemy Assembly."

In a few days, it would be the cultivation world's triennial Four Directions Alchemy Assembly. At that time, many powerful alchemists would go to the Wandan Sect. It was almost a sacred place in every alchemist's heart. Lu Yuanyin had gone with her parents as a child and had attended almost every session over the years.

Qing Nong touched his full head of green hair, winked at Lu Yuanyin, and said with a smile, "You'll have to ask the lord about that."

Lu Yuanyin sighed inwardly, and saw Qing Nong quickly disappear into the crowd.

The room fell silent again. Lu Yuanyin rarely had such leisure. She didn't need to deal with Lu Sisi or fight desperately to stay alive. She formed hand seals and summoned her cauldron. A faint flash of light passed, and the rusted cauldron thudded to the ground.

Lu Yuanyin took a handkerchief and carefully wiped away the dust inside.

Her gaze lingered on the cauldron for a moment. It was covered with densely packed, savage beasts baring fangs and claws. Even though the patterns were faded and blurred, one could still see through the remaining lines the former majestic and domineering appearance.

Lu Yuanyin dusted her hands, feeling a bit regretful. This cauldron must have been no ordinary object in the past, but a gem hidden in the dust.

She opened her storage pouch and carefully inventoried its contents. The pouch was piled high with stacks of spiritual herbs and pills. Having been confined to the Reflection Cliff, she hadn't tidied up for a long time. Some of the herbs had died. The Heavenly Fragrant Epiphyllum was lying quietly in a corner of the pouch, already showing signs of withering.

Lu Yuanyin quickly watered the Heavenly Fragrant Epiphyllum and crushed a few spiritual pills into the dirt around its roots, hoping to save it.

After a moment, Lu Yuanyin paused. She looked at the Heavenly Fragrant Epiphyllum and wondered if Scarface and the others had survived.

Thinking of the danger that day, she felt a vague worry. She took out spiritual herbs from the storage pouch and, following the previous method, watered the roots one by one.

As the sun rose higher, people came and went outside the window. Lu Yuanyin frequently heard her name from those people. Last night's appearance of dragons on Chongyao Mountain had already spread throughout most of the cultivation world.

For so many years, the spirit beast clan had rarely appeared in the world. The dragons' past deeds had almost become legends. Human cultivators had always been extremely curious and admiring of them.

Now, all the disciples of the Chongyao Sect were talking about this matter. Even the residents living nearby were inquiring everywhere. Last night's fire had destroyed nearly half of Chongyao Mountain. Countless disciples had been awakened from their dreams by the deep dragon roar. Mountain ranges had collapsed, waterfalls had dried up, and the Sect Leader and several elders were injured.

Now, the disciples all felt somewhat uneasy.

Lu Yuanyin thought of what happened last night and without changing expression, glanced toward the room across from her. Huo Wuyan sat expressionlessly by the window, his eyes lowered as he read an ancient text. Sunlight fell upon his snow-white hair, casting faint glimmers.

He sat there casually, exuding an indescribable air of mystery and nobility.

In terms of appearance alone, he was the most striking she had ever seen, far superior to the senior and junior disciples of the Hehuan Sect. However, his usual cold demeanor and overwhelming presence made people instinctively overlook his handsome appearance.

Lu Yuanyin merely glanced at him before averting her gaze.

Thinking about the upcoming Four Directions Alchemy Assembly in a few days, she absentmindedly fiddled with the spiritual herbs in her hands, wondering whether Huo Wuyan would let her go.

She couldn't help but look at him again, feeling hesitant.

After a moment, she sighed softly.

...

This happened several times, and even if Huo Wuyan had wanted to pretend not to notice her gaze, it became impossible.

Cultivators possessed far sharper senses than ordinary people.

Let alone Lu Yuanyin's seemingly covert scrutiny—if someone even dared to use their spiritual sense to scan him from eight hundred li away, he would detect it.

Huo Wuyan looked at the ancient text in his hands. When Lu Yuanyin sneaked another glance at him, he felt a rare discomfort. Without thinking, he subtly straightened his posture.

A frown creased his brow. He wondered, *Why does she keep stealing glances at me?*

Then, his fingers paused mid-turn. He suddenly recalled Lu Yuanyin’s earlier actions—locking him in the cave and taking the initiative in intimacy with him, choosing to leave with him in front of everyone, and now stealing glances at him.

Putting all these incidents together, a thought slowly emerged in Huo Wuyan’s mind: *Could it be that Lu Yuanyin likes me?*

The moment this notion surfaced, he became even more uneasy. He stiffly turned the pages of the ancient text, his thoughts momentarily in disarray.

Instinctively, he wanted to remind Lu Yuanyin that he was a dragon who would unify the cultivation world, with grand ambitions and no time to waste on romantic entanglements and romantic feelings.

She should not harbor any improper thoughts about me.

*Author’s note:*

Update's here~

Last night, I fell asleep while writing, so the update came a bit late (T_T)/~~