Early in the morning, Yaoyao was already awake.
She stood alone on the grass beside the lake, diligently practicing her spear techniques.
After receiving Xia's careful instruction, her spear movements had stopped going astray, and she no longer needed Madame Ping to stand by her side, constantly correcting her mistakes.
After a while, Azhdaha also woke up.
He stepped out of the adeptal abode, still muttering some incomprehensible phrases like "Red buff, blue buff, cannon minion, wolves, R-Flash."
Seeing Yaoyao practicing her spear, the Dragon King stopped and smiled warmly.
"Good morning, Grandpa Dragon King."
"Good morning, Yaoyao. You're up early today, practicing diligently."
"Yes! Master said training early in the morning is most effective!"
"Are you practicing alone?"
"That's right!"
"Where are little Ganyu and little Shenhe?"
"Sister Ganyu and Sister Shenhe are already adepti!"
"A mere adeptus is only the start. There's still a long way to go ahead."
The Dragon King sighed.
"Young people nowadays are so lazy. How can they progress without clear goals?"
Yaoyao blinked, quietly listening.
The Dragon King waved his hand, "Yaoyao, continue your practice. I'll take a stroll."
Yaoyao obediently replied, "Okay!"
She picked up her spear and began practicing from the beginning again.
Azhdaha leisurely wandered around the lakeside. Seeing a turtle swimming slowly in the water, he couldn't help but recall the frustrating night spent losing repeatedly as Rammus.
It was still a sore spot!
He sighed and thought of the little angel Yaoyao diligently practicing earlier.
With his insight, he could easily see that Yaoyao had great potential.
It was to be expected—if she didn't possess such good aptitude, little Ping wouldn't have taken her as a disciple.
Still, though Ping's spear techniques were decent, they were nowhere near Morax's level.
If you're going to teach a kid, you should teach them the best spear techniques possible!
Next time he saw Morax, he'd have to bring it up and have him find some time to properly instruct Yaoyao.
It wasn't just because "Grandpa Dragon King" sounded nice—mainly, he didn't want such a promising young talent to go to waste.
As he was lost in thought, the Dragon King suddenly turned, looking sharply in a certain direction.
He could sense something approaching rapidly from afar.
He focused carefully.
There seemed to be two distinct presences.
They were flying rather fast.
And they carried an aura that felt oddly familiar to him.
What could it be?
They came closer.
And closer still.
He could finally make them out clearly.
Ah, they weren't objects.
It was those two boys, Mountain Shaper and Moon Carver.
The Dragon King's face lit up with joy.
Perfect timing!
Little Ping, little Cloud Retainer, and even little Ganyu—he didn't know why, but they were all somewhat distant toward him.
He was just fretting about having no company!
A moment later, Mountain Shaper and Moon Carver descended from the sky.
They glanced uncertainly at Azhdaha, cautiously asking, "Are you... the Dragon King?"
Azhdaha laughed heartily, stepping forward and slapping them both firmly on the shoulders. "Indeed, it's me!"
Feeling the familiar immense force on their shoulders, both adepti sucked in a sharp breath.
That uniquely rough greeting style—without a doubt, it was their old acquaintance, the Dragon King himself.
Mountain Shaper gently pushed the hand off his shoulder, asking cautiously, "How did you get out?"
"What kind of question is that? Why can't I come out?"
"What about the Erosion on your body?"
"Already cured."
"...???"
The two adepti were stunned.
"It was healed by Mr. Xia."
"Oh."
Well, that explains it.
Mr. Xia's miraculous skills were already legendary.
Both adepti nodded in understanding.
The Dragon King asked cheerfully, "So, what brings you two boys over to Cloud Retainer's place today?"
Mountain Shaper explained, "We were originally stationed near Wangshu Inn, helping Xiao patrol Guili Plains. Last night, we felt an earthquake near Nantianmen and sensed something might be wrong, so we hurried over to check."
The Dragon King nodded approvingly. "You two are quite responsible."
Moon Carver added, "Besides, recently Cloud Retainer got injured and reverted to her original form..."
"What?!"
Before Moon Carver could finish his sentence, the Dragon King exploded with anger, a terrifying aura of hostility erupting from him, ready to storm off and beat someone up.
"Who dared to attack her?!"
The old dragon's protective temperament hadn't changed at all over the years.
Mountain Shaper quickly grabbed him. "No, no! Calm down, Dragon King! No one attacked her!"
"Then what happened exactly!?"
"You know Cloud Retainer likes researching mechanisms. A while back, she was experimenting with an invention designed to harm even gods—a compressed combination of the seven elements. She went alone into the wilderness to test it and accidentally blew herself up, reverting back to her original crane form."
"..."
After hearing this, the Dragon King fell silent for a moment, then slowly nodded.
"So that's how it is... That girl Cloud Retainer has always been reckless. It's good she suffered a setback to learn caution."
"Indeed. Thankfully, Mr. Xia happened to find her and treated her injuries. Otherwise, with so many wild monsters around, she might've gotten eaten."
"So Mr. Xia saved Cloud Retainer's life..."
Suddenly, the Dragon King recalled the look Cloud Retainer had given Mr. Xia last night, and everything clicked into place.
"No wonder..."
The two adepti exchanged puzzled looks. "No wonder what?"
The Dragon King glanced around to confirm no one else was nearby, then leaned in closer, whispering conspiratorially, "Let me tell you two something—but don't spread it around—I noticed that Cloud Retainer seems to have developed feelings for Mr. Xia..."
The two adepti exchanged silent looks, both speechless.
That's it? We've known about that for ages already.
This old dragon's habit of gossiping truly hadn't changed in the slightest.
Mountain Shaper cleared his throat solemnly. "Dragon King, please don't talk nonsense. With Cloud Retainer's personality, she'll probably spend her whole life devoted only to mechanisms. How could she possibly like someone?"
The Dragon King gave him a disdainful glance. "Nonsense? I've seen countless people through these eyes of mine. When have I ever been wrong? That girl probably hasn't even realized it herself yet, but I've already seen right through her! If you don't believe me, just wait and see!"
Moon Carver coughed lightly, maintaining a serious expression. "Dragon King, haven't you noticed that Shenhe and Mr. Xia have been in love for a long time?"
The Dragon King looked at him blankly. "What's that got to do with anything?"
Moon Carver whispered, "Cloud Retainer is Shenhe's master. Even if what you say is true, given her personality, do you think she'd shamelessly go after her own disciple's man?"
The Dragon King pondered this carefully. "That's true... They're all adepti already—why do they still have so many hang-ups... Ah, forget it. The affairs of you youngsters are best left for you to figure out yourselves... So, you're here to visit Cloud Retainer?"
Mountain Shaper nodded. "Yes. Last time was Madame Ping's birthday, and we tried to invite her along, but she was in secluded cultivation, so we didn't get to meet her."
Moon Carver added solemnly, "We were quite worried about her, so last night, we traveled nonstop without rest or food, just to reach here quickly."
The Dragon King smiled warmly. "You two boys are quite thoughtful. Good timing—none of us have had breakfast yet. Let's eat together later. Mr. Xia's noodles are delicious!"
Both adepti nodded eagerly. "Sounds excellent! Mr. Xia's cooking is truly unmatched."
Plan successful!
The Dragon King led the two adepti toward the adeptal abode, chatting happily as they walked. "You two really picked the perfect time to visit today."
Mountain Shaper asked curiously, "Perfect timing? How so?"
The Dragon King laughed cheerfully. "Mr. Xia mentioned yesterday that he's officially preparing a grand feast today to welcome me."
"Really?!"
"Of course!"
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