The next morning.
Smith Dole awoke, glancing at Bulma still asleep beside him. With a faint smile, he slipped into the bathroom to shower.
He couldn't help but recall the previous night—her stubborn tears, her insistence on continuing even through exhaustion. It amused him, but it also surprised him. For all her delicate appearance, Bulma's body held a surprising resilience. Even in her first time, she had grown bolder, fiercer, as the night wore on.
After washing, Smith returned to the room. He brushed a kiss across her forehead, then left quietly, letting her rest while he made his way to the gravity chamber. His sudden surge in strength needed to be digested through hard training, and he was determined to push Kaioken to the next level.
······
Meanwhile, Xu Wenwu and his family, with Ying Li, their children, and seven of the Ten Rings army, boarded Airbus No. 2. They were bound for Ta Lo. Their plan: go early, finish quickly, and return without delay.
On the flight, Ying Li's thoughts turned to her resurrection. Wenwu had told her the truth—that it was by wishing upon the Dragon that she had been brought back.
The Dragon did not look exactly like the guardian of Ta Lo, but did every dragon need to look alike? She herself knew there were many kinds. What she truly wondered was whether the Dragon of the Brotherhood and the Dragon of Ta Lo were in some way connected—perhaps both guardian spirits of their respective realms.
Wenwu noticed her pensive silence and wrapped an arm around her.
"Ying Li, what troubles you? Worried your people won't accept your return?"
She smiled at him. This was the man she had trusted her life to—the man worth forsaking the Dragon Force itself. She had given up her power for him, and in return, he had once sealed away the Ten Rings, choosing love over might.
"No," she said softly. "I'm thinking about the Dragon of Ta Lo. I was once its chosen wielder. I wonder—does it know the Dragon of the Brotherhood?"
Wenwu was curious too. He had seen the Assassins' Dragon with his own eyes—its arrival darkened the whole sky, plunging the Earth into shadow. Its sheer power was unfathomable, its ability to resurrect the dead beyond comprehension.
Taking up pen and paper, Wenwu sketched its colossal form for her.
Ying Li studied the drawing.
"It's very similar," she admitted. "Magnificent… though the colors differ."
Her voice grew serious.
"This trip home is not only to tell my family I live again. I must also speak with the Dragon of Ta Lo—and see if Xia Ling or Shang-Chi carry the Heart of the Dragon."
"The Heart of the Dragon?" Wenwu echoed.
Ying Li nodded with a smile.
"Of course. Did you think anyone could simply wield the Dragon Force? If that were so, why was no successor chosen after I left Ta Lo?"
The realization dawned on Wenwu. No wonder her clan had despised him so much—he hadn't just stolen their guardian, he had cut off their line of succession.
Their children perked up with curiosity.
"Mother, what is the Heart of the Dragon?" asked Shang-Chi.
"It is a rare gift among our people," she explained. "A special constitution awakened with the Dragon's aid. Only those with the Heart can channel the Dragon Force."
"Doesn't that drain the Dragon's strength?" Shang-Chi asked.
Ying Li shook her head.
"No, Shang-Chi. Long ago, our ancestors fought beside the Dragon against the Devourer. They forged a pact. The Dragon would grant us its power, and in return, those born with the Heart of the Dragon could nurture strength of their own. They consume not its essence, but their own. And when needed, they may draw more deeply from the Dragon itself."
Xia Ling pieced it together.
"So with the Heart, you can both summon the Dragon's might and grow your own?"
"Exactly," Ying Li said.
Wenwu frowned.
"Then when you gave up your power, what became of it? Did it return to the Dragon?"
"No," she replied. "It remained within the Heart. If someone awakens that Heart, all I once held will be theirs."
"For years, our clan has hoped the bloodline would produce another. But none has awakened."
Understanding dawned on Wenwu and his children alike. If Shang-Chi or Xia Ling bore the Heart, and if it awakened within Ta Lo, they would inherit Ying Li's strength in full.
"That explains it," Wenwu murmured. "Why Shang-Chi, in another life, could match me blow for blow once his Heart awakened—he would have been wielding your power."
"Ying Li," he asked suddenly, "could you not reclaim it yourself? Could your Heart not be awakened again?"
She gave a small, wistful smile.
"I abandoned it once, Wenwu. That was my pact with Ta Lo. To take it again… would bring shame upon us both."
Wenwu's eyes hardened.
"Shame means nothing. Your safety means everything. If I must, I'll speak to them myself. At least let us see if the children carry your Heart. If so, they may wed within Ta Lo, and the fire will not die out."
······
(End of Chapter)
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