Lu Cai watched, speechless as Zeshia ascended the shrine step by step, proudly yet contently enjoying the villagers' attentive care.
"Dragon Queen."
The villagers timidly approached Lu Cai, offering a fawning smile and extending their hand to invite him into the shrine.
He felt a little dazed. He looked up at the shrine's gate. The three characters "Dragon King Shrine" were inscribed in a flamboyant style on a wooden plaque with a worn edge. It looked as if it had been recently cleaned and the characters and plaque were pristine and clear.
Zeshia was barely related to the Dragon King and with his immense spiritual power he had nothing to fear. But entering this shrine would be like being forced into a shrine for life.
The master once said that if one's virtue is unworthy of one's position one will suffer repercussions.
"Why isn't the Dragon Queen going in with the Dragon King?" Seeing Lu Cai still hadn't entered, the village chief hurried over after making arrangements with Zeshia rubbing his hands and asking with a smile.
When Lu Cai saw the group leave, Zeshia immediately craned his neck to look in his direction, his face practically written with "Come on, come on!"
The village chief followed his gaze and Zeshia instantly became aloof again.
Lu Cai: "..."
Although he had no idea what was going on in Zeshia's mind he hadn't done anything rash.
He sighed but the next moment, his whole body was full of vigor and he strode into the ancestral hall.
Let them devour him. No one knows which will come first, tomorrow or backlash. We'll fight back.
Zesia wanted to laugh with satisfaction but he felt it would undermine his dignity so he forced a smile with his eyes.
The village chief had observed expressions for decades and while his mind wasn't quite as sharp now a quick glance at the situation made him even more confident that the Dragon King had taken a liking to Lu Cai. His smile widened.
"The Dragon King and the Dragon Queen will rest here for a while. We'll come and offer them three meals a day. Call us if you need anything."
Lu Cai and Zeshia, unconcerned about meals, immediately stopped him. "Just the Dragon King and I.?"
The village chief hunched over and nodded repeatedly. His smile was so insinuating his eyes narrowed to a single line making it difficult for Lu Cai to discern the pupils behind his reading glasses.
"The Dragon King Shrine was recently renovated specifically for the Dragon King's worship. If the Dragon Queen finds it's not lively enough, I'll call Zhang Xue over?"
Lu Cai's mouth twitched subconsciously. That was unnecessary.
He thought for a moment, then expressionlessly went along with the situation: "Let all the villagers gather here. It will be easier for the Dragon King to protect you."
He had originally intended to see if the villagers would undergo further changes after offering sacrifices to the Dragon King but the village chief waved his hands repeatedly, shaking his head in fear:
"How dare we disturb the Dragon King and the Dragon Queen? The two of you resting here is the greatest blessing for our village!"
Lu Cai narrowed his eyes and said nothing. The village chief now had lost his ability to read people's expressions and all he offered was apologies and begging for mercy.
The ancestral hall's courtyard was large. The villagers who had accompanied him stood in the back watching the village chief kneel and beg for mercy without reacting. Instead, they gave Lu Cai and Zeshia a strange smile.
Lu Cai couldn't tell if it was the aftereffects of the infection that were preventing them from controlling their expressions, or if there was something else that hadn't surfaced yet.
Lu Cai glanced at Zeshiya and noticed he was truly adept at posing. He hadn't even breathed a single breath and fearing the dragon might suffocate he waved his hand helplessly.
"Got it. You can go."
The village chief sighed, then smiled in an instant, his mouth stretched from ear to ear, slightly parting, revealing Lu Cai's fangs.
A faint fishy smell lingered fading only slightly after the villagers had left.
Lu Cai subconsciously relaxed his tense body realizing only then that his hair had been standing on end. He had witnessed such a bizarre scene yet those strange people were still pretending to be normal.
"Dear Lu, you've been sweating a lot."
Zesya's large head crept closer, his golden eyes darting around.
Lu Cai's back, which had just relaxed, straightened again. "You know?"
He then closed his mouth determined to teach Zeshiya Chinese as soon as possible.
He'd originally wanted to say, "Is your nose that sensitive?" but mid-sentence, remembering he didn't know the word for nose in Classical Latin he changed his tone and added, "I know."
He felt like he was speaking a lot like the ninjas of the Iga-ryu.
Zesia narrowed his eyes proudly: "We, the noble dragon race, possess the most powerful bodies. Smell is the simplest of senses."
Lu Cai, hearing this, quickly turned around: "Then, fishy?"
"No." Zeesia seemed to have a keen understanding. No matter how stilted Lu Cai's Classical Latin was he understood him and answered him sincerely and innocently.
But Lu Cai pursed his lips feeling a little disappointed.
He had originally planned that if Zeesia could sense dark matter he might try to make him his summoned beast thus protecting him. Their sect had a precedent for summoning extraordinary creatures as summoned beasts. The power of Eastern mythical creatures was close to the sect's Daoist origins. His master's summoned beast was a beautiful phoenix, whose tail could knock down a whole room of fellow disciples when it became enraged. His fellow disciple had previously said that he most desired to summon the legendary dragon.
What Eastern person doesn't dream of a shimmering dragon?
But even though Zeshiya was a dragon, Lu Cai's expression was complicated.
If there were no other extraordinary creatures the fishy smell would be a sign of dark matter infecting humans in this area but Zeshiya couldn't smell it which meant he wasn't capable.
Western dragons and Eastern dragons might be fundamentally different in their genetic makeup.
Seeing Lu Cai fall silent, Zeshiya felt a little confused but also a little worried. He finally raised his body which had been crouching for so long and took small steps to Lu Cai's side.
"I don't smell fish.Are you upset? Do you like fish?"
A small step for a dragon, a giant leap for mankind.
Lu Cai watched helplessly as Zeshia's tail flicked, crushing the ancestral hall's gate wall.
Lu Cai held his forehead with his hand. "No, I don't like fish. Can you get smaller?"
Zeshia was shocked and then aggrieved. "It was so hard for me to grow into a large dragon with the heritage of a medium-sized dragon. Everyone in the valley praises me as the most ambitious and you're asking me to shrink!? Dear Lu, are all humans as fickle as you? Is it true that after I easily left the island with you, you stopped cherishing me?"
Lu Cai blinked, not understanding at all.
Popularize the language, absolutely popularize the language.
Zeshia quickly realized that he had lost control of his emotions. No, a mature dragon. Although he still has a long way to go before adulthood now that his soul is bound to the dragon rider he must not act so capriciously.
He was the symbol of the dragon clan to the outside world, his every word and action embodying the pride and integrity of the entire dragon clan.
So, he sat down cross-legged again with a resentful look, whispering, "I can transform but not now."
Lu Cai paused, not questioning why not now guessing it was a dragon secret that couldn't be easily revealed. However, his seemingly alright attitude deeply hurt Zeshia.
My old friend is reasonable. Is it his fault for not being able to transform before reaching adulthood?
All dragons are like this!
And what's wrong with it being young, strong, brave and fearless?
Lu Cai noticed that Zeshia's spirit seemed to have suddenly sunk but here, he didn't have time to inquire further. He could only reach out and touch the large head in front of him.
The oppressive atmosphere around them was closing in. After a few words of comfort to Zeshia, Lu Cai keenly sensed that the fishy smell had grown even stronger.
Do the villagers really need to retreat to the ancestral hall for comfort even if it's just mental?
Or after the Dragon King appeared, their deepest obsessions had been fulfilled so life and death no longer mattered?
Lu Cai couldn't figure it out but his intuition told him that something else was waiting.
So, with Zeshia unable to shrink, Lu Cai entered the village's great ancestral hall alone. The silver dragon licked its face, stretched its neck and eagerly pursued Lu Cai's back.
Though he was still a little depressed and wanted Lu Cai to pat him again, as a powerful dragon he couldn't ignore his companions' safety over such a trivial matter.
"Lu! What are you doing?" he asked in a low, serious voice.
"To look."
Lu Cai didn't turn around, concentrating on the ancestral hall.
Although it was daytime the sun in the village had only risen briefly during the early morning hours and had now returned to its grayish hue.
The ancestral hall smelled distinctly musty as if it had been severely dampened. A single, drooping kerosene lamp provided a feeble illumination, barely allowing one to discern the mottled mold spots on the walls.
A number of tablets were placed on wooden shelves. Compared to the neatly maintained courtyard and other areas of the house this supposedly important area was covered in dust.
Before he could see if there was anything else unusual there was a sudden, low tremor at the door—Zeshia was posing again.
That meant someone was coming.
Lu Cai immediately withdrew his hand from attempting to remove the tablets and turned confidently toward the door.
Xiao Yu gritted her teeth and ran to the ancestral hall entrance, her delicate face flushed. She was panting but a low growl from Zeshia stopped her in her tracks.
Zeshia lowered his gaze, scrutinizing the human girl. It knew full well that Lu Cai was busy with work and barely paying any attention to him.
Xiao Yu's face paled. She looked at the giant dragon entwined at the ancestral hall entrance and dared not take a single step forward. Both woman and dragon were practically frozen in place until Lu Cai finally emerged and called out to him in a complicated tone.
Lu Cai glanced at Zeshiya and saw him sitting proudly, his long neck held high. Only his golden pupils glared down at Xiao Yu coldly, the little princess she always was.
But before Lu Cai could say anything, Xiao Yu spoke impatiently, "Run!"
Lu Cai paused but he didn't think he'd misheard. Instead, he felt as if he had finally arrived.
"Why run?" He stepped in front of Xiao Yu. Zeshiya relaxed his pressure slightly allowing Xiao Yu to breathe a sigh of relief.
The little girl looked at the dragon, then at Lu Cai with a cryptic expression: "I don't know who you are or what your relationship is to this dragon. But if you want to live, run."