MIYIN FOREST
Inside Lei long Xueyi's spiritual sea
Lei long Xueyi found herself in a vast ocean, but something felt off. This is water but she could lie on it as if it were a land. She stood up trying to comprehend everything around her. The place is so cold and snow keeps falling.
"Why is it so cold?",she muttered
She heard a small crack, and turned.The Spirit Sea surged violently, waves of pure spiritual energy rising and crashing as though some divine force were struggling to emerge.
From the center of the storm, a small shadow broke through the water's surface. The silvery glow wrapped around it, condensing and solidifying, until the shape of a dragon emerged
It was tiny, barely the length of a grown man's arm, but it radiated an indescribable presence. Its scales shimmered like snowflakes caught beneath moonlight, each one so fine and flawless that it seemed to contain the mysteries of heaven. Faint runes flickered across its body, ancient and profound, vanishing as quickly as they appeared.
Two delicate horns, pale as frosted jade, curved gently from its small head, still soft and slightly translucent like new ice. Its claws were tiny, almost fragile, yet they gleamed with a cold, sharp luster.
The dragon opened its eyes for the first time.
They were luminous pools of silver, deep and untainted, carrying both childlike innocence and the distant, immeasurable majesty of an ancient bloodline.
A soft rumble escaped its throat — not a roar, but a gentle, almost confused sound, like a baby's first cry. Yet even this tender noise carried with it a subtle pressure, the kind that made the air tremble faintly, as though the heavens themselves acknowledged its existence.
As it breathed, wisps of frost and faint sparks of lightning drifted from its nostrils, dissolving into the mist. Snowflakes began to form in the air around it, shimmering briefly before fading away. With each beat of its tiny wings, a faint crackle of thunder rolled through the Spirit Sea's depths, followed by a soft, falling hush — the perfect harmony of storm and snow.
For a while, the dragon floated above the Spirit Sea, circling slowly. Though it was small, its every movement carried a natural elegance, as if the world itself bent slightly to accommodate it. It tilted its head curiously, blinking at the strange new world around it.
Then, it paused.
Its silver eyes flickered, and the light within them grew brighter, sharper — as though some ancient memory stirred in its newborn soul. The runes along its body began to glow, one by one, until its entire form shone like a living constellation.
The Spirit Sea rumbled, waves of spiritual power surging wildly as the dragon released a soft, high-pitched roar. Its body began to dissolve into a storm of frost and lightning, its outline blurring and stretching. The light wrapped tighter and tighter around it, until only a glowing cocoon of pure energy remained.
The cocoon pulsed, like a beating heart.
Each pulse sent out a shockwave of cold wind and static electricity, making the entire spiritual sea shudder.
Finally, with a sound like shattering glass, the cocoon broke apart, scattering shards of frozen light into the air. From within the haze of frost and sparks, a small figure emerged, stumbling slightly as tiny bare feet touched the Spirit Sea's surface.
It was a little girl.
Her hair was pure white, soft and silky, cascading around her like falling snow. It shimmered faintly in the dim light, as though dusted with moonlight. Her eyes were the same luminous silver as the dragon's, wide and round, filled with unguarded wonder and curiosity.
Peeking through her silky hair were two tiny horn buds, barely noticeable unless one looked closely, hints of her true draconic nature that had not yet fully manifested.
Her skin was pale and flawless, carrying a faint, pearlescent glow, like untouched snow at dawn. She seemed impossibly delicate, like a porcelain doll, yet the air around her was charged with a quiet, commanding presence.
When she moved, there was a fleeting illusion — as though the phantom silhouette of a great dragon coiled protectively around her, whispering of her lineage.
The girl stumbled forward, her steps clumsy and unsure, much like a newborn foal's. She reached out a small hand, as if trying to grasp the falling motes of frost drifting around her.
A soft gasp escaped her lips.
It was a simple sound, almost like a sigh, but the effect was profound — the entire Spirit Sea stilled.
The turbulent spiritual energy bowed before her, calming instantly, as if the world itself recognized her as its rightful master.
The Spirit Sea was finally calm, a strange, glassy stillness settling over it after the storm of frost and lightning. Lei long Xueyi exhaled, brushing a strand of damp hair from her face.
"Hah… finally over," she muttered.
"I thought that dragon was going to destroy my entire Soul Manor…"
Before she could catch her breath, a small shadow darted forward and grabbed her sleeve.
Lei long Xueyi froze. Slowly, she looked down… and came face-to-face with the little girl. The girl tilted her head up, blinking innocently.
Then she said, in the sweetest, most matter-of-fact voice imaginable:
"Mom."
Lei long Xueyi: "…"
Lei long Xueyi blinked. Surely, she'd heard wrong.
"Wh-what… did you just call me?" she asked, crouching down so she was level with the child.
The little girl tilted her head the other way, like a puzzled puppy.
"Mom," she repeated. Then, with absolute certainty:
"You are my mom."
Lei long Xueyi's mouth fell open. "I… I am not anyone's mom! Look at me!" She gestured wildly at herself. "Do I look like someone who's ready to raise a kid? I don't even have a husband!"
The little girl's expression didn't change. She just blinked up at Lei long Xueyi with those big silver eyes and clung tighter to her sleeve.
"No husband," she agreed solemnly. "But still Mom."
Lei long Xueyi almost toppled backward.
"Wha—hey! That's not how this works!" she yelped, her voice going up an octave.
"What do you even mean, still Mom?!"
The little girl's cheeks puffed up slightly, like she was annoyed at Lei long Xueyi's stupidity.
"You built my nest," she said, her voice carrying the smugness only a small child could manage.
"Without you, I wouldn't even exist. You gathered all that power, shaped this whole big… swirly… watery place—" she waved her tiny arms around, indicating the Spiritual Sea—
"—and made a nice, cozy spot for me to be born. Obviously, you're my mom."
Lei long Xueyi opened and closed her mouth like a fish, utterly lost for words.
"Cozy… spot?!" she finally sputtered.
"Are you talking about my spiritual sea?! That took me ten years of blood, sweat, and tears to cultivate! It's not a—"
She stopped mid-sentence, her eye twitching. "Wait. Did you just say you were born inside it?"
The girl nodded proudly. "Uh-huh! It's my nest! I slept there until I was ready to hatch. You fed me lots and lots of yummy spiritual energy." She grinned, showing tiny, sharp baby teeth. "Thanks, Mom."
Lei long Xueyi slapped a hand to her forehead. "Oh heavens. I've been a glorified… incubator this whole time, haven't I?"
The little girl beamed, clearly taking this as praise. "Yup! The best incubator ever!"
Then she reached up and patted Lei long Xueyi 's cheek like she was the adult and Lei long Xueyi was the baby.
"Good job, Mom."
Lei long Xueyi's eye twitched so hard she thought she might develop a permanent spasm.
"This… this is ridiculous," she groaned."Why haven't you hatched all this time?! " she asked
"I needed my soul spirit",the girl twirled
Lei long Xueyi was confused,"Why me?! Why choosing me?!"
The girl giggled and twirled around on the Spirit Sea's surface.
"You have my soul essence and you made a Soul Cradle!" she declared.
"Soul essence?! Soul craddle?!",Lei long Xueyi couldn't understand what the girl was saying
"A soul essence of a dragon is like an egg, you've carried since when you were born. And a soul craddle is like a big, soft bed where dragon souls can grow! Mine was extra fancy, because you stuffed it full of your hard work and determination!"
She held up a finger and added proudly, "And snacks. Lots of snacks."
Lei long Xueyi: "…Snacks?"
"The spiritual energy," the girl said, rolling her eyes. "Obviously."
Lei long Xueyi buried her face in her hands.
"So all my years of suffering, fighting to grow stronger, cultivating day and night without rest…" she mumbled.
"Turns out I wasn't just improving myself — I was fattening you up like a prized chicken?!"
The little girl gasped in mock offense, her silver eyes wide.
"Not a chicken! A majestic, heavenly, once-in-a-million-years Ancestral Dragon!"
She posed dramatically, hands on her tiny hips. "Totally different!"
Lei long Xueyi stared at her, deadpan.
"You're three feet tall, barefoot, and your robe is crooked."
The girl glanced down at herself. "Well… majestic on the inside," she muttered.
Lei long Xueyi groaned and flopped backward, staring at the sky.
"This is my life now," she said to no one in particular.
"Mom to a baby dragon who thinks I'm her personal egg warmer."
The little girl crawled up beside her and curled into Lei long Xueyi's side, hugging her arm like a plush toy.
"Don't worry, Mom," she said sleepily.
"When I grow up and take over the world, I'll make sure you get a really comfy palace."
Lei long Xueyi just lay there, defeated.
"Great," she muttered. "I always wanted to retire early. Preferably before losing my sanity."
"Give me a name",the little girl said standing firmly in front of Lei long Xueyi
"Name?",Lei long Xueyi looked into the space and started thinking of a name
Lei Long Xueyi narrowed her eyes at the little girl, who sat on the ground hiccupping softly, faint wisps of her qi swirling around her small frame.
"Hmph," she snorted, folding her arms across her chest. "So that's where all my qi went."
The girl froze, blinking nervously. "I… I didn't do it on purpose…"
Lei Long Xueyi's lips curled into a mischievous smile. "Since you've been shamelessly sucking me dry, from today onward, your name shall be—Xiao Xi (Little Sucker)!"
The girl blinked. "W-what?! Xiao Xi?!"
"En." Lei Long Xueyi nodded solemnly. "It sounds cute, doesn't it? A tiny, clingy thing that never lets go."
The little girl hesitated, cheeks turning pink. "Well… I guess it's… kind of cute."
Lei Long Xueyi smirked. "Yes. Cute… like a parasite."
The girl's smile dropped instantly. "Wait—what?!"
"Mm." Lei Long Xueyi tilted her head. "Because you've been sucking me dry like one."
The girl's face turned red. "I—I'm not a parasite!"
Lei Long Xueyi tapped her chin as if pondering. "Oh? Then how about… Tan Qi (Greedy for Qi) instead?"
The little girl gasped, practically hopping to her feet. "Tan Qi?! That's even worse!"
Lei Long Xueyi chuckled. "Hehe, then Xiao Xi it is. Be grateful—I almost called you Qi Zei (Qi Thief)."
The little girl's eyes widened. "Qi Zei?! That sounds like some kind of criminal!"
"Exactly."
The girl stomped her foot, glaring at her. "You… you're terrible!"
Lei Long Xueyi laughed, clearly enjoying herself far too much.
"I'll accept Xiao Xi,but you'll change it later. As I'm too gracious and powerful to be given that. As for the qi, I'll help you become the most powerful immortal in this world", Xiao Xi said with her head up and her hands at her back like an adult.
"You can?!",Lei long Xueyi exclaimed
"Only if...",Xiao Xi looked at Lei long Xueyi