Chapter 103
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As spring turns to winter and the mountains are draped in silver, the dragon egg has grown to the size of a large watermelon.
It has been well-nurtured, and its eggshell has become thicker. Full of vitality, it tirelessly searched for new and interesting things every day, swaying back and forth.
Meanwhile, Pei Yunshu and Zhuyou received a distress signal from Bai Lige and Hua Yue.
Zhuyou built a paradise for Pei Yunshu, called “Chunxiao Valley.” Although Baili only knows that they are in this location, he doesn’t know the exact whereabouts. To ensure they can seek help in times of danger, Pei Yunshu had already informed them of the location.
So when the exhausted distress signal broke through the barrier, even before knowing its content, Pei Yunshu was already preparing to leave the valley with Zhuyou.
The content of the distress signal was hurriedly written, indicating a very critical situation. The message simply said, “Nanlin City, Huage Ship, come quickly.”
Nanlin City is a major city in the mortal realm, and there are certainly cultivators who linger in the mortal realm. Pei Yunshu and Zhuyou didn’t delay and decide to leave the valley that day, taking the little dragon egg with them.
For the first time, the little dragon egg was brought along and stood on a sword. Held in Pei Yunshu’s arms, with clear white clouds passing by, being at a high altitude, the houses below become smaller and smaller, eventually resembling ants.
The little dragon egg stretched its body from Pei Yunshu’s embrace, enjoying the breeze. It nearly tumbled down, prompting Pei Yunshu to gently tap it, saying, “Don’t be naughty.”
The little dragon egg playfully burrowed into Pei Yunshu’s arms, and Pei Yunshu gently stroked the eggshell, saying to the displeased Zhuyou, “It has grown so much now; it’s probably about to hatch, right?”
Zhuyou took the dragon egg from him, and the reluctant little dragon egg tried its best to avoid Zhuyou’s large hand reaching over from Pei Yunshu’s embrace. The swaying movement even made Pei Yunshu sway for a moment.
Zhuyou’s expression becomes even more unpleasant. He forcefully took the dragon egg, firmly gripping it. With a sharp and cold attitude toward the dragon egg, he said, “You’ve tired him out.”
The little dragon egg stopped swaying, obediently leaving Pei Yunshu.
Allowing him to act, Pei Yunshu smiled and said, “Just this tiny thing, how can it easily tire me out?”
Zhuyou can only truthfully say with an expressionless face, “You’ve been holding it for an hour today.”
“Alright,” Pei Yunshu embraced Zhuyou’s neck, placing his whole body on Zhuyou’s back. He whispered, “You always get to smell the scent of me holding the little dragon egg. Today, I want to experience it too. You hold it, and I want you to carry me too.”
One in front, one behind, it should be tiring, but Zhuyou’s mouth showed a smile.
He patted Pei Yunshu and firmly carried him as if holding him.
***
One day later, in front of the gates of Nanlin City.
Pei Yunshu and Zhuyou were dressed modestly, quietly blending in with the common people.
The sky was darkening, with gusts of cold wind, and birds flew close to the ground. Farmers were already worried, saying, “Look at this weather; it’s about to rain.”
“I don’t know if I can get back home before the rain starts,” someone expresses concern, “My eldest is still working in Haikou. If it rains, he might only work half a day today.”
Pei Yunshu looked up at the sky, and suddenly, a raindrop fell on his face. Zhuyou frowned, using his fingertip to wipe away the raindrop on Pei Yunshu’s face and flicked it upward. The raindrop about to fall disappeared.
The sky got darker, but the rain hadn’t fallen yet. After Pei Yunshu and Zhuyou quickly find an inn and got inside, a thunderous roar followed, and pouring rain immediately descended.
The inn’s owner was handing bowls of ginger soup and towels to the guests. Zhuyou accepted the towel but declined the ginger soup. He handed one to Pei Yunshu, who smiled and thanked him, taking the towel to wipe away the raindrops that didn’t actually touch him.
Because Bai Lige’s distress signal was extraordinary, they didn’t want to draw attention. They plan to pretend to be an ordinary couple until they find Bai Lige. Before that, they don’t want to reveal their cultivation level.
After the owner delivered the ginger soup, he hesitated for a moment and brought over two more bowls, persuading, “Guests, it’s better not to be careless. Have a bowl to ward off the chill.”
As soon as he finished speaking, a loud sneeze was heard behind him. Pei Yunshu turned around to see a young, handsome man, full of nobility, rubbing his nose without any grace. His clothes were soaked, and his hair was dripping water, making him look like a drowned rat.
A servant beside him was trying to persuade him to take a sip of ginger soup, but he loudly refused, showing disgust in his eyes. “Even if I drink a few buckets of the tears of the heavens outside, I won’t drink this stuff!”
The servant wore a distressed expression while continuing to persuade him.
This master-servant interaction was amusing to Pei Yunshu, but the person being observed seemed to sense his gaze. Impatiently raising his head, he looked directly at Pei Yunshu.
The man was taken aback, but his eyes lit up as he pointed at Pei Yunshu and loudly exclaimed, “This person didn’t drink either! He looks thin and weak, even worse than me. If he doesn’t drink, why should I?”
The thin and weak Pei Yunshu, who was enjoying the scene, suddenly found himself in the spotlight. He pointed at himself and asked Zhuyou, “Is he talking about me?”
Zhuyou nodded honestly and felt it wasn’t enough. He added, “Yes, he’s talking about you.”
The young man heard this and deliberately walked over to Pei Yunshu. Glancing at the untouched ginger soup on the table, he assumed an elder’s posture and lectured with a meaningful tone, “Look at your body. You got yourself soaked in the rain and still refuse to drink ginger soup. What if you catch a cold? In the end, it will be you who suffers.”
“Why don’t you drink it quickly?” The man sternly added, “Without my body, don’t try to act as wild as me.”
After staring at him for a while, Pei Yunshu suddenly smiled and said, “Sure.”
Before the man could be puzzled, Pei Yunshu lifted the ginger soup to his lips, took a sip, and then looked at the young master, saying with a smile, “I’ve finished mine. It’s time for you to have a bowl.”
The man was dumbfounded but, unable to resist, he walked back to his seat. Taking the ginger soup, he drank a few gulps. The spiciness rushed from his chest to his head, but that wasn’t all. After finishing the first bowl, he found the seemingly empty bowl slowly filling up again until it became a full one.
Watching the man drink two bowls of ginger soup, Pei Yunshu finally lifted the spell. However, as soon as the spell was lifted, the wealthy young man turned pale, muttered, “It tastes terrible,” and promptly banged his head on the table, fainting.
“… ” Pei Yunshu turned away guiltily, whispering to Zhuyou, “I think I might have gone too far.”
“No problem,” Zhuyou turned his face away, “Don’t pay attention to him.”
The servant accompanying the wealthy young man seemed unfazed by the situation. After calling the young master a few times, he calmly helped lift the man upstairs with the innkeeper.
Pei Yunshu and Zhuyou followed the innkeeper back to their room. They released the dragon egg from its wrapping, letting it bounce on the bed. The two of them walked to the bedside, watching the raging storm outside.
The dragon egg, unwilling to stay in the storage bag, was wrapped up by Pei Yunshu. As they looked at the rain, the dragon egg, lying on the bed, jumped down and rolled to Pei Yunshu’s side.
Pei Yunshu snapped back to reality and picked up the small dragon egg. Gazing into the rain curtain once again, he said, “Zhuyou, the only place where a boat can be placed is a tributary to the south. Fortunately, it’s raining heavily today, and our actions won’t be easily noticed.”
Zhuyou stretched his muscles and said, “I’ll go. You stay here and watch over it.”
Pei Yunshu glanced at the little dragon egg nestled in his arms and sighed, “Just be careful. If anything goes wrong, don’t act impulsively. Come back quickly to discuss it with me.”
Zhuyou nodded, looked at Pei Yunshu with warmth in his eyes, bent down to place a kiss on his forehead, and then disappeared into the layers of rain curtains.
The dragon egg moved slightly in the direction of the window, as if trying to figure out where Zhuyou had gone.
“Be good,” Pei Yunshu took a step forward, rain now blowing onto them, “Can’t bear to part with your dragon father?”
The dragon egg moved again towards the window.
“Hurry up and hatch, little one,” Pei Yunshu gently touched it, “Once you hatch, you can enjoy all the delicious food in the world and travel with your dad and dragon father.”
“There are countless beautiful things in the world. Your dad always tells you about them endlessly,” Pei Yunshu’s hand on the eggshell was gentle and loving. “After all, he is looking forward to your birth so you can experience everything for yourself.”
Amidst the storm, raindrops fell on the eggshell, but the little dragon egg felt incredibly safe and comfortable, a comfort it had never experienced in the darkness for a hundred years.
It rubbed against Pei Yunshu’s fingers affectionately, seemingly thinking that everyone was looking forward to its birth.
***
Zhuyou returned quickly, taking only about two quarters of an hour. After flying in through the window and dispelling the chill from his body, he sat beside Pei Yunshu. Frowning, he said, “There are many Taoists on the boat and in the surroundings.”
“Oh?” Pei Yunshu was surprised and inquired, “Are they cultivators from sects or lone cultivators?”
“Lone cultivators,” Zhuyou’s brows revealed a hint of disgust. “Each one reeks of blood, and they specialize in killing demons. They are filled with demonic energy targeting specifically demons.”
Pei Yunshu’s expression also became serious.
Within the cultivator sects, the relationship between righteous cultivators and demonic cultivators was not one of absolute enmity. Especially when there was no karmic hatred, whether human or demon, no one wanted to accumulate unnecessary animosity. Even Venerable Wuwang only imprisoned those powerful demons in the Demon-Sealing Tower.
Such cultivators, who specialized in killing demons, were mostly lone cultivators who engaged in such activities.
“What about Baili and Hua Yue? Are they in danger?” Pei Yunshu pondered, “Do they carry heavy sins?”
Zhuyou replied, “If there is heavenly tribulation, one strike would be fatal.”
Pei Yunshu furrowed his brows, “Their sins are so heavy. Do they kill demons indiscriminately, regardless of good or bad?”
Ordinary lone cultivators, Pei Yunshu believed, wouldn’t be able to harm Qingfeng and Bai Lige. However, now that they were trapped on the e boat, there might be powerful individuals among them.
Zhuyou wasn’t afraid of those cultivators, but they were indeed troublesome. Pei Yunshu was naturally not afraid either, but the worry stemmed from the fact that Baili and the others were in the hands of those cultivators.
“We shouldn’t alert the enemy. We need to find a way to blend in on that boat,” Pei Yunshu murmured.
A knock on the door interrupted their discussion. Pei Yunshu and Zhuyou exchanged glances, and he handed the dragon egg to Zhuyou before getting up to open the door. After a while, Pei Yunshu returned with a smile on his face, holding two luxurious invitation cards in his hands.
“Just as I said we need to find a way, the solution has come to our door,” Pei Yunshu raised his eyebrows with a smile.
Due to making the wealthy young master drink ginger soup, which suppressed the onset of a potential cold, his symptoms were alleviated. Grateful for the remedy, his attendant delivered two invitations to board the Hua Ge boat.
It seemed that when someone owes you a favor, the favor comes knocking on your door.
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