Chapter 9
The night was still and quiet. An extremely blissful tranquility permeated the dragon's palace. Soothing music seemed to flow through the space, gently and silently filling every inch of it. Over time, the music was like an invisible hand, comforting and soothing one's heart. Anyone who stayed here would feel an unparalleled sense of peace.
Meanwhile, a man and a woman were lying on the bed in the bedroom, completely absorbed in their bliss. They were staring at the little thing on the bed with a dazed and infatuated look.
The newly hatched dragon seemed extremely unaccustomed to this world. It rolled around, not even knowing how to position its tail, often getting itself tangled in a knot... then unable to untangle itself, it would continue to entangle on the bed, until finally the two idiots by the bedside, looking on with fascination, untied it.
"Little thing~" Yinglong didn't dare to speak loudly, afraid that his breath would frighten the newborn dragon.
Ao Guang also acknowledged that this was a small child. He half-lyed down and took the responsibility of straightening the child's body repeatedly to prevent it from getting tangled.
Time seemed to pass so slowly in the Dragon Palace that the two of them completely forgot what day it was, finding the scenery beside their bed endlessly captivating.
Once the baby dragon had adapted to the vast space, stopped fussing, and slowly fell asleep, the two of them found another opportunity to savor and observe it carefully.
The newborn cub radiated golden light, like the rising sun, its brilliance illuminating a corner of the bed. As time passed, or perhaps as the little dragon gradually fell asleep, the light slowly dimmed until it finally dissipated from the little dragon's body when it was completely asleep.
Although the light faded, the golden cub was still so dazzling that it was impossible to look away.
Yinglong looked at his precious treasure and then remembered a question.
"Is the little one a boy or a girl?" This question, which should have been answered at birth, was forgotten by the parents, who were so overwhelmed with joy that they didn't think to find out until a day and a night later.
Ao Guang gently turned his baby over, examined it carefully, and finally confirmed:
"Yes, it's... a man~"
"oh."
It turns out the little one is a boy.
Yinglong gazed intently at the baby whose gender had just been confirmed. Seeing him sleeping soundly, she couldn't resist reaching out to poke the little dragon cub's head.
The little cub was still too small; only a tiny dot of dragon horn had sprouted on its head, and it felt hard to the touch… The horn hadn’t even grown out yet, just like a bamboo shoot that had only sprouted its head after the rain.
She touched the dragon's whiskers again; they were shorter than her fingers, floating in mid-air like a ribbon. As she touched them, the little dragon seemed to feel a little unhappy, and with a slight twist, he adjusted his position and continued to sleep.
Now that they were even closer to the person by the bedside, Yinglong and Aoguang simultaneously leaned closer to take a look, the two idiots practically wanting to press their noses against the little dragon cub to smell him.
As he looked around, Yinglong noticed something was amiss.
Around the little dragon cub's tightly closed eyes, there was a tiny bit of red seeping out, just a tiny bit, looking like a dot of red ink... Although it was very short, it was almost imperceptible from a distance, but up close, you could clearly see two red dots, just adorning the corners of its eyes. It was estimated that as it grew, it would grow to the side.
Huh? What's going on?
Yinglong turned his head to look at the person next to him. The two red lines at the corners of the person's eyes were very obvious and arrogant, and could not be ignored. They stretched out from the corners of the eyes, adding a touch of evil and unruliness to the whole person.
Yet, he was an upright and honest person, and coupled with the two red lines at the corners of his eyes, a strange blend of majesty and wickedness emanated from him, creating a uniquely harmonious aura...
How could this be?
She gave birth to him, so how could he look exactly like him?!
Upon being scrutinized by his wife, Ao Guang quickly understood her meaning.
He was cautious and would occasionally glance at her.
"This is outrageous! How could the little brat look exactly like you?"
Not only does she look like him, but there's not a single thing about her that resembles her!
This is absolutely outrageous!
Ao Guang glanced at his son's youthful face and mumbled:
"Logically, it should be like mine..."
He stared at her, speaking very seriously... but this, but this...
Although... what he said was true.
It's possible to be like him, but how can you! How can someone not resemble you at all?
Yinglong could not tolerate it!
"Really..."
Before she could react, the clumsy dragon grabbed her hand and said:
"Maybe it will cultivate into human form and look just like you?"
Fortunately, he was quick-witted and came up with this idea.
That's right, the little one is still in dragon form and hasn't transformed into a human yet. What if he grows up and looks even more like her?
Yinglong thought about it and realized it made sense, but...
She almost fell for this silly dragon's tricks! She pulled her hand away:
"Who would believe that? These eyes are exactly like yours, and these red markings are so eye-catching. The dragon form doesn't resemble me, so how could the human form resemble me? And this is a man..."
Seeing that this tactic was ineffective, Ao Guang grabbed her hand again and said earnestly:
"Just this once, please, don't be like me~"
This silly dragon is only a thousand years old. He is so young, yet he already knows how to manipulate people.
With a droopy eye, he's the one who calls the shots in the world.
...
"Alright, alright, I'll leave you out." Yinglong conceded.
However, she was thinking of turning the tables next time, but she hadn't figured out how to do it yet.
In short, now that the baby has hatched, the two of them finally have something to do.
From then on, the Dragon Palace had a pair of child slaves. Every morning and evening, the two of them would take turns looking after the little cub, feeding him regularly, watching him sleep, and then watching him wake up.
The cubs are always being looked after.
Yinglong always felt a pang of tenderness whenever he looked at his child. He saw that the child was still so small, just a tiny little thing, and could only flutter around on the bed, as if it hadn't yet adapted to being in this world and was still missing the days when it was nestled in the eggshell.
This little creature is very easy to raise. It stays awake for no more than 3 hours a day. Often, after eating, it will unconsciously close its eyes and then sleep for several hours.
Therefore, the bedchamber was always quiet. Whoever was guarding the bed would stare intently, so quiet that they seemed to have become one with the little dragon on the bed.
As the days passed, the young dragon grew larger, and he gradually became more awake and more active.
Yinglong was overjoyed, and she would often lie beside the young dragon and mutter to herself:
"Grow up quickly, grow up quickly."
Upon hearing this, Ao Guang asked why he wanted to grow up quickly.
"Silly girl, grow up quickly so you can go out with me!"
"Oh~" Benlong nodded.
After each little dragon is born, cultivation is the most important thing. They must learn to transform into human form in order to have the opportunity to leave the Dragon Palace and travel to the four seas. Moreover, if their cultivation is deep enough, they may even transform into human form to train on land.
Yinglong was filled with anticipation, hoping that her baby would transform into human form so that she could personally take him on a journey!
This was something she had planned long ago, even when her cub was still an egg. No matter what, she was determined to get out. She didn't know how long she had been stuck in the East Sea Dragon Palace; she was about to suffocate.
"How many years have I been here? I've lost count..." She originally just wanted to take a look at the handsome face of this silly dragon and leave, but now... she has never stayed in one place for so long.
Ao Guang just chuckled foolishly. "Long? Does it feel long at all?" He didn't think it felt long at all.
Yinglong ignored him, staring at her precious baby, watching his shallow breaths.
"I wonder when I'll be able to cultivate into human form."
"It will take a very, very long time," Ao Guang said, sounding like a little old man.
"Sigh." Yinglong sighed.
"It's all because your East Sea Dragon Clan is too stupid. Otherwise, with my bloodline, the little guy would have been able to transform into a human long ago."
She is an ancient divine dragon!
Ao Guang curled his lip, disagreeing: "We East Sea Dragon Clan aren't stupid..."
"Still saying you're not stupid?" Yinglong looked at the creature in front of him and was speechless.
This is a typical example.
However, she knew that some things couldn't be rushed, so she might as well stay in the East China Sea and slowly accompany the little guy as he grew up.
*
"Go for it!" Yinglong would always say her new catchphrase when facing the struggling dragon cub. She didn't know what she was cheering for her child, but anyway, she would cheer him on first.
The cub can now roll over, which is truly a cause for celebration. Its dragon horns are also starting to sprout, showing that it is really growing little by little.
"Great!" This perfectly matched Yinglong's wish. As long as they could speak and transform into human form in the future, their sea voyage would be just around the corner.
Ao Guang wasn't in a hurry at all. He patiently spent his days with them, and staying by her and the child's side was better than anything else.
This was Benlong's very, very simple wish, which he had never told anyone.
The bedchamber was a mix of activity and quiet every day, which made it quite lively.
Several months later, the dragon cub had grown to more than two meters tall, much larger than when it was born.
Even so, he was still too young compared to his father, the king.
Ao Guang was many times taller than the child, and every night he would let the child sleep on his body.
Although the cub had grown to over two meters long, it was still shorter than the tail fin on its father's tail. Whenever it slept, it would always be covered by the fur on its father's back... Then, after sleeping for a night, it would disappear without a trace, leaving the two people on the bed frantically searching for it.
“This little thing is so tiny.” Once, Yinglong found this little creature in his bed and exclaimed while grabbing its tail. Ao Guang also thought so.
The child is so small.
"If we keep cultivating like this, I don't know when we'll ever finish..." Yinglong's seemingly thoughtful expression sent alarm bells ringing in the Little Dragon King's mind.
"What's wrong?" Looking at the clumsy dragon who stayed by his side day and night without leaving his side, Yinglong was completely puzzled. Had he finally found some free time again?
"You, you..." The Little Dragon King hesitated, "You can't..."
"Can't what?" Yinglong questioned, this stupid dragon didn't finish his sentence at the crucial moment.
"We can't secretly help him cultivate... that would be forcing him to grow too fast..."
He feared that she was so eager to leave that she might secretly help the child cultivate.
He didn't want her to leave so soon.
"I even secretly helped him cultivate?" Yinglong was surprised that he could think of that. This silly dragon, though he was silly, had a very divergent way of thinking.
"You're so powerful, what if you have some kind of magical treasure..."
"I'll let you use whatever magic weapon I have, so you can use your brain!"
"..."
"Okay, I was wrong," Benlong apologized.
Yinglong sighed, hoping only that his child's intelligence wouldn't be inherited from his father.
*
Putting aside their dragon identities, they were just like the most ordinary parents in the world, witnessing their child's growth little by little.
When the young dragon grew to the point where it could move freely in and out of the bed, the couple named their child Ao Jia. This was their first child, and the name naturally reflected their hard work.
"Jia'er, good luck!"
Yinglong would encourage his son from time to time.
The baby dragon probably understood its mother's wish and began to struggle harder and harder to transform.
However, the transformation process for ordinary demonic beasts is very lengthy. It can take hundreds or even thousands of years for a typical demonic beast to transform. Even with the blessing of his dragon clan identity, Ao Jia's transformation is still not an easy task.
After a long and arduous effort, Jia'er could only begin by creating a part of his body. Initially, he could only create his own hair, a dazzling golden head. Yinglong and Aoguang were overjoyed when they saw it.
"What a hardworking baby."
Touching that head of soft, golden hair, Yinglong praised.
As if understanding the encouragement, the baby in the bed seemed very happy.
Days passed by, starting with the hair, then the eyes, nose... and mouth.
By the end, his facial features were beginning to emerge, and he indeed resembled his father, a very handsome little dragon.
However, Yinglong no longer cares about this matter; what she longs for is to take her baby on a trip.
Looking at the little cub on the bed, whose human-headed dragon form was still intact due to insufficient cultivation, Yinglong couldn't help but reach out and poke it.
Ao Jia's chubby baby face was poked by his mother, and the rest of his dragon body floated with the ripples, drool spilling from the corner of his mouth. He unconsciously shook his head, looking absolutely adorable.
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