Chapter 2371: Chapter 2435: Ao Bai
"I don’t know!" The two shook their heads.
Just then, the Flood Dragon said, "The tenth path is known as the Animal Path. Typically, human cultivators face only nine heavenly tribulations, unless they’ve committed grave sins or are exceptionally talented, in which case Heaven might show special favor. It’s only when other creatures face heavenly tribulations that their virtue and vice are judged differently. The Buddhists call this ’karma’, also known as ’cause and effect.’ When the Heavenly Thunder strikes, good and evil start anew!"
"So..."
"So what it means is, because I’ve caused very few deaths or sins in the past, I only have one extra tribulation!"
"Couldn’t it be that you’ve caused too many deaths, so Heaven decided to strike an extra one..." Xu Shanshan said wistfully.
The Flood Dragon was rendered speechless, rolling its eyes and said, "You’ve got a point, I actually have no words to rebut!"
"Alright then, since you want to follow us, just come along. Although you are an exotic beast, I don’t care about such things when making friends. Since you trust me, I will trust you too, without any ulterior motives." Li Yifei said, extending his hand. The Flood Dragon nodded and painstakingly lifted its claw to shake Li Yifei’s hand.
"I won’t easily harm friends either, though I don’t have many friends to begin with!" the Flood Dragon said.
"Let me introduce myself, I’m Li Yifei, and this is my..."
"Your wife, I remember." the Flood Dragon said.
Li Yifei nodded, while Xu Shanshan smiled triumphantly and followed, "I’m Xu Shanshan!"
"I also have a name. In your human language, I should be called ’Aaow Aaow’."
"What?"
"Aaow Aaow, which is a similar sound, or you might as well call me Ao Bai!"
"Ao Bai?" As humans, especially those who grew up influenced by national narratives, anyone who has read martial arts novels would be familiar with the name Ao Bai, especially since Ao Bai often appears in films as an image of a burly, bearded warrior with thick brows.
"There’s a dragon in the East Ocean, and all are surnamed Ao. Now that I’ve become a Flood Dragon, naturally I also bear the surname Ao. Well... let’s use this surname for now, and when I truly become a dragon later, I can legitimately use this name!" The Flood Dragon seemed a bit shy as it spoke.
Li Yifei and Xu Shanshan realized that this fellow was just trying to make itself look good, so they suppressed their laughter and nodded, saying, "Then let’s call you Ao Bai. It’s a very commanding name, quite good!"
"That’s right, I thought of this name decades or even a hundred years ago, just imagining that one day I might transform from a Flood Dragon into a true dragon, and then use this name. Importantly, in all my memories, no dragon is named this. You know, over so many years, there have been so many dragons, and names must not repeat, so choosing a name is quite challenging. I claimed this powerful name early on, so other dragons can’t use it!"
"Amazing, truly amazing. Your name is really quite good!" Li Yifei gave a thumbs up, though he thought: there aren’t really many dragons. With today’s technology so advanced, there are countless satellites in the sky revolving around. If dragons as large as tens of meters and soaring through the skies existed, they would’ve been discovered long ago. But then Li Yifei thought of the Formation Method on the Island of All Beings; there might still be unknown paradises and hidden immortal mountains shielded by such formations, undiscoverable by ordinary people, no matter how advanced the technology. So possibly, there really could be dragons out there.
Indeed, Flood Dragons are already quite formidable, and if there are dragons, who knows what level they’d be!
Li Yifei and Xu Shanshan explained the modern world at length to the Flood Dragon, detailing some points to be aware of. From its responses, Li Yifei felt it might still be a minor trouble, uncertain if bringing it home would be a blessing or a curse. But if it truly is as it claims, a kind and righteous, brave, honest, reliable, and trustworthy Flood Dragon, then bringing it home would unquestionably be a wonderful thing.
This guy’s ability to guard home turf would be far superior to Jiang Ningxiang’s little butterfly Worm King. With this selfish thought in mind, Li Yifei repeatedly warned it: "The current era is different. If you wish to venture into the outside world with us, you absolutely must not reveal your form in front of ordinary people, otherwise you’ll bring endless disaster."
"Yes, the outside world is vastly different from the one you knew, much more dangerous now. Ordinary people’s combat power is now extremely strong. My Mohist War Sword is already considered an elite weapon among cultivators, yet chopping at you wouldn’t break through. But the weapons ordinary people possess in the outside world could easily penetrate through me. Your body probably wouldn’t withstand them either!"
The Flood Dragon’s eyes widened as it listened, somewhat disbelieving as it spoke, "How’s that possible? Though I haven’t come out for many years, it can’t be... that cultivators’ weapons..."
"Wait until you’re out, and you’ll have a chance to try it. You’ll understand then, but please remember my words. Today’s world is entirely different from the one you knew. Every aspect, everything is different, so don’t act recklessly!"
Flood Dragon Ao Bai naturally wouldn’t succumb easily, making grumbling noises for half a day and said, "I just can’t believe cultivators would be weaker than ordinary people!"
"There’s no point in arguing this. You’ll know when the time comes!" Li Yifei couldn’t help but laugh.
Of course, though Ao Bai didn’t verbally concede, it probably agreed internally. An hour later, after both sides discussed some matters, Li Yifei and Xu Shanshan fetched a bag, put Ao Bai inside it, and Xu Shanshan carried the bag as she and Li Yifei headed into the village.
Someone saw the two of them and immediately recognized Li Yifei, feeling both fear and a desire to come over and greet him.
"Hello everyone, I’m going to Aunt Wang’s for dinner, you go about your business!" As they passed the supermarket, those people taking a break and playing cards saw Li Yifei and quickly stood up to look at him, so Li Yifei smiled and greeted them.
The crowd nodded busily, and some were eager to show Li Yifei the way.
"No need, I know where it is, you enjoy your game!" Li Yifei replied.
The two of them and the dragon walked away, leaving those playing cards to marvel, "The Wang Family sure is lucky!"
"That’s what the Wang Family deserves, kind-hearted people will be rewarded!" said an elderly person.
In any case, the Wang Family is bound to have good luck; their kindness brought them blessings, and no amount of envy from others could change that.
When they arrived at the Wang Family’s home, Li Yifei naturally insisted they not stand on ceremony. It’s just a meal, after all, there’s no need to be so formal. Of course, his words had little effect as the Wang Family remained both enthusiastic and a bit fearful.
After eating, Li Yifei and Xu Shanshan rode Brother Wang’s motorcycle back to town. At the entrance of the Hu Family home, the security guard saw Li Yifei and was overjoyed, immediately rushing back inside to shout, "Mr. Li is back, Miss, Mr. Li is back!"
Soon, the whole Hu Family was alerted, and they all came out to welcome Li Yifei. Hu Yu’er, looking worn out, stumbled out. Seeing her state, Li Yifei asked, "What happened to you?"
"Ah?" Hu Yu’er seemed not to hear clearly and asked loudly.
Li Yifei then remembered that the thunder of yesterday’s tribulation was incredibly loud, and ordinary people being so close wouldn’t come away unscathed. Presumably, Hu Yu’er’s hearing was affected, so he quickly said to Xu Shanshan, "Shanshan, please help Yu’er with her healing before it gets worse. Her ears are injured."
"Alright!" Xu Shanshan agreed without making things difficult for Hu Yu’er. She nodded, stretched out her hand to hold Hu Yu’er’s hand, and True Qi flowed into her body, helping Hu Yu’er recover.
Hu Yu’er’s body indeed had problems; she ended up fainting yesterday, bleeding from her orifices, and the fishing boat kept fleeing further away. Later, she was rescued and taken to the hospital. When she woke up, Hu Yu’er insisted on going home to find Li Yifei, but finding him not back yet, she had been throwing a tantrum an hour earlier, insisting the Hu Family look for Li Yifei and Xu Shanshan.
Now, seeing Li Yifei return, even though she felt unwell, she was extremely glad.
After calming the Hu Family, Li Yifei had them leave. Xu Shanshan also released Hu Yu’er’s hand and asked, "Can you hear now?"
"Ah?" Hu Yu’er responded loudly again and then nodded, saying, "I can hear some things now, but the sound is still very faint!"
"You need a few days to recover, don’t rush!" Xu Shanshan said. She didn’t have any bad feelings toward this woman; it was just out of instinctive defense not to let Li Yifei bring more women home, which explained her attitude at first.
Hu Yu’er nodded and smiled, saying, "Thank you, Sister Xu!"
"No problem!" Xu Shanshan replied, "I’m going to release something, don’t be alarmed. If you feel you can’t handle it, cover your mouth!"
"What?" Hu Yu’er asked, then said, "Okay, I’ll... I’ll step back a bit, go ahead!"
Xu Shanshan then opened the bag she had been holding, and the flood dragon Ao Bai emerged from inside.
A distinct hissing sound rang out as Hu Yu’er instinctively stepped back a few paces, her legs hitting the sofa and flipping her over. If not for Li Yifei’s quick reflexes in catching her, she would have taken quite a fall.
The flood dragon swayed its body as it emerged from the bag. It was still in a ragged state, leaving the bag soaked in blood and water. It glanced around, clearly a bit baffled, its mouth opening and eyes darting quickly as it observed the room’s furnishings.
Even without asking, Li Yifei could see its shock. Just a century’s change, but the pace of technological advancement was faster than the past few thousand years, almost a daily progression. A hundred years ago, this creature would have only seen electric lights and electric vehicles or steam trains. Forget the lavish interior of Hu Yu’er’s villa, even the various devices were the most advanced electronic equipment.
Chen JunXiao, seeing the flood dragon, was stunned for a while but didn’t feel as scared. Instead, he pulled Li Yifei’s hand and asked, "Uncle, what is this creature? It seems seriously injured!"
"This?" Li Yifei replied, "This is called a ’flood dragon.’ You don’t need to be afraid; it’s currently our friend."
"Friend?" Hu Yu’er stood up with the support of the sofa, her legs still trembling slightly. If it weren’t for Li Yifei nearby, she would have bolted as far as she could.
