After a long silence, Xiao Yu's voice cracked, "I'm the next bride."
Lu Cai's forehead jumped, and Xiao Yu raised her head. "Sister Zhang Xue died just like me, uninfected. This might be their criterion for judging sacrifices."
For some reason, Lu Cai suddenly remembered how that idiot Xiao Yao had been calling him "bride" the entire time they'd met. He frowned, feeling a bit uncomfortable.
"I understand," he replied briefly. Logically he should have left earlier.
He couldn't save these people so he had to make sure he didn't die here. Besides, other members of the foundation might arrive in a few days and if he didn't prepare in advance Zeshia might be exposed.
Lu Cai wasn't sure he could protect Zeshia in that situation.
After Xiao Yu left, Zeshia immediately crouched down seriously and worried. "Lu, although it's abrupt, I want to tell you that that girl isn't suitable for you. She's too frail to be your wife."
Lu Cai didn't understand why but something else suddenly occurred to him.
"Zeshia, you wait here for me," Lu Cai said, his face stern gesturing earnestly. "I'll leave then come back. We'll leave together."
It was already dark and Zeshia remained crouched, his scales aglow with a silver sheen the only ray of light in the gloom.
He craned his neck to watch the dancing Lu Cai, his golden pupils radiating a faint glow like a supreme predator surveying its prey.
But he simply nodded gently: "...Okay, as you wish, I'll wait here for your return."
A deep dragon roar slowly rose from his chest and Lu Cai suddenly felt a surge of spiritual energy filling his body from within.
Is it a special ability of the Western dragons? A blessing?
Isn't that the legendary unicorn's ability?
Lu Cai raised his hand to glance at his body uncertainly but the feeling quickly faded making him wonder if it was just an illusion.
After repeated doubts convinced that with his and Zeshia's current language skills it was unlikely they would be able to get to the bottom of the matter, Lu Cai grabbed his head and leaped out of the ancestral hall, his slender figure quickly disappearing into the darkness.
Zeshia breathed a sigh of relief, his long tail guiltily sweeping down another wall: "Soul resonance is so difficult."
He had originally wanted to provide some support while his knights were off to battle but who knew he'd be exhausted just as resonance began!
Luckily, Lu hadn't noticed otherwise he'd be so embarrassed!
Seeing no one around he quietly stretched out to relax, propping up his chin in annoyance. Then, with a start, he suddenly remembered:
"Lu! Your sword!"
When they first parted outside the village Lu Cai had forgotten his sword again!
What could he do?
Of course, he chose to forgive him.
But damn the fog is so thick here.
Is the air quality really that bad?
He half-flyed, half-ran for a bit before stopping in frustration and stamping his paw. He knew Lu hated this kind of fog because there were some rather unsightly creatures lingering in it—perhaps resembling the legendary creatures of Hell.
He had originally shrugged it off as those creatures looked reasonably edible but now he wasn't too fond of it anymore though he hated to admit it he'd lost his way because of it even though he should have been so brave.
Zesia let out a long breath a deep dragon's roar echoing through the empty mist, echoless, as if the vast ocean lay before them.
"Lu—"
He called out his broken sword in his mouth, inarticulately, but still no response.
A thin wisp of fog crept over the damp grass inching closer towards Zeesia.
The whispers in the darkness at a frequency he couldn't hear were fragmented and frantic:
Abundant power.
A powerful being he'd never seen before.
Is it?
"Hmm?"
Zesia removed his claws and glanced suspiciously at his feet.
Did he just step on something? A bug?
Why isn't there even a corpse?
Well, of course he wasn't hungry. The first time he saw those strange creatures he'd tried to swallow one out of curiosity. Now that he had made a pact with Lu, he wouldn't eat again.
Zesia shook his neck and groped for direction again; it wasn't enough to find Lu Cai he had to find his way back!
...
...
...
"Lu..."
With a feeble wail Zeesia's sharp scales crackled slightly and he paced anxiously back and forth in the thick fog.
It's over, it's over. He'd broken his promise. As a noble dragon keeping his word was paramount especially when it came to a pact with his knight!
But he truly couldn't find the way!!!
He stomped his foot hard on the ground and suddenly a familiar voice echoed through the thick fog: "Zeshia!?"
Zeshia immediately retracted his angry flailing gesture and for a second looked dignifiedly in the direction of the voice.
Lu Cai emerged from the thick fog his shirt and hair dampened by the mist, making him look much softer than before. It also made Zeshia realize for the first time that his knight didn't have blue or green eyes. Aren't knights in legends all blond and blue-eyed?
But even so, Lu Cai was still much more handsome than those celebrities Chris had mentioned.
"Didn't I tell you to wait for me there?"
Lu Cai's signature indifference was still there and Zeshia snapped out of his momentary daze. He feigned composure and replied, "Because you've lost your most important weapon I came to find you."
With that, Zeshia solemnly thrust the sword before Lu Cai. The massive dragon head held a formal air of dignity, his face etched with the message, "Hurry up and grab the sword and don't ask any more questions, okay?"
Lu Cai: "..."
He glanced at the sword lying on the lawn then slowly walked over and picked it up.
Zesia breathed a sigh of relief. He saw in his other hand a rather large wooden box. His golden pupils widened slightly, and he calmly changed the subject.
"What's this?"
Lu Cai stood up. "I brought some food from the village. Let's replenish our energy and then we'll leave tonight."
He opened the box and a rich aroma wafted out. It must be some kind of cooked meat but Zeshia was sure she had never smelled anything like it before.
It truly was a magical place full of new surprises. He took it very seriously.
Lu Cai said nothing more but he seemed to chuckle softly. Before Zeshia could react with surprise he saw him turn around and say, "Let's go back to the ancestral hall first."
...
The three collapsed walls framed the lonely ancestral hall, a place for offerings in the morning reduced to ruins by night.
Zesia hadn't thought much of it, but when he looked from outside the dragon's face flushed—if only his scales hadn't obscured it.
Lu Cai glanced at him briefly before withdrawing his gaze. He stepped into the ruins, turned around and waved, "Come eat and we'll leave afterward."
A man and a dragon sat in the courtyard surrounded by a wooden box, their surroundings illuminated only by a silver glow in the darkness.
Lu Cai opened the box completely and a rich aroma filled his nostrils. The honey-colored cooked food resembled a kind of honey-dipped roast meat, a common sight before the dark matter explosion.
Lu Cai handed the meat to Zeshia and raised his head revealing a misty face. He looked incredibly gentle even the water droplets on his eyelashes looked like stars...
"Zesia?"
Lu Cai called out.
Zesia snapped back to reality staring in shock at Lu Cai who frowned at him in confusion.
God! What had just happened?
He actually thought his dragon rider looked like a water demon!
He was guilty!
"Ahem, it's nothing. I'm just thinking." Zeshia twisted his neck holding it very stiffly.
He will definitely change for the better.
Lu Cai nodded, took back the meat Zeshia hadn't taken and slowly bit into it: "It tastes good."
With this simple comment, Zeshia couldn't help but glance back: "Really?"
"Yes." Lu Cai raised his lips, almost blinding Zeshia again.
But at this moment, Lu Cai seemed well versed in the art of animal taming. After laughing, his expression quickly turned cold: "So you should eat quickly otherwise you won't have the energy to fly when we break out."
The whip had clearly been used hard and Zeshia was immediately displeased: "Are you questioning my ability as a dragon?"
Lu Cai heard the word "dragon" with a smile and narrowed his eyes: "You must be kidding."