Last Dragon Chapter 15: “Go Down!”

Translated by Aphelios of Exiled Rebels Scanlations

Editor: KarateChopMonkey

 

After Xiaoshen ate the herbs, he swaggered on to observe the hustle and bustle of the peak. 

The female cultivator stood in the same spot for a long time, unable to comprehend what just happened. Did he just eat my medicinal herbs? Did he just eat the herbs that I donated to the rare demon clan? Those herbs? Fuck, the Library Master was just as unreasonable as the rumor says! 

It looked as if Xiaoshen was about to leave at any moment, yet he was flanked on the left by an ink essence who countless Yuling disciples had silently cursed at and on the right by the martial uncle who was terrifying to such a degree that no words could describe. What should she do… Should she stop him or not? 

She recited the phrase ‘I shall live forever’ over a hundred times in her heart before she gathered up her courage and went to stop Xiaoshen. 

Xiaoshen, “You still haven’t gone to repair the boat? 

The female cultivator face turned pink and said, “Lib… Library Master, that herb was my donation to the rare demon clan… It’s hardly right for you ¹ to eat it, right?…” 

As soon as the words came out of her mouth, the surroundings immediately descended into silence. 

She was truly brave. She actually dared to pick a quarrel with Xiaoshen! Did she not hear of that person named Xuan Wuzi? 

Xiaoshen just realized her purpose, and pointed to his nose, “I’m a rare demon. I’m the only one left in my entire clan, that’s why your sect… your patriarch brought me here! Are you saying I can’t eat this herb?” 

The female cultivator, “……” 

The entire sect had been trying to figure out Xiaoshen’s original form for a long time, and the current opinion was that he was some type of large clam. As to what kind, no one knows, and obviously, no one knows if it was truly rare. 

Yet when Xiaoshen said it like this, no one could find fault in it. 

What’s more, the male disciples were silent and the female disciples were tearful after they listened to Xiaoshen’s declaration – Xiaoshen was an orphan! His entire clan was no longer here! 

No one would joke about this and the patriarch did indeed pick Xiaoshen up. Poor child, even if he wasn’t a rare demon, it was still pitiful. 

It was no wonder that Xiaoshen was always so stubborn and tough. It probably stemmed from being alone with no family or relative to care for him and in order to do his best to survive, he must have had to be cunning and insolent. So that was how he perfected his illusions… 

Furthermore, there was no chance for him to learn how to read and write in this condition. 

The Xiaoshen now looked as if he didn’t have a care in the world. His petite and slender body and the occasional moist eyes that revealed a trace of melancholy… All of these tugged at the heartstrings of the more sentimental disciples and they couldn’t help but understand the Library Master’s actions. 

For example, this female cultivator became conscious of Xiaoshen’s soft heart and thought it was probably as soft as the flesh inside of his shell! 

The female cultivator felt too embarrassed to bring up the topic of the book donations again, and used a soft and sincere voice to say, “I’m sorry. Teacher, it’s my fault… I’m truly sorry. I still have a few pellets of medicinal herbs on me. Here, you can eat these too.” 

She dipped into her own bag and took out the medicinal herbs she originally planned to use for alchemy ² and gave them all to Xiaoshen. 

“Ehh? Thank you.” Xiaoshen said as he received the medicinal herbs. 

Though there were some onlookers who were injured too deeply by Xiaoshen and weren’t able to completely change their views on him, there were still quite a few people who took the initiative to feed him. 

Xiaoshen, “??” 

What’s up with these people? Why didn’t they take these foods out earlier? 

Xiaoshen received his donations one by one, and despite his mouth being full with the donated food, he didn’t forget to say, “Thank you.” 

Although these humans all owed him a debt, they were, like the female cultivator had said, pretty kindhearted. Xiaoshen had a tiny change of view toward these Yuling disciples, and decided that he’ll be nicer to them after taking over this place. 

The Yuling disciples meanwhile saw that despite Xiaoshen stuffing his mouth with the food they gave him to a point where it was full and bulging, he still continued to thank them and felt a warmth spread through their hearts. 

Surely enough Xiaoshen would reveal an adorable side of himself if they took the initiative to be kind. He really lived up to his appearance… 

Xiaoshen ate all of the donated food and touched his stomach. Those disciples who fed him… no, those disciples who presented offerings to him had scattered. He took a peak at Shang Jiyu who was standing next to him and saw a pair of gentle and soft eyes looking at him. 

Shang Jiyu even reached out and wiped off the herb fragments stuck on the corner of Xiaoshen’s mouth. “Are you full?” 

“I’m good.” Xiaoshen ruminated over the taste, “I haven’t eaten these in a while.” 

His attention had long switched to the booths and markets, and took advantage of the time as he waited for the female cultivator to repair his boat to have a closer look with Shang Jiyu. 

Since Xiaoshen succeeded the position of the Library Master shortly after he arrived at Yuling, his exchanges with the people of Yuling was only limited to the library itself. He only just discovered that outside of the library, there was a life much richer and more exciting than he imagined. 

No wonder it was once fashionable amongst the dragon clan to pick human brides; they were surely onto something. 

For example, some of the spirit tools being exchanged by the humans were not for any legitimate purposes like dueling or increasing their cultivation and some of the seemingly useless tools were purely kept for entertainment or aesthetic reasons. 

Xiaoshen was even able to find an artificial ink essence amongst the tools! 

It was created by a disciple and was of course not an actual ink essence, but rather a dozen or so ink stones that were carved to look like tiny puppets all lined up together and amongst them was an activated one for the purpose of demonstrations. 

They were different from a real ink essence in that they did not have their own conscience, but were able to follow prescribed orders and complete small tasks such as helping their master flip the pages or grind ink (ergo grinding the ink themselves). 

“This is interesting, haha.”  Xiaoshen picked one up, “How about I buy one?” 

Yu Yi looked very unhappy and even grabbed an ink stone to imitate the movement of grinding ink. 

Meaning it too can grind ink; there was no need for these fake ink essences. 

The disciple who ran the stall glanced at Yu Yi and said with a smile, “Library Master Xiaoshen, you already have Yu Yi. Why don’t you buy the magic robe that my senior brother created and let Yu Yi wear it? We won’t charge anything; it’ll be good enough if you can just let us enter the library’s fifth section to take a look!” 

Xiaoshen asked in bafflement, “Magic robes? What kind of magic robe? Why do I have to buy it for Yu Yi?” 

Yu Yi was born with a traditional robe and thus he never thought about buying any clothes for it. 

The disciple pointed towards his senior brotheri’s stall; it wasn’t too far and with the eyesight of a cultivator, everything could be clearly seen. 

There were plenty of magic robes with the same style showcased on top and next to them, was a sculpture of Yu Zhao from when the Daoist immortal sliced the Jade Entrance that looked essentially the same as its image and was wearing the same magic robe being sold. 

“This was a restoration of what Grandmaster Yu Zhao was wearing. I promise, it is exactly the same. A lot of disciples would also come here to buy one.” He explained. “But no matter who wears it, it can’t compare to the likeness when worn by the ink essence.” 

They can do this too? 

Xiaoshen was in the middle of pondering when Yu Yi, who stood next to him, had already darkened its face in dismay. 

Xiaoshen turned around to look at Yu Yi and imagined how it would look, “You’re right! They look almost the same.” 

Yu Yi was getting very angry. Xiaoshen didn’t even realize it was mad. 

One might as well ask; who could tell when an ink essence darkened its face with anger? 

Ah, Shang Jiyu probably realized it. 

Even though he was watching the scene, his appearance looked very relaxed. 

Xiaoshen was not able to decipher Yu Yi’s mood, thus the only option Yu Yi could think of was to pull out its sword from its scabbard resting on its back and point it directly at the disciple’s neck! 

The sword was like a swirl of ink; it looked graceful and elegant but was deadly sharp. 

“Ahh!” That disciple was frightened to the point where his entire body became rigid in fear and a thought flashed through his mind – he truly couldn’t imagine how powerful Grandmaster Yu Zhao was like at his peak when even the ink essence that was left behind was so astonishingly strong. 

“Yu Yi, put that down!” Xiaoshen still didn’t know why Yu Yi was mad. 

Shang Jiyu calmly said, “Even though Yu Yi was the legacy left behind by Grandmaster Yu Zhao, it still has its own thoughts and ideas.” 

On the contrary, this time, it was Shang Jiyu who understood Yu Yi’s thoughts more. 

Anyone would be unhappy if they were to be compared to someone else, and were thought of as a counterfeit at that. Shang Jiyu was the same and Yu Yi too. 

Shang Jiyu shared two beings in one body. Even though this ‘him’ has a peace of mind, the other him utterly loathed Yu Zhao and anything that shared the same appearance as Yu Zhao. Still, they were both Shang Jiyu. 

Yu Yi was the mirror image of Yu Zhao and had inherited his sword and literary spirits. Even its graceful demeanor was remarkably similar to him and while it previously didn’t have any special opinion on its originator Yu Zhao, whatever feelings it did have was definitely one of familiarity. 

So much so that since it previously did not have a name, whenever someone mentioned Yu Zhao, it would have a reaction. 

However, now, it had its own name and when Yu Yi once again heard that Xiaoshen might have wanted itself to deliberately imitate Yu Zhao, the simple minded spirit’s heart began to ripple and slowly, a clear concept formed. 

At the very least it believed that though it was created from Yu Zhao’s writings and essence, it was not Yu Zhao. 

Furthermore, Yu Yi couldn’t accept that the Xiaoshen who gave it its name would consider it as Yu Zhao…… 

Under Shang Jiyu’s reminder, Xiaoshen finally understood, “You’re right…” 

It was too natural to put Yu Zhao and Yu Yi together. All the Yuling disciples too naturally were looking for the shadows of Grandmaster Yu Zhao on Yu Yi, just like the world of cultivation wanted to use the phrase: ‘there was no one after Yu Zhao’ to judge Shang Jiyu, who bore no resemblance to Yu Zhao but was similarly outstanding. 

To the cultivation world, Yu Zhao, who had his soul and spirit utterly destroyed, was the most unforgettable and peerless sword immortal to have ever graced the world. 

Xiaoshen, however, did not have this impression. After all, he didn’t grow up listening to stories of Yu Zhao and thus it was easy for him to let it go and quickly change his perspective, accepting Shang Jiyu’s explanation, “It’s my bad Yu Yi. I won’t buy that magic robe. I also think that there’s no need for you to imitate Yu Zhao. I don’t understand what you’re saying so next time, you can just make gestures.” 

Only then did Yu Yi let the disciple go and the sword returned to its scabbard.

That disciple covered his neck with a sigh of relief. Thank god he was used to being beaten up by the ink essences back in the days at the library, so it wasn’t too bad… Still, he truly felt wronged. If you had the ability, why didn’t you point your sword at Xiaoshen? 

Yu Yi once again stood adorably behind Xiaoshen. The corner of its mouth curved up because it seemed that Xiaoshen truly didn’t care one bit about this imitation issue. 

He was no longer buying the robe, but the situation already stimulated Xiaoshen, who grabbed the disciple and asked, “Since you all revere Yu Zhao in nearly every possible way, then you must all surely treat Grandmaster Fang Cun the same, right? Is there anything about him, such as spirit tools created around the theme of Grandmaster Fang Cun’s famous event of transporting Lanyu Lake to the sect overnight…?” 

Perhaps within these stories were clues about Lanyu Lake. Xiaoshen refused to let any clues slip from his fingers. 

“……” That disciple pondered for a while, “Well, I think, in my memories, there was something that was sold and was used when bathing. There was a mold of Grandmaster Fang Cun that was used to pour water, just like how he moved the Lanyu Lake, and you could even make bubbles with it. However, it’s no longer made. A disciple created this a long time ago. I’ve only heard about it once from a senior of the turtle race at Baizhang Pond.” 

Xiaoshen secretly rejoiced. It seemed like it was worth going to ask more about it in depth. After all, the turtle clan lived for a long time and might possibly know something. 

“What? It was used for bathing? Then it’s water based right?” Xiaoshen looked very interested in this new revelation and said to Shang Jiyu, “Do you know how to get there? Take me to the old turtle to ask.” 

Shang Jiyu didn’t suspect anything and nodded his head.

At this moment, the female disciple who went to help them repair the boat just finished and Xiaoshen, in his haste to find the old turtle, had her bring the boat to Biqiao Peak as he followed Shang Jiyu on his sword to the old turtle’s dwellings. 

Xiaoshen could have rode on Shang Jiyu’s sword as well, but, would Shang Jiyu have really let Yu Yi on? 

Yu Yi saw them take off and it too rode its own ink sword to follow, but Shang Jiyu was as fast as a shooting star and they had already disappeared in a flash. 

Yu Yi stood blankly in its original location and wilted as it went home… 

Xiaoshen knew as soon as he arrived that Baizhang Pond also contained the remains of the Lanyu Lake water. He stood on the shore and shouted the name of the old turtle for quite a while, which he learned from the disciple earlier, however there was no reply. Based on his knowledge of the turtle clan’s habits, he determined, “He must be asleep!” 

Xiaoshen turned toward Shang Jiyu and shyly said, “Want to go down with me to find him?” 

As he looked at the water, Xioashen had an idea. 

He finally found an opportunity! 

—He has been thinking about how to get Shang Jiyu into the water, despite his strong cultivation, to then pick him up. 

This was a very important ceremony. So long as he picked Shang Jiyu up underwater, it didn’t matter how, Shang Jiyu would be his! 

“You little scoundrel. Why are you smiling so obscenely?” Shang Jiyu leaned his body slightly and looked at Xiaoshen with crossed arms, “What bad ideas are you planning?” 

“How come it’s you?” Xiaoshen asked, pissed off, “Why did you suddenly pop up? Hurry and call him back, now!” 

Shang Jiyu avoided Xiaoshen’s incoming fist, “Be nice. This old turtle has been in the Yuling Sect for over three thousand years. His cultivation is not low in the slightest and his temper’s not the best either. Do you still want me to help you?” 

Xiaoshen looked at him and thought he was purposely trying to profit from his misfortunes, “Then don’t come. I’ll go down myself!” 

Xiaoshen jumped into the water in a flash; there was no way he’d believed that a living dragon would be pushed to death by a turtle. 

What a temper. Shang Jiyu followed him into the water. 

The turtle under the pond was named Jin Qianzi. He entered the Yuling Sect three thousand years ago. He was extremely experienced and senior, and usually, didn’t have to do any work. After all, the Yuling Sect would continue to take care of him and only when it was necessary would he come out to handle some things. 

Jin Qianzi had a really bad temper. If the disciples who were practicing their water techniques were to disturb him while he slept, they were bound to suffer. This was also why there were no Yuling disciples here at this moment. 

As soon as Xiaoshen entered the water, he became much more agile compared to when he was on the shore and swam even faster than Shang Jiyu. Shang Jiyu was slightly shocked and thought he was truly part of the Jiao clan after all. 

Xiaoshen knocked harshly on the door outside Jin Qianzi’s dwellings and shouted, “JIN—— QIAN—— ZI——!” 

If it was Shang Jiyu who heard him shout this loudly, he too would hesitate and even suspect whether or not Xiaoshen was purposely looking for trouble by coming up here so fiercely – could he remain indifferent if Jin Qianzi finds trouble with Xiaoshen? 

The door quickly opened up, and a middle-aged water race man swam out with a gloomy face and a stomach filled with anger ready to burst any second, “Which rascal dares to disturb my dreams?!” 

Xiaoshen agilely replied, “I heard that the sect once sold a spirit tool used for bathing and the theme was Grandmaster Fang Cun moving Lanyu Lake. I really want one, but it has already been lost for ages. Do you know its source of origin? Perhaps it can be duplicated.” 

Shang Jiyu only saw that Jin Qianzi looked as if he would flip out any moment, so he left his hand on his sword, but surprisingly, the man didn’t erupt and only replied with a black face, “That was over a thousand year ago when a disciple created that spirit tool. The blueprints were collected and placed in the library. You can go look for it yourself.” 

“Ah, so it’s like this. Well, that makes things easier.” Xiaoshen said, “Oh right, are there any other spirit tools related to the Lanyu Lake? I think they’re very interesting, after all, no one knows where Lanyu Lake is anymore and even though I really wanted to see its original form myself, it’s no longer possible.” 

Shang Jiyu glanced at Xiaoshen. As someone part of the Yuling Sect, it was normal to admire Fang Cun and as part of the water clan, it was quite normal to want to see this ancient and grand lake too, however, for some reason, he always indistinctly felt that something was off. 

Jin Qianzi thought for a bit and said, “No, there isn’t any. Anyway, you came too late if you wanted to see Lanyu Lake.” 

“What do you mean?” Xiaoshen suddenly felt a feeling of unease. As expected, Jin Qianzi didn’t spend his life in vain. He seemed to know something, “Why would you say it like that? Where’s Lanyu Lake?” 

Jin Qianzi’s head was empty and replied straightforwardly, “At that time, Grandmaster Fang Cun only left the Ligou River and this Baizhang Pond. The remaining water was all stored in a brocade bag using the Xumi ³ mustard seed spell and hidden away in the Guaer ⁴ Storeroom.” 

He pointed at Shang Jiyu, “Later, this rascal’s master Chen Miaoxiang switched to water cultivation halfway during her studies and was quite successful at it so the patriarch at the time let her choose a spiritual treasure in the Guaer Storeroom. She chose the brocade bag containing the Lanyu Lake, and even though it wasn’t really considered a spiritual treasure, the patriarch didn’t want to go back on his own words and agreed to let her play with it for a hundred years. If you were to ask someone else about this, they wouldn’t know at all, but I was at the scene at that time. I also know that there were countless spirit tools that that fellow Chen Miaoxiang refined herself as well as numerous others that she collected to the point that after a hundred years later, she actually didn’t know where she threw the brocade bag and couldn’t find it. After all, it was something she borrowed, so she wouldn’t have refined it. Furthermore, the brocade bag containing the Lanyu Lake was almost impossible to refine anyway and would not have any response if one attempted to try. At that time, she nearly tore everything apart looking for it to no avail. She insisted that thing must still be in the Yuling Sect since she didn’t leave the sect for a hundred years and told the patriarch to look for it himself. However, up till now, I haven’t seen hints of the Lanyu Lake and after so many years had passed, no one even mentions it anymore. It’s quite a shame. It was once an ancient great lake.” 

Xiaoshen, “……” 

Could the people of Yuling Sect be any better?! His water… Chen Miaoxiang was actually able to lose that much water! 

If it wasn’t for the fact that she was Shang Jiyu’s master, he would have rained curses on her by now… Whatever, it was still better to curse at Fang Cun. 

“My teacher indeed was quite eccentric and was often forgetful as well.” Shang Jiyu couldn’t help but smile. Even he hadn’t heard about this. Chen Miaoxiang’s past deeds were quite vast; this probably didn’t even make it to the top one hundred. 

Xiaoshen sighed in despair. Why was it so hard to look for water? Don’t tell me I can only be a mere river Dragon King from now on? No! Since the water was still in Yuling, then he would definitely be able to find it. Even if it wasn’t here, there was no way it would have disappeared without any reason. Maybe Chen Miaoxiang had wanted to steal it to gift it to someone or something. He must continue to investigate! If he couldn’t find it, he’ll have the entire Yuling Sect compensate him a hundred-fold! 

Xiaoshen was resolute in his conviction. He said his thanks to Jin Qianzi and swam back. 

“You’re welcome.” Jin Qianzi replied with a gloomy face. It was only now that he thought it was weird how his temperament was so good today. He had originally wanted to hit someone, but as soon as he saw the youth ask his questions, all of his temper just left his entire body and he actually said so much. 

Shang Jiyu too bowed in thanks and even thought that Jin Qianzi kept his temper because he was there. 

Shang Jiyi was a step behind Xiaoshen and as he emerged from the water, Xiaoshen was already sitting on the shore. His hands were on his chin and his face revealed a thoughtful expression. Chen Miaoxiang, what are you going to repay me with… 

Shang Jiyu suddenly had a thought and didn’t leave the water, but rather swam toward the shore and raised his hand, “Pull me up?” 

Xioashen ignored him. 

Shang Jiyu’s smile stiffen. “You only have to give me a hand.” 

Xiaoshen, “No! Climb up yourself!” 

“You’re treating me like this even though I didn’t see you for many days already?” Shang Jiyu was so angry that he was unable to fight with his other self as ‘he’ took over the body. 

Shang Jiyu closed his eyes slightly and when he opened it again, he had already switched to his other self. 

He felt a bit of sweetness in his heart when he looked at Xiaoshen. Xioashen was always so straightforward and cute. 

He softly raised his hand and smiled, “How about me?” 

Xiaoshen suddenly saw him and stood up startled. This is great! He showed up again! This is the perfect opportunity! 

Xiaoshen immediately used all his strength to push Shang Jiyu, “Go down!” 

Shang Jiyu, “………?????”

 

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Shang Jiyu: Am I still your most beloved or not?