The sun had shifted. The dried sardines lay forgotten on the rock, their silver skins curling in the heat.
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3NeO1KFMSz
Liang Wei sat across from Ning, his legs crossed, his hands resting on his knees. She had just told him who she was. A princess. A dragon. A being who had watched empires bloom and wither.
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0FztuDh09J
Now she spoke of marriage.
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSKpSxFQp06
"I saved you for a reason," she said. Her voice was soft, but it carried weight. "I need a consort. My father's throne is contested. My rivals sense weakness. A strong husband will help me claim what is mine."
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPnGS0SWKSM
Liang Wei did not answer immediately.
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2TEWrnvR9E
He was silent for a long moment. Then he shook his head.
"I cannot marry you."
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8bksewzswF
Ning's golden eyes did not blink. Her white hair stirred in a breeze that Liang Wei could not feel.
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4dYSaTFJFU
"Why not?"
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlPQ3qjZNsz
"I have people." He looked up. "My students. My servants. General Feng Jian. Li Hua. They are on that shore. I can feel their qi – faint, but alive. I need to return to them. I need to see them. I need to make sure they are safe."
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbI0TGwzZG2
"They are safe," Ning said. "The Watchers will not harm them. I have watched over them from a distance."
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3baoVBmfPF
"Safe is not enough." His voice rose, just a little. "I am their teacher. Their protector. I cannot abandon them to marry a dragon princess. I cannot—"
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKjKFJYi8yc
He stopped. Swallowed.
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXdhGo24b9O
"I cannot."
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdqDcqwEYBg
Ning leaned back. Her translucent dress pooled around her on the rock. She studied him for a long moment.
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOb1Ch3eVWS
"Master Liang Wei," she said quietly, "you do not understand the situation."
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOeTMf6QyOq
"Then explain it to me."
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡj7ggFLmYqk
She tilted her head. Her golden eyes caught the sunlight.
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxOlL8JfZlG
"Your qi. Your life force. It is immense. It rivals the ancestral deities of this land. The spirits that the Watchers worship. The ones buried in the deep places, sleeping for centuries."
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJTrBLTwwhI
Liang Wei frowned. "I did not know."
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1Ah4MVOYYz
"They know of you now. They felt you the moment you entered my cave. A mortal man should not burn so brightly. Your strength is an insult to them."
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxL9Txly9g8
"Then I will leave." He said it quickly, as if the answer were simple. "I will take my people and sail far from here. We will find another shore. Another village. Another—"
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcMEalyCXyL
"It is too late."
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4RU2FoNJXA
Her voice cut through his words like a blade.
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGDuUY6k1jT
He went silent.
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQKup881iFG
"The deities cannot attack you directly," Ning continued. "You are too strong. Your cultivation shields you. But they can attack around you. They will send plagues. Calamities. Crop failures. They will poison the wells and sour the milk."
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaCAye9Tj1P
She paused. Let the words settle.
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFWFW5pCjnH
"And they will destroy the village that welcomed your people. The Watchers took them in. Fed them. Sheltered them. The deities will see that as a betrayal. They will send neighboring tribes to burn the huts and slaughter the children."
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡv74V9OJvlk
Liang Wei's face went pale. His hands curled into fists on his knees.
“How can I be sure of what you say? “He asked
”I benefit nothing in lying to you,” she started then took a deep breath.
"Even if you save your own people," Ning said, "the Watchers will die because of you.”
”Is there any way I can go against their rules? A loophole? You are a supernatural entity you might know,”
She looked down and shook her head.
”Well if you help me with my bargain I will help you find a way,”
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfSEIqUGvr5
"You don’t mean?"
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjXBEwcnwTl
"Marrying me." She nodded slowly. "A union between a mortal master and a dragon princess – that is a powerful thing. The deities will not dare interfere. They will watch. They will wait. But they will not strike."
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ576lRUZUnf
Liang Wei stared at the sea.
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAZeaWNXKUw
The waves lapped against the rocks. A seabird cried somewhere in the distance. He could smell the salt, the fish, the faint sweetness of the cave's strange energy.
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhrwFCWWn3p
"I do not want this," he said.
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4BmHu9KHCq
" I have used my most attractive form for you, do the scales bother you?" Ning asked softly.
”Its not that, its just…”
She waited
He was silent for a long time.
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTeVq7rEKav
The sun moved. The shadow of the cave crept across the rock. The sardines darkened.
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpnqM7JnPf7
Finally, he spoke.
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTCV3vGPHQZ
"I agree. Half‑heartedly. But I agree."
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLgMPFtUvAx
Ning's expression did not change, but something in her eyes softened.
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWhiB5Uqtxz
She leaned forward slightly.
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmLIWCIa7ds
"You should know," she said, "you do not have to be intimate with me. I do not expect that. You can be a ceremonial husband. A figurehead. An heir to the throne, in name only. I will also hold back my urges to not dare annoy you”
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRInDL5czsm
Liang Wei looked up. "Intimacy is not a problem, neither are your looks, you are just way above me to decide…"
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxExIowotsa
"You may marry a human woman later, if you wish. For children. For love. I will not stand in your way." She paused and looked him in the eyes, he said nothing. "In return, for our marriage ,I will teach you. Cultivation. Magic. Everything you need to survive as a dragon. Because that is what you will become – slowly, subtly. Your body will change. Your voice will deepen. Your power will grow."
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡM3k38Lqfgw
Liang Wei considered this. His fingers uncurled, then curled again.
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyamvHtjsir
"I have one condition," he said.
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnbA2ar3BCg
"Name it."
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKI89NBBS2s
"The villagers – the Watchers, my people – their fishing expeditions must be successful. No massive storms. No monster attacks. The sea must provide for them."
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡB33QVrTPvt
Ning smiled. It was a small smile, but genuine.
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIAmji3Ifjj
"That is easily done. I will speak to the currents. I will calm the waters around their shore. They will fish in peace."
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡae1yxDFoR7
"Then I agree."
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIRgS9o9K9p
She stood.
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTkgr5NfOzi
Her translucent dress floated around her like smoke. Her bare feet made no sound on the rock. She looked down at him, still sitting, still processing.
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡi2zo8xtLp5
"Good. Now I must go. I need to speak with my father. Plan the wedding."
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBh7clCPwm3
Liang Wei stood slowly. His legs felt heavy.
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPIA1jtaFNZ
"What if he disagrees?"
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8Ik4gDK6os
Ning laughed – a bright, musical sound that echoed off the cave walls.
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpA8Rk3aarq
"Parents in the dragon race do not interfere. They watch. They guide. They believe anyone can do anything. My father will grumble. He will complain. He will say I am being reckless but only because you are human. But he will not stop me."
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡePYpMos964
"And the other dragons? How will they feel about being ruled by a human?"
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0nvii47Ptf
Ning stepped closer. Close enough that he could see the faint scales on her neck, the way they shimmered in the light.
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPthgdSyaNX
"As long as they are well ruled, they will not question anything." She tilted her head. "Besides – the cultivation will transform you. You will become a hybrid. Human and dragon. You will have the voice of a dragon. The power of a dragon. The brutality of a dragon."
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkUjWUxOWHU
Liang Wei's brow furrowed. "Brutality?"
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbdz46XqtkR
She looked at him then – truly looked at him, as if seeing him for the first time.
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsayHSq5wOS
"I can feel that you are kind, Master Liang Wei. Calm. Patient. Those are good qualities in a teacher." Her voice dropped. "But dragons need a strong king. A kind king is not strong. He can guarantee peace, yes. But when enemies attack from across the sea, his kindness will not save us. A brutal king wards off danger without ever drawing a sword. His reputation alone is a shield."
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTv199KmEXX
Liang Wei was silent for a moment.
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEpCKfmNftg
Then he reached out and took her hands.
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc00sXs3tmc
They were cool. Smooth. Not quite human.
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLTGxLbBFKF
"I hope," he said, "that we will be a power couple."
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9MAmtTfFR8
Ning's golden eyes widened. Then she laughed again – softer this time, almost shy.
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO1194K4R3v
"I hope so too."
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxm3u5URMRq
She squeezed his hands once, then released them.
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZDG97gFgnM
"Farewell, Master Liang Wei. I will return when the wedding is ready. Until then, stay in the cave. Heal. Train. Do not go near the shore."
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKZBnsOqMQ9
She stepped backward off the rock.
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡv5DstUUW6Y
Her body sank into the water without a splash. Her white hair floated on the surface for a moment, like seaweed, like moonlight.
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡY5V0GkRBp2
Then she was gone.
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhGX7ip7mp0
Liang Wei stood alone.
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡW7sypEiuB0
But first, he had a wedding to prepare for.109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZ2KFRj7ubR
109Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYYNeXYv7Z4
and then Add to home screen.