However, the consequences of exposing Leng Jing’s true nature were terrifying. Thus, both the White Mink and the Prince nodded their heads in earnest.
Satisfied, Leng Jing tucked his hands behind his back and prepared to meet his admirer. He pushed open the door and walked toward the inner room.
Inside, he saw a slender figure following Leng Qingqing, learning how to make noodles. Leng Qingqing was smiling and chatting with the youth, which made Leng Jing feel a flicker of displeasure.
"I’m back," Leng Jing said, rapping his knuckles against the doorframe.
Leng Qingqing turned around. The youth, looking pitiful and adorable, tugged at Leng Qingqing’s sleeve and asked, "Brother Qingqing, who is this little dragon-y?"
"Who are you calling a little dragon?" Leng Jing’s face instantly darkened.
Linlin pointed at the top of his head.
Leng Jing reached up and touched his own head—it turned out that after transforming into a dragon head to scare the Prince, he had forgotten to retract his horns! Seeing his horns, anyone could tell his age at a glance.
"This is my son, Xiao Jing!" Leng Qingqing said with a beaming smile.
"Is he adopted by Brother Qingqing?" Linlin skipped over to Leng Jing’s side, smiling as he said, "Hello, Xiao Jing! I’m Linlin~ Can we be friends? You’re only a hundred years old, right? I’m already two hundred! I’m older than you! You can call me Brother Lin!"
The White Mink, the Prince, and Leng Qingqing were all rendered speechless.
Leng Jing simply said, "Let’s eat."
And so, everyone gathered around the dining table. Leng Qingqing brought out the dishes, and they began their meal.
Just as Leng Jing reached out with his chopsticks to grab his favorite fried small fish, a startled cry made everyone freeze. Leng Jing turned his head to see Linlin with his hands pressed together, tears shimmering in his eyes.
"It’s so good! It’s simply too delicious! Brother Qingqing, do you know? I haven’t eaten such delicious food in so long! I really wish Qiqi could taste this too, ugh..."
The group was stunned, exchanging looks:
*What should we do about Xiao Jing?* [Leng Qingqing]
*I think someone should talk to him...* [The Prince]
*I don’t dare; he looks truly pitiful...* [White Mink]
*You go!* [Leng Jing glared at Leng Qingqing]
*Sob, I don’t know what to say...* [Leng Qingqing]
*Go!* [The others glared at Leng Qingqing]
"Ah... Linlin... don’t cry. Eat, the food is very good. Especially this cabbage, it’s very crisp and fragrant. That small fish is the worst, you definitely shouldn't eat it." Leng Qingqing was protecting his son’s food.
"Really? I love Brother Qingqing’s cabbage the most!" Linlin said with a wide smile.
Thus, all the cabbage was pushed in front of him, while the others were more than happy not to touch it.
"But, why hasn't the Dragon Lord arrived yet?" Linlin put down his chopsticks and changed the subject.
"Am I not the Dragon Lord?" Leng Jing said, seemingly nonchalant.
"Huh?" Linlin stared blankly for a long time. Suddenly—
"You audacious country bumpkin demons! How dare you trick me!! I wasted so much time acting!! Bah! What 'cabbage'! Go to hell!" Linlin revealed his arrogant nature, kicking the table over and turning fierce.
The Prince, Leng Qingqing, and the White Mink were dumbfounded, all looking toward Leng Jing.
Leng Jing didn't move for the moment.
Linlin, meanwhile, stood with his hands on his hips, cursing incessantly, and even conjured a large saber.
Leng Jing gave the White Mink a look. The White Mink immediately jumped over, hugged Linlin’s leg, and began to show off his large, shimmering, adorable eyes. "Lord Linlin~~~ Please don't blame us~ Young Master Xiao Jing is a very pitiful little white dragon. He’s an orphan wandering the world. Please let us go, okay? We’re truly miserable. Today’s meal was the best we’ve had in months... sob, sob..."
Linlin pouted and said, "Hmph! A bunch of lowlifes! If you want me to spare your lives, fine, but the little white dragon has to be my pet from now on!" He actually put away his saber and crossed his arms haughtily.
"Drop dead. I'm going to beat you senseless," Leng Jing said while sipping tea. His cup of tea had been served by his doting father, Leng Qingqing.
"What did you say!" Linlin was enraged.
At that moment, the doors and windows of the small hut were slammed shut, and the sounds of a brawl erupted from within.
Judging by the noise, it was a group beating.
***
"Just you wait!" A bruised and swollen Linlin spat out a harsh parting word before transforming into a streak of green light, finally escaping the clutches of his attackers and flying away.
However, he was truly unlucky. Not long after flying off, he encountered a once-in-a-century storm vortex at Tianyahai and was blown even further away.
The storm arrived.
The powerful tsunami and gale-force winds instantly demolished the Leng family's small hut. Everyone clung tightly to the White Dragon’s tail, their bodies fluttering in the wild wind and rain.
The White Dragon gripped the cliffside and dragged the three of them down toward the base of the precipice, finally finding a cave to shelter from the wind.
"Master, I want to go home tomorrow!" The Prince finally couldn't take it anymore.
"And what about my palace?" Leng Jing was unwilling to let him go.
"I'll have my Imperial Father build you another one in a better place!" the Prince pleaded.
"I like this place," Leng Jing said, standing at the cave entrance to block the wind. "None of you are reliable. Fine, I'll build the palace myself. But within three months, all the relevant laborers must arrive. You will follow my orders then."
The Prince nodded repeatedly.
In fact, three months later, the laborers sent by the Heavenly Realm were all "country bumpkin" minor immortals who had just ascended from the lower realms. But that is a story for later.
***
After the Prince left, the three of them began working on the palace.
In truth, it was mostly Leng Jing traveling back and forth across the Heavenly Realm to transport timber. He moved incredibly fast; one moment a celestial mountain would be lush with green trees, and the next it would suddenly become a bald peak. Many celestial families were baffled by this; some even claimed it was a new type of Heavenly Tribulation! First, the celestial mountains were plucked bald, and next, it would be the immortals' turn!
Consequently, "Immortal Hats" for protecting hair became a sudden trend in the Heavenly Realm.
As the timber stockpiled at Tianyahai grew, Leng Jing saw that he had collected enough and began to personally construct the buildings.
After about another month, a manor that looked exactly like the Leng Family Manor was completed in a valley at Tianyahai. Leng Qingqing and the White Mink both looked at Leng Jing with disdainful eyes; clearly, the omnipotent Dragon God was not cut out for palace architecture. The remaining piles of timber were simply left in the back valley.
After much anticipation, the first batch of "country bumpkin" minor immortals arrived on a celestial ship. Leng Jing and Leng Qingqing stood on the shore to welcome them. A large ship docked, and many young men and women disembarked. They appeared to be the same sort of folk as Leng Qingqing. When the White Mink performed the registration, he discovered that these migrant workers were all little rabbits, little foxes, and little birds who had just ascended—true rubes. The only one who seemed somewhat formidable was a Tiger Immortal. Even after transforming into a human, he didn't even reach Leng Jing’s shoulder. He had an extremely serious expression and requested to be Leng Jing’s personal bodyguard.
The happiest person was Leng Qingqing. It was a rare gathering of rubes, all at his level. He began to instruct these workers, styling himself as the Dragon’s Father.
Leng Jing found it incredibly boring. While Leng Qingqing and the White Mink were chattering away, he hid inside the manor to eat small fish and sleep.
He missed his world of martial arts.
A real man should roam the four corners of the earth, not play house with a bunch of rubes.
Once Leng Jing had his fill of small fish, he began to crave mortal delicacies like Kung Pao Chicken, abalone, and sweet and sour pork ribs.
He glanced out the window and saw several minor immortals peeking curiously through the crack in the door.
"Come here!" Leng Jing thought it was rare for him to have servants, so he beckoned with his finger.
The minor immortals had been captivated by Leng Jing’s peerless elegance from the first moment they saw him. They naturally entered the room with great reverence. One of the quicker-witted ones ran out and brought in the wheelchair Linlin had sent.
Leng Jing’s face darkened slightly. He said, "Come here and help me change. I’m going down to the mortal realm."
"Young Master! Your health is not good. You should let the Right General accompany you..." the minor immortals said with concern.
Leng Jing’s face darkened again. He asked, "Wait a minute, what are these titles? Let me ask you, who told you to call me 'Young Master'?"
"It was Master Qingqing and Chief Manager White Mink."
"And who is the Right General?"
"The Right General is Lord Lei Jun."
"Who is Lei Jun?" Leng Jing was completely bewildered.
The minor immortals looked at each other. Thinking of the legends that the Dragon Lord’s eyesight was poor and he might not have seen the Left General clearly, they said, "It’s that... Tiger Immortal."
"He’s just a little tiger, why make it so complicated?" Leng Jing jumped down from the bed. "No need to send anyone with me. I’ll be back soon." *The position of the Martial Arts Alliance Leader! Here I come again!* Leng Jing thought with ambitious excitement.
"Don't go!! The Young Master cannot simply descend to the mortal realm!" Several white rabbits, who were just as stubborn as Leng Qingqing, grabbed Leng Jing’s arms and began a game of tug-of-war.
"Everyone, come quickly and stop the Young Master! The Young Master is trying to sneak down to the mortal realm!" The white rabbits shouted while pulling, calling over the other servants who were watching the commotion at the door. Thus, an even larger-scale tug-of-war began.
"Get lost!" Leng Jing was about to explode. Just as he was about to transform into the White Dragon to shake these fellows off, a slap landed on his cheek.
Everyone stopped. Leng Jing stared blankly at the handsome young man before him, someone he didn't recognize at all. This person had actually dared to strike the great, omnipotent Dragon God.
The youth gritted his teeth and said, "Young Master! You must have some self-awareness! Do you want everyone to worry themselves to death for you? Do we really need to remind you of the consequences of descending to the mortal realm with a body like yours?"
"What consequences?" Leng Jing asked, stunned.
"The air of the mortal realm is filthy. Within moments, your primordial spirit will be contaminated!" the youth said with utmost seriousness. "I have committed a capital offense by striking the Young Master, but I only hope the Young Master understands the gravity of the situation! Please, Young Master, bestow my punishment!"
"White Rabbit, who is this person?" Leng Jing turned and whispered to the rabbit maid behind him.
"He... he is the Left General, Lord Bi Xuan... He is an Azure Dragon..." the rabbit maid whispered a reminder. *Sob, sob~ her name was clearly Xiao Liu, how did she become 'White Rabbit'?*
Leng Jing took a deep breath. After all, he was a Dragon God of great magnanimity. Back then, when the ten great sects had united to frame and provoke him, he had remained calm and composed. Why should he care about a small group of rubes? As long as he showed his fangs, these rubes would be too terrified to move.
However, what Leng Jing didn't know was that after five thousand years of reorganization in the Heavenly Realm, the current immortals and demons were no longer as attuned to fate or capable of sensing danger as they once were. Even if Leng Jing’s killing intent surged, to these simple rubes, it just felt like the temperature was dropping, making them think they needed to put on more clothes.
And so, Leng Jing remained in a standoff with them. Eventually, everyone began to shiver violently. Someone even said, "It’s so cold! Everyone, quickly bring a cloak for the Young Master! Cold, cold, cold..."
Perhaps these pampered rubes simply didn't know what the sensation of "danger" was.
Leng Jing suddenly felt the same sense of defeat he felt when facing Leng Qingqing.
Chinese | English | Notes/Explanation
---|---|---
雷钧 | Lei Jun | The Right General, a Tiger Immortal.
碧萱 | Bi Xuan | The Left General, an Azure Dragon.
小柳 | Xiao Liu | A minor immortal maid (a rabbit).
左将军 | Left General | A high-ranking title given to Bi Xuan by Leng Qingqing/White Mink.
右将军 | Right General | A high-ranking title given to Lei Jun by Leng Qingqing/White Mink.
少主 | Young Master | The title the new staff uses for Leng Jing.
Enjoying the story? Rate this novel:
The Ugly Little Snake: My Dragon Son | Chapter 47 | The Misunderstood Dragon Lord | Novela.app | Novela.app
