Long Ying felt her breathing grow difficult as someone pinched her little nose. She whined softly twice before waking up, her sleepy emerald eyes filled with resentment.
“What are you doing, Yan Zhen Zhen?”
She pouted, her face twisted into an unhappy frown.
—This little girl’s got quite the morning grumpiness.
Yan Zhen cleared his throat twice and said gently,
“Long Ying, are you hungry? Let me treat you to a big meal.”
The moment she heard “big meal,” Long Ying’s eyes lit up. She nodded eagerly and said,
“Sure! I mean…”
Her expression froze for a second. Realizing her slip, she quickly schooled her features into elegant poise.
“Very well. Since it’s an invitation from Yan Zhen Zhen, I shall graciously accept.”
Yan Zhen eyed her sideways, thinking to himself that this little girl was getting stranger by the day. She’d started as a simple rice-bucket loli, then turned into a seductive loli after growing a bit, and now she was an elegant loli.
He suspected Long Ying was a reincarnator like Zi Xunyi, though he wasn’t sure. Had something gone wrong during her rebirth, making her act so oddly?
If she really was a reincarnator, tricking her into a master-servant contract wouldn’t be easy. Worst case, he’d skip the contract altogether. Given their relationship, asking her directly for a drop of divine blood should get him what he needed without refusal.
“Yan Zhen Zhen?”
“Oh, let’s go. Where are your shoes?”
“I don’t like wearing shoes.”
“…”
The little skirt and shoes from the Will Star Banquet had been ditched the moment they got back. She’d swapped them for his oversized knee-length T-shirt, her bare little feet pattering cutely—and a bit stupidly—as she walked.
Yan Zhen took Long Ying’s small hand and called out to Zi Xunyi and Huangfu Wenqing, saying he was taking her out for a bite.
Neither woman was much for meals, so he didn’t invite them along. With a quick greeting, he led Long Ying to the dining hall.
In a private room at the dining hall, Yan Zhen ordered the most expensive table of medicinal feast dishes and gestured for Long Ying to dig in. He picked at a bit himself.
Once she was stuffed to the gills, he solicitously handed her tea, wiped her mouth, and even pulled her onto his lap to rub her belly.
Long Ying reveled in it, her petite body going limp against his chest as if she were on the verge of blissful ascension.
Yan Zhen said nothing, focusing entirely on pampering her.
Finally, the loli dragon girl couldn’t hold back. She eyed him suspiciously.
“Yan Zhen Zhen, did you do something you shouldn’t have?”
Yan Zhen blinked innocently and replied calmly,
“Are you saying that treating you to a feast and rubbing your belly means I’ve done something wrong?”
“Isn’t that the case?”
“Heh, so that’s what you think of me. Fine! With my fight against Wen Canglan looming—who knows if I’ll live or die—better to part ways early.”
Yan Zhen let out a long sigh, stopping his hands and setting Long Ying back in her seat beside him.
She froze, then flung herself back onto him, facing him with a pitiful look.
“I was just joking, Yan Zhen Zhen. Don’t be mad.”
“I’m not mad. I’m just thinking—if I really die at Wen Canglan’s hands, how am I supposed to face you all?”
“No way that’ll happen. You can thrash that crystal-eyed glasses guy with ease, Yan Zhen Zhen.”
“It’s not that simple. Wen Canglan’s about to break through to the Mystic King Realm, and the Wen Family’s crystal mysterious force is so overbearing. Their Crystal Transformation Mystic Palm is tough to handle—if it lands, I’m basically done for.”
“Don’t worry. Once you refine my divine blood and grasp the Dragon Blood Scale Transformation Technique, you can easily fend off the crystal mysterious force’s corrosion.”
“Oh? Really?”
“Yeah. My dragon scales already have incredible defense and resistance. If you refine my divine blood, you’ll form similar ones—admittedly weaker, but more than enough against mystic generals or even Mystic Kings.”
—That’s exactly what I was waiting for.
Shamelessly, Yan Zhen said,
“So, Long Ying, could you give me a drop of your divine blood?”
The loli dragon girl’s big, sparkling eyes seemed to speak volumes.
“I’d be happy to, but my father warned me that divine blood is precious. I can’t just give it to anyone.”
“Your father was right, but I’m not just anyone. We’re partners, right?”
“True… but…”
“But what?”
“But the Dragon God Clan’s divine blood is the most domineering kind. Even a mortal brushing against a trace might dragonize and go mad.”
“No problem. I cultivate the Primordial Dharma Body Atlas, created by the Human Ancestor. It requires refining divine blood to advance anyway—I can handle it.”
“That’s too risky. But there’s a safe way.”
—Tsk, when did this little girl learn to hold out on me?
“What way? Tell me.”
“Just form a master-servant contract with me and become a dragon knight. Then you can handle my divine blood.”
“?”
Yan Zhen was dumbfounded. Wasn’t that supposed to be his line? Why was it coming from Long Ying’s mouth? He’d already given up on the contract, prioritizing the divine blood instead. Now she was the one suggesting it?
—No. She’s a reincarnator. Since she’s bringing it up, she clearly wants to be the master and make him the servant—in other words, not a dragon knight, but a knight dragon!
“What’s a master-servant contract mean?”
“It means I become your mount. We live and die together, support each other, never to part. Got it?”
A cute blush spread across the loli dragon girl’s face, doubling her already immense adorableness.
Truth be told, Yan Zhen didn’t quite get it. Why was Long Ying volunteering to be his mount? Hadn’t she reincarnated? Shouldn’t she resist this?
In the script, Long Ying had always resented him tricking her into becoming a mount, feeling massively shortchanged. She refused to transform for him except in dire moments.
Later, after sharing life-and-death trials, their bond deepened, and they cultivated a dual-cultivation dragonman transformation secret art. They mostly fought as dragonmen fusions, rarely using the “dragon knight form.”
“So… you want to be my mount?”
“Yep!”
“You don’t mind? Being treated like a mount.”
“That’s why, for you, Yan Zhen Zhen, I’m making a huge sacrifice. You have to be good to me forever, or I won’t forgive you. Hmph!”
“…”
“Why the sudden silence? Don’t tell me you don’t want to, Yan Zhen Zhen?”
She put on a super fierce pout. Yan Zhen could clearly see her eyes rimming red, her stubborn gaze tinged with panic.
“I… I don’t actually want to treat you like a mount. Aren’t we partners?”
“It’s just the contract to help you refine the dragon blood. I won’t transform into a dragon for you except in emergencies—unless you treat me to big meals!”
“Long Ying.”
“If… if you don’t want to, fine! I don’t wanna be a mount anyway!”
“Ah? I… I do! I do, I swear! Please, Lady Long Ying, help me master this divine technique and save my sorry hide!”
Yan Zhen quickly agreed.
Only then did a smile return to Long Ying’s face—tinged with a hint of smug triumph.
