Chapter 19: Transformation
Of course, Su Muluo couldn’t bear to leave the little black dragon hanging outside all night, so he brought it back inside after just a half minute.
The little black dragon lay listlessly in his palm, looking pitiful and innocent.
Su Muluo knew it was pretending and wasn’t moved. He said, “Next time you pluck my feather, I’ll pinch your tail.”
The little black dragon: “Aww!”
It really didn’t pluck the feather!
Su Muluo raised an eyebrow: “It couldn’t have fallen out on its own, right?”
The little black dragon glanced at him cautiously.
“Squeak.”
Indeed, it had.
Su Muluo: “…”
Impossible!
He had just lost feathers yesterday!
Su Muluo felt frustrated. Previously, he only lost feathers once every hundred years, and only one or two at a time. Now, he had lost feathers two days in a row, four in total!
Unhappy, he rubbed the little black dragon’s belly.
The little black dragon clung to his finger, whining softly.
You blame me and tied me up.
“Tied you up because you took advantage of me,” Su Muluo said confidently. “Who told you to do that.”
However, the feather issue was troubling, and there were two strange things.
Why was he so tired today?
Why did he revert to his original form while sleeping?
Su Muluo thought for a while but couldn’t figure it out, so he poked the little black dragon, saying, “It’s all your fault.”
The little black dragon had been sleepy recently, and its scales itched. Su Muluo had suspected they were somehow linked, and it seemed to be true.
The little black dragon looked at him with a slightly resentful gaze but accepted the blame.
Su Muluo carefully put away the fallen feather, feeling a bit distressed, and placed it in a small pouch. “If I lose a feather every day, I’ll end up bald.”
The little black dragon nuzzled him comfortingly and let out a soft whimper.
Can we transform back?
Su Muluo met the little black dragon’s gaze, asking, “You just want to take advantage of me again?”
The little black dragon immediately shook its head.
Su Muluo suspiciously stared at it for a few seconds, thinking if the dragon dared to misbehave, he would peck it.
Then he transformed back to his original form.
A beautiful phoenix landed on the bed, gracefully folding his snowy white feathers, staring at the little black dragon with ruby-like eyes.
The little black dragon circled the phoenix once before diving into his soft feathers.
Phoenix: “?”
At first, he thought the little black dragon just liked his feathers, but he soon realized the dragon was pointing out a specific spot. Lowering his head, he preened that area.
In the next moment, the phoenix was pleasantly surprised to find fine down feathers growing under his long, snowy feathers.
It turned out he wasn’t going bald but was entering a molting period!
But why was he still molting at eighteen hundred years old?
While pleased, the phoenix was also puzzled, but since he wasn’t truly losing feathers and wouldn’t go bald, he happily transformed back to human form, kissed the little black dragon, and held it in his hand.
The little black dragon: “…”
The little black dragon immediately clung to Su Muluo’s hand, letting out a soft whimper.
It wanted another kiss!
“No,” Su Muluo said with a smile. “Just one.”
For someone who had been terrified about losing feathers yesterday, nothing was more delightful than seeing the fallen feathers grow back. Thus, even the little black dragon, who had taken advantage of him earlier, seemed much cuter. Su Muluo gave its little head a rub.
The little black dragon whimpered, still hoping for a kiss from its phoenix. Seeing that the phoenix was unwilling, it curled up in a small ball, swishing its tail in disappointment.
Well, one kiss was fine.
After all, having one now meant there would definitely be more in the future.
Su Muluo pulled the soft blanket over both of them, covering the little black dragon as well, and said with a smile, “Sleep.”
The rest of the night passed peacefully. When Su Muluo woke up the next day, he inexplicably received a large sum of money and a call from Liu He.
“Mr. Su, did you receive the gratitude money?”
“What gratitude money?” Su Muluo was slightly surprised, seeing the substantial increase in his bank account. “Why are you sending me money?”
Liu He laughed, “Because you helped us solve the recent incident, this is our token of appreciation.”
Su Muluo replied, “I don’t need it; I didn’t really do much.”
“No, if it weren’t for you, we wouldn’t have caught the culprit so quickly, and I wouldn’t have made it out of the red umbrella safely,” Liu He insisted. “If it were someone from the Bureau of Extraordinary Beings , they would receive a certain amount of remuneration after each case. Even though you haven’t joined the Bureau, you’ve helped us a lot. So, it’s only right and proper for us to show our gratitude.”
She spoke earnestly and straightforwardly, fearing that Su Muluo might refuse. Before he could say anything, she loudly shouted, “Thank you!” and then hung up.
Su Muluo: “…”
It seemed the Bureau of Extraordinary Beings was determined to make him accept this money. Although they had previously agreed that he would assist them when needed, it was clear they didn’t want to owe him any favors before a real crisis arose.
That was fine too. Su Muluo looked at the transferred amount, realizing it was enough to cover at least half a year’s rent and expenses. He felt a bit emotional.
It seemed joining the Bureau of Extraordinary Beings was a quicker way to make money.
But on second thought, he still preferred running a café. It was relaxed and he could arrange his time as he pleased.
After all, he came to the human city to experience life. Making money was secondary. If it came down to it, he could easily sell a feather or two and never lack for money.
“Squeak.”
The little black dragon lazily sprawled on the pillow, yawning. Su Muluo scratched its chin, letting it curl around his wrist while he got up to wash up in the bathroom.
The café had been closed for the past couple of days. Today, there were several customers waiting, including one who wanted to add Su Muluo on WeChat. “Boss, I’ve come twice when you were closed. How about adding me on WeChat so you can notify me when you’re open?”
“I don’t have WeChat,” Su Muluo replied, even though he did have it. He declined to prevent the little black dragon from getting jealous. “I was busy the past few days. Barring any unforeseen events, the café will be open every day at ten.”
“Alright,” the customer didn’t push further and looked at the drink menu with anticipation. “I’ll have a special coffee, half sugar!”
Over time, Su Muluo’s café had gained some reputation. His special coffee tasted great, had a short treatment period (?), and worked quickly. It had already spread among some company colleagues, becoming a favorite among middle-aged office workers.
Business was good today, with seven or eight customers seated in the shop. Su Muluo busied himself serving coffee. After taking a seat, he pinched the little black dragon’s tiny horns, saying, “Grow up quickly and work for me.”
The little black dragon whimpered, suddenly feeling its scales itch again. It lay down in Su Muluo’s palm, asking for a scratch.
Su Muluo lightly scratched the little black dragon’s scales. Just then, another customer walked in. Su Muluo thought about putting the little black dragon in his pocket but, seeing how itchy it was, couldn’t bring himself to do it. He continued scratching it, letting the customer approach the counter.
The new customer was a young man in his early twenties, sporting a black earring and looking rather listless. His eyes lit up slightly upon seeing the little black dragon in Su Muluo’s hand. “How cute, what is that?”
The little black dragon had buried its head in Su Muluo’s palm, hiding its little horns and pretending to be a small snake.
While scratching the little black dragon, Su Muluo casually replied, “A toy loach.”
The little black dragon: “…”
“Isn’t it a toy snake?” The young man curiously leaned in, clearly very interested in the little black dragon. “Where can I buy one? I want one too.”
Su Muluo said, “I bought it years ago, can’t remember where.” He then smiled slightly and asked, “What would you like to drink?”
This was to change the subject. The young man, disappointed at not getting the answer he wanted, reverted to his previous listlessness and said, “Special coffee, please. I heard from friends that your special coffee is really good.”
He then took out some cash and handed it to Su Muluo.
Su Muluo accepted the cash. Nowadays, young people rarely used cash. But some non-human newcomers to the city without IDs had to use cash.
Su Muluo discreetly examined the young man, finding no trace of demonic aura, and said, “Please find a seat.”
The young man glanced at the little black dragon again, reluctantly left the counter, and chose a corner seat.
After the young man left, Su Muluo quietly pinched the little black dragon.
The little black dragon looked up at him, puzzled, “Aww?”
Su Muluo: “Look at you, causing trouble.”
The little black dragon: “???”
The little black dragon looked at its phoenix, utterly confused.
It was just an innocent little dragon!
And it had just been called a toy loach!
Su Muluo looked at the little black dragon’s bewildered reaction and smiled slightly. “Doesn’t matter, it’s your fault anyway.”
Despite his words, he continued scratching the little black dragon until it was no longer itchy, then made a special cup of coffee for the young man.
When the coffee was brought over, the young man looked at the exquisite cup before him without much expectation and took a sip.
The moment the coffee entered his mouth, his expression changed instantly.
It was delicious!
What kind of coffee was this? Why was it so good?!
The young man stared at the coffee in disbelief for a while, then carefully took another sip.
Still delicious!
“Boss!” he immediately said, “Can I have another cup?”
“Sorry,” Su Muluo replied, “You can only buy one cup per day.”
The young man was stunned and asked, “Even if I pay more?”
Su Muluo shook his head.
The young man, disappointed, touched the earring by his ear and dejectedly sat back down.
Su Muluo looked at the young man, feeling that something was off. He seemed different from ordinary people… but there was no demonic aura on him, so he wasn’t a demon.
However, as long as the other party didn’t cause trouble, Su Muluo wouldn’t interfere.
The day passed like this. At seven in the evening, Su Muluo closed the shop, opened a can of cat food for Qiansui, and returned to his rented apartment with the little black dragon.
In the afternoon, the little black dragon’s scales had been itchy for a long time, and it kept rubbing against Su Muluo’s hand. After Su Muluo finished scratching it, the little dragon got sleepy, curled up into a small ball, and fell asleep holding its own tail.
It slept from the afternoon until the evening. Su Muluo looked at the little black dragon in his hand, which he couldn’t wake up, and frowned.
What was going on?
At eight in the evening, Su Muluo finished his bath and gently placed the still-sleeping little black dragon on the pillow, lying down to watch it.
The little black dragon, already small, looked even smaller curled up asleep. Su Muluo gently stroked it. Perhaps sensing his presence in its sleep, the little black dragon let out a small hum, turned over, and softly hugged him.
A trace of a smile appeared in Su Muluo’s eyes, and his tense mood relaxed a bit. The little black dragon still responded to him in its dreams, which meant there should be nothing wrong.
After a while, Su Muluo seemed to catch the little black dragon’s sleepiness, and he started to feel drowsy, his eyes struggling to stay open.
Not wanting to fall asleep so soon, he watched over the little black dragon for a while longer. But as he grew sleepier, he eventually changed his position, cradled the little black dragon in his hand, and drifted off to sleep.
Because he was worried about the little black dragon, Su Muluo didn’t sleep well that night, dozing fitfully until the latter half of the night when an arm wrapped around his waist, gently holding him.
Half-asleep, Su Muluo felt himself nestled in a man’s arms, breathing in a familiar scent that made him feel very safe.
The autumn night was cold, but the man’s embrace was warm. Instinctively, Su Muluo burrowed into the embrace, like a cat seeking a cozy blanket.
But soon, he realized something was wrong.
Why was there someone in his bed?
Who was this person holding him?
Su Muluo woke up instantly and opened his eyes—
T/N: Hello hello! There is plenty more where that came from, so stay tuned! And stay healthy! Straighten your posture, so some stretches and drink some water before continuing hehe~
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Also, check out the other series we have on HoH!
If you like cats, check out Revenge of the Garfield
If you like dragons, check out I’m Pregnant with the Hope of the Entire Planet and The Dragon and the ‘Princess’
How about some mystery or showbiz? Check out Morbid Addiction & Perfection
What about the perfect, most non-toxic male lead ever? Laws of Love
How about MC nursing ML back to health? Forced into the Deep
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