Chapter 58: Trouble
The Dragon and Phoenix clans were not far apart, but reaching the Dragon clan’s territory required passing through a narrow and treacherous pass, which was the only entrance to their land.
When Su Muluo arrived at the pass, he was startled to see someone lying on the ground from a distance.
However, he quickly realized that it wasn’t just one person lying there but several of them, all Dragon clan members. Although they weren’t severely injured, they were unconscious and temporarily incapacitated.
— Not only that, among the fallen people stood a man in black with dark golden eyes, his posture upright and his expression cold… but when he saw Su Muluo, his expression changed immediately.
“Phoenix,” the man quickly walked up to Su Muluo, grabbing his hand and speaking with a hint of grievance, “They bullied me.”
Su Muluo: “…”
He was familiar with the man’s dark golden eyes and voice, but not so much with his appearance and build.
If he remembered correctly, before being captured by the Dragon clan, the small dragon he raised… was still in its juvenile form.
Why had it grown so much in the blink of an eye???
While Su Muluo was briefly stunned, Long Ling had already hugged his waist and buried his face in his shoulder.
This was an action Long Ling used to do frequently when he was a teenager, so Su Muluo was accustomed to it and instinctively patted Long Ling’s head… only to realize that now, as a grown dragon, Long Ling was actually half a head taller than him.
He was a big dragon now.
Su Muluo thought to himself and asked, “Why did you suddenly grow so big?”
Long Ling replied, “I don’t know either… I just wanted to come back to Phoenix, but they wouldn’t let me and even tried to hurt me.” He paused, then added, “During the fight, I felt a surge of power within me, and when I came to my senses, I had turned into this.”
Su Muluo looked him over and asked, “Are you injured? Or is there any discomfort?”
Long Ling shook his head. Although he wasn’t injured, he snuggled up to Su Muluo unhappily and said, “Phoenix, they said I’m an ominous sign and wanted to lock me up and even kill me— but am I really?”
Su Muluo’s expression turned cold upon hearing this and said, “Of course you’re not. Don’t worry, with me here, they won’t be able to harm you.”
As soon as he finished speaking, the Dragon clan leader, Fu Sha, arrived.
He first glanced at his fallen clan members with a frown, then looked at Su Muluo and Long Ling—his gaze lingered on the grown Long Ling, obviously taken aback for a moment.
He quickly composed himself and said coldly, “Phoenix, I wasn’t wrong, was I? He is indeed different from others, otherwise, how could he have grown so fast?”
“But he has never harmed anyone. If you hadn’t tried to hurt him, he wouldn’t have fought back,” Su Muluo replied coldly, “Just because he is a black dragon, a rare occurrence in the Dragon clan, you deem him ominous and even want to kill him. That’s too much.”
Fu Sha clearly had prepared his defense, saying, “I can spare his life, but he is still a potential threat. I want to take him back to the Dragon clan for long-term observation.”
Just as he finished speaking, Long Ling said, “Phoenix, I don’t want to go!”
He then tightly grasped the corner of Su Muluo’s clothes.
Su Muluo said gently, “I won’t let you go.”
He habitually patted Long Ling’s head, only to realize that the person in front of him was no longer a teenager. His hand stopped momentarily before being firmly grasped by Long Ling.
Their eyes met briefly for a second before Su Muluo turned his head and said to Fu Sha, “Let him stay with me. I can also observe him.”
Fu Sha’s brows furrowed deeply, “Phoenix—”
“From beginning to end, the idea that the black dragon is an ominous sign is just your personal opinion with no basis,” Su Muluo interrupted directly. “You can use such arguments to convince your people, but not with me.”
“Moreover, you still haven’t answered my previous question—are you targeting him for the sake of your clan, or is it because of your own selfish motives?”
“…”
As before, Fu Sha fell silent when Su Muluo asked this question.
Su Muluo ignored him, taking Long Ling’s hand and leaving. Meanwhile, Fu Sha watched their clasped hands… his expression darkening with every passing moment.
On the way back to the Phoenix Territory, Su Muluo kept glancing at the dragon beside him.
Long Ling said, “Phoenix is stealing glances at me.”
Su Muluo replied, “I’m clearly looking at you openly.”
Long Ling let out an “oh” and said with a hint of pride, “Does Phoenix think I look good?”
Su Muluo remained silent, thinking that Long Ling did indeed look quite good.
He then asked, “Don’t you really feel anything uncomfortable?”
Long Ling shook his head and said, “No.”
Su Muluo fell silent again, just quietly observing the dragon he had raised.
Although he believed that Fu Sha’s so-called “omen” was nonsense, his dragon did have some differences from other dragons, such as having intelligence even in the egg, and suddenly growing up…
Seeing Su Muluo lost in thought, Long Ling asked, “Is Phoenix thinking about what happened earlier?” Without waiting for Su Muluo to respond, he added, “I know that I’m different from them, and it’s understandable that they don’t want to accept me.”
“But because of that, I don’t want to go to their side either. Since they don’t see me as part of their family, I won’t bother with them.”
Long Ling’s tone was cold, but Su Muluo noticed a trace of desolation in his eyes.
Being rejected by his own people, and even being marked as an ill omen and targeted for death, had indeed hurt him. So even if he didn’t show it, he was still upset inside.
Realizing this, Su Muluo said, “When I was first born, being the only white phoenix in the clan, I was also isolated by those around me for a while.”
Long Ling looked surprised and asked, “But isn’t Phoenix the strongest in the clan? Or even the clan leader?”
“Yes,” Su Muluo replied, “So later, I made those who isolated me submit. I not only made them apologize but also took them as my followers and had them work for me for a long time.”
Long Ling: “!”
“So what I want to tell you,” Su Muluo said gently, “is that being different from others doesn’t mean you’re truly an outsider. Don’t pay attention to their opinions, and don’t let them affect you.”
He then smiled slightly at Long Ling. “Moreover, no matter what happens, I’m here with you.”
Long Ling looked at him, and after a few seconds, leaned over and snuggled close to him.
“This is what Phoenix said,” Long Ling grinned, “so Phoenix is going to marry me in the future and also stroke my feathers!”
Su Muluo: “???”
How did it jump to this?
He immediately turned his face away from Long Ling and walked forward.
Long Ling chased after him and said, “Phoenix promised me that when I grew up, I would marry me and stroke my feathers—I’m already grown up now!”
Su Muluo replied expressionlessly, “When did that happen? I don’t remember.”
Clearly, every time this dragon said such things, he would just throw the dragon away.
“I don’t care, Phoenix didn’t answer, so it means yes!” Long Ling caught up to him again, grabbing his hand tightly and not letting go. “I like Phoenix the most, and only like Phoenix!”
Su Muluo turned to look at him and asked, “Do you know what liking someone means?”
Long Ling: “I—”
“Clan Leader!”
From a distance, a shout was heard, and a man in blue robes arrived with several phoenixes.
The man was Shuang Li. He first checked Su Muluo, who was unharmed, and then looked at Long Ling beside him, exclaiming in surprise, “How did he suddenly grow up so much!”
The phoenixes also curiously surrounded Long Ling, examining him. Unlike the dragons who were targeting Long Ling, these phoenixes had watched Long Ling grow from the egg, so they felt quite affectionate towards the little black dragon.
Su Muluo asked Shuang Li, “Why did you bring people out?”
Shuang Li replied, “I was worried that the clan leader might be bullied, but it’s good that you’re fine. The dragon clan didn’t make things difficult for you, did they?”
Previously, some members of the dragon clan had disguised themselves as Su Muluo and taken Long Ling away. When Su Muluo found out, he immediately rushed to the dragon clan. Shuang Li couldn’t catch up due to Su Muluo’s speed, so he had to go back and gather the clan members before heading to the dragon clan together.
Su Muluo shook his head and said, “No.”
When they returned to the Phoenix Territory, Su Muluo explained Long Ling’s changes to the others. Shuang Li was surprised and said, “Isn’t that similar to you, Clan Leader? You are the only phoenix in our clan with Nirvana power. Could Long Ling also have some special ability?”
Su Muluo glanced at Long Ling and replied, “Not yet discovered, but it seems his strength is much greater than other dragons.”
After all, Long Ling had just single-handedly repelled so many dragons without any harm, which was enough to demonstrate his power.
Long Ling blinked and said, “So Phoenix is going to—”
Su Muluo immediately covered his mouth with his hand.
Long Ling: “……”
Shuang Li cleared his throat and said, “By the way, Clan Leader, the Elders are looking for you.”
Su Muluo nodded and said, “Then you can take him back first. I’ll go now.”
He turned and walked in another direction. Long Ling wanted to follow but was stopped by Shuang Li.
“The Elders want to see the Clan Leader. It might be something important,” Shuang Li said. “Come with me. Now that you’re grown up, let Xiao Shu make you some new clothes.”
Long Ling watched Su Muluo’s retreating figure until he disappeared from sight, then nodded and said, “Okay.”
The Elder of the Phoenix Clan was a red phoenix and the oldest phoenix in the clan. Su Muluo remembered that when he was young and isolated by others, it was the Elder who took him in and protected him. Over the years, he had always felt close to and attached to the Elder.
At this moment, the Elder called him forward, silently observing him for a long time before sighing.
Su Muluo didn’t understand why the Elder was sighing and had an uneasy premonition. He asked, “Elder, has something happened?”
“……I’ve received a prophecy,” the Elder said, “Soon, there may be calamity coming to the Phoenix Clan.”
The ominous premonition proved to be true. Su Muluo furrowed his brow and asked, “What kind of calamity?” He thought about recent events and added, “Is it related to the dragon clan?”
The Elder shook his head and said, “It’s unrelated to them but… related to the Heavenly Law.”
When mentioning the “Heavenly Law,” he deliberately lowered his voice and pointed upward.
Su Muluo was surprised and asked, “The Heavenly Law… what is that?”
He wanted to ask for more details, but the Elder didn’t continue. Instead, he patted Su Muluo’s head and said softly after a while, “You can go now.”
“The Heavenly Law cannot be reversed; it can only be followed. The only variable will be in thousands of years.”
“You will understand then.”
“……”
As Su Muluo left, he felt the Elder’s gaze following him, just like when he was a child.
But he was filled with confusion and couldn’t get any answers.
The Elder said the variable would be in thousands of years… but that’s too long.
He wasn’t even a thousand years old yet.
While Su Muluo was deep in thought, he noticed Shuang Li hesitating nearby, as if he wanted to say something.
He asked, “What’s wrong?”
“Cough, Clan Leader,” Shuang Li said, “Did the Elder call you to discuss the blessing ceremony?”
Su Muluo hesitated for a second and shook his head, “No, it’s something else.”
Clearly not wanting to elaborate, Shuang Li didn’t press further. “Then… the blessing ceremony will start in two months. Do you have someone in charge?”
The blessing ceremony was a tradition of the Phoenix Clan, held once every three years. On this day, all phoenixes would come to offer prayers to the heavens and hold a grand feast.
Seeing Shuang Li’s eager expression, Su Muluo asked curiously, “Oh, do you want to take charge this time?” Each blessing ceremony had a designated person in charge, but Shuang Li had always found it troublesome and never participated before.
Shuang Li cleared his throat and said, “Well, I was thinking…” He paused for a few seconds and glanced back.
Su Muluo followed his gaze and saw a girl in red standing in front of a small shop, using a soft measuring tape to measure Long Ling.
That was Ying Su, the granddaughter of the Phoenix Elder, who ran a small tailor shop and often made clothes for Shuang Li.
Seeing Shuang Li’s glance, Su Muluo understood his intention and couldn’t help but tease, “Strange, didn’t you say before that you wouldn’t like girls like her?”
Shuang Li stammered, “Did I say that… I don’t think so? Cough, anyway, Clan Leader, can you let me and her handle this blessing ceremony together?”
He looked at Su Muluo with eager eyes. Su Muluo thought for a moment and asked, “Does she agree?”
Shuang Li looked back at Ying Su again.
Ying Su seemed to notice Shuang Li’s gaze and looked up at him, making a face.
Shuang Li immediately said, “She agreed! Clan Leader, look how happy she is!”
Su Muluo: “……”
Su Muluo smiled and said, “Alright, it’s up to you.”
Shuang Li beamed with joy and said, “Thank you, Clan Leader!”
He happily walked toward Ying Su, and Long Ling returned to Su Muluo’s side.
“Phoenix,” he tugged at Su Muluo’s sleeve and asked, “What do you want to eat tonight?”
Su Muluo thought for a moment and said, “The sweet and sour fish from last time was quite good.”
Long Ling grinned and said, “Then Phoenix, my dear, I’ll make it for you.”
Su Muluo: “……”
Long Ling added, “Or let me, my dear Phoenix!”
Su Muluo: “……”
He shrugged off Long Ling’s sleeve, ignored him, and went back.
In the following days, the Phoenix Clan lived peacefully. Su Muluo knew that disaster was coming, but because of the Elder’s calm demeanor, he felt that it should be something that could be resolved. Even if it was serious, as long as he prepared well, he could lead the Phoenix Clan through it—
However, he didn’t anticipate that this disaster, brought by the Heavenly Law, was unavoidable and insurmountable, and there was nothing he could do.
It came as tens of thousands of bolts of heavenly lightning descended, and the Phoenix Clan was overwhelmed by this torrential flood of divine thunder… and was obliterated.
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~
If you like my translations, feel free to donate to my ko-fi!
I really, really appreciate all the support from my readers <3 It goes a long way and motivates me lots!
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
Thank you for all your support <3 Leave a comment if you like 🙂 I love reading them!
