Chapter 91: Dragons Have Pride Too

Xiu had only meant to act miserable to tease Wen Chu, but he hadn’t expected such a serious reply.

His ears turned red in an instant, and his dragon tail swayed uncomfortably.

“Actually, it’s not that often, just occasionally… And ever since I met you, the nightmares have become blurry. It’s not so bad anymore.”

Xiu looked away as if burned.

Even after a night of debauchery, the evil dragon who at most felt he had lost face was now feeling shy.

Wen Chu said very seriously, “Then you must tell me when you’re feeling unwell. I will help you.”

Xiu murmured, “Why? Because we’re friends?”

Wen Chu thought for a moment. “I guess you could put it that way?”

Xiu was the only person he could call a “friend.”

Xiu’s expression immediately darkened. A “heh” rumbled from his throat, and he abruptly changed the subject. “Let’s go to the sales office to get the carriage back first. Since the Dragon Slaying Squad is coming, we should prepare in advance.”

He clenched his fists as tightly as possible to stop himself from blurting out his questions to Wen Chu.

Xiu badly wanted to ask Wen Chu if he was like this with all his friends. What kind of position did he hold in Wen Chu’s heart?

But he couldn’t.

In Wen Chu’s eyes, they had only known each other for two short days. Wen Chu had no idea what a tyrannical person he used to be, let alone the wicked intentions with which he had approached him.

Even now, Wen Chu still thought last night had been an accidental misfire, a simple act of mutual aid.

But Xiu knew perfectly well.

It was the unbearable overflow of the desire for Wen Chu that he had been suppressing all along.

From their very first meeting, he had harbored such delusions.

Wen Chu’s attention was diverted by Xiu’s words. “Will the Dragon Slaying Squad come even without their weapons?”

As they left together, Xiu said, “They will. Based on past experience, the king’s funding for them is limited. They don’t have the budget to stay in the Forging Duchy for this long.”

Wen Chu was surprised. “Past experience? They’ve given you trouble before?”

Xiu lowered his eyes and sneered. “More than just trouble. Not long after I hatched, they nearly killed me several times. The most dangerous time, I risked being attacked by both elves and humans to hide in the Moonlight Forest just to survive.”

“Why?” Wen Chu couldn’t help but ask. “You’re the only one left of the dragon race. Why do they still pursue you relentlessly?”

Just as he finished speaking, they reached the hotel lobby.

It was obviously better not to mention things like “the dragon race” in front of dwarves, so Xiu switched to communicating with Wen Chu through their mental link.

【If you were the king, would you allow an enemy with whom you have a blood feud, the strongest single combatant outside of the gods and demons, to roam free?】 Xiu asked back.

Wen Chu blinked. 【I wouldn’t have made an enemy of them in the first place… No, I wouldn’t be king.】

Being a king meant being as busy as Minnie or President Ren, handling thousands of affairs a day.

He would much rather rob the king, get enough money, and live in a beautiful castle with Xiu.

Xiu: 【…Anyway, that’s the gist of it. As long as the king is on the throne, reconciliation between us is impossible.】

Wen Chu seemed to half-understand. 【Oh.】

Xiu checked out of the room, and they walked to the sales office together.

On the way, as expected, they ran into the Dragon Slaying Squad again, trying to get an explanation in front of Edward’s Weapon Shop.

“Although we used the princess’s pass at the time, it was the king’s envoy who paid for it,” the squad leader was still arguing forcefully. “We have the right to know who took the weapons.”

The dwarf, shouldering his hammer, waved his hand. “But the envoy at the time also said this was the king’s wedding gift to his beloved daughter. You are neither the princess nor the envoy, so I cannot give you the customer’s information.”

The squad leader’s face turned red with anger at the stubborn dwarf, but he finally had to give up.

“Let’s set out. The king has ordered that if we can’t resolve this today, one person will stay here to appeal while the rest proceed according to the original plan. We must reach the Dragon Wasteland today.”

The leader hung his head in defeat, and Wen Chu snickered from the side.

Serves them right for targeting Xiu.

In the crowd, the sharp-eyed Louis spotted Wen Chu and Xiu walking down the street and quietly shuffled deeper into the group.

Now, whenever he saw Wen Chu, a deep sense of powerlessness rose from the bottom of his heart.

The other party didn’t care about his verbal attacks at all and, relying on the laws of the Forging Duchy, wasn’t afraid of him resorting to violence. Louis’s punch had not only hit cotton but had also bounced back to hit himself.

He swept his gaze over the surrounding demons, grinding his teeth in anger.

As one of the twelve city lords of the demon race, he had already been ridiculed for falling to the point of taking on missions from other races to make a living.

He had managed to beat into submission any demon who dared to laugh at him along the way, but then Wen Chu had appeared out of nowhere, making him a laughingstock once again.

Just you wait, Wen Chu.

Louis watched the receding backs of Wen Chu and the blond man with a sinister gaze.

Wen Chu couldn’t hide in the Forging Duchy for a lifetime. Once he finished the king’s mission, he would come back and settle the score with him slowly.

Louis narrowed his eyes, his bright red tongue licking his sharp fangs.

A tender-skinned nightmare must taste delicious.

---

On the other side.

Wen Chu had no idea that someone was already thinking about eating him in the physical sense.

He and Xiu collected their carriage, took the communication stone from the construction manager, and prepared to leave.

The manager saw them off with a broad smile. “When you need us, you can summon us at any time with the communication stone. We will dispatch thirty robots to ensure the safety of the construction. Even against a dragon, we dwarves can put up a fight.”

Wen Chu and Xiu both fell silent for a second.

Then, Wen Chu was the first to speak.

He chose his words carefully. “It’s not that dangerous. The dragon… has been dealt with.”

The manager was surprised. “Dealt with?”

Wen Chu nodded. “Yes, he won’t be appearing in the wasteland for a while. Of course, if you’re worried, you can bring more robots.”

He couldn’t let the workers be terrified while they worked.

The manager thought for a moment. “Alright, it’s not very convenient to bring too many robots on the road anyway.”

He wasn’t worried that the two of them were lying.

Dwarves were only physically weaker than dragons, but the robots they created, especially the high-tier ones, were fully capable of fighting dragons. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have been able to exist on this continent for so long.

What’s more, the construction team had all sorts of large machinery; even if they couldn’t win, they could run.

If Wen Chu and his companion gave false information, they could apply to the Forging Guild for accountability and compensation.

He had hesitated at first only because he hadn’t expected such a generous reward and was reluctant to get into disputes with other races.

After the humans’ war against the dragons, the Continent of Light had been at peace for nearly a hundred years.

Of course, now that it was both safe and highly profitable, it was truly for the best.

The dwarf manager’s face was resolute. “Rest assured, there is no project we dwarves cannot build. Even if you want to build a bridge connecting the God Realm and the Demon Realm, we can do it!”

Wen Chu, who now had a preliminary understanding of the world’s powers, said, “…Let’s not do that.”

He was here for romance, not to watch a world war.

As the dwarf manager watched, Wen Chu and Xiu left in their horseless carriage.

There was a speed limit within the Forging Duchy. It wasn’t until they passed through the city gates that the carriage began to speed up.

Watching the scenery fly by outside the carriage window, Wen Chu slapped his forehead. “Oops.”

“What’s wrong?” Xiu asked.

Wen Chu was annoyed. “I forgot to buy daily necessities. I didn’t even buy pots and pans. We’ll have to eat flavorless roasted meat again when we get back.”

It was all Louis and the Dragon Slaying Squad’s fault.

Wen Chu was full of regret.

If he hadn’t run into them, why would he and Xiu have gone out to follow them late at night, and why would they be returning to the wasteland to set things up so early?

Now look, forget a bed, he didn’t even have any spices.

The thought of having to eat roasted rabbit meat seasoned only with white honey for several more days made Wen Chu’s vision go dark.

Xiu chuckled lightly. “It’s alright. What do you want? I can borrow it from the elves for you first, and then you can have the dwarves custom-make all the furniture and daily necessities when they come.”

Wen Chu hesitated. “Can you borrow them?”

Xiu: “Of course, the elves are a very helpful race.”

Wen Chu believed him. “Then I want a mattress, a blanket, and also spices and pots and pans. The rest can wait until the dwarves arrive.”

“Alright.” Xiu noted it down, already starting to think about which unlucky elf he would catch to buy the things.

The carriage sped along, and the surrounding scenery became more and more desolate until not a blade of grass grew.

Although the dwarves’ Forging Duchy was full of technology, they hadn’t neglected greenery; there was at least a tree every three steps along the road.

Coming out of the city and seeing the desolation outside again, Wen Chu was particularly moved.

The place where Xiu lived was the worst among all the races he had seen so far.

Sleeping every day in a damp, sunless cave without even a proper bed, with an endless wasteland just outside the door—no wonder Xiu had nightmares every day.

Thinking this, Wen Chu couldn’t help but ask the system: 【Can my lifespan be transferred to this wasteland? How much lifespan would it take to repair it?】

System: 【10 years.】

Wen Chu was dejected: 【That’s not enough.】

Lifespan in this world increased so quickly, so why was it still not enough?

Upgrading his abilities required ten years, and restoring the wasteland also required ten years. If he only ate Xiu’s dreams, it would take at least twenty days to save up.

The system seemed to have seen through his plan and lectured him with tough love: 【Don’t forget your mission. You need to save up lifespan, don’t spend it recklessly.】

Wen Chu: 【qwq】

Wen Chu: 【Then what if I only restore a tenth of it? Is that possible?】

System: 【…You can also choose a partial restoration. That would only require two years of lifespan.】

【Partial restoration? What do you mean?】 Wen Chu asked.

The system explained in detail: 【Restoring the current wasteland to look like the Moonlight Forest requires ten years of lifespan. But if it’s just a preliminary ecological restoration to improve the soil and grow green grass and shrubs, it only requires one year. For the remaining time, you would still need to care for it diligently and wait for the wasteland to evolve.】

Wen Chu immediately perked up: 【Then I’ll take the two-year one. When Xiu and I get back, we’ll start.】

The system “hmm’d” in agreement, but once again emphasized: 【Don’t waste your lifespan everywhere.】

The carriage continued on its way.

As it approached noon, they finally reached the familiar scorched mountain range.

Wen Chu stepped out of the carriage and looked at the blazing sun high in the sky.

He had been inside the carriage with its crystal-regulated temperature. It was only at this moment that Wen Chu realized how scorching hot the wasteland’s noon actually was.

He stepped onto the parched earth and looked at Xiu beside him. “Is it impossible for plants to grow here?”

Xiu looked at the empty, black wasteland, as desolate as it had been for a hundred years, and said calmly, “Dragonflame is different from a forest fire. A forest fire leaves behind ash to nourish the soil, while dragonflame burns everything clean, including the life of the plants and the soil.”

“This place was burned by dragonflame for more than half a month. It lost its vitality long ago. Unless the entire wasteland’s soil is shoveled away and replaced with new soil and seeds, it’s impossible for plants to grow.”

This was the first time Wen Chu had heard this. He asked in confusion, “Then how do the demonic beasts in the wasteland survive?”

Xiu paused wickedly. “Without life, what do you think they eat?”

Wen Chu’s eyes widened in horror.

Could it be people?!

Then the meat he ate…

Seeing Wen Chu’s face change drastically, Xiu sneered. “Idiot. Of course, they go to the Moonlight Forest to find food. There’s no barrier between the wasteland and the Moonlight Forest.”

Wen Chu breathed a sigh of relief. “Oh, I see.”

Xiu continued, “But they do indeed like to hunt passing travelers, like the Wasteland Ice Wolves that were chasing you. They are also listed as one of the four pests of the wasteland.”

The breath Wen Chu had half-let out got stuck in his throat.

He hesitated, “Then the rabbits I ate…”

Xiu’s lips curled into a smile. “They are herbivores.”

Wen Chu could finally let out a full sigh of relief.

Herbivores were good. Herbivores were safe.

As they spoke, they had already arrived at the entrance of the cave.

From a distance, Wen Chu saw the little white horse lying on the ground, listless.

He was startled and quickened his pace. “What happened? Was there an attack?”

Xiu followed slowly behind, glancing at the fallen horse. “Nothing. Just hungry after not eating or drinking for a few days.”

Wen Chu: …

Only then did Wen Chu remember that horses needed to eat grass.

On the road, the system helped; in the city, the restaurants fed it; in the forest, the horse would graze on its own. As a result, Wen Chu had completely forgotten that the horse needed to eat.

Looking at the collapsed little white horse, then at the cave full of treasures that could blind a person, Wen Chu experienced for the first time what it meant to be “so poor all I have is money.”

He sighed and, without further delay, took Xiu’s hand and walked out of the cave.

“What’s wrong?” Xiu was confused. “If you want to feed the horse, I can go to the Moonlight Forest and cut some grass for you now.”

“No.” Wen Chu shook his head gently.

He said, “Xiu, if, and I’m just saying if, this wasteland could grow grass, would you prefer the sight of a grassland or the sight of a wasteland?”

Xiu thought for a moment. “Grassland, I guess. It would be more convenient for you to feed the horse.”

“What’s wrong, do you want a grassland? I can contact the elves right now…”

Xiu’s words were cut short.

His eyes widened in astonishment, his beastly pupils revealing shock and disbelief.

He saw the white-haired nightmare before him suddenly crouch down and touch the ground.

With his fingertips as the center, green shoots spread out from the dark earth.

This circle of green expanded outwards at an extremely rapid pace, sweeping over the high mountains and barren lands, stopping only at the border between the wasteland and the Moonlight Forest.

Everywhere it passed was a scene of vibrant life.

The grass was lush, shrubs grew, the dry creek once again had gurgling water, and among the scattered small flowers, Xiu even saw fluttering butterflies.

【Lifespan: -2 years】
【Remaining Lifespan: 5 days, 17 hours, 21 minutes】

“…Wen Chu?” Xiu called out in confusion.

Wen Chu stood up, feeling the familiar hunger in his soul, and couldn’t help but sway.

Hungry.

He was hungry again.

He still had too little lifespan. Just restoring the grassland had sent him right back to square one.

Wen Chu suppressed his hunger and forced a smile at Xiu. “Do you like it like this?”

Xiu didn’t look at the grass under his feet but reached out to support him, his expression not very good. “What did you do?”

Just now, he hadn’t felt any magic fluctuations, and the grassland before him was real, not an illusion.

Reviving the entire wasteland was something even the Elven Queen couldn’t do. This was definitely not an ability a small nightmare with weak magic could possess.

The half-dead little white horse in the cave saw the grass, quickly stood up, and walked to the cave entrance to eat ravenously.

Being held in Xiu’s arms, Wen Chu only felt hungrier.

He tried hard to swallow. “I didn’t do much… just paid a little something to bring the wasteland back to life.”

“What something?” Xiu pressed, frowning.

“Lifespan,” Wen Chu said honestly. “I eat dreams to increase my lifespan. It’s a power system independent of magic and fighting spirit.”

“But lifespan can only be used for healing, nothing else.”

Xiu frowned, not doubting Wen Chu’s words at all, and directly believed him. “How much lifespan do you have left? What happens if your lifespan reaches zero?”

Wen Chu answered instinctively, “Five days left. If it reaches zero, I’ll die, but it’s alrigh—”

Before Wen Chu could finish, he felt a pull on his arm.

He was dragged directly into the cave by Xiu.

“What are you doing?” Wen Chu’s mind was full of question marks.

A cold aura was practically radiating from Xiu’s body. “Sleeping.”

“Ah?” Wen Chu stuttered, then his face turned slightly red. “Sl-sleep? Isn’t now a bad time? The Dragon Slaying Squad could come at any moment.”

It would be so embarrassing to be caught by outsiders doing something like that.

Xiu glanced at him. “I’m going to dream now. You come and eat.”

Wen Chu: “Oh…”

So he had been thinking too much.

He looked at the pitch-black cave, and even though he knew Xiu meant a platonic sleep, he still planted his feet firmly.

“Xiu.”

Wen Chu used a little more force in his hand and, taking Xiu by surprise, pulled him out from the shadows of the cave.

Xiu hadn’t expected Wen Chu to have so much strength. Unprepared, he only felt the world spin.

Then, he fell onto the lawn outside the cave.

The moist soil carried the fresh scent of grass and trees, and there were unknown little flowers around that swayed slightly as he fell.

Looking up, he saw the azure sky.

Was the wasteland’s sky always this blue?

Xiu was dazed for a moment, then felt Wen Chu lie down beside him.

“Let’s sleep here, get some sun,” Wen Chu said.

With the restoration of the wasteland’s vegetation, the temperature of the entire wasteland had dropped significantly due to the regulation of transpiration. Plus, this was the cave entrance, shaded by the cave, so lying in the cool shade wasn’t hot at all.

The little white horse was eating grass nearby. Xiu looked at the sky blankly, feeling as if his heart had also emptied.

“Sleep,” the little nightmare said softly beside him. “I’ll help you eat the nightmares.”

Xiu turned his head to look.

The place where he lay was right in the shadow of the cave, while Wen Chu was in the sunlight.

Light and shadow drew a dividing line between them.

“You…”

Xiu opened his mouth, wanting to ask who Wen Chu really was and how he had done all this, but stopped halfway.

It didn’t matter who Wen Chu was anymore.

What mattered was that Wen Chu was his now, with him.

Even though he knew that something like “heaven” didn’t exist, Xiu couldn’t help but wonder if Wen Chu was a gift from heaven.

Just as he was about to fall into chaos and rage, he had descended by his side.

Bringing sweet dreams, grasslands, and sunshine.

Such a beautiful existence…

Xiu’s fingers twitched, and he couldn’t help but reach out towards Wen Chu.

He wanted to possess him forever.

His palm suddenly warmed.

It was Wen Chu who had noticed his movement and also reached out to hold his hand.

“Can’t you sleep?” Wen Chu asked.

Xiu “hmm’d” in agreement. “A little.”

Wen Chu’s eyes lit up, and he took out his beloved heart wand and tuning fork from the storage space Xiu had given him. “Then I’ll help you sleep.”

Xiu: …

Xiu shivered and stiffly pulled his hand back. “I think I can sleep now.”

An open-air ‘field battle’ was out of the question.

He was open-minded about such things, but he had his pride.

If the Dragon Slaying Squad came up and saw him and Wen Chu “aiding sleep” here…

Then he would truly be dead. A social death.

Wen Chu chuckled and put away his wand. Only then did Xiu realize he was joking and sneered lightly, “Little rascal.”

“I’m a little demon,” Wen Chu said.

Although Wen Chu didn’t use the wand, he tried to attach a tiny bit of magic to his fingertips.

This was all the magic he had left now.

Xiu soon felt sleepy and said groggily, “Mmm… my little gem.”

“Wake me up when you’re full. Don’t let me sleep too long. I’ll go find lunch for you.”

His most precious treasure.

Xiu fell asleep, his breathing even.

Wen Chu sat beside Xiu with his knees hugged, waiting for his nightmare, while also clicking his tongue in amazement.

How long had it been since Xiu had a proper sleep? He had slept all night yesterday and could fall asleep in seconds just after waking up this morning.

Wen Chu didn’t think it was his credit at all.

In terms of magic, he only had a tiny bit. For a normal person, forget making someone fall into a deep sleep, he couldn’t even eat their dreams and get away unscathed.

It was that Xiu’s mind was too tense.

And he hadn’t noticed it before. It wasn’t until Xiu said it this morning that he realized something was wrong.

Wen Chu was full of regret.

“Ngh…”

A sound came from Xiu beside him. Wen Chu turned his head and saw him frowning, the scent of food once again emanating from his body.

He was having another nightmare.

Wen Chu raised his hand, covered Xiu’s forehead, and ate the dream.

He took a look before eating it this time.

In the dream, Xiu was in his dragon form, covered in blood, with only a few of his sturdy scales left. He was fleeing from pursuers in a sorry state, finally diving into the Moonlight Forest.

A silver-haired elf who looked like a little boy was scared to tears, hugging his bow and crying loudly. Xiu glared at him, and he didn’t dare to say another word.

Behind him were the persistent footsteps, and flames rose around him again.

A dream of illogical patchwork.

Wen Chu’s gaze lingered on the little boy for a moment before he finally took a bite and ate the dream.

No matter who that kid was, it was obvious Xiu didn’t like him.

Because in the dream, that little boy didn’t even have a specific face, only a head of silver hair. He was completely treated as a passerby by Xiu.

【Lifespan +8760h】
【Remaining Lifespan: 1 year, 5 days】

His lifespan returned to one year, and the lingering hunger finally disappeared.

Wen Chu looked at his progress bar, which was back to ten percent, and sighed sadly.

It felt good to say sweet nothings to Xiu, but now he had to wait at least nine days before he could create a dream.

Because of eating the dream, Wen Chu and Xiu were very close.

The handsome, cold-faced blond man lay on the soft grass, his eyes closed, completely unguarded, with dappled sunlight on him.

Wen Chu couldn’t help but look a little longer.

Xiu was really handsome. When he slept, without those striking beastly eyes, the sharp features and medium-length golden hair of this world’s Xiu finally showed their charm.

Wen Chu stroked Xiu’s hair, rubbing it for a moment, then bent down and kissed it.

Xiu, I like you.

He felt that Xiu should like him a little too, otherwise he wouldn’t have appeared at a critical moment, saved him, and taken him in.

So what unspeakable thing was hidden in that small room?

Just as Wen Chu was pondering whether he should take advantage of Xiu’s sleep to sneak a peek at the small room, he suddenly heard the system’s voice.

【Someone is approaching.】

As the system spoke, it simultaneously presented a light screen in front of him.

On the screen was the Dragon Slaying Squad they had just seen not long ago.

This group had just majestically come out of the Forging Duchy and were stunned by the sight before them.

“What’s going on?” a soldier asked in astonishment, looking at the green grass in front of him. “Aren’t we on the road to the Dragon’s Lair in the wasteland?”

The captain beside him was also baffled, looking at the map again and again. “This is the right road. We didn’t go wrong.”

“Could it be an illusion?”

“Have the elves started to manage the wasteland?”

“Shouldn’t they be preoccupied with their own affairs right now? Where would they find the time to manage the wasteland?”

“So noisy.”

Louis was irritable. Seeing this group dawdling, he directly raised his hand and threw a mass of demonic energy.

The demonic energy landed on the lawn, burning with black flames, and soon burned away this patch of grass.

“It’s real grass, not an illusion. The aura is similar to that of the Tree of Life. The elves must have come to manage it.”

Louis didn’t care much about the lawn he had destroyed; he just wanted to complete the mission quickly.

“The direction is definitely right. Let’s hurry up, kill that stupid dragon. I have other things to attend to.”

Wen Chu, in front of the light screen: ^^

His gaze lingered on the scorched patch of grass for a moment, then turned to the crowd who were carelessly trampling over the grass with their grand carriages, leaving behind dark wheel tracks.

Everywhere they passed, all the newly grown tender grass was destroyed.

If they had just proceeded normally, it wouldn’t have caused such damage, but this group of heroes clearly had no intention of cherishing the “ownerless” wasteland.

Especially the demons, who made up the vast majority. They seemed to have great hostility towards the aura of life on the lawn. With Louis as a prime example, they deliberately drove their carriages into empty spaces just to leave a separate track for themselves.

“Isn’t it a bit bad to destroy the grass like this?”

“Whatever, it’s the dragon’s territory anyway. If anyone’s to blame, it’s the elves for doing random greening. Let’s hurry.”

“What a disgusting aura. It reminds me of the Tree of Life.”

“Haha, the Tree of Life is probably…”

Fireballs landed one after another on the lawn, and the smile on Wen Chu’s lips grew colder and colder.

Adding hatred upon hatred.

They were really courting death.