Seventy-five Dragons (2)
“Tie, slow down.” Ling was still very young and already quite tired after this long walk.
Tie doted on his little sister a lot, and decided to carry her on his back. “I’ll carry you. We need to be faster.”
Watching them walk through the mountain forest, Mu Wanwan felt an increasing sense of unease.
The forest appeared lush and vibrant from the outside, but once they ventured inside, an eerie atmosphere surrounded them. Even though it still looked warm and bathed in sunlight, the sensation on her skin was cold.
After only a short walk, Ling started to feel scared. Frightened, she looked at the small red flowers blooming on the ground and said in a trembling voice, “Tie, I want to go home.”
“Alright.” Tie wasn’t entirely satisfied yet, but for some reason, he felt that the forest today was different from before. He also felt a bit scared, but maintaining his little macho appearance in front of his sister, he said stubbornly, “Don’t keep pestering me to take you up the mountains in the future anymore.”
Ling clung tightly to his neck, and Mu Wanwan breathed a sigh of relief. The feeling of something lurking around was really unsettling.
But before she could relax, a strong gust of wind suddenly roared, and the sky darkened almost instantly, even more frightening than the fastest-approaching thunderstorm she had ever seen. The visibility in front of her turned pitch black.
She felt a painful sensation in her shoulder, a chilling cold wind scraped across her face, and she heard not only the rushing wind but also the laughter of some creatures, incredibly piercing.
When she could finally see the world in front of her again, she found that the siblings were already held in the claws of a giant bird, about ten times larger than a vulture. Tie’s shoulder was bleeding profusely.
Her shoulder also ached considerably.
Mu Wanwan watched the village grow smaller and smaller, then at the unconscious Ling and the terrified Tie. The pain left her breathless for a moment.
The giant bird was incredibly fast. Tie also fainted from the loss of blood, but Mu Wanwan remained conscious. From her vantage point, she could clearly see half of the giant bird and its dirty feathers. Perhaps because the dwarf village was on the outskirts of the dragon territory, after flying for only about two to three hours, the giant bird arrived at a place Mu Wanwan had never seen before.
Was it a valley?
Surrounded by oppressive mountains, two narrow ones loomed down from high above, but there was no refreshing mountain scent in the air.
The giant bird descended towards the lower end of the valley, and Mu Wanwan finally saw the situation inside. The surroundings were filled with numerous cages made of wood and iron, varying in size.
Inside each cage were several people.
Mu Wanwan’s heart quivered, her eyes widened. As the giant bird descended, she saw thousands of these cages lined up in a terrifying and spectacular fashion.
Tie and Ling were thrown to the ground. Mu Wanwan also felt a momentary pain as she watched the bird slowly transform into a sinister man with a hooked nose. Once he landed, three other men arrived not far from them.
One of them held an assessment stone and cut Tie and Ling’s hands, frowning. “Third Brother, you went out and brought back two dwarves with ordinary talents?”
“This kid is passable, but this little girl doesn’t have much talent. However, she’s quite tender. We might as well eat her,” another man said, leering at Ling.
Her forehead was bleeding, and she had not woken up yet. Mu Wanwan watched as Tie held her in his arms, his eyes filled with fear.
“Tsk, you guys are always thinking about eating. Let’s keep them for now,” the youngest one seemed to have the most authority among them. They decided to imprison Tie and Ling in a wooden cage near the stone wall.
Mu Wanwan’s neck stung as she watched Tie being picked up by the neck. Ling was picked up like a little chick.
Mu Wanwan’s heart turned cold, and she followed them inside step by step.
The valley was shrouded in mist, the ground was damp and dirty, and cries of pain and suffering echoed around her. Mu Wanwan instinctively glanced to the side and saw an iron cage containing a leopard beastman.
He was covered in blood, his mouth wide open in pain. Mu Wanwan saw that his fangs were missing, and his roar sounded like broken bellows.
Her fingertips trembled, and she looked down at the wet road beneath her feet, her heart filled with all kinds of unsettling speculations.
Why, why was Uncle Tie’s memory like this? This place, where she had looked forward to meeting Little Mister Long, was clearly a horrifying gathering place for slaves held captive so as to extract their talents.
She clenched her fists, even wanting to break free from this memory. She didn’t want to see this part of Mister Long’s past.
“Get in there.” Tie and Ling were locked in an iron cage that had already held several people.
Inside were several young human cultivators in their twenties, who showed no expression upon seeing Tie and Ling, looking numb and not saying a word. Among them was a younger female elf who looked somewhat sad, “Another two.”
“Where is this?” Ling woke up, opened her eyes, and asked.
The elf closed her eyes and shook her head without speaking.
Once captured and brought here, everyone’s fate had only two possibilities: either being eaten or having their talents drained before being eaten. Her companions had already been devoured.
Perhaps tonight, it would be her turn.
Tie seemed to understand something, but Ling started crying. She grabbed the hem of her brother’s shirt and repeatedly said she wanted to go home.
“Sister, it’s okay. I’m playing a game with other people.” Tie’s voice quivered as he tried to reassure his sister with a forced smile.
Ling was very frightened. Instinctively wanting to believe her brother, she tried her best to squeeze out an ugly but adorable smile, “Is this elven sister your friend? She’s so pretty.”
The elf kept her brown eyes wide open, tears glistening in the depths, unable to meet Ling’s gaze directly.
Mu Wanwan’s heart quivered. Instinctively, she looked into the distance, where a very large cage was placed. It was made of tough material, yet inside, there was only one figure, incredibly slender and all too familiar.
Her eyes welled up with a sudden surge of bitterness, and tears streamed down uncontrollably.
She walked towards the person in the cage, slowly getting a clear view of his appearance—
The youth leaned against the cage, his black hair seemingly obediently hanging down by his temples.
He had his eyes half-closed, his pale lips slightly pursed. When Mu Wanwan approached him, he happened to lift his gaze. His gaze was like the glint of a sharp sword being sheathed, cold and sharp.
It was Mister Long.
Little Mister Long.
He was in a different set of clothes, no longer wearing the same old grey cloak. However, he still appeared proud and indifferent, despite being confined in a cage, as if he were in a splendid palace.
Mu Wanwan noticed the bloodstains trailing down from his hands, but his furry ears no longer trembled vigorously in pain, as they did in the past.
He had grown up.
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