Land Candle Dragon

"Three years ago, you already became a Spirit Scholar?" Flower Fox and the others were dumbfounded, with no idea what he was talking about.

Su Yun handed over the money. The old soldier accepted it and gave them five jade slips, four of them half-slips. "Wait here. There are still four quarters of an hour."

The jade slips had been polished bright, but Su Yun did not know how to use them. He looked into one and saw his own face appear on its surface. He hurriedly whispered this to Flower Fox.

Flower Fox snapped out of his shock and quickly looked into his jade slip as well. His own face appeared on it too.

Several old soldiers guarding the station glanced at them in surprise and muttered under their breaths, "Going into the city right before New Year, and they're country bumpkins entering a city for the first time. They wouldn't even know if someone sold them off..."

The station was warm. As Su Yun warmed the little ones' hands, he showed them his Spiritual Ability, the Great Yellow Bell.

Qingqiu Yue, Li Xiaofan, and Hu Buping's little hands soon warmed up, their cheeks turning rosy. The three children climbed onto his Great Yellow Bell and turned it over and over as they examined it.

Su Yun guessed, "I think it may still be the effect of the Old Sage Classics Mister Wild Fox taught us. Mister never taught us any cultivation techniques, only taught us to read, but the Old Sage Classics still influenced us without us realizing it. That was why I could make visualization real three years ago and cultivate a Spiritual Ability."

Flower Fox pondered. "Before, you only had the ability but not the method to use it. Mister Shuijing taught you the Great Furnace Transformation: Qi Cultivation Chapter, which was teaching you how to use it."

Su Yun nodded.

He had been fortunate to encounter two teachers who had profoundly influenced him. One taught him learning; the other taught him application.

"Second Brother, you cultivated under Mister Wild Fox longer than I did. Perhaps you, too, unknowingly developed your own Spiritual Ability."

Su Yun said, "You understand the Old Sage Classics better than I do."

Flower Fox shook his head. "Whenever we had exams under Mister, you always came first, while I could only rank second. I do not have your talent. I definitely do not have a Spiritual Ability. I only like reciting books in my sleep."

He glanced at Su Yun, fell silent for a moment, then finally voiced what was in his heart. "Little Yun, actually, I've always been worried about you."

A puzzled look appeared on Su Yun's face.

Flower Fox hesitated before continuing, "We were worried that after your eyes recovered, you would see the truth of Tianmen Town, see the truth of the No-Man's Land residents, and collapse because of it. I was also afraid you would think that you were human while we were demons, and that we had isolated you. I was afraid you would feel lonely because of it..."

Su Yun smiled. "Second Brother, what nonsense are you talking about? You are my classmates. How could I feel lonely or isolated?"

Looking at the snow-covered mountains beyond the station, he said calmly, "For one moment, I truly was a little frightened. When I thought that I alone was human, I felt somewhat lonely too. But when I saw you all, I was relieved. You are my classmates—classmates who studied in the same school with me for so many years!"

He stood up with a smile. "Classmates may be the people who accompany you the longest, apart from your parents and family! Once I understood that, what difference did it make whether you were human or demon, fox spirit monsters or ghosts and gods?"

Flower Fox was reassured. He looked at the old soldiers and asked in a low voice, "Little Yun, do you think they are human or demons?"

Su Yun looked toward the old soldiers and shook his head. He could not guess.

A rumbling sound came from outside. The ground trembled faintly, and an incomparably clear dragon roar shook the windows until they rattled.

Su Yun hurried to the window and looked out. On the distant snowy mountain, a dragon-headed monster dragged its long body as it rapidly crawled down the official mountain road!

The dragon-headed monster moved at astonishing speed. It charged down from the mountain toward them, gradually slowing, yet it was still incredibly fast.

Rows of wooden buildings actually stood atop the monster's long body, swaying along with it. Faces could even be seen peering out from the windows of those buildings!

Every little wooden building on the monster's back was packed with people!

"The Land Candle Dragon has arrived!" The soldiers warming themselves by the fire all stood up.

Flower Fox was short, so he stood on tiptoe by the window to look outside. Hu Buping and the other two bounced around behind him, trying to catch a glimpse of the so-called Land Candle Dragon.

One old soldier said to Su Yun and the others, "You can go out now. Wait until everyone gets off before getting on."

Before Su Yun could head out, Li Xiaofan, Hu Buping, and Qingqiu Yue had already rushed outside. Flower Fox, somewhat more reserved, followed behind them.

Li Xiaofan, Hu Buping, and Qingqiu Yue stood outside with their bodies taut and chests thrust out, nervously clenching their tiny fists as they looked up and let out amazed little cries.

"What an uncultured sight..."

Flower Fox looked disdainful. He lifted his head toward the Land Candle Dragon, which had yet to stop, then immediately tensed up, straightened his chest, clenched his fists, widened his eyes, and involuntarily let out a stunned, "Wow."

The Land Candle Dragon's body was covered in scales like polished brass, gleaming brilliantly. Its long breaths blasted from its mouth like wild winds, nearly blowing away the little ones' hats.

Flower Fox and the three little ones hurriedly raised their hands together and held down their hats.

Su Yun walked outside and saw that the wooden buildings on the Land Candle Dragon's back had been secured by driving steel into its thick scales, so they swayed rhythmically with its body.

As the Candle Dragon slowed, the swaying rhythm slowed as well. Some buildings had one story, others two. The second floor was often an octagonal pavilion, with a vigilant man or woman seated inside.

The Land Candle Dragon's claws were exceptionally thick. Whenever one fell and dug into the rocky official road, sparks flew in all directions.

Even stranger, the Land Candle Dragon had several hundred legs. As far as the eye could see, there were legs, rising and falling rhythmically as it continued onward!

Su Yun could not help widening his eyes, staring blankly at this colossal creature.

Long streams of air sprayed from the Land Candle Dragon's nostrils and mouth as it gave a deep, lingering roar. Though low, it was deafening, making everyone's chest resonate with it!

When the air it exhaled met the cold, it immediately turned into long plumes of white vapor that drifted about like clouds and mist.

Just as Su Yun was about to examine it closely, the Land Candle Dragon's long whiskers floated along its body through the white mist, trembling within the fog with extraordinary beauty.

This was a creature Su Yun and the others had never seen before. It was two or three li long, with eighty small wooden buildings on its back. It could carry several hundred people and bear twenty million jin, crossing mountains and ridges as though walking on level ground!

At the station, two old soldiers stepped forward, one on the left side of the official road and one on the right. They ran after the Candle Dragon, then suddenly reached out, seized two of its whiskers, and pulled with all their strength.

The Land Candle Dragon slowed more and more until it finally came to a stop.

The two old soldiers tied the long whiskers to the station pillars and each breathed a sigh of relief.

Another old soldier climbed the water tower beside the station and dropped down a water pipe made from the intestines of some unknown monster. Another soldier hurriedly dragged the pipe over and sprayed water onto the Land Candle Dragon's claws.

After traveling such a long distance, the Land Candle Dragon's claws had rubbed against the ground until they were like red-hot branding irons. When water splashed onto them, they hissed and sizzled. The cold water evaporated instantly, turning into dense mist.

Elsewhere, another old soldier ran to the storeroom, shoved open the heavy door, dragged out several cow carcasses, and tossed them before the Land Candle Dragon's mouth.

The Land Candle Dragon began to eat, swallowing an entire cow carcass in one bite. Its appetite was astonishing.

The station soldiers who had tied up its whiskers carried over large barrels and set them on the road. Once the dragon claws had cooled, they filled the barrels with water for the Land Candle Dragon to drink.

Su Yun and the four children stared, crying out in wonder.

At that moment, doors on the Candle Dragon's back opened, and rope ladders were thrown down one after another. Someone shouted from inside, "Tianshiyuan Station! Tianshiyuan Station! Anyone getting off, hurry up!"

Su Yun thought, A carriage pulled by a Land Candle Dragon is different from one pulled by oxen or horses. Oxen and horses pull the compartment behind them, but a Land Candle Dragon carries the compartment on its body.

As he was thinking, several young men and women climbed down one of the rope ladders.

They wore thick clothes, white fur peeking out from their collars, and carried heavy bundles on their backs.

They were likely young people returning home from the city. After a long absence, they each stretched their bodies, wrinkled their noses, and greedily breathed in the cool air.

Someone on the Land Candle Dragon's back urged Su Yun and the others aboard. "It's cold. We can't leave the doors open forever. Hurry up!"

Su Yun grabbed the rope ladder and climbed upward. The three little fox demons followed behind him, with Flower Fox bringing up the rear.

Su Yun climbed into the compartment, turned around, bent down, and stretched out his hand, lifting the four fox demons aboard one after another.

Just as he was about to close the door, he heard one of the young men who had just gotten off laugh loudly. "I'm finally home! I can't hold it in anymore!"

Su Yun looked over and saw the young man toss away his bundle, then rapidly strip off his clothes in full view of everyone. Naked, he shouted and rushed into the snow.

Whoosh—

A great white wolf leaped from the snow, rolled about in it, then suddenly sprang up and ran at full speed.

Su Yun stared wide-eyed. Yet the others in the compartment seemed thoroughly accustomed to it, and the station soldiers were not surprised either. They untied the Candle Dragon's whiskers and shouted, "Get inside quickly, we're leaving! Get inside quickly!"

Su Yun hurried into the room and shut the door.

Having eaten and drunk its fill, the Land Candle Dragon opened its eyes, shook its head, exhaled, and let out a clear, resounding cry.

The giant creature slowly began moving its legs and left Tianshiyuan Station, making the ground tremble faintly. In the rows of houses on the Candle Dragon's back, passengers hurriedly sat down to steady themselves.

Hu Buping's little face was flushed with excitement as he hurriedly waved at Su Yun. "Here, here!"

They were seated beside a window, through which they could see the scenery outside.

Su Yun walked over, his body swaying unsteadily with the moving Candle Dragon. He reached the seat and looked out through the window. The young people who had returned home at the station had all vanished, leaving only a pile of clothes and bundles behind.

On the mountain behind the station, several white wolves were running wildly in carefree delight.

The wolves rushed to the mountaintop and stood in the wind, howling to their hearts' content. The cold wind tossed their white fur, making it stream through the air.

Awooo—

Their clear cries resonated with the Candle Dragon's long chant and reached Su Yun's ears, filling him with an inexplicable sense of anticipation and sorrow.

These young demons of Tianshiyuan who worked in the city had returned home after a year of labor. At last, they cast off their restraints. In their homeland, in the No-Man's Land of Tianshiyuan, they revealed their true forms and howled without restraint, giving voice to the selves that had been suppressed throughout the year.

And now, Su Yun was leaving his homeland too, heading for the city.

He sat down, his eyes slightly damp. Looking at the unbroken snowy mountains outside the window, he heard Uncle Qu's vast and desolate singing echo once more in his ears.

He looked out the window, tapped his fingers against the tabletop, and softly hummed in Old Northern Frontier dialect.

Outside, vast snow blanketed everything. Graves were everywhere. In Tianshiyuan's bitter winter this year, all was a boundless white, and not a single hero or great man could be found—only the graves of heroes and great men. And a youth from the No-Man's Land rode a Candle Dragon Carriage from the countryside toward the city.