Someone Was About to Have a Very Bad Day

The Azure Dragon sank into the center of the lake. The ripples it had stirred gradually settled, and the sacred, focused atmosphere around the shore eased with them.

The villagers wore satisfied smiles and excited flushes. As they animatedly discussed the auspicious sight of the divine dragon's appearance, they drifted away in twos and threes, returning to their work and daily lives. That breathtaking scene had merely been an especially wonderful interlude in their ordinary days.

Lin Hai stepped down from the altar, his face still glowing with the joy of reuniting with an old friend and soaring through the skies once more. Gwen, Peter, and Harry immediately gathered around him, all talking at once about how stunned they were.

"Lin! What was it like? Flying through the sky! It must've been completely different from swinging between New York skyscrapers!" Peter gestured excitedly. "Was the wind strong? Did it fly steadily?"

Harry was more interested in the details. He tried to maintain his usual calm, analytical tone, but he spoke noticeably faster than normal. "What did its scales feel like? Were they cold or warm? And its aerodynamics seemed to defy conventional principles?"

Gwen said nothing. She merely looked at Lin Hai with those blue eyes still shining with astonishment, saying everything without a word.

Before Lin Hai could answer, Old Chen walked over with a genial smile and said to the four of them, "Young friend Lin, and our three distant guests, your accommodations have long been prepared. Why not continue this discussion after you arrive? Letting guests stand by the lake in the wind is hardly the Ta Lo way of hospitality."

The four of them hurriedly nodded and gave Old Chen slight bows. "Okay, okay. Sorry for the trouble, Old Chen."

Old Chen then led the four