"Shou Lao was a true Chameleon. Every time he revived, his color and size changed."
Watching the dragon and the Jade Emperor fail to reach an agreement, with Shou Lao now sitting stubbornly atop a pile of gold coins, Su Ming continued chatting with Dream of a Thousand Cats about unrelated matters:
"After being killed, he revives within a year. That is the immortal curse he bears, and every revival makes him like an entirely new dragon."
That was simply how it worked. Sometimes he was blue, sometimes black, sometimes green, though most of the time, he was a Red Dragon.
In bad years, such as during a Little Ice Age or a great calamity, he would revive somewhat smaller. If it was a prosperous era with favorable weather, he would revive a little larger.
It was rather interesting. K'un-Lun could even use him as a year-long weather forecast, though he only reflected conditions in the outside world and had nothing to do with the K'un-Lun hidden realm.
"He doesn't seem willing to hand over the sword." The cat was waiting to watch a fight. This was the first close-range brawl it had watched since arriving on 40K Earth.
"He wants to negotiate terms." Su Ming saw through Shou Lao's intentions at once, but shook his head disapprovingly. "He has always wanted to get out and lift his curse. This old dragon has become shrewd with age. He probably noticed that Batwoman was unusual."
That was exactly how it was. No matter how kindly the Jade Emperor spoke, even promising to send him toys like phones and computers, Shou Lao remained unmoved.
The dragon turned his head aside and folded his two short forelegs over his chest. Sitting atop the gold coins, he pinned the Sword of Fu Xi beneath