"D-dragon... you... dragon!"
Guyue stammered, pointing behind Ye Qingyun.
Ye Qingyun immediately grew angry.
"You're the deaf one! There's nothing wrong with my ears!"
Guyue was frantic.
"You... behind you... there's a dragon!"
Ye Qingyun froze.
There's a dragon behind me?
He turned to look, but all he saw was the gently rippling pond.
Never mind a dragon.
There wasn't even a sparrow in sight.
Ye Qingyun turned back and eyed Guyue suspiciously.
Could this guy be a lunatic?
That was his guess.
Guyue, however, was dumbfounded.
The moment Ye Qingyun turned around, the dragon's head had ducked into the water.
When Ye Qingyun turned back, the dragon's head emerged again.
It was still staring straight at Guyue.
Guyue was stupefied.
Is this dragon picking on me?
Still, it seemed that this dragon held the seemingly mortal fellow before him in great awe.
Wait!
Guyue suddenly recalled what that rabbit demon had said earlier.
The master of this place?
Could it be this mortal?
But if he were a mortal, how could he make a rabbit demon acknowledge him as its master? And make the dragon in the pond hold him in such awe?
The way Guyue looked at Ye Qingyun changed completely.
This is definitely no mortal!
My cultivation is simply too shallow to see through his.
Guyue was certain of it.
Only this explanation could account for everything here.
To think I treated such an unfathomable expert like that just now. I really was courting death!
Guyue shuddered inwardly at the thought, feeling somewhat fortunate.
Whenever he thought of his earlier attitude toward Ye Qingyun, he wanted to slap himself twice.
"This junior had eyes but failed to recognize Mount Tai. I offended you, Senior. Please forgive me!"
Guyue immediately dropped to his knees before Ye Qingyun.
This left Ye Qingyun feeling rather embarrassed.
What's gotten into you? Why are you kneeling before me out of nowhere?
It's not even New Year's.
"Hey, hey, hey! What's your deal? Are you trying to scam me?"
Ye Qingyun looked wary.
Heh.
I'm not falling for that.
Guyue looked up in bewilderment.
Scam him?
What does that mean?
Could this be Senior offering me guidance?
How could someone with my shallow cultivation easily fathom the words and actions of such an expert? There must be a deeper meaning!
Guyue grew even more reverent, practically worshipping Ye Qingyun like a god.
This was no joke.
Making a true dragon bow its head in obedience.
This was nothing short of a miracle.
Across the entire continent, how many people could make a dragon submit?
At any rate, there was certainly no such person in the Heavenly Martial Dynasty.
"Please forgive me, Senior. This junior was far too rude just now!"
Guyue lowered his head, his face full of humility.
Apart from Martial Emperor Dongfang Su, this was only the second person he had knelt before.
But Guyue saw nothing inappropriate about it.
Ye Qingyun scratched his head.
"I'm no senior. Get up first."
Guyue cautiously rose to his feet.
"What exactly did you come here for?"
Ye Qingyun asked.
Guyue cupped his hands.
"I am Guyue, a personal guard of Martial Emperor Dongfang Su. His Majesty sensed Dragon Qi soaring into the heavens here and sent me to investigate."
Ye Qingyun paused.
Martial Emperor Dongfang Su?
Wasn't that the emperor of the Heavenly Martial Dynasty?
The man before me was actually sent by the emperor?
That's someone important.
Back in my old world, wouldn't he be an expert from the imperial palace?
Good grief.
Ye Qingyun immediately changed his attitude as well.
"So you're an official from the imperial palace. How rude of me."
As he spoke, he even bowed to Guyue.
This left Guyue at a complete loss, and he almost dropped to his knees again.
Each was more courteous than the other.
They were just short of kowtowing to each other.
This reclusive expert must be living here to experience life in the mortal world. That's why he appeared before me as a mortal and keeps refusing to acknowledge his identity as an expert.
Guyue thought to himself.
Since this expert doesn't want to admit it, I shouldn't keep exposing his identity. Otherwise, I might displease him.
With that thought, Guyue steadied himself.
"May I ask your name, brother?"
Hearing Guyue speak this way, Ye Qingyun felt much more comfortable.
Being constantly called "Senior" and "expert" was honestly embarrassing for Ye Qingyun.
"Ye Qingyun."
"Your name is truly free-spirited and ethereal, refreshingly unconventional, and extraordinarily elegant."
Guyue was full of praise.
Ye Qingyun thought to himself.
Did this guy become the emperor's personal guard through his bootlicking skills?
It's just a name, yet you can make flowers bloom out of it.
"Uh, what should I call you?"
Ye Qingyun asked in return.
"I am Guyue. His Majesty the Emperor gave me this name."
Guyue cupped his hands.
"Your name is the one that's really pretty cool."
Ye Qingyun said with a smile.
Cool?
Guyue looked blank.
What kind of expert vocabulary is that now?
"You said there was a dragon in my pond just now? Was that true?"
Guyue was just about to say yes.
But then the dragon's head emerged from the pond again.
And it fixed Guyue with a warning look.
Guyue swallowed the words on the tip of his tongue.
"No, no. I was mistaken."
Guyue waved his hands.
Ye Qingyun sighed in relief.
"That's what I thought. This pond is so small that even raising a few fish is a struggle, let alone a dragon."
"I must return to report. Farewell!"
"Why not stay for a meal?"
"No, thank you. I'm carrying out an imperial order and dare not delay."
"All right, then. I won't see you off."
"Please stay, brother."
Guyue hurried away.
He needed to return to the imperial palace at once and tell Dongfang Su what had happened here.
When Guyue returned to the imperial palace, Dongfang Su had already sensed his return and immediately summoned him.
"Well?"
Dongfang Su asked impatiently.
Guyue knelt on the floor.
"Your Majesty, a dragon truly has appeared on Floating Cloud Mountain to the southwest!"
"What?"
Dongfang Su abruptly rose to his feet, his face filled with shock.
Then wild delight spread across his face.
A dragon had appeared within his territory.
What did that mean?
Didn't it mean that he, Dongfang Su, could obtain this dragon?
"What kind of dragon is it? A flood dragon?"
Dongfang Su asked rather nervously.
"It is not a flood dragon. I saw it perfectly clearly. It is a true dragon!"
Guyue said hurriedly.
Gasp!!!
Dongfang Su sucked in a breath of cold air.
He inhaled so deeply that he choked and couldn't help coughing twice.
"Are you certain you weren't mistaken?"
"Absolutely! And I saw it more than once. It is definitely a true dragon!"
Dongfang Su was so excited that his hands and feet trembled slightly.
"A true dragon has actually been born in my Heavenly Martial Dynasty. Could this be our ancestors' blessing?"
"No, I must go there myself!"
Dongfang Su was eager to go and see for himself.
"Your Majesty, an expert also lives in seclusion on Floating Cloud Mountain. That true dragon seems to have been raised by this expert."
Guyue's words were startling.
"What did you say?"
Dongfang Su froze outright.
"That's impossible!"
"Who could possibly raise a true dragon?"
Guyue's face was full of bitterness. "Your Majesty, I saw it with my own eyes. That expert is unfathomable, and even that true dragon holds him in the utmost awe. Had I not been quick-witted, I'm afraid I wouldn't have returned alive to see Your Majesty."