Lu Xingzhou had a dream, revisiting the darkest period of his childhood.

First, he was almost beaten to death and thrown off a mountain. Then, in a Taoist temple on Danxia Mountain, an old Taoist priest used him as a human test subject for various experimental medicines.

There were also medicinal baths, where he would be immersed in a barrel, feeling as if ants were gnawing at him, a pain so unbearable he wished for death.

Then, the dream suddenly shifted, becoming a series of uninhibited moments with Shen Tang, Pei Chuyun, and Ye Tinglan. Long Qinghuang was also there, with him holding her dragon horns and riding her in a passionate embrace.

Dreams are naturally a direct reflection of the body’s current sensations. Taking a blow from a Transcendent-grade expert, even if the opponent had just entered the Transcendent grade, and even with his Dragon-Subduing Armor, Tai Xu Wheel, and various life-saving skills, this injury was the most severe he had ever sustained since childhood, naturally leading him back to those painful memories.

Without reliable strong allies nearby, such an injury might not be salvageable.

However, Long Qinghuang was by his side.

She was top-tier in combat, but her medical skills were only relatively decent, certainly not comparable to the top-tier witch doctors he had summoned for consultations a while ago. Was she considered reliable?

Not entirely reliable.

Long Qinghuang knew how to treat Lu Xingzhou’s injury. She had ample resources in her Dragon Emperor Ring, with various high-end medicines readily available for direct treatment.

But her not-quite-top-tier medical skill made her overlook that the wild vitality of the environment was also affecting Lu Xingzhou.

Normally, this might not be an issue, as human wildness is far less apparent than that of the demon race. However, in his current weakened state, he was easily susceptible to its influence. The Dragon Empress overlooked this subtle difference and thus didn’t provide him with an additional layer of protective purification.

So, Lu Xingzhou naturally experienced both pain and primal life desires.

This was still during his unconscious state, where his body could generate desire, but his rationality wouldn’t produce savagery. Otherwise, Long Qinghuang’s previous savage state might have manifested in Lu Xingzhou as well… Even so, there was still a trace of it; the posture of gripping her dragon horns in a furious embrace was somewhat… hmm.

Long Qinghuang spent a long time feeding him medicine, bandaging him, and regulating his vital energy. As a result, she watched in bewilderment as the weak and suffering Lu Xingzhou inexplicably became aroused, scratching her head in confusion.

“He’s unconscious and still wants me so much… just because my hand touched his shoulder to help with blood circulation?”

Hehe.

The mother dragon began her self-admiration again.

Speaking of which, Lu Xingzhou’s physique was really good now. The pseudo-dragon body medicinal bath, which he had only taken once, had a particularly excellent effect. Otherwise, even with the influence of this wild desire, his injured and weakened body wouldn’t have been able to achieve such a state…

A dragon-like body, indeed…

Long Qinghuang bit her lower lip, reaching out to gently caress Lu Xingzhou’s face, her eyes somewhat glazed over.

Seeing him unconsciously frowning in pain, she felt her heart ache.

As she watched, she unconsciously leaned down and gently kissed his lips: “You fool, why did you block it? With your meager strength…”

In reality, she clearly understood the immense difference his blocking action made, and whether she herself would have been injured.

The rage after injury and weakness could truly lead her to be manipulated into a mindless killing machine by the opponent.

Not injured? Then this killing machine would have killed them first.

This single difference alone could have led to a complete collapse for Dujuan and Pudu.

Not only that, even Long Lie and the others would have to kowtow to Lu Xingzhou. Entering this mountain secret realm was not for healing; it was clearly to isolate themselves from the dragon warriors, to prevent her from losing control and accidentally harming them. After entering, the truly most dangerous person was Lu Xingzhou himself.

Yet, he still resolved the issue through Dujuan at the most critical moment.

The more Long Qinghuang clarified what had happened, the harder it was to suppress the emotions swirling within her.

She heard he was in Yanluo Hall before. How could Yanluo Hall let such a person leave… Did Yan Jun eat too many expired medicines?

“Don’t frown, it breaks my heart,” she murmured. “I’d rather be the one injured now; my recovery ability is much better than yours… As long as you wake up, anything is fine… If you like using whips… that’s fine too…”

Her slender hand unconsciously touched his arousal, somewhat hesitantly.

She wanted to let him release, but then wondered if his weakened body should not be indulged at this time? If he were a dragon, it wouldn’t be a problem, but he was human…

Long Qinghuang hesitated for a moment, then finally slowly slid down, gently kissing him there.

He said, when separated, he liked this, right…?

Not letting him fully indulge, but just making him comfortable, should be fine.

The Dragon Emperor, who just a few days ago would have adamantly refused even under duress regarding clan reproduction, was now proactive and gentle, her fragrant tongue entwining.

Unfortunately, Lu Xingzhou, being unconscious, could not witness this most stimulating scene.

However, in his sleep, he grew increasingly agitated, feeling a wicked fire within that he couldn’t unleash due to his body’s weakness, making him feel suffocated.

Unconsciously, he reached out and firmly grasped her dragon horns.

Long Qinghuang: “?”

The next moment, she felt the hands gripping her dragon horns press down with a hint of violence.

Long Qinghuang: “…”

How could those weak hands violently press down on anyone… But Long Qinghuang didn’t resist; she merely looked up to see that he hadn’t woken, and then obediently allowed him to press down.

In his dream, Lu Xingzhou finally felt much better.

In fact, the medicine Long Qinghuang had used earlier also began to take effect, and the healing improved significantly. Under intense stimulation, Lu Xingzhou finally opened his eyes in a daze.

He felt the spring dream just now was quite good, as if it were real.

Opening his eyes, he saw blue skies and white clouds.

Where was Long Qinghuang?

“Eh, why do I still feel the dream… even the sensation of holding dragon horns in my hand.”

Lu Xingzhou’s gaze shifted downwards, meeting Long Qinghuang’s upward glance.

Their eyes met, and Lu Xingzhou was somewhat dazed. Long Qinghuang’s eyelids trembled, and she withdrew her gaze in slight embarrassment.

But her actions did not stop.

Which younger brother could withstand such a test? The small boat was gone from then on.

Lu Xingzhou let out a long breath, releasing his grip. Long Qinghuang looked up, wiped the corner of her mouth, and said with a mix of melancholy and resentment, “Good morning.”

Lu Xingzhou was speechless for a moment, unsure how to reply.

This time, he had truly received a full-service treatment from a dragon.

“In your weakened state, this shouldn’t have happened,” Long Qinghuang said with a hint of resentment, reaching out to feel his pulse carefully. “I certainly don’t want to end up harming you instead.”

After a careful check, it seemed fine… Wait…

Long Qinghuang was somewhat surprised: “Why do you want it again?”

Lu Xingzhou said helplessly, “If you don’t help me isolate the wild invasion of this place, it’s really going to be seven times. Not just seven times, but I’ll also whip you.”

Long Qinghuang’s pretty face flushed red as she realized her mistake.

But what surprised Lu Xingzhou even more was that she still didn’t block the wild invasion, as if nothing had happened. Instead, she lay down, leaning into Lu Xingzhou’s shoulder hollow: “If you want to, then you can.”

Lu Xingzhou was exasperated: “I’m in pain all over and weak. You little lewd dragon, don’t drain me now.”

Long Qinghuang pouted: “You pull up your pants and disown the dragon.”

Lu Xingzhou: “…Help me get the medicine from my ring, that jade bottle, yes, the one with the red stopper.”

Long Qinghuang obediently fetched the medicine and watched Lu Xingzhou take the pill, then said sourly, “Is my treatment not as good as your pills?”

Lu Xingzhou retorted impatiently, “This is a purification pill.”

Long Qinghuang: “…”

They fell into a slightly awkward silence for a moment before Long Qinghuang said softly, “Since you’re awake, you actually don’t need isolation and purification, because the demon energy here is beneficial for your healing and recovery, and also greatly beneficial for future cultivation. It would be a pity if you intentionally isolated it.”

“There’s no rush. We can come back again later.”

These words made Long Qinghuang’s expression brighten, and she didn’t continue speaking.

In fact, Lu Xingzhou had intended to leave during the chaos, and Long Qinghuang knew it, which had left her quite disappointed at the time.

It was hard to describe the shift from disappointment to shock when he not only didn’t leave but actually stood in front of her… Seeing him so badly injured, Long Qinghuang’s heart softened immensely, feeling that it was enough. If he wanted to leave, why keep him confined?

If he still wanted to leave when he woke up, then… then let him go.

But he actually said they could come again later.

Long Qinghuang couldn’t suppress the curve of her lips, leaning into his shoulder hollow without speaking.

Lu Xingzhou closed his eyes and meditated for a moment, feeling his strength recover significantly. Then he asked, “Have you examined this place yet?”

“No,” Long Qinghuang replied. “I was taking care of you; I wasn’t in the mood to look at these things. I learned quite a bit from Dujuan’s soul search; it’s nothing more than what you already said. As you mentioned, we’ll have time later, so let’s not worry about it now. Let’s rest properly first, and we can discuss it later.”

“Lying down is still lying down,” Lu Xingzhou said. “He probably used the dragon corpses here to perform a ‘stealing beams and replacing pillars’ spiritual脉 transfer on your dragon clan, a similar technique I’ve seen on a monk in another ancient realm. Through this transfer, the dragon clan will increasingly lose their reproductive ability; first, purebloods won’t be able to reproduce, and slowly even the subspecies will disappear. Meanwhile, they can sow seeds among various other races.”

Long Qinghuang “hmm-ed,” as this was already clear.

Lu Xingzhou said, “But there’s another effect you need to pay attention to.”

“What?”

“The influence of spiritual脉 is extensive. They might only be transferring reproductive capabilities, but it’s possible that martial luck is also affected simultaneously. Have you noticed that while dragons are born powerful, there are too few Transcendent-grade experts? Even the Gu family has several Transcendent-grade experts in seclusion, yet your dragon clan only has you… at most, one more in the sea? Does that live up to the dragon clan’s reputation? Instead, it’s figures like Dujuan and the old turtle, who can also reach Transcendent-grade with their potential… Even with the abundant demon energy here for nourishment, breaking through major thresholds is never just about having resources.”

Long Qinghuang pondered for a while, then nodded: “There is some influence. Similar to the reproductive issue, we’ve been blinded by the inherent difficulty of dragon reproduction and haven’t noticed the increasingly difficult accumulation over time. Cultivation is also the same; dragons are born powerful, but the longer the years required to advance, it’s also a balance of life under the Heavenly Dao. Otherwise, the world would have long been ruled by dragons.”

“So, originally, for dragons to reach Transcendent-grade, their cultivation duration had to be much longer than humans, often thousands of years?”

“Yes, after all, we have long lifespans. We didn’t find it strange that no Transcendent-grade experts appeared within a few hundred years… Now, thinking about it, something is wrong, because many old dragons on Dragon Cliff have cultivated for far more than a thousand years.”

Lu Xingzhou asked, “Did you find a way to reverse this transfer through soul searching?”

“No,” Long Qinghuang’s face finally showed anger. “Its soul memory indicated it’s irreversible. The formation is only a fortune-stealing formation, not a returning one. Even destroying the formation would, at most, stop the continued theft, but it wouldn’t bring it back.”

Lu Xingzhou’s expression was a little strange; such a serious problem, and you still had the leisure to enjoy your porridge?

Then he heard Long Qinghuang say, “I just don’t believe it; how could it be irreversible? It must be that I haven’t thoroughly searched its soul. Once you’re better, I’ll slowly deal with it.”

Lu Xingzhou shook his head: “It might indeed only know how to transfer, but not how to reverse. However… I might have a way.”

Long Qinghuang was stunned, feeling vexed: “How do you want to manipulate me again? I’ve already done that… Do you want to do it again?”

Lu Xingzhou blinked.

He hadn’t really intended anything when he said that, but hearing the mother dragon’s rare pitiful and wronged expression, the urge to bully a dragon was piqued. He deliberately said, “Your Majesty’s good morning kiss, isn’t something missing?”

Long Qinghuang thought to herself, what was missing, she had already swallowed it all…

Then she suddenly realized that when he mentioned a good morning kiss, he had said it was for her master.

Did he want her to use that address?