Even as the dragon hurtled toward Hui, a familiar qi signature brushed against his senses. Hui sat up, eyes wide. It is! It’s— “Zhubi!”

Zhubi snatched Hui out of the air by his collar and flew away, zooming away from the blue dragon.

The blue dragon burst after him, eyes narrowed. It opened its mouth, and to Hui’s surprise, a childish female voice came out. “You won’t get away! You’re my mate! I’ve waited too long for another dragon!”

“Elder Sister, he doesn’t want you!” Hui called, his voice pitifully quiet compared to the thunder and the roar of the dragon’s voice.

“Eh? Who said that?” the blue dragon roared.

“Someone who believes in love!” Hui shouted. You’re both animals, so this isn’t quite illegal, I guess, but Elder Sister, you’re breaking all sorts of decency laws… and just ordinary laws, too!

“Back off. I saw him first. He’s my mate!” the blue dragon returned.

“He isn’t anyone’s mate unless he wants to be!” Hui shouted at her.

“What do you know?”

“I know you’re tearing him apart! Literally!”

“I wouldn’t be if he just became my mate!”

Hui put his face in his hands. Where do I even start? Do I have to explain morality to her from the beginning? Does she understand the concepts of consent and choice? He took a deep breath. “Elder Sister, please pause a moment. I have a suggestion for you.”

To his surprise, the blue dragon paused in the sky. Zhubi coiled around Hui, then shrunk down, settling onto his neck. Hui put a hand to Zhubi and sent some life qi to him, gently patting the snake. Zhubi settled down, resting around Hui’s neck. The wounds on his side closed with Hui’s life qi, and tiny scales pushed out of Zhubi’s flesh, slowly covering up the bald spots. There you go. Take a rest.

Since we’ve reached the Immortal realm, it seems like Zhubi and myself have both been targeted for… shall we call it marriage? Strange, how strange! Are there not enough eligible bachelors in the Immortal realm? Though I’m not exactly eligible, and neither is Zhubi interested…

Hovering opposite him, the blue dragon coiled in on herself. Bright blue light emanated from her body, and when it faded, a girl about Zhubi’s apparent age stood before him. Long blue hair hung to her waist. She wore layered blue robes in several shimmering shades of silk and a ribbon around her neck, tied in a cute bow a little off-center. Staring at Hui and Zhubi, she put her hands on her hips. “Why do you hug him, and not me?”

Zhubi shifted forms again, once more taking on the form of a ten-or-so-year-old boy with hair long past his feet, easily ten meters of hair. He dropped down to Hui’s side, and Hui caught him out of the air. Baring his teeth at the girl, he hissed.

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Still snake teeth. Huh. Hui nodded to himself, patting Zhubi on the head. He looked at the girl. “Do you like Zhubi?”

“Eh? He’s a male dragon,” she said simply.

Hui licked his lips. He took a deep breath. Alright. Let’s take it from the top. “Elder Sister, just because someone is a male of the same species, doesn’t mean they have to mate with you.”

“Eh? That’s what mom told me. If you see a male dragon, jump on him so you can have eggs. Isn’t that the proper way to live?” the female dragon said, tilting her head in confusion.

It’s even worse than I thought. Hui shook his head. “Elder Sister, you’re still young. You should be focusing on growing stronger and becoming a more powerful dragon. You have a long life ahead of you to make eggs in, with people—er, dragons, who want to make eggs with you.”

She tilted her head the other direction. “Isn’t making eggs the point of life?”

Er, from a certain point of view, sure. But there’s more to life than reproduction. Especially because Zhubi isn’t interested!

Hui nodded at the girl. “It’s one of the options. But there are a great many other things in this world of ours.”

“Oh.” She looked at Hui. “Are you taking him away?”

“Him? Zhubi? I’m not taking him away. He’s coming with me because he wants to,” Hui said.

Her eyes lit up. “What if I want to, too?”

“You… want to come with me?” Hui asked.

The girl nodded. “Yes, yes.”

I suppose I don’t have a reason to refuse her. She hurt Zhubi, but out of ignorance and a mistaken understanding of the world. It’s more like splitting up a couple of my pets from fighting, rather than stopping a live crime. Hui looked at Zhubi. “Can she come with us?”

Zhubi squinted at Hui. He bobbed his head side to side, hesitant.

The girl pouted at Hui, looking pathetic. “Please?”

“I’ll leave it up to Zhubi,” Hui said, nodding at the boy.

Zhubi considered for a few more seconds, then nodded. He transformed into a snake again and swooped around Hui’s neck.

Hui smiled at the girl. “Come along, then. What’s your name?”

The girl hesitated a moment, then nodded. “Tian Lan.”

“It’s nice to meet you, Tian Lan. You can get to know me and Zhubi, but slowly, okay?”

“No making eggs?” Tian Lan asked.

“No.” Hui shook his head firmly. Even if Zhubi agrees, they’re both too young! Er, in dragon years, anyways. They’re both probably several hundred years old. Still, it’s not good to put so much stress on one’s body at a young age!

After a moment, he looked at Tian Lan. “Er, does Elder Sister know how to make eggs…?”

She nodded confidently. “You grab a male and fight him. If you win the fight, eggs!”

Er, yeah. Okay. She’s still a kid. She has no idea what she’s talking about. Hui extended his hand to Tian Lan.

Tian Lan looked at his arm, then transformed, shrinking down. Rather than become a snake, she simply became a small blue dragon and looped around his wrist, like a heavy armlet.

Phew. That resolved far more peacefully than I feared it would! Patting Zhubi for comfort, Hui flew back toward the ship.

On the ship, Cho Haoli stared blankly, his eyes wide. That man asked two dragons to stop fighting and come with him, and they simply… did? What happened to the proud, independent race I knew? Were they always this easy to reason with?

Hui landed on the ship. He looked at Cho Haoli, then retreated a step. “Ah, as you can see, I didn’t fight any dragons, so we can’t split the spoils.”

“Hmph,” Cho Haoli said. Putting his nose in the air, he slapped the ship, sending it back into motion. What, do you think I’m crazy enough to demand the ‘spoils’ from someone who just tamed two dragons before my eyes? I’m no fool! You can keep your beasts, you madman.

I’ll have to try talking, the next time I encounter a dragon. Maybe I can tame a dragon as well…