Chapter 52 - 52 Forest Dragon Cub
After committing the cruel act of tossing another over a cliff, the cold-blooded young dragonling wobbled back to its soft nest, seemingly now the sole owner of its abode, and able to sleep more soundly.
Zhu Minglang witnessed the whole process and couldn’t help but sigh.
He had initially planned to steal the dragonling, but thinking about its cold-blooded and despicable nature, he suddenly lost all interest.
Waiting silently for the Cliff Vultures to hide in the pines, Zhu Minglang realized he might have inadvertently created the perfect crime scene for the little beast, unseen by the Cliff Vultures.
He guessed that when the Dragon Mother returned, it could blame the Cliff Vultures for not watching over its dragon sibling well enough.
Zhu Minglang didn’t linger. He took advantage of the raging winds to slide down the vines from the cliff top, planning to leave Dragon Cliff as quickly as possible.
As soon as he landed, a series of weak cries came from a thicket, like those of an injured puppy. That’s when Zhu Minglang realized the dragonling must have been thrown down here…
It actually survived the fall??
Zhu Minglang looked up at the broken vines and then at the thicket.
Unable to harden his heart completely, Zhu Minglang quickly approached and parted the thicket, spotting the injured dragon cub covered in wounds.
Its skin was still tender, its size no larger than a puppy, and likely due to its bones still being soft, it hadn’t died on impact after the fall. Instead, it was struggling painfully in the thorny thicket.
The dense thicket had provided some cushioning that saved it from instant death, but those same thorns viciously pierced its delicate body, prolonging its pain before death…
Seeing the dragon cub in such a pitiable state softened Zhu Minglang’s heart.
“I’ll save you. Whether you live, that’s up to you,” Zhu Minglang softly said to the dragon cub.
Zhu Minglang had Little White freeze the thorns and also relied on Bai Qi’s frost to slowly stop the bleeding from the Forest Dragon Cub’s severe wounds.
He carefully picked the cub out of the thicket. For some reason, Zhu Minglang
felt as though the little creature could fall apart at any moment due to the fall
from such a height, with likely many broken bones inside, adding torture as the bone fragments pierced its flesh.
Logically, such agony was more than a young cub could bear, but the Forest
Young Dragon clenched its newly grown teeth, with a look of resentment
rncKermg In Its uny eyes! It didn’t want to die this way.
It longed to live.
In the past, when Zhu Minglang saw such a creature struggling in pain, he thought the kindest act of mercy was a Sword Stab to its vital parts, to end its suffering completely.
Zhu Minglang actually wished more to grant the cub a quick release, because merely looking at its somewhat deformed, bloody body was heart-wrenching!
Removing his clothes, Zhu Minglang gently wrapped the young cub and hung it against his chest. He grasped Bai Qi’s hind claws and flew toward the Dragon Taming Academy.
The wound had only been treated roughly, and those medications hardly helped, perhaps only prolonging the pain before death. Zhu Minglang felt it wouldn’t last until they reached the Rehabilitation Pavilion…
Soaring above the sea of leaves, the sky remained gloomy. The Ice Morning White Dragon flapped its wings, its small size meaning it could only rely on the winds to stay aloft.
Blood seeped through Zhu Minglang’s clothes. The young cub no longer whimpered in pain, leading Zhu Minglang to look down at it, thinking it had no signs of life left.
But Zhu Minglang saw its eyes.
Green vertical pupils, still refusing to close. Filled with pain, yet the teeth would not unclench.
To live in such pain, why not give up, especially when it was still so young? In another world, perhaps it would be more beautiful than this one.
“Bai Qi, can we go any faster?” Zhu Minglang asked.
The Ice Morning White Dragon flapped its wings, stirring up a gale above the forest that made all the trees sway like seaweed in the waves.
Riding the wind, the Ice Morning White Dragon flew even faster, and soon its pristine white silhouette appeared at the end of the Ancient Pine Forest, after which crossing the Cedar Forest should bring the plain and the Li Chuan River into view.
At the cliff’s edge, a Giant Dragon covered in moss slowly landed on top of the precipice.
From this height, the Forest Giant Dragon’s large pupils reflected the distant white figure, which was gradually moving away.
“Yi
The Cliff Vultures, finally realizing that their treasury had been plundered and the Dragon’s offspring stolen, circled above the cliff in a panic. They searched for the scent in midair, preparing to chase after the thief!
“Roar! l” The Forest Giant Dragon roared, instantly scaring all the Cliff Vultures into hiding within the treetops, none daring to utter a sound any longer.
Trembling on the branches, the Cliff Vultures feared that the Dragon Mother might kill their entire species.
By the foot of the Forest Giant Dragon, a young dragon nuzzled up, making a very soft calling sound, as if it were being affectionate.
The Forest Giant Dragon lowered its head to glance down and opened its mouth to regurgitate a piece of meat preserved in its stomach.
The Forest Young Dragon let out an excited cry and pounced on the piece of meat. Without any competitors, it no longer had to gulp down its food as it had before, instead taking its time to let the meat dissolve in its throat before swallowing it.
The Dragon Mother looked at the bite marks on the young dragon’s forehead, then at the gradually departing white silhouette, and ultimately chose not to give chase.
It slowly sank its body into the empty Dragon Pit and closed its eyes…
Not long after, the satiated young dragon also wriggled over. The Forest Giant Dragon, without opening its eyes, simply lifted its wings and wrapped the young dragon under its wooden pinions.
After crossing the forest, plains and rivers had come into view.
The little cub wrapped in Zhu Minglang’s clothing, however, was growing weaker and weaker, trying very hard to keep its eyes open while gazing at Zhu Minglang.
“Why put yourself through this?”
Zhu Minglang looked into its little eyes and couldn’t sense any anger inside; it was as if it was bidding farewell to a stranger, with a touch of reluctance and a bit of gratitude.
It couldn’t hold on any longer.
Though it tried so very hard.
The injury was just too severe.
Without the thicket, it would have died instantly, and life would have found its release.
But that thicket extended its stay in this world for a short while longer.
This short while let the little one experience excruciating pain!
If there were a next life, better not to descend here again.
“Ah, I don’t know if this will work, but come to my Spirit Realm,” Zhu Minglang finally couldn’t let go.
Since we have met, let it be fate then..