Chapter 133: Only a Pair of Underwear Left

Xiao Jiu had not engaged in battle for many years and was itching for a fight, which was why it had deliberately goaded the flood dragon into unleashing its full strength. In truth, Xiao Jiu knew that if the flood dragon had simply explained its situation to Li Hao, Li Hao—soft-hearted as he was—would likely have taken the dragon with him, regardless of whether he wanted it as his artifact spirit.

The flood dragon had heard Xiao Jiu address Li Hao as "Young Master," but it had failed to register that Li Hao was Xiao Jiu’s master.

Sure enough, upon hearing Xiao Jiu's provocation, the flood dragon exerted every ounce of its strength. It channeled its innate laws—the laws of water—and utilized its head, mouth, tail, claws, and entire body as weapons, raining relentless attacks down upon Xiao Jiu.

Xiao Jiu met every strike in kind, and the two dragons fought in a stalemate. Li Hao and his companions watched the battle with great interest. Eventually, Xiao Jiu gained the upper hand, sending the flood dragon flying dozens of yards away with a powerful tail whip.

Xiao Jiu asked in the language of dragons: "You have lost. This was merely a sparring match, not a fight to the death."

Realizing it was no match for Xiao Jiu, the flood dragon conceded with deep reluctance. "Whether you fought me with nine bodies or one, I have lost fairly and squarely. It is true that I have been taking advantage of you; you had eight dragon bodies hidden, and I still could not defeat you. Whether I get to leave this place or not no longer matters; to have fought you and made your acquaintance is enough for me."

Over the many years spent following the Divine Venerable Liyang, Xiao Jiu’s once-cranky temper had largely mellowed. Having spent this time with Li Hao—who had taught it the joy of friendship and the happiness of having companions—Xiao Jiu decided to try and make a friend of the flood dragon. It was the first friend it had ever chosen for itself, and it wanted to introduce the creature to Li Hao.

Hearing the flood dragon’s sentiment, Xiao Jiu spoke: "Come with me."

Confused, the flood dragon asked, "Where are we going?"

Xiao Jiu replied, "I am taking you to see the Young Master."

The flood dragon felt a pang of disappointment, sensing that Xiao Jiu still did not intend to bring it to meet its master. Tentatively, the dragon asked, "Boss, are you not going to take me to see your master?"

Xiao Jiu found the question amusing. It realized the source of the confusion: it had always referred to Li Hao as "Young Master." Deciding to keep the secret for a moment, Xiao Jiu teased: "I will take you to see the Young Master first; in time, you will see who the master is."

The flood dragon figured that win or lose, this was just a trick Xiao Jiu was playing. But if it meant seeing the master of this strange dragon and potentially leaving this hellish place, it was worth it.

Shaking off its thoughts, the flood dragon said, "Alright, Boss, let’s go quickly."

Hearing the dragon call it "Boss" for the first time gave Xiao Jiu a thrill of satisfaction. Those simple words made Xiao Jiu feel a happiness it had never known before. Even without the prodding, Xiao Jiu would have gone to find Li Hao, but it enjoyed teasing its new subordinate. After playing along for a while, Xiao Jiu finally said, "Follow me."

The flood dragon nodded. Xiao Jiu instantly transformed into its human form, stepped onto the dragon's head, and directed it toward Li Hao and the others. Seeing this, the group assumed the flood dragon had been subdued by Xiao Jiu.

Xiao Jiu approached Li Hao and said respectfully, "Young Master, Sister Xueyou, please come aboard. Let this fellow take us out of here; from now on, it will be with us."

They did not stand on ceremony and leaped onto the dragon's head. Once they were settled, the flood dragon erected a protective barrier of law, sparing them from having to maintain their own against the floodwaters. With the group aboard, the dragon headed straight for the surface.

While the others had been waiting for Li Hao’s return, a massive head suddenly breached the surface of the vast ocean. It was the flood dragon, and all eyes turned to the giant beast. Standing upon its head were four youths: Li Hao, Zhen Ba, Xiao Jiu, and Lin Xueyou.

Xiao Jiu quickly scanned for Lu Yao and the others, then pointed: "We are going there."

Following the command, the flood dragon swiftly arrived beside Lu Yao. Seeing Li Hao return, the youths could only describe their feelings with one word: "Excitement!"

"Brother Li Hao is back!"
"The Young Master is back!"

The cheers of tens of thousands of youths echoed through the small world, each one a heartfelt expression of gratitude and adoration for their savior. The glowing eyes of the young women and the fervent gazes of the young men were all fixed upon Li Hao, making him feel rather uncomfortable.

Few people were like Li Hao, who considered the hunger and cold of others while most only thought of their own survival. The love he received was not bought or begged for; it was earned through his own genuine care for others. Some would sacrifice their lives for the sake of thousands without a word of complaint, while others would only ever complain of unfairness. For those who knew of Li Hao's selfless devotion, it would be impossible to forget his name.

Surrounded by the crowd, Li Hao felt uneasy and called out to Lu Yao and the others, "Sister Yao'er, brothers, come aboard. We still have friends we haven't found yet. We must go and search for them."

Kui Hu and Lu Yao agreed, and they flew onto the dragon's head. Lu Yao noticed Qing'er standing alone and went back for her, saying, "Sister, this world is full of dangers. Let us travel together."

The insecure Qing'er felt lost. Lin Xueyou, noticing the shy girl's hesitation, also stepped down from the dragon's head and walked over. "Little sister, there are only Lu Yao and me here. Would you like to join us? We can look out for one another."

Without waiting for an answer, Lin Xueyou gently took Qing'er’s hand and said, "Let's go." She pulled the girl onto the dragon's head to stand beside them.

Before departing, Li Hao turned to the crowd with a look of reluctance. "Friends, all feasts must come to an end. The road ahead is long, and we shall meet again. We must go to find our other friends, so we take our leave."

The thousands of youths, having only just seen Li Hao return, had hoped to thank him and look upon their benefactor a while longer. But before they could speak, he was already leaving. They held their gratitude and longing in their hearts, calling out in unison:

"Take care, Young Master!"
"Take care, Young Master!"

The voices rose like a swelling tide. Moved by their warmth, Li Hao replied, "Take care, everyone! We shall meet again at our next destination. Farewell!"

With those words, he took the others and soared into the sky. The crowd watched his retreating figure until he had long since vanished. The young women felt a lingering, indescribable sadness.

"To be able to see such a dashing young master even from afar... that would be enough for a lifetime," one whispered.
"Sigh, such an extraordinary man is not for the likes of us; it is best to give up such thoughts."

Others simply sighed, "Is he really leaving just like that?"

Li Hao’s appearance had stirred their once-calm hearts, leaving ripples that would not settle for a long time.

Half an hour later, after the flood dragon had flown several thousand miles, the group stopped atop a mountain. There was much to discuss and many questions to answer.

Xiao Jiu shouted at the dragon, "Little Flood Dragon, your current size is quite an eyesore. Can you not take on a human form?"

Having spent years in this place, the dragon had forgotten such things. Realizing the oversight, it answered sheepishly, "I can!"

Instantly, the flood dragon transformed into a fair-skinned youth of about fifteen or sixteen. The three girls quickly covered their eyes and turned away, while the boys watched with a mix of curiosity and strange expressions.

Seeing the dragon’s awkward state, Xiao Jiu felt his own dignity compromised and scolded, "You're too impressive! Why didn't you make that little loincloth disappear along with the rest? If you're going to be bare, you might as well be completely thorough!"

The flood dragon looked down at its naked self, a deep blush rising to its face. It wished it could dig a hole in the mountain and hide. *How humiliating, and in front of such beautiful young ladies, too!*

The dragon hurried toward Xiao Jiu, who held up a hand in protest, shouting, "If you were a girl, I wouldn't mind, but since you're a guy, you’d better keep a safe distance!"

Xiao Jiu’s words left everyone, especially Lin Xueyou, Lu Yao, and Qing'er, completely speechless.