244: 6.4 Mythical Dragons

6.4 Mythical Dragons

Lu Yizhou stared at unconscious Jillian with a perplexed look, his fingers sending bursts of energy into his wound that illuminated the whole forest with a soft blue glow. Even when his half-transparent body flickered back and forth, threatening to disperse into thin air, he didn't relent and kept healing Jillian's wounds until not even a scratch remained.0

[666: Host, Host, STOP!!! Do you want to die?!]

[Gods can't die.] Lu Yizhou deadpanned. [They only go to sleep.]

[666: T—Then, do you want to go to sleep?!] Why did that sound so weird? QAQ Not menacing at all!

Lu Yizhou only retracted his arm after he was sure that Jillian's wounds had faded into nothing. Even then, the young Duke's face was ghastly pale with deep frowns between his brows. Lu Yizhou reached out intending to smooth the lines away only for his fingers to go through Jillian's face. His pupils constricted and he slowly pulled away, fingers loosely curling into a fist.

[666: Host…]

[He doesn't recognize me, does he?] Lu Yizhou's lips ticked upward into a wry smile. As soon as their eyes met, he instantly knew that there wasn't any flicker of recognition in those achingly familiar golden eyes. 

At this point, Lu Yizhou had two hypotheses. First, it took time for Jillian to recall his past memories, just like it did with Terra. In the previous world, Terra only regained his memory after forming a spiritual bond with Lu Yizhou. If that was indeed the case, how could Lu Yizhou make his lover remember him this time if the world didn't support any kind of soul-bonding? Maybe… physical bonding? But he didn't even have a body!

Second, his lover's memory… might lie within the second villain; the one who was on the other side of the world. Lu Yizhou shook his head and decided not to get his knickers in a twist. He had to focus on getting Jillian to a safe place. It was too dangerous here but… he looked at his transparent hand. How could he move his lover if he couldn't even touch him?

[666: Host, in the original plot, Regius left right after he saved Jillian. Don't worry, he will come to in a few moments and leave by himself.]

[So you're telling me to leave him here… in the snowy forest, unconscious and vulnerable to whichever creature that is waiting to pounce on him…?]

Above, thunder boomed and the temperature dropped a few degrees. The whistle of the wind intensified like the echo of ghostly wails and a small tornado was formed from the violent blizzard. 

666 shrieked in mercy. If it had a physical form, it would have prostrated under its Host's feet!

[666: Nooo, please don't get angry, Host! 666 doesn't mean anything by that! Y—You will create a natural disaster if this goes on! Do you want to see Jillian buried under the freezing snow, Host?!]

One glance down told Lu Yizhou that Jillian looked worse than before. His teeth were chattering violently and his lips were tinged in blue; snowflakes hung on his eyelashes and in between strands of his wet hair. He looked so fragile as if the slightest wind would be able to blow him away. Lu Yizhou pressed his lips tighter and in an instant, the wind gale halted, even the snow turned mellow and gentle. [How…] Lu Yizhou took a deep breath to rein in his frustration. [...do I move him?]

[666: Err… let—let's go look at the system store, shall we? Maybe there will be some useful items or temporary skills to help you…] 

Lu Yizhou begrudgingly agreed and 666 was feeling so relieved that it could cry. Why?! Who had the idea to make its Host become a God?! Even if he was a forgotten God, he was still plenty formidable! In 666's opinion, he even looked thrice as scary this way! QAQ

Lu Yizhou was in the middle of swiping through the system store when he sensed the presence of another in the air. No, not only one. Two. He subconsciously tensed and moved to hide Jillian behind him even though he knew it was a futile effort. He was weak, translucent and useless. How could he protect his lover this way? Lu Yizhou clenched his fists and was ready to muster the energy within him up to its last drop when the newcomers showed themselves. 

The air stagnated as two pairs of wings enveloped the sky, and two enormous bodies gleaming with scales appeared in Lu Yizhou's line of sight. 

Those… were dragons?

One with ivory scales that could rival the pure snow whilst the other darker than obsidian. Like yin and yang, the two dragons flew close to each other, making a magnificent display of their majestic bodies. For some reasons, the pair stopped above the forest and peered down at Lu Yizhou with their huge, amber slit pupils, seemingly intrigued with his appearance.

[666: T—The silver and black dragon that is rumored to be the gatekeeper of Heaven and Hell respectively, born from the natural energy of the sun and moon, Cyrus and Luan! They were supposed to be reclusive mythical beasts, Host! What are they doing here?! No way, are the rumors that mythical beasts are spotted around here true? No, that's not right, this is not included in the original plot. Cyrus and Luan aren't even meant to appear at all!]

Lu Yizhou narrowed his eyes in suspicion. Judging from 666's flustered ramble, these two dragons were supposed to be a big shot. What were they doing here? 

Fortunately, he didn't need to wait long for the answer because the two dragons turned into two wisps of light and dove to the ground like shooting stars with a dull thump. When the storm of snow finally settled, standing in front of Lu Yizhou were two men in formal clothing. They would have looked humane if not for the twin horns atop of their heads, their bizarre hair colour and the long tail with furry tip that was half hidden behind their legs. They folded their hands in front of their stomachs and bowed, displaying bone-deep elegance in such a simple movement.

The silver haired and ivory horns broke the silence first. "Esteemed God of Darkness, it's an honor to finally make your acquaintance. People call me Cyrus," He gestured to the larger man with raven hair and pure black horns, "and this is my partner, Luan."

Lu Yizhou examined them closely. There was nothing off with how they behaved and they didn't show any offensive reaction either, but Lu Yizhou couldn't erase the nagging feeling in the back of his mind that something was off with the two. Because he had no energy left to speak, he merely inclined his head in acknowledgement.

Cyrus seemed to understand his silent question because the dragon continued, "We are just passing by when we feel your wrath and distress in the air. Hence, we decided to come and take a look if there's something you need…" He trailed off, eyes trailing to the human behind Lu Yizhou's transparent body. 

Lu Yizhou tensed. [Are they… trustworthy?]

[666: Host, they are known for their undying loyalty, righteousness and virtue. Maybe… you can ask them for help?]

Lu Yizhou pursed his lips. He didn't have a choice, did he? Slowly, he stepped away to bare Jillian's figure to their eyes and Cyrus quietly gasped. "Oh my, is that your… follower?"

Uncertain of how to react, Lu Yizhou merely blinked.

"He will be fine, just a little anemic." Cyrus hummed as he examined Jillian from where he was standing. Either he sensed Lu Yizhou's protectiveness or he was averse to humans, Lu Yizhou was relieved that he didn't try to get close. As reliable they seemed to be, Lu Yizhou couldn't bring himself to trust them fully. "It's not safe for him to stay here. The darkness is descending and soon, the creatures who are hungry for blood will appear. If you don't mind, allow us to help you."

Lu Yizhou's eyes turned sharp. He used the snowflakes to form the words. [What do you want in return?] Don't tell him that they did it out of kindness because Lu Yizhou was a firm believer that there was no such thing as free lunch in the world. Who knows, even if the dragons didn't ask anything in return now, there might come a day when they would demand a favor in the future. Lu Yizhou had to measure carefully whether it was worth it or not.

Cyrus glanced briefly at Luan, seemingly having a silent conversation. Hmm, Lu Yizhou took note of their intimate relationship. Cyrus looked friendly enough whereas Luan… Lu Yizhou hadn't even heard him speak. The man was tall, muscular with sharp, chiseled jaws and stony features. He merely gave a nod in response to Cyrus' silent inquiry.

"What we want is very simple." The corner of Cyrus' lips ticked upward into a resemblance of a smile, looking as if he wasn't used to displaying any expressions on his face. Well, that was quite logical; afterall, dragons didn't need to care about expressions but still… Lu Yizhou frowned as déjà vu overcame him. Had they… met before somewhere? "You see, we are two ancient dragons that have retired from our respective duties. Now we are free to roam the world to see what we have missed. In return to saving the human, we only want to be provided with a roof above our head and six meals a day. We can also give our blessing to your follower to protect him from one major incident. What do you think?"

Lu Yizhou blinked, taken aback. That was all? Well, the dragons looked capable enough to desire nothing though. They didn't covet wealth nor did they yearn for power. Only a simple house and meals in exchange for having two dragons by Jillian's side…

That wasn't a very bad deal.

And that was how the unconscious Jillian found himself with two new companions in tow — if you didn't count Lu Yizhou's invisible form — blissfully unaware that they were the legendary mythical beasts who could shake the foundation of the country with a flick of their tails.

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A/N: Thank you, ThisPrince for your name suggestion. You have relieved me of great burden lol

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