“What are you doing, let go… ah…”
Liu Nanfeng shouted and rushed over, but his words caught in his throat because the text above the other party’s head had already informed Liu Nanfeng of her identity.
Name: Ao Jiangyue
Race: Dragon
Cultivation: Two thousand four hundred and thirty-one years
Identity: Daughter of the Dragon King, banished to the Yangtze River for violating a decree, cold in nature, naturally kind.
Past cause: Not triggered
Liu Nanfeng was greatly surprised. This was the monster with the highest cultivation he had encountered so far, and she was a dragon girl.
As a person of Great Xia, known as a descendant of dragons, he naturally felt a sense of closeness to dragons.
Moreover, Liu Nanfeng vaguely remembered meeting this dragon girl twice. The first time was after meeting Feng Hongjin, a distant glimpse on the embankment.
The second time was when he was sending Feng Hongjin home and encountered a devil. She was standing on a sand barge in the river, and he had only caught another distant glimpse.
Thinking of this, Liu Nanfeng suddenly realized that it seemed to be related to this little fellow Feng Hongjin every time. Had she been following Feng Hongjin all along?
His brain spun rapidly, but his hands did not slow down. He reached directly for her wrist, intending to snatch Feng Hongjin away.
She held Feng Hongjin by the collar in one hand, dangling her in mid-air. The little one was like a fish, well, she was a little fish.
Perhaps it was an instinct, she wriggled her body vigorously, shouting, "Help, help…"
Seeing Liu Nanfeng reach out, Ao Jiangyue extended her other hand to block him. Their hands touched, and both were startled.
Liu Nanfeng was surprised because, with just that one touch, he felt the immense strength of the other party. It was like hitting a rubber-covered iron pillar, and his wrist ached faintly.
Ao Jiangyue was, of course, not surprised by Liu Nanfeng’s strength. Although Liu Nanfeng’s physical fitness had improved significantly, and due to the “Mighty” skill, his strength against female creatures doubled.
But for Ao Jiangyue, a member of the dragon race, these were still like a mantis trying to stop a chariot, having no effect whatsoever.
What surprised her was why Liu Nanfeng’s strength was so small, and even more surprised that Liu Nanfeng was merely an ordinary person with slightly stronger physical fitness.
She had clearly seen it from the river when Liu Nanfeng “killed” the devil that day.
How could someone who could make the devil turn and flee be so weak? That was why she was surprised. This was completely inconsistent with her guess.
Seeing her dazed, Liu Nanfeng did not stop his movements and continued to reach for the wrist of the hand holding Feng Hongjin.
But what Liu Nanfeng didn't expect was that the other party directly let go of Feng Hongjin.
And then it turned into an awkward situation where Liu Nanfeng was holding her wrist.
The dragon girl Ao Jiangyue had a cultivation of two thousand four hundred and thirty-one years. Converting this according to the dragon race’s hundred years for one year, she was twenty-four years old.
However, she looked at most eighteen or nineteen. Her jet-black long hair cascaded down her shoulders. She wore a loose chiffon shirt on her upper body and a khaki culotte skirt on her lower body. The high-waisted culotte skirt further accentuated her slender waist, which was as if it could be held in one hand.
Her pair of long legs were fair and shapely, adding to her youthful charm.
Upon feeling her wrist being grabbed, Ao Jiangyue’s originally dark pupils instantly turned into golden vertical pupils. At that moment, Liu Nanfeng felt as if the air had become much more viscous.
The released Feng Hongjin had already hidden behind Liu Nanfeng, peeking out with her little head. Seeing Ao Jiangyue’s eyes turn into vertical pupils, she was so scared that she immediately retracted her little head and pressed it against Liu Nanfeng’s leg, muttering incessantly.
“I’m sorry.” Liu Nanfeng quickly released her wrist.
Then he immediately said, “You must be Sister Ao that Hongjin mentioned, right? I’m sorry, I was reckless.”
“You know me?”
Ao Jiangyue tilted her head slightly, her long, straight black hair flowing down her side like a waterfall.
Her features were exquisite, but her complexion was cold, with very little expression. Even when questioning Liu Nanfeng, her expression did not change at all.
“Yes, Hongjin mentioned you.” Liu Nanfeng put his arm around Feng Hongjin behind him.
Ao Jiangyue glanced at Feng Hongjin, who was hiding behind Liu Nanfeng, her eyes flashing with a strange light.
She knew that Feng Hongjin and Liu Nanfeng knew each other, but she didn’t expect their relationship to be so good.
“Next time I catch you, I’ll tell your mother.”
Ao Jiangyue said, glanced at Feng Hongjin again, then transformed into a wisp of mist and disappeared into the river without a trace.
Seeing her leave, Liu Nanfeng turned to Feng Hongjin and asked, “What happened?”
In fact, he vaguely guessed that Feng Hongjin must have made some mistake and been caught by her, otherwise, Ao Jiangyue wouldn’t have said she would tell her mother.
“I wanted to find you on the embankment, and Sister Ao caught me. She said it was dangerous on shore and that bad guys would catch me if I went ashore.”
Feng Hongjin’s little face was full of grievance, and her big eyes were immediately filled with mist, looking as if she was about to cry.
“Uh… she has a point. You’re so young and cute. It really is dangerous to run ashore.”
“Mom and Sister Yuchan also said that. They said I can’t leave here and go up, or it will be very dangerous.”
As the little one spoke, she pointed with her little finger to the area from below the embankment to the riverbank.
“Huh, is there some kind of protective measure in this area?”
Because the limit set by the little one’s mother was not about going ashore, but about not being allowed on the embankment, it implied that the distance from below the embankment to the riverbank was a safe zone, which led him to think this.
“In that case, why didn’t you listen and run onto the embankment?” Liu Nanfeng asked somewhat sternly.
Seeing this, the little one pouted and said with a slight sob, “I wanted to play with you.”
“Uh… if you wanted to find me, you could use the conch shell to…”
Well, he remembered that he had been busy these past two days and hadn’t listened to any messages on the conch shell at all.
“I did say something, but you never answered. You were working, right?” The little one tilted her head, asking with hopeful anticipation.
She hoped to hear Liu Nanfeng say he was working, that he was busy, not that he didn’t want to bother with her.
Liu Nanfeng did not disappoint her, nodding and saying, “Yes, I’ve been busy these past few days. I just got back from delivering an order.”
The simple little carp was extremely happy to hear this. It turned out that people didn’t ignore her because they didn’t want to play with her.
“Here, this is for you.” Liu Nanfeng rummaged in his pocket and pulled out a Snickers bar.
Liu Nanfeng had bought these today, along with chocolates. The reason he bought them was naturally because they were all high-calorie foods, and after eating them, they could be more quickly converted into his strength.
Feng Hongjin didn’t stand on ceremony with him and directly took it.
“Thank you.”
She held it in her hand and looked at it curiously, not knowing how to eat it.
Seeing this, Liu Nanfeng took it back and helped her unwrap it.
“Wait for me here.”
Liu Nanfeng then remembered that his electric scooter was still parked by the roadside, so he hurried towards the embankment.
Feng Hongjin took small steps and was about to follow, then stopped as if remembering something. She looked at the Snickers bar in her hand and took a bite.
“Delicious.”
She squinted her eyes, her face full of bliss.
…………
“Team Leader, have some tea.” Wei Xiaoming placed the brewed tea in front of An Bohou.
An Bohou, who was staring at the computer screen, shifted his gaze from the screen when he heard this.
Then he said curiously, “You brat, trying to butter me up for no reason. What bad idea are you cooking up again?”
Ever since the “bad idea” he proposed a few days ago had brought in a large sum of money for the department, he had started to think that this child was sharp and had great potential.
“Team Leader, how can you say that? I am a righteous law enforcement officer, and all my actions are righteous.”
“Haha, you brat, alright, stop fooling around and say what you have to say quickly.” An Bohou said impatiently.
He was doing a financial accounting, or in simpler terms, counting money, and being interrupted like this meant he had to start all over again.
“Team Leader, I just looked at the registration list. I found that compared to other provinces, our Jiangcheng has an unusually large number of demons.”
“Oh my, you’ve learned to think.” An Bohou showed a look of surprise.
“Team Leader, please stop teasing me. Just tell me the reason. After all, Jiangcheng is just an insignificant small city nationwide. There must be something that attracts them.”
“Utopia,” An Bo said.
“What?” Wei Xiaoming didn’t react immediately.
“Utopia, or the Heavenly Palace, would be easier for you to understand.”
“Heavenly Palace?” Wei Xiaoming looked surprised.
“Yes, this world has immortals, dragons, demons, and ghosts, so naturally, it also has the legendary Heavenly Palace, although it’s a bit different from what you imagine.”
“Different, how is it different?”
“Because the Heavenly Palace is not what you imagine, the abode of gods and the Jade Emperor, but a utopia for all who have undergone life-level transformation.”
“Because this world has limits. Once a certain bottleneck is reached, there will be no further progress, and stagnation. Only by entering the utopia can one evolve to a higher life level.”
“You mean an independent plane, a higher dimension?” Wei Xiaoming said with a sudden realization.
“It’s not wrong to understand it that way.”
“So, is this utopia in Jiangcheng? Or is the entrance in Jiangcheng?”
“Neither. About three hundred years ago, the world underwent drastic changes, the Heavenly Dao became obscure, and the Heavenly Palace completely lost its trace. For years, countless powerful beings have been searching for the Heavenly Palace.”
“So, Jiangcheng has clues to the Heavenly Palace?” Wei Xiaoming asked curiously.
An Bohou nodded.
Only then did Wei Xiaoming’s face show understanding. So these “demons and ghosts” were all coming for the Heavenly Palace.
“Does it really exist? Why in Jiangcheng?” Wei Xiaoming continued to ask curiously.
“It’s just a legend, how would I know? As for why it’s Jiangcheng, you don’t need to know that now.” An Bohou said with a serious expression.
Wei Xiaoming immediately shut his mouth. For departments like theirs, if they don’t want you to know something, it’s best not to inquire about it.
“However, with so many demons and ghosts, what if they really start a commotion?” Wei Xiaoming frowned.
These “people” were all incredibly powerful. If they really started fighting, Jiangcheng could be destroyed in minutes.
“As long as there is no definite news, there will be no problem. Otherwise, how could the higher-ups only assign such a small number of people to guard Jiangcheng?”
“Honestly, this legend has been circulating for hundreds of years, and there hasn’t been any movement yet. Besides, if the sky falls, there will be tall people to hold it up. The higher-ups will definitely arrange personnel to come. Just focus on your work.”
“Okay.”
Wei Xiaoming nodded obediently and didn’t ask any further questions.
“Don’t just stare at the computer looking at data. I asked you to look at more files in the archives last time, did you?” An Bohou said meaningfully.
“Not yet.”
“If not, what are you still doing here? Get lost.”
“Oh, want to go for a drink after work?”
“Your treat?”
“Alright.”
“Get lost.”
“Okay!”
…………
“Why is your face covered in…?”
Seeing the little one eating a Snickers bar and getting her face full of it, Liu Nanfeng was quite impressed.
“Hehe…”
The little one just giggled foolishly, with some chocolate stuck to the tip of her nose.
Liu Nanfeng didn’t have any wet wipes, so he had to scoop some river water to wipe it for her.
“Here, this is for you. Go home now, or your mother will worry about you.”
Liu Nanfeng handed Feng Hongjin the snacks he had taken from the scooter.
These were snacks he had bought intending to eat himself.
But Feng Hongjin did not take it. Instead, she tilted her little face up and said with hopeful anticipation, “I want to go play with you.”
“If you don’t go home, your mother will worry about you,” Liu Nanfeng said.
“I’ve already told Mom. She agreed!” Feng Hongjin took out a conch shell and said triumphantly.
“It’s true, Sir Liu. I’ll trouble you with Hongjin. Let me know when you bring her back, and I’ll come to pick her up.” Zhu Yuchan’s voice came from the conch shell.
Alright, since the guardian had agreed, Liu Nanfeng no longer refused and nodded in Feng Hongjin’s expectant gaze.
The little one immediately cheered and hugged his leg.
…………
“Madam, is this really okay?”
Zhu Yuchan put away the conch shell and said worriedly to Zhu Yin’e, who was sewing clothes beside her.
“Don’t worry, Sister Su will take care of her,” Zhu Yin’e said without lifting her head.
“But… but…”
Zhu Yuchan wanted to say more, but Zhu Yin’e interrupted her directly.
“Alright, she’s my daughter. How could I let her be in danger?”
“Fine, since Madam says so, I won’t interfere anymore.” Zhu Yuchan said somewhat displeased upon hearing this.
Zhu Yin’e looked up at her, then gently continued sewing.
“Huh, Madam, is this Dragon Brocade?” Zhu Yuchan exclaimed in surprise.
The so-called Dragon Brocade was shed hair from a dragon, then woven into brocade, called Dragon Brocade.
Dragon hair was already rare, and collecting enough to weave into brocade was almost a fantasy, so it was naturally extremely precious.
“Yes, I collected it daily for a thousand years before I could weave this piece of Dragon Brocade.”
“Madam, you truly are thoughtful.”
Zhu Yuchan couldn’t help but praise her upon hearing this. A thousand years of daily collection, such persistent perseverance was not something ordinary people could achieve.
“But – why are you sewing a Zhishun?”
The so-called Zhishun was somewhat similar to a straight robe or a Taoist robe. During the Ming Dynasty, the Zhishun was considered a form of casual wear.
Of course, the main point was that the Zhishun was clothing worn by men.
That’s why Zhu Yuchan had this question.