Even after knowing that the binding force of a servant contract was even stronger than that of a pet contract, Jing Nian still didn’t let his guard down regarding Gordon, the thief.
The possibility of harming or maliciously deceiving the little dragon was gone, but the profession of a thief sounded like it could easily corrupt children!
Moreover, he had a criminal record!
So, Jing Nian coaxed the little dragon into returning to its body and wanted to see what this eager thief had in mind.
Gordon, still dressed in women’s clothing, was unaware that his master had changed his demeanor and was exaggeratingly showering Jing Nian with compliments, just like one would to a child.
Jing Nian made his way to Mini Street, and Gordon followed along.
When Gordon saw Mini Street, he was stunned.
It turned out that he wasn’t the only one with the idea of hiding among the dragon clan to escape the prophesied disaster!
He watched in disbelief as the creatures on Mini Street greeted Jing Nian with equality and friendliness – small beast folk, animals, and even some brave little beast folk who dared to harass the passing dragons.
The dragons seemed familiar with the presence of these miniature creatures and skillfully avoided stepping on them.
In an instant, Gordon felt like a fool for signing a servant contract just to save his life!
Jing Nian took a look at Gordon, who had a bewildered expression upon seeing Mini Street, not knowing what he was thinking. He decided to wait and see. He didn’t pay any attention to Gordon and headed straight for the small wooden house of the Little Bear family. He planned to see if the branches that Chi Yan had helped bring back could be used.
However, halfway there, Jing Nian heard a faint crying.
“Sob, sob, sob… Sob, sob…” The soft and weak voice sounded incredibly sad.
In the dragon’s soul space, the little dragon also suddenly stood up. Recently, it had been getting along well with the young ones on Mini Street. As soon as it heard the sound, it recognized it as the cry of a little fish in the small pond.
Receiving the little dragon’s awareness, Jing Nian hurried towards the side of the small pond.
Mini Street had been constructed with increasing refinement, and Jing Nian walked past a white stone sculpture before arriving at the edge of the small pond. There, he saw a palm-sized red mermaid sobbing, covering her eyes.
Little mermaid Koi was extremely shy and timid. Whenever an unfamiliar person approached the edge of the small pond, she would hide shyly under the lotus leaves.
This time, she was crying so bitterly that she didn’t even react to the presence of a stranger following Jing Nian.
It seemed like something significant had happened.
“What’s wrong?” Jing Nian asked as he approached with concern.
The little dragon in the dragon’s soul space also looked worried and watched the sad little mermaid. Tears welled up in its eyes.
Jing Nian quickly picked up the soft-hearted little creature.
When the mermaid heard his voice and saw it was the “little dragon,” she quickly wiped away her tears and replied in a sweet, milky voice, “It’s… it’s nothing…”
But her eyes, red from crying, didn’t look like it was nothing at all.
The little dragon in the dragon’s soul space was also anxious, and Jing Nian followed its lead to gently wipe away the mermaid’s tears.
The little mermaid blushed slightly and timidly said, “Thank you.” Although she was also a little baby, her mind was slightly more mature than the premature baby dragon. She knew that this little dragon had actually saved her family.
Then, she suddenly noticed the thief behind Jing Nian. With a flick of her tail, she swam about half a meter away, hiding behind a lotus leaf, shyly peeking at Jing Nian from there.
Receiving his young master’s disapproving gaze, Gordon quickly rubbed his head and hid behind a sculpture.
Jing Nian waved to the little mermaid, and when she confirmed that Gordon had not approached, she breathed a sigh of relief and cautiously swam to the edge of the pond, holding onto Jing Nian’s outstretched clawed hand.
The little mermaid was also a good baby, and she felt embarrassed about her impolite behavior earlier. She timidly grabbed Jing Nian’s finger.
Jing Nian chuckled and comforted her softly, “It’s okay.”
In the dragon’s soul space, the little dragon, who had been worried about the mermaid’s crying earlier, suddenly became dissatisfied.
How could you talk to her like this! The little dragon glared at Jing Nian with an indignant expression and felt that this wasn’t enough to express its dissatisfaction, so it retracted the little tail wrapped around Jing Nian’s wrist.
While Jing Nian petted the little mermaid’s head with one hand, he watched the sulking little dragon and secretly chuckled. He asked it in a serious tone, “What’s wrong, Ao Tian? Who made our proud Ao Tian angry?”
The little dragon furrowed its brows, thinking that Jing Nian didn’t understand, and its eyes became even “fiercer.”
It’s you~
Jing Nian pretended to be clueless, “Huh? Ao Tian, what’s wrong?”
The angry little dragon suddenly became anxious. What was wrong? Did the telepathic connection with his little brother break?
Clearly, his little brother used to understand his expressions!
The little dragon opened its mouth, but when it saw the still-wet tears on the little mermaid’s face, it felt a bit embarrassed to say anything. How could he use that cooing tone to comfort another baby?
Jing Nian understood the little dragon’s internal struggle and found it even more amusing.
So he continued to play dumb, “What’s the matter, Ao Tian?”
Jing Nian actually, unexpectedly, couldn’t understand its meaning!
The little dragon suddenly became frantic, tossing aside its jealousy and everything else. It had run to the other side of the dragon’s soul space in anger, intending to show its displeasure to Jing Nian.
Now it was darting back to Jing Nian in a hurry, wrinkling its little brow, climbing into Jing Nian’s arms, standing on his leg, and hugging Jing Nian’s head to make eye contact with him.
After enhancing their shared consciousness:
“Jing Jing, can you understand now?”
Jing Nian struggled to suppress a smile, “Huh?”
This shouldn’t be happening, right?!
The little dragon was completely shocked, with a face that seemed to say the sky was falling. It hadn’t completely learned language expression yet, and sometimes even communication with the dragons was done through telepathy.
With Jing Nian, it had developed such a strong understanding that Jing Nian could usually interpret its expressions precisely, even down to symbols.
Oh no~ oh no~
what do we do?~
The little dragon had a worried expression as it firmly held onto Jing Nian’s finger, unwilling to let go.
Seeing that the little mermaid in the pond was slowly calming down, Jing Nian decided not to tease the little dragon further. He made a hissing sound and said, “I think it’s okay now.”
The little dragon lifted its head, asking in surprise, “Really?”
Jing Nian nodded, “Really.”
The little dragon’s eyes widened in joy, “Really?”
Regaining what was lost, the little dragon happily hugged Jing Nian’s neck and snuggled up to him.
Jing Nian chuckled nervously and rubbed his nose.
With both little ones comforted, Jing Nian finally understood the reason behind the little mermaid’s sadness from her stumbling Common Language of the Mainland.
“My… friend got captured…” The little mermaid began to cry again as she spoke.
In the Dragon Soul Space, the other little dragon, still hugging Jing Nian’s neck, started shedding tears too, whimpering, “Wuu wuu…”
The teary-eyed little dragon looked at Jing Nian and said, “Poor fishy…”
Due to the recent misunderstanding where Jing Nian couldn’t receive its thoughts, the little dragon had intentionally strengthened their mental connection, which now allowed Jing Nian to precisely grasp its meaning.
Realizing that the reason for their collective sadness was the little mermaid’s story, which made them think about losing Jing Nian, he couldn’t help but feel touched and helpless. He even found it difficult to utter words like “I’ll never leave you” that he had always wanted to say.
Eventually, he was infected by the little dragon’s sadness and also felt melancholic.
After a moment of contemplation, he suggested, “How about we help the little mermaid find her missing friend?”
The little dragon, buried in Jing Nian’s shoulder, raised its head, instantly drawn by his words. Its tears weren’t completely gone yet, but its eyes were shining with renewed hope.
“Good idea! Help!” The little dragon chimed in, its voice full of enthusiasm.
Upon learning that Jing Nian was willing to inquire about her friend’s whereabouts, the little mermaid stopped crying and looked at him with gratitude.
Then, she tried to communicate, speaking in a broken Common Language and using hand gestures.
Jing Nian, however, couldn’t comprehend her gestures at all. He scratched his head in confusion.
The little mermaid realized the communication barrier and became anxious. She finally had someone willing to help her find her friend; how could she proceed now?
Jing Nian suggested, “How about this? I’ll ask, and you answer. Can you understand the Common Language of the Mainland?”
He spoke slowly and clearly.
The little mermaid, after struggling to understand, nodded slowly, her eyes fixed on Jing Nian’s mouth, fearing she might miss a single word.
Recognizing that the little mermaid could only understand partially, Jing Nian had no choice but to use the little dragon’s body to speak and gesture simultaneously.
“Where did your… friend… disappear?” He tried his best to make himself understood.
The little mermaid tilted her head, pondered for a moment, and then pointed at the water beneath her and mimicked waves with her hands.
Jing Nian: “In the sea?”
The little mermaid shook her head, her fair face breaking into a sweat. She found two pieces of water grass and placed them by the water’s edge.
“In the river.”
In the Dragon Soul Space, the other little dragon watched the little mermaid’s gestures intently and suddenly poked Jing Nian’s arm.
Jing Nian: “…In the river?”
The little mermaid immediately smiled and nodded repeatedly.
Jing Nian: “…” It seemed that young ones could communicate without barriers.
He continued to ask but couldn’t extract any more information about where in the river or what kind of creature her friend was.
“How about asking her friend’s abilities?” Gordon, who had been hiding behind a white stone sculpture the entire time, suddenly popped his head out and made a suggestion.
Hearing the unfamiliar voice, the little mermaid was startled and retreated behind the lily pad again.
Jing Nian turned around.
Gordon, feeling frustrated, retracted back behind the white stone sculpture, touched his face with intricate dark markings, and then tore a piece of cloth from his clothes, fashioning it into a mask to cover his face.
Only then did the little mermaid come out again, and Jing Nian asked her about her friend’s abilities.
The little mermaid, after understanding the question, tilted her head in thought. Then she extended her hand and made a small circle with her fingers, puffed up her cheeks, and mimicked blowing air, all while gesturing to make the circle gradually larger.
A sudden insight struck Jing Nian, and he remembered something. He reached into his backpack and pulled out a recently acquired item, a pufferfish.
The moment the prop pufferfish appeared in Jing Nian’s hand, the little mermaid’s eyes widened.
Jing Nian instantly knew he had guessed correctly.
Seeing the prop pufferfish seemingly lifeless, the little mermaid, holding Jing Nian’s finger, began to cry.
Since having the young dragon by his side, Jing Nian had discovered he couldn’t bear to see young ones cry. He hurriedly poked the sleeping prop Blowfish in his palm.
The prop was activated in an instant. The small pufferfish woke up and, stimulated by the situation, began puffing itself up, becoming too large for the little dragon’s paw to hold, and it fell into the small pond.
The little mermaid gasped and quickly followed it.
In the Dragon Soul Space, the little dragon watched in shock as the pufferfish turned itself into a balloon. It couldn’t snap out of its amazement for a long time.
With curiosity filling its eyes, it looked at Jing Nian.
Jing Nian gently ruffled its little head and explained, “This is a method for pufferfish to protect themselves. After inflating, they become too big for predators to eat, right?”
The little dragon tilted its head, “But… they can still eat it, right?”
The little dragon tried hard to open its mouth and gestured towards Jing Nian, like how he could do it.
Seeing Jing Nian chuckle, it added, “When you grow up.”
“But do you eat pufferfish?” Jing Nian looked at the pufferfish in the pond, which was happily playing with the little mermaid after shrinking back to its original size, and the little dragon, vigorously shaking its head.
“Ao Tian doesn’t eat them.”
“Ao Tian is a good boy.”
However, things didn’t end there. After confirming that the pufferfish was fine, the little mermaid came shyly to the edge of the pond and hesitantly asked Jing Nian if there was anything else besides this pufferfish.
Jing Nian: “…” Suddenly, he had a bad feeling.
Sure enough, after finding one friend, the little mermaid became much calmer, and her ability to express herself soared. She told Jing Nian that many of her friends had disappeared, all of them were pufferfish.
Thinking about the distributed pufferfish and the players who had already entered the game, Jing Nian couldn’t bear to tell the little mermaid that her friends had likely turned into items, one in every player’s hands.
Author’s Note:
Gordon: If I had known it was this simple, why did I…
