Although bringing the two dragon babies into the Chaotic World would certainly cause a lot of trouble, Shu Bao had promised the acting dragon that he would be a good caretaker. Therefore, he was determined to fulfill that promise.
If the Real World and the Chaotic World were inevitably going to merge, then becoming familiar with the dangers of the Chaotic World in advance could be beneficial. Moreover, the dragon babies were powerful; if they encountered any fire phoenixes, perhaps the two dragon babies could help by taking them on!
After making his decision, Shu Bao explained his plans to the high priest.
Upon hearing that the deity would be leaving again, and possibly for a long time, the high priest felt a pang of reluctance. While other deities typically stayed comfortably in their tribes, supported by their people, their own deity was constantly out and about, striving for a better life for them all.
“I’ll leave the warhorse, the white cat, and the rain girl in the tribe. Take these potions with you for emergencies. This bottle…” Since he was leaving, Shu Bao needed to make thorough arrangements. He took out a large number of potions and began to explain their effects to the high priest.
These included hemostatic potions, detoxifying potions, rare all-purpose healing potions, and some attack potions like those for burning, poisoning, and dissolving.
Thanks to Shu Bao’s previous teachings about herbs, the high priest accepted the information about the various potions well. Even if he didn’t understand the underlying principles, remembering their main functions was sufficient.
After briefing the high priest, Shu Bao went to find the warhorse and the white cat, hoping they could protect the tribe during his absence.
The white cat, having gone to great lengths to join the tribe, would certainly not allow it to come to harm. The warhorse, fond of the sun in the Real World and enjoying the company of its new fluffy friend, also eagerly agreed, especially since the tribe members treated it well.
With everything arranged, dusk fell. Shu Bao gathered the money and supplies he had earned from his snake teammate, preparing to depart.
As midnight approached, the stars faded, and the light disappeared. The Chaotic World arrived as expected. The tribe members stood at the entrance, reluctant to see their deity leave. Suddenly, the ground began to tremble, and two massive figures squeezed in behind the deity, blocking Shu Bao from view with their large bodies.
The Xia Wang tribe members, whose heartfelt gaze was abruptly cut off: “…”
Finally, Shu Bao stepped out of the tribe amidst the blessings and instructions of the high priest and others, heading into the darkness ahead.
Once outside the tribe, Shu Bao quickly realized that walking with two dragons was somewhat impractical, especially since their movement caused the ground to tremble, making Shu Bao’s walk a series of jarring bounces. With this in mind, Shu Bao promptly stopped this earth-shaking activity.
Seeing this, Jinzi and Yinzi naturally stopped as well. They carefully positioned themselves, one on either side of Shu Bao, unwilling to part from their fluffy mother.
“Let’s fly instead, heading in that direction,” Shu Bao suggested, pointing towards the direction of the tavern.
The two dragons, who preferred flying, were overjoyed. As Yinzi excitedly flapped its wings, Jinzi quickly lowered its head, allowing Shu Bao to climb on. Jinzi then soared into the air, lifted by the wind.
Yinzi blinked in irritation, growled angrily, and quickly pursued, clearly upset that Jinzi had silently whisked away their mother.
Perched on Jinzi’s head, Shu Bao felt the cool breeze of the Chaotic World as they ascended into the sky. The flying creatures were startled and fled in all directions upon their arrival.
This was Shu Bao’s first time viewing the Chaotic World from high above. Without sufficient strength, flying aimlessly in the Chaotic World could be very dangerous. However, with the two dragon babies around, Shu Bao didn’t have to worry about safety.
Looking down, Shu Bao was surprised to see that the Chaotic World was not as pitch-black and cold as he had imagined. The ground was dotted with luminous creatures emitting various glows. Some of these glowing patches formed large, radiant areas, creating a stunning display of colorful lights against the dark backdrop.
“So, the starry sky of the Chaotic World isn’t above us but below us,” Shu Bao remarked with wonder. It was a beautiful sight that most people would never see.
The two dragons, having entered the Chaotic World, began to revel in their newfound freedom. Particularly, the occasional flying magical beasts in the air served as a self-service buffet for the dragon babies, who eagerly began hunting.
Of course, not all snacks are delicious. After tasting a bird that had a somewhat foul odor, Jinzi immediately vomited and began plaintively calling for water. Yinzi, seeing this, took the opportunity to grab a flying fish but ended up vomiting it out as well.
It was clear that the taste of magical beasts in the Chaotic World varied greatly. The two dragons still had a lot to explore.
Shu Bao, observing from above, could only silently pray that no one would be hit by the vomit from the dragon babies. As for Jinzi’s request, Shu Bao readily agreed. With the dragons’ swift flying speed, Shu Bao wasn’t concerned that taking the time for a drink would delay their journey.
From the high altitude, the view below was completely visible. The two dragons quickly spotted a glowing lake in the distance. As they approached, they realized that the lake itself wasn’t glowing; instead, it was inhabited by fish that emitted a blue light at night.
In addition, the lake and its shores were filled with luminous plants, and many chaotic creatures resided on the lake’s edge, indicating that this was a major water source for many magical beasts.
The arrival of Shu Bao and the dragons caused quite a stir on the shore. Most of the surrounding magical beasts quickly fled. Those that seemed formidable were wary of the two dragons’ presence, observing from a safe distance.
Ignoring the commotion, the two dragons began to drink the water, trying to wash away the strange taste from their mouths.
Perched on Jinzi’s head, Shu Bao started to slide down due to the dragon’s tilt. Just as Shu Bao was about to stand up and move, Jinzi seemed to sense it and tilted its head back up, causing Shu Bao to slide back into place. This back-and-forth continued a few times, making Shu Bao feel as if his leg hairs were static-charged. Finally, Shu Bao decided to jump down and said, “Take your time drinking, no need to rush. I’ll just take a look around.”
Several visits to the Chaotic World had been hurried, so this rare moment of leisure allowed Shu Bao to explore the surroundings with curiosity.
The glowing lake in the Chaotic World was like an oasis in the desert, with its own independent and complete ecosystem, supporting a lot of life. The fish in the lake swam happily, and the birds resting on the lake’s surface, disturbed by the arrival, flew off into the distance.
Yinzi, who was drinking water on the shore, tried to catch a glowing fish to taste. With its mouth open, it waited for the small fish to swim closer. However, the fish were swift and darted away as soon as they sensed danger, diving deeper into the lake. In the end, Yinzi only managed to snap at the lake water.
Yinzi gazed longingly at the glowing fish for a while.
The next moment, Jinzi suddenly leaped into the lake, splashing a large amount of water onto the shore along with numerous glowing fish. The fish, once out of the water, began to flounder desperately. The ones closest to the shore jumped back into the lake, while those further away were caught by Yinzi.
Yinzi tasted the first fish and, delighted, called out to show how good it was. Jinzi then submerged and swam farther out, driving more glowing fish toward the shore. As it approached the shore, Jinzi flapped its wings powerfully, causing the water and fish to be splashed up onto the shore once again.
Yinzi joyfully ran back and forth collecting the fish, occasionally sneaking a bite. However, it didn’t keep all the fish to itself. Instead, it divided the fish into three portions: one for itself, one for Jinzi, and one for their furry mother.
When Jinzi climbed back onto the shore, it saw Yinzi happily devouring its meal. In front of Yinzi was a small pile of glowing fish, and in front of the furry mother were two fish.
Nearby, a small, skinny glowing fish was weakly struggling. Jinzi walked over and, incredulously, roared in response.
Shu Bao, remaining calm, answered, “Yes, that’s right. The fish you’re looking at is yours, these two are mine, and that pile over there is Yinzi’s.”
Jinzi: “…”
Fortunately, Jinzi, being the older sibling, accepted the situation gracefully and didn’t argue, even though it got only one fish.
Each glowing fish was about half a meter long. Shu Bao didn’t want to eat raw fish, so he placed the two fish into the system space. Jinzi quickly finished its fish and then joined the furry mother. The two of them, with their paws clasped together, admired the beauty of the lake.
Seeing this, Yinzi began to eat with even more gusto, eager to finish and join the furry mother. When it finally finished the last fish and excitedly ran over, the two looked back at it.
“Finished eating? Then let’s go.”
As usual, Jinzi lowered its head first, and Shu Bao climbed on. They immediately took off. Yinzi, having missed out on the furry mother, could only burp in satisfaction and quickly flapped its wings to catch up.
After they left, a merman, who was half-human and half-fish, emerged from the lake. It swam to the shore, its fish tail transforming into long, elegant legs. With white skin, a streamlined figure, and an alluring face, it had light blue eyes and human ears replacing its once-beautiful, elaborate ear fins. Clearly, this was a merman.
The merman looked up in the direction the dragons had flown and then started moving in that direction as well.
On the way, the dragons’ habit of snacking improved significantly, and they arrived smoothly near the tavern. Shu Bao, of course, did not blatantly bring the dragons to the tavern. He left them at a large ancient tree not far from the tavern and quickly made his way inside.
Before reaching the front, Shu Bao noticed some people leaving the tavern. To his surprise, these people emitted a soft glow that illuminated the surrounding area, although the light was not harsh. What was odd was that the people themselves did not seem to have any visible glowing sources.
Intrigued, Shu Bao approached the bustling tavern. As soon as he pushed the door open, he was stunned. The tavern was packed with people. Many patrons had no seats but were still crowded inside, shouting loudly about wanting to buy glowing meat.
At the moment, a small green snake with a round top hat was busy at the counter, handling money, delivering orders, and taking the next one. The business was evidently booming.
Shu Bao squeezed through the dense crowd of legs and finally made his way to the front. As he climbed onto the counter, he heard Lan Qing announce, “The glowing meat is sold out for today. If you want to buy, come early tomorrow!”
The crowd let out a collective sigh of regret, but gradually, people began to disperse.
Lan Qing, looking tired, slumped onto the counter and immediately spotted Shu Bao. Excitedly, he rubbed against the counter and said, “Shu Bao! You’re here!”
Shu Bao nodded and, curious about the disappointed crowd, asked, “What is glowing meat?”
Upon hearing the question, Lan Qing’s face lit up with a mysterious expression. Leaning in close to Shu Bao, he whispered, “Glowing meat is made by combining magical potions with real-world animal meat. After eating it, you get a glowing aura. It’s much cheaper than other glowing items and is quite tasty. That’s why so many people are eager to buy it. We’ve almost sold out of all the jackal meat!”
Shu Bao was astonished. He then gave Lan Qing a thumbs up. “You’re really something! I thought you might lose money on that ivory jackal deal, but it seems you’ve made a huge profit and gained a reputation.”
“That’s great! In the future, I’ll bring anything I can’t finish in the real world for you to sell!”
“No problem. The more, the better.”
Both the snake and the mouse exchanged cunning but friendly smiles.
