Chapter 37: Genuine and Authentic, How Can One Bear It

"Heavens! A dragon... the dragon race has reappeared?" Second Elder Mo, who had been swiped away by a dragon's tail, clutched his chest and shrieked, his clouded pupils filled with shock.

Since the disappearance of summoners, the dragon race had also gone extinct, followed by the gradual vanishing of even mid-level magical beasts.

Today, he had trailed Madam Leng to assassinate Mo Liuli. Never had he expected that the assassination would fail, and that he would instead be wounded by this creature resembling a dragon. As he felt the shattered bones and meridians throughout his body, his eyes were brimming with despair.

He dared not be certain if the tiny creature was truly a dragon; after all, the race had been extinct for so many years.

Seeing that Mo Liuli was stunned, Long'er stopped being willful. He retracted his true form and, in a flash, transformed back into a toddler of about a year old. He scampered toward Mo Liuli, wrapped his arms around her calf, and cooed, "Mother! Mother!"

His large, jewel-like eyes blinked with liquid brightness, and his adorable expression was so endearing that one couldn't help but want to take a bite out of him.

Suddenly confronted with such an adorable little child calling her mother, Mo Liuli was left in a daze. She crouched down, picked up the little one, and examined him from head to toe.

"Don't contracted magical beasts usually call their master? Why is this one calling me mother?"

Xiao Junwang, who hadn't yet approached, heard this mutter. His eyes crinkled with a smile as he shifted his direction toward Madam Leng.

The little tot, Long'er, rolled his eyes in a cute manner. Resigned, he stood straight before Mo Liuli and said with an extremely serious expression, "Mother, Long'er is your genuine, flesh-and-blood child! Magical beasts and such are all just fleeting clouds..."

Mo Liuli’s mouth twitched. She tapped the cinnabar mole between his brows and said, "Little one, how have you grown so big in just a short while? You—you make it so hard for Mother to process this!"

Mo Liuli recalled that since Long'er's birth, he had not touched a drop of milk and had slept all day. Yet, in less than two months, the little bun had skipped straight to being a toddler. There probably wasn't another child in the world who grew as fast as he did.

"Long'er can protect Mother when he grows up! That’s why Long'er needs to grow up fast. Father, tell me, isn't Long'er right?"

Long'er pulled on Mo Liuli’s hand to act sweet, and after speaking, he gave Xiao Junwang a mischievous wink.

Seeing Long'er’s clever, impish look, Xiao Junwang offered an indulgent smile before burying his head back into observing Madam Leng’s corpse.

...

Mo Liuli remained completely baffled by the speed of Long'er’s growth.

She picked up the little toddler and walked toward Xiao Junwang, only now remembering that Madam Leng had been struck by the sharp needles.

"How is she?"

"Dead from poison! It seems the needles were coated in a lethal toxin; those people wanted you dead." No sooner had Xiao Junwang finished speaking than he stood up abruptly and raced toward the distance.

In his focus on Mo Liuli, he had forgotten about the masked man. He didn't know if Long'er had crippled him; if he hadn't, and the man escaped, he would be a great danger to Mo Liuli in the future!

Seeing Xiao Junwang suddenly dash away, a worried Mo Liuli hugged Long'er and followed.

"He's gone!" Xiao Junwang circled the area several times, but the masked man was nowhere to be seen. Clearly, he had escaped.

"Xiao, no need to search anymore. That masked man is Second Elder Mo of the Mo family. The monk might run, but the temple remains—I don't believe he won't return to the Mo family!"

Mo Liuli said coldly, harboring deep resentment over Second Elder Mo's attempt on her life.

It seemed that the old man from her memories—the one who appeared kind and taciturn, treating her with indifference—actually held deep hatred for her. Otherwise, why would he use such a lethal, soul-snatching poison to hunt her down?

"Mother! Don't be afraid, Father and Long'er are here!" Long'er wrapped his arms around Mo Liuli’s neck, his voice milky and soft, before planting a sweet kiss on her cheek.