Monster Dismantling Company

The scent was slightly salty. The sea breeze carried the stench of blood, along with hints of citrus and musk.

As the fragrance gradually dissipates, the temperature of the tail also gradually increases—like steaming, the detached Qi condenses into dew, which rises and is absorbed into the port of the weaving device.

The tail has become smaller.

"Ah~" Li Lin's tense back relaxed. "Finally, I feel relieved."

"Hmm..." The silver dragon suddenly fell silent.

Li Lin glanced at his tail—it had indeed shrunk. However, only the front half of his tail had been put into the coffee machine; the back half hadn't been processed yet.

"And what about the other half? Could you help me deal with that too?"

"Ah? Then wait a moment. The Dragon King's Qi is a bit... a bit too much for me. Please wait."

After a short rest, the other half will begin—

"Phew." Li Lin let out a long sigh of relief and leaned against the wall. Now, his tail wouldn't get stuck on him anymore.

"Thanks." He looked at the coffee machine.

"Um."

Why have you become so quiet?

Without uttering a word, the silver dragon revealed its true form once more.

She went around behind Li Lin and pinched his tail: "Wait."

Li Lin jolted awake as he was pinched: "What are you doing?"

"You got some on your skin. Let me wipe it clean for you."

She pinched the tip of Li Lin's tail and wiped away the coffee stains that had gotten on it with her sleeve.

"You don't like coffee stains, right... Okay, that's all. You can go back now."

After saying that, Silver Dragon returned to her territory—for some reason, she seemed to have become much quieter than before.

Now freed from the torment of his tail, Li Lin can finally move around normally.

He tried to wrap the shrunken tail around his waist, just like before.

"I said..." Before leaving, he looked in the direction the car was heading, "If it's like this again next time, can I ask you to come again? I remember you said before that you'd be there whenever I called, right?"

"Woo~~" The car horn sounded once.

"What does this mean? Does it mean you agree or disagree?"

The car honked its horn three times. Even Li Lin could tell that she seemed a little angry.

"Okay, okay, we'll talk about it next time."

He stepped out from the front of the car.

The rear door closed automatically, slamming heavily against the door frame.

"Is it all done?"

Not far away, Master Wang saw Li Lin.

"All done! I feel refreshed."

"So fast?" Master Wang looked at Li Lin's back in surprise. "Hey, you've calmed down? How did you do that?"

"I used the coffee machine."

"Coffee, can it help with internal heat?" Master Wang still didn't understand, but as long as it was fine, that was good. "Let's go back first, Lin Zhiqing is still waiting for you."

As soon as these words were spoken, the front of the car suddenly made a loud, resounding noise:

"Passengers who have not yet boarded, please do so as soon as possible. Please be aware of the gap between the platform and the train to ensure your safety. For your safety and the safety of others, please fasten your seatbelt throughout the train journey and do not move around or leave your seat. Repeat, please be aware of the gap between the train and the platform. Fasten your seatbelt and do not move around!"

Mr. Wang seemed to sense something was amiss. The station announcement inexplicably emphasized not to fall into the gap between the train and the platform, as it could easily cause a split if one's feet were on either side. The announcement also stressed that once on board, passengers should not move around in their seats and should ideally use their seatbelts to secure themselves.

But aside from the accent and the strange repetition, this is just a normal station announcement tone—

"Let's get in the car quickly." He patted Li Lin on the shoulder. "Hey, why is your temperature a little high today?"

"Really?" He touched his face. "I think so. Maybe we were a little too familiar just now..."

"???" Master Wang blinked, still completely unaware. But since the bus was about to depart, he quickly pushed Li Lin onto the bus.

Back in her seat, only Lin Zhiqing and she remained. Most of the others who had boarded earlier had disembarked in Guazhou.

"Hey." Lin Zhiqing, who was sitting alone reading a book, nodded at him when she saw him return. "Did you sleep well last night?"

"It's fine. But it's a bit tiring to get up in the morning. I can't just use someone else's room for free; I have to help her clean it after I get up."

"Ah." Lin Zhiqing nodded. "You're a pretty good person."

Suddenly, she sniffed: "Did you wear perfume? Why do you smell?"

"Is there?"

Lin Zhiqing leaned in immediately: "Ah, right, right, that's the scent... It smells so good, like sea salt lychee. What brand of perfume do you use? I'll buy one for my brother later."

"Perfume? I don't wear perfume. It's probably just my natural scent."

"Hey... I really like this flavor. It would be a shame if we couldn't buy it—well, actually it's not a shame, you're right next to me."

"Oh, right," Li Lin said, taking out his notebook, "I have a gift for you."

He turned to the page he had just finished drawing—

Sea breeze, coconut palms, and a extinguished campfire. This is what a beach in Ningzhou looks like. Although the campfire has gone out, three people can still be seen walking home side by side in the corner of the picture.

"This is?"

"This is what it looked like after our party that day. I suddenly remembered it, so I drew a picture to remember it by."

"So you can draw!"

"Mmm." Li Lin nodded. "I was particularly inspired this morning."

When Master Wang handed him the notebook in the morning, he transformed his inspiration into a picture, and then used his tail to hold the paintbrush and bring the picture to life.

"Huh? We've known each other for so long, and this is the first time I've ever seen you draw. When did you learn?"

"I haven't studied it systematically; inspiration just comes when it strikes." Actually, it only comes when the tail of the idea pops out.

"Can you draw one for me now?"

"Now?" Li Lin blinked—he himself couldn't draw with his hands. His inspiration came from his tail. Of course, his tail could hold a pen now, but he couldn't use it to draw here.

"Oh dear, why are you shy?" Lin Zhiqing opened her backpack and handed her notebook and pen to Li Lin. "Here, draw one for me, don't be stingy."

"This..." Li Lin wanted to refuse—but suddenly, a flash of clarity swept through his mind. It was inspiration.

In the past, his inspiration had always manifested through the tail that appeared after the mutation, remaining only within the dragon's heart. However, just now, as a human, he too had experienced a burst of inspiration. Looking at the paintbrush Lin Zhiqing handed him, he even felt a desire to create, as if everything was under his control.

He could even sense that as the Qi in his tail dissipated, his mastery of various skills was elevated to a new level. Not just paintbrushes, but if he were holding a dagger, he seemed capable of unleashing his combat skills as well.

He had become a sage. This was a wondrous feeling I had never experienced before.

"Ahem." A familiar voice appeared in his ears, and the silver dragon reappeared. "Gentlemen, I've brought you breakfast."

She looked at Li Lin, who was getting up to take the paintbrush, and reminded him, "Please fasten your seatbelt and don't leave your seat."

"oh..."

After Li Lin sat back down, she brought breakfast to the two of them.

Incidentally, she also handed each person a drink. The one for Lin Zhiqing was milk, which she had brought from a nearby drawing machine. The other one was coffee.

She handed the coffee to Li Lin and watched him silently.

She stared at Li Lin's lips. If Li Lin drank the coffee again, he would pass out like last night—however, Li Lin seemed oblivious, grabbing the cup she offered and about to drink.

"Ah! Never mind!" Before Li Lin's lips could touch the coffee, she reached out and snatched it back. "Sorry, I forgot Li Lin can't drink coffee. Here, have some milk."

She handed him regular milk, then took a few steps back while holding her coffee and turned to leave.

Suddenly, she came back.

"I'll answer your question now—next time is fine too. Are you satisfied now?" She stared into Li Lin's eyes.

"Hmm? You agreed? Yeah, thanks. I'll come find you next time too."

After all, he already knew what coffee tasted like; it was delicious.

"Then next time you call me, just say you want to make coffee."