I am the old, fiery-faced man from the senior department.

The master pen let out a long sigh.

"Is there anything else you need?"

Xi stared intently at her writing brush, her voice as clear as frost and snow.

This guy's appearance never means trouble!

"Ah Xi, stop crying."

With a flourish of his brush, he gently stroked the young dragon.

"Your second uncle is waiting for you."

"He's at the end of this street."

"Go find him. Perhaps you can see him one last time."

"How could this be..."

The young dragon, its face smeared with ink, raised its head and looked at the magic brush with a puzzled expression.

"Go, and you'll understand."

"gentlemen……"

Xi nodded slightly, then raised her hand to wipe away the tears from the corner of his eyes.

"Go ahead, isn't this what you came here to do?"

"Ah."

As daylight ran away and departed, dusk turned back to look at the magic pen.

"What exactly is going on with his second uncle?"

"This one?"

Miaobi put away the notebook and looked out the window, where the baby dragon came into view.

"Heavenly Punishment Platform".

"what!"

Xi certainly knew about that thing.

"It's that old guy who created that thing, the so-called thing that can slow down or even eliminate natural disasters!"

"Yes, that's it."

Once the child's figure disappeared from sight, Miaobi turned to look at her younger sister.

"but……"

Xi gripped the teacup, her brows furrowing.

"That thing... isn't something only true dragons are qualified to..."

"Moreover, the side effects are extremely severe. If a true dragon goes up there, at best it will suffer a severe loss of vital energy and depletion of bloodline, and at worst the sky will collapse... just like the last one..."

"Wait... if his second uncle is... you mean, the brat is the prince of the Great Yan Dynasty?"

Xi was startled and looked up at Miaobi in disbelief.

"Yes and no."

Miaobi smiled and gently shook her head.

"He is indeed a prince."

"But his second uncle is not a real dragon."

"..."

Looking at the mysterious-looking Miaobi, Xi wished she could just draw her sword and kill this riddle-maker.

"You'll guess soon enough, November. Keep it up and think about it some more."

What's the point of thinking about it any further?

Xi gave a soft hum and leaned back in her chair.

What does the little devil's identity have to do with her?

Whether he is a prince or a king, what does it matter to her, an ordinary painter?

only……

If the little devil is a prince, it will be much more difficult to visit him in the future.

Unless he can get to that position...

and many more……

Xi suddenly had an idea.

The little devil is a prince, but he's not entirely a prince...

His second uncle was going to do something only a true dragon could do...

His father's remains are buried here...

Kid...he is...

Xi looked at Miaobi again with a look of shock in her eyes.

Miaobi said nothing, only smiled.

Xi was stunned.

"Kid...how could it be..."

■

"You are crazy!"

Bai Yi grabbed Chi Long by the shoulder and yelled at him.

"You want to build the Heavenly Punishment Platform! Have you forgotten how the late emperor died?!"

"Of course I remember."

The red dragon let out a soft groan.

“My elder brother died right in front of me, of course I remember him.”

"Heaven is blind and has taken my elder brother's life."

"But it doesn't frighten me. I even find that so-called God ridiculous."

"It fears our will, it dreads our actions."

“If we can eliminate natural disasters, their power will no longer be a mystery to us, and we will no longer be able to hold them in awe.”

"It's afraid. It's afraid that one day we'll surpass it and then knock it down from the sky."

"Therefore, it takes our lives and suppresses our blood. It wants us to submit, to make us never dare to resist."

But how could we admit defeat!

The memory in the red dragon's mind was incredibly clear.

He watched with his own eyes as his elder brother ascended the Heavenly Punishment Platform.

He watched his brother hold the ceremony with his own eyes.

I watched my brother fall down on it with my own eyes.

Just like father, grandfather, ancestors...

"The good weather and abundant harvests of the Great Yan over the past eleven years were bought with the life of my elder brother! The foundation of the Great Yan over the past hundreds of years was bought with the lives of one true dragon after another!"

"How could I not remember!"

Chi Long pushed Bai Yi aside and threw the jade box onto the table.

"Now that disaster is upon us again, if I don't go, should Ah Xi go instead!"

"He's only twelve! He has a brighter future ahead of him!"

"The Great Yan can live without me, but it cannot live without the True Dragon! The Great Yan is not so desperate as to let a child risk his life!"

"..."

Bai Yi gritted his teeth and slammed his fist heavily on the table.

He understands all these principles.

but……

"Isn't there... another way...?"

"Can't we just not..."

“My mind is made up. Bai Yi, open the Heavenly Execution Platform.”

Red Dragon gripped the box, his eyes showing no fear.

"How wonderful it would be to exchange my life for ten more years of prosperity for the Great Yan Dynasty."

"……it is good."

The moment Bai Yi agreed, a strong voice of refusal rang out from outside.

"not good!"

"This is……"

Bai Yi and Chi Long looked over together.

The boy stepped in from outside. Although his face was still clean, his bloodshot eyes and clenched fists betrayed his current state.

He was grieving.

He was angry.

"Second Uncle! I disagree!"

Faced with the boy's protesting shouts, Chi Long simply smiled, placed his large hand on the boy's head, and ruffled his hair.