Chapter Twenty-Two: The Black Serpent

Where am I?

All around me was pitch-black, with a thick, nauseating stench lingering in the air.

Hadn’t we just been swallowed by the black-scaled dragon? How did we end up in this dreadful place?

Could it be that we’re inside the belly of the black-scaled dragon?

“Feng Zimo, where are you? Can you hear me?” I called out.

But after waiting for ages, there was no response.

I wondered if Feng Zimo had died and shouted a few more times.

Still, all I heard was my own echo.

So I could only stumble and crawl inside the dragon’s stomach, hoping to find a way out through its mouth.

At the same time, I silently prayed not to head the wrong way.

But fate, as always, loves to play tricks—what you fear most always comes knocking.

After exhausting every ounce of strength, I ended up crawling in the wrong direction, heading straight toward the dragon’s tail.

There was no way forward, and the air grew thinner and thinner.

I desperately wished the dragon would fart and send me flying out.

But luck was never so kind to me, so I had to turn around and crawl back.

With every inch I moved, suffocation threatened, and the dragon’s body wouldn’t keep still, tossing and swaying wildly.

Each time I managed to crawl a few meters, a sudden jolt would fling me back to where I started.

I knew this must be because Lin Weiyan was fighting the dragon; otherwise, it wouldn’t be thrashing about so violently.

I couldn’t give up—even if it cost me every last bit of strength, I had to keep crawling forward.

Clenching my teeth, I pressed on, step by step.

Whenever I sensed even the slightest movement in the dragon’s body, I thrust my hands deep into its flesh to keep myself from sliding back to the beginning.

But now the air was running out, which was a serious problem.

Though I tried to take as few breaths as possible, I was only human.

I couldn’t survive without breathing—at one point, it felt as if my lungs were about to burst.

Yet I forced myself onward.

At last, heaven rewarded my perseverance; I managed to breathe in enough air.

The smell was awful, thick with blood and rot, making me cough uncontrollably.

After a short rest to regain my strength, I pressed on, crawling forward.

I found that the closer I got to the dragon’s mouth, the more violently it shook.

Several times, I nearly got thrown back into its stomach.

In my panic, I grabbed hold of something, unsure what it was, but it kept me from being tossed away.

Though I couldn’t see what I was holding, I could feel it—a warm, fleshy mass.

I wondered if it was the dragon’s innards.

So I gripped it tightly—if it really was an organ, surely the dragon would feel pain.

Sure enough, the dragon’s body went berserk.

I couldn’t let this opportunity slip by and held fast to its organ, refusing to let go, no matter how it struggled.

When faced with an enemy, strike while it’s vulnerable!

I grabbed again, harder than before.

The more force I applied, the fiercer the dragon’s reaction grew—I could even hear its anguished screams.

Just as I was secretly pleased, disaster struck—the organ in my grip suddenly shot out a beam of cold light.

That light pierced straight through my forehead and into my body.

Then, a voice echoed in my mind.

“Greetings, my master.”

“Who are you? How are you speaking inside my body?” I asked in terror.

“I am the black-scaled dragon. From now on, you are my master. I will reside within you.”

“What?” I cried out, hurriedly protesting.

“No, no! Get out of me!”

“Master, please rest assured. My presence will only benefit you.”

“That’s not acceptable. Please, just leave—I’m begging you,” I pleaded again.

The dragon fell silent, as if it had vanished.

“Are you listening? Get out now!”

But the black-scaled dragon never replied.

Suddenly, light flooded my vision—I found myself suspended in midair.

Ah…

With a startled cry, my body plummeted downward.

Luckily, Lin Weiyan reacted swiftly and caught me just in time.

She gently placed me on the ground, where I saw Feng Zimo was also present.

“You’re not dead?” I asked.

Feng Zimo looked bewildered. “We all thought you were dead.”

“But wait, weren’t you swallowed by the dragon with me?” I asked, confused.

Feng Zimo replied, “You were the one the dragon ate, okay? Lin Weiyan and I had to fight tooth and nail to subdue that beast.”

What?

“Wait… I’m a bit dizzy. What’s going on here?” I said.

Lin Weiyan explained, “The dragon did swallow you and Feng Zimo together, but quickly spat Feng Zimo out. Later, Feng Zimo and I battled the dragon for ages before finally destroying its physical body.”

“But if that’s so, why did the dragon say it’s inside me?” I asked, puzzled, wondering if it had all been an illusion. Yet the illusion felt too real.

Upon hearing this, Feng Zimo and Lin Weiyan’s expressions changed—surprised, almost shocked.

“Could it be that the dragon’s soul has chosen you as its master? That can’t be! The black-scaled dragon is one of the ten ancient divine beasts. How could it bow to a mere mortal?” Feng Zimo said.

Lin Weiyan, too, found it unbelievable, as if this truly defied the dragon’s nature. She asked me to extend my left hand.

Sure enough…

On the little finger of my left hand, there coiled a tattoo-like image of a black-scaled dragon.

No matter how I scrubbed, it wouldn’t come off.

I’d always been sensitive to such things—now it seemed I’d never have a peaceful night again.

Feng Zimo and Lin Weiyan assured me this was a good thing; the dragon would obey my commands in the future.

Even so, I felt uneasy.

“Don’t complain when you’ve gained so much. Look at you two—one got an ancient sword, the other the dragon’s soul. And me? I got nothing.”

Watching Feng Zimo’s pitiful face, I couldn’t help but recall the proverb: “The willow you intentionally plant won’t grow, but the one you neglect flourishes.”

Now the palace was destroyed and all the magical artifacts buried beneath it—searching for them would be difficult, so Feng Zimo simply gave up on the idea.

As we headed toward the next palace, Feng Zimo said,

“If I can’t get an artifact, surely I’ll find a spell manual.”

Hearing this, Lin Weiyan and I were speechless.

I tried to comfort him, “They’ll all be yours—no one will fight you for them, alright?”

Feng Zimo grinned, “That’s better. You’re a true friend.”