Everything else after completing her first ridian pathway was a blur that night. Anji ate and bathed robotically before she crashed onto the bed, too exhausted to remain awake.
That night, Anji had a dream. It felt like a long and realistic dream.
"Who are you?" she called to the mysterious presence looming in the misty dreamland.
Oftentis, the child’s dreams were full of mundane things that happened during the day or sothing she wished would happen during the day. Sotis, she dreamt of helping Lizi and the chef cook in the kitchen, sothing she wasn’t permitted to do. On other days, she would dream of herself as a frog, playing in the rain until it was dinnerti.
Today’s dream wasn’t nearly as colourful as her previous dreams. There were only a few tis that Anji dreamt of a dull world. Most of them were frightening nightmares. She would wake up in tears and cold sweat. However, the panic would soon abate when Lizi or her mother would hold her in their arms and soothe Anji until she fell back to sleep, feeling safe.
Although her dream was gloomy, Anji did not get the usual sense of foreboding tonight. In fact, her mind was exceptionally clear. The misty scenery enshrouded a familiar stranger. Anji had never heard their voice before. It was neither man nor woman and travelled straight into her head without going through her ears. Yet, the sound reverberated with her soul, beckoning to her.
"Co here, child. Let have a closer look at you," the voice behind the fog said again.
Her mother and the adults around her always cautioned Anji about strangers. She knew what stranger danger was and heeded their advice all the ti. Even if soone wore the Celestial Dragon Sect uniform, it did not always an they were people Anji should talk to unless soone she knew introduced them first with the approval of her parents or Lizi. However, they weren’t here right now. Besides, this was a dream. How could following a stranger in a dream be a bad thing?
Hence, Anji defied logic and followed her instinct for the first ti since her birth. She walked towards the mysterious figure, pushing through the thick mist. Upon closer inspection, that was mist. They seed to be closer to clouds. Anji knew from experience because she had previously flown on her teacher’s staff and observed them closely.
As the child trudged towards the source of her dream, she realised that the voice’s owner was much bigger than she thought they were. In fact, they were taller than her father. Zhao Mingfeng was by no ans short. He was a fair head taller than most people, even in the capital city. However, this figure lood at least eight heads above her father. What kind of person was this?
"Co closer, child. I can’t see you well with eyes as old as mine."
Ah. So the mysterious person was elderly. That made Anji feel less cautious towards them. After all, she always had a soft spot for them. Grandpa Chen, who introduced dried persimmons to her, was a nice old man. Her shifu was probably the oldest person alive that Anji knew. She might be strict and eccentric, but she was a wonderful and inspiring role model that Anji admired.
Eventually, Anji ca up close enough to the source of the voice. However, all she saw was a scaly yellow wall that was cold to the touch. What a weird place.
"Where are you?" she called out from beneath the wall. "I’m here!"
Suddenly, the yellow wall moved, startling the daylights out of the four-year-old child. Backing away as quickly as she could, Anji fell onto her butt. It was a dream, so she wasn’t hurt. However, she almost scread when she caught a glimpse of the true identity of her mysterious dream figure.
When fully stretched out, the magnificent beast was more than ten tis the height of a man. The only reason why Anji did not start crying imdiately was because she had never recalled anyone speaking ill of a dragon. They were mythical creatures that helped govern and protect the country. Even the emperor was known as the dragon’s son, chosen by the gods to rule over people with his empowered wisdom.
"There you are," the yellow dragon snorted, puffs of steam escaping from its nostrils. "You’re a really puny human for soone who was chosen to carry such a big responsibility. Co here, squirt. I’m too old to be playing hide and seek!"
Gathering her wits, Anji stumbled and cautiously crept over to the grouchy dragon’s head so it could have a better look at her. As she had not seen a dragon before, she could not guess its age or gender. However, it was better to be polite to it. After all, Anji was taught to respect her elders. The yellow dragon should be even older than Grandpa and Grandpa Wang, who sold chilli oil noodles.
"Anji greets Dragon Elder," she greeted when she was about ten steps away from the sleepy dragon.
Lazily opening one eye with a translucent white film over it, the yellow dragon squinted.
"Dragon Elder makes feel old," it claid. "You can call Grandpa Jin. I can’t see you very well. Co five steps closer."
Did dragons also have cataract disease? The white film over that eye matched all the symptoms of this illness she had once read about in dical journals. However, Anji did not co here to squabble. Shuffling her feet, she moved five tiny steps closer until she was right in front of the dragon. Noticing that she was just as big as its eye, Anji felt nervous once more.
"I’m here... Grandpa Jin."
The whisker near the dragon’s mouth twitched as he observed the new human contractor. It had been almost a thousand years since his slumber. He had never been awakened prematurely. This human’s soul called out to him loud enough, and he thought it would be the hero humanity desired. However, it turned out to be the daughter of a hero that humanity hailed, a cursed daughter.
...
She was lovable, though. There was nothing the ancient golden dragon could complain about. The purity of this child’s soul and accumulated karma were among the best he had ever seen. If not for her cursed fate, she would undoubtedly beco immortal. However, correcting a mistake was no difficult task for a dragon like him.
"You’re an unfortunate child," he stated. "Do you know that you’re going to die?"
Hearing this, Anji only smiled in response.
"Yes," she acknowledged. "My parents told that when I was born, I almost died. More importantly, I’ll never be able to cultivate in this life and could die at any mont because I’m very weak."
Intrigued by her response without even a trace of remorse or spite for her circumstances, the golden dragon blinked.
"Then why do you try so hard? Do you think it’s worth sacrificing your teacher’s cultivation base for a sliver of hope in your inevitable future?"
It was a trick. The first part was true. He had seen the blind prophet’s attempts to rewrite Anji’s physical circuits. In doing so, she had temporarily lost her newly gained cultivation base. It would take her years to regain that power back and make any progress forward. However, the second part was subjective.
Hearing that she had inconvenienced her teacher greatly, Anji’s eyes widened in shock and horror. It took her teacher half a year to finally touch the tip of the Supre Core stage. How much progress had she caused her teacher to lose over her?!
Sensing her thoughts and emotions, the golden dragon confird that Anji was indeed the soul that summoned him. There was no further need to test her.
"You," he stated. "If you’re truly concerned about the well-being of those around you, why don’t you try harder?"
Lost, Anji tilted her head in an attempt to understand the question better. Try harder? Try what harder? Anji didn’t understand. Wasn’t she already doing her best? However, all she did was only inconvenience them and put the people she cared for at risk when she attempted to improve herself. Sotis, Anji thought it would be better for everyone else if she remained still like a doll or if she had never been born at all. That way, her parents would never have gotten to know her, and they would never need to understand the heartache of losing a child before their ti has arrived. It was written in books that the pain of a parent losing a child could never be described as it was not a natural passing as decided by nature. It could be described as one of the worst things that could ever happen caused by love.
Sighing at the amount of overthinking a small child like Anji could do, the golden dragon poked at her cheek gently with his whisker.
"Live. I’ll give you power, so work harder and surpass them all. Beco a strong tree that will protect the people that you care for. But in return, you must bear the burden of watching all of them die as you outlive them forever. The more you grow to love the children that your future children have, the more pain you will suffer. It’s a curse worse than your sealed cultivation core. Will you do it?"
The curse of immortality. So many cultivators sought it out like it was a blessing. However, divine creatures like him knew that there was nothing other than boredom when one was at the apex of existence. With a wave of his finger, the dragon could bring rain to end a drought or flood an empire. What was the point in doing anything more?
However, an interesting enough soul would enter the reincarnation cycle once every millennium. It was only natural that the mythical creatures at the apex of existence would take interest in them. The cocky Qilin snatched away the last human who showed so potential to beco an immortal. The golden dragon still had a grudge because he missed the chance, snoozing away.
Power.
Anji wondered if that was a blessing or a curse. The dragon called it a curse. However, she understood that it was hinting at immortality, the ultimate goal of every cultivator. Anji was one of the only people who did not want to cultivate with the intention of living forever. All she wanted was a chance to extend her remaining ti on Earth so that she could beco a good daughter to her parents and repay the kindness everyone had shown her.
"Why do you choose ?" she finally asked. "Why not the emperor? He’s the son of the dragon. Everyone thinks so."
Yawning, the golden dragon groaned. Why do humans continue to say that? It was a one-ti decision back then.
"Listen," he growled. "The person I chose back then just happened to beco the emperor. It’s not that I choose the emperor every single ti it happens. Do you think I have nothing better to do? Humans choose their own emperors. Most of the ti, I sleep. Unless soone like you cos along once every few hundred years, I’d rather sleep because there’s nothing better to do. Most of the problems that exist are created by humans in the first place. I’m not going to clean up after their ss! You! You’re a different kind of human, so I’m giving you the chance. I don’t get to choose my own contractor very often. After that emperor kid, you’re the second who will carry the pearl of a dragon. Do you want it or not?"
...
Were all dragons like this? Anji had no idea. However, her impression of a responsible guardian crumbled faster than she could have gotten a cold in the rain.
"What do you want to do if I accept it?" Anji asked cautiously. "Do I have to beco the emperor too?"
The throne was too heavy for her. Anji would reject it if that were the condition.
Feeling annoyed that the little squishy human would reject him, the golden dragon beca angry at once. How dare a human reject a mythical beast?! There was never a cheekier existence in all of history!
"How dare you threaten !" the golden dragon seethed. "A dragon’s pearl grants the contractor wisdom and knowledge that surpasses humans. You have the prerequisite requirents for them. That’s why I offered. If you don’t want it, then why did you call for in the first place?!"
???
"B-but I didn’t call for you?"
"You did!"
"Did not..."
"You did! It was definitely you. With such a strong calling, I thought it would be the next hero of humanity. It turned out to be his daughter instead."
"Were you always the guardian of humanity?" Anji asked, putting aside her cautiousness for curiosity.
Grumbling, the golden dragon cursed silently. What a troubleso contractor.
"In a way, I’m the golden dragon of both prosperity and peace. The person I choose is the protagonist who carves a path for a period of peace. As I said, humans always find a way to ruin their hard-attained peace with greed. You don’t have to be an emperor to do that."
Thinking about it, Anji wondered what she did to call upon the great dragon. It wasn’t anything special. She did not have many things that she wanted. Peace was a great thing, but Anji only wanted the happiness and safety of the people she held dear.
"If I accept the dragon pearl and the curse of immortality, can I rewrite people’s fates and prevent them from dying?"
"No, you can’t. An immortal is not a god. If gods can’t make humans live forever all the ti and cure every disease or prevent wars, what makes you think an immortal can do that? You can try, but sowhere, sohow, humans will repeat history all over again in a place you can’t see or reach. It’s useless."
...
"Then what good is this?" Anji sulked. "It’s such a heavy responsibility for such a useless power."
Useless power... this girl!
Wanting to return to sleep and not deal with this headache of a child, the golden dragon manifested his pearl and glared at Anji.
"I don’t care!" he huffed. "You’re my contractor. If you don’t like the pearl, find a way to spit it out and return it to after you beco immortal!"
Shoving the pearl into Anji’s soul, the golden dragon ignored Anji’s protests as the pearl dissolved almost imdiately upon contact with her soul, transforming it into one with divine protection.
"How could you do that without my consent!" Anji wanted to cry. "Grandpa Jin!"
Seeing her teary face, the golden dragon plucked a golden scale from under his chin and pressed it to Anji’s forehead. Like the pearl, it quickly dissolved and fused with Anji’s golden core. It was a gift to help the struggling girl stabilise her unusual physical dynamic.
"If you know how to call Grandpa Jin, this ans you’re now the granddaughter of the golden dragon. Even if you’re a hatchling, you cannot be weak. Besides, it’s already done and cannot be undone. Co and find again when you have grown into an adult. Don’t be in a hurry to visit , though. Immortals live for a very long ti."
With that, Anji was tossed out of the dream as the cranky golden dragon returned to its slumber.
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