Be that as it may, Bai Xiaodu couldn't help but laugh.
Just how terrible was the reputation of "Autocracy"?
His remnant sword hissed at it, and now this half-dragon was doing the exact same thing!
If he hadn't already confirmed that his ascension ceremony was for the 【Mage Emperor】 Pathway, he might have seriously considered switching over.
The other party finally reappeared in midair with a face as grim as a funeral. Bai Xiaodu began to formulate his words.
But before he could speak, a barrage of items came raining down on him!
A chaotic mess of corpse parts, long tail feathers patterned with blood-red veins, a grotesque and bizarre black bull horn...
Kiru was practically screaming at the top of his lungs.
“Take them! Take them all and get the hell out of here!”
“Don't you ever let me see your face again!”
Although half-dragons didn't enjoy the thousand-year lifespans of pure-blood dragons, their life cycle was still incredibly long. Kiru had lived for over six hundred years.
He considered himself highly knowledgeable and exceptionally tolerant.
Yet, he had never met anyone like Bai Xiaodu.
The kid wanted everything, and then some!
Bai Xiaodu pressed his hands down, gesturing for him to calm down.
“Let me thank you in advance for your sponsorship, Mr. Kiru. However, there is one more thing I'm not sure I should mention...”
“Get lost!”
Bai Xiaodu continued regardless.
“Mr. Kiru, even after spending just a few short hours together, I find you to be a man of great personal charm.”
“For a talent like you to humble yourself as a remnant spirit in a Secret Realm that doesn't even rank at the transcendent level is truly a tragic waste.”
“I was thinking that perhaps we could cooperate. Remaining here might not seem like a big deal, and a retirement life is certainly nice. But once you go outside, the world will be your oyster.”
In truth, Bai Xiaodu hadn't expected Kiru to actually hand over all of those dragon flesh and blood materials.
He had even thrown in the parts of the dragon-bull from the third stage—which Bai Xiaodu hadn't even fought yet. Kiru had killed it for him, saving him a lot of time.
Of course, Bai Xiaodu didn't think this was enough.
Staring at the half-dragon remnant soul floating in midair, his silver fox ears couldn't help but perk up.
Wasn't there an even better prize right in front of him?
This half-dragon had lived for an unknown number of centuries. He was practically a walking database and treasure finder!
Furthermore, Secret Realms were created by the intense emotions of the deceased.
It was impossible for Kiru to just want to fight all the time.
He surely had old friends, or at least knew some prominent figures.
As time flew by, some of them must have lived while others died.
He could totally have Kiru lead him to pay them a visit!
With this in mind, Bai Xiaodu offered an even more enticing term, his voice slow and deliberate.
He sounded like an abyssal demon whispering temptations into someone's ear.
“If you're willing to come with me, I can help reshape your physical body, or even assist you in possessing someone.”
He then added:
“Of course, since you are half-dragon and half-human, I will only help you reconstruct a human body. If you choose possession, I'll pick a talented individual from among my human enemies.”
Kiru fell silent.
He crossed his arms and stared silently at Bai Xiaodu's face.
How could such demonic words come out of a face like that?
But he had to admit.
To a remnant spirit who had been dead for many years, reconstructing a physical body was an incredibly hard temptation to resist.
Kiru gritted his teeth in hesitation, then shook his head.
“...No. You aren't even a transcendent yet. How do you have the face to talk to me about reconstructing a body?”
“And considering your utterly atrocious personality...”
“I'm not going to swallow the empty promises you're feeding me. Besides, who's to say you aren't just tricking me out of here to squeeze out my remaining value?”
Bai Xiaodu sighed.
He was deeply pained.
Why did everyone in this day and age always assume the worst of others?
Couldn't the world just have a little more care and love?
They just had to force him to use his ultimate move.
Seeing that Kiru was about to vanish again, Bai Xiaodu spoke with absolute confidence.
For this type of guy, he had a mature and highly reliable routine.
“Come with me, Mr. Kiru.”
“Once your body is reshaped, I'll take you to find that silver dragon, Maria...”
“I think that besides being an incompetent husband, you could also play the role of a capable red-haired paramour.”
Kiru's vanishing body suddenly froze in place, though he still didn't turn around.
Bai Xiaodu curled his lips.
What a simp.
So many years had passed. Even if that silver dragon were still alive and her appearance remained unchanged...
Her mana would probably smell so old it'd make one gag.
She's probably worn out by now.
Yet even as a ghost, the moment Kiru heard his goddess's name, he still couldn't resist flocking over like a dog to a bone.
Seeing his reaction, Bai Xiaodu quickly struck while the iron was hot.
“If she's alive, I'll help you pin down that second-generation red dragon. After that, you can do whatever you want and go wherever you please.”
“If she's dead, I'll use necromancy to revive her and hand her over to you. You'll have full ownership; what you do with her will be entirely up to you.”
“And if that's still not enough...”
Bai Xiaodu grinned, baring his teeth.
“I'll help you track down that silver dragon's descendants.”
“I guarantee they'll be clean and pure. You can raise them yourself from youth, fulfilling every single regret you've ever had. How does that sound?”
Kiru snapped his head around instantly, his eyes burning like torches.
“You goddamn fox-kin, what's your name?”
“Bai Xiaodu.”
Two plumes of white steam snorted from his nose as Kiru growled.
“Goddamn, Bai Xiaodu, you're a fucking genius! Your fucking IQ definitely beats those fucking pure-blood gold dragons!”
“Oh, and once they're in my hands, you aren't allowed to turn them into humans under any pretext, got it?”
“I want dragons! Pure, unadulterated dragons!”
It seemed he had succeeded.
Sigh.
Although it pained him deeply that his future mentor was an iron-blooded cuckold with a severe case of dragon-fetishism and bestiality...
Bai Xiaodu could only pinch his nose and accept it.
He really did need an old-timer who would answer whatever he asked.
Talking to someone like Director-General Shen, who could basically read minds, was far too exhausting.
Having reached this point, Bai Xiaodu asked.
“I recall that powerful remnant spirits usually have the ability to possess objects. Can you attach yourself to one of my items?”
“For example, that 【Blood Bat】 I threw in the second stage?”
Kiru's attitude grew noticeably friendlier as he quickly floated over to Bai Xiaodu's side.
“Of course. But do you have anything higher grade? Like a high-quality weapon, or perhaps a Wonder?”
“If I possess something like that, I can assist you in battle, which would make me somewhat useful.”
Instinctively wanting to pull out the 【True Dragon Blood Orb】, Bai Xiaodu forced his hand to stop.
The description of that item mentioned absorbing the flesh and blood of dragon-type creatures. It was highly sinister; it wouldn't be good if he accidentally ended up refining Kiru to death.
Then again, wouldn't such a powerful soul provide a massive amount of charge?
It would save him so much money...
...Forget it, forget it. He wasn't that evil.
Bai Xiaodu kept a straight face.
Instead, he reached into his pocket and pulled out a dull shortsword.
It was none other than 【Kalugar's Remnant Sword】.
Although the system labeled it as a material, its sharpness made it perfectly viable as a weapon.
If this red dragon possessed it, he might even be able to help him fight of his own accord.
“Here.”
Once Kiru saw clearly what Bai Xiaodu was handing him, his eyes lit up.
“Good stuff! Where did you get this?”
“Even though it's a broken sword and looks quite old, the special enchantment on it still feels alive.”
“If I remember correctly, this is something only Commander-level figures of your human Empire were qualified to carry.”
Bai Xiaodu rubbed his ear sheepishly.
“The Empire fell long ago. It's called the Human Federation now, though our hostile relationship with the dragons hasn't changed.”
“Anyway, that's all ancient history. I only got it out of pure luck.”
“And you're lucky too, managing to survive as a free spirit rather than being bound as a mere Secret Realm remnant.”
“That's why you have a chance at resurrection now, isn't it?”
Kiru nodded in agreement.
“True enough.”
“But compared to how you always love to shout 'heretic, heretic'...”
“I actually don't care about identity at all. After all, I was bullied by the dragons when I was little, and when I defected to the humans halfway through, I was bullied by them too.”
“I was so pissed back then. Like, what was the point of defecting if I was still going to get bullied? So after that, I just became a rogue. Wherever there was trouble, I'd stick my nose in; whenever there was a dog, I'd kick it.”
Bai Xiaodu tossed the remnant sword into the air, and Kiru caught it steadily.
Examining it closely once more, he couldn't help but sigh from the bottom of his heart.
“So beautiful. If only it were whole... Even I have never owned a weapon this powerful.”
With that, Kiru eagerly began to chant some incantations.
Then, taking a diving posture, he spun dozens of times in the air before happily diving toward the floating broken sword.
“Baby, here I come!”
“Let uncle take a good look at how well your body has developed!”
Rate on N.U.
