Dance Of The Dragons
Chapter 186 : Competing Over The Dragon Throne (6)

Chapter 186: Chapter 186 : Competing Over The Dragon Throne (6)

"Ow ow ow! Mother!!!"

Zhang Fengxi cried out like a tormented prisoner.

As always, Lady Song did not believe that an alpha’s injuries should be treated gently. She even believed that her son was somewhat too wimpy.

Wu Shenxia was being treated in the Juhua Palace’s tent, and Lady Song did not hear a single cry of pain escape their tent.

"Seriously Fengxi, stop complaining," Lady Song said amidst her son’s bloody scream. She slapped the salve across Zhang Fengxi’s wound hard and continued, "You should be grateful that you are still alive. I know that you and Wu Shenxia were fighting for the throne, but couldn’t you fight less like barbarians?"

"But Mother, it was Wu Shenxia who... You were not there, you didn’t see how she... OUCHHHH!!!"

Lady Song scoffed.

"Why would I want to see two alphas beating each other up? You should learn a thing or two from the Crown Prince. He came back looking as pristine as he always does, not a single strand of hair out of place."

Zhang Zhiyuan entered the tent with Caihong perching on his arm. He was relieved to see that his son still had the spirit to talk back to his mother. The Longjing Palace Master cleared his throat.

"Fengxi, how are you feeling?"

"..."

Zhang Fengxi would love to tell his father that he was almost dead when they hoisted him into the tent, but when his mother started treating him, his three souls and seven spirits almost left his body.

Then again, Zhang Fengxi had yet to lose his mind. If he wanted to survive this treatment, he better shut up.

"I am fine," he thus answered weakly.

"Squeee?"

Caihong gently pecked on Zhang Fengxi’s arm. The alpha raised a hand and patted the bird’s head.

"Caihong, you have grown a lot recently," he remarked with a frown. "Just what have you been eating at Fuxi Palace?"

"Squeee!!!"

Caihong smacked Zhang Fengxi’s hand angrily with its colorful wing. It then whipped around and landed another smack across Zhang Fengxi’s face with its colorful, long tail feather.

"..."

Great, even his so-called most loyal companion wanted to beat him up. Just what was wrong with this world?

"Father, how is Fang Jiuyan?" Zhang Fengxi asked while poking at Caihong’s stomach for fun.

Seeing that Xie Jianyu emerged as the winner without a scratch on his body, the fight must have been rather unbalanced. Zhang Fengxi would delight in hearing about Fang Jiuyan’s miseries.

"Quite pitiful," Zhang Zhiyuan remarked, but his eyes could not hide the contempt and glee at the sellsword’s defeat.

"He was taken back to the Heavenly Realm in a complete mess. Apparently, the Crown Prince struck him with a combination of Azure Dragon’s Annihilation and a new lightning attack. The Crown Prince is truly a genius swordsman, a natural-born master of the blades, an epitome of martial arts’ excellence..."

"Okay, okay. We know that the Crown Prince is simply the best. Our Fengxi should consider himself lucky to be beaten up by the Crown Prince next," Lady Song interrupted her husband’s litany of praises with pursed lips.

"And you!" She shot her son a sharp look. "Tomorrow’s final round is going to be attended by the entire Heavenly Realm. You better not embarrass me in front of other Palace Mistresses!"

"..."

Her words rendered her son and husband speechless.

"Come on, Zhang Zhiyuan, we need to let Fengxi rest. He has a big battle ahead of him tomorrow."

Lady Song dragged her husband out of the tent. Zhang Zhiyuan pulled a grimace and shot Zhang Fengxi a commiserating look.

Zhang Fengxi rolled hard with his eyes after both his parents left.

His mother wanted him to win without embarrassing himself. Did she not hear what Xie Jianyu did to Fang Jiuyan? Seriously, what kind of hope did Zhang Fengxi have against Xie Jianyu?

And yet, it did not bother Zhang Fengxi at all. The alpha groaned as he rolled to his back and stared at the tent’s ceiling.

Aah, he thought to himself. Too bad that he was unable to witness Xie Jianyu beating Fang Jiuyan up.

Zhang Fengxi wanted to give Xie Jianyu the antidote choker to protect him from Fang Jiuyan’s wicked machinations, but Xie Jianyu was able to beat him without.

A soft smile spread on Zhang Fengxi’s face. That was Xie Jianyu, alright. He was never a defenseless omega. Though he was born into a life of privilege, he never became a spoiled person. He spent his days studying and cultivating, always trying to be at least one step ahead of all the alphas.

Although he often acted prim and proper, was unsociable, and not agreeable, he cared a lot about the people around him.

Zhang Fengxi pressed an arm against his forehead and let out a soft sigh.

"That’s why I love you, Xie Jianyu," he muttered to himself.

...

...

Wait, love?

Zhang Fengxi’s eyes flew open in alarm.

No, that was wrong.

"I do not love Xie Jianyu," he said out loud, as if trying to convince himself. Unfortunately, his words did not impress Caihong.

"SQUEEEE!!!"

"OW OW OW OW! CAIHONG, STOP!!!"

The colorful bird launched a furious attack at Zhang Fengxi, who just had enough time to shield his face with his bandaged arms, lest the bird peck his eyes out.

"You are so unreasonable," Zhang Fengxi complained. "As unreasonable as Xie Jianyu... ARGHHHHH OKAY STOP STOP STOP. I WON’T BADMOUTH XIE JIANYU ANYMORE!"

"Squeee!!! Squeee!!!"

Caihong flapped its wings in exasperation.

"I thought that you only react to lies," Zhang Fengxi grabbed Caihong with both hands to placate him. "Why are you so irritable?"

Thinking back, he did playfully say the same sentence to test Caihong’s lie-detecting ability before.

What was it that he said?

"Zhang Fengxi loves Xie Jianyu," he repeated his words from the last time. His hands slackened around Caihong. It quickly sprang free.

The colorful bird looked so happy that it practically glowed like the sun. It then performed a light dance on top of Zhang Fengxi’s body, strutting across Zhang Fengxi’s chest while shaking its tail feathers seductively.

Zhang Fengxi stared at Caihong in a mix of awe and disbelief.

No, but could it be?

His heart pounded heart against his ribcage. A never before thought crossed his mind.

Could it be, that he, against all odds, toward Xie Jianyu...

Before Zhang Fengxi was able to put his scrambled thoughts together, a familiar voice was heard outside of the tent.

"Prince Fengxi, can I enter?"