Chapter 7: A Dangerous Kind of Warmth

Ding Ren’s body stiffened.

For the first time in his life, he felt a profound sense of absurdity; what on earth was Xi Yu saying?

Zhang Qingyuan and the others stared at Xi Yu as if they had seen a ghost.

‘He’s joking, right?’

‘How come only Captain Ding has charm? Is our charm not enough? Wait, why am I even thinking about that?’

It just felt too incredible to hear such words coming from Xi Yu’s mouth.

It was simply unbelievable.

“Let’s walk slowly for now. Something’s wrong with my body, and I can’t do any strenuous exercise,” Xi Yu said truthfully, not wanting Ding Ren to misunderstand, but he phrased it differently after seeing their reactions.

“Alright then, we’ll walk,” Zhang Qingyuan said quickly.

‘That’s more like it. Xi Yu was definitely joking. Who knew a dragon could have such a sense of humor?’

Although this didn’t explain Xi Yu’s strange behavior from earlier at all, they chose to selectively ignore it.

As for Ding Ren, after a moment of hesitation, he found he couldn’t quite calm himself down.

Because he realized that Xi Yu didn’t seem to be lying.

As a C-class expert, his mutation trait was perception, and it was exceptionally powerful. No matter who it was or whether they harbored good intentions, they had nowhere to hide before him; this was also why he had trusted Xi Yu without hesitation.

Thus, he knew clearly that Xi Yu’s words just now were completely sincere.

But that was precisely why he couldn’t understand it. He was just an ordinary human; how could he be praised by a white dragon? Did he really have that much charm?

Even if it were true, it was possible he was just teasing him—perhaps this was some sort of draconic prank.

Ding Ren let out a breath and acted as if he hadn’t heard; he would lose if he took it seriously.

Sometimes, when the truth was spoken, no one believed it.

****

In truth, Xi Yu really wanted to get close to Ding Ren right now.

Ding Ren was a head taller than him, and his looks were likely among the best in the Middle Continent. Now, under the influence of dragon lust, his charisma had magnified more than tenfold. This didn’t just make his every move charming; even his body was radiating an alluring aura.

In his eyes at this moment, Ding Ren was as perfect as a deity.

Only now did Xi Yu discover that the dragon lust actually had such a benefit—it allowed him to appreciate an ultimate beauty that absolutely transcended human limits.

Unfortunately, such behavior was impolite; he should probably stay away from Ding Ren in the future.

However, at this moment, he finally felt that experiencing dragon lust might truly be an extraordinary experience. Now that he was in the Middle Continent and had no more reservations, he felt like he could actually try it once.

At the very least, he wouldn’t have to repeat that tedious process of resistance.

Distracted by Xi Yu’s interruption, Ding Ren finally remembered that his combat uniform was still shredded. He carried a spare set with him, so he quickly stripped off the old clothes to change.

Xi Yu was just thinking that it would be best not to even look at Ding Ren, and then he caught a full view of his body.

Ding Ren had countless wounds of all sizes, but they still couldn’t obscure his firm, tight physique. His Apollo’s belt and abdominal muscles were all perfectly shaped.

Under the influence of dragon lust, his body radiated an unimaginable magic.

Xi Yu was truly startled this time; the sight before him was far too impactful.

He really hadn’t expected dragon lust to have such an effect; it felt like a new world had suddenly opened up to him.

Xi Yu’s reaction was witnessed by everyone, leaving them a bit dumbfounded. Surely he wasn’t… actually shy? Regardless, it was impossible, so they didn’t think much of it.

Whatever Xi Yu did, they felt there was no need to find it strange; after all, he wasn’t human.

Ding Ren naturally saw it too and nearly froze, but fortunately, he had a good enough mindset to avoid showing any flaws.

The wound on his shoulder had stopped bleeding and begun to scab over.

As a C-class, although he didn’t have Xi Yu’s monstrous recovery rate, his constitution was not comparable to an average person’s. A wound like that would take a week at most to fully heal.

Zhang Qingyuan and the others took this opportunity to go to the lake to wash the blood and filth from their clothes and bodies.

Once they were further away, the halo around Ding Ren became less overwhelming.

Only then did Xi Yu notice that Ding Ren’s condition wasn’t very good. His lips were devoid of color, and his face was pale. Even so, Ding Ren had held him motionless for a long time earlier, which meant he hadn’t had any proper rest.

This touched Xi Yu deeply, but also made him feel quite bad.

He had realized by now that Ding Ren wasn’t at all like the cold, indifferent person he remembered from his previous life; in reality, he was quite a gentle person. He was essentially getting to know him all over again.

Ding Ren’s current state was indeed poor, yet he still provided everyone with a powerful sense of security.

Xi Yu also believed that as long as he was there, he would be safe throughout the journey.

However, his own condition was much better now, so he naturally didn’t need them to protect him anymore. He wanted to return to the Middle Continent to contribute to the nation, not to be treated like a protected animal.

Ding Ren meticulously changed his clothes, appearing as if he didn’t feel the fatigue in his body at all.

He didn’t plan to rest and immediately led the group to continue their journey.

Xi Yu, meanwhile, conveniently stored the black wooden door into his glove space.

A large amount of dragon aura and a portion of dragon blood remained in the glove space; both could be used to great effect, and this was his greatest confidence in helping the Middle Continent.

Furthermore, this glove could serve as a weapon.

It had many abilities, but he temporarily lacked the power to fully unlock all of its functions; the same applied to the dragon scale soft armor on his body.

This was the “White Dragon Skeletal Gear” he had forged not long before his rebirth, and its value was staggering. However, due to the influence of the dragon’s nature, these two items would only be free of hidden dangers if worn by him.

[This is definitely a divine artifact. By the Food Sequence Lord, it radiates an incredible, alluring fragrance. What are you waiting for? Eat it! Ah, you probably can’t chew it, so just lick it instead!]

The ability [I Can See the Quality of Ingredients] had its limits.

It could not appraise anything at Sequence 2, which was above SS-class.

This was also why Xi Yu concluded that the white dragon’s original level was very high, as the ability couldn’t even determine the grade of equipment made from the dragon’s scales.

This meant the white dragon was at least at the level of Sequence 2.

After tossing the black door into the glove space, a glob of dragon blood floated above it. Instantly, the door seemed to come to life, with a black liquid flowing across its surface.

Previously, Ding Ren had been leading the group while carrying everyone.

But now that they were strictly walking, Zhang Qingyuan took the lead. Xi Yu walked in the middle, while Ding Ren brought up the rear.

To accommodate Xi Yu, everyone walked a bit slowly. Now that they were back in the Middle Continent, everyone relaxed a bit and wasn’t in such a rush.

Xi Yu similarly felt the sense of urgency fade.

He was thinking about what he should do next.

His greatest wish was to grow strong alongside the Middle Continent. Only if they were strong together would the future enemies of the Middle Continent and himself be of no concern. Even the Food Sequence Lords might not be beyond their ability to challenge.

As for how to enhance the Middle Continent’s strength, he already had a plan in mind.

That was to seize the [Divine Arena].

No one understood the mastermind behind the Divine Arena better than he did.

In his previous life, they had eventually become one of his enemies. But most importantly, these masterminds had no idea of the Divine Arena’s true value. They were merely lucky individuals who had accidentally obtained it and used it as a “flesh ranch” to prey on otherworldly targets.

As long as they obtained the [Divine Arena] and combined it with his dragon aura, the Middle Continent would truly have a foundation to stand upon in this terrifying and eerie world.

He had to be well-prepared before then.

There was only one chance.

Otherwise, by the later stages, there would be more than one terrifying entity fighting for the Divine Arena; once the first opportunity was missed, it would be difficult to get another.

No matter what, he had to seize the Divine Arena in this life. This was the most important task and the one that could not afford any mistakes, so he needed to coordinate well with the Middle Continent.

As long as they succeeded, almost all the problems facing the Middle Continent could be resolved.

The Ogaso people, the Underworld, and the A-class criminals of the Middle Continent who would eventually become a menace—they either began their chaos because of the Divine Arena or rose to power because of it.

If they could take the [Divine Arena], those people would naturally be completely insignificant.

Of course, if there were a chance to wipe them out entirely before then, that would be even better.

As for his own current issues, Xi Yu didn’t take them to heart at all.

The draconic instinct couldn’t get the better of him in his past life, and with the Middle Continent backing him in this life, it would be even less of a problem.

As for the dragon lust?

In his previous life, he had foolishly resisted it with brute force, and only now did he realize its “charms.” As long as he could withstand the lust, the entire world became pleasing to the eye. Perhaps in this life, the dragon lust would no longer be a hidden threat.

Having clarified his future goals, Xi Yu was instantly filled with motivation.

He just wanted to hurry and find a place to settle down in the Middle Continent and start preparing for the future.

Suddenly, he glanced over instinctively and saw that he and Ding Ren had unknowingly drifted close to each other.

Xi Yu couldn’t help but shield his face, feeling as if a burst of light was shining directly onto him.

“Captain Ding, you need to be careful and keep your distance from me. Don’t you know how much charm you’re radiating right now?” Xi Yu said before quickly running away.

Ding Ren, whose face was usually expressionless, turned black.

The little white dragon was actually accusing him falsely.

Along the way, it was clearly Xi Yu who kept unconsciously drifting closer, and then every time he realized it, he would dodge away as if he had seen a ghost.

The most annoying part was that he praised him non-stop while his actions were more “honest” in their avoidance.

This little white dragon actually had two faces.

Xi Yu walked slowly, but he never stopped throughout the journey.

He didn’t care about the second backlash of the draconic instinct; at most, his head would throb violently once more, but nothing serious would happen. He had plenty of time to increase his strength and resolve this hidden danger.

However, he was walking barefoot.

He hadn’t felt much while being carried by Ding Ren earlier, but after walking for a while, his feet were covered in blood. Not even Ding Ren had a second pair of spare shoes for him to wear.

But Xi Yu didn’t care at all; losing a bit of blood actually helped reduce the influence of the dragon’s nature.

But Zhang Qingyuan and the others couldn’t stand it and kept trying to give him their own shoes.

However, Xi Yu truly didn’t need them.

Compared to him, they were much more dependent on their shoes.

“Take a break,” Ding Ren spoke.

Everyone let out a sigh of relief; they weren’t tired, they were just afraid Xi Yu was.

Ding Ren took off his own shoes and handed them to Xi Yu. “Being barefoot has no effect on me. Put these on; the blood might attract ferocious beasts and ghosts.”

And so, Xi Yu obediently took the shoes.