1 The Gift of The Dragon

The woman dragged the man's body on the road. It was sunset. She had to arrive at the village before the night. It was too dangerous to travel at night with a bleeding man this close to the forest. She shouldn't have helped him. Who knew what he was doing in the mountains to come out such a mess. But she knew they were excuses. She was too kind-hearted to let a stranger die. The man coughed blood.

"Leave me. We don't know each other, there's no reason to risk your life."

"Don't speak. Rest and recover your energies."

"No, it's too late… I'm already dead. Woman, you were willing to go this far for a stranger like me… I know it's selfish, but don't let my work go to waste… drink this."

The woman took the bottle. It wasn't that big but it's weight was ludicrous.

"What is it."

"It's… Something magical. It will make you invincible. You'll have the power of a dragon…"

"Why don't you drink it then? Won't you be able to heal?"

"I'm too weak. If I drink it now… I'll burn."

The woman thought about it. She never dreamt of being invincible or powerful, but a chance like this doesn't come twice in one's life. With one gulp she drank all of it. The man smiled wickedly. With a twist of his hand he pulverized his whole body and turned into smoke. Swiftly, he slithered inside the woman's mouth and nostrils. So naive. He didn't kill a dragon to let someone else enjoy the fruits of his labour. He would quietly wait and help her absorb the Dragon Bloodline, slowly eroding her soul and the…

[Wait a minute… SHE'S PREGNANT! NO, NO, NO, I MADE A MISTAKE! LET ME OUT! LET ME OOOOOOOOOOOOOooooooooooooooooout...…..]

-

The forest was green and lush. The river was as clear as crystal. If someone stopped for a few minute and listened carefully, he would be able to hear the birds singing.The mountain was truly in a good mood today. While thinking like that, the little kid climbed the slippery rock wall of a waterfall. Without even flinching at the cold water or the sharpness of the stones, he made it look as easy as walking. It was a surprising feat for someone who looked not older than six. Days like these were by far his favourite. His family was too busy working in the fields and no one had the time to care about him, so he would sneak to play in the mountains. Normally, even someone like would go and help. In fact some of his cousins and friends from the village, who were the same as age as him, were together with their parents. They couldn't do much, but it was better to start learning from a young age, also, another pair of hands, no matter how small, was always useful in the fields, especially for picking and gathering. But when it came to him, no one wanted his hands to help. Lord Huang himself prohibited him from working on his properties, which meant everywhere near the mountain. There wasn't a malicious intent behind this. It was because of his curse. When he was born his mother died shortly after because of a mysterious illness. The Old Witch was immediately called. With her vast knowledge she was capable of identifying the cause with ease. She died because she came in contact with her son's blood. Someone had cast an evil spell on the pregnant woman, and the child was born with Cursed Blood. Everyone was furious, since he was a child of the Long Clan. Despite being just a clan of hunters and farmers, hundreds of years ago they were the first to settle at the feet of the Jade Dragon Mountain, under the orders of the Huang Clan. They repelled the Spirit Beasts, cut down the trees, built houses and plowed the wild terrain to grow the first wheat. From that first fortress, it was then possible to develop what, with time, became the Huang Province of the Xia Empire. In their honor the village was called the Long Village. To attack the Long Clan was the same as attacking the Huang Clan. But, despite the passing of many years, the culprits were not found. The kid didn't care much about the curse. He wasn't allowed to do many things that were normal for the other kids, but he thought it was actually a blessing in disguise. He didn't have to work in the fields, to help in the kitchen, he had a personal bathroom, while everyone else bathed together and went to the public latrines; also, everyone feared his blood, so he was never hit or bullied and the children left him alone and the ones who had the courage to approach him were true friends who he could trust. It was true, there were times when it was bothersome, for example when he had accidents and had to be isolated until his wounds healed. In those moments his father was always by his side, to care for him, to tell him stories and to cheer him up. It was his father who taught him to always look on the bright side of life. It was also him who taught him about the beauty and dangers of nature. That's why every time he could, he played in the mountain's forest. His father's words excited him and teased his curiosity. He wanted to see with his own eyes the wonders of the world. He was careful to the tracks of the wild animals and always vigilant for any sign of the presence of a Spirit Beast. In the past two years he became accustomed to the wilderness, but that wasn't a reason to let his guard down. While the usual inhabitants of the forest instinctively feared him, he knew that he was no match for them, let alone if he met a Spirit Beast, known for their craftiness and strength. Even if he knew that once they spilled his blood they would die, it was a meagre consolation for a dead man. But his weariness he didn't hesitate to explore the deepest parts of the mountain, where even the most experienced hunters were too afraid to delve into. His curiosity was too strong.

While skipping out of the thick of bamboos, a surprising scene appeared in front of his eyes: a man in an elegant robe was fishing while sitting on a rock, obviously competing against the bear on the other side of the river. As he recognized him, the boy waved at Brother Bear, his eyes fixed on the strange man. Brother Bear hastily roared in return, and focused back on the fishing. He was losing.

Finally, the man turned his head and nodded to greet him, like among old friends. This bizarre behaviour left him open-mouthed.

"Wh-Who are you?" he asked, unable to hold back anymore.

"How rude, little fellow. Shouldn't you introduce yourself before asking someone's name?"

Facing that kind of shamelessness, he was more gobsmacked than before

"Shouldn't you greet me properly, before speaking about manners? Do you have less education than even a bear?"

Said bear, growled in agreement. With a look of schadenfreude, it caught a fish in mid-air. It was time for a comeback. The man sighed, stood up elegantly, clasped his hands together and slightly bowed.

"This one is named Xiong Ru. Xiong Ru greets the Nightmare of the Forest."

"Who's the Nightmare of the Forest? Don't give me random names, I'm Long Jing!"

With a 'humph', Long Jing crossed his arms and sat beside him.

"Well, that's how the bear called you. I assumed it was your name, or your title."

The kid's eyes shined with curiosity.

"Xiong Ru, are you telling me you can talk with bears?"

"Of course I can, since I'm a bear too."

Long Jing shot up on his feet and hid behind the bamboos.

"YOU! Are you a Spirit Beast?" he yelled.

Xiong Ru laughed. "Little fellow, isn't it a bit too shameful for someone of the Dragon Bloodline to be scared of a mere bear?"

Long Jing suspiciously peeked from behind the bamboos.

"I don't trust Spirit Beasts."

The man scratched his head. Was it possible that this young dragon was that dumb?

"Kid, I don't know how to say this… but you're in the core of the Jade Forest. All the beasts here are Spirit Beasts."

His eyes became bigger. The place that he reached after many hardships and training, where he played for almost half a year was the den of the Spirit Beasts. If his father knew, he would probably beat his ass black and blue, Cursed Blood or not. It was good to be curious but not to be careless, how many times did his old man say that? And now he was about to be eaten… Except it didn't make sense. Why didn't they attack him before? They looked the same as all the other animals, they were scared of him like them too. Also, what was the Dragon Bloodline? Asking questions in his head gradually calmed him down. Slowly, he came out again, and sat near Xiong Ru. He wondered if it was all a prank. If it wasn't, that meant he was a very powerful Spirit Beast. His father told him that a Spirit Beast capable of transforming into a human was at least a Tenth Rank. Those were the monsters from the legends, the ones who were like natural calamities, toppling Empires just by passing by.

"Xiong Ru do you want to destroy the Xia Empire?"

It was the man's time to be shocked.

"Why would I do such a thing? An insignificant country like this, what benefits would I have from destroying it? I'm not a mad beast, I'm a reasonable and dignified being."

Long Jing shook his hands in denial. "I didn't want to make you angry! I just wanted to know what you're doing here!"

"Once a year I come here to check the Spirit Beasts, and chose some talented ones to bring back to the Green Ocean Forest. Do you want to come with me?"

The child looked at him dejected. He didn't know what he meant at all. If the Beasts were intelligent, then they weren't that different from humans. Then, he was probably like Lord Huang, who came once a year to organize the work and meet the clans. And, from time to time he'd took a few youngsters to work for him as soldiers. It made sense. Humans ha their Lords, Spirit Beasts had their Lords too. But he knew he couldn't be part of that.

"Are you sure you want me? I have Cursed Blood, it's not safe for me to work with others."

Something in Xiong's head clicked and all the pieces fell in the right place.

"Do you live in the human village?"

"Yes…"

"No wonder you're so dumb, then! Your blood isn't cursed, it's the blood of a living dragon. If a weak human touches it, he will burn from the inside. You have to learn how to control it."

"But I'm a human too..." said Long Jing hesitantly.

"Yes, you seem to be more human than dragon now. That's probably because you're the offspring of one. But as soon as you awaken your bloodline it won't matter. You have to trust this old bear. Come with me."

Long Jing stayed silent as he watched the water flow. He didn't want to leave. This was his home. He was happy with his father, his wooden house, his forest and his mountain. It was too early for him to make a decision.

"I want to stay here… Can't you teach me here?"

Xiong Ru stretched. It was too difficult for him to teach a young dragon without the resources and wise guidance of his elders. He had just a few weeks before it was time to go back to Green Ocean Forest. His was starting to hurt. He looked at the source of it all. His eyes were swelled up and were begging for him to stay and teach him everything. His heart melted in front of the cute scene in front of him.

"Alright, I will teach you here. It won't be easy, though. First, I'll give you this: it's a technique to hide your aura from the humans, it will help you control the blood. You learn it and, in the meantime, I'll take care of my business, then I'll come here to give you some lessons…"

Long Jing took the piece of wood from Xiong's hands. Incomprehensible lines and drawings were engraved on it.

"Xiong Ru… I can't read"