Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
“Ah!”
“Hey! Did I scare you? Why did you come here by yourself? I was looking for you all this time.”
With a smile on his face, Li Xiu looked at Wu Wendi.
Holding one hand to her heart, Wu Wendi consciously waved the other to gesture that she was alright. Apart from the discovery of a new lead, she was worried for Xu Lan and wondered how he was doing.
Hunger was far from an enjoyable feeling. Xu Lan felt as though his very being was about to collapse. He dreamt about a big juicy chicken drumstick more than once and began gnawing at Bai Wu’s arm. It was not much better. It led to a bizarre scene in the cave, where both of them were dreaming about biting into a chicken drumstick!
“Pshaw! These people don’t get f*cking tired at all, now do they?” The hunger almost stripped Xu Lan of the strength to lambast those people. He also did not dare to go out the cave because he heard the droning of helicopters outside. With his current physical state, he would probably not be able to endure a fall.
Apart from a hare and some pieces of dry firewood that he procured in passing when they went into the cave, there was no other food inside, and no water either! At the foot of the mountain was a huge river, yet they were hiding inside the cave where there was not a single drop of water. Recent days have been too f*cking unfortunate for him! Xu Lan mumbled contemptuously.
“Papa, I’m cold.” Those three words were Bai Wu’s most spoken in the past two days. The rest of the time was spent crying quietly. It was a sight that wrung Xu Lan’s heart.
Higher elevations tended to have greater fluctuations in day-night temperature. Xu Lan gave his clothes and the blanket to Bai Wu, but the young man was still shivering.
“Sit down and rub your hands, that’ll stop the cold. Be a good boy, stop crying,” Xu Lan said with a heavy heart and hugged Bai Wu.
Xu Lan’s phone was turned off, and the mistiness outside the cave did not let a glimmer of sunlight through, so there was no way to discern whether it was dusk or dawn. If it was not for the constant machine-gun like pitapat of the helicopter, Xu Lan would have thought that those people left.
“Papa, I’m hungry,” Bai Wu said softly as he looked at Xu Lan with reddened eyes.
“Bai Wu, if you’re weak, won’t the crack come and find you?” Xu Lan wiped away Bai Wu’s tears with a thumb and asked softly, “Is there really no way for you to return?”
There was no response from Bai Wu, for he had passed out from hunger. Xu Lan knew why Bai Wu kept on refusing to part ways – it may well be one of their last moments together.
If he stayed alive, at least he would still have a memory. What significance would it have if he died there?
Xu Lan placed Bai Wu down and walked to the entrance, using the cave walls as support.
“Oi! Can anyone hear me? I’m here!”
“Hey! Is there anybody there? I’m Xu Lan.”
“The dragon’s here!”
Xu Lan shouted with all of his might. He wanted Bai Wu to be sent back. It was likely that the laboratories could not contain Bai Wu for long, and when the crack appeared, Bai Wu would be able to leave. Xu Lan himself might not be troubled by those people since he was not a dragon in the first place.
The droning sound from the helicopter was deafening and almost shattered Xu Lan’s eardrums. Strong gushes of wind propelled him back into the cave. Someone from the helicopter came down and took Bai Wu along. Xu Lan boarded a different helicopter with Hu Cheng in it.
“Will I see him again?” Xu Lan asked. By then his beard was unkempt, and his the whites of his eyes were covered with tiny red veins, making he and Bai Wu look even more like father-and-son.
“I don’t know.” Having stayed in the mountain ranges for two days, Hu Cheng’s appearance was no better.
“I didn’t think you’d be able to find such a place.” Hu Cheng exclaimed in astonishment.
It was unsurprising that no one was able to find the place even after searching for a long time. The opening was situated at a cliff that was almost wholly vertical, which was obscured by a clump of vegetation outside the cave, as well as a mountain opposite it.
“I didn’t think that your perseverance was stronger than mine, in certain aspects.” With his chapped lips, Xu Lan asked in an exhausted state.
“Hehe, thanks.” Hu Cheng’s yellow-stained teeth were revealed through a bitter smile.
Xu Lan wanted to clarify that his words were not a compliment, but as his body relaxed, he fainted.
In the end, he was unable to ask Hu Cheng why he did what he did. Everyone has something that they wish to protect; each person’s motives were different, and naturally, the decisions they make would be different too. Xu Lan, for example, had only one desire: to protect Bai Wu. Their escape and their subsequent return were all done for Bai Wu. Xu Lan could only give it his all and leave the rest to fate.
Ultimately, their great escape came to an end after Xu Lan’s compromise. Much later, Bai Wu would reproach Xu Lan over the decision, but the man did not regret making that choice.
When Bai Wu woke up, he scanned his surroundings. Noticing that Xu Lan was nowhere to be seen, he immediately became irritable. He originally had a docile, almost rabbit-like cuteness to his eyes, but they soon became as prepossessing as Medusa, causing people to shun away from making any eye contact. The room, though specifically made for him, was as brittle as an eggshell. He could wreck it with ease.
Copious amounts of anesthetic were incapable of calming him down. A few employees were even injured by him. Finally, the experts who were analyzing the situation behind a computer screen were finally shaken, and they immediately asked someone to bring Xu Lan over.
Amidst the ruins of shattered walls, only the sound of Bai Wu’s cries could be heard. He was asking for kisses as well as hugs from Xu Lan and was begging to be comforted. The spectacle was one that shocked every single researcher there. Was it really the same fiercely violent giant dragon that they saw moments ago?
“Papa, where’d you go? I thought…that this was another dimension.” Bai Wu hugged Xu Lan tightly. The fear of not having Xu Lan with him almost made Bai Wu break down; he thought that Xu Lan was sucked into the wormhole.
“Don’t be scared. I’m here, right? Are you hungry? Did you eat anything? We’ll get you something good.”
In a comforting manner, Xu Lan patiently patted Bai Wu on the back. The man’s expression, however, was extremely grave. What if Bai Wu’s assumptions had been true? What then?
Behind the computer screens, every single expert was watching the scene: a well-built man was warmly comforting a little child, with the knowledge that in the blink of an eye, the little child was capable of transforming into something even stronger and more menacing than the man – a giant dragon!
“Cough cough –”
“Qin Lao, please have a sip of water,” The assistant offered as he immediately handed the man a cup of water.
“No, thanks. Call Xu Lan into my office,” Qin Lao directed with the wave of a hand.
The two people who were observing the screen turned their heads, and asked, “What does everyone else think of this person?”
“Rational, capable.”
“Reliable.”
“And a very fierce character.”
…
Qin Lao digested those evaluations in his mind and replied, “Bring him over to the Central Science Park. It just so happens that we can placate the dragon’s mood.”
“…but, Qin Lao, isn’t this against the rules? He’s just a police officer…” A uniformed middle-aged man shyly remarked.
“He’s right.” The other one supported.
“In that case, are you able to handle the dragon?” The white-haired old man probed the ground with his crutches and asked.
“Well…” The middle-aged man was speechless.
“Pedantry! It doesn’t matter who it is, as long as someone’s useful for the research, we’ll gladly invite that person in! If anyone feels that it isn’t necessary, then think of a way to subdue him! Think about it, we’ve already injected seven doses of anesthetic.”
The elderly man propped himself up on his crutch and walked out of the office. As soon as they found Bai Wu, they rushed back to the Central Science Park without any delay. Fortunately for them, they had not – in their confusion – left Xu Lan back at G City, or else the consequences might truly be unimaginable.
“Mister Xu, please, take a seat.” The courteous Qin Lao pointed at the sofa beside him.
