Lao Tang ran along the winding mountain road, not knowing what he was fleeing from. He only wanted to escape. The dragon was already dead, but it felt like something was still chasing him.
“Brother, there are many people outside.”
“We’re about to die, Constantine, but don’t be afraid.”
“I’m not afraid. With my brother, I’m not afraid… but why… not eat me? If you eat me, you could break through any cage.”
“You are very good food, but that would be too lonely. For thousands of years, it’s only been you and me together.”
“But dying is truly saddening, forever, forever… endless darkness… it’s like groping in the dark night, yet the outstretched hand can never touch anything…”
“The fate of the forsaken is to cross the wasteland, to raise the battle flag again, and return home. Death is not scary—it’s just a long sleep. Until I can devour this world, instead of wandering alone, it’s better to sleep peacefully. We will still awaken.”
“Brother… if the day comes when the battle flag is raised, and you can devour the world, will you eat me then?”
“I will. Then you shall be with me, reigning over the world!”
He remembered. What was chasing him was his memory.
He suddenly stopped, frantically pulling his hair, screaming silently at the pitch-black night sky.
“Brother!”
He remembered, remembered everything.
So, all these two thousand years, whether asleep or awake, you were just looking for me. But when you found me, I had forgotten what you looked like.
When I finally remembered what you looked like, you were already dead.
Fiery flames rose around him, ascending into the night sky. In the high air, the flames exploded, as if wings had spread open there.
“The Dragonbone Cross… Dragon King Norton, finally showing his angry true form,” Anjou said, finishing his martini in the church bell tower. “Listen to his cry, soaked in years of loneliness and pain. He… no, he has completely revived, with the soul of a martyr.”
“Anjou, you always knew that among the four great kings of the Dragon Raja, each throne had twins. With your abilities, could you not have sensed that the ‘cargo’ sent in was the very brother who escaped the sealed bronze jar eighty years ago and fell in the Lop Nur Desert? You could have easily erased him, but you didn’t. What exactly are you planning?” the old cowboy asked.
“I’ve grown weary,” the principal said calmly.
“Weary of what? The life of a dragon slayer, or of yourself?”
“Both, I suppose. I’ve lived for over a hundred years now, thanks to the blessing of dragon lineage. Over these hundred years, my friends have all died—only you remain, you old fellow. We are the last two strange flowers that should have withered away from Cassell College, yet here we stand, drinking martinis, with the hot blood of a Dragon King splattering on our hands.” The principal looked at his hands.
“Because the younger generation hasn’t yet taken on the responsibility of protecting this world, the leader we’ve always expected hasn’t yet arrived.” The old cowboy paused. “Lu Mingfei, that kid, do you have faith in him? Does he have potential?”
“Not sure yet. Over the past century, there have been more than a few talented young people like him, but every rising star has fallen, while we two old guys haven’t died.” The principal said, “I can’t wait any longer, Leonardo. I can’t wait any longer. I must do what needs to be done in the time I have left and put an end to this war between humans and the Dragon Raja once and for all.”
“You want to destroy the Dragon Raja… not just prevent their revival?”
“Yes, I want to kill the four great kings!”
The old cowboy was silent for a while. “According to Norse mythology, fate begins with Urd, measured by Beeldandi, and ultimately cut by Skordi’s scissors. The end of human history—the Black Emperor Nidhogg will inevitably return. He embodies despair and is the bringer of hell, with wings filled with the bones of humanity that will cover the sky. He is Skordi’s sissors, and when he returns for vengeance, even if you are Odin, stepping out of your palace with an invincible spear, the path you walk will be one of no return. For over a century, isn’t that the prophecy we’ve believed in? We can only delay that day but cannot change the outcome. Because fate, by definition, is unchangeable—that’s why it’s called fate.” He paused. “And now, do you intend to change fate?”
The principal nodded. “To kill the Dragon Kings, we must push them to the brink, force them to wager their almost eternal lives and fight humanity to the very end.”
“No way out?”
“Yes, I want to push them to the point of having no way out,” the principal said softly. “For an immortal being, as long as they live, there is always hope. But when are they truly left with no way out?”
“When their loved ones are killed, and they no longer wish to live, that’s when they have no way out.” The old cowboy sighed.
“Those Dragonbone Crosses burning in the sky will be their tombstones!”
The principal dialed the phone. “Caesar Gattuso, this is Anjou. I’d like to invite you for tea in my office.”
In the morning, sunlight streamed into Dorm 303. Lu Mingfei sat blankly at the desk, his fingers tapping furiously on the laptop keyboard.
He opened the campus news homepage. The headline read, “Caesar, Could You Be Any More Romantic?”
“Student Union President Caesar Gattuso’s tens of thousands of dollars worth of fireworks for his girlfriend Chen Motong’s birthday… Last night, someone set off custom-made fireworks in the valley, spelling out ‘Nono, Happy Birthday!’ Yesterday just happened to be the 20th birthday of the ‘Red-Haired Witch’ Chen Motong. And amid those splendid fireworks, Caesar fought fiercely with an intruder at Valhalla, wielding dual pistols and shooting Dragon King Norton. Though he’s done many such flashy things, so many that we’ve grown numb, the brothers here at the campus news still have to say, Caesar, once again, you’ve out-romanced everyone. You’re so romantic that we can’t help but put you on the front page!”
The news photo showed fireworks blooming and then falling against a black sky, like burning golden powder. Illuminated by the fireworks was a silver waterfall cascading down from the mountaintop.