Accompanied by Loki and the others, Qiaolin returned to his residence in Lin City.
“Then we shall see you tomorrow, Mr. Jolin.”
“Goodbye, Miss Loki. And Brother Lockes, thank you for your hard work today as well.”
“It was no trouble; it’s what I should do. Goodnight, Mr. Jolin.”
With that, Lockes bid farewell to Qiaolin.
Walking along the streets of Lin City, he looked toward the main hall.
“I wonder how Aurora’s cultivation is going.”
“The next time you meet, she will be a Five Crown powerhouse just like you.”
Loki heard what he said and spoke with a sly look, “Oh my, someone has been stuck at the Five Crown rank for years. It is about time he promoted to King Rank to share his master’s burdens.”
“As if you are a King-level powerhouse yourself. Don’t you know how difficult the process from Mortal Rank to King Rank is?”
Lockes snapped back irritably.
Compared to the Mortal Rank, the Magic Power of a King-level powerhouse was a qualitative leap in both capacity and strength, enough to support the use of magic without relying on tedious, lengthy incantations.
More importantly, every King-level powerhouse could create their own unique magic.
In situations where information was scarce, this often allowed them to achieve unexpected results.
“Hehe, I don’t think it’s that hard. How about we race to see who reaches the King Rank first?”
“Who wants to compete with you? With that mindset, aren’t you afraid of being devoured by an Inner Demon when you try to break through to the Saint Rank?”
“Sigh, I’m truly at a loss with someone like you. I really don’t understand why that little Vampire girl took a liking to you.”
Loki shook her head with feigned helplessness, then hopped onto her mirror and flew off into the distance.
“Hey! What kind of person am I? Make yourself clear!”
Qiaolin watched the two of them leave before closing the door.
“Ta-da! Qiaolin, look at my clothes!”
A little green T-Rex flopped off the sofa and rolled toward Qiaolin.
Fafna spread her arms, spun around, and then struck a ferocious pose.
“That outfit really suits you. It’s very cute.”
Qiaolin rubbed her dragon horns and smiled.
“But it is late now, so it is time for bed.”
“No… I still want to play a little longer…”
Even though she was unwilling, drowsiness inevitably flickered in Fafna’s eyes, and her gaze became hazy.
Qiaolin knew she was preparing to switch.
Fafna slowly closed her eyes.
Her originally black hair turned snowy white at a speed visible to the naked eye, and even her eyelashes turned white.
When she opened her eyes again, those dark gold pupils had transformed into blue, and her gaze had become gentle.
“Xiao Bai?”
“Mhm…”
“Fafna” rubbed her eyes and said, “Black is asleep.”
She looked up and gave a sweet smile.
“Does this count as time for just the two of us? Brother—”
“Where did you learn that…”
Qiaolin smiled and pinched her cheek, then let out a yawn.
“But your brother also needs to sleep.”
Hearing this, Xiao Bai puffed out her cheeks in a sulk.
“No, Brother has to spend time with me.”
She snuggled against the man’s arm like a spoiled child and murmured, “I have so much I want to tell you.”
Qiaolin couldn’t win against her and could only agree.
“Alright, alright. I’ll stay with you for a bit longer tonight.”
“You’re the best, Brother!”
Xiao Bai happily climbed onto Qiaolin’s shoulder, and he carried the dragon girl over to the bed.
Qiaolin had no improper thoughts toward this sister of his.
Even if the two did not share a direct blood relation, his bloodline flowed within Fafna’s body; that point could not be changed.
Consequently, Xiao Bai, who possessed the Frost Dragon Power, regarded Qiaolin as her own kin.
“I didn’t expect you two to actually break through to the Saint Rank. I thought that since you share one body, the difficulty of your cultivation would be greater than others, requiring you to overcome more obstacles.”
“You’re right, Brother Qiaolin. Black and I really did put in double the effort. The cultivation process for the Dragon Race is already much longer than that of other races, and I originally thought it would take us at least another few hundred years to break through,” White Favna said.
“But when we reached the King-level Peak together, we naturally advanced to the Saint Rank. We didn’t even encounter an Inner Demon.”
“What?”
Hearing this, Qiaolin found it inconceivable.
Breaking through from the King Rank to the Saint Rank required more than just honing one’s Magic Power and physical body to the limit; it also required a step forward on a spiritual level—the sublimation of the soul.
The prerequisite was the need to defeat one’s Inner Demon and absorb its power, creating the opportunity for the breakthrough.
An Inner Demon possessed nearly identical strength and abilities to the host but was a completely opposite existence.
This caused many King-level Peak powerhouses to halt their progress there, and some were even defeated and consumed by the backlash.
As for Fafna, since they shared one body, they should have encountered two types of Inner Demons.
Yet, according to Xiao Bai, they faced no bottlenecks and hadn’t even seen a shadow of an Inner Demon.
This was the first time Qiaolin had encountered such a situation.
“However, we can only exert Saint-level strength when Black and I control the body together. If either one of us is missing, we only have the power of the King-level Peak.”
“There’s such a thing?”
Qiaolin pondered; based on her description, a bold idea came to mind.
Looking at the gentle smile on Xiao Bai’s face, he noted she was very kind and warm to everyone, standing in stark contrast to Black Fafnir.
That Dragon Princess always looked fierce, and even when she was with Qiaolin, the stubbornness in her expression never faded.
Judging purely by personality, the two Dragon Princesses were nearly opposites.
Coupled with the fact that they were twins, it was possible they had inadvertently become each other’s “Inner Demon.”
But this was only Qiaolin’s speculation.
Regardless of the reason, seeing how the two Dragon Princesses had once nearly perished because they shared a body but had now grown into Saint-level powerhouses, Qiaolin felt a genuine sense of relief.
Xiao Bai shared the things that had happened around her over the years, such as how some dragons had tried to court Fafna, resulting in her beating up every male dragon in the Dragon Race.
She also mentioned how she had plundered many human estates because she wanted to eat cocoa beans, leading the Holy Hero Church to hunt her down as an evil dragon.
In the end, it was the Pope himself who stepped in to settle the conflict.
Qiaolin’s lips twitched as he listened.
He had heard long ago that a Black Dragon frequently raided farms, not eating pigs or cows but instead stripping all the planted cocoa beans.
There was no need to wonder whose handiwork that was.
Upon learning the Church had dispatched Templars to slay her, Qiaolin had no choice but to visit the Pope overnight; if a battle had actually broken out, it would likely have brought ruin to the people.
And their Black Evil Dragon Princess actually thought the Church had compromised and surrendered to her dragon’s might.
“Black is always causing trouble outside, but I have practiced the Ice and Snow Sword Style you taught me to perfection, Brother.”
“Hehe, Xiao Bai is the best.”
Listening to Qiaolin’s praise, White Favna wagged her tail and let out a happy purr.
But then, as if remembering something, a trace of unease appeared in her eyes.
“Brother Qiaolin, actually, I really don’t want you to join the mission to slay the Nine-Headed Black Venom Dragon-Serpent. Your mission was completed long ago, so you should rest well.”
“You make it sound like I’m already old and useless.”
Qiaolin smiled and said, “Even if you didn’t ask, I would have stepped in to help. That Level 10 Magic Beast is something even Saint-level powerhouses have to avoid. If you were the only ones going to slay it, I wouldn’t be able to feel at ease, even with the Dragon Slaying Holy Sword.”
“But…”
Qiaolin gently pressed a finger against White Favna’s small mouth and shook his head.
“If you truly understand your brother, then you should know that I am also a very stubborn person.”