Monday, February 5, 2024

Applaud for Happiness - Chapter 66

 

Chapter 66

From that moment on, Shen Qi became obsessed with turning his two sets of privates into one. He started sharpening his knife and secretly plotting.

He had a strong feeling that if he didn't remove one, he wouldn't be able to survive in this world for a year — two sets were too much!

It could be lethal!

If he were to die in this world, it would definitely be an overuse-related death!

Considering Dragon Chi's keen sensitivity to the murderous atmosphere, Shen Qi carefully concealed his plans, intending to plot slowly.

After devouring an entire wild boar, Dragon Chi still stared at Shen Qi intently, twitching his nose with an expression that suggested he knew there was more food to be had.

Shen Qi took the last piece of meat, removed the bitter fruit flesh from it, applied honey again, and ate it himself. Perhaps because he shed tears from the bitterness just now, Dragon Chi did not snatch it; instead, he urged Shen Qi with his eyes.

Casually finishing the last piece, Shen Qi picked up a handkerchief made from a leftover cloth and elegantly wiped his mouth, saying, "There's no such thing as a free meal in this world. I hunted these prey and cooked them myself. I've given you the previous ones for free. If you want to eat more, trade something."

"Let me clarify first. I don't want the prey; I can hunt myself. I need items, such as pottery or clothes, and of course, a pot would be even better."

After saying that, Shen Qi looked at Dragon Chi with anticipation. He was curious about where dragons hid their treasures. According to books, dragons used spatial magic and carried their treasures at all times. Some said they hid their treasures in an undetectable place and accessed them through space spells.

Shen Qi had no desire to experience survival in the wilderness. With Dragon Chi, a treasure trove, improving their living standard shouldn't be difficult.

At the very least, they should step into the pottery era.

Trade with items?

Dragon Chi tilted his head in thought, recalling the only trade he had ever participated in among dragons — it seemed to have been a barter. It had been so long that he had nearly forgotten.

Ever since that incident, he had no contact with other dragons. He stayed in the deep sea and nearly forgot his way to Dragon Valley.

"Wait." Dragon Chi waved his hand lightly. A crack appeared in the space in front of him. He reached halfway into it and, after a little while, pulled out a pile of items that scattered on the ground.

Money. A mountain of money.

To be precise, it was an abundance of golden coins. The shimmering gold was nearly blinding — not a coin, but a large pile, and Dragon Chi continued producing more.

After pulling out three loads, he finally stopped, snuggled the coins affectionately, and then pushed them in front of Shen Qi: "Is this enough?"

Shen Qi massaged his forehead: "What use do you think gold coins have in this place?"

"You don't like gold coins?" Dragon Chi was astonished, as if he had met someone who didn't like gold coins for the first time. He didn't understand the subtext of Shen Qi's words and happily took back the gold coins, putting them away excitedly. His eyes softened as he looked at Shen Qi. A human who didn't want to take his gold coins was wonderful. He thought it would be even better if Shen Qi were female.

"What do you want?"

Shen Qi sighed, "I've already said, I need clothes. Do you see? I have no clothes to wear. You too, find some for yourself. Fabric alone will do. If possible, some bowls and cutlery would be great. Even items that you think are useless will do."

Dragon Chi peeked into the crack and pulled out two pieces of clothing, "Will these do?"

As the clothes were unfolded, Shen Qi was once again dazzled.

A mound of glittering gold unfurled revealing two gold-woven outfits, one male and one female, adorned with colorful gems. It was a clear embodiment of nouveau riche aesthetics.

Shen Qi barely held back a grin, "Don't you have anything simpler, like what I'm wearing?"

Dragon Chi looked back into the crack and replied, "No." His face seemed a bit hurt. He didn't understand what Shen Qi was complaining about. "I only have shiny, golden things here."

Saying that, he pulled out a pile of items: golden cups, bowls, plates, basins, and even gold spoons and forks of all sizes. Basically everything, apart from blades, was made of gold.

Shen Qi started choosing useful items as he curiously wondered where Dragon Chi found these items. Despite being in the wilderness, with clothes barely covering them, they had utensils made entirely of gold. It was simply...

There was nothing to say.

"Do you want these?" Dragon Chi held up the two golden garbs, evidently puzzled why Shen Qi didn't like such gorgeous clothes.

"You keep them," Shen Qi said weakly, waving his hand. Wearing such garments could cause trouble — if a gem were to fall out while hunting, he'd have to multitask killing prey and picking up gems, a scenario he found ridiculous.

Dragon Chi decisively put the clothes away and looked at Shen Qi, "Can we eat now?"

"Yes." Shen Qi gathered the gold utensils, placing smaller items inside larger ones. Dragon Chi kindly provided a rack as well, of course made of pure gold. Shen Qi placed everything on it, served the grilled rabbit onto a golden plate, and handed it to Dragon Chi.

Dragon Chi happily took it, tearing a leg off and feasting.

Shen Qi used the opportunity to cook the second rabbit, and scooped up the cooked dishes, eating by himself as Dragon Chi devoured his rabbit.

During the meal, Dragon Chi ate an entire wild boar and three rabbits, while Shen Qi consumed two chickens. Dragon Chi seemed unsatisfied, only quenching his thirst with two big jars of water after Shen Qi promised to roast meat for him again the next day.

Shen Qi thought Dragon Chi would stay in the cave overnight, as it was prepared, indicating the intention to stay. But as the last afterglows of the day faded, Dragon Chi flushed and roared at the sky, leaping with tremendous speed. His jump was quite high, almost ten meters, then transformed into a massive dragon form. Afterward, he plunged headfirst into the ocean.

Shen Qi watched from the hillside as Dragon Chi, resembling a huge ball of fire, plummeted into the water. The surrounding sea seemed to boil, fish floated onto the water with their bellies up, but were quickly reduced to ash. The water surface bubbled as if boiling. After a full ten minutes, it eventually settled.

The moonlight was bright, reflecting off the sea as though nothing had happened. Shen Qi sat back by the fire, a furrow between his brows.

He knew, Dragon Chi was suppressing his mating cycle, causing his restlessness. From the time he came of age until now had been three hundred years. According to records, the dragon race usually matured at one hundred years old, and they had a lifespan of around five hundred years. Therefore, Dragon Chi, at four hundred years old, was an old dragon. By normal standards, he should appear middle-aged.

But it appeared books didn't reveal the whole story — perhaps the dragon race simply didn't age.

According to the timeline Shen Qi had, Dragon Chi had only half a year before he wouldn't be able to suppress his mating period any longer, potentially resulting in a painful death. So, he must vent these natural urges within half a year.

In other words, Shen Qi must be with him within the next six months.

Thinking about the two oversized objects, Shen Qi felt an urge to smash his head into the ground. What he thought was a simple duty had escalated into a difficult challenge. Those were two massive appendages and they could be lethal!

Why would a dragon have two? Who could explain this to him?!

For the first time, Shen Qi felt an urge to scream. If it were a cunning plot twist, he could handle it. But this straightforward problem was something he couldn't solve, despite his wily resourcefulness.

Did he really have to do it?

Thinking about the size of those things made him shudder uncontrollably.

No, there had to be a way. Perhaps he didn't have to deal with both at once. He could tackle one at a time. Dragon Chi was a centuries-old virgin; surely he could finish quickly. Thirty seconds for each one perhaps, so a minute in total. That should be manageable... right?

Shen Qi held his forehead. Why had he been reduced to worrying over such a matter? If his colleagues heard about it, they would probably laugh hard. After all, he was a top-ranking employee, an esteemed senior colleague. The fact he was devoting so much strategic thought to such a situation was absurd.

But he decided to shrug it off and sleep. There were still six months left — a day procrastinated was a day won.

Moreover, Dragon Chi was still stuck in his ways, only recognizing females. He'd deal with all this when Dragon Chi realized the situation.

________________________


For the next two weeks, Shen Qi split his time between wilderness development and feeding Dragon Chi. With the lure of delicious food — specifically roasted meat (Dragon Chi ate no vegetables) and the occasional fruit for snacks — he was able to direct Dragon Chi to help with tasks like digging and shaping caves, smoothing sands, and crafting rooms in the caves.

Using roasted meat as a bargaining chip, Shen Qi established a rule: Dragon Chi was to maintain a human shape while on the island. Shen Qi feared that a couple more of his thrashes might bring down the entire mountain. For the sake of food, Dragon Chi maintained his human form.

Initially, he stumbled around even when walking. But half a month later, apart from his unabated fondness for being au naturel and his reluctance to wear clothes, Dragon Chi was essentially no different from a normal human. He learned to use chopsticks and forks for eating, spoons for drinking soup, and he even picked up the practice of washing fruit before eating, instead of simply stuffing it into his mouth as he used to do.

During the day, Dragon Chi stayed on the island. At night, he returned to the sea. On the surface, nothing seemed amiss. He didn't look like he was nearing his end. Shen Qi speculated that Dragon Chi's impending demise was akin to sudden death, caused by years of repression. He was like a balloon filled with gas; outwardly, there seemed to be nothing wrong, but once it reached a critical point, it would burst.

Shen Qi couldn't help but overthink. According to the original plot, without his intervention, Dragon Chi would continue to hide at the bottom of the sea. But now, Dragon Chi emerged in the daylight and only went back at night. Would this impact the explosion? Could it bring about the critical point sooner?

Concerned with life and death, he dared not wager. He was caught between indecision.

To act or not to act, that was the question.

Before he resolved his dilemma, Dragon Chi suddenly had an epiphany.

More precisely, he realized that males could also assist each other.

This realization was brought about by Mori and York, two single men in the prime of their lives, with no women on the island. Shen Qi lived halfway up the mountain with Dragon Chi, while Mori and York were at the bottom. Overtime, they were destined to help each other out, whether it was mutual fondness or purely assisting each other.

Dragon Chi witnessed a scene where they were bathing and touching each other. He came running back to Shen Qi, his face a mix of terror and wonder, and chattered away about the spectacle.

"So?" Shen Qi retorted calmly, wondering whether he should send Mori and York away. His initial idea of keeping them involved not only saving their lives but also hoping they could help. Now that the crisis was over, and he had found Dragon Chi, he could let them start a new life. If they remained, they might become attracted to each other.

"So... so..." Dragon Chi struggled with what to say, his gaze involuntarily landing on Shen Qi's hand. Shen Qi's hand was fair and beautiful. Thinking back to the scene he had just witnessed and envisioning that hand on his own body, he swallowed hard. His eyes lit up with twin flames of desire, and he became noticeably aroused.

"Let's do what they did and have some fun touching each other!"


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