Tang Dynasty: Starting with Dimo, he was targeted by Li Shimin.

Chapter 9: Yao Jin Causes Trouble in the Backyard (Part 1)

No sleep for one night.

It wasn't that Lin Luo couldn't sleep, but that Abu wouldn't let him.

This little white dumpling has been clinging tightly to Dimo ​​since last night, and Dimo, in turn, has been sleeping close to Lin Luo.

As a result, Lin Luo's bed was stuffed with two elves—one golden and one white—plus a salted fish squeezed into half of the bed.

Abu is a restless sleeper; every now and then he sneezes and a little flame comes out.

Fortunately, Dimo ​​was able to block the fire with his light wings each time, but Lin Luo's blanket was still burned with three holes.

Xiao Xiao came to check once in the middle of the night, saw this scene, and silently turned around and went back.

Before leaving, he left a message:

"You have to pay for the blanket too."

(；´Д`) This house will be completely destroyed by these elves sooner or later.

·

The next morning.

Lin Luotian got up before dawn because he needed to make preparations before Cheng Yaojin arrived.

Last night he carefully reviewed the system's notifications regarding Abu—

Berserk trigger conditions: extreme fear, extreme sadness, extreme anger, being startled by a loud noise.

Cheng Yaojin's voice...

Lin Luo felt that at least one of them applied.

Contingency plans must be prepared in advance.

He summoned everyone (and the elves) to the backyard for an emergency meeting.

Attendees: Lin Luo, Xiao Xiao, Di Mo, Shui Lanlan, Abu.

Abu was nestled in Dimo's arms, his big eyes looking around timidly, his tail still tucked tightly between his legs.

After spending the night together, it was no longer afraid of Dimo ​​and Linluo, but remained wary of Xiaoxiao and Shui Lanlan.

The main reason is that the water was too cold when Shui Lanlan gave it a bath last night, and Abu was shivering from the cold.

"Listen carefully," Lin Luo said, glancing around at the room with a serious expression.

"A very loud person will be coming to the store today."

"Very, very big."

"How big of a deal? Last time he yelled in the shop, even the butcher's dog next door ran away."

Little Owl yawned: "Is that the guy with the big beard who bought Duck Gigi?"

"Yes, Cheng Yaojin."

Lin Luo glanced at Abu: "And one of the conditions for this little guy's rampage is 'being startled by a loud noise.'"

"So—from now until he leaves, everyone must speak in hushed tones."

"Especially for Shui Lanlan, water cannons are not allowed."

"Blue!" Shui Lanlan exclaimed in dissatisfaction.

"Keep it down."

"...Blue." Water Blue lowered her voice and blew a small bubble in a wronged tone.

"Xiao Xiao, you're in charge of stopping people at the front door. When Cheng Yaojin arrives, pull him aside and tell him there's something going on in the shop today, and he must speak quietly."

Xiao Xiao nodded, his eyes half-closed. "Understood... but boss, will he listen to me?"

"..."

Lin Luo remained silent for three seconds.

"Do your best."

ᕙ(⇀‸↼‶)ᕗ I have no choice but to take a gamble.

·

·

·

Just after Chen Shi (7-9 AM), Cheng Yaojin arrived precisely on time.

Duck Gigi perched on his shoulder, the gold chain around her neck gleaming in the morning light, both duck and man looking radiant.

"Shopkeeper!! I'm here—"

Cheng Yaojingang opened his mouth, and one hand covered his face.

Xiao Xiao appeared at the doorway at some point, his amber eyes half-closed, one hand covering Cheng Yaojin's mouth, the other held up in front of his own lips.

"Shhh."

The sound was as soft as the wind.

Cheng Yaojin was bewildered by this sudden action.

His eyes were wide open, and his mouth was covered, from which he made a series of indistinct "mmm" sounds.

Duck Gigi was startled and slid off his shoulder, letting out a "quack?"

"There's a special situation at the store today," Xiao Xiao said softly, his amber eyes unusually wide open—showing the seriousness of the matter.

You must speak softly. Very softly.

"Otherwise, the consequences... will be very serious."

Cheng Yaojin looked into Xiao Xiao's amber eyes, which had finally opened fully and were unusually serious.

I suddenly felt a chill down my back.

He nodded vigorously.

Little Owl loosened his grip.

"I said..." Cheng Yaojin deliberately lowered his voice, but even "lowering his voice" was still twice as loud as a normal person's volume for him.

"What exactly is going on?"

Xiao Xiao stepped aside, gesturing for him to come in.

Yuchi Gong arrived a quarter of an hour later than Cheng Yaojin. By the time he arrived, Xiao Xiao had already "educated" him in advance, and he kept his voice low throughout.

The little otter was squatting in his palm, nibbling on a newly picked pebble.

When the two arrived in the backyard, they saw a scene that completely surprised them—

Lin Luo sat on the recliner, with Dimo ​​resting on his knees.

In Dimo's arms, a small, white, furry creature was curled up.

The little guy was about half a meter tall, like a small dog, covered in fluffy white fur.

Its little tail was tucked tightly between its legs, and its two large, round, amber eyes were watching the doorway warily.

The instant it saw Cheng Yaojin and Yuchi Gong enter—

His body suddenly stiffened.

"Ouch...!"

A very faint, wary growl escaped from its throat.

Dimo immediately stretched out its little paw and gently patted its back, its wings emitting a soft, soothing light.

"Mmm, mmm." "Don't be afraid, don't be afraid, they're our own people."

Cheng Yaojin's eyes lit up the moment he saw the little white creature—

He opened his mouth to shout.

"What kind of spirit is this—Ugh!!"

Lin Luo covered his mouth with lightning speed.

"Keep your voice down!!" Lin Luo said in a low voice, his expression even more tense than when he faced Abu last night.

"This elf is called Abu. It just arrived last night and is very timid."

"If you dare to shout even once, it will go berserk."

"After it goes berserk, it will transform into a 28-meter-tall dragon."

"Next door to your house."

Cheng Yaojin's eyes widened to their limit.

A dragon that's 28 meters tall?

He glanced instinctively at the little white puppy huddled in Dimo's arms, shivering.

It doesn't look like it could transform into a 28-meter-tall dragon at all.

But considering the precedent of Yajiji growing from half a person's height to two zhang tall...

Cheng Yaojin swallowed hard and, in a very cooperative, whispered:

"I...I understand..."

Duck Gigi curiously observed Abu from beside Cheng Yaojin's feet.

He tilted his head and leaned closer—

"quack!"

Abu's fur stood on end.

"Awoo!!"

It leaped out of Dimo's arms and darted onto the roof beam in the backyard!

A small white figure clung tightly to the beam, its limbs gripping the wood, its large eyes filled with terror.

It made rapid "ah-woo ah-woo" sounds.

Its body began to glow faintly—

A faint, silvery-blue light, characteristic of dragons, was faintly visible on its body.

A precursor to a rampage.

The entire audience froze for a moment.

"Don't move." Lin Luo's voice was extremely calm, but everyone could feel the tension in his tone.

He looked at Dimo.

Dimo understood, and gently flew up, slowly and gently flying to the side of the roof beam.

"Mmm."

Dimo's voice was very soft, like a murmur.

It spread its golden wings, releasing an even more intense, soothing light—

A warm, soft golden light enveloped Abu's entire body.

Abu's trembling gradually subsided.

The silvery-blue light on the surface of the body gradually faded.

Dimo slowly moved closer, stretched out his little paw, and gently touched Abu's head.

"Mmm-mmm-mmm."

It's alright. I'm here.

Abu's tears fell again.

It loosened its limbs that were clinging to the crossbeam and rushed into Dimo's arms.

Dimo was thrown into the air and flipped over, but still managed to catch it steadily.

The two elves slowly floated back to the ground.

The entire audience breathed a sigh of relief.

Cheng Yaojin's back was covered in cold sweat.

And at that very moment—

The little mouse otter in Yuchi Gong's palm had somehow slipped out of his hand.

The little boy ran up to Abu with his short legs.

"squeak?"

It tilted its head and looked at Abu.

Then he removed the small pebble from his belly.

It was placed in front of Abu.

"squeak."

Abu lowered his head, looking at the small pebble with teary eyes.

Then look at the little otter.

The little otter pushed the pebble forward with its paw—"Here, this is for you, don't cry."

Abu sniffed, then carefully stretched out a small paw and picked up the pebble.

Then--

Its tail swayed gently, slightly.

It was on this morning that Abu wagged his tail for the first time.

╰(⸝⸝⸝´꒳`⸝⸝⸝)╯

Seeing the interaction between the little otter and Abu, Shui Lanlan mustered up her courage and came over.

It cautiously approached Abu and opened its mouth—

It blew out a tiny bubble.

The bubble floated to the tip of Abu's nose, sparkling.

Abu tilted his head, looked at the bubble, and reached out his paw to touch it—

"puff."

The bubble burst, and tiny water droplets splashed all over Abu's face.

Abu was stunned for a moment.

Then I sneezed—

"Achoo!"

A small flame shot out.

It sprayed right onto the light blue bow.

One corner of the bow was on fire.

"Blue!!!" Shui Lanlan screamed and jumped back, extinguishing the fire on her head with a water cannon.

Then it glared at Abu, and Abu glared at it.

The two elves stared at each other for three seconds—

Shui Lanlan blew another bubble.

Abu sneezed again, and flames shot out.

Shui Lanlan put out the fire again.

Abu took another step closer.

Shui Lanlan took another step back.

This loop repeated four times—

Shui Lanlan finally gave up, lying on the ground in grievance, her bow half-burnt.

Abu tilted his head and looked at Shui Lanlan with an expression that said, "I didn't mean to, but I couldn't control myself."

Then it cautiously approached and nuzzled the blue-green head with its nose.

"Awoo..."

I'm sorry.

Shui Lanlan glanced at it, sighed, and blew another bubble.

This time, the bubble didn't float towards Abu, but instead landed on his charred bow, washing away the ashes.

"blue."

Forget it, I won't argue with you.

(´，，•ω•，，)♡

Lin Luo couldn't help but laugh when he saw this scene.

Cheng Yaojin and Yuchi Gong, standing nearby, also breathed a sigh of relief.

So this legendary dragon-type Pokémon... turns out it's a crybaby.

That evening, after confirming that Abu was in stable condition, Lin Luo opened the encyclopedia recording.

"...Pokémon Pokédex, Season 4. Abu."

"A legendary dragon-type Pokémon, its juvenile form is about half a meter tall and resembles a small white dog. Don't be fooled by its appearance—this Pokémon's final form is Thunderfury, standing twenty-eight meters tall, whose roar can cleave through the clouds."

"But young Abu is the complete opposite—extremely weak, extremely timid, prone to sneezing and breathing fire when startled, and capable of triggering a Dragon-type rampage when emotionally unstable. He's the kind of Pokémon that requires endless patience to care for."

"The evolution path is: Abu → Super Abu → Holy Dragon Abu → Thunder Abu. Each evolution requires specific conditions—not just leveling up, but also undergoing challenges and emotional trials."

"Training advice: Don't rush to make it fight in the early stages; first, max out its intimacy level. Once it goes berserk, you and half your city will suffer."

"Personal experience: This morning it almost went on a rampage in the backyard because a duck got too close and scared it. It was only calmed down by Dimo's soothing light."

"This sprite is worth the wait."

Lin Luo clicked "save".

[The Pokémon information video has been recorded. Rewards: 2 Cocoa Berries, 1 Water-type Pokémon Fruit Fragment.]

It's 5/10 now.

Collect five more fragments to synthesize a Water-type Spirit Fruit and activate the Water-type species in the Sleeping Owl Sanctuary.

By then... perhaps we can actually do something about the drought.

Lin Luo looked at the backyard—

Abu curled up asleep next to Dimo, clutching the pebble the little otter had given him.

Shui Lanlan lay in the water tank, quietly blowing bubbles. The charred bow had been re-tied by Xiao Xiao with strips of cloth.

Xiao Xiao leaned against the door frame, dozing off, still holding the bills Lin Luo owed him for today—quilts, cabbages, clothes, the total debt was enough to buy two bushels of rice.

σ(´し_`〃)ゞ These days are getting more and more lively.

……