I, Uchiha Hikaru, have joined the chat group.

Chapter 270 Kuimen Pass

That morning.

Xia Mi took a long-distance bus and arrived at the small county where Uchiha Kou was temporarily staying.

"Hikari-neechan!"

Upon seeing Uchiha Hikari, Natsumi immediately waved, then affectionately rushed over and gave her a light hug: "Long time no see!"

"...Long time no see, Mi."

Uchiha Hikaru smiled and responded.

It has indeed been a long time.

Compared to our last meeting about six months ago.

Xia Mi's appearance hadn't changed much; she still had that fair, bright, and almost ethereal face, only her hair had grown a little longer. She wore a white silk T-shirt paired with denim shorts, which accentuated her slender waist and legs, making her look quite striking. She carried a large backpack, dressed like a student on a summer vacation trip.

Just ...

"Did you take a long-distance bus here?"

"...Yes. I originally wanted to rent a car, but it was a bit expensive, so I took the bus instead. There are quite a few tourist routes in this area, so it's quite convenient."

"Oh……"

Listening to Xia Mi's explanation, Uchiha Hikaru remained noncommittal.

Why does this Little Dragon Girl seem a bit...poor?

In theory, with the power the Dragon King wields, it would be easy for him to amass wealth in the real world. Even if he didn't want to be too ostentatious, he could easily make a few hundred thousand to supplement his household income. However, Xia Mi seems to be an exception; in most cases, she adheres to the rules of human society even more strictly than real humans.

It can only be said that there are still drawbacks to method acting.

If Xia Mi hadn't been so immersed in the original storyline, with her strength as the "strongest second-generation species," she could have easily defeated Chu Zihang, who had gone through three blood surges, instead of being stabbed to death by him.

the other side.

Natsumi looked at Erii and Esdeath, her beautiful eyes revealing a searching look.

"This must be Erii-san. As expected of the familiar chosen by Hikari-neechan."

"And this is...?"

"Esdeath, my other companion."

Uchiha Hikaru spoke up at the opportune moment to explain.

There's no need to fabricate any lies about being the "King of the Ocean and Water" in front of Xia Mi.

After all, this claim only fools those uninformed human-hybrids. Xia Mi and the "Water King" are siblings from the same father, and have probably met many times over thousands of years. Unless Esdeath truly obtains the "Water King's" authority, this lie will be exposed in no time, and even Uchiha Hikaru's identity as the "White King" will be questioned.

Of course……

Uchiha Hikaru wasn't afraid to reveal that he had impersonated someone else.

But when it comes to acting, it's more fulfilling to make it look real.

"……Understood."

Xia Mi nodded without asking any further questions.

Next.

The two sides began to discuss Constantine's matter.

"I've already gone to 'White Emperor City' to take a look."

Xia Mi spoke: "According to our observations, the 'Bronze City' cast by Norton was located in an underwater fissure in that area. It sank to the bottom of the river due to the earthquake. Kassel College somehow obtained this information and sent a team to investigate. They have now basically pinpointed the location of the 'Bronze City' and will likely send people down to salvage it soon..."

Actually, Xia Mi didn't need to tell us this part of the information.

Uchiha Hikaru himself knew very well—

This operation by Kassel College was named "Project Kuimen" and was led by Professor Mans, with Ye Sheng, Jiu Deyaji, Selma and others participating as operatives.

The first two will die in this operation, while Constantine's urn will be taken back to the Institute as their "relics" to serve as a catalyst for the resurrection of Don Norton, another fire king.

and so……

"So, Hikari-neechan, should we go and snatch them away?"

Xia Mi carefully observed Uchiha Hikaru's expression and cautiously asked, "Leaving Norton aside for now, Constantine is considered relatively easy to get along with among the Dragon Kings and can be our ally... If he falls into the hands of the Secret Party, it might be a bit troublesome for us to take him back."

of course……

It's just a bit troublesome.

If it were the original Xia Mi, without sufficient preparation, she might have chosen to lie low at this time to avoid prematurely exposing her existence to Kassel or other human-hybrid forces, thus avoiding unnecessary trouble.

But now, with the esteemed "White King" by her side as a companion, Xia Mi feels quite safe and confident that even if she were to openly rob the Kassel College, she could still snatch the bone vial.

"Well……"

Uchiha Hikaru pondered for a moment.

Actually, what she really wanted was Norton's blood sample.

Because the situation of the twins "Fire King" is very similar to that of Xia Mi and Fenrir, they are also an older brother with some brains, taking care of a weak child younger brother... In fact, Constantine's IQ is even lower than Fenrir's because he has just been resurrected from the cocoon, so much so that he was shot in the head by Angers and Lu Mingfei, and died even more humiliatingly than Xia Mi.

Although Xia Mi is said to be the "strongest second-generation being," if all the first-generation beings were ranked by strength, the weakest one would likely be Constantine...

but……

Norton won't awaken anytime soon, and Uchiha Hikaru doesn't even know where he is. He might have to go ask Lu Mingfei or Angers.

Using Constantine as a meal replacement would be barely acceptable.

"Then let's do as you say, Mi."

Uchiha Hikaru stretched his shoulders and neck: "I have a question. Can you open the gates of 'Bronze Castle'?"

"Bronze City," said to have been forged by Norton, the eldest of the four kings and eight twins, is a miracle of alchemy. Normally, even S-rank hybrids cannot enter it. Kassel College opened its gates using the "key"—the blood of Chen Motong's younger brother.

And Xia Mi...

"I haven't tried it, but it should work."

Xia Mi's tone was somewhat uncertain.

"...Give it a try."

Uchiha Hikaru didn't care.

Anyway, if all else fails, she can wait until the Kassels get Constantine out, then snatch him from them. She can also rescue Ye Sheng and Jiu Deya, the star-crossed lovers, as a kind of reciprocal exchange. Two lives for a Dragon King—Kassel surely won't be dissatisfied.

That night.

Uchiha Hikaru arranged for a black sedan to take Natsumi and her group to the Kuimen Pass region where "Bronze City" is located.

"By the way... Hikaru-neechan, have you taken your Chinese driver's license test?"

On the way, Xia Mi, who was sitting in the passenger seat, suddenly asked a question.

"Huh? Driver's license? Of course not."

"?!"

Xia Mi was taken aback: "What if we get stopped by the traffic police? This area is a high-accident zone, and the police often set up manpower at intersections for spot checks."

"...You're the Dragon King, why are you afraid of this?"

Uchiha Hikaru gave Xia Mi a strange look, then smiled slightly at the latter's speechless expression: "Don't worry, you just need to sit there and relax, and I'll take care of the rest... Even if we do run into a driver's license check, we can easily fool them."

At worst, we can just throw it into a month and read it, and there won't be any problems.

"……All right."

Xia Mi remained silent, simply sitting quietly in the passenger seat, occasionally glancing at Esdeath in the back seat through the rearview mirror.

Esdeath was also looking at her.

Xia Mi was guessing the other party's identity. After all, as the Dragon King, she could roughly sense that Esdeath's aura was extraordinary, but she didn't know how strong the latter was.

Esdeath, however, was concerned about something else—

[Ice Queen: Is this woman named Xia Mi really your sister? They don't look very alike, but you two seem to be very close.]

[Anonymous: Well, you can roughly understand it as a sworn sister, the kind you'd become sworn siblings with.]

[Ice Queen: ...Then may I fight her?]

[Anonymous: You mean a sparring match? Let's wait and see, we'll talk about it after we confirm the situation at Kuimen Pass.]

【…】

During a casual chat.

Uchiha Hikari drove her black sedan at breakneck speed along the provincial highway all the way to the vicinity of Kuimen Pass. Sure enough, she encountered a traffic police checkpoint at an intersection along the way, but with just a glance from Uchiha Hikari, the police ignored her, who was clearly a minor and driving without a license, and let them pass.

"It's over there."

On a river embankment at a higher elevation.

Uchiha Hikaru stopped the car, then opened the door and jumped out.

Xia Mi and the others also got out of the car. Xia Mi stood on tiptoe, shaded her eyes with her hand, looked into the distance for a while, then pointed in a certain direction and turned to speak to Uchiha Hikaru.

Because it was nighttime and the distance was quite far, it was difficult to see the river surface clearly from here.

However, the sound of the surging waves could be clearly heard from miles away, and occasionally, when the moonlight shone through, one could see a few shimmering reflections on the water.

"...That's the 'Kuimen' over there, also known as the 'Qutang Pass'. In ancient times, it was a strategic location fought over by military strategists, but now, due to the construction of a reservoir, most of the ruins have been submerged and it no longer has the grandeur it once did... A few days ago, when I was diving down there, I saw a pure-blooded dragon, which should be the guardian of the 'Bronze City'."

Xia Mi dutifully explained the information she had on hand.

"Samson, is it?"

Uchiha Hikaru understood.

This one is the dragon servant of the "Fire King," a third-generation dragon of noble blood, and the dragon who killed Ye Sheng and Jiu Deya in the original story.

In addition...

"Is the Monyach from Kassel in this area right now?"

Perhaps we could go over and take a look first?

(End of this chapter)