The Heartbeat of the Cruel Elves

"Why do you seem so reluctant to accept it?"

The muscles in its eye sockets twitched as it stared at the two of them.

"Of course," Li Yin hurriedly smiled and said carefully, "This is indeed an honor for us, Your Excellency the Dragon."

"Then I don't understand even more." The giant dragon's claws scratched the ground impatiently. A large piece of black rock as hard as steel was picked up by its claws like mud, flew into the air, and fell down with a thud, making Li Yin's scalp tingle.

"As a true warrior, as the saying goes, 'It is honor to die, and shame to live,'" it said passionately, "To die with glory on the battlefield, shouldn't this be the only wish of every true warrior when he is defeated?"

"I have generously granted you this opportunity to fulfill your ultimate wish, so why are you trying so hard to refuse it?"

Its huge vertical pupils turned as it thought seriously, and its gruff tone contained a feeling of grievance and unwillingness that its good intentions had been betrayed.

A crystal tail, like a slender band of light, was swinging back and forth behind it anxiously.

"Uh," Li Yin and Du Feiya fell silent.

"Don't waste time," the dragon waited for a while, then said impatiently, "Either you choose for yourself, according to the way of your own race, or I will choose for you."

It opened its mouth and yawned, as if it was tired of waiting. That look made Li Yin and Du Feiya tremble with fear, as if the next moment the huge mouth would swallow them both whole.

No, I can’t let it help me choose, Li Yin thought anxiously as his calves felt weak.

Although he didn't know what was the proper way to die in battle, it was not a good way to die. More importantly, he didn't want to die at all!

So, he thought hard for a while, forced a smile, and spoke earnestly:

"Respected, respected dragon majesty, it is like this... In our human race and culture, the most glorious way for us to die is... to have both sons and daughters, with white hair and beard, lying on a warm and soft velvet bed..."

"…Our bedside was filled with relatives, friends, and descendants who had rushed over after hearing the news. Under their caring and heavy gazes, I finished my last words with relief, and then closed my eyes peacefully…"

"It would be best...it would be best," Li Yin pondered for a moment, "at this time, it would be best if there was a big, warm fireplace with a red-hot fire next to it!"

The dragon tilted its head and stared at him with its two big eyes for a long time. Then, it came to its senses:

"You mean... die of old age?"

"That's right!" Li Yin answered a little embarrassedly but firmly.

"This is unbelievable," the dragon looked up at the sky, obviously shocked. After a long while, it continued to exclaim, "How can humans be such a cowardly race without blood, shame, or honor?"

Li Yin scratched his head and accepted this "fair" evaluation calmly: "There is no way, Your Highness. Our race is so weak, and cannot compare to the great dragon race. We must be humble in order to survive in this cruel world. Over time..."

"But," the dragon interrupted him with a thoughtful murmur, "this is not right. I seem to have heard a saying somewhere, 'The hymn of mankind is the hymn of courage'. For this reason, I once had high hopes for your little race."

"Rumor," Li Yin said seriously and indignantly, "This is absolutely a rumor, Your Excellency the Dragon."

"I think this must be a despicable and evil race, such as dark elves, cave dwellers, gray dwarves... deliberately fabricated to slander us. I believe that with your wisdom, you can definitely see through such a despicable lie!"

"What a degenerate race!" the dragon exclaimed.

"Your evaluation is spot on." Li Yin said with a smile, sincerely affirming, "Your eyes are as sharp as a torch, illuminating the universe. The weakness and depravity of our race are completely exposed in front of your keen eyes."

"What about you?" The Sapphire Dragon ignored Li Yin's compliment. It didn't even look at Li Yin again. Instead, it looked at Du Feiya and asked seriously, "Dark Elf Bug, in your racial culture, what is the most honorable way to die?"

"Me? We?" Du Feiya was speechless for a moment, obviously caught off guard. She turned her head and subconsciously looked at Li Yin for help, but fortunately she was as smart as snow and had a quick mind, so she reacted immediately.

"Reply, reply to your question, respected Lord Dragon." She turned her head to look at the dragon, bowed her head slightly, and said in fear and trepidation:

"The most glorious way for us dark elves to die is... to sit on the throne of the mistress, then lead our family to sit on the throne of the city's first family, then eliminate countless hostile families that want to replace our family, and then personally annihilate countless descendants who want to replace us. Just like this... we sit on these two thrones for thousands of years, and finally rest on the skulls of countless hostile family mistresses and rebellious young people of our own family, and receive the call of the Spider Goddess."

"The most important thing is," Du Feiya licked her lips, her eyes sparkling, and her fair hands unconsciously clenched into fists, "Until the last moment, we will always sit on these two thrones!"

"It sounds like you are more enterprising than human bugs," the dragon nodded its huge, glittering head and commented casually, "But why do you... still want to die of old age?"

There was an unconcealable sense of loss in its voice.

"After all," Du Feiya rubbed his hands embarrassedly, "we are also very weak."

"Isn't it normal for a race as weak as ours to have some similarities?"

"No!" At this moment, the giant dragon suddenly shouted.

Li Yin and Du Feiya were immediately shocked.

They thought the dragon had discovered something and cried out that something was wrong. But then they heard the dragon flap its wings and shout loudly in a rhythmic voice:

"You only have the courage to strive for success, but not the courage to face your failure calmly, so you indulge in the fantasy that you will never fail, from birth to death. This is still a cowardly act!"

"To some extent," it stretched out a claw and pointed it directly at Du Feiya, roaring indignantly, "You are even more cowardly than the human bugs who calmly accept their failure and seek to survive!"

Du Feiya was stunned for a moment, then she suddenly reacted and smiled.

"Yes, yes, yes," she agreed repeatedly. Then, she suddenly realized that her smile seemed too obvious, so she restrained it a little.

"Your insights are insightful and your judgments are thought-provoking!" she added.

The dragon ignored her and turned to the side, flapping its wings gently, waving its four legs, and pacing on its own, shaking its head and sighing.

"I thought," it said, "that I had come across two real warriors."

"As a result, your two races have no honor at all."

"You got the point," Du Feiya clenched her fists, held them in front of her chest, her eyes sparkling with stars. Looking at her, she was just about to give the dragon a thumbs up.

"You have lived in the underground world for so long, so you must be familiar with the culture of the dark elves. We dark elves have no honor at all."

She paused, sorted out her thoughts, and continued to speak clearly: "If we must say, our only glory is to see who lives longer!"

The dragon shook its head and sneered, immediately showing its undisguised contempt.

This is not a lie... On the other side, Li Yin thought silently in his heart. Because survival means success, and in the world of dark elves, failure means death. If a dark elf can always succeed, in other words, continue to survive, this is not the greatest honor, what else can it be?

"In this case," Li Yin saw that the time was almost right, and he spoke carefully, "Sir Dragon, since you have realized that there are huge cultural differences between our races, can you please take back your order?"

"Retract your promise?" The dragon turned around suddenly. "What do you mean?"

Now it was Li Yin's turn to be puzzled.

But he couldn't just say carelessly like the dragon did, "That's not hard to understand."

He could only explain cautiously with a smile on his face:

"The thing is, you see, since there are such great differences between our racial cultures, what you are so generously willing to give us may not necessarily be what we need."

"So, please allow us to appreciate your kindness and generosity, but as for the honor of dying in war, we, we..."

Li Yin paused and did not continue speaking. He thought his meaning was clear enough.

But the dragon just twitched its eye socket muscles, opened its pupils wide in surprise, and continued to stare at them.

"I don't quite understand," it said.

"What's so hard about understanding this--" As soon as this thought came to mind, Li Yin suppressed it, but it was too late. The dragon's eyes suddenly flashed coldly.

Li Yin's heart trembled violently. But fortunately, the dragon did not dwell on this. It spoke rumblingly, seeming to be more concerned with another topic.

"Although each of your races is very weak and afraid of death."

"But haven't you just proved to me that you are different from other two-legged insects?" It raised its head and looked into the distance.

Li Yin looked in its direction and saw nothing, but he guessed that it might be looking at the bodies of the dark elf soldiers scattered on the plain in the distance.

Oh no, this is bad, he thought, I have shot myself in the foot.

"What do you mean by 'shooting oneself in the foot'?" the dragon asked in confusion.

Ah this... Li Yin was suddenly shocked. Oops, he shouldn't have thought that way.

"What do you mean by 'you shouldn't think that way'?" The moment this thought came to his mind, the dragon immediately asked, "What exactly do you mean by that?"

Li Yin wanted to cry but had no tears.

“Forget it.” Just when he was in despair, the dragon suddenly shook its head again, seeming very impatient, “Let’s not worry about this for now.”

It seemed to be very interested in another topic. "In short, I don't understand. Even if your native culture is cowardly, you two excellent little bugs should have already broken away from the limitations of your weak culture."

"What's more," it puffed out its chest, "you are still here, witnessing the noble demeanor of our dragon race."

"If that's the case, why don't you learn from others and work hard to break free of the shackles you were born with and shoulder the ultimate glory of being a warrior? Instead, you still cower in fear and continue to crawl under the old customs of your weak race?"

"The red jade is in front of you," the dragon's voice rumbled like a thunderstorm, asking a question that was "questioning the soul," "Why don't you think of looking up at it, but instead insist on bending over the ditch and picking up rubble?"

Li Yin and Du Feiya looked at each other, each with an expression of embarrassment on their faces, and for a moment they didn't know how to respond.

"Forget it," the dragon looked at the two of them for a while, and seeing that Li Yin and Du Feiya were still hesitant, he lost his patience and let out a long sigh.

"A noble dragon cannot dawdle here with you and waste time."

"Since you are unable to make a decision on your own, let me make the decision for you. I, the great Sapphire Dragon..." Another series of awkward syllables, "...way."

Li Yin and Du Feiya both changed color.

"You two little bugs, although weak, are full of fighting spirit. It will be a pity if you just disappear in this world." Unexpectedly, the dragon's next words surprised them.

"You, you mean," Li Yin was incredulous, with a hopeful light on his face.

"Have you changed your mind?"

"Change your mind?" The Sapphire Dragon shook his head suddenly, looking surprised. "What did you say? Change your mind?"

"How could the proud dragon race be indecisive and change its mind every day?" Its majestic head was raised high, and the voice that came out of its wide-open mouth was full of determination and confidence, and its deep blue eyes sparkled with confidence and wisdom.

"My heart is as hard as stone, and I will never change it!"

Chapter 174 My Father, the Master of Martial Arts

"If your own pathetic little brains can't come up with some glorious death ritual, that's fine too."

"Because, I, the wise one, have already prepared a backup plan for you."

"That is..." The dragon's voice was sonorous and powerful, like a symphony of metal and stone, "I will cast your bodies into statues with pure gold to preserve your heroic figures in battle. What do you think?"

Without waiting for the stunned Li Yin and Du Feiya to respond, it lowered its head, staring at the two with its huge blue eyes, flashing with a kind and proud glow, and said self-affirmingly:

“This is truly a brilliant method!”

Li Yin and Du Feiya looked pale, but the giant blue crystal dragon seemed very satisfied with its plan and continued to talk incessantly.

"It just so happens that one of you is a warrior and the other is a wizard, and among the chess pieces you just broke in and destroyed," it lowered its head and glanced at the fallen statue on the ground, "there is a magician and a knight."

"Let's use the statues of the two of you as new chess pieces."

"Thus, although you will die today, your heroic figures will always stand on my chessboard, immortalized forever."

"I promise that I will treat you as one or two of my most precious chess pieces and treasure you well."

"You will continue to fight on my chessboard."

"And from now on, every time I win a game, I will share my glory with you."

"I will use this as a tribute to my worthy little opponents."

"What do you think of this plan?" Its huge eyes flashed with wisdom as it looked at Li Yin and Du Feiya.

"Master Dragon," Li Yin certainly didn't dare to directly say that this plan was not a good idea. He swallowed his saliva, carefully glanced at the ground with the corner of his eye, then stretched out a finger and pointed at a certain place on the ground with equal caution: "Look--"

He raised his head and smiled at the huge face in the sky. "These chess pieces of yours are very solid and not damaged at all. In my opinion, there is no need to replace them at all."

The dragon's pupils rolled down in the direction of his finger, and its huge nose snorted in dissatisfaction:

"Things that are not discerning are all scratched, don't you see?"

"Look, that, that, and that..." It stretched out its paws and pointed casually here and there.

Li Yin rubbed his eyes hard, but he didn't see a single scratch on any of the fallen statues.

"Forget it," the dragon's tone had returned to normal at this time, "I shouldn't have been angry with you."

Li Yin was stunned. He didn't expect it to have such a good temper.

"With the short vision of little bugs like you, it's normal that you can't see these tiny flaws clearly."

"Even if you saw it, with your crude taste and lazy spirit of muddling through, you would probably just let it go and deliberately ignore it."

A drop of cold sweat dripped down Li Yin's forehead.

Okay...it was a misunderstanding.

"Misunderstanding? What misunderstanding?" the dragon asked warily and unhappily.

"I mean," Li Yin immediately answered very humbly, "our disagreement just now turned out to be a misunderstanding based on the difference in species between us, respected dragon sir."

The dragon nodded.

"So, what do you think about this plan?"