Su Cheng crashed directly into his arms.
Given their height difference, the moment he opened his arms, she buried her face perfectly against his chest.
Her cheekbone brushed against the cold, hard bump of a leather buckle, while the tip of her nose pressed against firm, resilient muscle.
She hugged him back. "Why are you here?"
"I sensed you were in a bad mood. Besides, I wanted to see you and apologize for what happened in the Echoing Plane."
"...Was that your memory?" Su Cheng looked up at him. "How did your memories end up being collected by the people of the Holy Church—"
Kai raised a hand and stroked the top of her head, his movements as gentle as ever. "When they defeated me, they took some things."
Su Cheng immediately felt a pang of regret. "I'm sorry—"
"No," he interrupted her at once. "It's not a terrible memory. Let's go."
His voice was still as deep and pleasing as she remembered, carrying that gentle patience, and the scent on him still exuded a familiar coolness.
But it still felt like an embrace between two of a kind.
She thought of the rocks in the Lightless Ruin, the progenitor of the ancient dragons going mad before the cliff face, and the frenzied black flames burning under the sky.
—That aura seemed to still linger in her nasal cavity, blending with the sensation of this moment, making her feel inexplicably comforted.
"...Alright."
Su Cheng said softly.
The hot summer wind, swirling with dust and smoke, brushed past her cheeks, and the entire world dissolved in the clamor.
The hollow howling of the wind through the ruins of the Holy City, the endless screams and prayers, all suddenly faded away at this moment.
Spring Sun.
They passed through the veil of space and appeared once again in the pitch-black heart of the volcano.
A choking, burning smell permeated the air. The dark rock walls were jagged and interlocking, forming a broken dome that sliced through the reddish sky.
"Have you fully recovered?" Su Cheng thought for a moment. "I mean, after those two defeated you—"
"Yes, don't worry," Kai gripped her shoulders. "In a sense, they liberated me. When I fell asleep and woke up again, I finally found peace. The moment Aeglinnis attained godhood, my authority also became complete. Before, I had been bearing a part of something that didn't belong to me, which caused me to... well, you saw it."
As Kai spoke, he became a little downcast, self-blame and regret surfacing in his cold, golden eyes.
He slowly raised his hand, seemingly wanting to touch the cheek of the girl in front of him, but then stopped.
"I'm sorry—"
"No," Su Cheng grabbed his wrist, tilting her head to rest it in the man's palm. "I think you're very cute."
Kai lowered his eyes to look at her. "After the way I treated you?"
"That was nothing," Su Cheng blurted out instinctively. "It wasn't directed at me. You were just losing your mind. Hmm, did you also get that memory?"
He nodded slowly. "Yes. Actually, it has to do with you too. Caecilius in the Echoing Plane really liked you. Any existence that caused Him to think could lead to His loss of control; otherwise, He would just continue to slumber."
Su Cheng blinked. "So your past memories, I mean the real ones, have all been recovered."
"Yes," Kai gave a slight nod. "After obtaining that piece of bone, they are almost complete. In fact, the things that happened during those years had almost nothing to do with me."
Obviously, the progenitor of the Chaos Dragons had been sleeping most of the time, so He wasn't very clear about what was going on in the outside world.
"Even the Gate of Trials, I never operated it myself. It was all the other dragons..."
He seemed to be trying hard to recall. "I remember the Three-Eyed Snake telling me about the Source Fire, but I didn't care at all. I felt that if this world was destroyed, then so be it."
Su Cheng suddenly smiled.
Although this matter was very serious, whenever she thought of that scene, she found it somewhat comical, and that nickname also sounded hilarious.
Su Cheng: "...Anyway, that's all in the past now."
Kai nodded silently, looking around the abyss of the Lightless Ruin.
Clusters of black and red crystals grew wildly among the mountains, emitting an ominous faint glow. Magma as thick as blood flowed through the crevices of the rocks, and the sound of popping bubbles could be heard from time to time. The reddish sky stamped everything with hellish hues.
"I merged with that memory," he gazed out at the empty bottom of the cliff pit. "When I saw you, it also felt like a reunion after thousands of years."
Su Cheng turned her head and looked at him quietly for a few seconds, then hugged him again.
Almost at the same time, Kai also spread his arms and embraced her, pulling the girl tightly into his arms with an eager and powerful force.
It was not only the comfort of reuniting after a long separation, but also an embrace meant to fill the emptiness and strive to confirm each other's real existence.
"...I once thought I would never see you again," Su Cheng said in a low voice. "There were many moments when I thought that, but I figured maybe I could endure until thousands of years later..."
Those strong, steel-like arms wrapped around her back. Her entire body was buried against his hard, cold chest, allowing her to fully feel the bulging, rock-like lines of his muscles with her own body.
Then he grabbed her waist and lifted her up, burying his face in the crook of the girl's neck. "I regret it too. I should have stayed by your side instead of using all that time earlier to sort out my memories—"
His voice was a bit muffled, and his breath spread across her shoulder and neck, brushing past her loose strands of hair.
"...I promised to give you a complete story, but thinking about it later, those memories still don't represent the past me; they are just things that happened around me..."
Su Cheng raised her arms, reached over his broad back, and then pressed against the back of his head, rubbing it soothingly.
"It's okay, I learned a lot of things," she whispered. "And many of my questions were answered."
"Mm, that's good." Kai seemed to breathe a sigh of relief. "I can only see a part of what happened in the Echoing Plane."
"...It's not surprising. After all, most of them are very petty," Su Cheng said casually. "If there's anything you want to know, I can tell you."
He let out a soft chuckle. "Just tell me the things you find interesting and want to talk about."
Su Cheng didn't say a word, just hugged him even tighter.
This embrace seemed to last for a century.
She leaned back slightly, and Kai immediately loosened his grip.
The two were able to look at each other.
His thick black eyelashes were like fluttering raven feathers, the tips flowing with a rust-like dark red.
The color of his irises was like boiling liquid gold, and the cracked radial patterns resembled the temper lines on a forged blade. Every arc of light was so piercingly sharp.
Yet the smile within them was gentle, soft, and completely devoid of aggression—
"Seriously," Su Cheng cupped his face, "what did you base this appearance on?"
Kai tilted his head slightly, rubbing against those soft, slender fingers. "...My own preference?"
"Ah," Su Cheng couldn't help but smile, "it seems we have the same thought."
He curled his lips, "Then I should feel honored."
Su Cheng reached out and hooked her arms around the back of his neck, earnestly gazing at his handsome, striking face, and then lowered her head to kiss him.
Kai responded to her without hesitation.
It was a kiss full of aggression and possessiveness.
From the very beginning, it was a deep and fierce entanglement. Both of them seemed to be trying to devour each other, plundering the breath from the other's mouth.
Like dying travelers in a desert finding a water source, they desperately drew from the sweet spring.
They kissed deeply and urgently, as if wanting to embed the other into their own bodies, and like lost beasts on a wasteland, venting their longing in the most primitive way.
And celebrating the joy of regaining what was lost.
Su Cheng was immersed in that intense ecstasy.
The pungent smell of sulfur in the air seemed to turn sweet, and the cold black rocks beneath their feet felt as if they had turned into clouds, softly lifting them up.
This devastated ancient dragon habitat seemed to transform from purgatory into heaven, sublimating in this soul-burning kiss.
After this long and passionate kiss ended, their breathing remained steady.
Kai lowered his head and bit the girl's crimson lips, "What is it?"
Su Cheng's eyelashes fluttered, "I was wondering why that person didn't come."
Kai: "?"
He looked at her with some helplessness, "Do you want Him here?"
Su Cheng: "You actually know who I'm talking about?"
Kai shook his head, "Could there be a second answer? If it were Ilthiant, you would have invited him to join us just now—"
Su Cheng punched him speechlessly, "Are you serious? You'd be willing?"
He coughed lightly, "I don't really like him, but I love you, so if it's your idea..."
"Wait," Su Cheng realized the conversation was getting increasingly weird, "I was actually just thinking, I thought this should be a very happy moment for me, so He should have come. You know, He's always like this. Before, when Ian and I, um, we, went out together once, He had to get involved."
The ancient dragon progenitor before her fell silent for a moment, then reached out and hugged her. "Alright, then I'll tell the truth too—"
"...I just didn't want Him to appear," Kai said in a low voice, "At least not here, today. If you miss Him, maybe—"
Su Cheng immediately kissed him. "Oh, then I'm relieved. I was wondering how I could not be happy enough. No problem."
Kai rubbed the top of her head again. "...I thought you were used to having His company during intimate moments, but regardless, today is, after all, our—"
"I know what you mean," Su Cheng said with a smile. "Right now, I also want to be alone with you. We haven't seen each other for a long time."
Kai looked down at her, resting his forehead against hers. "Yes, forgive me for wanting to monopolize your time."
"Please, I'm doing the exact same thing."
She reached out and grabbed the leather strap on his chest, tugging at the cold metal buckle. The hard buckle pressed against the soft pads of her fingers.
Su Cheng couldn't help but give it a squeeze, her fingertips brushing over the top of the metal buckle, feeling the bulging muscles tighten in response.
Those lines, seemingly forged through a thousand temperings, were filled with destructive power in every inch. Bound by the slanting shoulder strap, they gained a bit more primitive wildness.
Her fingers moved slowly along the beautiful muscle textures, caressing the distinctly chiseled, lean waist and abdomen. The firm, raised muscles were like a masterpiece carved by a craftsman.
Then she pressed against the thick leather belt, her fingertips tracing over the protruding bronze buckle in the center. The cool metal was slightly warmed by her palm.
The embossed dragon head pattern in the center pressed against the base of her fingers, its distinct edges bulging. She could no longer grasp it with one hand.
Her nails scraped across the horns of the bronze dragon head, making a slight friction sound. The leather belt beneath the buckle also creaked as his waist tightened.
She pressed against the deep creases squeezed out when the belt tightened, her slender finger bones wedged in the gap between the buckle and his abdominal muscles. The warm bronze and his cool body temperature intertwined here.
Click.
In those molten-gold irises, Su Cheng saw her own reflection.
Split by those pitch-black, needle-like vertical pupils.
Her eyes similarly reflected another scene.
The black-haired man leaned over and picked up the greatsword from the ground. The blood-drinking blade seemed to have shed its murderous aura at this moment.
With a flick of his wrist, the heavy sword was lifted upward. The rolling chill on the blade patrolled the ground until it touched a moisture-filled rock crevice hidden by crystals and vines.
"...During the years you were asleep, um, you occasionally woke up, right? Did you never leave this place during that time?"
Su Cheng asked curiously.
"Hardly ever, at least I don't remember," Kai thought for a moment. "The Lightless Ruin wasn't like this at first either, there was no magma..."
He bent down slightly, applying a little force with his hand, using the cold, hard edge of the black sword to tentatively press against the rock crevice flowing with scorching magma.
The rock wall wasn't as solid as imagined; instead, it possessed a jade-like flexibility.
When pushed into by the sharp blade forged from dragon bone, it caved in slightly due to melting in the high temperature, as if tacitly allowing this reckless and inexperienced exploration.
"Look," he said softly, "since I arrived here and stayed for many years, the entire plane has been altered..."
The blade came to a stiff halt, tightly wrapped and ground by the warm stone marrow. With every inch it tried to push inward, the suction and pull from deep underground could be felt.
The special ore, carrying the aura of magic and curses, had a slick, warm, and soft inner wall. It even secreted scalding stone paste, attempting to soften the cold blade.
The pitch-black heavy sword submerged into it, until the handguard jammed against the trembling rock, emitting a dull thud.
The blade ruthlessly chiseled into the magma deep within the earth's core.
The extremely searing magma rolled, wrapping around the sword's edge with a sizzling sound, greedily licking the patterns on the blade and filling its lower grooves.
He infused some magic, showing her the true face of the ancient dragons' homeland.
Every twist of the blade caused the magma to violently pulse and boil, pounding against the narrow cliff crevice. Every twitch and tremor brought out crimson flames.
The blazing flames flowed down the sword's spine, only to be entirely pushed back at the next convergence, dripping into the deeper, hotter source of the earth's core.
The crevice in the rock wall was rammed open by the blade. The stones were scorched muddy by the magma, and the sharp edge left searing scratches that were quickly smoothed over by the flames.
The entire mountain trembled from the infused magic. At first, it was an imperceptible hum, which gradually turned into violent shaking.
The rocks groaned, like a scream of being overwhelmed, and also like an aria of extreme ecstasy.
Kai held her hand, letting her feel the temperature of the blade together—the dragon bone, almost melted by the magma, was now completely scalding.
Su Cheng could almost feel the searing heat burning his palms.
Beneath the earth, the magma churned into a violent vortex under the stir of the blade, gathering into a surging torrent that roared and crashed through the narrow, rocky corridors.
He thrust the greatsword entirely into the molten rock. A torrential wave of magic poured back into the core of the realm, and the ancient runes etched along the blade illuminated one after another.
Finally finding a release, the magma below erupted with a deafening howl. It carried a scorching wave of heat, violently splashing against the dark, gloomy crags.
A long time passed before the restless volcanic veins gradually settled into stillness.
Yet, the greatsword remained buried deep within the heart of the earth, its blade glowing a blazing red in the extreme heat.
