OUR HAPPILY EVER AFTER (A WANGXIAN STORY)

Chapter 32

Three hours passed before Wei Ying came out of the giant snake. His body was sore and he held in his hands a pearl thrice the size of his head.

"My pearl!", the Yellow Dragon swayed up and down in excitement. "Give it here...", it said, but Wei Ying pulled back and made the serpent shut its flexible jaw.

Wei Ying, "I'll give it to you...But first you'll have to tell me how to conquer my trials."

Dragon, "...The trials are not fixed. Each mortal that finds his way here faces a unique trial designed only for him..."

Wei Ying, "If that's the case, then what is my trial here?"

The dragon closed it's eyes and tapped into his power. The golden pearl in Wei Ying's hand began to glow. "Your trial here is that precious gem in your hands.", the dragon answered with a tint of surprise in his tone. Wei Ying was confused, what did he really mean. "Your trial was to take that from me...Now it recognizes you as its owner.", the dragon tilted its head. "I've never met any mortal who can easily control Yin energy...Now you know what your trial was, free my brother."

Wei Ying sighed, "I will but what do I do with this? I cant carry it with me."

Dragon, "You have to swallow it."

Wei Ying, "Huh?"

Dragon, "You can bend it to your will... Shrink it and sink it into your soul..."

"But that's...it cant be!...", Wei Ying stepped back, nearly dropping the gem. A dragon's pearl held immense power. No ordinary core built by man could measure up to it and not every being could harbour its power. Wei Ying could die if he tried it. 'Here goes nothing.', Wei Ying shrunk the pearl into a pellet and swallowed, sinking it into his soul.

The dragon moved dangerously close to Wei Ying after he swallowed the pearl. The man could only watch as the giant beast brought it's head close and touched its skin against his face. "Arkk!" Wei Ying fell like a log. His senses fleeting by the minute. When he blinked twice he saw the dragon and the serpent staring at him. 'How...I didn't release it.', he said in his mind as he recognized the pure white scales on the serpent.

"He used me?...I like this human. But you should still let me eat him...You let him have one of your pearls?!...", Wei Ying heard the Serpent speak as his eyes slowly closed.

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Wei Ying woke up with a splitting headache. Luckily he recognized someone by his side. "Gui Xiong, how did I....get here?", he winced from the pain. "You don't remember crawling out of the cave?", Gui's tone was very subtle.

"Get your hands off him...Wei Ying, are you okay?", ZhiHao frowned when he entered the room. Seeing Gui hold on to Wei Ying made his blood boil. Not in the mood to argue, the disciple just stood up and let the demon attend to Wei Ying. The Cheng siblings came in a little later.

Ping, "You're awake...We should see the Grandmaster when you're stronger."

Wei Ying, "No...take me to her now."

ZhiHao held him in place. Wei Ying could barely lift himself. " Rest a while and take your medicine. You can't go to her like this.", Ping advised.

"There will be no need for that...", A familiar voice made every head turn. Everyone paid their respects to the Grandmaster. Behind her were six other disciples with a wooden stretcher. With the snap of her fingers they moved to carry Wei Ying. ZhiHao's instincts kicked in when they lifted Wei Ying . "Where are you taking him?", he could not resist asking.