Chapter 565

Even his own exclusive habitat, the Spirit Spring, had been invaded!

Amidst his inner surprise, he felt intense tension.

He recalled his master's warning: never reveal your true form outside, lest you frighten your kin.

But.......

Gazing at the other's face—no fear whatsoever, only curiosity.

Jiang Xiaobai's lips twitched slightly, and he instantly calmed down.

If he wasn't frightened by me, then I haven't broken my master's order, right?

Just as Jiang Xiaobai was silently thinking this.

A tiny, high-pitched voice suddenly rang out, cutting through his thoughts: "Elder, are you a true dragon?"

Jiang Xiaobai was greatly astonished.

He hadn't expected the boy to show not even a hint of panic—but to calmly question him in return!

Thinking of the boy's age and boldness, he suddenly felt playful and let out a light laugh:

"Hahahaha! You little brat has quite the eye—actually recognizing this dragon's identity!"

"But I am no benevolent dragon—I am a genuine evil dragon!"

"Every day I eat a hundred people, no—a thousand!"

"Only then can I fill my belly. You're so small and thin, you wouldn't even fill a single tooth gap—why aren't you afraid?"

The boy puffed out his chest and sneered: "Hmph! With the Clan Chief here, no matter if you're a benevolent or evil dragon, you'll all kneel—how could you dare commit evil?!"

"Besides, in all these days, I've never heard of any clan member suddenly disappearing."

"If you truly fed on humans, the family would've found out long ago—and the Clan Chief would've personally come to slay you! How could you still be standing here alive in the Spirit Spring?"

Hearing this, Jiang Xiaobai's smile grew even wider.

Hmm, he loved hearing others praise his master.

Then he teased: "Oh? You're so confident in your Clan Chief—that he can stand against a true dragon?"

The boy's eyes sparkled with admiration, brimming with pride as he shouted: "Our Clan Chief is a towering hero, a great champion!"

"His cultivation base is unfathomable, unmatched under heaven, invincible! How dare you, a mere little true dragon, defy him?!"

"Let me tell you—he doesn't just fight you—he can kill you! Pulling your tendons and peeling your skin is child's play!"

At these words,

Jiang Xiaobai wasn't angry—he was delighted, and couldn't help blurting out three "good"s in a row!

Then he looked at the boy, preparing to say something.

But as he studied the boy's features, he suddenly felt a strange sense of familiarity.

He seemed to have seen him somewhere before...

Wait—it was the North Star Grand Competition!

"You're... Jiang Hao?"

Hearing this, Jiang Hao widened his eyes in great curiosity.

His right hand clutched a plump golden spirit fish tightly, and he let out a soft "Huh?": "You know me?"

He hadn't expected it.

Today's fishing trip hadn't just let him encounter a legendary true dragon.

And now this dragon knew him!

Watching Jiang Hao's stunned expression, Jiang Xiaobai smiled: "The top prodigy of the younger generation of the Cangwu Jiang Clan!"

"A genius unmatched across the Nine States—how could I not recognize you?"

Hearing this, Jiang Hao lowered his head, a shy, embarrassed smile creeping onto his face.

He couldn't imagine—even this terrifying, colossal true dragon had heard of his name!

Then, as if struck by a thought, he raised the plump spirit fish in his hand: "You're being polite, not at all like the vicious monster described in rumors—who eats people on a whim."

"I think you're a good dragon—just wandered into Cangwu Mountain by accident, and your earlier words were just scaring me!"

"Here, I'll give you this fish. Eat it, then leave under cover of night."

Jiang Xiaobai burst into laughter: "Leave? This is my home—why would I leave? And where would I go?"

Hearing this, Jiang Hao was deeply puzzled: "This place was created by our Clan Chief using heavenly power—it's his Spirit Spring! How could it be your home? Don't speak nonsense!"

As he spoke, he stared at Jiang Xiaobai's unmistakable smile.

Suddenly, a flash of insight struck him.

"Wait... were those strange rumors from months ago—about a monster appearing at midnight near the Spirit Spring—caused by you?"

Before coming to fish in the lower Spirit Spring,

he had used the Cangwu Token to investigate the spring's rumors, and had happened to hear one tale.

It was months ago,

when a massive, pitch-black creature, resembling an island, occasionally surfaced on the Spirit Spring's surface at night!

The rumor spread quietly among the clan, terrifying many members into avoiding the spring entirely!

Now it seemed—the monster was this very true dragon?

At the same moment Jiang Hao finished speaking,

Jiang Xiaobai's face darkened (though it was already black), and he suddenly felt caught red-handed—his expression turned deeply awkward.

Before he transformed into a true dragon, when he was still a jiao,

bored and miserable beneath the Spirit Spring, he often secretly surfaced under cover of night.

But he never imagined—just stepping out for a breath of air—he was spotted by clan members!

No way—it's the middle of the night and you're not sleeping, wandering around the Spirit Spring for no reason?

Jiang Xiaobai first let out a sigh, then immediately looked at Jiang Hao and hurriedly asked, "So right now, how many people in the clan know about this rumor?"

He was now extremely worried that this rumor would reach his master's ears.

With his master's heaven-reaching wisdom, he would surely understand what had happened the moment he heard the rumor.

At this moment, Jiang Hao's face showed a look of confusion.

He didn't understand why the other party had suddenly become so tense.

However, the news about this rumor wasn't important, and there was no need to keep it secret.

After only a brief moment of thought, he said slowly:

"Because this piece of news has never been confirmed, it can only be listed as a rumor, so not many people know about it."

"And they almost all don't believe the rumor is true, unless they've seen it with their own eyes..."

"Especially since some time ago, when no more anomalies occurred around the Spirit Spring, even fewer people know about this rumor."

"Many clan brothers and sisters are even busy cultivating and have long forgotten about this matter."

"If I hadn't wanted to catch some Spirit Fish to eat and deliberately investigated the news related to the Spirit Spring in advance, I'm afraid I wouldn't have known about this rumor either..."

After hearing the answer he wanted, Jiang Xiaobai finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Fortunately, back then after refining the Dragon Pearl his master had bestowed, he had fallen into several months of slumbering transformation.

Otherwise, over time, his traces would surely have been discovered!

When that time truly came, he would probably not escape his master's reprimand!

Thinking of this, Jiang Xiaobai couldn't help but shrink his body, feeling a bit of lingering fear.

At the same time, he increasingly felt that his dragon clan identity could not be easily revealed.

Otherwise, it would easily make those clan members who had heard the Spirit Spring rumor associate it with something.

Afterward, Jiang Xiaobai put away his playful mood and no longer planned to tease Jiang Hao.

In order to make the other party keep today's secret, he immediately began to activate his transformation ability!

In an instant, the light was dazzling, like a blazing sun falling into the world, emitting a terrifying brilliance that mortals could not look at directly, illuminating the surroundings and bathing them in a golden hue!

Under Jiang Hao's astonished gaze.

Jiang Xiaobai's thousand-zhang dragon body began to rapidly shrink.

Very quickly, it returned to one meter six, changing back into the appearance of a black-robed youth!

Jiang Xiaobai stood in front of Jiang Hao, and because his height was too short, he could only look up at the other party.

Looking at Jiang Hao's utterly astonished appearance, Jiang Xiaobai showed a look of satisfaction, the corners of his mouth unconsciously rising, revealing a pair of sharp little tiger teeth.

"What happened today, only heaven knows, the earth knows, you know, and I know—understand?"

"Mm, as a reward, from now on you'll be under the protection of me, Jiang Xiaobai!"