Whirr—whirr—two beams of light spun and shot into another space, and suddenly the view opened up. Before their eyes stretched a vast ant river, the banks thick with rich spiritual energy. The aura washed over their bodies, making every pore tingle with delight. In the distance, a giant cauldron stood dripping water, majestic as a mountain fortress. The sky above shimmered with dazzling rays, starlight swirling, purple mist swirling, all so brilliant it felt like a fairyland.
“This is the Celestial Mirror Realm, a pretty nice spot. You’ll stay here for now! I guarantee nobody can hurt you—” Shawn Young’s primordial spirit spoke gently to the little girl. She nodded but didn’t say a word.
At that moment, two dragon shadows spiraled down from midair, landing before them. It was none other than the Fire Dragon and the Thousand-Year Earth Dragon, the husband-and-wife duo. The little girl was startled and quickly grabbed Shawn Young’s hand, hiding behind him.
“Hey—can you two lovebirds stop scaring people like this? Didn’t you see I brought a guest? Showing off your fangs and claws, really now!” Shawn Young complained at them, half-joking.
“Oh—so Master brought someone into the Celestial Mirror Realm! Hehe—this is the first woman to ever enter here, right? She must be a very important lady!” the Fire Dragon chuckled weirdly.
“That’s right, she’s Mai Kanda. Her soul’s left her body for now—this is her primordial spirit, staying here for a bit. You two need to take good care of her!” Shawn Young said.
“Understood, understood—we’ll do our absolute best to look after Lady Mai! Only by serving her well can she and Master Shawn do some proper dual cultivation, boosting your powers and making the Celestial Mirror Realm even more glorious! Heh—heh—heh—” the Fire Dragon snickered enthusiastically.
“Hey—” Before it could finish laughing, the Fire Dragon’s huge head was smacked by the Thousand-Year Earth Dragon’s tail. Then the Earth Dragon huffed and scolded, “You horny dragon, all you ever think about is dual cultivation! You’re embarrassing us! Now you’re scaring Lady Mai, too. You’re asking for a beating!”
“Uh—I, I didn’t mean to scare Lady Mai! I was just welcoming her—” the Fire Dragon protested, sounding pitiful.
"Alright, alright—you two lovebirds, stop flashing your fangs and claws! You’re scaring Mai Kanda. Be gentle, will you? Seriously!" Shawn Young glared at them in annoyance, since the dragons’ voices were ridiculously loud and poor Mai Kanda kept hiding behind him.
"Oh—oh—got it, got it! We’ll turn into human form!" the Fire Dragon replied eagerly.
"Wait—you two can already turn into humans?" Shawn Young asked, surprised.
"Heh—heh—heh—yup! Thanks to all our day-and-night dual cultivation, we finally gained the power to transform! Dual cultivation really is the best, ha-ha!" The Fire Dragon got all excited at the mention, totally living up to its reputation as a classic horny dragon.
"Whack—" The Fire Dragon’s head got smacked again by the Thousand-Year Earth Dragon’s tail: "Quit rambling! Didn’t you hear what Master said? Get to work! All you ever think about is dual cultivation, all day and night. You drag it out so long, I barely get time to pee!"
"But—but you like it too! When things get exciting, you keep yelling for more—how could I not try my best to satisfy you?" the Fire Dragon protested, sounding pitiful again.
"You keep running your mouth and I’ll make you play with your own dragon whip!" the Thousand-Year Earth Dragon roared, blushing with embarrassment.
Shawn Young watched these two clownish dragons bicker and couldn’t help but smile. But he had too much on his plate to stick around, so he said, "Alright, alright, you two—enough with the squabbling. Time for business. I’m leaving Mai Kanda in your care. Turn into humans, will you? You look way too scary like this."
"But I think I look pretty cool like this, Master!" the Fire Dragon muttered.
"Get to work—didn’t you hear what Master said?" the Thousand-Year Earth Dragon barked at it again.
"Oh—alright, alright! I’ll transform now. Master, tell me—what kind of guy is the coolest?" the Fire Dragon suddenly asked Shawn Young.
"Uh—well, that’s a tough one. Everyone’s got their own taste in men! You should ask your wife—her opinion’s what matters most." Shawn Young replied, surprised they could morph into any human shape.
"Hmm—then turn into Eddie Chan! I think he’s pretty handsome," the Thousand-Year Earth Dragon said after thinking for a moment.
"Oh—so my wife likes the Eddie Chan type?!" The Fire Dragon was clearly surprised.
"Yeah, I like his mischievous smile and sharp eyes. He’s always the first to spot beauty—" the Thousand-Year Earth Dragon said, almost dreamily.
"Wait a sec—you two have been stuck in the Heavenly Sanctuary all this time, how do you even know Eddie Chan?" Shawn Young asked, genuinely curious.
"Oh, it’s easy, Master! Whenever you get excited during dual cultivation, your consciousness goes wild. Here in the Heavenly Sanctuary, we pick up all sorts of stuff from the outside world—especially the strong signals you send out! If it weren’t for you, we’d never know how awesome the human world is!" the Fire Dragon explained enthusiastically.
"Damn—so that’s how it is! Next time I’ll keep it cool!" Shawn Young said, totally embarrassed. Turns out he’d been ‘corrupting’ the dragons all along!
"Alright, I’ll become my wife’s favorite, Eddie Chan. Honey, you turn into Phoenix Parlor!" the Fire Dragon said.
"Wait—you want me to turn into Phoenix Parlor!? Damn, your tastes are wild!" the Thousand-Year Earth Dragon shrieked.
"Yeah—I think she’s pretty great! Especially her mouth, it’s so sexy—big and wide, and when she grins, she’s got real personality. Totally irresistible!" the Fire Dragon said earnestly.
Listening nearby, Shawn Young felt chills down his spine. He realized these dragons’ tastes were on a whole other level, totally beyond human understanding. He quickly waved his hands and said, "Alright, alright, you two can turn into whoever you want! If you don’t like it, just switch! I don’t have time to argue about this right now!"
"Alright, I’ll become Eddie Chan first!" The Fire Dragon nodded, spun in midair—"whoosh!"—and landed, instantly transforming into a handsome man with a mischievous glint in his eyes and a signature wicked smile. Who else could it be but the legendary Eddie Chan?
"Not bad! I’ll change too—" The Thousand-Year Earth Dragon spun in the air—"whoosh!"—and landed as a petite woman, instantly recognizable as the famous Phoenix Parlor. Her eyes bulged, her mouth was huge and jutted forward—a real throwback look, and truly one-of-a-kind.
With these two ‘superstars’ suddenly standing before him, Shawn Young actually felt nervous. Especially Eddie Chan’s shifty gaze, which kept flicking below, making Shawn feel totally exposed. Phoenix Parlor stood close, her big, piercing eyes staring at him with a look of pure disdain and deep contempt.
Shawn Young was utterly defeated, so he quickly pulled Mai Kanda over and said, "You two immortals—please, just take good care of her for me!"
"Don’t worry, Master! We’ll make sure she’s well taken care of—soft and fair-skinned, just the way you like!" Eddie Chan and Phoenix Parlor replied in unison, laughing. The sound made Shawn Young shudder again, but seeing Mai Kanda unfazed, he figured she really was a Japanese ninja used to weirdness, so he let it go.
"Alright—alright, I’ll head out now. Mai Kanda’s in your hands! I’ll visit often, but next time, can you two pick different forms? It’s just too much for me!" Not wanting to face Eddie Chan and Phoenix Parlor any longer, Shawn Young hurriedly gave his instructions and—"whoosh!"—his consciousness flew out of the Celestial Mirror Realm.