"Rootless water? Earth-vein spiritual liquid? Good luck to me?"
Xu Mo stood on the empty pier, staring in the direction Ling Qinghan had disappeared. He repeated her final words in a daze.
"Miss, couldn't you have explained things clearly before leaving?!"
The object in his arms didn't feel like a mythical creature anymore—it felt like a huge麻烦 (trouble).
Back at the pet shop, Xu Mo carefully placed the flood dragon egg on a soft cushion, then immediately pulled out his phone to search online.
"Rootless water refers to... water from the sky that hasn't touched the ground, such as rain, snow, dew, etc."
"Earth-vein spiritual liquid... uh, a spiritual spring formed by gathering the essence of the earth's dragon veins. It's rare and hard to come by. Mortals who drink it can prolong their lives; cultivators who obtain it can improve their cultivation..."
Staring at the vague, esoteric search results on his phone, Xu Mo felt his head throbbing.
"What on earth is this stuff?! Where am I supposed to find dragon veins? Should I just hook you up to a tap instead?"
He scratched his hair in frustration, then suddenly had a brainstorm.
"Right! The game! I fished this egg out of the game—its hatching method must be in the game too!"
Xu Mo quickly opened the shabby app and tapped the icon of the flood dragon egg in his backpack.
Sure enough, below the item description, a new quest prompt popped up:
[Quest: The Birth of the Flood Dragon]
[Hatching Requirement 1: Rootless Water]
[Note: Collect 100ml of dew condensed on the leaves of any plant at dawn.]
[Hatching Requirement 2: Earth-Vein Spiritual Liquid]
[Note: Purchase any brand of Grade A natural mineral water—at least 500ml.]
"..."
The air fell silent for a full three seconds.
"Pfft—!" Xu Mo almost spat out a mouthful of blood onto his phone screen. "You've got to be kidding me!"
He didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
After all that, the "lofty" rootless water was just morning dew, and the "mysterious" earth-vein spiritual liquid... was just a few yuan bottle of mineral water from the supermarket?
The contrast was absurd!
"Fine, you win!"
Xu Mo gave a thumbs-up to the phone screen, feeling the weight off his chest at last.
The next day, as soon as dawn broke, a furtive figure appeared on the lawn of Qingfeng Park.
Xu Mo held a small bowl in one hand and a spoon in the other, bent over, carefully scraping dew from the broad leaves of banana plants.
"Hey, young man! What are you doing?!" A loud, energetic voice came from nearby—it was an elderly man doing morning tai chi.
Xu Mo jumped in fright, almost dropping the bowl.
He turned around and forced an awkward smile. "Grandpa, I... I'm studying the morning secretions of plants. I'm writing... writing a thesis!"
"Oh, a college student!" The old man nodded in understanding, then walked over with his hands behind his back to take a look. "This secretion looks no different from water. Keep up the good work—strive to contribute to the country!"
"I will, I will!" Xu Mo nodded repeatedly. He let out a long sigh of relief only after the old man had walked away, feeling like he'd just pulled off a heist.
After over an hour of work, he finally collected 100ml of crystal-clear dew.
With the rootless water sorted, it was time for the "earth-vein spiritual liquid."
He walked into a 24-hour convenience store on the corner.
"Boss, a bottle of water, please."
"What kind?" the boss asked without looking up.
Xu Mo walked to the freezer, stared at the rows of bottled water inside, and fell into deep thought.
"Grade A natural mineral water... which brand has more 'spiritual energy'?"
He put on a serious expression and compared several bottles for a while, then picked up an expensive imported snow mountain mineral water with an elegant package.
"I'll take this one!"
"You've got good taste, kid," the boss glanced at him. "Ten yuan."
Xu Mo paid, then walked out with the bottle of "earth-vein spiritual liquid," his steps noticeably lighter.
Back at the pet shop, he pulled the roll-up shutter halfway down and hung a sign that read "Closed Today."
Xu Mo placed the flood dragon egg in the center of a clean basin, then took a deep breath, ready to hatch it.
First, he carefully poured the dew he'd worked so hard to collect onto the eggshell, following the game's instructions to spread it evenly.
Next, he twisted open the expensive mineral water and poured it slowly over the egg too.
The moment the two liquids mixed and were fully absorbed by the cyan eggshell—
Buzz—!
Suddenly, something strange happened.
The patterns on the cyan eggshell seemed to come alive, bursting into a dazzling light.
The humidity in the entire pet shop skyrocketed in just a few seconds. Fine water droplets condensed on the glass and walls, making it feel like a sauna.
"Crack..."
A crisp sound of breaking rang out.
A thin crack appeared on the eggshell.
Immediately after, the crack spread rapidly like a spider's web.
"Bang!"
The entire eggshell shattered with a crash. A ball of cyan light shot up from inside and hovered in mid-air.
When the light faded, a "small snake"—only as long as a chopstick—appeared in front of Xu Mo.
Its body was entirely cyan, like fine jade, covered in delicate scales. Two small coral-like horns protruded from its head, and under its belly were four tiny but sharp claws.
This wasn't a snake at all—it was a miniature flood dragon straight out of a myth!
The little flood dragon swam nimbly in the air for a circle, then stopped in front of Xu Mo. It tilted its small head and stared at him curiously with a pair of eyes like black gemstones.
Then, it flew forward affectionately and gently rubbed Xu Mo's cheek with its still-soft little horns.
The feeling was like being brushed by a piece of warm, smooth jade.
At that moment, Xu Mo's heart melted completely.
"From now on, I'll call you Xiaoqing," he said, reaching out to gently stroke the little flood dragon's smooth body.
"Ao wu~"
Xiaoqing seemed to like the name. It let out a soft, babyish cry and happily circled around his finger.
Xu Mo was admiring his "dragon son" when he suddenly heard a splashing sound from somewhere in the shop.
He turned around—and froze. The faucet in the bathroom, the showerhead for washing pets, even the valve of the mop sink in the corner...
Every water outlet in the shop had turned on automatically!
Clear water gushed out in a rush.
Xu Mo was stunned. Before he could react, he saw the little flood dragon let out a lazy yawn, as if it was just stretching.
Then, with a "hua" (splash), all the faucets shut off instantly, as if they'd received an order.
Xu Mo stared at the scene in shock, then looked back at Xiaoqing, who was frolicking around his fingertips. A thought popped into his head:
"Damn... with this ability, could you apply for a job as a plumber someday? Or... check water meters?"
Just then, his phone pinged.
[Congratulations! Obtained a new mythical creature: Juvenile Flood Dragon!]
[Name]: Xiaoqing
[Rank]: Mortal Grade (Juvenile Stage)
[Abilities]: Clouds and Rain (Weak), Water Control (Elementary)
Xu Mo stared at the information on his phone, ready to study his new companion's abilities in detail. But the screen suddenly changed—a text message from an unknown number popped up.
It was from Ling Qinghan:
"Abnormal energy has gathered at the abandoned factory in the west of the city. It's suspected that an evil spirit has been born. According to our agreement, you must be there to assist with the investigation."