Dragon Clan: They're all insane, and you still want me to slay dragons?

Page 142

Mai Shude argued vehemently: "Between my husband and my boss, I would definitely choose my husband. You've already guessed that my big boss is him. If I deny it, I'd be lying to you. If I stay silent, I'd be hiding something. Wouldn't that just push you further away?"

"So this is the kind of girl you are?"

Gao Kui recalled the scene when he first met Shude Mai: "When I first saw you, I knew you were the kind of bad woman like Fujiko Mine. Sincerity doesn't seem like your persona."

"Even the thoughts and personality of gods can change, so how can a person stand firm on one position and persona and remain consistent throughout?"

No one can truly be themselves. As social animals, humans must learn to suppress excessive ego and adapt to the world to achieve self-renewal when interacting with others and pursuing what they want.

You like sincere girls. If I act like Chen Motong, wouldn't I just be making a fool of myself?

"Won't you hurt her too much by saying that?" Gao Kui asked instinctively.

"Isn't Chen Motong a synonym for 'someone you don't like'?" Jiu De Mai asked in surprise, thinking she had made a good analogy.

"A great metaphor, but it's a bit humble, like a bootlicker." Even though he knew that everything would change, Gao Kui was still a little uncomfortable with Jiu Demai's sincerity.

This doesn't fit your public image.

"Someone once said that as long as you have a clear understanding of relationships and set a stop-loss line and a normal bottom line in your mind, then even if you are humble and give more when pursuing someone of the opposite sex, you are not a real simp."

The long-legged girl suddenly smiled slyly: "So, you can assume that this is a disguise that a bad girl makes to pursue a boy. There are such people, right? And there are many of them."

Gao Kui knew that Mai Shude's words were probably sincere. Even over the phone, he could feel her sincerity, the kind of sincerity that belongs to a bad girl.

Like it?

I definitely like her. An adult like Erii, who is always consistent and sincere to everyone, shouldn't exist in the real world. It's rare to be able to show sincerity to a few people.

Asou is truly that kind of girl; she has her own little thoughts, but because she's love-struck, she's very sincere towards her romantic partners. Mai Shutoku... is probably the same way.

"Why me, why always me?"

Why me? Why is it always me?

During his conversation with Mai Shude, Gao Kui's attention gradually relaxed. Being with sincere people always made Gao Kui feel relaxed and less tense.

Gao Kui was overwhelmed with emotions, his thoughts and eyes wandering involuntarily: "Why me? I don't mean to belittle myself, but putting aside my status as the Holy Son, I don't think I'm worthy of your devotion as a human being."

Aside from being very handsome, I don't seem to have anything about me that would make you like me. Your free gifts always make me feel a sense of destiny, as if I am in some third-rate visual novel and you are a female character who can be romanced.

Because the author's writing is terrible and they completely lack understanding of romance, the details of the romance guide are a complete mess. All I need to do is say, "You actually want it too, right?" and the character I'm trying to romance is inexplicably given away for free.

After losing focus, Gao Kui began to habitually let his mind wander.

The divinity and humanity of the Son are inseparable; they exist perfectly within the one person of the Son. However, reality is not entirely so. The Father supports the divine aspect, while Emmanuel supports the human aspect.

The Father repeatedly urged him to ascend to godhood and carry out the Last Judgment, since he was supposed to ascend to godhood four years ago and then judge the world. Emmanuel, however, repeatedly interrupted his ascension ceremony, hoping that he, as a human being, could have a longer and more fulfilling life.

Are they on our side?

They are certainly on our side, but they don't fully support us. While acknowledging one part of ourselves, they also deny another.

Although the divinity and humanity of the Son are inseparable, Gao Kui still felt as if he were divided into two in the opposition between the Father and Emmanuel. This prompted him to deconstruct himself from a whole into different constituent elements, and then to think about it.

Now that Mai Shude has launched a direct offensive, Gao Kui can't help but wonder, who does Mai Shude actually like?

Is it the divine aspect or the human aspect? Do you prefer the Second Advent Son or Gao Kui as a person?

If Gao Kui likes his own divinity and his status as the Second Coming Son, he wouldn't be surprised at all. God loves the world, and people should love God in return; it's perfectly reasonable.

However, if it's about liking Gao Kui's own humanity, Gao Kui becomes somewhat insecure. He doesn't think there's anything about Gao Kui or Gao Kui's humanity that's likable, unless it's fate.

However, he didn't like either of the two deities, because neither of them "liked" him entirely.

“If Lord heard what you’re saying now, he would be very happy. You used to be so... troublesome.” Mai Shude noticed the change in Gao Kui.

In the past, Gao Kui would only indulge in wild thoughts, but he would never delve deeply into the question of "self." When faced with problems or people in need of help, he would not think things through at all and would just jump in and do nothing.

Is this courage?

No, this is divinity.

Courage is the mental strength to persevere, act, or express oneself in the face of difficulties, dangers, fears, or uncertainties. Courage is not the complete absence of fear, but rather the ability to overcome fear and conquer difficulties.

Without reflecting on this process, it's natural to be unaware of the difficulties, dangers, and unknown challenges that each action entails. He didn't overcome fear; he simply didn't have fear.

"I think you originally meant to say the idiom 'a fool troubles himself'," Gao Kui complained into the phone.

"You found out, but I don't think you'll mind."

Mai Shude stood in the corner of the hospital, subconsciously picking at the plaster on the wall in front of her, and said, "Would you mind if I told you the story of the two lions? My boss, not Lord but Boss, once told me the story of the two lions."

"You said."

Gao Kui listened attentively, completely absorbed in his conversation with Jiu De Mai, completely unaware that the Crescent Realm was still intact, and that everyone in the Genji Heavy Industries Building and even the Shinjuku Ward was still in dire straits.

"The wild world is cruel. In South Africa, only about one-fifth of lions can grow to adulthood. The enormous competitive pressure and living environment force lions to always choose to live in groups and form families in order to defend their pride's territory."

Contrary to popular belief, male lions do not simply sit back and reap the rewards without doing anything. Male lions in a pride also bear significant responsibilities. During the dry season, they hunt large prey for the pride, patrol the territory, reproduce, and defend the territory and pride by defeating male lions from other prides or nomadic male lions. These are all their duties and missions.

They cannot fail, because the lion that becomes the new king through competition will always kill all the offspring of the old king in order to continue its bloodline and reduce risk.

A lion that can expand the territory of its dominant pride and defeat all challengers with a dominant performance is called the Lion King by lion lovers.

The first lion was named Solo. It possessed the most powerful and agile physique of all male lions, and it had superb hunting skills. Hunting buffalo alone was child's play for Solo.

Logically, Solo should have become the Lion King, or at least a strong contender for the title, but reality is quite different.

Solo had a rather unfortunate childhood. Generally, male lions are driven from their pride only when they reach sub-adulthood. However, the pride in which Solo was born declined when he was very young, forcing young Solo to wander with his mother at an early age.

Without their own territory or pride, most nomadic male lions are destined to be driven out or even killed once they enter the territory of another pride.

At the age of three, Solo finally ended his life of wandering and joined the Spartan pride led by the lion Roc. This was quite unbelievable, as Roc was his father's killer and he had no deep blood relation with Roc. Solo should have been driven away or even killed by Roc. But in the end, they formed an alliance, and from then on, the Spartan pride had two lions.

There are many lion prides and lion alliances living on that grassland. One of them is called the Bad Boys Alliance. This pride has six male lions. They will actively attack the territories of other prides to expand their own territory and cruelly kill any male lions they see.

One day, the fifth and sixth members of the Bad Boys Alliance attacked the Spartan Lions. The elderly Luo was not afraid and charged forward with a roar.

They are the kings of the Spartan pride, and it is their duty to protect the pride and bravely face any challengers. Moreover, Solo is much larger than the other male lions, and with the aging Solo and the powerful Solo, they might very well be able to defeat the intruders.

However, when Lo attacked the enemy, Solo fled without looking back, abandoning Lo and the Spartan pride, abandoning his responsibility and commitment. In the end, Lo was killed, and the Spartan pride, after many twists and turns, finally collapsed. Solo was forced to become a nomadic lion once again, taking Lo's two sons with him.

In the years that followed, Solo went through several ups and downs, at one point joining other prides and at another forming alliances with other nomadic male lions. But whenever it competed with other male lions, Solo would always abandon its teammates and pride and run away without looking back, causing the deaths of several of its teammates in the process.

It runs and runs, always running away. It runs away when it faces competition from male lions. It runs away when it is being chased by hyenas, and it will still run away even if only one hyena remains.

It was not without power. Once, when it was being chased by two male lions from other prides, Solo, exhausted from running away, turned back and fought the two male lions. With its top-notch talent, it defeated the two pursuers one against two.

Do you know what it did after defeating its enemies? It continued to flee, defeating the two male lions that were chasing it, and continued to flee, becoming a wandering male lion.

It possesses the talents of a lion king, but lacks his heart; it is unbelievably cowardly.

Chapter 171 Self-Will

"It's a bit long. If it were in a novel, readers would probably criticize it for having a character say such a long passage," Gao Kui said.

"After all, it's a story, and even if it's kept as brief as possible, it can't be explained in just a few words."

Mai Shude paused for a moment, then asked, "What are your thoughts after hearing this story?"

Are there really lions this cowardly?

If Solo were a person, Gao Kui would have no doubt as to why he was so cowardly. But the protagonist of the story is a lion, a lion of great strength and hunting skill.

"It could be due to childhood trauma, or it could be due to a harsh living environment that led to the choice of a more secure way of life. This could be considered a form of evolution."

In short, from both human and lion perspectives, Solo was a cowardly lion, infamous throughout the savanna.

"So what about the story of the second lion? I'm really looking forward to the second story," Gao Kui said.

Mai said she was going to tell a story about two lions, but she's only told one so far.

"The second story also takes place on that grassland, and can be considered a continuation of the first story."

Besides the Spartan pride, the lion Rosa, who was tricked to death by Solo, also ruled a pride called Styx. After Rosa's defeat, the Styx pride was scattered, and some lionesses without offspring submitted to the Bad Boys Alliance. The elderly lioness Grandma Styx led a total of nine cubs, including the Styx Boys, on a journey.

It is nearly impossible for an elderly lioness to raise nine cubs, especially since she also faces the threat of being hunted by the Bad Boys. After two years of wandering, Grandma Styx finally succumbed to her injuries and passed away. Of the nine cubs, two died and five went missing, leaving only the sub-adult Styx siblings alive.

Sister Styx took over the responsibility of raising her younger brother from Grandma Styx. They were nocturnal, often scavenging scraps for food. Whenever they obtained food, Sister Styx would let the boy eat first. Whenever they encountered danger, such as being chased by a pack of hyenas, Sister Styx would deliberately lure the enemies away so her brother could escape, and then reunite with him after they were free.

With selfless love and courage, Sister Styx led her younger brother to survive in harsh conditions.

During this time, the younger brother was as timid as Solo was in his youth, and he was well protected by his sister Styx. Fortunately, the younger brother was extremely talented in hunting, and at the age of 3, he was able to hunt buffalo alone, breaking the record for the oldest male lion to kill a buffalo in that grassland.

Sister Styx watched her brother grow up proudly, looking forward to the day when he would become the Lion King and turn around to protect her.

Until one day, the Styx siblings encountered the rising Protectors Alliance, composed of four lions, the new overlords of that grassland after the bad boy.

The Defenders are just as ferocious as their predecessors, the Bad Boys. While the older sister might not necessarily be killed, the younger brother, the Styx Boy, is in great danger.

As always, the sub-adult Styx sister stepped forward and fought against four strong male lions on her own, while her brother seized the opportunity to escape as always.

As expected, Sister Styx did not escape unscathed as before; she suffered severe injuries. After dark, Sister Styx used her last bit of strength to find her brother. Seeing that he was safe and sound, she was completely relieved and nestled beside him before closing her eyes forever.

In the darkness, the Styx Boy's cries of pain and despair echoed across the entire grassland; his all-powerful sister could no longer protect him.

After that day, the Styx Boy did not leave the territory of the Defenders Alliance. The once cowardly and timid Styx Boy charged at the Defenders Alliance and the pride of lionesses under its command time and time again.

He frequently harassed them, stole their food, disrupted their hunting, and even once engaged in a fierce battle with the Defenders Alliance, which consisted of four strong male lions.

The defenders, unable to bear the harassment any longer, wanted to make peace with him and offered to share their food with him, which in the language of lions means to show goodwill and want to form an alliance.

But the Styx Boy refused; he rejected the Defenders' alliance's request for peace. Other wandering lions also tried to form an alliance with the Styx Boy, but he refused them all as well.

He still charged at the Defenders Alliance alone time and time again, even when he was beaten to the point of being powerless to fight back, vowing to bite off the enemy's flesh and blood to avenge his sister.

After another fierce battle with the Defenders, Styx Boy inflicted serious damage on one of their lions, but at the cost of injuring his own hind legs and spine, making it difficult for him to even walk.

Ten days later, Styx Boy was severely injured again during an attack on the Lion Pride under the Defenders Alliance. This time, he lost an eye, and his injuries worsened to the point that they could no longer heal on their own.

The Styx Boy, nearing his end, returned to the place where his sister had died. He curled up into a ball and closed his eyes. Even now, he was not yet a fully grown man.

Throughout his life, the Styx Boy never became a true lion king; he had no territory of his own, no pride of lionesses. But I think no one would doubt that the Styx Boy possessed the heart of a lion king.

The second story was longer than the first, but Gao Kui listened very attentively, as if he were reading an animal novel by Shen Shixi.

"How do you feel?" Mai asked.

"On the night Sister Styx died, did the boy Styx's wailing really spread throughout the entire grassland? Unless the grassland was particularly small, the lion's roar shouldn't have traveled that far."

Mai Shude was speechless: "This part has certainly been exaggerated artistically."

"So you, or your boss, want to use the Styx Boy as an analogy for someone, me?"

"if not?"