Morning at the Cloud Summit arrived with the particularly anxious quality unique to final days—a mixture of anticipation for homecoming, regret for opportunities missed, and the distinctive spiritual pressure created when too many cultivators had spent too long in close proximity while maintaining increasingly fragile diplomatic smiles.

  Xiaolong stood before the mirror in her quarters, observing the subtle changes in her appearance since the previous day's demonstration.

  The loss of her fifth scale had manifested physically in tiny, almost imperceptible ways that only she would notice—a slight iridescence to her skin that shifted with her moods, the occasional flicker in her pupils from round to vertical slits when her concentration lapsed, the way her hair sometimes moved as though stirred by unfelt winds when her emotions ran strong.

  Self-Sovereignty, the draconic ability to perfectly control one's essence and manifestation, had fallen away. What remained was a more permeable boundary between intent and manifestation—as though the wall separating thought from reality had thinned to mere gauze.

  "You seem troubled," Li Feng observed, entering the common area of their shared quarters. His condition had improved dramatically overnight, the Summit's enriched spiritual environment accelerating his recovery. Only the faintest disharmony remained in his meridians, like the last ripples on a pond long after the stone has sunk.

  "Not troubled," she replied automatically. "Merely... adjusting."

  The word felt inadequate. How could she explain that her fundamental nature had shifted? That the very essence of what made a dragon distinct from lesser beings—perfect self-control—had been surrendered to her reverse cultivation journey?

  Li Feng studied her with quiet intensity, his gaze settling where a human's would never have noticed the subtle changes. "Your eyes flickered just then," he noted. "Like a cat's in changing light."

  The observation reminded her of just how much she had revealed during yesterday's demonstration. Their conversation during the water performance had crossed boundaries she had maintained for months—boundaries between dragon and human, immortal and mortal, observer and participant.

  "A side effect," she admitted. "Nothing concerning."

  "Of your fifth scale falling?" he asked with such casual directness that Xiaolong nearly missed a step.

  "How do you—"

  "You mentioned scales yesterday," he reminded her. "During our demonstration. And Hui Yun speaks more freely when excited—something about seven scales representing fundamental draconic nature."

  The fox. Of course. Trust a chaos spirit to reveal ancient secrets simply because it found the conversation interesting.

  "I should turn that furball into a decorative rug," she muttered.

  "I believe it's currently terrorizing the kitchen staff with demands for 'proper spirit beast breakfast with seventeen special ingredients,'" Li Feng said, his lips quirking upward. "We're due to meet Master Zhao shortly. Elder Wei asked me to remind you that diplomatic courtesy suggests limited technical disclosure without formal sect agreements."

  This was the Azure Waters Sect's polite way of saying: don't reveal anything important to this suspicious northern scholar.

  "Of course," Xiaolong nodded. "I shall maintain appropriate distance."

  "Like you did yesterday?" Li Feng's gentle teasing carried no accusation, merely quiet acknowledgment of their shared understanding.

  "Yesterday was..." she began, then stopped, unsure how to categorize the unprecedented revelation of her true nature to a mortal.

  "Authentic," he completed for her. "Like water finding its true course."

  Before she could respond to this philosophical framing, a junior disciple arrived to escort them to the meeting chamber where Master Zhao awaited. The young cultivator practically vibrated with nervous energy, his posture suggesting he considered escort duty for the mysterious water master who created prismatic dragons to be simultaneously the most exciting and terrifying assignment of his short cultivation career.

  Master Zhao had been given use of the Azure Waters Sect's formal reception hall—a circular chamber whose walls were embedded with water crystals that hummed at frequencies just below human hearing.

  The room served both practical and political purposes; the crystals created a spiritually neutral environment for technical discussions while simultaneously displaying the sect's resource wealth to visitors. Such conspicuous consumption would have been considered laughably gauche in dragon society, where true power never needed announcement.

  The northern scholar stood at the chamber's center, examining one particularly large crystal with scholarly intensity. As they entered, he straightened, his pale features arranging themselves into a polite mask of academic interest that failed to conceal the hungrier attention beneath.

  "Fellow Daoist Xiaolong, Fellow Daoist Li Feng," he greeted, offering a formal bow that contained the exact minimum depth required by cultivation courtesy. "Thank you for indulging my scholarly curiosity before the Summit's conclusion."

  "The Azure Waters Sect values knowledge exchange between serious practitioners," Li Feng replied with such perfect diplomatic blandness that Xiaolong had to suppress a smile. He had clearly been studying Elder Wei's political phrasings.

  "Indeed," Master Zhao's gaze settled on Xiaolong with uncomfortable focus. "Yesterday's demonstration contained technique elements I've encountered only in ancient scrolls found beneath the Northern Ancestral Mountains—texts dating from before the Heaven-Earth Separation."

  "An interesting coincidence," Xiaolong replied neutrally.

  "Is it coincidence, though?" Zhao's head tilted slightly, the movement oddly reminiscent of a predatory bird. "The prismatic energy patterns you manifested bear remarkable similarity to scale configurations documented in the Primordial Records."

  Scale configurations. The directness of this reference could hardly be accident. Whoever's dragon essence he carried clearly possessed specific knowledge rather than mere suspicion.

  "Many cultivation phenomena share superficial similarities," Li Feng interjected smoothly. "The Azure Waters Sect's Flowing Harmony technique often creates prismatic effects when performed at higher cultivation levels."

  "Of course," Zhao agreed without taking his eyes from Xiaolong. "Though I've never seen such effects manifest in precisely that pattern. Almost as though the water itself contained... memories of older forms."

  The conversation had veered into dangerous territory with remarkable speed. Traditional diplomatic cultivation exchanges began with hours of meaningless pleasantries before approaching anything of technical significance. Zhao's immediate focus on the draconic aspects of yesterday's display confirmed Yinlong's warning—this was no ordinary scholarly interest.

  "Water contains the memory of all it has touched," Xiaolong offered, deliberately framing her response in cryptic cultivation philosophy. "Perhaps what you observed was merely the element reflecting its ancient journey."

  "Perhaps." Zhao's smile didn't reach his eyes. "Though I wonder if the water was reflecting something else entirely. Something more... immediate."

  As he spoke, Xiaolong felt a subtle shift in the chamber's spiritual atmosphere. The scholar's human spiritual signature seemed to waver slightly, like heat distortion above summer stones, revealing glimpses of something vastly older beneath the surface. Not a full draconic presence—that would have been impossible to disguise in a human vessel—but unmistakable fragments of ancient essence.

  "Your interest seems quite specific, Master Zhao," Li Feng observed, his tone maintaining perfect courtesy while his spiritual energy shifted subtly toward a defensive configuration. The change was so slight that only Xiaolong's draconic senses could have detected it—a rearrangement of water energy to form protective layers around his core meridians.

  Even injured, he prepared to defend her. The realization created an unfamiliar warmth in Xiaolong's chest, like sunlight spreading through clouds.

  "Specific interests yield specific discoveries," Zhao replied, his attention never wavering from Xiaolong. "For instance, my research suggests that certain beings can manifest in forms other than their natural state, though such transformation typically requires... sacrifices."

  The word "sacrifices" carried unmistakable emphasis. He knew about the scales—or at least, whoever's dragon essence he carried did.

  "An interesting theoretical concept," Xiaolong replied, maintaining outward composure despite the growing certainty that they faced a proxy for one of her draconic rivals. "Though most cultivation paths seek advancement rather than limitation."

  "Most," Zhao agreed. "But not all. The ancient texts describe certain... cosmic entities... that occasionally developed curiosity about lesser existence. Entities that might willingly reduce their nature to experience mortality."

  The conversation had abandoned all pretense of normal cultivation exchange. Zhao stood too still, his attention too focused, his knowledge too specific. The foreign dragon essence within him pulsed stronger with each exchange, as though feeding on the confrontation.

  "I confess I find such philosophical tangents rather distant from practical cultivation," Li Feng interjected, moving slightly to position himself between Xiaolong and Zhao. "The harmonization techniques Fellow Daoist Xiaolong demonstrated yesterday derive from standard Azure Waters principles applied through unique perspective. If you're interested in the foundational aspects, I'd be happy to explain our sect's approach to elemental resonance."

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  This diplomatic redirection would have satisfied most scholars, providing a face-saving path back to conventional cultivation discussion. Zhao, however, merely smiled thinly.

  "I suspect Fellow Daoist Xiaolong's 'unique perspective' derives from something far more significant than conventional training," he said, taking a step closer. "The Northern Ancestral Mountains contain records of beings who existed before cultivation itself—cosmic dragons whose essence shaped the very elements cultivators now manipulate like children playing with toys."

  The chamber's atmosphere grew heavier, as though the air itself resisted the weight of forbidden knowledge spoken aloud. Xiaolong felt a prickling along her skin where scales would have risen in her true form—a warning response to potential threat.

  "Your scholarly interests seem to extend beyond cultivation into mythology," she observed, her voice cooler than before. "An eclectic approach."

  "Not mythology," Zhao's eyes gleamed with unnatural light. "History. And perhaps...present reality."

  His gaze dropped deliberately to her hands, where almost imperceptible iridescent patterns had appeared across her skin—one of the manifestations of her lost Self-Sovereignty. The dragon essence within him flared brighter, a cold, ancient presence that felt disturbingly familiar.

  Recognition struck with sudden clarity. Not Heilong's essence as she had feared, but something older, colder—Tianmin, the Ancient Observer, Dragon of the First Courtyard. The oldest living dragon, whose interest Yinlong had mentioned in their last communication.

  Before Zhao could press his advantage, the chamber door swung open with fortuitous timing. Master Jin entered, his crimson robes exchanged for more formal gold and black traveling attire.

  "Master Zhao, I've been searching for you," he announced, apparently oblivious to the tense atmosphere. "Our delegation prepares to depart, and Elder Feng has requested your presence for the final cataloguing of technical observations."

  Zhao's expression flickered with momentary frustration before smoothing into scholarly politeness. "Of course, Master Jin. I was just concluding my discussion with Fellow Daoist Xiaolong." He turned back, offering a bow that contained a hint of mockery beneath its formality. "Perhaps we might continue our... philosophical exchange... at another time."

  "The Azure Waters Sect always welcomes scholarly discourse," Li Feng replied with diplomatic finality that effectively concluded the meeting.

  As Zhao departed with Master Jin, Xiaolong released a breath she hadn't realized she was holding. The confrontation had passed without direct exposure, but the implications remained troubling. Tianmin himself had taken interest in her transformation—enough to send a human vessel carrying fragments of his essence to investigate directly.

  "That," Li Feng observed once they were alone, "was not a normal cultivation exchange."

  "No," Xiaolong agreed. "It was not."

  "He knows what you are." Not a question, but a simple statement of fact.

  "Not exactly. But he—or rather, the essence he carries—suspects."

  Li Feng nodded, accepting this cryptic explanation with characteristic equanimity. "Will this create difficulties for you?"

  The question contained layers of concern that extended far beyond the immediate situation. Would her revelation during yesterday's demonstration place her in danger? Would dragon society seek to reclaim or punish her for her unprecedented transformation?

  "It complicates matters," she admitted. "But not irrevocably."

  As they made their way back through the Azure Waters pavilion, Xiaolong's thoughts turned to Yinlong's warning and request. Without formal proxy representation at the Dragon Conclave, she would lose not just peripheral territories but fundamental standing in draconic society.

  While her journey had carried her far from dragon concerns, a complete severance would create complications she wasn't prepared to face—particularly with Tianmin now taking interest in her activities.

  "You're planning something," Li Feng observed as they reached their quarters. "Your eyes get a particular gleam when you're calculating cosmic matters beyond mortal concern."

  "Do they?" She hadn't realized her expressions had become so transparent to him. Another effect of diminishing Self-Sovereignty, perhaps.

  "Like distant lightning over mountains," he confirmed. "Powerful, somewhat concerning, but fascinating to witness."

  The comparison brought an unexpected smile to her lips. "I need to establish formal proxy representation before the Dragon Conclave," she explained. "Without it, certain... political complications... will arise."

  "How can I help?"

  The simple offer, made without hesitation despite his limited understanding of what "dragon politics" might entail, caught Xiaolong off-guard. Five months ago, she would have found such presumption laughable—a mayfly offering assistance with celestial concerns. Now, it felt like the most natural thing in the world.

  "I need to perform a blood essence transfer," she explained. "Normally a simple matter for a dragon, but in this form, considerably more complex."

  "Because your essence is compressed and altered by reverse cultivation," Li Feng nodded, grasping the problem immediately. "Your fifth scale's loss further complicates extraction, I imagine."

  "Indeed." She shouldn't be surprised by his quick understanding anymore, yet he consistently surpassed her expectations.

  "Water extraction methods might provide a solution," he suggested after brief consideration. "The Azure Waters Sect developed techniques for harvesting essence from sacred springs without disrupting their spiritual patterns. A similar approach might work for extracting your essence without destabilizing your current form."

  Again, he demonstrated insight that belied his mortal limitations. "That... might actually work," she acknowledged. "Though I would need your assistance with the water manipulation aspects."

  "Tonight, then?" he asked, already mentally preparing for what he likely imagined would be a complex cultivation ritual rather than the cosmic reordering it actually represented.

  "Tonight," she agreed. "At the Pond of Reflections."

  Night fell over the Cloud Summit, wrapping the compound in velvet darkness punctuated by formation lights that glowed with the soft blue luminescence of contained spiritual energy. Most participants had retired to prepare for the journey home following tomorrow's closing ceremonies, leaving the grounds unusually quiet.

  Xiaolong made her way toward the Pond of Reflections, Li Feng walking silently beside her. They had spent the afternoon designing a modified water extraction technique that would theoretically allow her to transfer blood essence across realms without destabilizing her human form—a process that would have been considered blasphemous innovation in dragon society and dangerous experimentation in cultivation circles.

  The garden surrounding the pond stood empty, moonlight creating silver paths across stone walkways and casting shadow patterns through ornamental trees. As they approached the perfectly circular pool, its surface remained unnaturally still despite the light breeze—a constant reminder of its special properties.

  "The process requires precise timing," Xiaolong explained as they knelt at the pond's edge. "When I activate the connection, you'll need to implement the extraction formation immediately. The essence must transfer directly through the water portal without lingering between realms."

  Li Feng nodded, his expression showing the particular focus cultivators developed when preparing for dangerous techniques. "Water formation ready," he confirmed, his hands already positioned in the opening gesture of the modified extraction method they had designed.

  Xiaolong leaned forward, whispering the ancient draconic activation phrase that caused ripples to spread inward rather than outward across the pond's surface. As the water darkened and began to glow with silver light, she felt the familiar connection forming—a thinning of the veil between mortal realm and dragon domain.

  Yinlong's face emerged from the depths, her water-projected features showing unusually solemn attention.

  "You've decided, then," she observed without preamble.

  "I have," Xiaolong confirmed. "I offer blood essence for formal proxy representation."

  In her peripheral vision, she saw Li Feng watching the exchange with calm acceptance that defied rational explanation. Most humans would have reacted with fear or awe upon witnessing direct communication with a draconic entity. Li Feng observed as though attending a particularly interesting but not alarming cultivation demonstration.

  "The requirements remain as discussed," Yinlong's water-face reminded her. "Willing surrender, direct transfer, formal declaration."

  "I understand." Xiaolong extended her hand palm-up over the water, where a small cut would release the necessary essence. "I, Longying Huaxia, Dragon of the Eastern Boundaries, Keeper of the Prismatic Scales, do hereby authorize Yinlong of the Silver Mists to act as my proxy representative in matters of territorial sovereignty and hierarchical standing before the Dragon Conclave. By blood freely given, by essence willingly shared, by ancient law acknowledged."

  As the formal declaration concluded, she nodded to Li Feng, who began the water extraction formation. His hands moved through the modified sequence they had designed, drawing a small sphere of water up from the pond's surface to hover before Xiaolong's extended palm.

  "Now," he whispered.

  Xiaolong drew a single finger across her palm, opening a small cut that welled with blood far brighter than any human's—blood that shimmered with prismatic light and contained the condensed essence of her true form. The droplets fell into Li Feng's hovering water sphere, which immediately began to pulse with intense light as it absorbed and contained the powerful essence.

  "The transfer formation," she reminded him, feeling the familiar light-headedness that accompanied essence loss, even in this limited form.

  Li Feng's hands shifted to the second sequence, guiding the essence-filled water sphere toward the pond's surface where Yinlong's projection waited. The sphere descended slowly, passing through the boundary between realms like a stone sinking through oil rather than water—moving against natural resistance.

  As the sphere disappeared beneath the surface, Yinlong's projected features rippled with satisfaction. "Essence received and acknowledged," she confirmed. "The transfer is complete."

  "Will it be sufficient?" Xiaolong asked, feeling unusually drained from the ritual. Blood essence transfer was typically trivial for dragons, but in her current form, even this small surrender carried significant impact.

  "It carries remarkable potency despite your transformed state," Yinlong observed. "More than adequate for formal representation. The Conclave convenes in eleven days—I shall present your interests as my own."

  "And Tianmin?" Xiaolong couldn't help asking. "He sent a vessel to observe me directly."

  Yinlong's water-face showed momentary surprise before settling into calculating neutrality. "Ancient dragons rarely act without purpose. His interest suggests your experiment carries implications beyond mere personal transformation." The projection began to fade as she concluded, "Take care, old friend. The fifth scale's loss places you in uncharted territory."

  As the water returned to normal reflection, Xiaolong felt Li Feng's steadying hand on her shoulder. The essence transfer had taken more from her than anticipated—another sign of how far her transformation had progressed.

  What once would have been trivial for her true form now left her visibly weakened.

  "Was it sufficient?" he asked, helping her to her feet with careful attention to her unsteady balance.

  "Yes," she assured him. "The transfer succeeded. My standing in dragon society remains... complicated, but not severed."

  As they made their way back toward the Azure Waters pavilion, Xiaolong found herself contemplating the strange duality of her existence.

  Neither fully dragon nor truly human, she occupied a liminal space between cosmic power and mortal connection. The path forward remained uncertain, filled with complications she couldn't possibly anticipate.

  Yet walking beside Li Feng beneath the same moon that had witnessed five thousand years of her solitary existence, she felt something dragon society had never offered—the comfort of shared burden.

  For perhaps the first time since her transformation began, uncertainty felt less like weakness and more like possibility.

  The blood essence ritual had formed a bridge between her past and present—a connection maintained rather than severed. What that connection might mean for her future remained to be seen.

  But for tonight, it was enough.