Yijun's mouth drops open, his eyes widening in shock as he stares at the phoenix.

 "He what?" he finally blurts out after a long, stunned silence, his voice almost cracking with disbelief.

 The phoenix flicks his fan shut with a soft snap, nodding like a sage. "You heard me correctly. He was married to a human a long, long time ago." He glances toward the direction where the dragon vanished, his expression thoughtful. "I suspect he’s at the nearby wolf den, probably causing some trouble. So why don’t we make ourselves comfortable while we chat?"

 They find a grassy knoll a few meters away, beneath the shade of a chestnut tree. The spot is peaceful, with dappled sunlight filtering through the leaves. The phoenix sits gracefully, tucking his legs beneath him in a fluid motion that speaks of practiced elegance. He smiles at Yijun, who eagerly sits down opposite him, the curiosity burning in his eyes.

 "My name is HuO, by the way," the phoenix says. He picks up a few fallen chestnuts scattered by his side, his fingers deftly rolling them in his palm.

 "So, about His Lordship..." Yijun prompts, leaning forward, anticipation clear in his posture.

 "Hm? Oh, yes." Lord HuO's golden eyes twinkle with a mix of nostalgia and amusement. "He was indeed married to a human, which is quite astonishing. Dragons, you see, do not form attachments easily. How that human managed to capture a dragon’s heart, I can’t begin to imagine."

 Yijun nods eagerly, his focus entirely on the phoenix, drinking in every word.

 Lord HuO continues to fiddle with the chestnut, his gaze distant as he recalls the past. Yijun waits, the air around them filled with the quiet rustling of leaves and the occasional chirp of a bird.

 "I met them because I found it interesting," Lord HuO finally says, his voice soft with reminiscence. "By the time I arrived, he was already married to the human. He told me his husband had appeared at his pool one day. Since he had nothing else to do at the time, he thought it would be interesting to observe what mortals did with their lives."

 As he speaks, the chestnut in his hand suddenly bursts into flame, its husk crackling and curling under the intense heat. Lord HuO sighs, the light from the fire flickering in his eyes. "And he was so happy back then. He was more lively and carefree than he is now, even with their hellspawn of a baby."

 Yijun finds himself silenced, overwhelmed by the torrent of revelations. The concept of immortals dying from mere emotions, of dragons marrying humans and bearing children—it all feels too surreal, too far removed from anything he’s ever known.

 Lord HuO, with a practiced grace, hands Yijun the cooked chestnut. The warm aroma wafts between them. Yijun accepts it, his fingers fumbling with the hot shell, trying to cool it down as he juggles it from hand to hand. Meanwhile, the phoenix casually searches for another chestnut among the fallen leaves, as if the conversation they were having was no more than idle chatter.

 "Where was I?" Lord HuO murmurs, his voice distant as he inspects the next chestnut, turning it over in his hand. "Ah, yes. A few years passed, and they raised children together. Then, something happened, and their marriage ended. I never learned the details. By the time I encountered that dragon again, he was as you see him now—ill, clinging to what little life he has left, desperately trying not to feel to save his life."

 The phoenix pops the newly cooked chestnut into his mouth and chews. His face scrunches as the chestnut taste hits his tongue. Yijun watched him, the weight of the words settling heavily in his chest. "What happened to his family?" he asked.

Lord HuO spits the chestnut out to his side. He then shrugs with a casualness that felt almost cruel. "Eh, they’re probably dead by now. It’s been 500 years. There’s no way they’re still around."

 Yijun frowns, confusion knitting his brows together. "I don’t understand. What does his marriage-his family have to do with his illness?"

 The phoenix shifts, sitting up straighter as he responds, "Oh, that. Well, it wouldn’t be a problem if he had forgotten his mortal family and ascended back to heaven. But he refuses to let go. Because of that stubbornness, he can’t regain his immortality, and that’s why he’s sick and dying."

 Lord HuO sighes and shakes his head, a mournful expression crossing his face. "I don’t get it. This all seems so pointless. Is mortal life really so precious that one would choose the complete obliteration of their soul over immortality?" His eyes focus on Yijun.  "Hey, Yijun, you’re mortal. What do you think?"

 Yijun slowly shakes his head, a mix of bewilderment and sorrow on his face. "I don’t know," he admits. How could he understand what it meant to be immortal when his own life had been so fleeting, so fragile?

 “But immortality does seem better,” he adds after seeing Lord HuO’s expectant face.

 Lord HuO smiles wide. “I knew you’d agree with me. Immortality is so much better than the fleeting fragile wisps of a dream.”

 As Lord HuO chatters on about the superiority of immortality, Yijun’s mind turn to thoughts of the dragon’s lost family and a deep sadness began to settle in his heart. He too lost his own family, and to be told to forget them, to erase their memory entirely, seems unbearably cold. It was no wonder the dragon stubbornly held on to their memories, even if it meant his own demise. For the first time, Yijun feels a sense of kinship with the dragon—a bond forged not by status or power but by shared grief, even if the gulf between them remained as vast as the sky and earth.

 As Lord HuO busies himself roasting chestnuts with his flame, Yijun finds his thoughts spiraling in an overwhelming tide. The past few days has shattered every belief he held about dragons, each revelation more disorienting than the last. First, he learned from the mountaintop that dragons no longer had control over the world—a notion that felt as foreign as it was unsettling. Then, from the dragon himself, came the harsh truth that dragons and other gods cared nothing for humans, despite centuries of worship and countless sacrifices offered in their honor. And now, this—dragons could die, and their downfall was tied to something as mundane as feeling emotions. But the most jarring revelation of all was discovering that the dragon, this ancient, formidable, emotionless being, had once been married—and to a human, no less.

 Yijun’s mind whirls, trying to reconcile this new knowledge with the image he had of the dragon. He attempts to envision the cold, aloof creature as a husband, but the thought seems ludicrous. What sort of person could endure a partner so distant and unfeeling, a bedfellow as fierce and merciless as the one he is traveling with?

 "Do you know about the dragons losing control?" Yijun asks, his voice tinged with unease as he decided to set aside the dragon's personal affairs for something he could grasp.

 Lord HuO nods, his attention still focused on the chestnuts. "Yes, I'm aware," he replies. "Disasters have been occurring more frequently these past hundred years. I specifically sought him out to ask if he was responsible, but he denies it. Dragons don’t lie, so I took him at his word. It’s strange, though. I’ve rarely seen other dragons tending to the world as they should. It’s… abnormal." He pauses as the chestnut in his hand suddenly popped, sending a small mushroom of smoke into the air. "I may be immortal, but for the first time, I think I understand what it means to fear for my life."

 Yijun nods back. He had been born into a world already teetering on the edge, so the worsening state of things was all he had ever known. But if an immortal like Lord HuO, who had witnessed the world in all its former glory, is concerned, then the situation must truly be dire.

 Lord HuO turns his head, his gaze drifting toward the direction where the dragon had disappeared. Yijun followshis gaze and, in the distance, he hears faint howling echoing through the trees. "It sounds like he’s finishing up," Lord HuO remarks, rising gracefully to his feet. "He’ll need some assistance, so I’ll fly you to him."

 Yijun quickly stands as well, brushing the chestnut shells off from his travel-stained robes. As he prepares to follow, Lord HuO suddenly stops walking then glances back with a curious expression. "Oh, by the way," he adds, his tone light yet inquisitive, "are humans today supposed to smell rotten?"