Chapter 676
Chapter 676
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>Translator: Ryuma
>Chapter: 676
>Chapter Title: Dragon Household
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Hearing that his eldest sister was about to return to her maternal home, Yang Kid's worried heart eased a little. In these times, the sea was safer than the shore.
“Fifth Kid! Dad wants you over here.”
Hearing his second brother call out from inside the cabin, Yang Kid quickly answered, crouched down to wash his hands in the water, then stood and headed into the cabin.
The cabin wasn't large, so Yang Kid could walk inside without needing to stoop.
“Come on! Fifth Kid, have a drink!” Yang Kid's father, Chi Bai Shui, yanked him over and shoved a cup of liquor into his hand.
Though Yang Kid didn't drink, with all these elders eyeing him, he still tilted his head back and downed it.
But this liquor was strange, thick with a fishy stench that made him want to retch.
Seeing the look on Yang Kid's face, everyone burst into laughter.
“How about it, Fifth Kid? Not used to it? This is white fish wine—good stuff. It gets you drunk and cures ailments too! You'll get the hang of it after a few more.” Chi Bai Shui slapped him hard on the back, then joined in the laughter.
“Fish wine? You can brew liquor from fish?” As a cook, Yang Kid had never come across something like this before.
“What a fresh question! Of course you can brew liquor from fish. Come on, sit down!” Chi Bai Shui pulled him into his seat at the table.
After three rounds of liquor and five flavors of dishes, they finally got down to business. Chi Bai Shui took a swig from his cup, his eyes bleary, and said, “Fifth Kid, now that you're back, head to the Dragon King Temple first thing tomorrow to register as a Dragon Household member. I'll buy you a boat too. Settle down, fish properly, and live your life with your wife.”
Hearing this, Yang Kid froze for a moment. Buy a boat? Fish for a living? Settle down? None of that had been on his mind.
Seeing Yang Kid's reaction, Chi Bai Shui's face darkened. “What? You planning to leave again? Then why'd you come back?”
Hearing his long-lost father sounding angry, Yang Kid panicked. “Dad, no, that's not it. Really.”
“Enough. It's settled. Get out.”
Seeing her husband stumble out of the cabin in a daze, Zhao Xiumei, who had been shelling crabs, jumped up and hurried over.
“Head of the house, what happened? Wasn't it a feast? Why the long face?”
Yang Kid stared at her blankly. “Xiumei, Dad wants me to stay, settle down here. What do you think?”
Zhao Xiumei turned to gaze at the wooden boats bobbing on the distant sea, their oil lamps swaying, families aboard each one. “Married to a chicken, follow the chicken; married to a dog, follow the dog. I'm fine either way. It's up to you.”
Hearing her say that, Yang Kid didn't respond, just sat back down at the bow and continued the feast with his siblings.
After the waterside banquet, lying in his hanging net, Yang Kid tossed and turned, unable to sleep. On one hand, his newly met family; on the other, the master and fellow disciples who had shared life and death with him along the way.
Of course he wanted both, but that was probably impossible. He seemed to have to choose one side.
In his drowsy haze, Yang Kid fell asleep. When he opened his eyes again, he saw his mother gazing at him tenderly, her expression as if afraid he'd run off once more.
A warmth welled up in Yang Kid's heart. He'd never felt this kind of familial concern before.
“Fifth Kid, you're awake? Come on, I'll take you to the Dragon King Temple. Your dad's waiting.” Yang Kid nodded, got up, and helped his mother down the stairs to the deck outside.
No matter if he stayed or left, he still had to enter the ancestral hall. After all, he was part of this family.
Walking past boat after boat, Yang Kid accompanied his mother to the cluster of wooden buildings on the sea. The uneven paths were tricky to navigate, with random clutter underfoot now and then.
But the folks living here were all friendly, casting kind looks at Yang Kid.
Along the way, Yang Kid wanted to ask his mother if the family could come with him to Oxheart Village. Life there was clearly better than scraping by fishing at sea.
But he'd clearly forgotten again that his mother was deaf. He talked for ages with no response.
“Never mind. Once I'm in the family register, I'll talk to Dad about it.”
After a short walk along the path, a temple with an exceptionally broad eaves appeared before them. The wide overhang blocked all light, making it feel oppressive to Yang Kid.
“Come on, don't keep your dad waiting. His temper's not the best.” Yang Kid's mother pulled him inside.
Once in, Yang Kid stared in awe at a massive painting in the distance. The dark-toned mural, shrouded in incense smoke, exuded an air of profound mystery.
“Mom, what's that?” Yang Kid started to raise his finger, but his mother pressed it down.
“Don't point. That's deeply disrespectful to the Dragon King.”
“Dragon King? But isn't that a black snake?” In the painting far off, a pupil-less black serpent coiled massively in its lair.
“Ai, that's just how our Dragon King looks. Hurry and light the incense. He used to be hit-or-miss, but now the Dragon King is truly efficacious!”
Urged by his mother, Yang Kid solemnly lit incense before the painted Dragon King and performed three bows and nine kowtows with utmost seriousness.
As Yang Kid kowtowed, a group emerged, including Chi Bai Shui and the elders from last night's cabin feast.
Today they wore robes: brown upper garments with skirts below, draped in shawls—most formal.
Yang Kid looked closely and saw the robes were scaled like fish, apparently made from fish skin.
As Yang Kid wondered if this counted as joining the Dragon Household, a white-bearded elder stepped forward, unrolled a bamboo slip, and began chanting toward the image.
Yang Kid couldn't understand a word—the heavy accent and rhythmic cadence sounded like singing.
But one name repeated several times, which Yang Kid barely made out: Ao Wuzhi.
“Kneel~~” At that, Yang Kid dropped to his knees before the giant painting again.
After finishing his three bows and nine kowtows, Yang Kid looked up to see the fish-skin-robed elders encircling him, gazing at him solemnly.
Before Yang Kid could grasp what was happening, Chi Bai Shui stepped up beside him and stripped off his clothes.
Then fishbone needles dipped in ink descended on his skin, piercing with excruciating pain.
Instinctively, he tried to stand, but couldn't move an inch. The needles held more than just ink.
And so Yang Kid knelt there, glancing sidelong at his anxious parents while enduring the fishbones etching scales into his flesh—tattoos just like those of the boat folk.
(End of chapter)