Chapter 20: Mating
The two of them squeezed through the fissure one after the other, passed through the passage, and entered the depths of the crystal cave.
Talos did not head toward the main hall but instead turned into the passage on the right, one Livia had never explored before.
The passage slanted continuously downward, the slope becoming steeper and steeper, and the crystals embedded in the cave walls grew denser and denser, until finally, they were almost entirely encased in transparent crystal, as if walking inside an incomparably huge jewel.
Small air bubbles and natural striations were sealed within the crystal walls, refracting soft, multicolored light under some unknown faint luminescence.
After walking for about fifteen minutes, an opening finally appeared at the end of the passage.
Talos squeezed sideways and entered.
Livia followed behind. The moment she stepped into the opening, she froze on the spot.
It was a naturally formed circular cavern, about twenty meters in diameter and ten meters high.
The entire cave wall was crystal, but not ordinary transparent crystal; it was a faint pink—as if stained by something, or perhaps an extremely rare pink crystal.
Light slowly permeated from within the crystal walls, soft as if overlaid with a warm-toned filter, enveloping the entire cavern in an ambiguous yet quiet pink glow.
In the very center of the cavern lay a massive white pelt, spread completely across the ground, looking incredibly soft and fluffy.
It was an entire, intact beast hide, retaining the shape of the head and even the tail; it was unclear what kind of arctic creature the fur belonged to.
Scattered around the pelt were several small items: a few night-glowing pearls the size of a fist, emitting a soft green light; a neatly stacked pile of leather hides, more orderly than items on a shop counter; several crystal bottles containing clear, transparent liquid; and a stone slab polished very smoothly, inscribed with runes she couldn't decipher.
Talos walked over to the pelt and lay down.
He looked up at Livia, his tone carrying the seriousness unique to a fastidious dragon:
"This is the temporary lair I specifically prepared. I don't usually live here, but mating requires a quiet and clean place.
I spent a year tidying it up, cleaning it three times a day, polishing the crystal walls once a month, and washing the pelt once a quarter.
The water in those bottles has all been distilled; there isn't a single impurity."
Livia casually glanced around.
Cleanliness was indeed exaggeratedly clean.
There wasn't a speck of dust on the ground, not a single stain on the crystal walls, and even those small items were arranged perfectly neatly, with identical spacing, as if measured precisely with a ruler.
The pelt didn't have a single stray hair; it was blindingly pure white.
She walked over and lay down on the opposite side of the pelt.
The two dragons lay facing each other, separated by three meters.
The atmosphere once again became strange.
The pink glow enveloped them, and the green light from the night-glowing pearls flickered softly nearby; the entire scene resembled a bizarre, unreal dream.
Livia could clearly hear her own heartbeat, thumping against her chest, and she couldn't tell if it was nervousness or simply finding the atmosphere too awkward.
Talos stared at her for a long while, then suddenly spoke:
"Are you sure?"
Livia paused. "Sure about what?"
"Mating," Talos's tail tip tapped lightly against the pelt, the rhythm regular yet somewhat tense. "Once this starts, there's no turning back.
If you regret it now, I can pretend you never came. You can still live here; I won't chase you away."
Livia was silent for a second.
Then she countered, "You don't want to?"
Talos immediately turned his head away, staring at the cave wall, his ear tips pressed slightly back. "I was just confirming."
Livia looked at his awkward and disingenuous demeanor and suddenly felt like laughing.
A Blue Dragon over two hundred years old, usually incredibly arrogant and ridiculously fastidious, yet at this moment, he acted like an inexperienced hatchling going through this for the first time.
The frequency of his tail tip had already betrayed his tension, and his pupils were a shade narrower than usual.
She got up and crawled to his side, lying down.
"Let's begin," she said.
Talos remained silent for three seconds.
Then he slowly turned toward her and moved closer.
His scales brushed against hers, carrying a subtle electric sensation—a little numb, a little itchy, like countless tiny ants crawling lightly over her skin.
His body temperature was lower than hers, like cool, clean metal pressed against her, yet concealing a slightly warm core.
His scent was very clean—ozone, crystal, and an indescribable fresh aroma, like post-rain air mixed with a hint of mint.
His foreclaws rested gently on her back, holding her steady.
The pads of his claws were warm, and his talons merely rested lightly against her scales without applying pressure.
She could clearly feel his heartbeat, incredibly fast, the *thump-thump* vibration perceptible even through two layers of scales, like a small drum beating.
Livia closed her eyes.
Her claws clenched involuntarily, her talons digging deeply into the rock beneath the pelt.
The rock was hard, and her talons carved several deep marks into it, with gravel (crushed stone fragments) embedding themselves in the crevices of her claws.
Disgust.
Resistance.
The urge to vomit.
This was her body's most primal reaction.
Although she was human in her past life, she was a dragon in this one, and a dragon's body carried its own ancient memories.
Female dragons were suppressed and controlled by male dragons during mating, losing agency—this discomfort etched into her bones was like an ancient brand, impossible to shake off.
She took a deep breath and gritted her teeth to persevere.
The scent of the pelt entered her nostrils; slightly fishy, slightly musky, but clean enough, without any foul odor.
Talos's breath puffed onto her neck, warm, carrying a faint scent of ozone.
His claws tightened slightly, holding her more securely.
[System Prompt: Mating in progress, rewards accumulating...]
The system panel suddenly popped up, floating before her eyes, emitting a faint golden light.
[Bloodline Evolution Points +10]
She stared fixedly at the numbers.
[Bloodline Evolution Points +20]
[Bloodline Evolution Points +30]
His breathing grew heavy, and a low roar rumbled in his throat.
The force of his claws increased, pressing her down tighter.
His body began to heat up, and tiny electrical currents emerged between the gaps in his scales, causing her to feel slightly numb.
[Bloodline Evolution Points +50]
[Bloodline Evolution Points +80]
[Bloodline Evolution Points +120]
The numbers jumped faster and faster.
The feeling of resistance in Livia's heart slowly began to recede.
Physiological instinct was impossible to resist—her dragon body was telling her this was normal, this was proper, this was the instinct of procreation, a program etched into her genes.
An indescribable pleasure began to surge, rising from the base of her spine and spreading along her nerves throughout her body, like warm water gently washing over a beach.
Her mind began to wander uncontrollably, images of animals she had seen in her past life flashing rapidly.
Lions mate dozens of times a day, each time lasting only a few seconds; afterward, the lioness turns hostile and chases the male lion.
Blue whales take a long time to mate; afterward, they go their separate ways. The ocean is vast; meeting again is harder than winning the lottery.
Chimpanzees make exceptionally loud noises during mating; afterward, they groom each other as if nothing happened and continue searching for fruit together.
And now, she was experiencing it firsthand.
[Bloodline Evolution Points +200]
[Bloodline Evolution Points +300]
[Bloodline Evolution Points +500]
The numbers jumped wildly.
Livia subconsciously extended a claw and placed it on Talos's back, tracing down his spine one vertebra at a time.
One section, two sections, three sections...
Twenty-seven sections.
The standard number of vertebrae for a Blue Dragon.
The skeletal development was good, with no deformities or damage, the scales covered evenly, and the muscle attachment points were clear.
The spacing between each vertebra was almost the same, indicating balanced nutrition during the growth period.
There was a small old injury on the third vertebra, long healed, not affecting the whole.
The twelfth vertebra bulged slightly, the area where muscles were most developed, suggesting he frequently used this posture in combat.
Suitable to be a stud dragon.
Wait.
Why am I counting his spine?
Livia suddenly froze.
She stared at the claw resting on his back, the tip pressing against his thirteenth vertebra—the most vulnerable weak point in a Blue Dragon's spine.
A hard press during combat could paralyze the entire lower half of the dragon, rendering it unable to stand again.
She quickly retracted her claw and shifted to a safer position.
But the analysis mode in her mind couldn't stop: This fellow's bone structure was a typical Storm Blue Dragon subspecies.
He had two more vertebrae than a common Blue Dragon, indicating the presence of ancient bloodline, traceable to the progenitor of the Thunderhowl family.
Muscle attachment points were higher, implying strong explosive power but poor endurance, suitable for short, high-intensity combat.
Scale density was uniform, edges smooth, suggesting long-term balanced nutrition and abundant prey near the lair.
Nail wear was moderate, indicating a moderate hunting frequency, avoiding excessive energy expenditure.
Li Chen, what major did you study in your past life?
She asked herself internally.
Then, she remembered.
Animal Science.
Minor—Genetics and Breeding.
Her graduation thesis was titled 'A Comparative Study of the Reproductive Performance of Different Strains of Stud Boars.'
That year, she spent eight months at a pig farm, collecting semen from boars daily, recording data, analyzing sperm vitality, and finally concluding that one strain of boar showed optimal reproductive performance under certain conditions.
Her advisor had praised her thesis for having solid data and reliable conclusions, suggesting it for publication.
Now, she was participating firsthand.
Fate truly loved to play jokes.
[Bloodline Evolution Points +800]
[Bloodline Evolution Points +1000]
[Current Accumulated Evolution Points: 3760]
Talos's roars grew louder, and his claws pressed her tighter.
The entire cave vibrated slightly, and fine pink powder rained down from the crystal walls, like a small pink snowstorm.
Fine cracks appeared on the crystal wall overhead, and tiny shards of crystal fell, hitting the pelt with faint sounds.
Livia gritted her teeth and persisted, her mind cycling through images like a fast-forwarded film.
Scenes from her past life flashed one after another: during artificial insemination at the pig farm, technicians holding tools, sows crying out in their pens, boars being guided onto collection stands while technicians shouted encouragement from the side; during semen collection at the cattle farm, strict control over temperature and pressure was required, followed by vitality testing, recording, and freezing; artificial insemination at the chicken farm was even more straightforward: catching the hen, everting the cloaca, extracting semen—a fluid, practiced routine.
Back then, she only found it tedious, repetitive work.
Now, she was the one experiencing it directly.
[Bloodline Evolution Points +1500]
[Bloodline Evolution Points +2000]
[Current Accumulated Evolution Points: 7260]
The sounds echoed through the cavern, making the crystal walls hum, causing more pink powder to shower down.
Her heartbeat violently threatened to burst through her chest, and her breathing was heavy, like a bellows.
Livia lay still, unmoving.
She stared at the number on the system panel: 7260.
Enough for one Bloodline Purification,
Enough to enhance the embryo once,
Enough to accelerate incubation by a year.
It was worth it.