(GL) The Supporting Female Character Strategy Manual - Chapter 37

Jian Tongyao nearly forgot the little golden dragon existed. Its presence was so faint that it spent most days curled around her wrist, motionless. It adjusted its surface temperature with her body heat, so much so that she had mistaken it for a golden bracelet.

If not for Qian Jiujiu discovering it, she might have continued wearing it like jewelry.

“Jiu jiu!!!”

Qian Jiujiu bristled visibly. She kept a wary distance of half a meter from the lifeless golden dragon. Then, in a low swoop, she grabbed its tail with both claws and flung it high into the air.

Whoosh!

Jian Tongyao saw a golden arc fly past her. She barely made out the dragon’s flailing limbs as it tumbled headfirst into a bush. When Qian Jiujiu tried to find it again, she almost uprooted the grass around it. But the golden dragon had vanished without a trace.

With a solemn expression, Qian Jiujiu muttered, “Bad Jiu.”

Jian Tongyao nodded seriously. She wholeheartedly agreed. That sneaky golden dragon deserved it. Still, her agreement did not stop Qian Jiujiu from launching into a full-scale search around the area. Eventually, Jian Tongyao had to scoop up the stubborn little phoenix herself.

“Jiu, there are many spiritual creatures on Lingjiu Mountain. What matters most now is cultivating well. Next time you see it, take it down in one move.”

Qian Jiujiu looked gloomy all the way back until she spotted the fire spirit vein. Even from afar, she could sense the thick fire energy. Jian Tongyao gently set her down. Without hesitation, she dashed straight into the flames.

“Master Jiu.”

“Jiu, from now on, this will be your training ground.”

Initially, Jian Tongyao had worried that the fire spirit vein’s energy might be too intense. With only a trace of phoenix blood in her body, Qian Jiujiu might not absorb it well. Worse, she might get burned. Unexpectedly, the little one had fully absorbed the fire spirit orb in just over a month. Now, lying within the fire vein, she looked perfectly at ease, as if lounging in her own soft bed.

Jian Tongyao dared not be careless. She hid nearby for days, secretly observing. She discovered that Qian Jiujiu was quite clever. The deeper into the fire vein, the purer and denser the energy. After getting her feet scorched in the core, Qian Jiujiu wisely settled near the edges, where she would roll back and forth daily. Each time her training ended, she would unfailingly return to the courtyard to headbutt the phoenix tree.

Thump. Thump. Thump.

Her collisions shook loose quite a few phoenix leaves, which she then carefully carried back to her nest. Even in the middle of the night, she would sneak out for a stroll. She always headed for the same spot, the very place where she had last seen the golden dragon disappear.

Jian Tongyao was amused by her Seventh Sister’s determination. She poked at the dragon, which had sneakily returned to her wrist.

“I suddenly realized you’re not completely useless. You make a decent ornament.”

The little golden dragon lifted its head to look at her. After a heavy sigh, it collapsed again into a lifeless heap.

Ever since being pecked by Qian Jiujiu, it had sunk into a deep depression, its dragon dignity thoroughly shattered.

“You’re a dragon, not a snake, right?”

She flipped it over, inspecting its two tiny front claws.

Dingding, “…”

Jian Tongyao pondered for a while. In the blink of an eye, she pulled out a pile of gems from her storage pouch. Red, green, blue, and every shade in between filled the pile. She then dumped out a bag of gold coins that had been stashed away for who knows how long, forming a glittering mountain. The little dragon instantly flicked its tail and encircled the coins, then dove right in, leaving only the tip of its tail twitching outside.

“As expected. Dragons love hoarding treasures. Especially shiny things.”

“Xiao Jiu.”

“It likes metal spirit energy. We need to find it weapons.”

The fire spirit orb once carried traces of metal essence, which Jian Tongyao had wiped off. Prompted by Dingding’s reminder, she began digging through her pouch again and dumped all the weapons she had collected over time before the golden dragon. Sure enough, it perked up more for the blades than the gold.

Its tail swept toward a sword. Jian Tongyao quickly held it down.

“You want my things, you’ll need to work.”

The golden dragon flopped onto the back of her hand, its whole body spelling out despair.

It was the picture of hopelessness.

Jian Tongyao felt like the cunning wolf from a fairytale, about to trick Little Red Riding Hood. She waved a sword before it.

“This blade carries its owner’s blood and spiritual energy. Don’t you want it?”

The dragon’s tail curled around the hilt. Even when she dangled it upside down, it refused to let go.

“What I’m asking you to do is simple. Just help train with my Seventh—my Xiao Jiu.”

The dragon clung to the sword hilt like a stubborn child.

Jian Tongyao tried to reason.

“She really likes you. After accidentally hurting you last time, she’s still searching for you everywhere. If you agree to help her train, not only will I give you this sword, but I’ll also find better ones for you in the future. How about it?”

The tip of the dragon’s tail trembled slightly, showing a hint of interest.

Dingding, “… Xiao Jiu, beat it up.”

Jian Tongyao considered subduing it by force. After all, it had been cultivating using Lingjiu Mountain’s spiritual energy without permission. Now it was even trying to bargain with her. Outrageous.

Sensing her change in mood, the golden dragon abruptly straightened up and nodded vigorously.

She raised an eyebrow.

“So you agree?”

The little dragon rubbed affectionately against her wrist, wagging its tail like a loyal dog. Jian Tongyao took that as a yes.

“Starting today, show at least half your strength.”

No one knew how long this dragon had been cultivating in Lingjiu Mountain. Though small in size, it carried a pure dragon bloodline, clearly far beyond Xiao Jiu in strength. Last time, it had only been caught off guard.

Even so, the dragon acted miserable, as if it were being dragged to its execution. Jian Tongyao had the distinct feeling it could quit at any moment.

Thankfully, despite its gloominess, it swam forward at a leisurely pace. Its little claws served no real purpose. It just floated along until it met Qian Jiujiu on her way back from fire vein training.

They faced off at a crossroads. In the blink of an eye, Qian Jiujiu took flight. A fireball, about the size of her body, shot toward the golden dragon.

Her progress over the past few days was obvious. Her fire-spitting had become much more precise and powerful.

The golden dragon twisted its body into a graceful arc. A golden sword form flashed out and blocked the incoming fireball.

Qian Jiujiu was stunned.

The dragon responded with something Jian Tongyao never expected. It began twisting and swaying in a flamboyant dance, taunting her with every movement. Its posture screamed, “You can’t hit me.”

Jian Tongyao, “…”

The golden dragon was clearly getting cocky.

Qian Jiujiu fired several more fireballs. Each one was blocked by the golden sword. Despite the elemental disadvantage, the dragon still suppressed the fire energy. Jian Tongyao felt confident she had found the right sparring partner.

Still, her Seventh Sister was not so easily defeated.

As expected, when Qian Jiujiu saw that her attacks had no effect, she burst forward with fury. Wings flapping, she charged the dragon head-on.

Smack!

Jiu jiu!

This time, she had learned her lesson. She didn’t toss it playfully. Her claws pinned down its slippery golden body, and she pecked and pecked relentlessly. The golden dragon howled in pain.

Jian Tongyao, “…”

She couldn’t help but cover her face. It was too pitiful to watch.

Time passed in a flurry of feathers and fire. Two hundred years slipped by.

Surprisingly, amid all the chaos and squabbling, Jian Tongyao never found a single day dull.

“You rascal.”

Outside the window, two figures, one tall and one short, ran in circles around the phoenix tree in playful pursuit. After centuries of training, Qian Wanyu had used the fire vein to return to human form. Her stunning face was now clouded with a rare flicker of anger. She casually hurled two fireballs at her fleeing opponent.

Each one was blocked by a gleaming sword body. For two hundred years, she had never managed to bypass that defense. It was enough to drive anyone mad.

“No more fighting. I’m done for today.”

The golden dragon vanished in a flash, reappearing near the mountain barrier. She glanced back one last time.

“I’m not playing with you two anymore.”

Oh dear.

The phoenix tree shook violently from the impact of two fireballs. Leaves rained down like feathers. Qian Jiujiu glared at it coldly.

“Useless.”

“Elder Jian, help me. Sob sob.”

“Please. You’re several thousand years old. Do you have to cry like that? It’s terrifying.”

A hundred years ago, Jian Tongyao had once been startled in the dead of night by that ghostly wail. She searched everywhere before discovering the culprit was the ancient phoenix tree in Qian Jiujiu’s courtyard. It had cultivated for so long that it had developed a spirit.

Poor thing. It was only now learning the meaning of karma.

In the Phoenix Clan’s territory, it had once thrived off the sparse spiritual energy and became the most beloved perch among fledgling phoenixes. After Ling Yan had laid claim to it, it had grown arrogant. It refused to let any low-blooded phoenixes rest on its branches.

Qian Jiujiu had always waited until no one was around before attempting to perch. Every time she tried, the tree had struck her with its branches. From that day on, she no longer cared to rest on it.

Despite being only a hundred years old at the time, she remembered every detail. Never did the phoenix tree imagine it would one day be moved into her personal courtyard and become her only resting place.

In the early days, she had bashed her head against it daily. The tree had mocked her impure bloodline. But as her power grew, the tree became more and more alarmed. A hundred years ago, her headbutts had nearly broken its trunk.

Night after night, the old tree wept in secret.

Sob sob. It cried like a ghost.

Jian Tongyao, disturbed during her walk, had once again heard it.

She snapped.

“Does your crying really have to be this unbearable?”

The tree hiccupped.

“Does it bother you that much?”

Jian Tongyao, “Obviously.”

Each time it wailed, her skin crawled. Yet as Qian Jiujiu’s cultivation progressed, the crying only became more frequent.

The old tree was devastated.

“My life is over.”

Watching the tree shake like a sieve, Jian Tongyao couldn’t decide whether to feel pity or deliver a swift kick. After hearing it confess its past cruelty, she was sorely tempted.

“Begging me won’t help. Better think of how to make my Xiao Jiu happy.”

The tree had spent a century lamenting its misfortune. Now it knew there was no point in asking for mercy.

“Please, Elder Jian. Guide me.”

Jian Tongyao toyed with the embroidered sachet in her hand. On it was a small phoenix, plump as a pouch, filled with the down Qian Jiujiu had shed over the past century.

“You lived in the Phoenix Clan’s territory for thousands of years. Surely you know how to refine a phoenix’s bloodline to its purest form. Speak.”

The old tree shivered violently.