My Host Only Marries the Strong

The wind swept through Seraphine’s long hair, tugging strands loose and setting the little orb swaying back and forth.

Seraphine remained silent for a long time.

The irritating little orb, along with the flowers atop her head, drifted left, then right, then left again.

Flying toward Westle Continent, Error tilted her wide green eyes upward, wondering: Why has she stopped talking? This dragon is getting rather bored.

“Seraphine? Seraphine?” Echo waited for a long time, but seeing Seraphine’s expression remain icy, she asked earnestly, “Do you think it’s not possible? If you have better suggestions, we can discuss them togeth—”

“—ther, ther, ther, ther…”

Her clear, cool voice rippled through the high skies, echoing endlessly.

Error’s eyes instinctively followed the sound of the drifting orb, her head twisting almost all the way around.

Seraphine reached out and physically straightened the Fire Rock Dragon’s head.

“Watch the road.” Seraphine said, her tone even cooler.

The flames atop Error’s head immediately shrank inward with a whoosh, and she flicked her tail before continuing forward.

Echo performed an emergency brake in mid-air and chased after the dragon, grabbing onto her tail to leap back onto her spine.

Displaying a “hardworking” emoji, she flew along the dragon’s back and came to a stop behind Seraphine.

“If you don’t behave, I’ll lock you up.” Seraphine’s cold voice drifted back.

“Eh?” Echo pulled out her thick “Romance Strategy Manual” and flipped through it.

She stared at words like “forced” and “confinement,” feeling that this was an entirely unfamiliar territory.

Even as a high-level System, there are missions I haven’t experienced, she thought.

Echo sheepishly closed the manual and floated up to land on Seraphine’s shoulder. She said with a smile, “Seraphine, if only I could accompany you in a human body.”

Seraphine assumed Echo was about to launch into another broad-daylight discussion about dual cultivation, and she shot her a reproving look.

However, Echo continued with a sweet smile, “If I had a human body, I could give you a hug right now.”

The silver orb raised her tiny matchstick arms, her large dark eyes blinking with hesitation. “But since I only have matchstick arms……”

The orb glowed brightly as her two matchstick arms suddenly elongated, stretching out a great distance.

Error, who was busy flying, was startled. Is the sky growing loose threads?! she wondered.

It was too bizarre. Seraphine’s scalp prickled with embarrassment as she quickly snapped, “Pull them back!”

“Oh!” Echo immediately retracted her arms to their normal size. She flicked the earring dangling by Seraphine’s ear and sighed, “Indeed, this is more aesthetically pleasing.”

“Aesthetics?” Seraphine scoffed. “You actually understand aesthetics?”

“How could I not?” Echo looked at Seraphine in surprise. “Am I not a beautiful little orb?”

Seraphine paused. She plucked Echo from her shoulder, retrieved two other silver pearls from her storage ring, and placed all three in her palm.

Echo snuggled up to the long-unseen pearls to say hello, deliberately emitting a soft, shimmering light.

“If I weren’t beautiful, why would Seraphine like me? Seraphine loves beautiful things.” Echo said.

“Don’t talk nonsense. I like you because—” Seraphine’s voice cut off abruptly. She suddenly closed her palm, gently rubbing the three beads together.

She pursed her lips, ignoring the question marks popping up above Echo’s head, and let a smile tug at the corners of her mouth.

Because it is you, that is why I like you.

Echo never heard the reason, and more confused question marks appeared.

Seraphine lowered her head and planted a soft kiss on the orb.

In that instant, all confusion vanished. Echo’s orb turned a brilliant gold as she touched the spot where Seraphine had kissed her.

“Shy!”

The Divine Continent was divided into five regions and two domains; the Central Continent was the largest, followed by Westle Continent.

Westle Continent was vast, with rolling mountain ranges and wide rivers flowing across high plateaus.

Echo dangled from Error’s whiskers on the dragon’s head, watching the shimmering river below.

As she updated her map data, she mused, “If I didn’t want anyone to find the treasure chests, I’d hide them deep within the mountains.”

Unless someone leveled the entire mountain, they’d never be discovered.

Error glanced at her sideways. “You’re a silver orb.” she noted—not a black, devious one.

“Oh, do you need help finding Pine Child’s treasure chest? Then please return Nine Heavens to me.” Echo said, swinging from Error’s whiskers.

Error immediately looked straight ahead. “What Nine Heavens? I don’t know it. I only picked up a vegetable cleaver.”

It just happened to be a cleaver that was a bit longer, thinner, and shinier than others!

Echo didn’t respond, but an ellipsis of deep thought appeared in her bubble.

Using her slender matchstick arms, she grabbed Error’s whisker with a clever twist and nimbly swung onto Error’s nose.

Error immediately went cross-eyed, trying to see what the orb was up to.

Standing proudly, Echo reached into her inventory and pulled out a jade flute that looked familiar to everyone.

The flute was long—many times larger than Echo herself.

She gripped the top and propped it against Error’s nose, appearing ready to play a grand piece.

Error broke out in a cold sweat, nearly turning back into a water dragon. She muttered, “Fine, I’ll give it back. We’re still best friends.”

A dragon’s ears have a hard enough life—please don’t take them away!

“Hahaha!” Echo laughed loudly.

On Error’s back, Seraphine, who had been focused on reading a letter, looked up with gentle warmth in her eyes.

Under the clear wind and bright sun, the sound of the flute began to play—a smooth, soft melody that resonated high above the heavens.

Both human and dragon were stunned, as if they were witnessing a novice cultivator suddenly achieve ascension.

Seraphine raised an eyebrow. Reminding herself that Echo was a System, she wasn’t surprised.

She smiled and went back to reading The Five Continents Travel Journal of Xi Lingren: Love Letter Edition.

The mountains were vast, and the flute music was elegant as they traveled with the dragon beneath the shifting clouds.

When the song ended, the little System in Echo’s bubble clapped her hands.

Error sighed, “What I picked up was still a vegetable cleaver.”

Echo didn’t panic. She deactivated the jade flute performance code and took a deep breath.

“Pfft-pfft-pfft-pfft-pfft-toot-toot-pfft-toot—”

“Ugh.” Seraphine nearly crushed the letter in her hand. “Error!” she called out, her head aching.

Error’s eyes rolled back as she plunged downward, putting on an expression of “I’ve been blown to death by the orb.”

The storage crystal on her claw lit up, and a long sword flew out, humming as it shot toward Echo.

A happy emoji lit up in Echo’s bubble.

The moment Nine Heavens drew near, she stored it in her inventory and then pulled it out again—now it was a tiny sword, not even as long as her matchstick arms.

Hello, hello. Long time no see. Echo gripped Nine Heavens and performed an elegant sword flourish.

The surviving Error lay sighing against a mountainside. “The vegetable cleaver is gone. It’s turned into a toothpick.”

“Enough foolishness.” Seraphine scolded. She leaped down from Error’s back and gave the dragon a light knock.

She then used her long whip to reel in the instigator, Echo, and tucked her back into the golden silk pouch. After disciplining both troublemakers, she finally looked toward the horizon.

In the distance, a green-tinted city sat nestled in the flat plains, with occasional streaks of light descending—proof that it was no ordinary mortal settlement.

“Wooden Cloud City.” Seraphine murmured.

Echo gripped the silk netting with her matchstick arms and asked curiously, “Is there good food?” Error’s eyes immediately lit up.

“Let’s go see,” Seraphine said. “And gather some clues while we’re at it.”

Westle Continent was boundless. Eleven treasure chests were hidden across an entire region; even five thousand people searching for ten years would struggle to find them.

Rather than looking for a needle in a haystack, Seraphine believed the masters had likely left guides in Westle.

It was just a matter of whether the students could find them.

“The city is full of prying eyes. Both of you, behave yourselves.” Seraphine said coldly, though her gaze was fixed on Echo.

Echo used her toothpick-version Nine Heavens to poke the “playing dead” dragon through the silk bag.

Please behave. Don’t cause trouble for Seraphine.

Seraphine: “……”

She used her index finger to press the toothpick sword back down and deliberately covered Echo for a moment with a cold snort. “The most troublesome one is you.”

An exclamation mark popped up from Echo, and the System in her bubble puffed out her cheeks, rejecting the accusation.

Error turned into her human form and laughed heartily, following Seraphine toward Wooden Cloud City.