The Mountain of Ice and Fire

The fat, rolling bleats of the mountain goat still echoed in the air, carrying far and wide through the valley, while its body was already roasted to perfection by the extreme heat.

The sheep thief's neck, as agile as a giant serpent's body, extended and retracted as it swallowed the roasted whole sheep in one gulp.

At the foot of the mountain, nearly a thousand people, including Jiani, watched in stunned silence.

The sheep thief's ravenous consumption could not be described as mere wolfing down; regardless of the flavor of the roasted whole sheep, it was devoured before the sheep thief could even taste it.

As everyone held their breath, a layer of dazzling gold appeared in the sheep thief's eyes, as if the roasted whole sheep had given it vitality and energy, restoring some of its true nature. Its dragon eyes, as bright as torches, stared at Demon Mountain, or rather, at the other sheep in Demon Mountain's hand.

Its fist-sized pupils reflected the shadows of Demon Mountain and the live sheep.

Demon Mountain's nervousness also eased as the sheep thief ate, as the sheep thief had undoubtedly accepted his sudden offering. Demon Mountain's worries dissipated, and he took a step forward to allow his strength to be exerted to the fullest, throwing the hundred-pound live sheep in his hand even higher.

The live sheep was thrown high, as close as possible to the sheep thief, to facilitate its roasting and swallowing. At the same time, Demon Mountain's step caused one of his feet to deliberately enter the sheep thief's black zone. This was a very casual little movement, but extremely bold. Dragons have a very strong sense of territory, and a slight carelessness could backfire.

Seemingly unintentional, Demon Mountain was actually acting recklessly—using this to test the sheep thief's reaction very slightly and imperceptibly.

The sheep thief's two huge dragon eyes were only on the live sheep, seemingly without any feeling for Demon Mountain's little trick of stepping into its absolute core territory. The dazzling golden-red light shone again from deep within its throat. Even through the neck and dragon scales, the light shone through from the inside—and Demon Mountain, looking into its giant mouth, could not help but narrow his eyes into slits at the sight of the dazzling golden-red light deep in its throat.

Boom!

A golden-red ball spewed out of the dragon's mouth, like the brilliance of the sun, moon, and stars. The light stung Demon Mountain's eyes, and with a whoosh, the fireball, leaving a long tail of flame, completely enveloped the whole sheep in the air. The sheep was instantly roasted, and its mournful cries echoed through the mountains and sky, reverberating for a long time…

The sheep thief's eagerness to eat was on full display, as if it had been hungry for thousands of years…

Another live sheep was swallowed by the sheep thief, and the scorched skin of the roasted goat wafted in the air, reaching the noses of Demon Mountain and the old man Ti Mei…

"Demon Mountain Red Hand…" the old man Ti Mei stared at the sheep thief, afraid to make any movement, and said in a low and urgent voice. He spoke to remind Demon Mountain not to enter the black zone, something he and the other Red Hands had never done.

Outside the black zone was the safe area for worshippers.

Demon Mountain did not move. He seemed rough and reckless, but in reality, he was meticulous.

He had great ambitions and had to break the shackles, otherwise, how could the sheep thief be conquered by him?

Demon Mountain raised his hand and spoke a sentence in a peculiar language that the old man Ti Mei had never heard: "Sheep Thief, be quiet!"

The lost High Valyrian language. This language existed only in some ancient ballads and poems. In the everyday world, it had disappeared.

This was a dragon command language. The language came from the scalding axe passed down through generations of the Burning Men Red Hand hanging around Demon Mountain's neck, and the one who taught Demon Mountain the dragon language command was Melisandre, who had lived for hundreds of years.

Dragon Language: Sheep Thief; Dragon Language: Quiet!

The sheep thief's ferocious dragon head suddenly stood up, its eyes brighter, as if pale golden flames were dancing in them. It looked at Demon Mountain and let out a low dragon roar, the metallic sound spreading far along the ground, reaching the foot of the mountain; at the same time, it exhaled hot breath, and even though he was three hundred meters away, Demon Mountain still felt a distinct heat wave.

The long-lost dragon language made the sheep thief look at Demon Mountain 'directly'. It tilted its head to the right, then to the left, its eyes dazzling.

With the dragon language spoken, the sheep thief showed no signs of vigilance or discomfort. Although this reaction was within Demon Mountain and Melisandre's high-probability calculations, Demon Mountain still broke out in hot sweat again due to nervousness and excitement.

Before uttering the dragon language, he had hesitated, his heart racing. He had asked himself if he was being too hasty? Should he wait for it to be sacrificed to a few more times before speaking the dragon language?

Everything should be done with caution. Dragons are the proudest magical creatures and are also very sensitive and suspicious.

Demon Mountain spoke the dragon language of 'quiet', but the sheep thief became even more excited and energetic, and there was also a 'look of acknowledging Demon Mountain' in its eyes.

The old man Ti Mei could hear his heart pounding rapidly. He had sacrificed to the Fire God's son for decades and had never said anything to the dragon other than praise songs, nor had he ever dared to step into the black zone.

But Demon Mountain, coming to learn the inheritance for the first time, had made a series of 'violations': throwing food, entering the circle, speaking strange languages. This was too risky.

The Fire God cannot be profaned, and the Fire God's son, the giant dragon, must not be trifled with.

"Quiet!" Demon Mountain said softly. His tone was as gentle as a maiden in love, and his face was full of flattery, like a humble and obsequious traitor, which was extremely mismatched with his burly, robust body and his consistently mighty and unparalleled temperament.

The sheep thief tilted its head slightly, its eyes dazzling, as if an ancient old man was examining an ignorant child with extraordinary courage—but soon it raised its head, its neck rising like a giant serpent's body, rising, rising, rising… The huge and ferocious dragon head became higher and higher and higher… Demon Mountain had to tilt his head back, tilt his head back, tilt his head back… He had always looked down on others, but this time he had to look up with awe, look up, look up…

The sheep thief's gaze was no longer focused on Demon Mountain, it looked towards the foot of the mountain.

At the foot of the mountain, Demon Mountain's four Burning Men death warriors, led by the one-eyed Ti Mei, were carrying two live goats up quickly.

When speaking the dragon language, Demon Mountain's raised hand was the signal.

Before coming to sacrifice to the sheep thief, Demon Mountain had spent more than a month building himself up mentally. At the same time, he, Jiani, and Melisandre had naturally made many detailed plans. If the sheep thief was a gluttonous dragon as recorded in history, and could accept him under the guidance of the old man Ti Mei, Demon Mountain should try to sacrifice more live sheep to it.

The older generation of Red Hands sacrificed a slaughtered sheep, but Demon Mountain was different. As long as the sheep thief wanted to eat, he would let it eat its fill.

Demon Mountain, with money, people, and purpose, had the strength to satisfy the sheep thief's appetite.

"Quiet!" Demon Mountain uttered the dragon language again. He was as gentle as a virgin and as humble as a traitor.

The sheep thief lowered its head slightly, giving Demon Mountain a slightly, extremely human-like glance. But Demon Mountain felt that it could not be considered a look at all, but rather the corner of the eye of an extremely arrogant monarch sweeping over an insignificant commoner, that kind of inherent superiority, the dragon's overwhelming and invincible demeanor was natural… Its attention was only on Demon Mountain like a dragonfly skimming the water, and then it focused all its attention on the foot of the mountain…

Down the mountain, the bleating of the live sheep attracted most of its attention!

It was indeed as recorded in the royal history books, very gluttonous, especially for goats.

The two live sheep that Demon Mountain had just thrown to it were just small snacks to whet its appetite. It had been a long time since it had eaten sheep. For the past hundred years, not to mention the sheep on the nearby mountains, even the pigs, dogs, lions, wolves, rabbits, and foxes on other mountains had been extinct for a long time. Even the wild sheep in the Ghost Grass Sea of Asshai, twenty thousand miles away, had been eaten by it.

*

One hundred and fifty years ago, because Ricca was constrained by the prince's oath and to avoid pursuit by the Targaryen royal family, she took the sheep thief to live in seclusion in the Mountains of the Moon. In the decades that followed, she had cultivated her child, the sheep thief, into a good child who did not kill innocent people and would not poach the sheep of herdsmen, a model student.

Because of this, when the outside world's dynasties changed, Ricca and the sheep thief never appeared again, as if they had truly disappeared. They were isolated from the world, and their only connection was with the Burning Men.

Ricca and the sheep thief, especially Ricca, her living supplies were inseparable from the Burning Men's offerings. Until Ricca passed away, the sheep thief's quality of being a 'three-good student' remained stable and eventually formed his deeply ingrained good habit over the decades—successful quitting of sheep stealing.

The sheep thief did not appear to poach the sheep of herdsmen, but the increasingly impoverished Burning Men's sacrifices could no longer bring the sheep thief the pleasure of a hearty and satisfying meal… But its nature was still there, and when the opportunity was right, it would be completely activated… Demon Mountain planned to completely activate the sheep thief's two natures that had been suppressed by its mother's education as soon as possible—eating sheep and fighting…

*

Seeing the Fire God's son, the giant dragon, paying attention to the foot of the mountain, the old man Ti Mei subtly nudged Demon Mountain's leg, hinting that his right foot should retreat slightly, exiting the black zone. Although they had the silk brocade robes and axe tokens of the fire wizard, although the fire wizard Ricca's praise songs could allow the sheep thief to accept them as its own, although the sheep thief had never killed any tribal Red Hands who came to sacrifice, the Fire God's son was like the Fire God, and Demon Mountain Red Hand should not easily 'cross the line'… Be careful and cautious, be in awe, and there would be no mistakes…

Demon Mountain said with his eyes: "Ti Mei Red Hand, don't worry, Lady Melisandre allows me to gradually get close to the sheep thief. The Fire God's son is the mount dragon of the fire wizard Ricca and has had contact with people. It is completely different from the wild dragons of the past that were violent, cruel, savage, and bloodthirsty."

Demon Mountain communicated with the old man Ti Mei with his eyes, which showed his true caution. Don't think that the sheep thief was not paying attention to them, but in fact, their every move was in the sheep thief's eyes, as clear as a black dot on white paper. Anyone who underestimated dragons and thought of them as low-intelligence creatures would suffer greatly. A slight carelessness could lead to death in the dragon's mouth.

Dragons' suspicion is as outstanding as their pride!

While the old man Ti Mei and Demon Mountain were 'exchanging glances', with a whoosh, the sheep thief flew up. Demon Mountain's bald head suddenly felt cold, and the old man Ti Mei's hair and hem of his clothes were blown up by the wind… Their eyes suddenly darkened, as if night had come early. Above their heads, it felt like a giant mountain was pressing down, blocking all the light from the sky—the sheep thief, the giant dragon, flew over their heads, its unfolded wings like two thick dark clouds. The wind and sand swirled, and the grass and trees rustled, as if they had come alive…

The old man Ti Mei and Demon Mountain involuntarily prostrated themselves. Their movements were instinctive. When they came to their senses, the giant dragon had already flown past and headed down the mountain.

Down the mountain, nearly a thousand people were dumbfounded. Some of the Burning Men's people had already fled in panic…

"Ti Mei, drop the goats and come back; the rest of you don't move, those who disobey will be killed!" Melisandre shouted sharply.

The sheep thief had also been in the army and had fought in battles, so it was absolutely impossible to escape at this time.

"Don't move, those who disobey will be killed!" Erin and Joyce shouted at the same time. Although they were as cold and stern as iron, their faces had already changed.

The giant dragon flew down from the mountainside, unbelievably large, its pressure like a sea storm, or like a mountain collapsing and the earth cracking. Although there was no sound and no concrete form, it was intangible but substantial.

More people were dumbfounded, wanting to run but unable to move. It was as if in the blink of an eye, the giant dragon had arrived above them. The ferocious dragon head, the dazzling dragon eyes, the terrifying dragon claws, the huge body, the wings like two dark clouds, covered the sky and the sun. Everyone's eyes suddenly darkened, day suddenly disappeared, and night came early…

Jiani was about to speak out to reprimand the people who were turning around and running away out of instinct, but she opened her mouth but could not make a sound—the dragon's oppressive power was like a hand grabbing her throat, an invisible hand, making her unable to speak… The fear of death was like a cold hand touching everyone's spine…

Everyone stood stiffly…

The gluttonous sheep thief could not wait for the believers to carry the sheep up and flew down to snatch the food.

"Sheep Thief, be quiet, eat!" Demon Mountain's voice came down from the mountainside.

"Quiet, eat," Demon Mountain spoke the second sentence of dragon language: eat. In today's plan, there was only a plan for one sentence of dragon language, after all, this was just the beginning of contact… Although everything should be advanced boldly, it should also be done step by step…

The long-lost dragon language did have the magic to make the sheep thief feel close, but it was too huge, too frightening, and no one could feel the calming effect of Demon Mountain's peculiar language on the sheep thief's urgency and impatience. Demon Mountain and Melisandre also had no confidence in their hearts, and they also could not feel that the magic of the dragon language could have any influence on the sheep thief…

The sheep thief suddenly flying down the mountain to snatch food was a change that had not been anticipated in any of the previous preset scenarios…

According to the old man Ti Mei's experience, the sheep thief was always a well-behaved good child, eating quietly in the praise songs, and then lazily entering the cave…

The one-eyed Ti Mei was the most courageous and ruthless person in the Burning Men, but when truly facing the giant dragon, when the giant dragon was about to land next to him, his face was equally pale, his eyes became straight, and his body was as tense as a bowstring that could break at any moment… The four death warriors carrying the sheep first crawled and rolled back to the army. All the timidity and fear stemmed from their instincts, but Ti Mei was a general, a Red Hand, the bravest warrior in the Burning Men, and he stayed… Then, when the giant dragon flew down and landed, the dragon's wings were clearly still far from the top of his head, but he prostrated himself, completely lying on the ground…