To access the first floor, which was the top floor, one had to use a portal formation that was at the east end of the conference room. The portal formation was metres away from the entrance of the building. It could be a tiring walk on a bad day.
Zheng appeared in another portal formation at the east end of the top floor of the lord's hall. The height of the top floor was almost equal to the height of the conference room. At the northern end of the floor was a big cube whose walls touched the ceiling. There were offices fixed into the cuboid, and their rooms were spacious enough to comfortably accommodate 20 desks.
"Zheng," a deep voice said to the prince, "come here. I have been waiting for you."
The voice belonged to the prince's father. Zheng turned to the south end and beheld his father standing next to and looking through the enormous window at the south end. The wall at the south end was replaced with a bow window, which fit the red and golden surfaces of the walls, ceiling, doors, and rug on the floor.
It was still morning, and the sun was still in the east. The emperor hadn't taken off his golden armour from yesterday's battle. Plenty of rays of sunlight penetrated through the window and fell on the monarch. Due to his amazing figure, his behind was a thing of radiant magnificence to behold. Zheng couldn't help but gawk in awe at his father.
"I hope you aren't focused on my butt," Emperor Gerald said, not looking back.
Zheng stopped gawking and walked to the side of his father.
Emperor Gerald said, "Not only were you careless, you were selfless and foolish."
"I'm sorry, dad," Zheng apologised, closing his eyes and bowing his head.
"I told you that your case was special," Emperor Gerald said, "and it needed special study. I was going to take you out on a study session if you had failed the expected way."
Zheng looked at his father, self-disappointment evident in his eyes.
Emperor Gerald said, "That doesn't mean I wouldn't take you to the study place."
Zheng failed to contain his happiness; he hopped and hugged his father.
The emperor said, "Calm your stables. You are no longer a boy."
Emperor Gerald gazed behind him for any eavesdroppers. He knew there was no one else in here apart from him and his son, but he gazed anyway.
He asked Zheng, "Have you ever taken a ride on a dragon?"
Zheng's countenance went from happy to confused.
Emperor Gerald concluded, "Definitely no."
….
Minutes later, the enormous roof of the Lord's Hall loudly creaked open as it split into five petals. The servants walking and hanging around in the courtyard were familiar with the noise. And as usual, they would look up to see the Red Dragon leave through the open roof. Alas! Like before, all they could glimpse was a red blur darting straight into the sky from the open roof.
In the sky, Zheng lay flat and held onto two thick scale plates on the back of the speeding Red Dragon. It was a miracle that he was not blown off by the insane wind turbulence.
'You haven't been blown off from my body,' the Red Dragon telepathically communicated to Zheng, "because I used a skill to prevent that.'
'What do you think the skill is?'
"Mana body," Zheng replied, his voice unrestrained by the rush of air.
'Very good,' the dragon applauded.
The duo didn't converse until they reached Cottage Isle a few minutes later.
The dragon landed in an artificial glade in the heart of the verdant island. Zheng carefully slid down from the dragon, avoiding unnecessary injury from dropping down carelessly.
Emperor Gerald shape-shifted into his human form. Zheng observed that the glade was not created with finesse. A few cut thick stems less than 20cm tall, litters of branches, and leaves were in the glade.
The emperor noticed the prince's scrutinising gaze and said, "I made the glade this morning. Due to my schedule, I didn't clean up."
Zheng asked, "Is this an island?"
He could hear the waves of the ocean splattering on the island's beach.
"Yeah, we are on an island," Emperor Gerald replied. "Let's get going. Bisi may get infuriated if we make him wait for us."
Zheng asked, "Bisi?"
Emperor Gerald didn't reply. The royalties walked into the cave that was hidden behind the adjacent tree line.
When the royalties walked into the cabin, they met the gaze of the dream bison, who was on its hooves. The bison had an exasperated countenance.
Zheng was terrified to see the large hybrid beast. He dropped behind his father. He put some distance between himself and his father. Suspicion about his father's intentions pervaded his mind.
"Dad, what is that? What is happening?" He asked his father. "I thought you said that you were taking me out to study."
Emperor Gerald replied, "Yes, I'm taking you to the study place. The…
Zheng interrupted, panicky, "Then why is the beast here? That's a rank-3 mystical beast."
Emperor Gerald said, "Zheng, calm down."
Zheng asked, saddened, "Dad, do you want to kill me?"
The emperor lowered his eyelids in mild exasperation, his gaze empty.
Zheng implored with a yell, "Answer me. Do you want to kill me?"
The emperor and the bison exchanged looks, both shaking their heads. The emperor looked at Zheng and said,
"Zheng, I don't want to kill you. And Bisi is not a mystical beast."
The dream bison bellowed at the emperor, admonishing him.
Emperor Gerald apologised to the beast, "I'm sorry, I thought you would like the name."
"The bison is a great earth beast," Emperor Gerald continued, "just like my Red Dragon. The creature is called the dream bison. It will transport us to another reality where we will conduct the study."
Silence set in. Zheng took his time to process the information given to him.
Zheng approached his father and asked,
"How will the beast transport us? Will it teleport us there?"
The bison shook its head, annoyed by the prince's question. The emperor chuckled. Zheng was not at ease with the beast, so the beast's reaction irritated him.
Zheng asked, "Can it understand us?"
Emperor Gerald replied, "Yes, it can."