Dragon Envoy [Beast Taming]

Du Qingbi hadn't even realized she'd transmigrated. The next day was a mock exam, so the night before, she had crammed math, Chinese, English, politics, geography, and history for half the night under the dim light in the orphanage bathroom. Now, with dark circles under her eyes, she sat confidently in the exam hall and opened the papers for her compulsory subjects.

"Fundamentals of Beast-Taming Theory," "Written Test on Practical Beast-Taming Knowledge," and "Theoretical Study of the Relationship Between Mythology and Spirit Beasts."

She dropped her pen, almost wanting to rush up and demand to know whether she'd fallen asleep during the English listening section.

"Ahem, a reminder to some of you: our mock exam was selected as a spirit-beast-proctored pilot site, and we have a Xiezhi watching over us. If you're caught cheating... as long as they get to you quickly, you probably won't be eaten on the spot."

But as she looked at the creature called a "Xiezhi" beside the teacher, shaped like a qilin and staring intently at her, it licked its lips. She slowly picked up her pen again.

It's fine. I may not know the answers, but I can make up explanations on the spot. You can trust my literary talent.

Du Qingbi bent her head and feverishly made things up. When the final essay prompt asked her to write about "The Theoretical Study of the Relationship Between Mythology and Spirit Beasts," she wrote a thousand words about dragons, drawing on just about every symbol associated with dragons throughout history.

Then... she was taken to the Education Bureau.

A white-bearded old expert smiled at her and asked, "There are no dragons in this world. How do you know so much about them?"

Du Qingbi still thought it was a dream. She slapped the table and said, with the grief and indignation of someone mourning her lost exam points, "How can you say they don't exist?! Just because you haven't seen one doesn't mean it isn't real! Who knows, maybe in a moment the sky will crack with thunder, the wind and rain will rage, and a Azure Dragon will descend!"

As soon as she finished speaking, the sunny sky outside suddenly darkened, and lightning struck from the clear sky.

Du Qingbi stared out the window, wide-eyed. Between the clouds, a dragon's claw swatted away a birdlike spirit beast flying up from the ground.

It really was a dragon!

*

A few things to keep in mind:

1. This beast-taming story takes inspiration from the Classic of Mountains and Seas and other ancient myths and legends. The abilities, appearances, personalities, and other traits of the exotic beasts have been heavily altered by the author and differ greatly from the original works.

2. Why doesn't the beast-taming world seem to have dragons as distinct spirit beasts like the ones in our mythology? The story will explain in detail.

3. All character personalities and scenes serve the plot.

4. Plot first, romance second. The male lead is expected to appear fairly late.

5. A slow-burn progression story. Really slow!

6. Sudden updates are most likely the author correcting typos or awkward sentences.

7. Please note that the myths and legends in the story have been heavily reworked by the author.

Theme: With great power comes great responsibility.