The Wandering Dragon of the Immortal Path

On Mount Qingcheng, a child gazed up at the old man beneath a tree with bright, watery eyes. He carried a gourd nearly as tall as himself, swaying from side to side as he walked over to the old man. "Grandpa, I just came down the mountain. In a little county town, I heard an old storyteller telling a tale about dragons."

The child paused, his bright eyes full of curiosity, then asked, "Grandpa, what is a dragon?"

The old man in plain clothes, sitting beneath the tree, glanced at the child, then looked up at the sky without saying a word.

The child set the enormous gourd on the ground. His little face flushed red as he panted heavily, counting on his small, pale fingers one by one.

"A dragon..." The old man picked up the gourd and took a swig of wine. His eyes flickered as he rasped, "As the ancients said, the dragon is the foremost of scaled creatures."

"Its body is like a snake, covered in fish scales. Its head resembles an ox's, and it has horns."

"They say dragons have five claws, and call them Five-Clawed Golden Dragons. In truth, dragons have nine claws."