Stray Dogs Are So Cute

Patting the two dog heads, Chu Qiguang sighed softly. "Off you go. If you ever get hungry, you can come find me here. I can always spare a bite of food." The two dogs exchanged a glance, then darted away. Only after they were well clear of the alley did Xiao Tu stick his tongue out and say, "That human seems pretty decent." "Who knows if he's even human." Recalling Chu Qiguang's concerned expression, Lao Tu murmured, "Still, a meal is a meal. Let's not tell the Great King about him, so the Great King doesn't go making trouble for him." Meanwhile, after watching the two dogs leave, Chu Qiguang wiped the damp corners of his eyes with a cold, impassive expression and said to Qiao Zhi, "Master Qiao, please follow them and scout out where their den is." Qiao Zhi asked, "You're going to take them on?" Chu Qiguang spoke with an air of universal pity. "Stray dogs are so pitiful. I just want to take care of them." *** Wagging their tails, Lao Tu and Xiao Tu trotted all the way into an abandoned temple in the south of the county seat. This dilapidated temple had originally been a Buddhist monastery. After the imperial court's suppression of Buddhism, it had been ravaged by fire. Afterward, it changed hands several times, but strange incidents kept occurring, so it was gradually abandoned until it fell into complete ruin. Now, the derelict temple had become a gathering ground for dog monsters. The moment Lao Tu and Xiao Tu stepped inside, their tails tucked between their legs involuntarily. A foul stench of mingled odors assailed their nostrils, and in the darkness, pairs of eerie green eyes seemed to be staring straight at them. From the overgrown weeds came the sounds of dogs snarling and brawling. Where the main hall of the temple once stood, a burly black hound lay sprawled on the ground. Standing upright, it would reach halfway up a grown man, and it appeared to weigh around one to two hundred jin. Muscles rippled beneath its sleek coat, radiating raw power. At the moment, the black hound was gnawing away on a meaty bone. With a slight crunch of its razor-sharp teeth, it crushed the bone to dust like scrap paper. Around him stood two large dog monsters. From time to time, saliva dripped from their jowls as they eyed the bone, yet not a single dog dared step forward. Seeing Lao Tu and Xiao Tu enter, the black hound glanced up at them, then returned to tearing into the bone before him. "How's that new household?" Lao Tu said, "Great King, the one who moved into that courtyard is the young master of the Wang household from Wang Family Village. They have people keeping watch day and night, so it's not easy to strike." The black hound was called Lao Hei, the leader of the many dog monsters in Qingyang County. He had originally been a hunter's hound in the mountains, and his father had also been a dog monster serving the same family. Later, however, Lao Hei slaughtered the hunter's entire family and fled into the county seat. There, he gathered a pack of dog monsters, directing them daily through the streets, alleys, market stalls, and restaurants to pilfer poultry and snatch scraps. A strict hierarchy ruled the dog monsters. Those at the very bottom had to offer up their scavenged food tier by tier, suffering constant abuse on regular days. Whispers ran through the ranks that Lao Hei had killed humans before, making the pack fear him all the more. Lao Hei stared at Lao Tu. "And where is today's tribute?" Lao Tu murmured, "Great King, we really couldn't find any food today..." With a deep growl, the black hound lunged forward, seized Lao Tu by the neck in his jaws, and slammed him to the ground. "Next time you come back without food, I'll chew you up instead." Lao Tu and Xiao Tu let out whimpers of terror, gazing at the black hound in sheer dread. The black hound continued, "Isn't there a kid in that courtyard? Lure him out tomorrow." Lao Tu struggled to speak. "Is... is that really wise? If someone ends up dead, there will definitely be an investigation." "Humans can eat dogs, so why can't dogs eat humans?" the black hound barked softly. "Besides, that brat isn't even part of the Wang family—just a kid from some ruined household. The Wang family wouldn't call in the Daoist abbey over them." Lao Hei's secret to surviving in Qingyang County was to prey solely on the poor and the destitute. Nobody cared whether they lived or died, and neither the magistrate's office nor the Daoist abbey would mobilize for their sake. "If you won't snatch the human, then go into his home and steal meat. Either the person or the meat—make your choice." *** A few hundred meters away on the street, Chu Qiguang and Qiao Zhi coordinated their movements, slipping past the county seat's night patrol. In this era, the morning bell signaled the opening of the city gates, while the evening drum marked their closing and the start of curfew. Chu Qiguang stood with his back to a wall, checking the items he had brought along. Before long, Qiao Zhi padded over lightly. Chu Qiguang asked, "How is it?" Swishing his tail, Qiao Zhi said, "The leader is an old black hound. He looks formidable and has definitely trained in the martial arts of dog monsters. Going by pure physical strength, height, and build alone, his combat power is probably comparable to a martial artist of the second stage. A single bite from him would leave an ordinary person maimed if not dead." Chu Qiguang knew that the demon race had their own martial arts. Monsters like dogs and cats had body structures entirely different from humans, so their martial arts techniques took a vastly different path, each belonging to its own style. However, most dog monsters lacked any heritage. Barely able to scrape together enough food to survive, martial training was out of the question. Chu Qiguang smiled and rubbed Qiao Zhi's head. "Can he be spared?" Qiao Zhi hesitated for a moment. "That black dog has killed beggars or refugees." Chu Qiguang nodded. "Then he can't be spared." *** Inside the abandoned temple, while the dog monsters were resting, shouts suddenly echoed outside the walls. "Daoist priests are here to purge monsters! Run for your lives!" The dog monsters scrambled to their feet in an instant. Then came another shout: "The temple is crawling with dog monsters! Charge in and slaughter them all—don't let a single one escape!" Pandemonium broke out among the pack. The Daoist abbey was a boulder weighing eternally on their hearts, and the slightest rustle in the wind was enough to terrify them. Standing behind a wall, Qiao Zhi roared again, "What are you fools waiting for? Waiting to be butchered? Scatter and run!" Lao Hei had initially intended to rally his subordinates for a coordinated breakthrough. But with that roar, the surrounding dog monsters scattered in a chaotic frenzy—crawling through dog holes, scaling walls, or bolting straight for the back gate, fleeing in every direction. Snorting in rage, Lao Hei sprinted away, making his escape through the back gate. He never noticed the orange shadow trailing right behind him. After running for over a thousand meters, Lao Hei gradually slowed down. He wondered how things were faring back at the abandoned temple, and whether the Daoists of the Heavenly Master Sect were hot on his heels. Right then, a man came walking toward him. Lao Hei crouched down, pretending to be nothing more than an ordinary stray dog. To his surprise, the man approached with a bright grin. "What a cute doggy. Come on, come along home with me. I've got something good to show you."