Little Alpaca – Chapter 78

Volume 2: Fuzhu Huodou

A Place of Shelter.

“Listen to a story,” Bai Lu said softly. “After you hear it, you can decide whether you still want to kill Huodou.”

In the ancient era, when chaos first parted¹, before Hongjun² had preached the Dao and before Nuwa³ had created humans, the Three Realms were ruled by the Yao as the orthodoxy.

The power Pangu⁴ left behind in the world passed through the Six Paths of Reincarnation⁵, bestowing the Wu Clan⁶ with innate divine abilities. Afterward, the Wu and Yao clans stood in opposition with separate courts⁷; the Yao established themselves in the Heavenly Realm, while the Wu were born of the Earthly Realm. From then on, the world was divided between Gods and Demons.

And in this world, aside from Gods and Demons, there were also many neutral Yao Beasts that roamed the Human Realm.

Later, Nuwa kneaded earth to create humans⁸ and placed them in the Human Realm. The human race was too fragile and found it difficult to coexist with the Yao Beasts, so the Heavenly Court⁹ established laws in accordance with the Heavenly Dao¹⁰, judging all living things by their good or evil deeds in order to protect the human race.

It was from that time that Yao Beasts were divided into Divine Beasts¹¹ and Fierce Beasts¹².

“But some Yao Beasts are too powerful and are born to bring disaster to the Human Realm. This has nothing to do with good or evil,” Xun Chi said, sighing softly as he looked toward Fuzhu.

Yi Qiu stopped her fingers from dabbling in the pond water. When she raised her eyes, her gaze unconsciously shifted to You Yan.

After Fuzhu appeared, Xun Chi’s attitude was no longer as unyielding as before.

At this moment, they were sitting by the Shenlu Pond¹³ on Ao’an Mountain, sipping clear tea brewed with mountain dew, listening as the long-secluded Xun Chi and Fuzhu recounted a story from over two thousand years ago.

It turned out that Xun Chi was not Fuzhu’s master; he had merely given Fuzhu a place of shelter.

Fuzhu was gentle by nature, yet for tens of thousands of years, it had been regarded as a Fierce Beast by the two realms of Heaven and Man.

This was only because it possessed a power that was far too great, a power it could never properly control—wherever it went, great floods would surely follow; whatever towns it passed through, water disasters were certain to occur.

It never meant to harm anyone, but even as it fled to every uninhabited corner of the Human Realm, it would still inadvertently hurt innocent people.

Xun Chi said that many things in this world are unfair. The laws of the Heavenly Dao judge all living beings by good and evil, but by what standard should good and evil themselves be judged?

You Yan sneered, “Isn’t it all judged by you so-called immortals and gods?”

Xun Chi did not deny it. “As the human race gradually prospered, the Heavenly Court ordered all immortals and gods to descend to the mortal world to subdue the Fierce Beasts and protect the Human Realm… It was then that I met Fuzhu.”

Although Fuzhu was called a Fierce Beast, it had never thought of harming anyone. It was kind-hearted and sensitive, like a child who had never grown up and had no one to dote on it.

To save its life, Xun Chi announced to the world that he had already formed a blood contract¹⁴ with it, taking it in as a spirit beast.

But in reality, he never deprived this child of its freedom.

He brought it back to Ao’an, waking up time and again in a bedroom that had been flooded, helplessly yet tirelessly teaching it how to control its power.

This went on day after day, year after year, until Fuzhu finally cultivated a human form and was able to control its power somewhat.

At that time, the Human Realm was in a state of chaos.

The ancient Fierce Beast, Huodou, had suddenly appeared in the world, bringing with it a terrible calamity.

Huodou was ferocious by nature and could wield Heavenly Fire, which could incinerate the three hun and seven po¹⁵ of immortals and gods. For a time, even the Water God¹⁶ had their hands bound and were without a plan¹⁷, and none of the other immortals and gods could come up with a solution.

When Fuzhu learned of this, it volunteered to go and fight.

The battle, a chase of pursuit and retreat, lasted for a hundred years. Huodou was finally defeated and reverted to its weak original form, whimpering softly from its heavy injuries.

Fuzhu’s heart softened for a moment, and it begged Xun Chi to take in Huodou, just as he had taken it in all those years ago.

But over the years, Huodou had committed evils of many kinds, and was intolerable to both Heaven and Earth. Its fundamental nature was also extremely vile, which made Xun Chi hesitate.

“I can control it,” Fuzhu had said resolutely at the time.

Xun Chi deliberated for a long time before finally using his own divine power to seal most of Huodou’s cultivation and, under great pressure from the Heavenly Court, brought it back to Ao’an Mountain.

He said that to this day, he still doesn’t know if that decision was right or wrong.

“What happened after that?” Yi Qiu couldn’t help but ask.

The white deer slowly closed its eyes. Its antlers suddenly began to glow and grow like branches, and in just a few seconds, they blossomed with several incredibly white flowers.

A gentle breeze blew, and the flowers scattered with the wind, drifting before Yi Qiu and You Yan.

Yi Qiu gasped in amazement and cupped them in her hands. She saw Xun Chi’s fingertips gently stir a small vortex in the Shenlu Pond.

The next second, the pond water was stained with ink, and everything around them gradually faded until it was completely dark.

Before all the light disappeared, Yi Qiu subconsciously grabbed You Yan’s left hand. She quickly felt the other’s calm response, and her heart was instantly put at ease.

When her vision cleared again, Xun Chi and Fuzhu were gone. They were still at the Shenlu Pond, but the surrounding scenery was very different from before.

The season was different, the places where the flowers and trees grew were different. These differences were so obvious that one could see them at a glance without needing to be particularly observant.

“This is…” Yi Qiu stood up and involuntarily moved closer to You Yan, who was surveying their surroundings.

“Xun Chi’s realm within a painting¹⁸,” You Yan said, reaching out to touch a nearby tree.

Sure enough, her fingertips passed right through the tree—everything here was an illusion.

“Huh? Then, do you know how to get out?” Yi Qiu asked with a frown. “If we force our way out, will it cost a lot of spiritual power?”

“There’s no need,” You Yan said faintly, turning to walk elsewhere. As she walked, she explained to Yi Qiu, who was clinging tightly to her, “This is Fuzhu’s memory. We can only observe, not interfere, so we won’t be harmed in any way.”

“Oh, I see…” Yi Qiu said, letting out a long sigh of relief.

When she looked down, she saw she was still holding tightly onto You Yan’s hand. For some reason, she suddenly felt a bit embarrassed and sheepishly pulled her small hand back.

Yi Qiu followed behind You Yan for a long time before she was suddenly startled by a black shadow that darted through the grass beside them.

“What was that!” she cried out, bumping into You Yan. She gripped You Yan’s arm tightly with one hand and pointed a trembling finger at the grass.

The next second, a fluffy little black puppy emerged from the tall grass. Its ears were small and pointed, flopping on its little head. A pair of round, red eyes, like gemstones, were incredibly beautiful.

“Is, is this… Huodou?” Yi Qiu awkwardly let go of You Yan and pouted. “Ha, this little hot dog hasn’t changed much. In the stone cave in Wuzhou, it looked like this too…”

You Yan looked at Yi Qiu for a few seconds, then smiled. “Making a big deal of a small oddity.”

Yi Qiu’s eyeballs did a quick spin. She let out a soft hmph but didn’t retort.

Normally, she would have been a little annoyed to hear You Yan say something like that. But today, although the words were still the kind that left one speechless, You Yan’s tone was much gentler than usual, which made it less infuriating.

Yi Qiu shifted her gaze to the little black dog. It stuck its butt in the air, stretched its two small, meaty paws forward, and let out a big, whining stretch. Then it stood up, looked around, and started hopping and skipping down the mountain path.

“It’s running away!” Yi Qiu called out, gently tugging on You Yan’s sleeve before quickly chasing after it.

The little black dog didn’t get far before it ran headfirst into an ink wash landscape painting that had appeared out of thin air.

The next second, the ink painting scattered into a splash of ink, then re-formed into a human figure, who bent down and picked it up by the scruff of its neck.

The little creature immediately began to struggle with all four limbs, baring its fangs and grinning as it let out a low growl. As it growled, its little mouth sputtered out pathetic little flames.

“Still trying to escape?” Xun Chi frowned. “You little dog, with the pittance of power you have now, where could you possibly run?”

“Let go of me, let go! Or I’ll burn this place down, I’ll burn your house, burn your mountain… I, I’ll burn you!”

The little black dog twisted its small body and barked fiercely, but alas, its voice was milky and childish, not intimidating in the slightest.

As it yapped away, it was carried all the way “home” by Xun Chi.

It was a small residence with a small front courtyard, where some flowers and plants uncommon in the Human Realm were planted.

A woman in white robes emerged from the house to greet them. Seeing the little dog in Xun Chi’s hand, she couldn’t help but frown. “You tried to run away again!”

“I did not!” The little dog subconsciously wagged its tail, its eyes darting away as it retorted stubbornly. “I was just taking a walk, and he insisted on grabbing me!”

“You were ‘just taking a walk’ at such a fast speed, and you were about to reach the exit of the barrier. How could I not grab you?” Xun Chi said, tossing it forward.

The woman in white quickly reached out and caught it in her arms. The little black dog immediately squirmed out of her embrace and made a face at Xun Chi.

The woman stroked the soft fur on its back, then turned and walked back into the house, closing the door.

“Hey, we’re not allowed to watch?” Yi Qiu said, running to the window and sticking her butt out to try and eavesdrop.

You Yan shook her head and sighed lightly. She raised her hand and gave Yi Qiu’s upturned bottom a firm slap, instantly swatting the silly girl through the window and the wall.

Damn, damn, damn!

I forgot everything here is an illusion!

Yi Qiu stood up straight, awkwardly smoothed her two braids, and then, putting on a look as if that matter did not exist, turned her gaze toward the woman and the little black dog.

“Where can you run to?” the woman asked, crouching in front of the little dog and gently stroking its head. “The Human Realm today has no place for Fierce Beasts like us…”

“I’ll go to the Earthly Realm! It’s full of demons there, not so many rules!” the little dog said, tilting its head up. “Why don’t you come with me? What’s the point of staying in this Human Realm? It’s not free at all! You’re a Yao Beast, why do you have to cultivate a human form, why trap yourself in a human shell? Wasn’t your old form beautiful?”

“What do you call freedom? Is harming people freedom?” the woman retorted.

The little black dog was at a loss for words. It hung its head and lay on the floor in silence for a good while before muttering in a small voice, “What’s so good about this place? I don’t like immortals, and I don’t like humans, they’re all bad… They stole the places where we Yao Beasts originally lived, but now they have to pretend to be kind and take us in. What kind of good people are they pretending to be…”

“Xun Chi isn’t that kind of person.”

“Yes, he is! He’s super mean!” the little dog said, baring its small, sharp teeth. “If I hadn’t lost my power, I’d burn this place down with one fire!”

“You dare!” The woman frowned. Her tone was gentle, but there was a clear hint of anger in it.

“…” The little black dog instantly lost its nerve and didn’t dare to speak again. It could only look at the woman pitifully and wag its tail, allowing her to stroke its fur.

Seeing this, Yi Qiu couldn’t help but remark, “This little hot dog has such an obedient side to it?”

You Yan: “Just a little brat.”

Yi Qiu looked as if she had heard something incredible. She immediately turned around, looked at You Yan, and giggled. “Weren’t you also a little brat who grew up?”

You Yan frowned and turned to walk out of the room.

Yi Qiu glanced back at the little black dog, and a feeling that could not be spoken clearly or explained suddenly welled up in her heart.

You Yan was walking too fast, leaving her little time to think. She shook her cluttered head and turned to run after You Yan.

The second before she left the room, she heard a quiet conversation from behind her.

“Huodou, you’ll come to like it here… Perhaps, you’ll also come to like… the form of a human?”

“Never!”

…

What a difficult little dog.

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The author has something to say:

The second update will be before twelve o’clock. This pair is HE.

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