“Find a pot to stew it!” Cao Yusheng gritted his teeth in anger.
“Human pet, this king is speaking—scram!” the little dog warned.
“Calm down, let’s talk patiently,” Shi Hao interjected.
The palm-sized pup had dark red fur, exuding an aura of endless years yet brimming with vitality.
It was contradictory—it seemed both ancient and newborn.
Shi Hao suspected it might truly be an ancient demon, surviving from the Immortal Ancient era to now, its cultivation lost by accident but its body still formidable.
As for reincarnation? He didn’t believe it at all.
“You actually trust this mutt?!” Cao Yusheng fumed, itching to urge Shi Hao to capture it.
He’d had enough. He refused to believe this dog, which had even stolen and devoured the longevity herb his master had planted here, dared call itself an Immortal King.
“Did you really dig it out from underground?” Shi Hao asked Cao Yusheng.
“Yes! That tomb had existed for eons. Who knew digging to the depths would unearth a damn mutt!” Cao Yusheng spat.
“I warn you—call me ‘mutt’ again, and I’ll eat you alive!” The pup bared its fangs, eyes gleaming.
“Let’s speak openly. No more secrets,” Shi Hao said, locking eyes with the dog.
The pup’s expression shifted. “What could you possibly tell me? Anything of value?”
“I once glimpsed a fragment of the future—a great black dog attaining immortality, forever chasing a fat Taoist,” Shi Hao said calmly.
Even if Cao Yusheng became a True Immortal in the future, being chased by a dog daily was absurd! Yet it was real. Beyond the borderlands, in the burial grounds, Shi Hao had once glimpsed Cao Yusheng across time.
“What?! You… saw that?!”
For the first time, the pup’s composure cracked. Its dark red fur bristled, ears perked, tail stiffened—its gaze turned hostile.
“Oh? You know of this too?” Shi Hao was startled, then intrigued, scrutinizing the dog.
“Are you the Dog King of Immortal Ancient, or that black hound from the future?” Shi Hao suddenly asked, voicing his suspicion.
“What?!” Cao Yusheng gaped, stunned. He couldn’t believe a pup dug from the ground might hail from the future.
“Are you weaving lies? Making us think you’re from Immortal Ancient, buried here?” Shi Hao pressed.
“Young man, overthinking leads to qi deviation,” the pup replied leisurely.
“Isn’t it so?” Shi Hao challenged.
“Who can live in the past? Who can reverse time? None. Even a temporary return changes nothing. If I came from the future, the karma would be immense—I’d dare not act, lest I overturn eternity.”
“Then reveal your true self,” Shi Hao countered coolly.
“I was close to Immortal King Wuzhong. In Immortal Ancient, I was mortally wounded by a spear from the Foreign Realm, piercing my skull. Buried in the Land of Reincarnation, my cultivation waned, yet I revived.”
Cao Yusheng had countless questions.
“Human pet, quiet! When that spear struck, it shattered my soul. Much was lost. I was slumbering peacefully until you dug me up, ruining my transformation!” The pup berated him, silencing Cao Yusheng.
“You’re an ancient being. Did you witness the future I mentioned? Why react so strongly to that black dog?”
“Because in Immortal Ancient, our elders also foresaw it!”
The pup admitted its fur was once black, fading to gray and dark red with age.
“Fine. I served Wuzhong Immortal King—a True Immortal, not a King. He mastered time, divined the future.”
“We must talk deeper,” Shi Hao said eagerly.
“Future or ancient, spill everything!” Cao Yusheng urged.
“I’ll speak, but don’t expect much. My soul was shattered—only fragments remain.”
—
Shi Hao spent two days in secret talks with the dog.
Cao Yusheng tried to join but was swatted away each time.
“Why are you smaller?” Shi Hao finally asked.
“Ate a dragon-meat bun and some herbs. Shrank.” Cao Yusheng groaned.
Shi Hao’s lips twitched—this was a rare blessing, rejuvenation most cultivators could only dream of.
“I wanted the longevity herb, but it’s gone!” Cao Yusheng lamented.
The pup admitted eating it—otherwise, it wouldn’t have survived being unearthed.
“Return my herb!”
“Where are my three dragon-meat buns?!” The pup snapped.
—
Shi Hao decided to leave. Reunited with an old friend, he sought to investigate the Dark Creatures and the world’s descent into the End of Law.
“I’m coming!” Cao Yusheng insisted. Staying buried with that dog was torture.
“Woof! Me too! Let’s see this era. Dark Creatures? I’ll recruit human servants!”
They traversed the Three Thousand Provinces, gathering intel.
The End of Law was inevitable—their conclusion.
“Darkness has consumed half the land. Even the Nine Heavens have fallen partly,” Cao Yusheng sighed.
Half the realms were lost—terrifying.
They skirted dark zones, guarded by arrays and armies.
“Fortresses? Cities?”
Shi Hao noted strongholds blocking Dark Creatures, manned by elites.
“The Wang Clan guards this sector.” Cao Yusheng spotted a banner emblazoned with “Wang.”
“The Nine Dragons of Wang?” Shi Hao’s gaze turned icy. Once, they’d hunted him.
“The Wangs panicked. They sought my master’s divination, but he’d already vanished.”
The Wangs had hunted Cao Yusheng, hoping to coerce his master.
“Long time no see. Let’s visit their fortress.”
“The Nine Dragons might be there—Wang Changsheng himself came once!” Cao Yusheng warned, then remembered: Shi Hao now feared no one.
“I’d love to meet them.”
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