From the depths shrouded in black mist came a muffled growl.
It was like the roar of a wild beast, yet also like a cold wind rushing through a hollow tree trunk. The distant, dull sound made the already terrifying scene seem twice as ghastly.
Yao Ranran smiled faintly.
"At first I thought this noise was just the wind. Turns out I was mistaken. So it was actually a dog barking!"
"Wu—!"
"Impudent wretch, how dare you awaken this seat! Do you even know who I am? Allowing you to survive here in this strange mountain for a few days, you have already forgotten your own identity?"
Yao Ranran curved her lips into a light smile. "So the reason you've been silent all this time must be because your divine soul has been too weak, unable to wake up, which is why you've stayed so quiet."
"Ignorant child, this seat is far more powerful than you can imagine. Sleep and weakness—those words have never once been related to me since the beginning of time!"
The distant voice carried suppressed fury, descending in a lofty reprimand.
Yao Ranran only shrugged casually. "So if you claim you weren't asleep, then the only way I could get you to respond was by calling out your true identity as a dog, huh?"
The voice hidden in the darkness immediately understood her meaning.
"You dare to insult me by twisting words, calling this seat a lowly pig or dog? I shall take your life right here and now!"
The silent black mist churned violently at that enraged bellow.
Yao Ranran watched with interest as the black fog shifted and writhed. "So… is the big dog about to show its true form?"
"You will soon know!"
The hoarse, dark voice gave a chilling, scheming laugh.
Yao Ranran blinked, staring unblinkingly at the changing fog.
"Transform, transform, into a dog, into a dog…"
She even cheered it on enthusiastically from the side.
"Foolish girl, how could this seat ever become such an ugly mortal cur!"
That low, rasping voice echoed at the foot of Gu Ling Mountain, sinister and horrifying.
Yao Ranran acted as if she heard nothing, her eyes widening at the black mist's new form.
"This fragment soul of Mu Xin, you support my idea too well!"
The voice hidden in darkness faltered in shock.
"How do you know I am Mu Xin?!"
"Oh no, why did this black mist just turn into a dog?"
Mu Xin froze, staring wide-eyed at the enormous mortal dog before him.
"I commanded you to transform into a ferocious beast, a Taotie!"
"Big dog, big dog… wow, it's getting bigger and bigger!"
Yao Ranran sniffed the air as the massive dog-shaped shadow tore through the fog at the base of Gu Ling Mountain. The sight startled Tang Xiangyin so much that the bowls and chopsticks in her hands clattered to the ground.
"Da Huang, did you just see some shadow fly past?"
The phoenix stretched lazily, feeling a refreshing coolness, its feathers shimmering as it yawned, then glanced toward the Daoist temple's gate.
"Looked like some dark shadow darted past."
Tang Xiangyin craned her neck upward. "Da Huang, I think it didn't just dart past—it keeps on growing. Bigger, and bigger… this is way too big!!"
Her sudden shout finally drew the phoenix's attention.
The phoenix spread its dazzling wings languidly. "What is there to be surprised about? I'll just fly up and take a look, and the truth will be clear!"
Tang Xiangyin blinked in astonishment. "Alright. Since Village Chief Jiang said you are a divine beast, you must be able to fly higher than this strange thing!"
The phoenix flapped its wings proudly. "Naturally!"
At the mountain's foot, two voices still clashed in stubborn defiance.
"Big dog, big dog…"
"Taotie, Taotie!!!"
Yao Ranran's mouth hung open. "This dog is truly huge!"
"It's Taotie, it must be Taotie!" Mu Xin roared furiously.
Yao Ranran frowned. "Have the big dog lower its head. If you look at its face clearly, can you still call it a Taotie?"
"It is Taotie! It is!!"
Mu Xin's enraged voice shook the air in every direction.
At the temple gate.
Tang Xiangyin looked around in puzzlement. "Was someone just talking?"
She listened for a moment, but no other sound followed, so she tilted her head back again.
"Da Huang has been flying so long and still hasn't seen what that strange shadow really is? Should I call Fairy over…"
She bit her lip, hesitant and uneasy about the sudden, towering black shadow in the sky.
"Cluck cluck cluck!" The phoenix in the heavens suddenly let out a chicken-like cry.
Its brilliant eyes widened in shock.
No matter how high it flew, every time it reached the head of the dog-shaped shadow, the giant hound abruptly grew several more zhang, overtaking it, soaring further and further into the clouds.
"Cluck cluck cluck! What on earth are you, big dog?! I am the divine beast Phoenix. If you have any ability, just don't come down!"
The phoenix shouted, half indignant, half unsettled.
Suddenly, with a rushing sound like a storm, the black hound-shadow shrank at once, hurtling down to the ground. In the blink of an eye it became a tiny inch-long pup, hidden in the mist, indistinct.
"Cluck cluck cluck!"
The phoenix stared blankly at its own scattered brilliant feathers drifting in the air.
"Heavens… what in the world is that thing? Even Da Huang is no match?"
Tang Xiangyin caught one radiant feather in her hand, stepping back in fear.
"Could it be we'll have to trouble Fairy again to deal with this strange black hound?"
At the foot of Gu Ling Mountain.
A slender jade hand caressed the little black pup, gently rubbing its head.
"What a well-behaved little black dog. Mu Xin's soul fragment, this time you've done well—much better than that unruly soul from before."
"No! It is Taotie!!"
Mu Xin's furious roar shook the unseen heights, stirring terrifying waves. The black fog surrounding Yao Ranran recoiled to both sides.
Yao Ranran lifted the little black pup, startled for a moment, then chuckled. She rubbed the pup's head and pointed ahead. "Look, little one. That young man over there is your creator!"
The pup blinked its round eyes blankly, just in time to meet the youth's shocked gaze.
"You… you can all see me?"
Yao Ranran scratched the pup's chin. "You dispersed all the mist, of course we can see you. Little black dog, why have you been so quiet? Go on, bark a few times for the man who created you!"
The pup turned its grape-like eyes slowly. Under Mu Xin's disbelieving stare, it opened its toothless mouth and barked sluggishly.
"Woof, woof!"
Only two barks, then silence.
Yao Ranran clapped her hands in delight. "So obedient! I told it to bark twice, and it barked twice exactly!"
She hugged the pup happily, laughing aloud.
On the other side, Mu Xin gaped at the little dog in her arms, panic flashing across his face as he glanced around.
"Impossible… impossible! I've refined this strange mountain for over ten thousand years. There is absolutely no way it could escape my control, absolutely no way a mistake could occur!"