Chapter 114: The Celestial Hound

On the grassy riverbank, after finishing a story, Zhou Qing listened quietly as Lin Yunxi whispered softly beside him. Her gentle, melodic voice was soothing and pleasant.

“Earlier you said your Wandering Notes contains hundreds of tales, all recorded by your grandmaster and master. Haven’t you left your own account in it yet?”

“Me?”

Zhou Qing paused. Lin Yunxi’s question planted a new idea in his heart: from now on, he too would record his own experiences in the Wandering Notes, to pass on to his future disciples.

In the end, Zhou Qing did not reply, only offering a wry smile to the beautiful woman at his side and shaking his head.

“Could you tell me a few more stories about your grandmaster or your master?”

“Of course.”

Hearing Lin Yunxi’s request, Zhou Qing did not refuse, and began to recount another tale from the Wandering Notes.

Thus, the two of them sat by the river until dusk, only rising to walk toward the houses nestled in the mountain hollow. After sharing several stories and recalling the bond formed seven years ago, Zhou Qing and Lin Yunxi found their relationship had grown more familiar and close.

Before dawn the next day, Zhou Qing left the abandoned village together with the seven members of White Cloud Sect. Behind them followed another dozen or so disciples, most of whom looked even younger than Zhou Qing—at most thirteen or fourteen years old.

“Senior Sister, Second Sister, you must be careful!”

Among these disciples, a round-faced young girl called out anxiously to Yunxi and Yunruo, who were about to enter the forest.

“Don’t worry about us, Yunying. Don’t you trust Senior Brother Wufeng’s divination? We will be fine.”

Yunruo waved reassuringly at the round-faced girl standing at the forest’s edge, then the group of eight plunged into the woods.

Outside the Wildman Forest, the dozen disciples lingered for a while before, at the urging of a female cultivator, turning back toward the abandoned houses in the mountain hollow.

Within the Wildman Forest, the eight young cultivators soon reached the foot of a mountain. In this untamed wilderness, grass and trees grew wildly, and Long Aotian used the great sword he had wielded against the river phantom the day before to clear the way ahead.

Behind him walked Wufeng, followed by Jingyun and Jingsnow, then Zhou Qing. Lin Yunxi and her sister Yunruo walked behind Zhou Qing, with Ao Xuan bringing up the rear.

Although Wufeng had consulted the divinations before entering the forest, the omens revealed neither clear fortune nor misfortune, but rather a state suspended between the two. Thus, everyone proceeded with great caution.

An omen caught between fortune and calamity means uncertainty—whatever dangers they faced would be left to fate. The words Yunruo spoke earlier to reassure Yunying were only meant to comfort the young girl.

Although the divination gave no definite answer, Wufeng had gleaned from it the general direction in which their elders might be found. Thus, after entering the Wildman Forest, they headed in the direction indicated by Wufeng’s calculations.

The mountain path was choked with thick grass, and grotesque trees stretched their unruly branches across the way. The ground was uneven and difficult to traverse.

But for these eight, it posed little trouble. In this world’s sects, every school taught basic martial arts. All disciples, upon joining, learned physical techniques, so for these eight who had practiced since childhood, the journey was manageable.

With Long Aotian slicing through the brush, they soon climbed to the mountain’s peak.

Upon reaching the summit, Zhou Qing sensed something amiss and spoke: “Fellow cultivators, do you notice anything strange here?”

“What sort of strangeness?” Long Aotian, leading the way, stopped and looked back at Zhou Qing.

The others also paused, all turning to Zhou Qing, puzzled by his question.

“Do you not find this forest unusually quiet?” Lin Yunxi asked softly.

“Yes. From the foot of the mountain to this very peak, we haven’t heard a single bird or insect. For a forest to be so utterly lifeless—surely, that is unnatural.”

As Zhou Qing voiced his suspicions, the others belatedly nodded in agreement. Wufeng then added, “Fellow Zhou speaks true. All the way up, I too have felt this mountain forest was far too still.”

“But what does that prove? Perhaps the creatures here have all been wiped out, just like the villagers by the forest’s edge,” Long Aotian said dismissively. As he was about to continue, a strange noise echoed nearby.

“Huh—huh—”

At the sound, Long Aotian’s expression changed and he turned toward the source.

This entire forest was devoid of life, yet now an eerie noise rang out. It could only mean that something alive still lurked here—and very likely, it was this unknown creature that had wiped out all other life in the woods.

From those strange cries, not only was Zhou Qing left perplexed; the other seven were equally bewildered, for none of them had ever heard an animal make such a sound.

What kind of being could have destroyed every living creature in this vast forest? Whatever it was, it was certainly no ordinary beast. The eight immediately tensed in wary anticipation.

Long Aotian gripped his sword tightly, and Ao Xuan likewise drew his great blade, hurrying to stand by his senior brother’s side, both of them staring watchfully toward the source of the noise.

Zhou Qing, meanwhile, drew his Phantom Twin from his sleeve and held it ready.

He had no wish to reveal too much about himself—especially treasures like the storage pouch—so he had already prepared the Phantom Twin and some talismans, concealed in his sleeve since the previous day.

Holding his weapon, Zhou Qing did not join Aotian and Ao Xuan at the front, instead positioning himself protectively before Lin Yunxi.

“Fellow Zhou, what is that black wooden handle in your hand?” Yunruo asked curiously, noticing the short, dark object he gripped.

“This is my artifact, called the Phantom Twin.”

With a brief reply, Zhou Qing turned his gaze toward the direction of the strange sound.

When the noise had first erupted, it was still some distance away; yet in the span of barely a dozen heartbeats, it grew so close it seemed almost upon them.

At last, in full view of the eight atop the mountain, a creature the size of a young calf bounded up the slope and let out another guttural “Huh—” in their direction.

“Heavenly Dog? Senior Sister, is that a Heavenly Dog?” Yunruo whispered to Yunxi, eyes wide as she caught sight of the beast.