Translator: Dj22031
Editor: Dj22031
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The sound filled his ears, and in the darkness, Wei Xi raised his hand and grasped his disciple’s thin, sturdy wrist. His fingertips touched several clear scars, and without thinking, the disciple instinctively obeyed. Once he could no longer see, the boiling killing intent within him gradually subsided. Just then, he heard the Taoist priests in the distance suddenly scream, followed by the little fat boy’s shrill sob—
“Master! It hurts! It hurts!!”
His mind cleared instantly, and he turned to look at the source of the sound. The chubby boy who had been abandoned was still running back to Zhang Pang’s side, but he seemed to be suffering inhuman pain, clutching his clothes and rolling around on the ground.
As he cried out, his voice suddenly changed, becoming short and sharp, like the mournful cry of a wild beast.
The next moment, a loud bang suddenly erupted. The incense table that Zhang Pang had just set up was swept away. Amidst the billowing smoke, what everyone could see was that in place of the little fat boy who had been rolling around on the ground, stood another enormous creature.
This enormous creature lay buried in Zhang Pang’s blood, struggling and crawling frantically. It was pushing against the turtle’s back, from which extended long limbs and a head, resembling a turtle in appearance, but with a head and tail as long and winding as a snake.
It was enormous, shockingly large, its screams deafening, and its sweeping head and tail were utterly overwhelming. With a single flick of its tail, a tree as thick as a bowl snapped in two without resistance. However, compared to its immense destructive power, its very existence was even more unbelievable. The Taoist priests present, recognizing its distinctive appearance, exclaimed in astonishment, “Xuanwu[1]?!”
Tuan Tuanyi, being an outsider, was dumbfounded: “Xuanwu? The Xuanwu that’s associated with the Azure Dragon[2] and Vermilion Bird[3]? Isn’t that the divine beast worshipped by Taoists?! Wait, aren’t these divine beasts just legends? They actually exist?”
Wei Xi could no longer see Zhang Pang’s blood, and his mind was clear. He was only slightly confused as he looked at the chaos in front of him. He had never been very clear about these things, but his second disciple, who was protecting him behind him, seemed to know something and said in a bad tone: “They have always existed, but they disappeared more than a hundred years ago.”
More than a hundred years? Wei Xi was surprisingly sensitive to this number, and Tuan Tuanyi was also very curious: “More than a hundred years ago? Why would they disappear more than a hundred years ago?”
Wei Xi turned to look at his second disciple, who was also looking at him with a calm and profound gaze: “You want to know?”
Wei Xi nodded, but his second disciple seemed unwilling to answer. He simply tidied the hair on Wei Xi’s forehead as usual and said thoughtfully, “I thought this batch of spirit beasts should have been wiped out long ago. I didn’t expect that one of them would still be left. It probably survived because of the Great Wilderness Sealing Array on Jade Mountain.”
Over a hundred years ago, the simplified sealing array was clearly hastily set up. Rather than a seal, it served more as protection. Exposed to wind and rain, and with an unstable foundation, it had become largely ineffective.
But this kind of avoidance allowed it to survive, but it also caused it to lose its original inherited memories. No wonder it was taken in by a half-baked Taoist like Zhang Pang.
He could almost see the past scene from there: the moment before the collapse of the Heavenly Dao, when countless believers brought a dying Xuanwu here and then hurriedly covered up its traces to the Heavenly Dao.
If Xuanwu was like this, then what about Wei Xi?
Despite losing so much blood, Zhang Pang showed no sign of pain; in fact, he was extremely pleased with the chaos at the scene. He didn’t even glance at the giant serpent turtle struggling in agony within his summoning circle but quickly bandaged himself and fled. Seeing his tall, thin apprentice standing there in a daze, he muttered in dissatisfaction, “Lu Qing!”
The tall, thin man snapped out of his daze, remained silent for a moment, and then followed him, clutching his aching hand.
The Taoist priests present panicked when they saw him trying to run away: “Stop!”
However, the scene was chaotic. The Xuanwu, which had appeared and gone berserk for some unknown reason, had disrupted everyone’s plans, and no one could get past it to subdue Zhang Pang. Zhang Pang clearly knew his advantage, so before leaving, a smile appeared on his pale face: “Come find me again when you can control it.”
The situation on the scene immediately turned around, and the Taoist priests looked desperate— not to mention that this was a divine beast enshrined in their own system, they dared not act rashly, and even if they did, such a large, mindless tortoise, its tail alone was a weapon with tremendous destructive power, what magic did they have to deal with it?!
Seeing their predicament, Zhang Pang’s smile widened. Just then, amidst the sharp howls, a faint sound of wind suddenly reached their ears.
Puff, puff, puff.
There was a muffled thud as if something sinking into its body. After several times, Xuanwu’s heart-wrenching screams began to grow fainter and fainter, and the frequency of its tail sweeping became sluggish and slow.
Both sides in the battle were stunned for a moment. Everyone, including Zhang Pang, realized that something was wrong and slowly, slowly turned their attention to the direction of Taicang Sect.
Wei Xi lowered his head and asked, “What are you doing?”
Gou Dan, who was squatting at his feet, was holding a strange little tube and a syringe-like object in his hand. He looked up blankly and said, “…Boss, this is the dog-stealing anesthetic I got from the dog thief the other day. I want to try it out to see if it works.”
He then inserted another anesthetic needle into the long tube, held it up to his eyes, and pulled the trigger.
He pulled out the long tube of the syringe and plunged it straight into Xuanwu’s tail, which was too long and swept across the front. When everyone looked closely, they realized that the tail was already covered with a dense row of anesthetic needles.
Everyone: “…”
This dose was enough to incapacitate an entire herd of elephants. The berserk Xuanwu ultimately couldn’t hold on any longer and was defeated by this final injection. He closed his eyes, and his limbs, head, and tail all went limp and unconscious.
The scene fell silent.
Gou Dan: “It really works! No wonder none of those brothers who were targeted could escape. Dog thieves are truly cursed by the heavens!”
Everyone: “…………………………”
Zhang Pang, who was preparing to run away: “…………………………”
….
The Taoist priests were confused. Yes, why were their minds filled with what Taoist techniques to use just now? We live in the technological age now; anesthetics are much more effective than thunder talismans.
The others reacted quickly, pinning Zhang Pang and his apprentice, who were now gripped by renewed self-doubt, to the ground. Zhang Pang was truly cornered, shouting incredulously, “How is this possible! How is this possible!!”
He found this Xuanwu by chance in the mountains. It was auspicious and brought him good fortune day by day. After he took it into his sect, it became his secret trump card in combat. How could it be so easily defeated?!
The fact that the Taoist mythical beast had been defeated by a dog anesthetic using a drugged and gunned weapon left the Taoist priests present in a bad mood, but they quickly accepted the reality in the face of Zhang Pang. One of the injured young Taoist priests was furious and punched and kicked him, hurling insults as he did so: “You’re peddling a pyramid scheme, yet you’re still so stubborn! You’ve immigrated to America, and you still haven’t grasped the principle that technology changes the world!”
Zhang Pang: “…………”
Wei Xi seemed to understand after hearing this, and patted Gou Dan, who was looking up at him with big, watery eyes: “Well done.”
I never imagined that technology would be so useful. It seems that our sect needs to make some changes to its practices in the future.
As he spoke, he looked at the enormous Xuanwu with a hint of longing and took two steps closer, his heart pounding.
Suddenly, his arm was grabbed. He turned around and saw that his second apprentice hadn’t said a word since Gou Dan started working with the tranquilizer gun. His expression was changing rapidly. He looked at the wild dog spirit, then at Xuanwu, and finally at him. There seemed to be a vein throbbing in his forehead.
After a long while, he finally spoke: “…This can’t be eaten, it contains anesthesia.”
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[1] Xuanwu, or the “Black Tortoise of the North,” is a prominent deity in Chinese mythology and Taoism, representing the north, winter, longevity, and strength. Depicted as a tortoise entwined with a snake, he is one of the Four Symbols of Chinese constellations. He is also a revered Taoist god controlling elements.
[2] The Azure Dragon (Qīnglóng), known as Seiryū in Japan, is one of the Four Symbols of Chinese constellations, representing the East, the spring season, and the element of wood. It is a divine, serpentine beast with blue-green scales, embodying power, prosperity, and the guidance of the East China Sea.
[3] The Vermilion Bird (朱雀, Zhūquè) is a mythical, flame-covered bird in Chinese mythology, representing the Fire element, the direction South, and the summer season. As one of the Four Symbols of Chinese constellations, it represents the southern seven mansions and symbolises nobility, immortality, and auspiciousness.
