The dog had never suffered such humiliation. If it hadn't been riddled with holes in its body, it would have pounced on the man and bitten off his neck!
The wounds on its body were shocking, making Xie Shuci's scalp tingle.
"Silly dog, let's make a small deal." Xie Shuci patted its uninjured calf.
The dog glanced at him disdainfully, its eyes seeming to say, "Want my inner core? I'd rather self-destruct than give it to you."
Xie Shuci understood the meaning in its eyes. He sat cross-legged on the grass, arms crossed, and said, "You're a great demon who's lived for two hundred years. Is it appropriate for you to bully a little kid? Don't tell me you hurt him because you couldn't control your claws. He's just a kid. Even if he runs fast, can he be faster than you? Even if the people in town killed your clan dog, it has nothing to do with Adong. Why are you taking your anger out on him? Oh, right, Adong is the little kid who was almost scratched to death by your claw."
Demons who can cultivate inner cores are often inherently kind. Even if a demon kills humans to avenge its clan's dogs, its nature remains pure and good. Even though it deliberately scratched A-Dong last night, Xie Shuci still believed this, which is why he came looking for it with a sliver of hope.
After hearing his words, the dog closed its eyes sadly.
But who will pay for the death of its clan dog?
It loved and was close to humans, and for two hundred years it never killed any living being. It also taught its descendants the same way. But what was the result? What did it get in return?
"I won't kill you, and I can even save you. I don't care how you take revenge on others in the future, but you must hand over your inner core. Only your inner core can save Adong. Be sensible and don't be ungrateful."
The demon's spiritual power was exhausted, and its wounds were bleeding profusely. It had no strength to resist Xie Shuci. If it was unwilling, Xie Shuci could take advantage of the dog's predicament and kill it directly to extract its inner core.
But Xie Shuci didn't want to do that. Not only was it extremely dishonorable, but he had never killed a living being before. In his original world, he would stay far away from his mother when she chopped fish at home, and he would walk around the corpses of rats on the road. The smell of blood made him nauseous.
However, persuading a powerful demon to voluntarily hand over his inner core is extremely difficult.
A fragment of a verbal persuasion technique he had once seen flashed through Xie Shuci's mind. In short, it involved subtly changing the concept and then appealing to emotions and reason.
"Dog, I think you should be smarter. Your two hundred years of cultivation have been destroyed in an instant. No matter how hard you try to cultivate in the future, you will not make any progress. You will be struck dead by heavenly lightning at any time. Keeping your inner core is useless. If you hand over your inner core, you can not only save a poor young life, but also let the person who has made a mistake see the error of his ways. Isn't that more meaningful than killing someone for revenge?"
Xie Shuci didn't care whether it was meaningful or not; he just made up a bunch of nonsense.
"Think about it, you killed them and got your revenge, but their families, like you, will continue to hate your descendants. When will this cycle of revenge end? Why don't you do the opposite, be more magnanimous, and use your inner core to save Adong's life, making them ashamed, making them regret their foolish deeds. That way, you get your revenge, save a life, and avoid being struck by lightning—a win-win-win situation. The only price you pay is the inability to cultivate into human form. What's so great about humans? Look at your beast form, tsk tsk tsk, how majestic! I absolutely admire you!"
"Do you agree? If you agree, then say 'Awooo'?"
As the dog listened to his rambling, it was barely breathing, and its intelligent eyes looked at Xie Shuci as if he were an idiot.
Xie Shuci coughed dryly. Was he an idiot? How could a great demon who had lived for two hundred years be so easily fooled? If it were any other ordinary person, they would be lucky if they didn't draw their sword and kill him after hearing his words.
As expected, the talk-no-jutsu in comics is all lies; only idiots would use it...
"Ouch."
The dog, lying on the ground barely alive, suddenly barked.
Xie Shuci: "?"
Xie Shuci stared blankly at the dog. The dog, its previous disdain gone, gave him an appreciative look, its excited expression seeming to say, "Human, you're amazing! You're absolutely right! It's incredible!"
Xie Shuci: "..."
Almighty God, Xie Xiaoci takes back what she just said. The art of verbal persuasion is forever divine.
Xie Shuci fed the silly dog a pill, took off his coat, and carried it out of the desolate mountain.
On his way back, Xie Shuci thought in disbelief, "It's that simple? I tamed a two-hundred-year-old dog demon so easily? I'm fucking amazing! Why did he go through all that trouble to send the little blind boy away? It was completely unnecessary!"
After leaving the mountains and coming to the main road, Xie Shuci pondered in his heart when to bring the little blind boy back.
Just then, he suddenly heard a horse neighing in front of him.
Xie Shuci felt the voice was somewhat familiar. He quickened his pace suspiciously, walked around a few big trees, and saw the situation on the road.
A little white horse stood in the middle of the road and kicked its hooves. Beside it stood a boy in white. The two white figures were particularly conspicuous in the moonlight.
Xie Shuci was stunned when he saw it. Who the hell was this but Xie An and the crane?!
Didn't they leave with Li Song? Why are they here?
Xie Shuci walked forward in confusion and found that Xie An was covered in mud and grass clippings, as if he had just fallen.
Xie An did not notice Xie Shuci behind him. He tightened his lips, raised his left hand, his palm was scraped raw and bleeding. Perhaps feeling that no one was around, he rarely showed a vulnerable side. He lowered his head and blew on his palm to relieve the pain.
They looked so pitiful.
Xie Shuci immediately forgot why he was there and quickened his pace to walk to his side. His shoes crushed the dry branches, making a slight sound that was very clear in the quiet forest path.
Xie An paused for a moment, then suddenly turned to look in Xie Shuci's direction.
He gripped the sword at his waist warily, pulled the reins tightly, and assumed a posture ready to attack at any moment.
Xie Shuci paused slightly, suddenly realizing a possibility. He tentatively called out, "Little blind man?"
Xie An's expression froze. He released his grip on the sword hilt and, without saying a word, pulled the crane away in the opposite direction, seemingly deliberately avoiding Xie Shuci. He was so in such a hurry that he almost tripped over a stone.
"Little blind man! You can hear me now, can't you?" Xie Shuci was overjoyed and chased after him in three steps.
After the acupuncture that day, the old doctor said that Xie An would regain his hearing within three days. Now, counting the days, it is exactly the third day!
But Xie An did not stop because of his words. While Xie Shuci was chasing after him, he led the crane forward with his head down. The crane took two steps and then refused to move. Xie An simply let go of the reins and left on his own, his back view very stubborn.
"Hey..." Xie Shuci called out anxiously from behind, but Xie An was determined not to let him catch up, and almost started running.
Xie Shuci didn't know what had happened, so he couldn't let him leave alone. He put the silly dog next to the crane, signaling the crane not to move, and then quickly chased after it.
The little blind man couldn't see and stumbled as he walked. Xie Shuci seized the opportunity to catch up with him and grab his arm.
"Xie An, you can hear me, can't you?" he said happily.
Xie An tried to pull his hand back forcefully, but Xie Shuci held on tightly, asking, "What happened? What's wrong with you?"
Xie An's nostrils twitched slightly, likely sensing the blood on him. His expression changed, and he immediately forgot to struggle, reaching out to grope Xie An's body. When he touched a damp patch on Xie An's chest, Xie An's face darkened further. He opened his mouth, silently asking, "Are you injured?"
“No, it’s not my blood,” Xie Shuci said.
Xie An breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this, grabbed Xie Shuci's hand, and turned to leave again.
"No... Little blind man, let's talk this out. What happened?" Xie Shuci rushed forward and hugged Xie An from behind.
Xie An paused, pursed his lips, pried open Xie Shuci's hand, and wrote: "I will not be a burden to you."
"Hey, when did I say you were a burden? You're not a burden to me."
Xie An wrote again: "You want to be a great hero, and I don't want to hold you back."
Xie Shuci was on the verge of tears. "I'm not going to be a chivalrous hero anymore. A chivalrous hero's head is always hanging on the edge of a knife. I value my life so much, how could I dare to do that?"
Xie An stopped gesturing, simply pried Xie Shuci's hand away, and prepared to leave.
Xie Shuci panicked as soon as he saw this and hurriedly apologized: "I'm sorry, it's my fault. I shouldn't have let you go. I didn't dislike you, nor did I think you were a burden. I didn't think it through. I was just thinking of finding a time to pick you up."
"Really?" Xie An wrote hesitantly.
"Absolutely true, I'd be a dog if I lied to you!" Xie Shuci raised his right hand to assure her.
Upon hearing this, Xie An's tense body finally relaxed, and a smile he couldn't help but chuckle appeared on his lips. "Little dog."
Xie Shuci breathed a sigh of relief and smiled, "I'd be a dog if I lied to you, and I'm not lying to you now."
Xie An smiled but remained silent.
Xie Shuci asked curiously, "Didn't you leave with Li Song? Why are you back?"
Xie An's expression darkened, and he said, "I don't want to be criticized. After Young Master Li gave me a sword, I rode away alone, but I didn't expect it to bring me back here."
Xie Shuci sighed. The little blind man must have heard the other disciples talking about him after his hearing returned. Being proud and arrogant, he naturally couldn't accept it and parted ways with Li Song and the others.
“This horse is intelligent. Perfect, you don’t have to leave anymore, you can continue to follow me,” Xie Shuci comforted her.
Xie An raised the corners of his lips slightly and nodded.
Xie Shuci led them back to the inn.
Along the way, the crane carried the unconscious, silly dog, while Xie Shuci led the silent Xie An by the hand.
Just as the two reached the door, a flash of sword light appeared, and the wooden door was instantly cleaved in two, flying in all directions.
Before Xie Shuci could react, Xie An had already taken a half step forward and shielded him behind him.
"It seems that Young Master Xie has succeeded."
The Taoist priest in the green robe pointed his long sword, the sword wind sharp and fierce.
Xie Shuci peeked out from behind Xie An. The inn lobby was filled with Li family disciples, one or two of them carrying their swords, eager to try their skills, their eyes fixed on Xie Shuci's back with intense fervor.
"Holy crap!" Xie Shuci quickly blocked the crane carrying the stupid dog behind him. How did these bastards find out so quickly?
"Young Master Xie, please hand over the demon. This humble Taoist has no intention of fighting you."
"Pah! I found it, why should I hand it over to you?"
Xie Shuci didn't show it on his face, but his heart was pounding with anxiety.
Let alone the Taoist in the green robe, even an ordinary disciple like Xie Shuci might not be able to defeat him, not to mention that Xie An is also with him. Isn't this a huge promotion with buy one get one free?
"Xie An, this has nothing to do with you. If things start to get heated, just stay away," Xie Shuci said in a low voice.
Upon hearing this, Xie An turned his head, his lips slightly moving, "Can you handle it?"
After saying that, he raised an eyebrow in surprise.
"Nonsense! Listen carefully, no matter how much I yell or how pitiful I scream, don't pay attention. I'm just trying to boost my morale, understand?"
Xie An: "..."
Xie An did not respond, and simply placed his right hand on the sword at his waist.
The Taoist priest in the green robe looked as if facing a formidable enemy and solemnly told the other disciples, "Step back!"
"?"
Xie Shuci was puzzled. What were you afraid of about a blind man? All he had was a weapon. A bunch of cowards.
Thinking this, Xie Shuci stepped forward, drew the sword from Xie An's waist, and shouted, "Let me show you how powerful I am!"
Upon seeing this, the Taoist priest in the green robe beamed with delight: "A good opportunity, let's go!"
Xie Shuci was stunned for a moment, then snapped back to his senses and yelled angrily, "Damn it! Who do you think you are?"
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