Chapter 1 Mad Dog Hotel
The assistant doctor saw Lu Qi coming out with her bag and greeted her, "Sister Lu, you're off work?"
Lu Qi retorted, "Aren't you leaving yet?"
Tian Miaoying, the receptionist, shook her head. "I'm on the night shift today."
Her small ponytail swayed behind her head, exuding the youthful energy unique to recent graduates. Lu Qi nodded, "Call me if there's an emergency."
She took a step to leave, but then heard heavy footsteps behind her.
It is a footstep sound unique to men.
"Is Xiao Lu on duty tonight too?"
The bag strap sank slightly into her palm. Lu Qi turned around, lowered her eyes, and softly hummed in agreement.
"Call me if there's an emergency," the male doctor who came out smiled at Tian Miaoying. "I go to bed late."
Tian Miaoying glanced at the two doctors and smiled, "As everyone knows, Dr. Lü goes to bed late."
Lu Shi'an caught the teasing in her voice but ignored it, turning to Lu Qi and saying, "It's a bit cold today, let me drive you home."
Lu Qi gripped the bag strap even tighter.
She kept her eyes down, saying, "No need, it's just a few steps away."
As always, her refusal was quite obvious, and Lu Shi'an's eyes revealed a hint of helplessness. "Alright, then I'll be going now."
He passed by Lu Qi, who instinctively held his breath.
The automatic doors opened and closed behind her. After Lü Shi'an walked out of the hospital, Tian Miaoying at the front desk couldn't help but ask, "Sister Lu, don't you like Dr. Lü at all?"
Lu Shi'an likes Lu Qi; this is common knowledge throughout Anxin Pet Hospital.
The hospital director is very easy to talk to. As a 24-hour pet hospital, she does not require the on-call doctors to be on duty all the time.
In case of an emergency at night, the doctor's assistant will take simple emergency measures and then notify the on-call doctor for the night. The doctor only needs to arrive within half an hour.
Lu Qi came to this pet hospital a year and a half ago, and soon after, Lü Shi'an and she became her shift partners.
He always tells the nurses to call him first if they encounter an emergency.
Lu Qi knew what he meant, but still shook her head.
She doesn't like it.
Tian Miaoying asked curiously, "Why? Dr. Lü is quite handsome, considerate to you, and the hospital director's son. Sister Lu, what kind of person do you like?"
Lu Qi pursed her lips, and after a while said softly, "He's too tall and too strong."
Tian Miaoying: ?
She was puzzled. Lü Shi'an was exactly 1.8 meters tall, only 15 or 16 centimeters shorter than Lu Qi. As for being strong—that was even less of a question. Lü Shi'an was athletic, but not fit, and was definitely not the burly man with double doors.
Too tall and too strong, what kind of reason is that?
Lu Qi didn't intend to chat much. She told Tian Miaoying, "Call me if there's an emergency. I live nearby." Then she turned and left.
A light rain began to fall from the sky outside.
Lu Qi looked up at the pitch-black sky for a while, then took out a folding umbrella from her bag and opened it.
She held up her umbrella and walked towards her rented room.
The hospital is located on the third ring road in the city. Lu Qi rented a house specifically for work. The commute is only a fifteen-minute walk. The surrounding area has convenient transportation and is bustling with activity.
She walked across the overpass, where small stalls were scattered on both sides. One of the streetlights at the end was broken. As Lu Qi passed by, she heard a slow, aged call:
"girl."
She stopped and turned her head, and saw a small folding table set up by the roadside, with an old man sitting behind the table holding an umbrella.
His stall was under a broken streetlamp, in a dark place where neither of the two lamps in front nor behind could illuminate it.
"Girl," he called softly again, "have you ever owned a dog?"
Lu Qi was taken aback.
The old man's upper face was hidden under the umbrella, and his voice was like sandpaper rubbing together: "It has devoured all the beast spirits around you. Two souls and four spirits are no longer enough for it. You must be careful."
Lu Qi's pupils contracted slightly.
After a moment, she realized what was happening and looked down to see a few strands of hair stuck to her pants.
The veterinarian, who had just finished get off work, was covered in fur; it was impossible to tell if he was a cat or a dog.
The initial shock subsided, and Lu Qi replied with a helpless "Okay, thank you," before continuing on her way, unconcerned.
Compared to the traditional "bloodshed and disaster," this rhetoric was quite novel. She simply assumed she had encountered a charlatan with good observation skills and didn't linger.
After crossing the overpass and entering the residential area, the surroundings became quiet.
"Gah—"
A harsh bird cry rang out from the branches ahead.
Lu Qi looked up and saw a huge swallow perched on a bare winter branch, its feathers glossy black, tilting its head and staring at him.
She didn't pay much attention, put away her umbrella, entered the building, and heard the birds chirping a few more times as she stepped into the elevator.
"Gah—"
"Gah—"
[Gaa—]
The swallows chirped arrogantly, their calls carrying a hint of mockery.
It spread its wings, its back black and belly white, its black feathers covered with purple hues, its sickle-like beak opening and closing as it laughed loudly:
[Gaa—]
[Gaa—]
[Gaa—]
[Roar—!]
A sudden bark interrupted the noisy birdsong.
On a drizzly winter night, a ghostly figure, a mix of black and red, appeared in mid-air.
It had no head or tail, no outline; it was like a thick fog of black and red, viscous like mud, filled with gloom, rage and fury.
The sticky fog swooped down on the swallows perched on the branches, but the swallows flew high into the sky, mocking the fog that missed its target.
The sticky fog, which had missed its target, doubled in size and grew increasingly agitated. It surged upwards, but before it could reach the swallow, it was suddenly thrown back by a gust of air.
It fell to the ground and immediately tried to bounce back, but it seemed to be bound by something, trapped on the ground and unable to stand up.
The swallows gracefully returned to the branches.
It folded its wings and preened its feathers.
The sticky fog on the ground barked incessantly at it, irritating the swallow.
[Silly dog]
Its scarlet eyes stared at the sticky mist on the ground, and it snapped impatiently, "[Shut up! You stupid dog!]"
The sticky mist howled even more fiercely. Its voice was different from ordinary beast roars; it carried a fierce penetrating power, like ice picks digging into the ear canal, each sound carrying the stench of rotting blood.
There were no insects chirping around, and the cats and birds, who were already far away from this place, moved even further away.
The swallow, unable to bear the noise any longer, turned around and plucked a feather from its back.
Black feathers fluttered up, emitting a cold metallic gleam.
The feather flew toward a window in the apartment building that was lit up and hovered outside the window.
Swish—
The curtains were pulled open, and Lu Qi peeked out.
She kept thinking she heard a dog barking, barking very urgently and fiercely.
The sound suddenly disappeared the moment the curtains were drawn open.
Lu Qi looked down but saw nothing, and returned to the room in confusion.
The sticky fog trembled, furious to the extreme.
The tip of the black feather was pressed against Lu Qi's forehead, just a hair's breadth away from her skin when she peeked out.
The swarming barks of the sticky fog transformed into a low howl of hatred, like rusty gears turning in a throat, each bite of the teeth grinding out rust powder.
[tsk]
The swallows weren't too happy with its attitude, but at least it wasn't so noisy anymore.
It sized up the viscous fog, which made it tremble with hatred. Through the disgusting viscous substance on the outside, it could see the messy garbage wrapped around it below:
A dozen cat and dog skulls, two cow bones, scattered bird feathers, three or four incomplete rat tails, half a goldfish head, and densely packed broken insect limbs—deeper still, there are scattered human bones and skulls.
These bones and debris have been encased in it for some time, and their shapes are still visible.
[Your digestion isn't very good.]
The birds, beasts, insects, and fish that had just died were dazed and confused, their souls not yet having found their way. They merely passed by Lu Qi before being indiscriminately swallowed up by the sticky mist behind her.
The swallow was extremely disgusted.
[Disgusting]
[Listen up, you silly dog,] it flapped its wings, [your actions are pointless. The undead cannot harm the living, and it was never the dead that harmed that woman.]
The sticky mist stared at it, its low growl growing deeper, its aggression unmistakable.
If you want to protect her, you at least need to be in the same world as her.
A mocking glint appeared in the bird's scarlet eyes.
[I have a great way to not only let you touch her, but also bring her into your territory.]
The low growl suddenly rose in pitch, turning into deafening barks, one after another, making Yanzi shriek: [Shut up! Shut up! Don't bark! It's so noisy!]
It barked incessantly, shaking the withered leaves on the ground.
The swallow collapsed and covered its head with its wings.
[I must be crazy to talk to a stupid dog!] It suddenly flew high, stirring up the black feathers that were pressed against Lu Qi's windowsill.
The black feather changed direction and pierced into the sticky mist with a whoosh.
The dog's barking stopped abruptly.
Finally, it was quiet. Yanzi breathed a sigh of relief, her eyes slightly glazed from the noise.
It finally realized that the evil spirit was too small.
I thought the evil spirits that had gathered so much death energy must have been at least several decades old, but I never expected them to have only been dead for a few years.
This stupid dog probably can't even understand human speech, so it's impossible to communicate with it; it acts entirely based on its senses.
Such a small evil spirit can gather such a large amount of death energy, which shows its bloodlust.
According to the laws of the world, swallows cannot directly touch humans, but they can use those malevolent undead to harvest negative energy from humans for them.
The black feather pierced into the sticky mist, and the black and red sticky mist immediately twisted and turned, like a paste boiling, producing dense bubbles that continuously evaporated the moisture within.
A series of mournful howls emanated from the sticky mist, more terrifying than the sight of a sheep being skinned and bled.
The swallows circled the distorted, sticky fog three times.
The sticky fog grew smaller and smaller as it dried out, gradually condensing into the shape of a human.
Having a human body and human intelligence must be something this silly dog dreams of. I believe that with such generous terms, it would be happy to cooperate with it.
Finally, the painful screams ceased.
What lay on the ground was no longer the disgusting, sticky fog, but a human male with broad shoulders and a narrow waist.
He was young, with toned muscles, defined features, and light blond hair that shimmered softly under the lights.
Swallow was quite pleased with this human appearance. Evil spirits retain the appearance they had when they died, and most of them, after regaining human form, are missing limbs, often with broken skulls and exposed intestines. A complete body like this is extremely rare among evil spirits.
Oh, it's not completely complete either.
Yanzi glanced between the young man's legs, then looked at the lit window upstairs.
That woman is a veterinarian, so it's not surprising that she has this kind of awareness.
Swallow withdrew its gaze. The slight imperfection was insignificant. It was quite satisfied with the silly dog's appearance, saving it the effort of adjusting its shape.
It flew to the newborn human's shoulder, beaming with pride: "[Now you can understand me, right?]"
[I've heard that dogs like you are very intelligent. Think about it carefully, and if you do as I say, both of us will benefit.]
It was full of confidence. When it saw the handsome young man turn his head ninety degrees, his dark pupils staring at it on his shoulder.
[Damn...] The young man suddenly opened his mouth, bit off the bird's head, and swallowed it.
The headless swallow flew into the air, furious, its head flapping and chirping inside the dog's belly.
Are you crazy?! Can you even understand human language?!
The man, naked, lay prone on the ground, leaping and thrashing about, his face contorted in a ferocious grimace, and shouted menacingly at Yanzi:
"Woof! Woof! Woof woof woof!"
Inside his stomach, the swallow yelled: [Stop! I told you to stop! Ahhh, you stupid, castrated dog, what's inside you! It's filthy, don't touch my head!]
As people approached the intersection, the swallows spread their wings, creating a dark domain.
The surrounding air distorted slightly. Before anyone arrived, the swallow wrapped its wings around the barking youth and took him to a temporary space to calm him down.
A note from the author:
----------------------
It's okay, everyone.
Neutering a male dog involves removing its testicles, not cutting off its penis.
Jinjiang can get hard as long as it gets engorged with blood.
Moreover, even if the testicles are present, they cannot function due to reproductive isolation, so it makes no difference whether they are present or not. In fact, the absence of testicles may even make the dog more gentle and kind.
Even if we take a step back and consider that it's already a surreal work, there's absolutely no need to rely on Jinjiang for those kinds of things.
Important note: The male protagonist is a dog. Please view him from a dog's perspective, not as a human.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
