Chapter 26 Post-match Revenge.
The red ribbon steadily supported Jiang Huaisu and placed her on a branch of a tall tree.
Nezha looked up at her from the ground, then exerted his strength, using the rhinoceros demon's shoulder as a fulcrum, and leaped up with bent knees.
The branches trembled slightly as he sat down beside Jiang Huaisu.
Ignoring the rhinoceros demon's roar below, Nezha frowned and looked into the distance: "A demon went to put out the fire, but the fire is still spreading this way."
Catfish spirits, jellyfish, clam spirits... many monsters spontaneously gathered around that spot, some spitting ice, others spraying water, but to little avail.
“This doesn’t seem to be ordinary fire. I’ll go take a look.” He turned to Jiang Huaisu and said, “Keep the Hun Tian Ling with you, just in case.”
The fire was sudden and strange, turning the arena into chaos. Even the fox referee on the stage was distracted, forcing the two fighters in the ring to suspend their match.
Xiaotian stared blankly at the audience. He was just a hair's breadth away from defeating the lizard demon and winning the battle, but given the situation, should he continue fighting?
The wind fanned the flames, making them grow larger and larger. If this continued, all living things nearby would perish. Finally, Nezha intervened, using his magic to forcibly extinguish the wildfire, thus ending this farce.
Fortunately, it wasn't the Samadhi True Fire; otherwise, we would have had to travel a long way to borrow a pure bottle from the Bodhisattva and use the ocean to extinguish it.
Because Nezha intentionally concealed his presence and did not want to appear in a high-profile manner, he seized the perfect moment to strike, disappearing back into the crowd before being discovered by the demons.
After this little incident, many of the audience members had already fled, and even the lizard spirit disappeared in the chaos.
The little fox, its fur blackened by the smoke, coughed and announced that today's competition was suspended, and the contestants were asked to return tomorrow to decide the winner.
Xiaotian was quite dissatisfied with the result, feeling that he had wasted all his efforts. He was about to win, but this unexpected event interrupted the game, and the match ended inconclusively.
"It's alright," Jiang Huaisu comforted him. "If he can't beat you today, does that mean he can beat you tomorrow? Besides, that lizard demon has already disappeared. We don't even know if it will come back tomorrow."
"He ran so fast, he must know he's no match for me and feels ashamed. Did you guys see that from the audience? That kid's a real sly fighter. Humph, it's best he doesn't come tomorrow, otherwise I'll beat him up again."
"Of course I saw it, my eyes can see it clearly."
Jiang Huaisu felt indignant on Xiaotian's behalf. Not only was that lizard weaker than Xiaotian, but its character was also quite poor; it always resorted to underhanded tricks to harm people.
They threw projectiles randomly, and their aim was terrible.
The front-row spectators who were accidentally injured were completely innocent victims. They refrained from reacting immediately, probably because they didn't dare to cause a scene and ruin the match. If the organizers mistook them for disrupting the event and expelled them, it would be a huge loss. After all, unlike human society with its stricter moral standards and rules, the fox in the ring only judges the winner and loser, regardless of anything else.
The lizard demon dared to act so recklessly precisely because it had grasped this psychology of the people below the stage.
At this moment, the demons in the arena have dispersed in twos and threes.
With Jiang Huaisu joining in the rant, the optimistic dog quickly adjusted its mood and proudly displayed its wooden sign, saying, "Tomorrow I can add another one... no, three more."
Nezha, standing to the side, seemed rather uninterested: "I've been watching all day, but it's nothing interesting. I won't join in the fun tomorrow."
Jiang Huaisu looked at him: "Aren't you going to watch Xiaotian's competition either?"
"I won't watch it, it's not interesting at all."
Nezha laughed and said that if Xiaotian couldn't even beat that lizard, then he shouldn't be Yang Jian's dog anymore, and the lizard should take his place and report to the True Lord's Mansion.
The dog and the lotus root, who have never gotten along, traveled together for a short distance, but before they even reached the mountainside, they had to part ways.
Nezha was too lazy to walk and wanted to fly back, while Xiaotian felt that he hadn't reached his exercise goal for the day and wanted to play on the mountain a little longer.
"And you?" Nezha turned to Jiang Huaisu.
"The weather is nice today, I'd like to walk back slowly."
"Then you go with Xiaotian, I'll be going now."
Without further ado, Nezha boarded his Wind Fire Wheels, and in the blink of an eye, his figure disappeared into the clouds.
Although she said she wanted to walk back, the weather was perfect for being lazy. Jiang Huaisu walked slowly for less than fifteen minutes with a sightseeing mindset, then lay down in the comfortable breeze, rolled around on the grass a couple of times, basked in the sun, and closed her eyes to stay still.
"Susu," Xiaotian tried to pull her up, "play with me!"
"I'm going to take a nap. You go find somewhere to play by yourself, and we'll meet up later, okay?" Her voice became lazy. "But it's best not to go too far away from me, or I won't be able to find you."
Xiaotian pulled her again, but found that she really didn't want to move, so he had to give up.
"I have a very keen sense of smell. If you can't find me, I'll come looking for you."
After saying that, Xiaotian transformed back into his original form, shook his fur, and went off to find a place to play. He could vaguely hear the sound of flowing water, and he thought he would go to the stream to drink some water and take a cool shower first.
She didn't know how much time had passed, or perhaps only a few minutes. Jiang Huaisu shuddered and suddenly woke up from her light sleep. The sudden feeling of weightlessness was as if she had stepped into thin air in her dream, and her sleepiness vanished instantly.
Her head was still a little throbbing. She looked up at the sky and realized she hadn't slept for long, just taken a nap.
"Xiaotian?" she tried calling out.
The only response she received was the rustling of the wind. The air, as light as a breath, brushed past her ears, and the empty mountain seemed to leave her all alone. If it weren't for the faint sight of charred grass in the distance, she would almost have doubted whether the noisy and lively arena battle was just a dream she had in her sleep.
The boundary between reality and dreams blurred for a moment. She sat there in a daze for a while before slowly standing up and shaking off the bits of grass from her body.
Could it be that she ran too far while playing and went to the other side of the mountain? Jiang Huaisu was a little unsure of what time it was.
As they walked, they called out Xiaotian's name, startling many birds, but they did not get a response from the dog.
She was a little hungry and wanted to go back to the manor first, but she was afraid that Xiaotian wouldn't be able to find her when he returned, since they had agreed to meet up.
After shouting at the top of her lungs for a long time, she finally became parched. Following the faint sound of water, she came to the stream and comfortably gulped down a few mouthfuls of water.
The mud by the stream was soft and wet, and her shoes inevitably got covered in mud. After wiping them clean with a blade of grass, she nimbly leaped to the dry, waterless spot on the other side with a few long strides.
A series of messy footprints were left on the wet mud.
After bending down to observe for a while, these unique indentations, though incomplete, could be roughly discerned in shape, resembling marks left by dog paw pads.
Has Xiaotian been here before? She had a guess in her mind.
Following the downstream direction, she walked along and found that there were similar dog paw prints in more than one place along the stream. She couldn't help but imagine Xiaotian swimming and playing in the water. With such a lively spirit, it was most likely Xiaotian.
I thought I would find Xiaotian soon, but I walked for almost an hour, following the water flow and turning around and around, but I still didn't see a single dog.
Reverting to her magpie form, Jiang Huaisu circled in the air a few times. Unfortunately, the mountains were full of trees and bushes, making the aerial view even less favorable. She decided to return to the ground, transform into human form, and slowly make her way across on foot.
The terrain sloped up and down, and the water gradually narrowed into a thin line. Further ahead, they would enter a cave. Jiang Huaisu stopped there, gazing hesitantly at the dark cave entrance.
The cave entrance wasn't covered by weeds, and the ground wasn't slippery with moss; it showed clear signs of human intervention, suggesting it might be the dwelling of some minor demon. To walk in like this would be trespassing.
She looked around and found there were no more footprints. Besides, it was impossible for Xiaotian to have barged into someone else's house for no reason.
Just as I was hesitating about which direction to go next, my vision suddenly went black, and my eyes, mouth, and nose were covered.
Caught off guard and deprived of her sight, she instinctively tried to struggle. However, the other person quickly and accurately placed a hand on her vital spot and chanted some kind of spell, making her freeze in place as if rooted to the spot. Not only could she not mobilize her spiritual power, but she couldn't even move a single finger.
Someone attacked her from behind! Realizing this, her heart pounded. And there was more than one person, working together perfectly, giving her no chance to react.
The tattered cloth covering her mouth and nose smelled like it had been fished out of a pig's blood trough and then dried in the sun; it had an indescribable, rancid odor that made her want to vomit. The rough fabric chafed her cheeks painfully, and a strange, heavy breath sprayed onto the back of her neck.
The newcomer didn't seem so calm either, using all his strength and holding nothing back.
Who is it?
Being immobilized was tantamount to losing the ability to move. Seeing that Jiang Huaisu could not resist, the person behind her finally released her restraints. Regaining her sight, she wanted to turn her head to look, but unfortunately, she could only move her eyes.
"Should we tie her up?" a voice said.
"Hmm." A man walked up to her, holding a hemp rope in his hand, frowning as if he was thinking about how to tie it securely.
What was going on? She stared at the lizard in astonishment, her mind racing as she analyzed its intentions. Was it retaliating after losing to Xiaotian and getting angry?
The lizard demon moved swiftly, and she was quickly bound hand and foot and hoisted onto her shoulder. From this angle, she could see another person following behind her, a completely unfamiliar face she didn't recognize. However, this person was a naked man from the upper body and had a thick snake tail from the lower body, clearly not belonging to the same race as the lizard demon.
Regardless of whether they are of the same kind, snakes and lizards are definitely in cahoots. Their teamwork when ambushing her was impeccable; they've probably done countless similar things before.
Jiang Huaisu's tongue felt numb. She wanted to say something, but could only utter weak, incoherent syllables.
The snake spirit flicked its tongue, seemingly delighted: "What incredible luck! I just caught that dog, and now his companion has delivered itself to my doorstep."
A dog? Howling Sky?
She became increasingly certain of her guess. It was definitely post-match revenge! Otherwise, these two would have no reason to kidnap her, given they had no grudge against her. It seemed the dog was their primary target, and she was just a side effect.
So... how is Xiaotian now? Since the snake spirit said she "just caught him," she probably hasn't had a chance to do anything to him yet. Jiang Huaisu didn't want to imagine anything worse, so she could only try her best to move her eyes and observe the environment inside the cave carefully.
The more they observed, the more disheartened they became. This place was like a maze; every few steps there would be a fork in the road, making it easy to hide but difficult to escape. If Xiaotian also lost his mobility, their chances of escaping would be extremely slim.
"By the way, this one is female..." The snake spirit twisted her body seductively to her side, "She shouldn't be going to the arena, she won't be competing with us."
"So what?" the lizard demon said coldly. "She's that dog's companion. She's even come to our cave entrance. Letting her go will definitely be a problem."
"That makes sense. Shall we kill them all and eat them?"
"Let's go back to the inner room first."
The snake spirit chuckled and leaned close to Jiang Huaisu's ear, gently tucking a stray strand of hair behind her ear.
This seemingly tender gesture sent chills down Jiang Huaisu's spine. She felt as if that slender finger was about to turn a corner and unexpectedly poke her eyes out.
"She's quite pretty. Little beauty, what's your name? Oh... I forgot you can't speak. Boss, can I untie her throat?"
The lizard spirit said impatiently, "Whatever."
"Untie her throat? What does 'untie her throat' mean? Are they going to cut her throat?" Jiang Huaisu's heart nearly leaped out of her throat. She never hesitated to assume the worst of her enemies.
Fortunately, the snake demon wasn't as ruthless as she had imagined; she simply lifted the restraints on her throat, allowing her to speak again.
"What's your name?" the snake spirit asked flirtatiously, giving her a flirtatious wink.
After a while, the snake spirit seemed to be quite satisfied with her tact and, seeing that she was trying to get information out of her, generously tolerated her.
While Jiang Huaisu was being polite and diplomatic, she was silently processing the information she had gleaned from him.
First of all, they hadn't had a chance to do anything to Xiaotian yet. The snake demon didn't need to say it; she had already seen it herself. Xiaotian was lying in the corner of the stone chamber, bound hand and foot just like her, and fast asleep.
The process by which Xiaotian was poisoned was even more outrageous than she had imagined; he was actually knocked unconscious by the poison. They had placed poisoned pieces of meat in the stream, and the dog, mistaking the meat for a gift dropped by hunters upstream, happily ate it all the way, almost finishing off the lizard demon's entire stash, before finally being drugged and knocked unconscious.
Jiang Huaisu gritted her teeth inwardly: When I get back, I must tell Yang Jian not to let his dog eat whatever he wants just because he has a good stomach!
Food from unknown sources found on the street should be avoided at all costs. Even with an exceptional sense of smell, you can't use your nose as a poison detector; some poisons are colorless and odorless. That's how you get tricked and kidnapped to someone's lair!
During the conversation, Jiang Huaisu was thrown to the ground by the lizard demon. Unable to move or adjust her position, she took a hard fall. The lizard demon showed no mercy, tossing her around like a bag of potatoes; she suspected she was being used as reserve food.
By the candlelight in the stone chamber, she could see the layout. It was much larger than an ordinary bedroom, and Xiaotian was on the other side, quite a distance away from her.
"Hey." The snake spirit hypocritically dusted off the dust for her. "Be gentle, don't let the little girl get hurt."
Jiang Huaisu smiled and said, "It's alright."
Since that's the case, she had a direction to persuade him: "Actually, there's no need to waste your time. My friend and I are just here to watch the fun, and we have no intention of competing with you for the first place. He will withdraw from the competition tomorrow."
The lizard demon let out a snort from its nasal cavity, while the snake demon wore a cryptic smile on its face; clearly, neither of them believed it.
"...Really, he is Erlang Shen's dog, loyal to Erlang Shen from beginning to end. He has no intention of getting married, nor does he lack any gold or silver treasures."
The snake spirit feigned confusion and asked, "Then why didn't he stay with Erlang Shen? Instead, he came to challenge the marriage contest?"
"Didn't I tell you? He's just watching the show. He's just doing it for fun, believe me."
The snake spirit patted her cheek affectionately: "You cunning little beauty, after thinking for so long, is this the escape plan you came up with?"
"Why would I lie to you about something like this... If you don't believe me, you can go to Guanjiang Estuary and ask Erlang Shen for confirmation."
"We're not asking for trouble, we won't go looking for trouble." The snake spirit sighed. "Let's rest, beauty. Instead of trying to save your friend's life, you should worry about yourself. Although I do like you a lot... if my brother really wants to eat you, I can't stop him."
The lizard spirit sat on the large bed in the middle, remaining silent for the time being.
"Poor thing." The snake spirit's tail coiled around her, tightening round and round, as if it would strangle her at any moment. "I can only try to leave you with a complete skeleton... no, perhaps this skin can be left too. After all, you're quite cute."
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