Chapter 548 - Give the Little Pup Back to Me!

Chongming sized Gu Han up a few times. “Kid, you went scavenging just now, didn’t you? Normally, I wouldn’t even spare that junk of yours a glance, but things are different now! I’ve got a little brother too. Show me all the good stuff! Don’t keep it all to yourself!”

Gu Han felt that the rooster could be sharper than any human when he wanted to. Either way, he wouldn’t hide anything from Chongming. He excitedly took out the black crystal. “I found a Soul Crystal. This one’s a lot bigger than last time—”

Chongming’s long beak darted down, snatching up the crystal and swallowing it in one go. Some of his spirit was restored. In that great battle with Xiao Hei, he’d relied on his obsession to force out his potential. Now that the fight was over, he was greatly exhausted and weary.

Gu Han was dumbfounded. “But Master Rooster, didn’t you say you were sick of eating these?”

Chongming sighed. “Ah! Who cares? Times have changed. Stuck with a Sword Chief like you, what other choice do I have besides making do? I can still endure a hard life.”

Gu Han’s face darkened. Make do? A hard life? A Soul Crystal that big, and I didn’t even get a whiff of it before it was gone. Why are you acting as if I am mistreating you?

Forcing down the pain, he asked skeptically while glancing at the snarling Xiao Hei, “Master Rooster, have you noticed something off about it?”

Chongming said thoughtfully, “A little. It seems to only get close to me.”

Woof woof woof!

Xiao Hei affectionately rubbed against his leg again. Gu Han nearly couldn’t stop himself from prying that Soul Crystal right out of Chongming’s beak.

As demonic beasts’ rank increased, their primal nature would slowly diminish. By the time they reached the Heavenly Tribulation realm, their behavior and speech weren’t much different from real humans, save for certain ingrained habits. Those with special bloodlines like Di Kan awakened their intelligence even earlier.

Xiao Hei was completely different. Regardless of the realm, it seemed to be driven purely by instinct. There was almost no trace of humanity, which should’ve been impossible.

Thinking of this, Gu Han asked, “Master Rooster, you still have those things with you, right?”

He was referring to the blood-red jade talisman, the colorful thread, and the fang. Gu Han felt that Ah Gou’s transformation into Xiao Hei was inseparable from those items.

Chongming spat out the blood-red jade talisman and the fang. “Almost forgot.”

The talisman was covered in cracks, while a half-cun-long strand of colorful thread still hung from the tip of the fang. When Xiao He saw the thread, a flicker of confusion flashed through its eyes, accompanied by a hint of struggle.

As the struggle in its eyes grew fiercer, it let out a roar of pain and underwent a rapid transformation. Within moments, it had transformed into a youth of eleven or twelve, clad in tattered animal hide. He grabbed the fang and held it carefully, a hint of sadness flickering through his empty gaze.

Gu Han simply took the blood-red jade talisman in hand, swept his divine sense over it, and saw the slave seal that could control Ah Gou. He also learned of the talisman’s other purposes: erasing emotionally charged memories, tracking one’s location, and, if necessary, obliterating Ah Gou’s soul.

Moreover, the talisman came in a pair: mother and child. The mother talisman had even more functions. The Hehuan Sect Master had the child talisman. As for the other, Gu Han didn’t have to guess to know it was in Mu Feng’s hands.

Upon seeing Gu Han take the talisman, Ah Gou dropped to his knees. “Master.”

In his understanding, whoever held the talisman could control everything about him. That person naturally became his master.

Gu Han’s brow furrowed deeply. “Ah Gou, you don’t remember me?”

“You are... master.”

Gu had already guessed that the Hehuan Sect Master had erased Ah Gou’s emotions and other related things. He sighed while staring at Ah Gou. “Do you still remember what I told you? You’re not a dog, but a person!”

Ah Gou’s reaction was almost exactly the same as before. “A person? What... is a person?”

Chongming chimed in first, “Thick-skinned, black-hearted, stopping at nothing, utterly devoid of morals—that’s what makes a person!”

Gu Han’s face darkened again. Master Rooster, are you sure what you’re describing is a person?

Ah Gou muttered to himself, falling into confusion, “A person...”

After glaring at Chongming, Gu Han pointed at the fang and said seriously, “Think about it. Your mother left this for you. I don’t know who she was, but I imagine that her greatest wish was for you to live as a person, and not as someone’s dog!”

Ah Gou froze. “My mother... Right... my mother said... be a person... not a dog...”

A flicker of confusion passed through his eyes as they grew clearer and clearer. At the same time, several more cracks appeared on the blood-red jade talisman.

Ah Gou stared at Gu Han with a hint of sorrow. “Master, you... said it too... I’m... sorry...”

In that moment, he had regained the emotions he’d once held for Gu Han. After all, Gu Han was the only person aside from his mother who had ever told him to “be a person.” He apologized when he recalled how he had helped the Hehuan Sect Master search for Gu Han.

A faint, mocking smile crossed Gu Han’s face. No matter how much you erase something, traces always remain.

Of course, Gu Han had no interest in becoming Ah Gou’s master. “Get up. From today on, no one can be your master. You may be called Ah Gou, but you are a person!”

He crushed the blood-red jade talisman, which crumbled to dust.

***

At the Hehuan Sect, a tall young man slowly descended, seemingly weary. It was Li Mao, Ling Ya’s fifth disciple. Mu Feng had sent him to investigate the matter of the Hehuan Sect. Although the sect disciples didn’t recognize him, they didn’t dare be negligent because they couldn’t see through his cultivation.

They all bowed in greeting. “Senior.”

Li Mao’s brow furrowed deeply. “Hm? Where’s your sect master?! She knows I’ve come and still hasn’t come to receive me?”

He released a trace of his aura, reducing the disciples to a trembling mess.

One of them forced himself to reply, “Senior, s-she went out earlier with a few other seniors, and s-she hasn’t returned yet!”

Li Mao felt that things weren’t as simple as he’d imagined. He asked coldly, “Went out? Why?”

The man shook his head. “I don’t know. It seems that she was looking for a rooster...”

Li Mao was stunned for a moment. A rooster? What rooster?

Yet before he could ask further, his expression shifted slightly as if sensing something. He took out the blood-red jade talisman again, and saw cracks covering its surface. It was on the verge of shattering completely!

***

The moment the talisman shattered, Ah Gou, who had just been halfway to his feet, dropped to his knees once more. “Thank you... Master.”

Gu Han ordered. “Stand up! Don’t kneel!”

“Yes... Master.”

“Don’t call me master!”

“Yes... Master.”

Gu Han was at a loss.

Chongming felt something was off. “Wait!”

Ah Gou was exceptionally close to Gu Han, so much that he’d willingly give his life. Yet he wouldn’t even spare a glance at his newly acknowledged big brother.

Chongming tried asking, “Xiao Hei?”

Ah Gou appeared bewildered and wary, even stepping back a few paces. “Xiao Hei... who’s that?”

Now it was Chongming’s turn to be dumbfounded. Where’s my little pup?! Where’s the little pup I worked so hard and exhausted every scheme to acquire?!

He spread his wings and started beating Gu Han about the head and face. “Bastard! Where did you put my little pup?! Give him back to me right now!”