Soul Appeasement

A night passed. By the time dawn broke the next day, Wu Tian had already rushed impatiently out of the house.

He crouched at the doorway, looking at the two Exorcism Talismans hanging on the door.

The left and right talismans each depicted a child—one a Red-haired Boy holding a blade, the other a Blue-haired Boy wielding a Steel Fork.

These two Exorcism Talismans were extremely common throughout the village. He had seen them whenever he ran back and forth before, but had never paid them any attention, assuming they were merely ordinary exorcism paintings meant to bring peace of mind.

But after witnessing what had happened the previous night, he knew that these two Exorcism Talismans were certainly no ordinary things.

Wu Tian stared intently at the paintings for a long while, but never managed to make head or tail of them.

He then ran to the center of the village, wanting to see what could emit a fiery red light and protect the entire village.

When he arrived, however, he saw only an ancient Bronze Cauldron.

The cauldron was mottled with the marks of age and stood a full six feet tall. During the village's bonfire festivals, it was used as a vessel for cooking food.

Patterns were engraved on the cauldron as well, but they were so obscure that no one could understand them at all.

"There must be secrets in this village that I don't know about." Wu Tian stared at the ancient cauldron for a long time. "The person with the highest status in the village is the Chieftain. Besides him, there's the Hunting Team."

"The Hunting Team ran into trouble a few days ago. Quite a few people and White Dogs died, so they haven't gone hunting lately. But this situation won't last long." Wu Tian understood this very clearly. "Sooner or later, the Hunting Team will have to recruit more people and White Dogs."

"If I can join the Hunting Team, then I'll be much safer when I go hunting outside. I might even learn more of the village's secrets."

He quickly thought it through. Now that he knew evil spirits and sinister ghosts truly existed in this world, and that the village possessed something capable of resisting them, he would never give up.

If he merely lived as an ordinary White Dog for twenty or thirty years, or simply died during a hunt, then that would be far too meaningless.

He wanted to Become a Demon.

After sorting out his thoughts, Wu Tian wasted no more time. He quickly slipped out again to train his two great skills, Hunting and Listening to the Wind. Swallowing Poisonous Insects would also hone his innate talent.

He did not know whether it was because of his soul and thoughts as a human in his previous life or because of the System Panel, but he could clearly feel that his two skills were improving very quickly.

After leaving the village, he did not take any risks. He simply wandered through the forest near the village, hunting the Poisonous Insects, snakes, and ants he was capable of catching.

A day of hunting left him with a bountiful harvest. In the middle of it, he even discovered a wild rabbit.

The rabbit living in the wilderness was extremely nimble, though. It spotted him before he could get close and darted straight into the depths of the forest. Wu Tian did not continue chasing it.

When the sky was about to darken, Wu Tian returned to the village.

As Wu Tian kept running outside the village, the adult White Dogs who had originally feared that something might happen to him no longer barked at him furiously.

Five days passed just like that, and Wu Tian's attribute panel changed considerably.

Name: Wu Tian

Age: 2

Bloodline: Southern Border White Dog

Talent: Poison Devouring 5% (Elementary)

Skills: Hunting 20%, Listening to the Wind 18%

After his Hunting skill reached twenty percent, Wu Tian clearly felt that his ability to kill had risen to an entirely new level compared with before. His physical qualities had also improved noticeably.

"So that's how it is. Improving Hunting also tempers the body."

Wu Tian was lying comfortably in a wooden tub, enjoying Chili Mu's small hands as she rubbed and washed him. There were still some awkward parts, of course. After all, even though he was a young dog, he was still male.

But after these past few days, he had grown accustomed to being pulled into the wooden tub by the little girl for a bath. It seemed to let him shed the fatigue and bloodiness of the entire day.

After bathing, he would crawl into Chili Mu's arms and fall into a deep sleep.

At night, the sinister wind howled, yet it struggled to blow into the village and harm these ordinary people. Everything seemed so peaceful and serene.

But when he awoke the next day, Wu Tian discovered that the atmosphere in the village was somewhat heavy. Nearly every household had risen early, and they had gathered in the center of the village.

At some point, a massive woodpile had been erected there. The bodies, already prepared in advance, had been wrapped in white cloth and placed atop the woodpile. There were seven corpses in total.

Everyone in the village surrounded the woodpile, their faces sorrowful and solemn. The Chieftain stood at the very center, holding a wooden staff and muttering words under his breath as he chanted obscure incantations.

The villagers began chanting the ancient Soul Appeasement Hymn together.

"Past dust forgotten, the road ahead in dread."

"This life has passed, turn not your head."

"Seven Souls and Three Spirits, return with the wind to Miao Territory."

"..."

The ancient Soul Appeasement Hymn rang out beneath heaven and earth. It seemed to carry some inexplicable rhythm that made everyone feel oppressed.

Throughout the entire village, only the sound of the Soul Appeasement Hymn echoed. Not a trace of any other noise could be heard.

Even Wu Tian lay on the ground, watching carefully.

Pfft!

Amid the crowd's low chanting, the Chieftain raised the wooden staff in his hand. A red light flared from it and fell onto the woodpile, and flames immediately sprang up, quickly setting the entire pile ablaze.

Chili Mu was held in Grandfather's arms. She had not seen her father for several days, and had vaguely realized what had happened.

She understood that she would never see her father again.

She was very sensible and did not want to trouble the adults. She had not shed a single tear. But now, as she watched the roaring flames and listened to the Soul Appeasement Hymn beside her ears—

Chili Mu finally shed tears. Covering her mouth, she began to sob.

Many others were crying as well. Their sobs mingled with the Soul Appeasement Hymn, making the atmosphere even more oppressive.

As the seven corpses were completely burned in the raging fire, everything returned to dust, dust returned to earth, and nothing remained.

This seemed to be a special custom of the village. No corpses were allowed to remain, and even the burning of bodies was carried out during the day rather than at night.

Once the entire burial ceremony ended, everything seemed to return to its normal course.

Just as Wu Tian had predicted, the Hunting Team began reorganizing its people and White Dogs, preparing to enter the mountains and hunt once more.

For the Miao people living deep in the mountains, hunting beasts was an important source of food.

The Hunting Team had suffered the deaths of seven people all at once, which was why it had taken so long to resume operations.

Through various clues, Wu Tian naturally discovered this news as well. He immediately grew anxious, ran to the Chieftain's doorway, and began growling in a low voice without stopping.

The Chieftain had been discussing the upcoming mountain hunt with the Hunting Team's leader, Guxiong Mu. Hearing the White Dog barking outside, he was instantly puzzled.

The person guarding the door saw Wu Tian, a mere puppy, and feared that he would disturb the people inside. He hurriedly shouted at him, trying to drive him away.

Wu Tian refused to leave. He continued pacing back and forth outside the door.

Although the Chieftain did not come out, he seemed to see Wu Tian all the same. He stroked his slightly graying beard and could not help chuckling softly. "What a spirited White Dragon."

"Guxiong Mu, take this White Dragon with you the next time you go hunting. It's a fine young prospect. Perhaps it will become the Dog King someday."

Guxiong Mu nodded solemnly—not merely because it was the Chieftain's command, but also because White Dogs had always been the Hunting Team's most loyal companions.

Without White Dogs, they would never have been able to hunt in the mountains, much less survive there.

"Silver Frost." At Guxiong Mu's command, an adult White Dog that had been lying by his feet slowly rose and began walking toward the door.