But as the "Dragon Ancestor," Yinglong naturally could not find another dragon to mate with.
He could only settle for the next best thing and seek out other fierce beasts to bear his offspring.
The first creature Yinglong found was a python, the beast most similar to a dragon. She bore "Qiuniu," who had a dragon's head and a serpent's body. But a snake was still a snake: not a single dragon claw grew anywhere on him. This enraged Yinglong.
Without sharp claws, how could he kill his enemies?
Yinglong had initially intended to endure it, wait for "Qiuniu" to grow up, and teach him other divine abilities.
But who could have known that "Qiuniu" would care only for music and have no interest whatsoever in cultivation? In a rage, Yinglong punished Qiuniu by making him stand forever atop the head of a zither, able only to listen, never to play.
Even today, statues of Qiuniu could be seen on the heads of many zithers. This was Yinglong's punishment for him, for all eternity.
Yinglong soon abandoned the serpent mother and resumed his search through the world. This time, he asked for little: only a mate with a pair of sharp claws capable of killing enemies.
Before long, Yinglong discovered that wolves had exceptionally savage claws and often killed their enemies with claws and fangs.
Yinglong found a wolf mother, who bore his second son, "Yazi." Unfortunately, Yazi was extremely bloodthirsty, delighting in slaughter all day long and burdened with grievous sins of killing. Yinglong knew this son would struggle to develop intelligence. In a rage, he punished Yazi by having his likeness forever carved upon blades and swords. Since he loved killing, he would slaughter for all eternity.
If one saw the head of a ferocious beast on a