The old man finished speaking and immediately stepped back twice to stand beside his guard.
Their bodies swayed, and blue smoke rose around them. A series of dull thuds, like leather being struck, came from within the smoke.
When the smoke cleared, the two demons revealed their true forms.
A tall horse stood on all four hooves, its brown mane draped over its neck. Half a faded merchant caravan saddlebag still hung across its back-it seemed accustomed to dressing as a traveling merchant, complete with a saddlebag.
The other, a yellow ox, gave a low moo. Its back rose like a small hill, its muscles bulged, and its fine, even coat lay as smooth as brocade. What a magnificent ox!
The two demons pawed the ground twice, skirted the loose stones along the cliff, and came to stand before the two men.
The horse demon spoke in a human voice. "Benefactor, climb onto my back and hold tight to my mane. Don't worry about this narrow cliff path. This old horse knows the way."
The ox demon bent its knees and lay down, inviting the injured Master Tiger onto its back.
Cui Jiuyang helped Master Tiger onto the ox first, then climbed onto the great horse himself.
With a neigh from the horse demon, horse and ox began running along the cramped mountain path.
The two demons carried the men swiftly on the wind, crossing the mountain gullies as though they were level ground.
The horse demon's mane streamed behind it, its hooves steady as rock over the loose stones. Cui Jiuyang gripped its brown mane as the wind roared past his ears, the cliffs and ravines blurring into an inky streak at the edge of his vision.
As the old horse leaped, it raised its neck, the remnants of