And it was very hot.
"Hiss--" Jiang Fan pulled his hand back, looking at the scalded skin on his fingers. He was Late-Stage First-Rank Martial Artist. With his current physical strength, he could withstand being scalded by boiling water, but his fingers looked as if they had been burned by fire.
Just as Jiang Fan was racking his brains trying to figure it out, the bulge on Big Black's body suddenly looked like a chick hatching from an egg. Something broke out from inside, grew, spread, and stretched out. A pair of wings, more than a meter long, carried Big Black slowly up from the ground.
Hearing the commotion, Tang Duo, Tang Guo, and Tang Fugui and his wife all ran out, and they were all shocked by what they saw.
" Big Black?" Tang Guo's eyes widened in surprise. She rushed to Jiang Fan's side and tugged at his sleeve. " Brother Fan, what happened to Big Black Big Black? How did it grow wings?"
Tang Duo frowned slightly and also came to Jiang Fan's side.
"Why do I feel like these wings look familiar? Ah!"
Suddenly realizing something, Tang Duo exclaimed, "These wings look just like the mutated Nine-Mouthed Man-Eating Mosquito from a few days ago!"
In fact, Jiang Fan noticed this immediately as well.
Just a few days ago, Big Black nearly exploded and died after biting the corpses of Nine-Mouthed Man-Eating Mosquito Nine-Mouthed Man-Eating Mosquito sucking their blood.
This incident is most likely related to the Nine-Mouthed Man-Eating Mosquito.
Big Black slowly descended from the sky, feeling very excited about its transformation.
" One Star! Big Black has mutated into a monster?"
Jiang Fan couldn't help but exclaim in surprise.
Jiang Fan then took Big Black to the cemetery management office.
" Crazy Old Man, what's wrong with Big Black?"
After circling the Big Black dog once, the Crazy Old Man smiled at Jiang Fan and said, "Congratulations! You've gained a flying mount, and a loyal dog at that. From now on, you won't need your Psychic Power to go anywhere; just ride him wherever you want. Imagine riding a dog flying through the sky—isn't that incredibly cool?"
Jiang Fan rolled his eyes. "Since you like it so much, I'll lend it to you for a ride. Just around Ancheng, no, around Fortress No. 31, so you can show off a bit."
"Hey, can you stop teasing me? What's wrong with Big Black? Will Big Black be alright?" Jiang Fan didn't have time to continue arguing with the Crazy Old Man; he was very worried about Big Black's condition.
The Crazy Old Man was speechless. "Can't you see how energetic he is right now? What could possibly happen to him? You should be worried about the female dogs around your house. With his swaggering manner, how many female dogs will be jealous of him?"
Jiang Fan just stared coldly at the Crazy Old Man, as if to say, "Go ahead and keep talking if you dare."
The Crazy Old Man felt uncomfortable under his gaze. "Alright, alright, I'll get serious. Actually, I don't really know what's going on with Big Black either. And those Nine-Mouthed Man-Eating Mosquito that suddenly mutated—there's something about them that I recognize."
"A feeling you're familiar with? What feeling?" Jiang Fan pressed.
The Crazy Old Man frowned and remained silent for a while before speaking.
"Do you remember when I talked to you about the Holy Lord?"
Jiang Fan nodded. "You mean the Holy Master of the Church of Justice."
"That's right, I remember he had a stinky Little Bird with him back then."
"You mean, it's related to the birds around the Holy Lord?"
"Don't interrupt," the Crazy Old Man continued, "That stinky Little Bird is called the Crimson Flame Phoenix, one of the four guardian Divine Beast of the Church of Justice. It disappeared along with the Holy Lord after his fall, or rather, his disappearance."
Jiang Fan couldn't understand, "What's the connection between that mutated Nine-Mouthed Man-Eating Mosquito and the Crimson Flame Phoenix? They're not even the same species!"
"I'm not entirely sure what the specifics are, but those two from the Church of Justice were killed by Xiao Yan. Otherwise, I could ask them. But one thing is certain."
"What?"
"That mutated Nine-Mouthed Man-Eating Mosquito is definitely related to that stinky Little Bird, and Big Black probably underwent this mutation after sucking the blood of the Nine-Mouthed Man-Eating Mosquito. It's a good thing overall. Currently, Big Black 'Big Black strength is One Star; barring any unforeseen circumstances, its strength will continue to increase over time."
Jiang Fan was overjoyed. "You mean, Big Black might be like that Nine-Mouthed Man-Eating Mosquito from before, constantly improving its rank?"
"It should be."
"That's great!" Jiang Fan looked at Big Black with excitement.
With Big Black protecting the Tang Family, he felt much more at ease when he was out and about.
"Oh, right." The Crazy Old Man remembered something after taking a sip of his old wine.
"With your skills, you could easily get into any of the five elite martial arts schools. Which one do you plan to attend?"
"I haven't considered this issue. Do you have any suggestions?" Jiang Fan asked.
The Crazy Old Man, "These five martial arts schools are all located in Fortress No. 1: Qingwu, Yuanwu, Shenwu, Longwu, and Danwu. Among them, students who enter Shenwu can be considered the reserve force for the Divine Wind Camp. Those who enter Shenwu can only choose to join the Divine Wind Camp in the future. Of course, the conditions for entering Shenwu are more stringent than those of other martial arts schools. After all, the Divine Wind Camp is the strong backing for protecting our Great Xia, an unbreakable line of defense."
Jiang Fan nodded, agreeing with this point.
"So if you want to become Divine Wind Guard, joining Shenwu is undoubtedly the best choice." The Crazy Old Man stared intently at Jiang Fan with his piercing old eyes. "Moreover, Xiao Yan thinks highly of you and even intends to groom you as his successor."
Jiang Fan didn't pick up on that topic. "What about other martial arts schools?"
The Crazy Old Man knew Jiang Fan deliberately changing the subject, but he didn't mind. He continued, " Qingwu and Longwu martial arts schools are pretty much the same. Let me focus on Danwu. Danwu is different from traditional martial arts schools. Its founders come from the Pill Pavilion of an ancient sect."
"Ancient sects?" Jiang Fan became interested.
"A school founded by a bunch of old fogies, with lots of rules and red tape. Someone like you who doesn't like being tied down shouldn't even consider going there."
At this point, the Crazy Old Man changed the subject.
"However, Danwu, as its name suggests, provides its students with far more pills than other martial arts schools. After all, it's a pill-producing Pill Pavilion that started out. If you're greedy for that, you might want to consider it."
Jiang Fan still hadn't made a choice, and continued, "You haven't mentioned Yuanwu yet."
" Yuanwu?" The Crazy Old Man raised his gray eyebrows.
Judging from that expression alone, Jiang Fan felt there was more to it than met the eye.
What happened to Yuanwu?
Did you know that Yuanwu also had another name?
What's the name?
The Crazy Old Man deliberately paused for two seconds before speaking, " Corpse Martial."
" Teacher Martial? Someone who trains teachers?" Jiang Fan frowned. "I have no interest in being a teacher."
The Crazy Old Man corrected him, "It's not the 'shi' of 'teacher,' but the 'shi' of 'corpse.'"