A Good-for-Nothing

184. A Little Boy (2)

Translator: Dragon Rider

“What’s wrong, Big Brother?” The little boy tried to draw him forward. Feeling He Zheng not move, he turned his head around, somewhat puzzled.

Their original positions had been a little far away from the nearest Chinese lanterns, and He Zheng had only had a vague view of the kid, but after he walked closer, He Zheng found that this little boy, short and young as he was, had a giant shadow behind him which was a sharp contrast to his small body. The shadow on the ground was growling and making threatening gestures, as if something fierce was trying to break out of it…

He Zheng cocked an eye at it and confirmed what he was seeing. His heart started hammering, but he knew that he must not take any rash action, for he had neither any Fu and the Shadow Sword in hand.

He collected his thoughts and cracked a mild smile at the little boy, which was not something he did often. “Nothing,” he said.

He Zheng’s looks were typical of a well-behaved boy. He was fair-skinned and his smile tended to have people lower their guard. The little boy was hoodwinked by his seemingly harmless smile and said, “Haha, okay. Then follow me.”

The little boy was walking with the leash in one hand and He Zheng’s hand in the other, He Zheng following in his wake. The boy stroked the head of his dog and said, “Do you think I should skin him and switch to another body? Nobody seems to like me now.”

The dog barked twice, as though in response to the boy’s words.

He Zheng found that the bark of this dog was the same as the bark he’d heard previously.

His heart sank deeper at this discovery. Meanwhile, he was trying to figure out a way to get himself out of this trouble, his mind racing.

He could tell that he had entered some kind of unknown plane of existence. It was seething with monsters which he couldn’t afford to alarm. His best choice was to follow this kid to a spot where there were fewer monsters, so that he might find an opportunity… At least he had to prevent himself from being eaten by a monster.

The road was very broad, flanked by buildings of every description. He Zheng was trying hard to remain composed, having half an eye on the surroundings.

Stores stood in great numbers on the two sides of the road, but oddly enough, there was a separate temple on one side. There were no Chinese lanterns hanging from its high eaves, so the temple was pitch-dark, looking quite dilapidated and menacing. In addition, in a place like this, a temple appeared exceptionally inharmonious.

Between the two shabby temple doors was a gap narrowly allowing one person to get through at a time.

“What is that place?” He Zheng came to a halt.

The kid’s eyes flashed in the direction He Zheng was looking, and with that he knitted his little eyebrows, a hint of disgust tinged with faint fear appearing on his face in spite of himself.

“That’s a very hateful, bad place. Everybody here loathes it. Don’t get close to it.”

As if providing proof of the little boy’s words, other pedestrians on the road, who, like the little boy, looked normal on the surface but had emanations of weirdness about them, all bypassed the temple.

He Zheng inclined his head, a thoughtful look on his face. There was a pain in his fingers. He looked down at them and saw that it was from the slit caused by Qiu Luo’s sword a while ago. He Zheng noticed it.

The little boy, who seemed to really dislike that temple, specially drew He Zheng further away from it.

But judging from the distance between him and the temple, He Zheng believed that he could make it into the temple if he ran fast enough. Although he had no idea what was in there, he decided to risk it. Given that all monsters in this place didn’t dare enter it, it might be the most dangerous place, but it also could be the safest sanctuary for him.

The little boy, holding He Zheng’s hand, didn’t sensed anything unusual about him and just kept proceeding. “You’ll be safe when we get to someplace where there’s nobody else around, Big Brother.”

The big dog suddenly started barking. The little boy paused, somewhat perplexed. “Why are you barking, Barkie?”

The dog was barking deafeningly, but none of the “people” nearby seemed to notice.

“Eek?” the boy said, “This smells so good. Do you smell it, Barkie?”

The little boy sniffed. The aroma lingering at the tip of his nose was getting sweeter and sweeter. Sensing that the source of it was very close to him, the little boy twisted his head around. The dog began to bark even harder.

He Zheng’s hand at his back was scribbling away in the air like a writing brush. It seemed that he was drawing a Fu. When the little boy finally found the pleasant smell to be from He Zheng, He Zheng had finished a Fu with his blood.

“The four enlightened realms, the infinite heaven and earth, all gods bow before you, thunder is your servant. Ghosts and demons recoil, monsters and bogeys cower. Lend me your power. Bring evil to its end!”

The Fu drawn with blood ferociously threw itself at the fair-skinned, delicate little boy, who let out an anguished cry as it hit him, the big dog barking madly…