3
Yun Li truly wanted to cry, she had just barely arrived in the human world and hadn’t even tasted a big, fat chicken, yet here she was about to be skinned and turned into a scarf.
Boo-hoo, she was just too pitiful.
Just as Yun Li was on the verge of despair, the sound of a dog barking suddenly came from outside.
She focused her eyes and saw it was the little yellow dog.
The little yellow dog had shaken off the yellow-haired man and, feeling uneasy, had run back just in time to see the trafficker about to strike Yun Li with the stun baton.
The little yellow dog let out a low, guttural warning growl. His expression was fierce, his blue eyes fixed on the trafficker, his sharp teeth bared.
The trafficker, who had been committing evil deeds for years, was actually startled by a dog for the first time.
But then he though: He had a stun baton in hand. Why should he be afraid of a dog?
He turned back to Yun Li.
The moment he got close, the little yellow dog lunged and bit down hard on the man’s right leg, clamping down with all his might, as if trying to tear off a chunk of flesh.
The trafficker howled in pain, feeling his blood vessels burst as blood trickled down his calf.
“You damn dog! Let go!”
The trafficker couldn’t shake the dog off. He gripped his stun baton and brought it down hard on the little yellow dog’s head.
The little yellow dog took the hit but didn’t let go. His eyes remained locked on the trafficker, a growl rumbling in his throat.
The bite grew even more painful. The trafficker then remembered he was holding a stun baton, not an ordinary stick. He pressed the switch and jabbed it into the little yellow dog’s back.
Even Yun Li couldn’t withstand that current, let alone a little dog.
The fierce little yellow dog, jolted by the electricity, instantly lost all strength. He let go and collapsed at the trafficker’s feet.
The trafficker pulled up his pant leg and saw a row of bite marks on his calf. Enraged, he wanted to kick the little yellow dog to death. But as soon as he raised his leg, the pain shot through his entire body.
Gritting his teeth, the trafficker raised his stun baton. “You damn dog! You bit me? I’ll beat you to death today!”
The little yellow dog, weakened by the electric shock, had no strength to fight back. His gaze shifted from Yun Li to his young owner.
The little girl had clearly heard the dog’s barks. She opened her eyes and stared at the little yellow dog with wide, dark eyes, crying in fear.
The little yellow dog took two more hits, whimpering in pain, but still glared fiercely at the trafficker.
“Oh, you little brat, still glaring at me? I’ll kill you!”
If this continued, the little yellow dog would die.
Yun Li endured the initial pain, slowly recovering. She used a spell to freeze the trafficker’s right arm in place.
The trafficker suddenly found his right hand frozen. His baton was raised high, but he couldn’t move it. “Hey! What’s going on? I can’t move it!”
Yun Li, enduring the backlash, took the little girl’s hand. “Let’s go!”
The little girl scrambled to her feet, crying, and ran toward the little yellow dog.
Yun Li, unwilling to abandon the dog, quickly scooped him up.
The trafficker’s eyes widened in fury. “Don’t run! Stop right there!”
He raised his baton to chase after them, his face twisted with malice.
The little girl cowered behind Yun Li in fear. Yun Li gritted her teeth and, with a subtle flick of her finger, cast another small spell.
The trafficker immediately raised the stun baton and smashed it against his own head. A loud crack echoed as he cried out in pain.
Again and again, the baton slammed into his skull. The trafficker was dumbfounded. What the hell—was it daytime and he was seeing ghosts?
But he couldn’t let them escape. He kept hitting himself with the baton while kicking the lackeys who were pretending to be unconscious. “What are you lying around for? Chase them! Don’t let them get away!”
If they ran down the mountain and called the cops, they’d be finished.
The lackeys, despite their pain, scrambled to their feet and chased after Yun Li and the others.
Yun Li was carrying the little yellow dog and holding the little girl’s hand. She couldn’t move fast.
She turned around, her gaze sharp, and cast another spell at the trafficker.
This time, instead of hitting himself, the trafficker turned and charged at his own men, swinging the baton wildly.
The lackeys dodged and ran. “Boss! Why are you hitting us?”
The trafficker himself didn’t understand. It was as if he were possessed, his body refused to obey him.
Just as he lunged at the second-in-command, raising the baton, he shouted, “Second, get out of the way!” Chaos erupted behind him, leaving no one to chase after Yun Li.
“Let’s go! This won’t last long!”
Yun Li, enduring the pain, quickly led the girl and the dog away.
They took a main path. Halfway down, the sound of police sirens suddenly filled the air.
The little yellow dog in her arms stirred and barked twice. “The police are coming to save us! Let’s go that way!”
He nudged his head toward the east.
From a distance, she saw several vehicles on the main road, heading toward them with their sirens blaring.
Yun Li’s face was pale. Having used too much magic, she was on the verge of collapse.
She recalled the second rule of the Demon Code and knew she would likely revert to her original form soon.
She was a nine-tailed fox. If she transformed back, humans would surely catch her and skin her.
“No, I have to leave. I can’t be discovered.”
She set the little yellow dog down and turned to go, but a small hand suddenly grabbed her pants.
The little girl looked up at her. “Sister, where are you going?”
Yun Li gently patted her head. “Be good. Maybe we’ll meet again someday. Sister has to go find her family now.”
The little girl nodded. “Thank you, Sister.”
Yun Li gave her a small wave, then forced herself to stumble into the nearby woods.
Once she was sure no one was around, Yun Li transformed back into her true form.
In her fox shape, she climbed a tree and rummaged through her bundle for her phone. But when she pulled it out, she saw cracks across the screen. She tapped it with her paw—nothing.
Great. Looked like she’d be spending the night here.
She searched the woods for any shelter, but couldn’t even find a squirrel’s nest. Defeated, she lay down on a tree branch, ready to sleep rough.
As if things weren’t bad enough, just as she settled on a sturdy branch, rain began to pour.
With no other choice, she had to find someplace dry.
She hated the rain. Her fluffy fur was getting soaked.
Feeling slightly better after resting, Yun Li tried to retract her remaining eight tails as she searched.
Before she knew it, she reached the main road and spotted a bus stop.
That would keep her dry.
She trotted over as fast as her little legs would carry her.
The bus stop’s roof was high, but the wind howled, blowing rain inside. Yun Li got hit square in the face—so much for shelter. Now she was a drenched little fox.
She tried to lick her fur dry while still getting rained on. It was infuriating.
She couldn’t use magic, and she couldn’t find shelter. Was she really going to spend the whole night out in this storm?
The cold rain had thoroughly soaked her. She stood up and shook herself, spraying water in all directions.
Yun Li shivered and sighed heavily. This won’t do.
She needs to find a place—somewhere warm, with a fire, so she can dry off.
She looked around. Everything was pitch black, with only the sound of wind and rain filling her ears.
She sighed again. Where was she supposed to find a warm place?
Just then, headlights cut through the darkness.
Yun Li turned toward the light and saw a car approaching.
Hope!
Her eyes lit up. She dashed onto the road, stretching out a paw to flag it down.
But she was just a tiny fox. The driver didn’t seem to notice her and sped on.
A black car raced down the wide asphalt road, rain pounding against the roof.
Inside, a man sat resting in the back seat.
The driver had been on the road all day and yawned wearily.
Then—bam. Something hit the car.
The driver jolted awake, slamming the brakes without thinking.
The sudden stop disturbed the man in the back.
He opened his eyes. Dark and piercing, his gaze fixed on the driver. “What happened?”
The driver stammered, looking at the man in the rearview mirror. “I—I think I hit someone.”
Hit someone?
The man frowned, looking toward the back.
Rain pounded against the windows, blurring everything outside.
“Sir, please wait a moment. I’ll get out and check the situation.”
The driver stammered, grabbed an umbrella, and stepped out of the car, walking toward where Yun Li was.
Yun Li had indeed been hit. She had tumbled into a half-person-tall bush, the pain making her grimace. This nearly killed the fox!
Her small, slender body was hidden by the bush. The driver searched for a while but found nothing.
He had clearly hit something!
Could it be that it wasn’t a person but something else entirely?
The driver shivered with fear and muttered under his breath, “Whether you’re a deity or a demon, please don’t be offended. I didn’t mean it. I’m sorry…”
Fu Qingheng waited in the car for a long time. When the driver still hadn’t returned, he pushed the door open and stepped out.
“Still haven’t found anything?”
A cold voice suddenly came from behind. The driver quickly turned and saw the man had gotten out. He hurriedly replied, “N-not yet!”
Rain poured heavily. Fu Qingheng furrowed his brows and scanned the area, his vision limited by the downpour.
“Are you sure it was a person? Did you see their face?”
The driver hesitated when asked.
He had yawned and his eyes had drifted shut for a moment. He hadn’t clearly seen what he’d hit.
He had only assumed it was a person based on the impact.
Before the driver could answer, Fu Qingheng spoke again. “In this desolate place, it’s unlikely to be a person. It was probably some animal.”
This road led into the city, but it was a barren stretch with no houses in sight. Why would anyone be passing through? It was most likely an animal.
Yun Li struggled to crawl out of the bush. She heard a man’s cold voice and looked down at her wet fox paws.
What did that mean? Just because she was a little fox, they weren’t going to take her along?
That wouldn’t do!
Panicking, Yun Li quickly transformed into her maiden form and stumbled toward the roadside.
Spotting the two men standing by the car, she waved excitedly. “I—I’m over here!”
**