Chapter 164: The King Touches the Hellhound

Realizing that the crowd brought out by Wei Xiaoping was startled by their terrifying appearances, the two netherhounds hurriedly turned their three heads to the other side and lowered them.

"Boss Ma, among the people who came out with the master, is His Majesty the King among them?" Niu Dahua asked.

"You ask me, but who do I ask? I can't even recognize who the king is!" Boss Ma replied.

"If the king is also among this group of people and gets scared by our looks, will we be punished by him?"

"Who knows! Ah! When on earth will Lord Yama be able to turn us back into humans? That way, when we go out with our master in the future, we won't be looked down upon or feared by so many people!"

"Yeah, I think so too! Sigh, let's not think too much about it. Since Lord Yama assigned us to follow General Wei Xiaoping, we just need to sincerely follow our master, obey his commands, and finish whatever he tells us to do earnestly and well. I believe that one day Lord Yama will be moved by us again and transform us back into human beings!"

"Hmm, just like in that village in our previous life, when we worked diligently and without complaint for the villagers. When we returned to the netherworld, Lord Yama came to greet us in person, and we felt deeply honored at that time! Then we diligently kept watch at the Myriad Realms Transit Consultation Center for hundreds of years, and moved Lord Yama once again, which is why he sent us to the mortal realm with General Wei! Do you remember what Lord Yama's emissary said when he came to find the master at the Myriad Realms Transit Consultation Center? That emissary said he was also turned into a horse-face by Lord Yama, but later, because he followed Lord Yama in doing many good deeds, Lord Yama was moved and turned his horse-face back into a handsome human face—how wonderful that is! I believe Lord Yama will eventually turn us back into humans as well," Boss Ma said.

Surrounding King Huang Jingrui, the officials supported him.

Li Chaoqian was also terrified by the appearance of the two netherhounds. He hurriedly ran over to join the officials in surrounding Huang Jingrui, and even squeezed into the inner circle to grab and support the king.

"Wei Xiaoping, you knew full well how terrifying these two creatures are, yet when the king asked you to bring him out, you still brought them? — Your Majesty, are you alright?"

Seeing the king and his officials panicked to such an extent by the two netherhounds, Wei Xiaoping immediately felt a pang of regret.

"Your Majesty, I apologize. Your humble servant should not have brought you out!" Wei Xiaoping said, dropping to his knees.

Huang Jingrui caught his breath, stood up, and said, "Wei Xiaoping, it was Us who asked you to bring them out; We do not blame you! Rise!"

After seeing Wei Xiaoping stand up, Huang Jingrui asked again, "Wei Xiaoping, what did you call these—hounds again?"

"Netherhounds!" Seeing that the king could not remember their name, Wei Xiaoping immediately answered.

"Right! Netherhounds. Why do these two netherhounds look so repulsive on the outside? They look as ghastly as corpses!"

"Replying to Your Majesty, these two netherhounds spent hundreds of years in the netherworld. Because they could not see the sunlight down there, their skin grew to this color."

"Are they truly back from the netherworld? Since they look so hideous, why did you bring them back?" Huang Jingrui asked.

"Reporting to Your Majesty, it was Lord Yama himself who assigned these two netherhounds to accompany me and brought them back to the mortal realm with me!" Wei Xiaoping said.

Hearing Wei Xiaoping say that Lord Yama had him bring the two netherhounds back, the officials were startled once again, and Huang Jingrui was also given a fright by the mere mention of "Lord Yama"!

Lord Yama? Wasn't that the legendary deity of the netherworld who governed human life and death? The ancients said that if a person met Lord Yama, it proved either that their life had already ended or that they did not have much time left to live. Therefore, people in this world felt terror at the mere mention of Lord Yama! It was deeply inauspicious!

Yet now, Wei Xiaoping was actually claiming that these two netherhounds were brought back to the mortal world from the netherworld in a dream, entrusted to him by Lord Yama! Since he had even met Lord Yama, didn't that mean Wei Xiaoping had already turned into a ghost? And for a person to become a ghost, didn't they have to be dead first?

Li Chaoqian was also terrified by Wei Xiaoping's words. Thinking he might be dreaming, he pinched his own thigh, and feeling the pain, he blurted out, "Wei Xiaoping, are you—a human or a ghost? To actually be able to return from Lord Yama's domain, and even bring back these two terrifying and disgusting things! Are you trying to scare the king to death?"

Some of the more fearful officials also pointed at Wei Xiaoping and said with trembling voices, "Wei Xiaoping, what you are saying—is-is-is it true? Anyone who has seen Lord Yama is either already dead or has very little life left. Exactly what are you now, a human or a ghost?"

When Zhang Lingpu first saw the two netherhounds, he had also been momentarily stunned. He thought to himself that since childhood he had seen all kinds of animals and fought all kinds of ferocious beasts, so no matter what large wild beasts he encountered on the battlefield, he had never felt any fear nor had he ever been frightened by any animal. Even Wei Xiaoping's mount, Dahuang, was a beast he dared to fight fearlessly. Yet today, he was actually somewhat startled by these netherhounds! He was startled not because these two netherhounds were particularly formidable, but because of their corpse-like, ugly skin and their bizarre three heads!

"Grand General Zhang, Zhang Xiaoyan, quickly find some men to capture Wei Xiaoping and those two monsters so they don't harm His Majesty the King!" Li Chaoqian shouted.

Recovering from his daze, Zhang Lingpu immediately ordered all the soldiers and guards present to surround the two netherhounds. He himself walked up to Wei Xiaoping and asked sternly, "Wei Xiaoping, did these two monsters truly come from the netherworld?"

"Grand General Zhang, your subordinate is speaking the truth. If you don't believe me, you can ask Zhang Xiaoyan and my master, Daoist Master Xuanzhe," Wei Xiaoping said.

"Daoist Master Xuanzhe also knows that you brought these two monsters back from the netherworld? He also knows that you just returned from the netherworld?" Zhang Lingpu asked Wei Xiaoping.

"When I woke up, Master and Yan'er were right by my side. Master came over from Qingfeng Temple in the morning. When he arrived, he saw these two netherhounds and, due to a misunderstanding, even used the Demon-Binding Rope to tie them up! Later, I told Master everything I encountered in the netherworld, and only then did he believe it!"

At this moment, King Huang Jingrui stood up. Having heard Wei Xiaoping say that Daoist Master Xuanzhe also knew and believed this matter, he said, "In that case, there is no need for us to be afraid! Wei Xiaoping, can you explain why Lord Yama asked you to bring these two monsters back to the mortal realm to scare people? Can you control these two monsters now, so they don't wander around injuring or terrifying people?"

Wei Xiaoping knelt and said, "Reporting to Your Majesty, when we first arrived here, the two netherhounds considered this themselves and asked me to tie them to the tree. That way, when people see them tied to the tree, they won't feel quite as terrified."

"Is that truly the case? They asked to be tied up themselves?" Hearing that the two netherhounds had actually asked Wei Xiaoping to tie them to a tree, Huang Jingrui suddenly felt much more at ease, while also developing a bit of curiosity toward them.

"Yes, Your Majesty! On the way here with me, they kept asking about Your Majesty!"

"What did they ask about Me? And what did you tell them about Me?" Hearing that the two netherhounds had been inquiring about him, Huang Jingrui grew even more interested. He thought to himself, since even Daoist Master Xuanzhe had seen these two monsters, heard Wei Xiaoping's account of what happened in the netherworld, and believed Wei Xiaoping's words, then I have nothing to worry about! As he spoke, he began walking toward the two netherhounds!

Learning that Daoist Master Xuanzhe also believed what Wei Xiaoping had said, the officials gradually let go of their fear and followed the king and Wei Xiaoping toward the two netherhounds.

Seeing that Huang Jingrui no longer harbored guards against Wei Xiaoping and the two netherhounds, Zhang Lingpu walked ahead with a reassured mind.

As they drew near the two netherhounds, Zhang Lingpu ordered the surrounding soldiers to make way, walked up to the beasts himself, and looked them over carefully.

"Boss Ma, Niu Dahua, didn't you both want to see the king very badly? His Majesty the King is right before you now. Why don't you kneel and pay your respects to His Majesty?" Wei Xiaoping said with a smile.

Netherhound Boss Ma and Niu Dahua immediately turned around, let out low whimpering sounds, and dropped to their knees! Their six heads bobbed up and down repeatedly in bows!

Earlier, because they were afraid of frightening the king and the officials, the netherhounds' heads had been turned toward the tree, so the king and officials had not truly seen their true faces. When they turned around and everyone laid eyes upon their actual appearances, the crowd and the king were slightly startled once again. However, seeing the two netherhounds kneeling before them and nodding in a gesture of obeissance, their hearts settled down once more!

"Wei Xiaoping, you said earlier that on the way here with you, these two netherhounds kept asking about Us. What did they ask you about Us?" Seeing the two netherhounds kneeling and bowing to him, Huang Jingrui found them somewhat endearing!

於是 Wei Xiaoping briefly recounted the questions the netherhounds had asked about the king along the way, as well as how he had answered them.

Upon hearing this, Huang Jingrui completely cast aside any remaining guard against the two netherhounds and tentatively reached out to touch the head of Netherhound Boss Ma.

Li Chaoqian, standing nearby, immediately cried out for the king to be careful, while Zhang Lingpu shouted, "Your Majesty, do not touch them with your hands just yet! Let this general test the waters first. Once there is no danger, you may touch them!"

Huang Jingrui replied, "Ah, Grand General Zhang, Wei Xiaoping has already explained their situation to us, and they have just paid their respects to us. This proves they are not as terrifying as we imagined! So there is no need to worry! Besides, with Wei Xiaoping here, what is there to fear? Furthermore, since they paid their respects to me, if I don't touch them in return to show that I am friendly toward them, how would that do? Courtesy demands reciprocity!" With that, he laughed cheerfully.

And so, he reached out and patted Boss Ma on the head.

Seeing the king tentatively reaching out to stroke him, Boss Ma closed his eyes and allowed the king to pet his head. This not only put the king at ease but also gave the king the pleasant sensation of enjoying the petting.