ACIFITFDB – Chapter 7

Chapter 7: To Be My Dog, You Must Obey the Rules…

What kind of eldritch entity has the prototype of an ordinary black dog?

Qin Xian rummaged through his memories. During his time surviving in the Infinite Flow World, he had encountered many animal-type eldritch beings, but 95% were just the lowest-level mobs in the dungeons. They were ordinary animals that had mutated after being contaminated, only slightly more ferocious and fearless than normal animals. Mid-sized and small mutated animals could be eliminated by an adult with a few blows.

Of course, there were also the terrifying 5% of eldritch beings, and the most powerful among them happened to be canine.

It was called a Calamity Hound, its body wreathed in red and black flames, capable of devouring an enemy’s luck. Its massive body could easily destroy a building, and it could drain an opponent’s luck, causing them to constantly suffer misfortune. It could be considered an extremely troublesome entity.

But the prototype of that dog couldn’t be this small, and besides, he had already killed the Calamity Hound.

Perhaps the dog in front of him was just an ordinary animal infected in the real world?

Qin Xian lifted his foot and approached the black dog with his toe. The dog’s sharp, long ears perked up warily, and it lowered its head to examine Qin Xian’s shoe tip, but made no other move.

“Hey,” Qin Xian gently nudged the black dog’s thigh with his toe. The black dog finally moved, retracting its leg and tucking it under its belly. Its pointed ears stood high, facing Qin Xian, indicating a state of caution.

Seeing this, Qin Xian bent down and extended his hand towards the dog’s dark nose. The black dog sniffed, showing no fear or aggression. Qin Xian remembered some pet bloggers saying that this was the dog collecting scents from a person, and if it didn’t attack or flee, one could try petting it.

Qin Xian then placed his hand directly on the dog’s head and petted it a couple of times. The fur on its head was short and a bit rough to the touch, but it felt good to pet. Each time he petted it, the dog’s pointed ears would flatten to the sides, which looked quite amusing.

Alright, he couldn’t see any major issues. Releasing an animal that might be contaminated by eldritch beings could have negative consequences, so he’d keep it at home for observation. Qin Xian thought this, patted the dog’s head, and turned back into the room to cook. He had been up half the night and was starving. He simply boiled two eggs and some tangyuan he found in the refrigerator, making a meal as if he hadn’t experienced the Infinite Flow World before.

He carried his bowl to the only stool by the dining table, and just as he raised his chopsticks, he saw the dog on the balcony twitch its nose, push open the gap in the door, and limp towards him. The dog’s black eyes stared directly at the eggs and tangyuan on the table.

Qin Xian remembered he hadn’t touched the dog food at all: “You don’t eat dog food, but you want my food?” Back in his grandmother’s old house in the countryside, she raised a yellow village dog. That dog naturally never had the chance to eat dog food. When people ate, it would sit by their feet, looking expectantly at their chopsticks.

Qin Xian picked up a peeled egg, intending to put it on the ground, but as his hand neared the black dog, it suddenly lunged forward and snatched the boiled egg directly from his hand. Its red tongue licked his fingertip, feeling wet. He brought his hand to his face and saw it was covered in glistening dog saliva.

Qin Xian frowned, stood up to wash his hands, and upon returning, saw the black dog had already finished the egg and was staring at the other one in his bowl. Qin Xian returned to his seat, first patted the dog’s head, and pointing at its nose, said, “If you want to stay in my house, you must learn the rules. You’re not allowed to eat from my hand. Also, is your tail injured? You haven’t wagged it for me yet, huh, suspicious.” He narrowed his eyes and observed.

The black dog tilted its head, its tail still unmoving. This was expected, as the dog couldn’t understand human language. Qin Xian ignored it and slowly finished his bowl of tangyuan. He then peeled the remaining egg, paused for a moment, and still threw it into the dog’s mouth. Looking at the black dog that swallowed the egg in two bites, he said, “I suppose I need to give you a name…” The dog blinked, listening intently. Qin Xian glanced at the empty bowl and said, “Then I’ll call you Tangyuan.”

Tangyuan: “…”

Qin Xian inexplicably saw a hint of displeasure on the dog’s face. But what was wrong with this name, it was quite cute.

“You should be grateful I wasn’t eating steamed buns just now,” Qin Xian reached out and patted the dog’s head, then pointed at the balcony: “Now, go back to the balcony and sleep.”

“Hmph,” Tangyuan shook its head unhappily and let out a low growl. Qin Xian expressionlessly lifted his foot and nudged it against the dog’s leg, pushing: “Go, to the balcony.”

“Ugh!” Tangyuan let out another low whine, hopped a step away on its lame leg, and stopped. Qin Xian stood up and bent down, intending to pick the dog up. But as soon as his hands went down, Tangyuan suddenly barked, staring fiercely at the person in front of it, its fangs bared from under its tightened lips.

Qin Xian’s brow furrowed. He grabbed the dog’s muzzle, forcing its exposed teeth back. He sat in his chair, looking down at the dog, and threatened, narrowing his eyes and lowering his voice, he slowly asked, “What? I saved you and you’re going to bite me? Don’t force me to slap you.”

Tangyuan’s growl weakened slightly, its eyes seemed to clear a bit. After staring up at Qin Xian for a few seconds, its usually drooping tail gave a wag. It let out a “woof,” turned around, and slowly returned to the balcony. On the balcony, Qin Xian made a temporary dog bed for it with some old clothes. It crawled onto it with its tail drooping, curled up, and closed its eyes.

Raising a dog is also about training it. If its status isn’t confirmed from the beginning, it could develop bad habits or even become aggressive. Qin Xian didn’t want to spoil the dog like his own son. If it wanted to stay in this house, it first had to understand its place. He glanced at it from afar through the glass door. The dog on the pile of old clothes had already curled into a ball and closed its eyes. It was still obedient so far, just too indifferent to people.

He looked up at the clock on the wall; the hands pointed to three in the morning. Fortunately, the boss was thoroughly dead, so he wouldn’t have to go to work tomorrow. Qin Xian changed into his pajamas and lay down on the bed, playing on his phone until almost five o’clock before turning off the lights to sleep.

As his breathing gradually stabilized, Tangyuan on the balcony stood up, pushed open the balcony sliding glass door, and walked into the living room. Its steps were steady; its leg wasn’t lame at all. Qin Xian’s bedroom door wasn’t completely closed, leaving a small gap. Through the gap, one could see the person on the bed, their mid-length black hair spread on the pillow, their skin, unexposed to the sun for a long time, was a pale white. Even in the darkness, their silhouette and expression were visible. Their thin lips were slightly pursed, and the downward curve of their eyes made them appear less sharp.

The sound of canine breathing gradually became clearer. If someone were looking from across the window at this moment, they would be horrified to see a pair of blood-red beastly eyes burning in the darkness. A sense of unease made Qin Xian frown. His breathing became less steady, and he suddenly opened his eyes. But there was nothing outside the door gap, and it was quiet all around, with no anomalies occurring.

The next day, Qin Xian woke up feeling uncomfortable only after ten o’clock. Ever since he entered the Infinite Flow World, he hadn’t slept well. He had been startled awake again yesterday, and at the moment, he was feeling somewhat displeased. Annoyed, he ran his hand through his messy hair and decided to lie in bed and play on his phone. Seeing the red “99” notification bubble in the top right corner of WeChat, he knew there would be interesting things to see once he got up.

The messages were exploding in the company WeChat group. Everyone already knew that the boss had died in his own company, and his death was gruesome. Scrolling through the records, he even saw an uncensored picture of the corpse posted in the group. Qin Xian clicked on it and looked. He remained calm even when faced with the bloody and terrifying scene.

[A: Ahhhhh, you scared me to death! Take it back! Don’t disrespect the deceased, or he might find you tonight!]

[B: Sigh, I heard he died from eating money and bank cards. What’s going on? Was he sick? Why would he eat money?]

[C: It’s true! He ate my wallet, and the police took it. But even if they give it back, I don’t want it. It’s covered in… things…]

[A: I had nightmares all night yesterday. I was really scared to death. Amitabha.]

[D: I don’t dare to open the picture… My friend saw the corpse with their own eyes and is now mentally unstable, not eating or drinking.]

[E: Don’t you think this kind of thing is too strange? It’s been uneasy in the city lately. I feel like many people have died, and I heard some people have gone missing.]

[B: I’m planning to go to the temple to pray today.]

Qin Xian ignored the mass of screaming and arguing and picked out a few key pieces of information. People coming out of the Infinite Flow World brought “seeds”? Given this name, it was likely that one needed to choose a place to plant and nurture it slowly. Was there a seed hidden in City A? What did it look like? Where was it? How to get rid of it? Qin Xian pondered this and clicked on the job forum. His post actually had a reply.

[Anonymous 2684: OP, I really feel like I’m being haunted by ghosts lately. Really, there are ghosts. But I don’t know if you’re a real expert or a scammer. I request an offline meeting.]

Qin Xian replied: [Okay, let’s meet at McDonald’s on Guangguang Road, at two in the afternoon.]

[Anonymous 2684: Okay, see you this afternoon.]

Things had taken a new turn, and Qin Xian’s mood finally recovered from his poor sleep. He got up, changed clothes, and opened the door, only to encounter Tangyuan standing in the living room, peeking at him. Qin Xian was startled for a moment, then remembered that he now had a living creature in his home. He had forgotten about the dog here all morning and hadn’t fed it. No, he should have put dog food on the balcony.

Qin Xian went to the balcony and checked. The dog food in the bowl had indeed not been touched at all. It wouldn’t eat a single kibble. Did he have to make dog food for it every day from now on? That wouldn’t do. He brought the dog food to Tangyuan and commanded, “Eat quickly.” However, Tangyuan remained still, sitting in place and staring at Qin Xian. Qin Xian’s mood was already not great, and seeing this, his tone became even more serious: “Eat.” Tangyuan turned its head away, refusing to eat.

“Tsk,” Qin Xian put down the bowl, grabbed a handful of dog food, and with his other hand, grasped the dog’s mouth, forcing it open a crack and shoving the kibble in. Tangyuan let out a low growl in its throat and turned its head, wanting to spit out the food. But before it could spit, its eyes rolled upwards, and it saw Qin Xian’s cold gaze and very bad mood. It obediently stretched its neck and swallowed all the kibble.

“Good.” Qin Xian’s expression immediately warmed, and he even smiled for 0.1 seconds. “As a reward, I’ll cook you some eggs. Hmm? There’s also a piece of chicken breast here…” Qin Xian rummaged through the refrigerator and finally found a hard piece of chicken breast in a corner, unsure how long it had been there. But it was so frozen, it shouldn’t have spoiled, right? He found a small pot and directly steamed the frozen chicken breast, adding three eggs as well.

While waiting, he took out a pack of biscuits and made himself a cup of milk.

“Woof.” Tangyuan stood by the dining table and suddenly barked. Qin Xian looked down at what he was holding and replied, “No, dogs can’t drink milk, so don’t ask me. Forget it… I’ll give you a biscuit.” He had indeed starved the dog all morning, so Qin Xian reluctantly took out a biscuit and threw it over. Tangyuan caught it easily with its mouth and chewed and swallowed it in a couple of crunches.

Qin Xian looked down and asked, “Is it tasty? If it’s tasty, wag your tail for me.” Tangyuan tilted its head, unmoving. Qin Xian snorted, “I’ll throw you away tomorrow.” The dog’s tail wagged.

Author’s Note:

———————-

Qin Xian’s naming method – giving your dog a name based on what it just ate.

If it were me, the dog would be named Yangmei (Bayberry), because I just ate [doge].

I have edited some words in the synopsis (covered in blood and stepping on the dog) because I wanted to promote my work on XHS and it was flagged as vulgar. I’m speechless, even more sensitive than Jinjiang.