Chapter 17: The Phantom Dog Demon Child (Part 2)
Blows from the blunt weapon rained down relentlessly, the pain unimaginably intense. The agony seemed to ignite his nerves, searing so deeply that even the core of his mind throbbed in torment. Chu Hengkong clenched his teeth tightly, fists balled as he twisted, desperately trying to free himself from the massive wolf’s grip—but this time, he failed. His vision blurred gradually, the scenery melting into a murky black broth; though suspended midair, he felt as if he stood firmly on the ground. A pungent stench made him nauseous, and harsh laughter echoed around his ears...
In the dead of night, a narrow alleyway, a woman with a bleeding head lay buried beneath heaps of trash bags, while men wielding clubs savagely kicked her skull. The barking of dogs shattered the silence, tears blurred his sight, and the world trembled as if in an earthquake.
“Mom! Mom!!!”
Dogs barked. Shouts and curses rang out. Someone rushed into the garbage heap, clutching the mangled, barely human body. Heart-wrenching wails tore through the night, yet no one answered. When he came to his senses, the men stood around, their clubs stained with red and white.
“Lucky break!” sneered the white-browed man. “Saves us the trouble of looking everywhere.”
Clubs fell again, cracking bones audibly. So much pain. So unbearable.
“Brother White Brow, you really gonna kill her?” one accomplice laughed.
“Of course! Saying we kill her whole family means we kill her whole family!” the white-browed man roared, fierce as a wild wolf. “How else will those bitches want to sleep with anyone? You go keep the guests company?! Huh?”
“Sleeping with the guests is fine, but just keeping them company is another story...”
“Damn, this dog bit me!”
“One good whack and she’s dead. Need I teach you this?”
“Move faster, the brat’s still screaming.”
They joked even as they took lives—it was as easy for them as throwing out a bag of trash. No guilt, no weariness, only thoughts of finishing quickly to return for drinks. The girl under the blows could no longer hear their words, only feeling sharp pain radiating through her body and hatred burning fiercely within her heart.
So much pain. So much suffering. No one comes to save me. Hau is dead too. Why won’t you all die? Go die! Go die...!
“—Get lost!”
A harsh shout dispersed the curses, and the illusions in the alley shattered, revealing the true scene. The talisman tucked inside Chu Hengkong’s coat flickered faintly, its power dispelling the phantoms and allowing him to see clearly.
Chu Hengkong bore no physical wounds; a mere wooden club couldn’t harm his flesh. The earlier hallucination was the little ghost girl synchronizing her “experience” with him, forcing the enemies to endure the torment she suffered before dying. Had it not been for the city lord’s talisman manifesting its power, he would have been slain by the evil spirits within that illusion... Yet even with clarity restored, the situation was far from favorable.
Under the dark night, atop the rooftop, a giant wolf’s head howled against the raging wind. Within seconds of the hallucination, he’d been slammed hard against the rooftop by the beast; one more second and he’d have plummeted six stories. The wolf’s wooden fangs tore his sleeve, slashing a long gash across his arm. That his arm wasn’t severed owed to his honed instincts. At the last moment, he propped his iron spear against the gaping maw, holding off the deadliest moment. But now the spear was badly bent; before he could fall off the rooftop, both he and the spear would be crushed in the wolf’s jaws.
“You all go to hell! All of you!!”
The little ghost girl’s venomous curses echoed, trapping him between the wolf’s bloodied jaws ahead and the edge of the rooftop behind. Chu Hengkong was cornered with nowhere to flee. Closing in on the rooftop’s edge, he released the spear with his right hand, twisted his waist, bent low, and stepped sharply to the right. His left arm, still gripping the spear, extended with the wolf’s momentum. The extra reach enabled him to keep the beast’s bite at bay and rotate around to its side from an impossible angle.
From this vantage, the collar around the wolf’s waist was within reach. Chu Hengkong unclenched his fist, transforming it into an open palm, and struck downward. The little ghost saw clearly and shouted, “Hau, dodge!”
Startled, the wolf loosened its grip and rolled back, creating distance. Chu Hengkong’s palm strike missed, so he quickly shifted his hand into a hook and whipped it forward. A talisman pasted on the back of his hand activated, producing two translucent water bullets at his fingertips. They shot out in quick succession, smashing the collar inside the wolf’s body to pieces!
The little ghost froze in stunned stillness. The wolf immediately froze, its blood-red eyes reflecting a human-like despair. Chu Hengkong flicked the spear, clicking his tongue.
Just that simple.
If he hadn’t held back earlier, this dog would’ve been dead long ago. But bratty kids never listen until they get beat. He glared at the little ghost, speaking with no kindness, “Quiet now? Hurry up and come with me. After some ‘moral education,’ I can finally call it a day...”
Mid-sentence, his expression darkened for the first time. Though the evil spirits had stopped moving, their bodies hadn’t weakened—on the contrary, they seemed to be growing.
The little ghost’s form became increasingly blurry as she enlarged, like a low-resolution image on an old television. The giant wolf was being pulled into the illusion, as if being devoured alive by the ghost. Her face was nearly gone, surrounded by a swirling pitch-black vortex. Sand and stones whipped around violently; the wind was strong enough to uproot trees. Chu Hengkong drove his spear into the ground to anchor himself; otherwise, even he would be blown away!
“KILL! DIE! ALL OF YOU! GO TO HELL!!!”
The wind was a cacophony of countless tiny curses combined, its core the ever-growing masses of vengeful spirits. Chu Hengkong had misjudged: he’d thought breaking the relic would strip the spirits of their power, but the relic also acted as a restraint. Without the stone collar binding them, the evil spirits would have long escaped the abandoned apartment to wreak havoc in the city.
“Damn it...!”
Rarely did Chu Hengkong curse aloud. The little ghost now felt unreal and vague to him, very much like the illusory demons. This was probably an embryonic demon—a complete waste of time. They were still demon cubs; why bother ‘educating’ them? He should’ve just used a talisman to kill her and send her off early, and gotten a high-level relic to boot!
But then he recalled the girl’s eyes—so stubborn, so filled with hatred, as if steeped in resentment for ten years, utterly different from her weak father’s. Her father’s gaze was vacant, hollow—only sadness within. One was silently avenging; the other silently waiting.
—Chu Hengkong, a reminder: spirits are cunning and tricky. Clean up thoroughly afterward; don’t leave loose ends.
Decian’s parting advice echoed in his mind, unusually serious for the slick middle-aged man. Chu Hengkong was losing his footing as the black wind tore up bricks and tiles, threatening to lift the concrete beneath his feet. He cast one last glance at the ghost—the stubbornness was gone from her ethereal eyes, replaced only by pitch-black malice.
Veteran killers often face impossible situations; it was no different in this other world. Hayne’s pleas, Decian’s warnings, the girl’s cries, the ghost’s hatred—all flashing in Chu Hengkong’s mind, returning to the first phrase.
Clean up thoroughly; don’t leave loose ends.
Chu Hengkong adjusted his shoulder, looked toward the little girl, and said, “Your father’s still alive. If you cause trouble again, you’ll only make things harder for him.”
“I won’t cause trouble anymore!” Tina sobbed. “Daddy, I’m sorry, I won’t cause trouble...”
She apologized again—what was there to apologize for? Kids were always troublesome. Chu Hengkong stood, patted Hayne’s shoulder, and said, “Move your money and documents somewhere else. From now on, this is your family’s most precious treasure. Keep it safe.”
Hayne snapped out of his daze, bewildered and unsure what to do, then hastily gathered the scattered savings beads.
“Detective Chu! Please, I beg you!”
Chu Hengkong glanced at them and suddenly wore a rough, gangster-like expression.
“Do you know the rules of the streets?”
Hayne shrank back in fear. “I didn’t mean it—please give me some time—”
“Helping a kid build up good karma, why so many?” Chu Hengkong returned to his usual calm. “Just reimburse the travel expenses.”
He picked up the smallest bead, hoisted his spear, and stepped out the door into the night.
***
The clock’s hands pointed to half-past eleven. The window rattled violently in the cold wind, making restful sleep impossible. Hayne stared at the moldy ceiling, utterly unable to sleep.
In less than half an hour, he had to start work. He should have left already, but today he felt exhausted—so weak he couldn’t even lift his arm. Usually, he lived by hope, telling himself over and over that he’d find her. But the detective’s last words had shattered that fragile hope.
He’d known all along. For more than half a year, there had been no hope. Continuing the search was just prolonging a living nightmare. He struggled out of bed, preparing for work, feeling like a walking corpse trapped in predetermined motions.
Suddenly, the door slammed violently, as if someone intended to break through the iron gate. Instinctively, Hayne opened it. A man strode in, gun in hand, his fierce glare chilling to the bone.
“Detective Chu...?” Hayne barely recognized him.
“Open your safe,” Chu Hengkong’s voice was hoarse. “Quick!”
Hayne felt the world spin. Was this a robbery? The detective in the paper—a robber? This city had become too absurd. He laughed without realizing it as he opened the small iron door. Inside lay the family’s most precious possessions: painstakingly saved savings beads, property deed, marriage certificate, birth certificate... The treasures were swept out in one big handful. After emptying the safe, Chu Hengkong slapped a piece of paper on the door. Hayne caught a glimpse—it was a talisman.
***
Chu Hengkong closed the safe door and sat on the floor, exhaling deeply. Hayne stared at the scattered documents, his fingers trembling uncontrollably. The sudden upheaval shattered this honest man completely.
“What are you doing?! What did my family ever do wrong?! I—”
“...Dad?”
Hayne’s scream suddenly stopped. The little girl before the safe looked up at him with dark, shining eyes and jet-black hair, her face pale and delicate. Beside her sat that obedient little dog. She hadn’t changed; everything was just as he last remembered.
He collapsed to his knees, trembling hands touching her hair. It was cold, but real—he could feel it.
“Tina?” Hayne smiled. “Where have you been? Daddy’s been looking for you.”
“I got lost...” the girl whispered.
“Why didn’t you come home? Daddy was so worried! So worried...”
The father held his daughter tightly, tears streaming down. Little black dog Hau lay quietly nearby, wagging its tail vigorously.
Tina’s father searched by day and worked far away by night; separated by just one street, they never met again. Naturally, Tina had been desperate—before dying, she heard the thugs’ threats, never saw her father again, and assumed her parents were dead. She wanted to destroy this merciless city.
Now, sealed in the safe, the collar was just a heavy iron block, impossible to remove easily. She couldn’t go far, barely moving within the building, waiting for her father to come home.
Who knew how powerful this talisman-covered safe was as a relic?
Chu Hengkong stretched his shoulders and looked at the little girl. “Your dad’s still here. If you cause trouble again, you’ll only make things harder for him.”
“I won’t cause trouble!” Tina cried. “Daddy, I’m sorry, I won’t cause trouble anymore...”
She apologized again—what was there to apologize for? Kids were always a handful. Chu Hengkong stood, patted Hayne’s shoulder.
“Move your money and documents somewhere safer. From now on, this is the most precious treasure your family has—take good care of it.”
Hayne seemed to awaken from a dream, bewildered, not knowing what to do. Desperately, he scooped up the scattered beads.
“Detective Chu! Please, I beg you!”
Chu Hengkong glanced over and suddenly showed a harsh, thuggish expression.
“Do you understand the rules of the streets?”
Hayne shrank back in fear. “I didn’t mean it—please give me some time—”
“Helping a kid accumulate good karma—why so much?” Chu Hengkong’s calm face returned. “Just reimburse the travel expenses.”
He picked up the smallest savings bead, hoisted his spear, and stepped out into the night.