Blossoms of Love

Chapter 3: The Huodou

A dog created from the very essence of flames. A fire so vicious it could engulf an entire town whole if it so pleased. That was the Huodou, a creature rumoured to have originated from the deepest depths of Diyu — hell. When the Huodou is seen, people will die. There was never any matter of question about it.

"Stay behind me." Although not a usual guest, the young prince was under Master Yin's protection.

Song Mengyao, however, had no intention of allowing Yin Jianguo to face such a ferocious beast alone. He stepped forwards so that they were side by side for the fight. His sword arm had been wounded but that did not mean it was going to stop him from putting up a fight.

Yin Jianguo glanced at the boy, meeting his golden eyes for but a moment, and understood that there was nothing he could do to change the prince's mind. His eyes then flickered back to the beast, watching as it prowled closer. It was eyeing up its prey, being cautious enough to weigh them up before diving into a fight.

The Huodou was a vicious creature, but it was also a smart one; and upon noticing the singed fabric around the prince's arm, it knew exactly who its first target would be. With such an obvious wound, Song Mengyao was the easy target; one that would not be able to put up much of a fight. At the very least, he would not be fighting to his usual standard.

When the creature pounced towards the prince, it was Master Yin who swung his sword to ward it away. The large ebony dog jumped back, away from the blade that threatened to puncture its tough skin. The flames surrounding its body only burned fiercer in defence.

Aiming for the beast, Yin Jianguo lunged forwards but missed once again as the fast creature jumped away again. The Huodou was swift and much larger than any normal dog; it would be hard to strike it, especially with the hellfire that encased it.

"A talisman, now," Song Mengyao demanded, forcing Master Yin to draw his attention away from the beast for only a second.

Within that second, however, the creature pounced again. As the burning hot fire drew near, the beast's teeth were caught on either side of Master Yin's blade. It bit down with such a force that it would easily snap any normal sword like a twig. Thankfully, this sword was not any ordinary sword. It was Zhuī, sword of Yin Jianguo; forged in the magical fires of Luanyi. Such a sword would not break even if a mountain were dropped upon it.

"Now!" the prince yelled again, rushing toward the beast with his own sword drawn.

As the beast lept away once again, Yin Jianguo threw a blank talisman to Song Mengyao and rolled back to his feet. He stood the beast down, unwavering as he readied his weapon for the beast's next strike. Intimidating such a creature would not be an easy feat but if he could hold off the next attack for even a moment, it would help.

During their brawl, the beast had set fire to their surroundings, and it had begun to close in. The flickering of flames so hot that the heat was reaching out in a desperate attempt to drag them in, threatening to consume them where they stood. The Huodou would not burn, for it was the very essence of fire itself, but it's prey would.

The prince prepared the talisman and threw it up into the air. In an instant, there was a thunderous boom in the sky and a dark cloud formed. Rain poured down around them, wetting the blazing fire, calming it. It was not enough to put out the Huodou completely, but it had been enough to dampen it somewhat. The fire around them was gone and the dog – the beast – was now nothing but a warm campfire.

It snarled ruthlessly, angered that its power had been weakened. It was in that moment, when the crackling fires had been washed away, that two men had a chance. A chance to defeat the beast and the hellish creature knew it.