The faint warmth brought by the vulture meat in the belly was quickly squandered. The feeling of hunger coiled around his stomach like a venomous snake again.
Kurumi, oh you can still call me Cool Dog!
Cool Dog dragged his tail, wading through the endless ruins with every step feeling heavy and labored.
The platinum claws were covered in mud and dark red scabs, and with each step, his limbs felt as heavy as if filled with lead.
As far as the eye can see, there is nothing but decay and silence.
On the scorched land, broken weapons were scattered, some still flickering with a faint, ominous energy glow.
More were the remains of his "ancient Shiba Inu relatives," their once glorious fur matted with blood, their massive bodies frozen in various twisted poses at the last moment of life.
The air was filled with a mixture of blood, char, and decay, almost becoming the only background scent, thick and unbreakable.
Sadness.
That inexplicable, heavy sadness did not lessen with the passage of time, but instead pressed down on his heart like the dark clouds over this ruin, growing thicker and thicker. His once glorious fur was matted with blood, his massive body frozen in various twisted poses at the last moment of life.
The air was filled with a mixture of blood, char, and decay, almost becoming the only background scent, thick and unbreakable.
Sadness.
That inexplicable, heavy sadness did not lessen with the passage of time, but instead pressed down on his heart like the dark clouds over this ruin, growing thicker and thicker.
He did not know who he was, did not know what had happened here, only knowing that looking at the corpses of these kin made his heart tighten and felt a sourness that was hard to express.
"I have to... find something decent to eat?" He licked his dry nose, trying to dispel the suffocating atmosphere with self-talk, "That 'roasted chicken' just now was definitely a counterfeit product, I hope this damn place has some normal ingredients..." He avoided the huge corpses, trying to search through the rubble and broken tent fragments. Hoping to find some wild fruit, or... even catch a mouse?
Just as he used his paw to pry apart a pile of collapsed stones, suspected to be the edge of some altar, his claw tip suddenly touched something different.
The touch was icy, yet extraordinarily smooth. It was unlike ordinary stone. He lowered his head and sniffed closer with his nose.
There was no smell of blood, no smell of dust, only a very ancient, very faint energy aura, as if it had slept for millions of years.
Curiously, he used his paw to dig a few more times, sweeping away the rubble and dust covering it.
A slab about half a meter square was revealed. The material of the slab was neither metal nor jade, presenting a dull silver-gray color.
The surface was covered with deep and shallow carvings, which were not words, but some ancient, abstract patterns, as if recording some ancient ritual or history.
The most striking thing was the center of the slab, which was engraved with a giant dog howling at the sky! It was agile, its fur flying, and although it was just simple lines, it exuded an astonishing momentum that looked down upon the world and devoured everything! That shape, that spirit, was so similar to him and to those dead kin around him!
"This is..." The Cool Dog was stunned, his gaze deeply attracted by the stone carving.
He involuntarily extended his paw and gently pressed it against the image of the giant dog carved in stone.
Just as his paw pad touched the slab—
Buzz! A faint, resonating sound, as if coming from deep within his soul, arose!
The slab that had lain silent for who knows how many years suddenly glowed with a faint platinum light! Those ancient carvings seemed to come alive, flowing with a gentle yet firm halo.
Then, a massive, chaotic torrent, mixed with countless images and emotions, rushed into his mind like a flood breaking through a dam!
"Roar--!"
He seemed to hear countless giant dogs roaring, the sound shaking the heavens, filled with power and glory.
The scene flickered:
He "saw" a glorious and magnificent era. Countless platinum Sky Devouring Beasts (this name naturally appeared in his consciousness) surged across the vast mountains and rivers, swallowing clouds and mist, their claws tearing apart all daring enemies. They were the undisputed overlords of this realm!
He "saw" a towering, magnificent cave paradise, seemingly connecting heaven and earth, surrounded by auspicious clouds, with bursts of celestial light. Deep in the cave, an enticing aroma of food wafted, it was... the Grand Food Storage? (Another name appeared)
He "saw" the clan thriving, cubs playing and frolicking under the protection of elders, carefree. But then, the scene suddenly shifted!
The sky was torn apart! Countless meteorites burning with black flames fell to the ground! A shadow that obscured the sky and blocked the sun descended, that was... the Dragon Eagle Knights! And the shadow wolves, agile and adept at hiding in the shadows, surged like a tide from the ground!
War! A war so brutal it was beyond description!
The Sky Devouring Beasts roared as they faced off, the platinum light clashed wildly with the enemy's dark energy, each impact causing the earth to crack, the sky to lose its color. He "saw" familiar kin falling under claws and energy attacks, blood staining the ancestral land.
Betrayal! There is an internal traitor sabotaging the core defensive formation at a critical moment!
Siege! The enemy's numbers were too many, as if they could never be killed!
In a desperate roar, the mother protecting her cubs was torn apart by wind blades, the elder guarding the cave self-destructed in a mutual demise with the enemy...
The final frozen scene was a burning ruin, in which he was currently situated. A particularly large, scarred adult Sky Devouring Beast, surrounded by countless Dragon Eagle Knights and Shadow Wolves, let out its last roar filled with unwillingness and anger, then was overwhelmed by the rain of attacks...
All the images, sounds, and emotions surged into his consciousness like a tsunami. Glory, splendor, betrayal, slaughter, despair, unwillingness... and the heart-wrenching, boundless sorrow over the extermination of his clan!
"No—!!"
The Cool Dog suddenly held his head, letting out a painful howl. That was not his memory, yet it was imprinted in his soul so vividly! The tragedy of the extermination, the anger and despair of his kin before their death, pierced his heart like countless steel needles!
He finally understood where that inexplicable sadness came from.
Here is his home.
These dead were his kin.
And he was of the Sky Devouring Beast clan, possibly... the last survivor.
A towering rage, mixed with the immense impact brought by inherited memories, and the almost tearing pain, crazily collided and accumulated in his chest! He felt as if his body was about to explode!
He suddenly raised his head, his black eyes no longer confused, but burning with crimson flames! A suppressed whimper, like that of a wounded cub, escaped his throat, finally transforming into a shocking roar filled with endless unwillingness and rage!
"Awoo--!!!"
This roar was no longer weak, no longer bewildered! It tore apart the silence of the ruins, like rolling thunder, sweeping toward the desolate, gray sky! In the roar was the blood feud of the exterminated clan, the pain of losing everything, the raging hatred, and also the most resolute declaration of a survivor to this cruel world!
He is back! Even if he is the only one left!
Boom!
As his emotions erupted completely, an invisible yet powerful energy suddenly spread outwards from him, centered around him!
Like a calm lake surface being struck by a boulder!
The crumbling walls beside him groaned under the impact of this energy, then collapsed in a series of overwhelming noises, stirring up clouds of dust.
The Cool Dog stood there, his chest heaving violently, gasping for breath. After the roar, there was a depletion of power, but the burning anger and the clear target of hatred made him feel unprecedentedly... awake.
However.
Just when this tragic and angry atmosphere reached its peak and he was ready to howl at the sky to declare his determination—
"Gururururu~~~~"
A loud, extremely untimely rumbling from his empty belly echoed like a drum. The sound resonated in the suddenly quiet ruins, sounding particularly clear and abrupt. "..."
The Cool Dog's half-formed emotions suddenly choked up.
He stiffly lowered his head, glanced at his protesting belly, then awkwardly raised a paw to scratch his cheek fur, his ears instinctively drooping a bit.
He looked around, as if confirming whether that embarrassing sound had been heard by anyone. Of course, besides the sound of the wind, there was only silence.
"Cough cough," he cleared his throat, trying to salvage a little of the righteous anger he had just established, murmuring softly, "That... the atmosphere has built up to this..."
He paused, ultimately unable to resist, adding in a smaller voice tinged with grievance and helplessness:
"Can we... eat first?"
Tragedy is real, hatred is profound, but... hunger is also very real!
The instinct for survival is sometimes so unromantic, yet incredibly powerful.