In Huaxia’s mythology, there are four divine beasts, the Azure Dragon, White Tiger, Vermilion Bird, and Black Tortoise.
There are also four calamitous creatures, Taowu, Chaos, Qiongqi, and Taotie.
Among these, the most indescribable is the Taotie.
In many legends, the Taotie seems to have a myriad of connections with the ancient Dragon Clan.
But there are also claims that the Taotie has no relation to dragons whatsoever.
As for what the true Taotie looks like, in fact, only a very few creatures know.
This Taotie, who likes to show off his knowledge, is not one for humility.
Even among the twelve judges, the Xuan Bird believes the Taotie to be more annoying than the arrogant Ash Dragon.
Many creatures have seen the Taotie, but the reason only a very few know its true face is that most have already been eaten by it.
As for the Taotie’s diet… from this perspective, if the Ash Dragon is lawful evil, then the Taotie would be chaotic evil.
It eats ancient apes, even wanted to eat the Endless Turtle, and has even inquired about what a roasted Xuan Bird might taste like.
That ancient ape naturally couldn’t answer, and then was eaten by the Taotie as well.
The only one who can persuade the Taotie is the most supreme judge of the Myriad Beasts Tribunal.
In short, this strange creature eats anything and everything.
Its peculiar appearance seems to indicate its omnivorous nature.
Front feet like cow hooves, hind feet like eagle claws, a sheep’s body with a human face, tiger teeth, and sheep horns, and a size as huge as a mountain beast.
These characteristics, put together, are already quite bizarre, but on top of the dragon’s head, where there is already a mouth, the Taotie’s abdomen holds a second, larger one.
With large, fang-filled jaws hanging at its belly, the Taotie looks extremely fierce and terrifying.
After receiving the verbal edicts from the Xuan Bird judge and the clues provided.
The Taotie somewhat reluctantly left the hungry sea.
This Sea of Calamities is teeming with calamitous creatures of similar nature to the Taotie.
Yet now, this sea, once a domain where death was a hairbreadth away and frenzied murder and feeding reigned, was left nearly extinct of the most ferocious calamitous creatures by the Taotie, who, after spending several days there, became the king of the hungry sea.
After leaving the hungry sea, the Taotie first went to the sanctum.
All this happened three days ago.
The sanctum had already become ruins, the castle built by the Zudun Giant for the tribunal had collapsed, and the Flood Dragon guarding the abyss cave had also perished.
The two guardians, the Ash Dragon and the Source of Plague, had their Soul Crystals taken away.
The surrounding creatures were also fleeing in all directions.
The Taotie was very dissatisfied with this. Because there was no food whatsoever.
If the ancient ape beside it wasn’t so important for testing its knowledge, the Taotie might have eaten it as well.
"Master, there are no more clues here," the ancient ape said cautiously, eyeing the Taotie.
Being assigned as the attendant to the most indiscriminately hungry Judgment Chief, it was also very careful.
After all, there were already seven predecessors who had died.
[Darkness gave me black eyes, yet I use them to seek the light.]
The Taotie commented nonchalantly.
The ancient ape touched its head, completely puzzled.
[Humph, you truly are a monkey without knowledge, without education. This quote is from the ancient poet Gu Cheng’s "One Generation"]
"You truly are a great and wise Judgment Chief," the ancient ape immediately flattered.
[An ignorant and voracious monkey, let me, a man of extensive learning, tell you, "wise" doesn’t begin to describe my towering talent.]
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The ancient ape dared not disagree.
The Taotie didn’t actually kill the ancient ape; after all, it still had its uses for him.
It sniffed the ground.
As the creature with the strongest sense of smell in the Myriad Beasts Realm, even though the scent here had almost vanished due to the passage of time, the Taotie could still make it out.
Its sense of smell was so powerful it was almost like the ultimate radar covering one-fifth of the Myriad Beasts Realm.
This unsurpassed sense of smell among other creatures made the Taotie a being that all who knew of its existence in the Myriad Beasts Tribunal did not wish to provoke.
Because once provoked, no matter where one hid, at the ends of the earth or across the seas, it could find them.
The scent had all but dissipated. Even Tang Xian, were he here, would not be able to distinguish anything from the scent.
But after about five to six minutes, the Taotie slowly lifted its head and said:
[Two scents went first to March Marsh, then to the Tianque Plains.]
The ancient ape knew it was time to flatter again and said admiringly, "As expected of the Taotie! So impressive!"
[Bitter medicine cures sickness, frank advice improves behavior.] The Taotie glanced at the long-eared ancient ape.
The ancient ape was a bit baffled.
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[From "Broadening the Demeanor of the Virtuous"! The famed ancient ape clan, known for its wisdom, how foolish! Foolish beyond words!]
With those words spoken, the long-eared ancient ape shuddered with fear.
Then the Taotie said:
[A tree big enough to embrace grows from a tiny sprout; a nine-story tower begins with a pile of earth; a journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step. It’s time to set off.]
The Taotie walked forward. The long-eared ancient ape, not daring to make a sound, silently followed.
However, after walking only a few steps, the creature that loved to boast again made an expression of deep distress and anger at the indifference:
[From Laozi, "Tao Te Ching, Chapter 64," alas, if Heaven had not created the Taotie, literary wisdom would be like an everlasting night.]
The long-eared ancient ape finally understood why so many excellent ancient apes had fallen by the hand of the Taotie.
The Taotie was too well-learned.
But where on earth had it learned all this human knowledge?
The long-eared ancient ape couldn’t understand, for theoretically, the Taotie should be isolated from human language.
It didn’t dare ask, and the Taotie did not offer an explanation.
The Taotie’s pace was not fast. From the sanctum to the Tianque Plains, it took a total of three days.