Rumor has it that seeing a qilin signifies a wise ruler, capable of uniting the realm.
One day, while hunting in the wilderness, the Third Prince of the Yu Kingdom encountered a strange creature.
He was greatly shocked.
Then, he exclaimed excitedly, "Guards, guards! Quickly capture it and bring it back to me!"
"I've never seen such a peculiar beast! This will be fun!"
Inside the cave, soft grass was laid out.
A small, young cub lay upon it.
It had tiny horns on its head and its body was covered in semi-transparent, colorful scales.
Its eyes were not yet open.
Hearing the sounds outside, it tried to struggle, its four tiny hooves moving feebly.
"Yes, Third Prince!"
The guards, obeying the order, brought weapons, nets, torches, and other items.
They entered the cave to capture it.
The cub was weak and was caught.
"Good! Good! Good! Hurry and take it back, I want to play with it!"
The Third Prince returned, thoroughly entertained.
After they left, gusts of wind swept through the forest.
Rustling—whistling—
Rustling—whistling—
It sounded like laughter and tears, sighs and curses.
...
Time passed, unknown.
Whoosh—
Leaves on the ground swirled.
A towering creature appeared.
It had the head of a sheep and the hooves of a wolf.
Its body resembled a deer, its tail like a dragon, and its entire being was covered in colorful scales.
Wherever it passed, fierce beasts bowed their heads.
Before it, all wild beasts seemed like soft, easily bullied rabbits.
...
"Huh, what kind of beast is this?"
"I say... doesn't it look a bit familiar to you?"
Witnessing this scene, the viewers in the live stream were stunned.
It appeared to be composed of many different animals.
Yet, strangely, this combination was not jarring.
On the contrary, it exuded a unique sense of beauty and majesty.
It compelled one to offer praise.
"Let me check..."
A viewer quickly searched online and then excitedly typed on their keyboard:
"This thing looks like a qilin! A qilin!"
"Holy cow, a qilin? As in the mythical creature from ancient Chinese legends, counted among the five auspicious beasts alongside the dragon, phoenix, turtle, and pixiu?!"
"Now that you mention it, it really does seem like it!"
Upon seeing the explanations in the comments, many viewers suddenly understood.
If it were a qilin, then it made sense.
Thinking of this, they couldn't help but feel a surge of excitement.
This was a mythical auspicious beast!
Rarely seen in a thousand years...
No! Perhaps not even ancient people from a thousand years ago had seen one!
In the next moment, the comment section was flooded with wishes.
"Top scholar in the imperial examinations! Either humanities or sciences!"
"Get accepted into graduate school!"
"Promotion and salary increase at the end of the year! Double the bonus!"
"May wealth flow in!"
This was a qilin!
Even if they hadn't seen it with their own eyes, it couldn't hurt to make a wish.
What if it came true?
...
Amidst the lively discussion among the viewers,
The majestic qilin, with its regal stride, approached a cave entrance.
The cave was somewhat deep, with soft grass laid on the ground.
However, on that grass, there should have been a soft cub lying there.
But now, the cub was gone!
The usually gentle qilin's aura instantly turned volatile, flames erupting around it.
Anyone could tell—it was enraged!
The viewers sensed trouble:
"Could that cub that was captured earlier be its child?!"
"Looking at the qilin's horns and the colors on its body, it seems to be a female qilin?
And...
Its gait seems a little unsteady. I wonder if it's due to just giving birth or if it's injured."
In an instant,
Thousands of viewers erupted in shock and anger.
When the Third Prince captured the cub earlier,
Because the cub hadn't fully developed, its features weren't very clear.
They hadn't seen it clearly and thought it was some species that had gone extinct in modern times.
They never expected it to be a qilin's offspring?!
"How dare they capture a qilin's child?! Are they tired of living?"
...
Upon discovering its child was missing, the mother qilin let out a furious roar.
The beasts in the forest trembled!
Silence fell!
Following the traces of scent, the mother qilin tracked them all the way to the imperial palace.
The imperial palace, the Third Prince's residence—
In the courtyard, on the cold stone-paved ground.
The qilin cub lay covered in blood, on the verge of death.
Around it were some blood-stained implements, carelessly discarded.
The young qilin's eyes were not yet open, and its scales had not fully grown.
Delicate and weak, its defense was no different from that of a lamb.
It had no power to resist the harm inflicted upon it by these people.
"Why is it so weak..."
The Third Prince found it rather disappointing and waved his hand, saying,
"Clean it up quickly... Oh, and its blood smells quite fragrant, save some for me."
Just as the Third Prince was about to turn and enter the house, and the guards were bowing in assent,
A roar, like that of a ferocious beast, suddenly echoed from the sky.
It carried an ancient pressure that made all beasts submit,
Causing hearts to pound and an inexplicable fear to arise.
The Third Prince's body went cold, and he looked up at the sky.
Upon seeing what it was, he trembled and stammered,
"Wh-what is that?"
Instantly, the sky changed color.
All the citizens in the city looked towards the imperial palace.
Dark clouds churned in the sky,
And a voice, filled with grief and rage, as if from a deity,
Directly entered their minds.
"You have harmed my qilin cub without cause, and you shall face great calamity, repaying it with flesh and blood!"
"Peace shall not be restored until a wise ruler appears!"
As the words ended, the dark clouds dispersed.
The mother qilin, carrying its dying cub, vanished.
The citizens of the city knelt, filled with dread.
"Heavenly deity, please be appeased, heavenly deity, please be appeased!"
They had no idea what had happened or what to do.
They were simply terrified by this unknown power.
Within the imperial palace, the Emperor also heard the voice.
"What in the world is going on?!"
The eunuch beside him hesitated, then stepped forward and whispered a few words.
"What?! He actually captured a qilin cub?!"
The Emperor, upon hearing the explanation, turned ashen.
He couldn't help but spit out a mouthful of blood.
"Wicked son, wicked son!"
He slammed heavily on the table before him, feeling his head spin and his heart constrict.
Then, his vision went black.
Bang!
The Emperor collapsed straight down.
The eunuch guarding him panicked and screamed,
"Guards, quickly, guards—His Majesty has fainted!"
...
"A dragon has scales that should not be touched; to touch them is to invite death!"
"Originally, the qilin should be a gentle, auspicious beast!"
"Ignorance is one thing, but to do something like this... If you don't recognize something, can't you at least show some reverence?"
Seeing the qilin cub lying on the ground, covered in blood, the viewers in the live stream were all indignant.
They wished they could rush forward and punch the Third Prince twice.
Is this guy an idiot?! Is he on medication?!
That's a qilin!
They wished they could see one!
And yet, he injured a qilin like this!
"As expected, in any era, there are people who court death!"
"If you don't court death, you won't die!"
"No wonder we don't see qilin nowadays... Sigh, if it were me, I'd be too lazy to bother with humans."
They were hiding peacefully in the mountains, raising a child, went out for a bit, and the child almost died?
Anyone would get angry in such a situation!
It's not just humans who exhibit protective behavior towards their young.
...