Tradition / Region: Chinese Mythology
Alternate Names: —
Category: Dog
The Myth
In strange tales recorded in old Chinese stories, there is mention of terrifying creatures known as the Wild Dogs.
They were not ordinary animals but monstrous beings said to roam battlefields and places of death. Their bodies were beast-like, while their heads resembled those of humans. They fed not on flesh alone but on the brains of the dead, tearing open skulls to suck out what lay within.
One story tells of a man named Li Hualong who fled into the mountains during a time of rebellion and war. Dead bodies lay everywhere across the land. When he saw soldiers approaching, he feared he would be captured and killed. To escape notice, he lay down among the corpses and pretended to be dead.
While he lay there, a creature approached. It had a human-like head and moved among the bodies, gnawing at their skulls and feeding on their brains. When it came near him, Li Hualong seized a stone and struck it in the mouth. The monster fled, leaving a trail of blood behind as it escaped into the wild.
Afterward, in the place where the creature had bled, two of its teeth were found. They were long, curved, and sharp, proof that the thing had not been a dream but one of the dreadful Wild Dogs that haunted the aftermath of war.
Thus these creatures were remembered as horrors of desolate places — dog-like monsters that followed death itself, feeding upon the fallen where no one dared remain.
Gallery
Sources
Wikipedia contributors. (n.d.). 野狗子. In Wikipedia, from https://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E9%87%8E%E7%8B%97%E5%AD%90
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