Chapter 624: Tomorrow, You and I Will Act Together

Lu Wu halted, "Male?"

Tuan Tuan shouted at Xiao Feifei: "Don't run! Xiao Feifei! Uncle Xiao Er, what is Xiao Feifei?"

Xiao Er bent down, scooped up Xiao Feifei, lifted her to look, and gave a goofy smile: "Luckily, after a glance, Xiao Feifei is also male."

Tuan Tuan suddenly understood: "Xiao Feifei, so you're male after all!"

She took Xiao Feifei from Xiao Er's arms and, in a gentle but earnest tone, explained: "Good, Xiao Feifei, you're male, and that wild fox is also male."

"You just want a companion, so you should look for a female fox, understand?"

Xiao Er nodded: "Miss is right, Xiao Feifei, that wild fox is male; let's go back."

Xiao Feifei seemed a bit disappointed, her little head drooping.

Tuan Tuan hurriedly comforted her: "It's not your fault, it's that wild fox's fault!"

Lu Wu was stunned, "How am I not good? I haven't done anything yet!"

When Tuan Tuan looked at him again, her face full of disdain: "You, a male fox, why come looking for my Xiao Feifei?"

"You're so ugly, and you're just male!"

She lowered her head and kissed the top of Xiao Feifei's head: "Good, let's go back; when we have time I'll find you a pretty one!"

"This one won't do, it's terribly ugly!"

Xiao Feifei nestled in Tuan Tuan's arms, lifted her head, and stared at the gray fox for a while.

Lu Wu shook his tail vigorously, trying to make another effort.

Xiao Feifei let out a "chitter", grinning widely.

Then, she turned her head and buried her little head into Tuan Tuan's lap, never looking at him again.

Lu Wu froze in place, his tail no longer wagging.

That stinky fox actually mocked me again!

Tuan Tuan cradled Xiao Feifei, turned and walked back, muttering: "Strange, why would a male fox come looking for you?"

"Looks like he's not only ugly, his brain must have problems too; truly both ugly and stupid!"

"Xiao Feifei, you agree, right?"

"Eek—" Xiao Feifei licked her hand once, indicating agreement.

Xiao Er stifled a laugh, following behind: "Miss is right!"

He turned back and saw that the wild fox was still standing dumbfounded, shaking its head: "Truly both ugly and stupid, unfit for Miss's Xiao Feifei!"

Lu Wu stood like a statue, watching them walk back into the depths of the Main Camp.

The sunset stretched his shadow long across the ground.

After a while, he finally came to his senses and extracted his spirit from the gray fox's body.

Lu Wu looked at its gray, mottled fur, while Tuan Tuan's words echoed repeatedly in his ears.

"Not only ugly, the brain must have problems too; truly both ugly and stupid."

The familiar choking pressure in his chest returned, worse than before.

The gray fox flicked its tail, glanced around, and darted back into the bushes.

On the carriage, Lu Wu's spirit returned to his own body.

Recalling the earlier scene, a mouthful of refined blood wanted to spurt out, but he forced it back down.

He could no longer vomit blood; if he kept spitting it out, even the simplest spells would become impossible to cast.

He hurriedly sat in meditation to regulate his breath, keeping silent, intending to smooth the airflow first.

But outside the carriage, the guards' idle chatter drifted in:

"Sir, why do you trust these mages so much? He's just an old man!"

"Exactly, I think the same; he's like the charlatans here, yet we bow to him respectfully—on what grounds?"

"Right! I think he can't even withstand a single punch from me! What a mage! Bah!"

You know nothing! How dare you speak of me like that behind my back!

Lu Wu's chest churned, and he could no longer hold it; a mouthful of fresh blood spurted out.

This time, he didn't even have time to shield it with his sleeve; it sprayed directly onto the carriage's side wall.

The people outside clearly heard the commotion, and the idle chatter stopped instantly.

Wei Shen walked to the carriage, knocked on the wall, and called, "Mage?"

Lu Wu clutched the carriage door curtain with one hand, while the other raised his sleeve to hurriedly wipe the blood inside.

He forced down his anger, lowered his voice: "Today there are too many of them, all gathered together; we didn't find a chance to strike. Let's go back first, and return another day."

"Yes!" Wei Shen waved his hand: "Turn around, go back!"

Back in the small courtyard, Lu Wu sat alone in the quiet room, candlelight casting his shadow on the wall, motionless.

He closed his eyes, replaying the events of the past two days in his mind countless times.

That fox followed that child all day, as well as that dark‑skinned big man; it could not be shaken off.

Making a Shikigami out of plants, soil, and mud is far too foolish, unable to protect itself.

What else could be used?

What else is usable in Princess Consort Ning's tent?

Right! He snapped his eyes open, a flash of brilliance in them.

He could use the soldiers guarding the tent!

Outside Princess Consort Ning's tent, there are always the guarding soldiers; how many are there?

Two, that's right—just two.

If I use one of them as a Shikigami, when that child comes out to play, I can find any pretext to lure her out of the Main Camp.

Isn't the great success already achieved?

He stood up, paced around the room, and the more he thought, the more he felt the plan was feasible.

However, besides that fox, the child always had a tall black man following them, who didn't look easy to deal with.

It doesn't matter; as long as we lure them out of Main Camp, dozens of our men can swarm them—could we still fail to capture a child and a guard?

That fox is just a beast; what use is it?

But what about that Gu Worm?

The Supreme Elder not only wants the child, but also wants that Gu Worm.

Fine, let them be; after I use the child's blood to make my cultivation surge, I can think about it later.

The only difficulty is that using a person as a Shikigami consumes far more vital blood than using a moth or a beast.

If we really do this, and it fails…

He stopped, lowered his gaze to his gaunt hands.

Since arriving in Zhongyuan, the vital blood he vomited out for casting hasn't been replenished at all.

If he wastes that much again… whether he can return is uncertain.

Lu Wu gritted his teeth.

Never mind, at this point there's no way back.

If he returns empty‑handed, he'll be a complete waste in front of the Supreme Elder.

The secret medicine formula has already been handed over; now the only thing that can keep him alive is the method of concoction.

He can only go all out!

He sat cross‑legged on the mat, closed his eyes, and regulated his breath.

He sat like that for a full two days.

Two days later, he opened his eyes; his complexion was still pale, but his spirit had improved considerably.

He called Wei Shen into the room.

"General Wei, tomorrow you will act together with me."

Wei Shen was startled: "Together?"