Chapter 396: After the Mess

Terrifying energy scourged the sky; a blinding beam of light, like a surging river of radiance, cleaved through the curtain of rain, even dispersing this eternal downpour over a considerable area.

Wherever the beam struck, rain instantly evaporated, clouds curled and trembled, shockwaves shattered the layered clouds, and even brought a brief moment of sunlight to this sky—when the beam gradually faded, that long-lost ray of sun pierced through the clouds, shining upon the distant ancient refinement tower.

Yet after a mere moment, the clouds slowly closed back up, and the rain once again fell from the heavens.

The few surviving black-robed cultivators sensed the gathering of that terrifying energy the instant Irene raised her hand; they scattered like birds and beasts at once, and Hu Li and Luna didn't even have time to intercept them.

The remaining demonic beasts, losing control amidst the violent surges of residual energy, charged wildly about, only to be swept clean by a dense barrage of fox-fire.

The jade-faced golden fox girl in the red dress looked up at the sky in a daze, unable to speak a word for a long while; only when the rain fell again did she jolt back to her senses, then clutching her tail, she trembled uncontrollably.

Zheng Zhi stood dazed for a long time, then turned his head to look beside him.

Just moments ago, the six-tailed hidden fox had awakened again, only to see the scene of Irene's light cannon clearing the sky, so he shouted "My life is doomed!" once more, and now he had fainted again.

But this time Zhen Yuanhao ignored the fainted hidden fox; instead, after rising, he gazed thoughtfully at the small doll still floating in the sky, its body crackling with random sparks of electricity. After stroking his chin and pondering for a long while, he murmured to himself: "... What is the principle behind this?"

Hu Li looked left and right, suddenly sniffed the air, ran swiftly to a corner of the battlefield, and found the Irene (Rebar Steel) that had been flung from mid-air earlier in a mud pit—truly, this body, being made of Rebar Steel, was not only powerful but incredibly sturdy; falling from such a height hadn't even caused it to fall apart, though it looked a bit dizzy.

"Are you okay?" Hu Li reached out, lifted the wretched little doll from the mud pit, then wiped her face a couple of times with her hand, "I saw you fall from the sky just now..."

Irene (Rebar Steel) was dizzy and confused, her eyes half-open and half-closed; it took a long while before she finally re-established connection with this body. She looked up at Hu Li: "F-f-fell... I almost died from the fall!"

As she spoke, another Irene (Promax/Xuan Iron/Lightning Charge+++/Over-saturated/pikapika) also tumbled down from the sky in a crooked manner. She still retained a powerful charging effect all over her body, with currents of electricity jumping everywhere, and even her voice carried a static crackle: "So exciting!!"

Hu Li's hair and tail instantly stood on end. Seeing Irene (Promax/that long string) crackling with electricity all over, she quickly let one tail droop down to touch the ground while widening her eyes: "Can this body be overcharged?!"

"I didn't know that either!" As Irene spoke now, sparks flew from her mouth. "Just now I thought I was going to explode, but when I came to my senses, I blew up that guy over there... Oh my god!"

As she said this, she suddenly slapped her forehead, looking regretful as if she had just remembered something: "No survivors! I evaporated him with one shot!"

While speaking, she quickly raised her head, glanced at the sky her light cannon had just swept, and muttered rapidly: "It's over, it's over... Yu Sheng definitely wanted to take him alive. This suddenly appeared member of the Holy Hidden Cult, and from the look of him, he's no ordinary lower-level follower. If we had taken him alive, how much could we have learned... and I just blasted him away..."

As she spoke, footsteps sounded nearby again. It was Luna approaching. She looked down at the little doll still muttering on the ground, crackling with Jin Guang, and slowly remarked: "Ailin, control, not good."

"That's because I'm not familiar with it! Not familiar, okay?!" Irene (that long string) immediately widened her eyes, staring at Luna with electric intensity, "And besides, if you're so capable, you go fight him—you've never fought before..."

She paused, then looked up at the sky again, hesitantly: "So, um, do you think there's a possibility that the cultist from just now might still have some remains left? Bringing them back might still allow for rescue... Didn't they say the Holy Hidden Cult is best at bio-engineering? And the higher-level members are harder to kill... Stupid Fox, what's with that look in your eyes!"

"I think you're talking nonsense," Hu Li evaluated seriously, "Just think about it yourself, is that possible?"

"If it's impossible, then it's impossible..." Irene (that long string) mumbled, while her peripheral vision caught Zhen Yuanhao and Zheng Zhi walking over, so she reluctantly shut her mouth.

"Where did Yu Sheng go?" Zhen Yuanhao spoke first, his old-scholar expression exceptionally grave, with a hint of confusion mixed in: "I just saw a flash of Lei Ting..."

As he spoke, he stopped hesitantly, a strange feeling stirring in his heart.

Because reason, experience, and his perception just now all told him that when that flash of Lei Ting occurred, Yu Sheng... probably, maybe, seemingly, perhaps, had been struck and obliterated. Although that moment was extremely brief, and the scene of his body shattering and vanishing was invisible to the naked eye, the result seemed obvious without needing to think.

Moreover, his divine sense had even perceived Yu Sheng's life force dissipating in that instant.

Yet Irene and the others were acting as if nothing had happened.

This huge anomaly made Zhen Yuanhao doubt his own judgment for the first time in his life. Although he didn't know exactly what was happening, it seemed... at this moment, he shouldn't be worrying about Yu Sheng's condition?

He frowned and glanced again at Zheng Zhi beside him.

The result was that Zheng Zhi's expression also looked somewhat bewildered.

At this moment, Irene coughed twice. As the second-in-command with the most experience in handling Yu Sheng's affairs in the Traveler's Inn, she knew it was time for her to step up and bluff.

"Don't worry, he'll be back soon," the little doll said, looking up, then glanced at Zheng Zhi again, "Don't ask too many questions; you'll know in a moment anyway."

Then she looked at Zhen Yuanhao: "You too; you won't know in a moment anyway."

The two heard this, but neither could understand a thing.

But Irene clearly had no intention of explaining further; she quickly changed the subject.

"How is that square-headed fox doing just now?"

As Irene finished speaking, the red-dressed girl nearby, who had been cautiously approaching but dared not get too close, instead clutching her tail with a tense expression from a short distance, suddenly perked up her ears. She quickly turned her head to look at her great-uncle, then immediately looked at Zhen Yuanhao with renewed tension.

"His life force is protected; he won't die for the time being," Zhen Yuanhao said. Although his heart was full of doubts, after seeing Irene's obvious unwillingness to explain further, he temporarily put aside his curiosity and nodded. "However, both his heart meridian and spiritual consciousness are severely damaged; he still needs to be sent to Qianfeng Spirit Mountain for treatment."

Irene waved her hand: "Fine then, we'll wait for Yu Sheng to return, open a door, and send the injured over... Let's go rest for a while first."

The group soon returned to the collapsed abandoned factory.

Zhen Yuanhao erected a barrier against wind and rain over the factory. Under the barrier, the severely injured six-tailed hidden fox's breathing had now stabilized.

Luna went over to scan the injured person's vital signs, then stood in an unobtrusive corner and entered standby mode.

Zheng Zhi took out his phone and began pondering how to write today's work report—such a major incident had occurred; regardless, a report should be submitted to the Bureau.

Irene (Rebar Steel) futilely tried to wipe her skirt and hair, which were dirty from falling into the mud pit, but no matter how she wiped, they wouldn't get clean. Finally, she despondently flicked her hand away, waiting for Yu Sheng to return so he could open a door and take her home to bathe.

The jade-faced golden fox girl in the red dress stood somewhat stiffly beside the hidden fox, her face full of tension like a child waiting for elders to question her. After that dangerous and bizarre battle just now, she was clearly even more fearful when interacting with this group of "strange experts" who had appeared out of nowhere.

Hu Li clearly saw this. Being a canine creature herself, she felt some closeness to the golden fox girl before her and tried to speak to help the other relax: "Don't be so tense... being nervous often makes you shed fur."

But as soon as this Nine-Tailed Silver Fox Immortal spoke, the local fox opposite became even more nervous. Her state of clutching her tail tightly made one worry she might pull one of her own tails off.

"Stupid Fox, you should say less," Irene (that long string) said upon seeing this. While still crackling with electricity, she casually patted Hu Li's tail, causing the latter to stand her fur on end from the shock, then turned with a smile toward the red-dressed girl: "By the way, what's your name? I forgot to ask in all the chaos just now."

"I, I am called Ling Long," the jade-faced golden fox quickly replied, lowering her head. She immediately added a few more sentences: "My great-uncle is called Shang An. Our original home is Star Eight Gate, but for most of the last hundred years, we have lived at Tai Xu Spirit Pivot..."

Ling Long quickly recounted her basic situation. Meanwhile, Zhen Yuanhao, after listening, slightly raised his eyebrows: "You previously said you came here seeking an opportunity under the guidance of an immortal, but what you said then was not very clear. Now that things have settled, tell me properly—who exactly was this immortal? What was the guidance? Do you know what this so-called 'opportunity' you are seeking actually is?"

"Opportunity... it is just an opportunity," Ling Long scratched her head, seeming a bit confused herself. "My great-uncle said it might be a secret of Daoist arts left behind by an ancient great power, but the specific form can only be known once seen. As for the immortal..."

She paused here, recalling as she spoke: "Neither my great-uncle nor I clearly saw his appearance; we only heard his voice in a vision. He said his name was... 'Yun Qingzi'."

Instantly, silence fell over the abandoned factory.

(End of Chapter)