Chapter 44: First Glimpse of Prominence
The fox spirit flickered into motion and leaned against the head of the bed.
She clutched her arm, her eyes still wide with lingering fear, then twisted into a bitter, resentful sneer: “Fine, fine, fine—I thought the Lin family was lying to me, but it was really you who killed Yin Lang.”
As she spoke, the fox spirit suddenly yanked back the quilt.
Lin Baiwei wore only a thin undergarment, her bare shoulders exposed; her lovely face bore several dark bruises, and dried blood crusted at the corner of her lips.
Her gaze was hazy, struggling to maintain consciousness.
The fox spirit gripped her throat, her sharp nails sinking deep into the flesh, voice shrill: “I told you to sleep with this slut, to torment this slut, to kill this slut! Yet you’ve gone and learned martial arts from her!”
“You’re quite the teacher, my Lin Deputy Commander. So easily you turned my dog against me—how many favors did you let him take?”
Their faces were identical, yet jealousy churned in the fox spirit’s eyes, lending her features a faintly monstrous edge.
At the moment the title was spoken, a flicker of barely perceptible panic crossed Lin Baiwei’s hazy eyes.
After a moment, though weak, she still forced a faint smile: “You talk too much. Enough already—I’m still hungry.”
Watching Lin Baiwei close her eyes.
The fox spirit’s gaze grew cold, sneering: “No wonder you’ve got a patron—still calm even in ruin… Why pretend this composure? I can’t kill you, but can he?”
At these words, Lin Baiwei finally stirred, lips pressed tight: “...”
The fox spirit sneered sideways: “A thing so easily bought by petty kindness—do you really think she’s kind? Pig-brain! Do you know that with her master’s status, merely binding her that day was a crime worthy of ten thousand cuts?”
Shen Yi silently watched the bell before him.
From start to finish, the fox spirit hadn’t cared for it—but the thing moved without wind.
Even under the perfected Blood Demon Blade Art, the black blade could not cut another inch.
It was less a weapon than something imagined—a protective talisman.
So this world’s demonic arts were truly astonishing.
No wonder the famed demonic clans—just a second-generation spawn could broaden one’s horizons.
“Are you even listening to me?” The fox spirit waved her hand, recalling the copper bell to her fingers, visibly irritated.
“...” Though her heart trembled, Lin Baiwei couldn’t help a faint twitch of her lips—this coldness wasn’t aimed solely at her.
Shen Yi sheathed his long blade and walked toward the two women.
“Stop right there! Don’t move!”
Perhaps the previous slash had been too brutal, leaving psychological scars.
Seeing him approach, the fox spirit instinctively tightened her grip; crimson blood welled down Lin Baiwei’s neck, drawing a muffled groan and a frown.
Until the youth, as if deaf, stepped forward and stood before her.
The fox spirit stared at his impassive face—and suddenly felt something was wrong.
Shen Yi and Lin Baiwei’s relationship was not nearly as close as she’d imagined—not even lovers, let alone teacher and disciple.
“If you don’t care for her, why not just finish her cleanly? I’ll let you flee to North Cliff… Let the matter of Yin Lang drop…”
After a pause, the fox spirit offered a condition he could not refuse.
Shen Yi had already angered the Demon Suppression Bureau—there was no retreat left.
They were all on the same rope; those damned Bureau Captains had already slipped into the county. She’d grown bored with the Lin family. This game was over.
Hearing this, Lin Baiwei slowly opened her eyes, gazing at the youth. Her red lips parted, as if to explain—but she felt too weak.
She’d planned to wait until they grew closer, then reveal her identity—but now the fox spirit had exposed everything. With Shen Yi’s cautious nature, no matter how much she spoke, he would never believe her assurances.
As she thought this, she suddenly saw Shen Yi raise his hand.
Slap!
His long, powerful fingers struck the fox spirit’s cheek—unprepared.
The overwhelming force beyond the Initial Realm burst from his fingertips; the fox spirit’s delicate frame was flung backward, then seized by the nape of her neck and slammed into the door!
“You won’t kill her—why play the tough guy?”
Shen Yi rubbed his wrist and turned to look.
The fox spirit lay sprawled on the ground, face contorted, long fur sprouting, lips protruding, spitting out broken teeth.
That casual throw had broken several of her ribs.
When she looked up again, her fox face was filled with venom: “You’re dead… When I report to my Third Great-Uncle, I’ll peel your skin off myself…”
To provoke both the Demon Suppression Bureau and the North Cliff Fox Clan—this man had no future left in Qingzhou!
Lin Baiwei’s face was stunned, staring at the tall, upright back before her.
She’d thought… he’d at least ask about her origins. After all, she’d concealed so much—fearing that once he knew everything, he’d cut her throat in desperation.
Now that the truth was out, Shen Yi’s violent action was nothing like she’d imagined.
“...”
Lin Baiwei’s taut nerves finally eased slightly; the forced smile faded—after all, smiling with a split lip hurt terribly.
She steadied her breath, voice hoarse: “Ignore her. She’s not right in the head.”
As long as she remained in Baiyun County, the fox spirit’s Third Great-Uncle would never dare set foot here—otherwise, he wouldn’t have merely sealed her meridians and sent her back.
Even the desire to kill her was merely this little fox’s own whim.
Of course, Lin Baiwei didn’t want Shen Yi entangled with the fox spirit either.
With the copper bell talisman granted by her elder, even an ordinary Jade Fluid cultivator couldn’t hold her without some brutal method.
That blow earlier hadn’t been life-threatening, and the fox spirit hadn’t reacted in time—so the bell hadn’t triggered.
But if she truly forced the fox spirit into a fight to the death, stirred its fury…
At that moment, Lin Baiwei suddenly saw Shen Yi step forward.
She gritted her teeth, reached out, and grabbed his sleeve: “I’m truly fine—no need to…”
Shen Yi turned, glancing at her with a strange look.
Under his gaze, Lin Baiwei bit her lip, suddenly embarrassed—she’d misunderstood, just like the fox spirit.
“That’s not what I meant—you… you’re no match for it…”
The more she spoke, the more tangled it became; she seemed to have lost her usual calm and wit.
“...”
The fox spirit slowly pushed herself up, icy eyes fixed on the two, then raised the bell in her hand.
The bell chimed clearly—the air froze.
Compared to before, this active activation drained her aura rapidly—but the bell’s power had multiplied tenfold!
The fox spirit couldn’t understand: why, with the same face, wearing the same clothes, could this woman be so lucky at every turn? Even when facing her Third Great-Uncle, she survived. Even when dragged away by the evil constables, she remained a virgin, untouched by even a scratch.
Even as her neck was about to be snapped, she’d managed that annoying smile.
The fox spirit’s jealousy deepened, coalescing into venom: “Even you, this worthless dog, favor her! I can’t kill her—so I’ll kill you first!”
Two short daggers appeared in her hands; amid the clear chime, she lunged at Shen Yi.
Lin Baiwei felt her body frozen, her expression shifting.
Even when she’d once encountered a Golden Core demon, her composure had held—yet now, rare panic flickered across her face.
Suddenly, she felt Shen Yi gently shake off her hand.
In this void of stagnant air, how could he still move?
The next instant, invisible qi gathered in the room, solidifying before her eyes.
Like countless flying swords, suspended midair.
A chilling chill spread through the room—silent, inhuman.
The fox spirit, daggers in hand, stared, stunned, at the youth standing with hands at his sides.
Shen Yi stood motionless, pale-faced, his gaze as still as a deep well.
He shifted his intent slightly—and the fox spirit instantly felt her aura locked, as if her throat had been clenched in an iron grip.
In an instant, countless true Gang surged forth, hammering the fox spirit from all sides!
(End of Chapter)
(End of Chapter)
End of Chapter
