Chapter 17: The Fox

The Wangyou Tavern in Liangcheng has actually closed its doors; many wine lovers are sighing and lamenting, and acquaintances are running about asking one another, yet no one knows the reason why.

Some busybodies went to the Jingwei Study to inquire, but were told by the study boy that Master Zhuang was unwell and not receiving guests, and so on.

Thus, everyone speculated: could it be that Master Zhuang's time is near, and Lady Zhuang is so exhausted from serving medicine that she has no energy to run the tavern?

This has panicked those who are fond of wine; the Qionghua Dew that previously flowed through various restaurants has become a hot commodity, and the price of the wine has been driven up to ten gold per tael.

What was originally a common item that anyone could taste has suddenly become a symbol of status for the local wealthy.

Those who had their souls snatched by witchcraft were also sent back to their homes, but these people acted as if they had just gone out yesterday and returned today, and their families were the same, as if the soul-snatching had never happened. This actually made things convenient for the local government; to avoid public unrest, they just went with the flow.

Prefect He also woke up not long after that, much to the joy of the old Assistant Prefect, who was moved to tears and busily ordered a banquet to be set to thank Lingxiang and her group.

At the banquet, the Prefect was startled upon seeing Lingxiang, then bowed low to the ground in a grand salute; everyone was stunned, as this gesture was perhaps a bit excessive.

Prefect He hurriedly explained that the grace of saving a life is like a rebirth, so put that way, it was reasonable.

The few of them stayed in Liangcheng for several days, and once their injuries were seven or eight parts healed, they prepared to set off and leave.

Lu Ying was going to visit his family in the border town of Youlu, which is north of Liangcheng, while Guyang City is located southeast of Liangcheng, so he left a day early.

After bidding farewell to Prefect He and Assistant Prefect Zhao, who insisted on seeing them off outside the city, Lingxiang and Long Qi set off with many local specialties.

"Oh my," Lingxiang suddenly said while walking, "I was born with such beauty, unlike some people who are just like a mother tiger~~" The sentence was spoken like the mountain roads of Dian Mountain; the tone twisted and turned more intricately than an opera singer's aria.

Long Qi was stunned at first, then looked left and right to change the subject: "Hey, isn't this because you were struck by the Soul-Snatching Technique, leaving your mind unsettled?"

"Ah~ is that so? Why do I feel like I'm missing what I should have." Lingxiang said, dusting off her sleeves, "It's clearly just a man~"

Long Qi sighed inwardly that it was bad: this mother tiger is really something; how long ago was that, and she still remembers it so clearly? Truly, only women and small-minded people are hard to deal with.

She is both a woman and very small-minded...

"Hey, I was just saying that casually. You're the master, why are you still being so petty? Do you really want to lower yourself to the level of a disciple?"

Hearing this, Lingxiang stopped in her tracks, turned her head, smiled at Long Qi, and said: "I don't have many strengths, but I am a master at holding a grudge."

As she spoke, she took out a tree branch from who knows where and struck at Long Qi. Long Qi hurriedly used the parcel containing the specialties to block, retreating while shouting: "I was wrong! You are definitely not a man; what man would be as unreasonable and lawless as you? You... you are just a mother tiger!" After saying this, he hurriedly grabbed the bag and ran.

Upon hearing this, Lingxiang was so angry she could barely contain herself. "What did you say! I am a mother tiger?! Hmph! Fine, Long Qi, today your master is going to teach you a lesson and let you know what it means to respect your teacher!" Saying this, she chased after him.

The two were bickering and playing around, while on a high spot not far away, Zhuang Wei stood tall like a crane, a smile on his lips, watching them drift further and further away. In his arms was a long-tailed red fox; the fox's eyes were half-closed, as if in deep sleep. Looking closely, there was a patch of matted fur on the red fox's hind leg, likely having been injured before...

On the night of the full moon, when Assistant Prefect Zhao was getting up at night, he saw a figure flash past outside the window. When he went out to look, it was Long Qi, but his expression was strange, like a sleepwalker.

The old Assistant Prefect thought of the soul-snatching case in an instant and hurriedly called his attendants to notify Lingxiang, while he went to find Lu Ying himself.

When he arrived at Lu Ying's place, he didn't expect Lingxiang to be there too, seemingly discussing important matters. Seeing them both fully dressed, as if about to go out, he hurriedly told them about Long Qi.

Lingxiang and Lu Ying hurried toward the yamen upon hearing this, and instructed that no one should follow them to avoid unnecessary sacrifices.

The two left the yamen and happened to see Long Qi turning the corner of an alley, so they followed quietly. On the way, Lingxiang told Lu Ying her hypothesis and urged him to find Master Zhuang and inform him, otherwise, with just the two of them, they would certainly be no match.

Lu Ying also felt this made sense, but Master Zhuang and Lady Zhuang were a deeply affectionate couple, and he feared they might not believe him when the time came.

In the dead of night, everyone had long since gone to bed. When he found Master Zhuang's bedroom, Lady Zhuang was indeed not there; only Master Zhuang was lying on the bed, but he could not be woken up no matter what.

Lu Ying suddenly thought of the Calm Spirit Talisman Lingxiang had given him on the road, so he hurriedly took it out and attached it to him. Sure enough, he had been put under a hypnosis spell.

Master Zhuang did not believe him at first when he heard what he said, but when he was asked about his wife's whereabouts, he fell silent.

The two then split up to search, but when they met again, Master Zhuang had already lost his life...

"Husband, if I hadn't met you, I wouldn't have known there was such a thing as love in this world that is more intoxicating than wine. But once I knew, I became deeply trapped, unable to pull myself out..." Yao Yi stroked Zhuang Wei's face and murmured: "If there is no you in this world, what is the point of me remaining alone..."

She lowered her head and kissed his forehead; a tear fell and flowed down his cheek.

After a long while, she finally parted reluctantly, and gazed at him for a long time.

Suddenly, a ghostly light flashed in Yao Yi's eyes, and then she spat out two beads from her mouth—one pearly white, one fiery red—they were Demon Cores.

Seeing this, Lingxiang hurriedly spoke: "If you use these to prolong his life, you will die and go to the Yellow Springs. Is a hundred years of cultivation worth it?"

Yao Yi looked at Lingxiang and smiled sweetly.

"You are not a fox, how can you know what a fox worries about? You are not me, how can you know what I think." As she spoke, she crushed the two Demon Cores.

Strands of Spirit Power dispersed from Yao Yi's hands, winding and drifting like fireworks, yet so gentle. It wrapped around Zhuang Wei for a long time, then suddenly drifted away, filling the entire Liangcheng.

"Sigh..." Lingxiang sighed and took two pills from her Universe Bag.

A strange fragrance wafted over; Long Qi hurriedly looked at the person in his arms—it was actually a Life-Prolonging Pill again!

"What are you doing?" Lu Ying was also startled when he saw this.

"In the end, she really didn't harm any human lives; she can be considered kind. With her power, if she really wanted to prolong Master Zhuang's life, she could have used that extreme method of trading life for life." Saying this, she stood up and walked into the courtyard.

There, Zhuang Wei lay quietly as if in a deep sleep, tear stains still on the corners of his eyes, but there was not a single wound on his body.

Long Qi looked over and saw a long-tailed red fox curled up beside Zhuang Wei.

Lingxiang stuffed the pills into the red fox's mouth and channeled her energy to activate them.

"I hope this can save your life. If your luck is good, this Gathering Spirit Pill might even help you take human form..."

A gust of wind blew, scattering the black clouds covering the moon, rippling the water in the pool, and shaking the Qiong Tree flowers by the pool.

The red fox in Zhuang Wei's arms opened its eyes, looked at the two people walking away, and then closed them again, as if it had fallen asleep once more.

When the wind rose, it blew Zhuang Wei's robes; he stroked the red fox and turned to walk into the city.

Truly, where are the flowers that seem like flowers yet are not, the mist comes and goes and is hard to dispel; the most affectionate is the fox on the path, finding a good match to be with forever.