Chapter 11: Modern Mountain Spirits

An Sheng dragged a large sack of plump mountain rats down the slope, feeling something stir within him, and turned back to glance with a silent thought:

“The gear in that supply depot could’ve sent the former boss all the way to America, but it’s useless now.”

“Times have changed. No more gunfire from outsiders here.”

An Sheng was naturally delighted to have unexpectedly acquired a weapons depot—the room held heavy machine guns, even antique water-cooled Maxim heavy machine guns.

But the times had changed.

A fire on the mountain, and the Public Security Bureau adores me.

Gunpowder’s fire is still fire.

Though he couldn’t let loose with a rat-a-tat-tat, An Sheng still gained a collectible toy he adored.

Firearms were useless; in peaceful modern China, what foxes needed wasn’t guns or cannons, but fluffy tails and rear ends fitted with electric motors.

At 4:25 a.m., An Sheng returned to Zhangxizhen and stood before Chen’s door.

“Old Chen, you home? I brought you local specialties—and I need to borrow your bathroom. Otherwise, I reek of musk and won’t be able to explain it when I get home.”

An Sheng placed the mountain rats in Chen Fengshui’s courtyard, crept toward Chen’s house, muttered a quiet “mew” to acknowledge his presence, then swiftly ran inside to turn on the bathroom light and bathe.

First he’d fought a king cobra in the trash pile, then climbed the mountain and battled the rats in two rounds.

An Sheng hadn’t sweated, but his whole body reeked—he couldn’t sleep in bed like this.

Public restrooms had no soap, so he had no choice but to borrow Chen’s bathroom.

Lin Ying’s bathroom was free too, but that girl was too rich.

After bathing at her place, he’d be drenched in long-lasting luxury body wash scent.

Since being reborn as a fox, An Sheng was allergic to overly strong smells—his nose would ache terribly.

“Splish-splash—”

An Sheng leapt up with a hook punch, turned on the shower valve, crouched on the floor, and scrubbed his face with his front paws, washing off the dirt, musk, and rotting-food stench.

Then he dragged the non-slip mat by the door, stepped on it with all four paws, and scraped off the dirt from his soles and hard-to-clean crevices.

“Bathing is way more comfortable when Yu Xueqing scrubs me—doing it myself is such a hassle.”

As he bathed, An Sheng silently murmured in his heart about his caregiver’s kindness.

He hadn’t noticed before, but since becoming a fox, he now felt life’s inconveniences acutely.

In human society, everything was designed and optimized for human bodies—extremely difficult for a fox to use.

After bathing, An Sheng stepped out, shook off the water, and stole a glance at Chen’s door.

Even in midsummer, the night temperature still hit thirty degrees; everyone kept their air conditioners on, and Chen naturally slept in his cooled room with the door shut.

An Sheng’s movements hadn’t disturbed Chen Fengshui’s sleep.

After glancing at the door, An Sheng put on a calm face, slipped out the window, and dragged the snake-skin sack full of mountain rats away from the courtyard.

“Mountain rat” was the scientific name. In the market, they were more commonly called “truffle rats.”

Mountain rats lived mostly above 1,500 meters, feeding primarily on bamboo shoots, mushrooms, and sweet potatoes.

They were fatter and larger than regular rats, but due to their high-altitude habitat, their predators included not just snakes and carnivorous beasts, but also aerial raptors—making them timid and cautious.

Thus, mountain rats sold for eighty yuan per jin, each usually priced around two hundred yuan.

This sack of An Sheng’s was worth over a thousand yuan easily.

If Chen woke up, An Sheng wouldn’t mind—these rats would serve as payment for the bath.

But since Chen hadn’t woken, didn’t that mean fate had no connection between him and the mountain rats?

Fate couldn’t be forced—it shortened your life—so An Sheng hurried home with the rats to treat Yu Xueqing.

Yet An Sheng didn’t know—

Chen had actually woken up.

He was older now, prone to frequent urination, and had long kept the habit of rising at five a.m. to pee.

Chen had stared wide-eyed as An Sheng dumped the rats into his chicken coop, then watched helplessly as An Sheng, dripping wet, dragged the sack away.

Chen Fengshui was speechless: “.”

At home, An Sheng knocked out all the mountain rats, then borrowed three rice sacks from Lai Fu’s house—originally used for storing grain.

Eight plump mountain rats: he gave two to Lai Fu’s family, two to Lin Ying’s, and dragged the remaining four back to Yu Xueqing’s courtyard.

Neither Yu Xueqing nor Lin Ying would stew the rats, but Yu Xueqing could call in backup—her parents could cook them.

Lin Ying’s side was even simpler: An Sheng knew her family always had a maid, though none stayed overnight.

Otherwise, with Lin Ying’s current state, how could there be food on the kitchen island downstairs?

“Today is another hopeful day!”

After washing his tiny paws, An Sheng returned to bed, rolled over twice, exhaled deeply, and added today’s two collected Wish Power points to his body.

An Sheng earned three Wish Power points today.

Guarding the house, fixing the lock, plugging the dog hole: +1

After bathing, transforming into double doors: +1

And clearing the rat infestation also granted him one more point.

All three Wish Power points An Sheng earned came from charming and clowning around to extract them from Yu Xueqing.

If you add today’s three points—

In five months, An Sheng had added twenty-nine Wish Power points to his physique and one point experimentally to his mind.

With twenty-nine Wish Power points enhancing his physique, what could he do? He didn’t fully understand—but smashing bricks and lifting Lin Ying underwater posed no problem.

To test his strength properly, he’d need to visit a big city and use a punch-force tester and a horsepower machine.

“Mmm—”

An Sheng closed his eyes and fell asleep, emitting a soft snoring sound.

But just as he drifted off, a neighbor’s scream jolted him awake.

“Ahh—rats!”

An Sheng and Yu Xueqing, sharing the same bed, sat up in perfect sync, both blank-faced, glancing toward the window behind the curtains.

Rats? What kind of rats?

Yu Xueqing, still dazed, looked at the small fox sitting upright beside her, equally confused.

An Sheng had been half-asleep, barely conscious—he flopped back down, burrowed into the covers, and went right back to sleep.

“It’s not even light out. Summer vacation—no early classes.”

Yu Xueqing, half-asleep, pulled the fox close and mumbled: “I dreamed of a super strong fox spirit wielding a Green Dragon Crescent Blade, charging through a sea of rats.”

“But… so disappointing—the fox spirit had a human body with a fox head.”

“If it had been a full-sized fox, I can’t imagine how soft and fluffy it would’ve been.”

Yu Xueqing mumbled herself back to sleep.

Yet—

Four hours later, Yu Xueqing screamed again in the courtyard, startling An Sheng awake once more.

“.”

An Sheng struggled out of his blanket prison, grumbling, and pushed his head toward the windowsill.

He saw Yu Xueqing crouched before the mountain rat sack, talking to the neighbor from Lai Fu’s house.

“Someone brought in truffle rats—my house has two too.”

Lai Fu didn’t say a word. This morning, those rats scared the hell out of me. By Lai Fu’s fence stood a fish fry pond.

The neighbor stood by the pond, venting to Yu Xueqing about her terrible morning.

Half-asleep, she’d gone out to brush her teeth—then stepped on two mountain rats.

Both the woman and the rats screamed wildly.

One from pain, one from terror.

“Terrifying!”

Hearing the neighbor’s complaint, Yu Xueqing looked nervously at the rat sack: “I just woke up, went out to collect the clothes hung out in the courtyard, and saw those large black rats huddled together, baring their teeth.”

Yu Xueqing had eaten mountain rats before—but always after their black fur was removed and they were braised or stewed.

This raw, plump, full-furred version was her first time seeing one.

She took photos of the black rats and sent them via WeChat to her father, asking how to handle them.

But her father’s voice message shocked her.

WeChat replied: “Good stuff! But don’t touch them—any bite or scratch requires tetanus and rabies vaccines.”

“Good thing—I was going to pick you up for lunch and teach you how to sell products. Now it’s easier…”

“I’ll buy groceries with your mom, then we’ll head to the old house for lunch.”

Learning her father was coming to the old house, Yu Xueqing felt the sky was falling.

With a suffocated expression, she stared at the little fox peeking from the windowsill.

“Mmm?”

An Sheng looked at Yu Xueqing, confused, flicked his fluffy tail, and wore a completely clueless face.

【Oh no oh no—Dad will come with the pressure cooker after buying groceries! If he finds Xiao An, he’ll be forced to bathe inside high pressure!—Yu Xueqing prayed desperately in her heart, hoping her secret of keeping a fox wouldn’t be exposed; she feared her father would chase her little white furball with a knife.】

【Wish fulfilled: Family Joy (Sometimes, a ghost-fire ending isn’t such a bad option.)】

“Family Joy?” An Sheng tilted his head and involuntarily mewed twice.

Please support with monthly votes and follows—today there’s a new book entry recommendation





(End of chapter)