Chapter 373

With the sound of the jade pendant shattering, a strange fragrance rushed over.

That fragrance was extremely overbearing, drilling into the nasal passages, soaking the viscera, everywhere, as if every pore on the body had been instantly seized.

Everyone instantly flushed, their bodies went limp; those with slightly lower Xiūwéi soon turned into a puddle of mud, curled up on the ground groaning.

This strange fragrance came too suddenly; everyone had no preparation, including Feng Xianqiu.

When I was encircled by a white fox tail, Feng Xianqiu snarled through gritted teeth: "Hu Sanmei, you despicable!"

The woman's alluring laughter seemed to come from all directions: "Sān jiǎo yā, you know that in war deception is not despised? This girl is protected by this fox immortal; if you have the guts, come to Yin Mountain to take her, see if I don't pluck every hair off you!"

My vision suddenly went dark.

After a bout of dizziness, I only felt the surrounding temperature drop several degrees, actually cooler than just a moment ago on that yellow sand road.

As my feet just touched the ground, a slender finger lifted my chin; a face of overwhelming beauty loomed large before my eyes, those watery, dreamy large eyes with slightly upturned corners, boldly scanning me up and down.

"What a lovely little beauty, no wonder it bewitched my Yu Lin's Soul Essence," the finger slid over my cheek, finally landing on the 'slave' character on my lower right jaw, "what a pity."

She was too close, her fragrance enveloping me; my face unwillingly reddened all the way to the base of my neck.

Possibly due to the influence of that strange fragrance just now, I felt my thoughts a bit sluggish, my whole self somewhat dull.

I heard myself ask: "Who are you? Why isn't it the Fox Immortal appearing?"

The fragrant finger pressed to my brow, the woman coquettishly scolded: "You ungrateful wretch, to save you from that Sān jiǎo yā's grasp I lost a Nine Fragrance Pill, which I refined over a hundred years with my own heart's blood; you don't thank me, but only think of that Yu Lin brat, I'm so heartbroken."

She turned gracefully, then languidly leaned against the nearby consort's couch, one hand resting on her chest, putting on a sorrowful air.

I hurriedly explained: "I didn't mean that; the Fox Immortal gave me the jade pendant, saying if I broke it he would appear, so I asked, Fox… Fox Immortal sister, thank you for saving me."

"Your mouth is truly sweet." The woman instantly covered her face and laughed softly, beckoning me with a hand: "Good, come over."

I leaned over and sat beside the consort's couch.

"I am Hu Sanmei, one of the Five Blessings Immortals of Wufu Town Pawnshop," the woman said. "Yu Lin is a junior; you needn't constantly call him Fox Immortal, lest you shorten his lifespan! He is about to advance to eight tails, currently in seclusion; after he emerges he will face the Heavenly Tribulation, so you won't see him for a while."

I looked at her in astonishment.

Indeed, how could I not have thought of it at first? Who else besides the Yin Mountain master and the Fox Immortal among the Five Blessings Immortals could restrain Feng Xianqiu's existence with a single Nine Fragrance Pill?

I pointed to my own temples and asked: "Does the Nine Fragrance Pill temporarily numb people's nerves, making them dull?"

"The effect is only temporary," Hu Sanmei said. "That Sān jiǎo yā is tough to deal with, and I can't leave Yin Mountain right now, so I had to resort to this; if it were a hundred-plus years ago… hum, I would have beaten that Sān jiǎo yā until it was looking for its teeth all over the ground!"

I wondered: "You can't leave Yin Mountain? Why?"

"Struck down by the Heavenly Tribulation," saying this, Hu Sanmei's expression grew somewhat sorrowful. "Young and talented, unaware of the immensity of heaven and earth, struck by heavenly thunder until her soul was dislodged, she has lingered in Yin Mountain for many years yet still not fully recovered; otherwise, how could that Yu Lin brat be running amok outside?"

So that's how it is.

Hu Sanmei then added: "But soon, I should be able to recover and leave the mountain shortly; I heard your Seventh Lord intends to recognize his ancestors and return to the clan?"

I nodded.

Although I had just met Hu Sanmei for the first time, as early as last New Year's Eve, the Talisman Paper on the forehead of the fox immortal statue had been torn off; she had already declared her intention to return to Dang Pu.

And this time she again reached out to save me; she is one of our own.

Furthermore, Liu Junyan said that the Yin Mountain fox clan is a fairly large group, and she holds a pivotal position among the Five Blessings Immortals.

I told her about Wufu Town's recent predicament: "Āyàn's return this time is indeed to recognize his ancestors and return to the clan; this move is essentially a do-or-die gamble, we have no other option."

"Going back is correct; for Dang Pu this tribulation, only by placing oneself in a deadly situation can there be survival; the Linghai Dragon Clan could not stay out of it from the start." Hu Sanmei said: "Back then that evil monk assembled our Five Blessings Immortals team; I faintly sensed he intended to use us to form an array at a critical moment to suppress something, but he didn't last to the end, and he almost succeeded in Body Seizure."

When he met with disaster, I had already been struck by the Heavenly Tribulation and could not leave Yin Mountain; I thought Dang Pu was finished, but then a Liu Qiye appeared; if not for him single-handedly propping up Dang Pu, given my condition at the time, another backlash from Dang Pu would likely have left me with a shattered soul and scattered spirit.

So over these years, though I have never met him, I still feel grateful for his kindness; furthermore, in his youth he and that Yu Lin brat were childhood friends on Wangting Mountain, so emotionally and rationally I ought to help him wholeheartedly.

She said, then handed me a pill to my lips, saying: "This is a Soul-Stabilizing Pill, also personally refined by me, using Yin Mountain spring water as a guide, costing me considerable effort; after taking it it can keep your soul and spirit stable for half a month, protecting you from disturbance by that Sān jiǎo yā, but the pill's effect is only once; after half a month I will have no further means."

I opened my mouth and swallowed the pill; a special fragrance instantly burst in my mouth and spread downward, I felt as if my entire soul and spirit were cleansed, my whole body feeling relaxed and comfortable.

I once again expressed my heartfelt thanks.

Hu Sanmei waved a hand: "No need to thank me, Xiao Jiu, you should go back."

Only then did I realize that I was still in a soul and spirit state.

The environment of Yin Mountain is indeed very suitable for the survival of soul and spirit.

As a fragrance came, my vision darkened again; the next moment I jolted awake from sleep and sat up abruptly.

For a moment I was dazed, unsure whether what just happened was a dream or I had truly gone to Yin Mountain.

With one hand I turned on the light, with the other I reached for my neck.

My neck was bare.

And on the floor before the bed, the jade pendant that Hu Yulin had given me lay shattered to pieces.

It wasn't a dream; everything that just happened was real.

I truly saw the Fox Immortal Hu Sanmei.

The Fox Immortal is not only beautiful but also seems very capable; Hu Yulin is about to advance to eight tails, which is all good news.

From then on, the Five Blessings Immortals could truly be considered to have all returned to their places……