Chapter 150: The Appearance-Obsessed Fox Maidens

Mountains need not be high; if there are immortals, they become miraculous. The Abode of the Azure Firmament was merely a place where a human immortal once lived and cultivated in seclusion. Now, under Qinghong's management, it had barely recovered its former scale. Compared to the millennia-old foundations of the major sects, it fell miserably short.

However, the intent of the various immortals clearly did not lie here.

As the Supreme Immortals from various lineages arrived, Qinghong set up reed awnings at the entrance of the immortal abode, decorated it with lanterns and festoons, and erected a lecturing platform. Every day, the immortals discussed the profound mysteries and took turns lecturing on their cultivation insights.

For a time, the concepts of various practitioners collided and mutually referenced each other, benefiting everyone immensely. Had this truly not been an inopportune time for cultivation, some might have seized the opportunity to breakthrough their realms.

Under this immortal atmosphere, Fairy Yuzhi suddenly experienced an epiphany and entered secluded meditation within the Hanzhi Hall, intending to break through to the realm of Penetrating Mystery early.

On this day, a patch of white mist suddenly surged toward the immortal abode. From within the dense fog came a faint sound of tinkling bells.

The immortals all paused their activities, and Qin Wu frowned. "There is demonic aura."

One of the immortals sniffed and said with disgust, "A stench of fox-siren charm. Fox demons, is it? Judging by the number, which fox den was raided?" The sect this immortal hailed from was the most resistant to the demon race. Moreover, their proudest specialty was capturing demons.

Zhang贺 couldn't help feeling eager to try. He retrieved his demon-capturing magical artifact and prepared to make a move.

Seeing this, several people nearby hurriedly stopped him.

Qinghong smiled and said, "Fellow Daoist, no rush, no rush. These fox demons are likely here for me." He then recounted what he had discussed with Qin Wu and the others previously.

"Handed over to the demon race? Isn't that somewhat inappropriate?"

"Those not of our race must surely have different hearts. If we hand them to the fox demons, what will happen if something goes wrong later?"

"Then what else can be done? My immortal abode is small and cannot possibly support the livelihood of five thousand people. Could it be that you all have a better solution?"

The immortals all fell silent. Faced with the food, clothing, housing, and transportation of five thousand people, they were equally helpless. A day or two would be fine, but after several months, how could they possibly manage? Furthermore, these Dao soldiers had completely lost their spiritual intelligence; without the control methods of the Demonic Sect, how could anyone drive them?

"If left with me, they can only await death. On the side of the fox clan, there might just be a glimmer of hope. Therefore, after much deliberation, I can only entrust them to the fox demons." Having said this, Qinghong personally went out to welcome the arrival of the fox clan.

Seeing Qinghong's junior sister, Mu Sheng, by his side, the immortals knew that he did not shun heterodox immortals. They thought to themselves: Since the host has already said so, why should we meddle with unnecessary words? Besides, they were merely a group of demonic soldiers; what did their life or death have to do with them?

The immortals ceased to dwell on the matter. Noticing the awkward atmosphere, Li Jingshan hurriedly smoothed things over. "Earlier, Senior Brother Tie Zheng lectured on the art of acoustics. Little sister listened with great interest; might I ask him to speak on it again?"

The immortals also snapped back to attention. Feigning ignorance of Qinghong's departure, they continued researching the Daoist methods. Only Qin Wu, curious about Tushan's situation, followed along to check out the arrivals from the fox clan.

Seeing him follow, Qinghong teased, "What? Does Fellow Daoist Qin also share the sentiment to look at beauties? I heard that your Taixiao Palace doesn't shun female beauty; could it be you are looking for a female fox immortal for dual cultivation?"

"Spare me, I have no such hobby." Qin Wu waved his hands repeatedly and walked out of the immortal abode with Qinghong. They saw a group of fluttering, beautiful female foxes preparing to step forward and knock on the door.

However, hanging before the door was a mirror for repelling evil and illuminating demons, preventing the fox women from drawing near casually.

Detecting the demonic aura, the precious mirror emitted a sheet of pristine light that poured downward.

Under the radiance, the various foxes instantly revealed their true forms—red and white foxes trembling in the light. Only the matron at the very front escaped the calamity. Her face drained of color, she said to Qinghong, "Great Immortal, please trouble yourself to put away the precious mirror. We come under the orders of the Young Master and harbor absolutely no malicious intent."

Qinghong pointed at the mirror, and a drifting wisp of water-cloud obscured the demon-illuminating mirror. The women then transformed back into human shapes, save that each revealed a fluffy tail or a pair of drooping fox ears amidst their temples and hair.

"This mirror is the guardian artifact of the immortal abode; it was certainly not targeted at you deliberately." Qinghong was courteous and invited the female foxes into the immortal abode.

They were all trembling with trepidation. Yet, unable to resist their curiosity toward the immortal abode, they walked into the Abode of the Azure Firmament in a group.

Along the way, Qinghong asked the matron, "I wonder how Madam is addressed?"

The fox woman was startled at first, then stroked her temples and smiled, "The Great Immortal misunderstands. This concubine possesses a primordial-yin body and has never been betrothed. I merely mingle among mortals and often dress in the attire of a married woman." The way her hair was pinned up on her head was used by married mortal women, hence leading Qinghong to a misunderstanding.

Qinghong came to a realization and hurriedly thanked her.

The woman waved her hands repeatedly. "It's no matter, no matter. This concubine is Xueying; the Great Immortal may address me directly by name."

Both Qinghong and the woman understood human hearts, and before long, they became familiar with one another.

Qin Wu followed behind them, secretly employing the Penetrating Heaven Eye to observe the women.

The various fox demons remained unaware, curiously looking around the immortal abode and occasionally pulling out magical artifacts to take pictures, posing for group photos with their companions and the immortal abode. Judging by their actions, it was as if they were leaving the mountain for the very first time.

However, Qin Wu's actions alerted the celestial fox, prompting her to quickly shake out a protective magical treasure handed to her by Tushan. A scented handkerchief drifted in front of her, emitting wisps of pink qi that blocked the Penetrating Heaven Eye.

"This concubine has cultivated for barely a millennium and is truly no match for the Great Immortal. There is no need for the Great Immortal to worry; just hand the people over to us to escort to Fox Mountain, and we will never linger outside. If the Great Immortal is ill at ease, you are welcome to follow along."

The silk scarf produced by the celestial fox had a unique origin. It was one of the treasures left behind by Tushan's mother, named the "Heaven-Veil Scarf," possessing the ability to obscure the heavenly secrets.

The Way of the Formless Heavenly Fox practiced by Tushan of Tushan was inherited directly from his mother. Whether it was the Heaven-Covering Talisman or the Heaven-Veil Scarf left by his mother, both were magical vessels containing the wondrous aspects of the heavenly fox.

Xueying lowered her stance and acted humble, making it difficult for Qin Wu, a grown man, to continue pressing the matter. He had no choice but to step back a few paces and let Qinghong come forward to host.

"Fellow Fox Immortal, I wonder where Tushan is right now. Why didn't he come in person?"

The fox immortal Xueying said in a soft voice, "Someone from Taiyuan Palace has arrived, and the Young Master is busy with matters within the clan, leaving him with no time to spare. Therefore, he sent this concubine to receive the people. However, hearing that the Great Immortal was opening the abode, he purposely instructed this concubine to deliver a box of golden elixirs to express his sentiments."

Qinghong summoned a boy to accept the golden elixirs and nodded to Xueying. "When you return, gather some fruits in the estate to take back for Tushan as my thanks to him."

Among the friends Qinghong knew, Tushan had the best relationship with him and was also the only friend who knew his true background. Of course, when the two of them interacted, competition existed all the same.

Qinghong and Qin Wu led them to receive the people.

The immortals near the main hall were secretly peeking over at this side.

"I thought Little Brother Tushan would come in person, but unexpectedly it's his subordinates?" Jingxuan wore a puzzled expression. "Since these people address Little Brother Tushan as Young Master, could he actually be a figure of real power within the fox clan?"

Li Jingshan was also deep in thought: It seems the identity of Tushan truly holds a mystery.

However, the graceful demeanour and peerless beauty of the women caused many immortals with shallow roots to reveal a dazed expression. Their initial hostility toward the fox women vanished completely.

Li Jingshan, Jingxuan, and the others silently observed the situation of these people, thinking to themselves: The so-called killing tribulation is precisely for purging those with shallow roots to clear space for those who come after. It seems these people cannot escape their killing tribulation.

Li Jingshan could already perceive deathly qi rising above the heads of these people, leading her to believe their days were numbered.

The Taiyuan Palace's arrangement of the killing tribulation aimed at not a single immortal dying. But this was merely an unattainable fantasy. In the end, numerous immortals would undoubtedly perish in the tribulation.

Liu Zimo wore a wicked smile, staring fixedly at the fox women. He did not shun female beauty and frequently lingered in mortal places of pleasure; now, seeing the fox women, he gradually stirred with thoughts.

Beside him, Fairy Qinglan felt secretly annoyed and fiercely pinched the flesh at his waist. "Senior Brother, watch yourself!"

"Cough, cough..." Liu Zimo let out a clear cough, pointing at Xueying at the head and saying, "Look at this person, doesn't she seem like a fox immortal?"

Foxes were divided into five categories: heavenly, divine, immortal, demonic, and demonic-beast (ordinary).

Heavenly foxes were the most esteemed, serving as the royalty of the fox clan, mostly distinguished by nine tails.

Divine foxes were foxes worshipped by mortals through incense offerings, mostly acting as deities protecting households and matching marriages. Some foxes were even worshipped by mortals as symbols of agriculture and harvest. Receiving incense offerings, these foxes possessed enduring fortune, making them existences immortals preferred not to provoke. One must know that the fox clan held an extreme desire for revenge. Offend them today, and by tomorrow they could summon a gang to cause you trouble. Divine foxes, in particular, could neither be beaten nor scolded; one could only silently bear the consequences.

Immortal foxes and demonic foxes were opposed to one another—a situation akin to the immortal and demonic paths of the human race. They fought each other, and demonic foxes held sinister dispositions, being ostracized by the fox clan. Last year, when Tushan and Ji Feichen met, it was to join forces and deal with a Heart-Moon Demonic Fox.

As for ordinary fox demons, they were the crux of why the fox clan was labeled as "demonic and evil." The Way of the Heavenly Fox was arduous and fraught with setbacks. Although divine foxes were noble, laboriously collecting incense offerings in the mortal world was overly arduous. Demonic foxes were a taboo of the fox clan, forbidden from private cultivation. Weighing the options, the goal of most fox clansmen boiled down to only two paths: fox demons and immortal foxes.

Immortal foxes valued innate roots, while fox demons represented the general cultivation method of the broad masses and stood at the very bottom of the fox clan. Hence, there were many who filled numbers haphazardly, possessing shallow roots, often committing evil outside and ruining the reputation of the fox clan.

The fox women before their eyes were mostly demonic spirits among foxes. However, the leader was an immortal fox with profound cultivation, whose mastery was no inferior to that of Qin Wu and the others.

"It is not surprising that this person achieved the Dao a millennium ago and possesses this cultivation. If it were us, having cultivated for a millennium, wouldn't we have long since entered the gate of penetrating mystery?" Li Jingshan was unimpressed. Seeing them head toward the location of those demonic soldiers, she no longer bothered with it. "Let Senior Brother Qinghong worry about it together; let's continue discussing the Dao."

She wiped away the water mirror, preventing the immortals from looking any further.

...

Qinghong led the group to where the demonic soldiers were located. The demonic soldiers had been tossed into an illusionary realm created by Fairy Yuzhi with the Huntian Golden Chalice, where they were sleeping soundly.

Upon seeing these men, the women's eyes lit up.

These demonic soldiers had been meticulously nurtured by the Roc tribe, each possessing a robust physique, a sturdy build, and a wicked charm blending masculine vigor with demonic qi. The fox women grew hot in their hearts, their eyes turning increasingly eager.

Qinghong pointed at the numerous demonic soldiers and white crows, saying, "The men and birds are all here; you may take them away."

The immortal fox Xueying produced a pouch. This pouch was a magical artifact of the fox clan named the "Myriad Spirits Pouch," a heavyweight Earth Immortal treasure of the fox clan that Tushan had managed to borrow from the clan with great difficulty.

Xueying activated the pouch, and it emitted a white auspicious light that gathered up the many demonic soldiers within the golden chalice's illusionary realm one by one. Only those white crows were left in place, not taken into the pouch.

"Fairy, what is the meaning of this?"

Xueying revealed an expression of disgust and said to Qinghong, "Great Immortal, these white crows have been tamed by the Demonic Sect and are fierce and baleful birds. They cannot be brought into Fox Mountain, lest they disturb our tranquility."

With sharp beaks and formidable talons, these white crows could inflict harm on unformed spiritual foxes, so the fox clan could not possibly take them along.

Having borrowed the demonic soldiers, the immortal fox and the female foxes reluctantly shared a cup of tea in the immortal abode before hurriedly bidding farewell and leaving.

Before departing, however, these fox women suppressed their instinctive fear and begged Qinghong and Qin Wu to take group photos with them. Both men bore a distinguished bearing and extraordinary presence; although Qin Wu wore a stern face, the fox clan favored handsome appearances. Overcoming their inner fear, they stepped forward to pester Qin Wu.

Unable to shrug off these fox women, the two grown men had no choice but to stay with them and use a magical artifact to leave behind a few images.

"These fox clansmen certainly live at ease. They even possess this kind of photography skill." Gazing in the direction the fox women had left, Qinghong inwardly found it marvelous.

What was the difference between these fox women taking commemorative photos in the immortal abode and tourists sightseeing in his past life?

Beside him, Qin Wu constantly wiped his face with his sleeve, as his face was covered in numerous red lipstick prints. If others were to see this later on, wouldn't it damage his glorious reputation?

"Hey, you say... the eager looks those fox demons gave those demonic soldiers just now, couldn't they be planning to use them for dual cultivation harvesting later?"

Qinghong was stunned. Pondering for a moment, he said, "These men cannot procreate; their roots of passion were long ago severed by the Demonic Sect. If the women truly harbor this intent, wouldn't they first need to help them reconnect their channels and regain a new lease on life? If it doesn't harm these people's lives, let's just consider it the silver payment for medical treatment. Otherwise, why would the fox clan come to rescue them?"

"That's true as well." Qin Wu scratched his head and said no more. The two hurried back to continue discussing the Dao with the others.

On the other side, Tushan was also discussing this aspect with Linghu Xiaoxi.

Two white foxes lay flat on a soft bed paved with silk. One of the smaller foxes asked the slightly larger fox beside it, "What is your actual plan by asking Aunt Xueying and the others to go rescue people?"

"Do you think there are too many female foxes in our fox clan? Yin is flourishing while Yang declines, Yin is flourishing while Yang declines." Tushan sighed. "The male foxes in the clan refuse to procreate. For the sake of future generations, of course we must go outside to borrow seed."

People always said that after transforming into human shape, members of the fox clan were handsome men and stunning beauties. Yet they were all appearance-obsessed and looked down upon everyone, how could they possibly fancy ordinary members of their own clan?

The number of male foxes was small, and moreover, they disliked the females within the clan. Thus, they had no choice but to seek open-source solutions externally.

"However, can these men truly unite with us?"

"Of course they can. After pregnancy, one merely needs to cleanse the bloodline within the body and recuperate in Qingqiu Pond for a few days to give birth to pure-breed spiritual foxes."

Generally speaking, humans and demons could not unite. According to Ji Feichen's understanding, this meant different races and different genes, making it fundamentally impossible to conceive children.

Yet in this immortal-heroic fantasy world, none of these were problems. Even women could drink child-delivering water to become pregnant, and even men could conceive offspring from the calves of their legs. What else could not be done?

Fox demons merely needed to borrow a wisp of yang-qi from within a man's body to enlighten the pure-yin within their own bodies, condensing a spiritual fetus with congenital yin-yang dual qi to successfully achieve pregnancy. Furthermore, because this spiritual fetus came from congenital yin-yang dual qi, it mostly possessed the capability to cultivate. However, this method required too much effort, and ordinary demon races were simply too lazy to use it.

Yet Tushan's mother could be called a genius of the fox clan. She had actually innovated upon ancient methods, researching an entirely new technique that allowed female foxes to give birth to pure-breed spiritual fox descendants when combining with external yang-qi, while shortening and simplifying the entire process. Tushan was precisely a spiritual fetus born under such circumstances.

"But in that case, are those children considered human, or are they considered foxes?"

"They are pure-breed spiritual foxes. But they are friendly toward the human race; only then can our fox clan achieve stable revitalization, and only by utilizing our relationship with the human race can we support the demon race back up."

Tushan wanted to revitalize the demon race, but he understood that a war between humans and demons was absolutely unfeasible. The only way was the integration of both races and peaceful coexistence.

His willingness—someone who "never moves without profit"—to readily agree to help Ji Feichen stemmed partly from having this plan in mind.