And This... Is the Fox Clan (Four Thousand Words, Combined)

Jiang Lin left the room in a wheelchair. The Qian residence was bustling with activity.

The servants and maids bustled about, rebuilding the destroyed houses and clearing away the ruins of the Qian mansion.

Jiang Lin even saw Xiao Hei's Robot ZZ250 carrying wood back and forth.

Those who had died at the Qian residence that night miraculously came back to life.

Kong Ba Ba pushed Jiang Lin to the edge of a pond in the backyard of the Qian family mansion. The pond, which had been destroyed, had been barely rebuilt.

However, the fish fry were all newly released, and a few turtles were even swimming on their backs, their postures quite alluring.

"If it weren't for those people from the Qian family busy rebuilding, I would really feel like I'm dreaming."

Lying in his armchair, Jiang Lin watched the turtles swimming on their backs in the pool, his mind filled with questions.

"Hehehe, isn't this just Fleeting Dream?"

Kong Ba Ba was also sitting in an armchair next to Jiang Lin, smoothing his blue robe, crossing his legs and basking in the morning sun, when he pulled out another Picture Album from somewhere.

Looking at the picture Picture Album drawn by Jiang Lin, which was bathed in Holy Light by the pastor, Kong Ba Ba found it quite interesting.

"That Eight-Tailed Black Fox is dead?"

After a long while, Jiang Lin slowly spoke.

"Hmm... she's dead..." Kong Ba Ba put down the Picture Album, resting his hand behind his head. "But she was lucky; she has an afterlife."

Jiang Lin: "What's the price?"

Everything comes at a price.

Mo Xiaoye used the Blood Name Array, but was backfired by Blood Name Array and also suffered the Heavenly Tribulation of the Vast and Righteous World. Logically speaking, he would have disappeared from this world one hundred percent and would not be able to reincarnate.

However, that night, the heavenly Heavenly Tribulation was averted by the scholar in the blue robe beside him.

He bore the consequences.

"The price, well, it's that I fell from the Immortal Realm to the Golden Core Realm, which is the Middle Five Realm." Kong Ba Ba said casually, seemingly not caring at all, as he listened to Jiang Lin's words.

"You think you can reach the Immortal Realm?"

Jiang Lin, wrapped up like a mummy, rolled his eyes at Kong Ba Ba. His tone showed no surprise, no nervousness as if he were "meeting a big shot," and even a hint of doubt. It was more like a friendly joke.

"Brother Jiang, you're mistaken. I, Kong Ba Ba. But then again, it wasn't the Heavenly Tribulation that caused my Falling Realm."

Kong Ba Ba turned to Jiang Lin and smiled:

"Instead, I reversed the Blood Name Array, and as a Confucian scholar, I reversed life and death, yin and yang. Then, I accidentally suffered a backlash from the Great Dao, which caused me to the Falling Realm."

Every world and every person has their own path, but above every person and every world, there exists the ethereal and intangible [Great Dao].

This profound truth is neither easily explained nor can it be fully elucidated.

If I had to put it in perspective, it would be roughly analogous to the origin of the universe.

The Great Way has no explicit rules; rather, it forms naturally, much like nature's self-protection.

One of the paths that people discovered and explored was the "Dao of Life and Death".

Whether it's the life and death of a cultivator or a mortal, it's all part of the most important cycle.

Without cycles, the world would break down and collapse, so this is a form of protection for the world.

However, if one forcibly involves the cycle of life and death, then one will be severely punished by the Great Dao.

This punishment is neither Heavenly Tribulation nor heavenly fire; it is an inexplicable and incomprehensible cause and effect.

Even the most powerful beings in the Upper Five Realms of the Yin Yang School dare not touch this cause and effect. In fact, the higher their realm, the more they avoid it, because the higher their realm, the greater the cause and effect involved.

The more lives Kong Ba Ba forcibly saves for the people of Donglin City, the greater the karmic consequences will be. Falling Realm might be a minor matter; he might even lose his Great Dao and never be able to enter the Upper Five Realms again.

What's even more frightening is the hidden, unseen cause and effect, which is even more difficult to guard against and understand.

How many people have you saved?

"All."

"I'll speak slowly, "Kong Ba Ba said.

"Apart from the dead cultivators, I saved all the ordinary people. After all, cultivators are responsible for their own lives and deaths. Besides, I really couldn't save cultivators. After all, I'm just a scholar, not a Yin- Yin Yang School cultivator like Tai Er Zhenjun."

Besides, I have no right to ask Tai Er Zhenjun to save me. It's already a favor that Tai Er Zhenjun let me come to Donglin City. After all, Yin Yang School cultivators are more afraid of karma.

I begged him for so long, I even tore his trousers raw, before he finally managed to kill a chicken, set up a small Blood Name Array, and then connect two Blood Name Array to teleport me here.

According to that fellow Tai Er Zhenjun, he vomited blood three times in the past two days, and was so frightened by thunder that he almost lost control of his bladder, fearing he would be struck by lightning.

As he spoke, Kong Ba Ba stroked his chin.

"It's really strange that I was teleported to a dog."

Kong Ba Ba pondered the connection between them, while Jiang Lin remained silent, and the two fell into Xiao Xiao silence.

However, after a short while, Kong Ba Ba stood up and bowed deeply to Jiang Lin:

"Brother Jiang, I'm sorry, because of me you almost got into trouble. I'm late."

Seeing Kong Ba Ba's earnest apology, Jiang Lin shook his head. "It's nothing. We're all cultivators; there's no need to Path of Emotion like this."

Jiang Lin didn't blame Kong Ba Ba at all. Just as Jiang Lin said, everyone is a cultivator, and there's no need to Path of Emotion like this.

Cultivators are inherently contending with others and with Heaven for the Dao.

During the process of spiritual practice, sudden death is possible at any time.

Some powerful figures don't easily kill ordinary people, because they're afraid of incurring karmic consequences and feel it's unnecessary; after all, an elephant won't lift its foot just because an ant bites it.

But it's different for cultivators. Cultivators are responsible for their own lives and deaths. As long as you're not afraid of the other person's sect elders or something coming after you, you can do whatever you want to them.

So even if Kong Ba Ba didn't show up at all, Jiang Lin wouldn't blame him, nor would he have any reason to. This is the nature of cultivators; they are responsible for themselves and for their own choices.

They chose to come to Donglin City to cause trouble, and no matter what happens, they need to bear the consequences themselves. No one is responsible for someone else's path.

The saying "The Great Way is ruthless" is not without reason.

What's more, they still made it here.

However, Jiang Lin felt that something was off about this Dao. Understanding it was one thing, but Jiang Lin didn't want to delve too deeply into it.

"Hehehe, as expected, Brother Jiang is very generous, unlike that guy Tai Er Zhenjun. I begged him for a whole day before he let me come."

Hearing that Jiang Lin had forgiven him, Kong Ba Ba lay back down in his armchair.

How did Master Kong know about the events in Donglin City?

"I wouldn't say I knew, but on that day, I suddenly felt something was wrong, as if I heard some kind of summons from the depths of my being. When I heard Xiao Hei say that there was a fool in Donglin City setting up Blood Name Array, I vaguely deduced some clues."

At first, I thought I might be overthinking things, but cultivators are always afraid of the "what if," so I went to ask Tai Er Zhenjun for help and praised him all night long! I almost knelt down and called him father before he finally agreed to teleport me over.

But I can't blame him. After all, this kind of thing involves too many consequences. He's already done more than enough to help me. I was even prepared to fly over myself..."

"Did Master Kong and she know each other in a past life?"

"No... it must be my previous two lives..."

"..."

Kong Ba Ba, with his hands behind his head, looked at the white clouds in the sky and slowly said:

"A thousand years ago, if I remember correctly, there was a handsome and dashing scholar who went to the capital to take the imperial examination."

"And then he forgot his exam admission ticket? And got run over by a 300-pound tank?"

"What the heck! But the plot is pretty cliché anyway."

Kong Ba Ba begins a flashback:

Not all Confucian scholars practice cultivation, and that scholar naturally wouldn't either. However, it didn't matter to him, since his dream and goal was to manage his family, govern the country, and bring peace to the world.

On the day he was taking the imperial examination, he encountered a black fox in a temple.

The black fox hadn't transformed; it was simply crouching on the other side of the temple, seemingly injured.

The scholar and the black fox were both wary of each other. The scholar was wary because he had heard that the fox clan liked to eat scholars, while the black fox was probably afraid and thought the scholar was a bad person.

However, the two remained at peace until midnight, and their vigilance gradually relaxed. The scholar shared his meager food with her, which she ate.

Looking at her front paw, the handsome scholar gently bandaged it.

At first, it wanted to refuse, its fur standing on end, but it seemed to see that the scholar meant no harm, so it accepted.

After that, he went to the capital to take the imperial examination. The scholar passed with flying colors and became an official, though not a very high-ranking one. Many senior officials wanted to introduce their daughters to him.

At that time, the scholar was truly full of vigor and ambition, but he refused all offers until one day when he picked up a girl while on an outing in the countryside.

This girl was very pretty, her clothes were somewhat tattered, and she claimed to be Agricultural School, but an orphan.

Who the hell believes that? Have you ever seen a Agricultural School with fair, delicate skin and palms without a trace of hard work?

It's obvious without even thinking that some monster was lusting after the scholar's handsome appearance.

However, the scholar also happened to be attracted to her body...

After the scholar escorted the woman home, he would visit her house whenever he went on a leisurely outing.

And so, about half a year passed. The two were mutually attracted to each other, but neither of them confessed their feelings.

The main reason was that the country was in turmoil at the time, and there were undercurrents in the court. Although the scholar had many feelings for her, he wanted to marry her after the country was stable.

However, the scholar was soon sent to fight off foreign enemies as cannon fodder. When the scholar told her that he had to leave for a while, the girl hugged him from behind and begged him not to go.

But in the scholar's mind, the country comes before the family, so the scholar still left.

"And then?" Jiang Lin asked when he heard Kong Ba Ba suddenly pause.

Kong Ba Ba glanced at Jiang Lin: "Isn't that obvious? The scholar is dead."

"She didn't go to the battlefield to find you?"

"Yes, of course we do. But as Brother Jiang knows, there are many rules in the Vast and Righteous World. Cultivators and demons are not allowed to participate in wars between ordinary countries, otherwise they will be questioned by the academy."

The woman came to the battlefield to find the scholar and kept trying to persuade him to leave, but the stubborn scholar was determined not to budge.

Just as the woman was about to knock the scholar unconscious and carry him away, she was finally discovered by the Confucian cultivator supervising the battlefield. She was expelled from the battlefield and then watched helplessly as the enemy army broke through the enemy lines, the scholar refused to surrender, and was beheaded...

What about the second life?

"The second life... I'm sorry, Brother Jiang, that's a bit long, and I haven't figured it out yet, so could we not talk about it for now..."

"Then I won't ask."

Jiang Lin did not press the matter further.

Although Kong Ba Ba spoke in a somewhat relaxed tone, Jiang Lin sensed that the guy was probably still thinking about what would have happened if he hadn't gone to that battlefield and had instead abandoned his post.

But if that's really the case, is this scholar still the same scholar? Would Mo Xiaoye like such a scholar?

Everything is cause and effect, constantly intertwined in the darkness, a tangled mess that can never be untangled.

As for the second life, Jiang Lin felt that was the key point, but oh well, he'd talk about it later when he felt like it. He couldn't even eat sunflower seeds now; how could a problem that could trouble Kong Ba Ba not be accompanied by sunflower seeds?

"Master Kong."

"Um?"

Jiang Lin asked a profound question, "Don't you think it's far too hasty for the fox clan to fall in love with someone? Just because you bandaged someone's leg, they suddenly fall for you?"

"Hmm, it is rather hasty, but Brother Jiang, what do you think the Great Dao is?"

Before Jiang Lin could answer, Kong Ba Ba answered himself.

"Everyone has their own path, flowers and plants have their own path, animals have their own path, and even every world has its own path. Beyond this world, there is a total world, which also has the highest path."

Walking on one's own path, Tsundere people will become even more Tsundere, yandere people will become even more yandere, gentle people may become even gentler, and there are even various germaphobes and procrastinators, so it's even harder to say.

Everything is the Tao.

The way of the fox clan is the most difficult thing in the world to understand: "Emotion".

For the fox clan, a lifetime of cultivation inevitably involves "love."

Some foxes are naturally flirtatious, while others are devoted to one another for eternity; they simply want to see through the illusions of "love."

But "love" is an age-old problem; who can truly understand it? It's simply a matter of whose understanding of "love" aligns more closely with their own heart.

Love is inherently elusive and unpredictable. It might develop over time, or it might simply be a fleeting glance from someone in a crowd. Foxes, on the other hand, are naturally extremely sensitive to feelings.

Some say that foxes are naturally alluring and capable of destroying kingdoms and rivers, but in my opinion, foxes are the purest when it comes to "love".

[I like you, that's all. You might only give me a piece of cake, but I still like you! Because I have feelings for you, I want to have Little Fox with you.]

I just don't like you. I don't care if you're as handsome as Pan An or as talented as the legendary Emperor, I just don't like you. Get lost! I don't want to have a child with you!

And this...

They are the fox clan.