The Fox Demon Teaches Magic

In the Compendium of Demons and Evil Spirits that Ning Xiu had read, it was recorded that the souls of those who drowned by suicide or accident would be trapped at the site of their death. Influenced by the yin energy of the water, they would eventually transform into Drowned Ghosts.

This kind of Evil Spirit excelled at illusions, sometimes taking the form of a beautiful woman by the water's edge to lure passing men closer.

Other times, it would transform into treasure or silver coins sinking in the water, enticing travelers to jump in and retrieve them.

Once someone entered the water, the Drowned Ghost would use its hair to forcibly drag them to the depths and drown them alive. Ordinary people had no way to resist.

Taking the iron blade from the table, Ning Xiu intended to carry out the execution directly. But just then, the Drowned Ghost in the vat suddenly spoke: "Boy, I have a great deal of wealth hidden in my former dwelling, no less than a hundred thousand taels of silver. If you help me escape this place, I'll tell you where it's stashed."

It wasn't strange for an Evil Spirit to speak. As far as Ning Xiu knew, many Evil Spirits relied on disguising themselves as humans to harm the innocent.

No less than a hundred thousand taels of silver—it certainly sounded tempting. But unfortunately, this Drowned Ghost had picked the wrong person. An ordinary youth might not have been able to resist such a lure.

Ning Xiu looked to be only a little over ten years old, with the heart of a young man, but in truth, he had lived two lives. He understood how to weigh gains and losses—how could he be fooled by such words?

In this chaotic age of demons and monsters, with Evil Spirits springing up everywhere, only strengthening one's own power was a long-term solution. Even if he had a hundred thousand taels of silver in hand, he would still be nothing but a lamb for the slaughter.

If he helped this Drowned Ghost escape, he'd never be able to stay in the Demon Subduing Bureau. He might even be branded a demonic cultist and executed on the spot.

"No need. Save it for your next life." Ning Xiu raised the blade and brought it down, driving it straight into the Drowned Ghost's throat.

[Evil Spirit slain. Universal Proficiency +600.]

Gurgle, gurgle, gurgle!

The moment the Drowned Ghost was killed, a mass of white foam suddenly surfaced in the vat's water, quickly spreading across the entire surface.

One by one, faces of different appearances broke through the water, scrambling to climb out of the vat.

They were drenched, their bodies covered in waterweed and shellfish, each one looking like a Drowned Ghost themselves. There were no fewer than seven or eight of them.

It was hard not to wonder how such a small vat could hold so many men and women at once.

Ning Xiu immediately felt a tightness in his chest, as if a breath was stuck in his throat—unable to be exhaled or swallowed.

A sense of drowning rose in his heart. His ears were filled with the strange gurgling of bubbles, and a rotten, watery stench surged around him.

This was a sign of being tainted by Evil Qi. What a person saw, heard, and smelled would all become distorted.

When ordinary people encountered this, they would sink into it, unable to escape, and eventually scare themselves to death.

Ning Xiu had been training in the Primordial Yang Fist, which gave him a blood energy far beyond that of normal people, allowing him to resist the influence of Evil Qi.

And after raising the Primordial Yang Fist to the fifth layer, his blood energy was even more vigorous than before. The Evil Qi released by the Drowned Ghost's death could no longer make him pass out.

Ignoring the eerie scene before him—all of it was an illusion—Ning Xiu turned and walked straight out of the cell.

With the Evil Spirit dealt with, it was now Ning Xiu's rest time. Aside from not being allowed to leave the Demon Subduing Prison, he could move freely here.

Because of his arm injury, Ning Xiu hadn't practiced his fists for two days.

Now that the injury had healed, he couldn't afford to slack off any longer. So Ning Xiu returned directly to his quarters and began training in the Primordial Yang Fist.

Even though killing Evil Spirits could earn him a large amount of Universal Proficiency, Ning Xiu still placed great importance on the dozen or so proficiency points he gained from daily hard training.

As the saying goes, even a mosquito's leg is still meat. Until he could freely kill Evil Spirits, every single point of proficiency mattered.

The next day.

Ning Xiu arrived at the main hall and saw a crowd gathered around a few prison guards, heatedly discussing something. It looked quite lively.

After the crowd gradually dispersed, Ning Xiu stepped forward and said to one of the guards, "Sir, I've come to receive today's assignment."

The guard held a ledger in one hand and a writing brush in the other. "What's your name?"

"Ning Xiu."

"Let me see... Ning Xiu has already executed two Evil Spirits. Then you'll go to Huang Zone, Cell Eight. From now on, I'll record every Evil Spirit you execute here. For every ten you complete, you may leave the prison and go to the Three Saints Pavilion in the Demon Subduing Bureau to choose a cultivation technique. This is the Bureau's reward to you, to help fill our manpower shortage."

"Thank you for your trouble, sir." Ning Xiu cupped his hands, then asked, "Sir, I have a question. Why is it that executioners are only allowed to kill one Evil Spirit per day? Could I apply to execute more?"

"You, kid, aiming too high." The guard shook his head. "This rule is for your own good. The Evil Qi left behind after an Evil Spirit's death is extremely harmful to the human body.

After each kill, it's best to take a day to recover, so it doesn't leave any hidden damage. If you execute multiple Evil Spirits in a single day, over time, you'll accumulate a large amount of Evil Qi, which will rot your body like poison seeping into your bones—hard to remove. In the end, even a divine physician would be powerless to save you."

Ning Xiu asked curiously, "Isn't there any way to deal with this problem?"

"Of course there is, but that's still far off for you Champion Camp apprentices. If you can reach the Ninth Rank, martial artists strengthen their blood energy, Buddhists cultivate their golden bodies, Daoists refine their primordial spirits, and Confucians nurture their righteous qi. No matter which path you take, each has its own method to expel Evil Qi. Then you can kill as many Evil Spirits as you want."

The guard, perhaps unwilling to talk further with Ning Xiu, waved him off. "Go now. Don't waste time."

Every day, new Evil Spirits were brought into the Demon Subduing Prison by Demon Subduing Captains and locked into the empty cells.

From Ning Xiu's observations, the Evil Spirits slated for execution were all ones that had been imprisoned in the prison for a long time.

It seemed the Demon Subduing Bureau wanted to extract something from the newly captured Evil Spirits. Only after achieving their goal would they arrange for executioners to dispose of them.

What exactly was going on behind the scenes, Ning Xiu couldn't yet get involved. Perhaps once he successfully joined the Demon Subduing Bureau, the answer to this question would be revealed.

Entering Huang Zone, Cell Eight, Ning Xiu found that the Evil Spirit imprisoned here was rather special—it was a white fox with three tails.

Even though the cell was filthy and unswept, the white fox's fur was spotless, every strand as smooth and white as silk.

Seeing someone walk in, and that person silently picking up the Wild Goose Feather Saber from the wooden table, the white fox immediately trembled and stood up from the ground.

With a shake of its form, it transformed into a stunning woman wearing no clothes at all, her figure graceful and alluring.

Ning Xiu instinctively took two steps back.

Oh wow, good stuff—is this really free for me to watch?

"Kind sir, this humble one is merely a little fox in the mountains. For a hundred years, I have cultivated properly and done no evil. Please, sir, show mercy and do not take my life."

The White Fox Woman knelt on the ground, covering her face as if about to weep. She looked truly pitiful, stirring a sense of compassion in one's heart.

The Compendium of Evil Spirits had said that Fox Demons were masters of deception, their craft lifelike, and thus they had ruined many men.

Fox Demons cultivated by absorbing men's vital essence; those bewitched often ended up withered as dry wood, their life force spent.

This white fox before him had already grown three tails—how could she have done no evil?

Watching the Fox Demon's pleading expression, Ning Xiu suddenly asked, "In the Demon Subduing Prison, did the Demon Subduing Bureau take anything from you?"

The White Fox Woman was momentarily stunned. "N-no, nothing was taken. They only forced this humble one to record a Spiritual Eye Qi Observation Technique that I specialize in."

Ning Xiu suddenly understood, finally grasping why the Demon Subduing Captains captured evil spirits and locked them in this Demon Subduing Prison, only to send executioners later to finish them off.

So they were fleecing the evil spirits!

Every evil spirit carried something of value, more or less. Seizing those things for human use could strengthen humanity's power.

And when the spirit's value was drained dry, there was no need to keep feeding it—just execute it and be done with it.

Thinking that he had to kill ten evil spirits just to learn one technique at the Three Saints Hall, Ning Xiu's mind turned. He sheathed his saber and said, "Teach me that Spiritual Eye Qi Observation Technique, and I won't kill you today."

"Does the young master mean it?" The White Fox Woman rejoiced.

"A word spoken is a team of horses that cannot be recalled. I swear by this saber: if I kill you with my own hand today, may I be cut to pieces in the future. How about that?" Ning Xiu tossed aside his Wild Goose Feather Saber.

"Good! This humble one trusts the young master."

In this world, one could not swear oaths lightly. There were spirits and karmic consequences in the unseen. So when the White Fox Woman heard Ning Xiu swear, she believed most of it on the spot.

Without hesitation, she recited a string of cultivation incantations for Ning Xiu.

The incantations were rather obscure and hard to grasp. Ning Xiu barely managed to memorize them. To verify their authenticity and check if the White Fox Woman had fabricated or omitted anything, he quietly called up his Proficiency Panel for a look.

Primordial Yang Fist: Fifth Layer (0/1600) (+)

Golden Bell Shield: Fourth Layer (110/800) (+)

Spiritual Eye Qi Observation Technique: Not Yet Started (0/100) (+)

Universal Proficiency: 600

Seeing the words "Spiritual Eye Qi Observation Technique" appear on the panel, Ning Xiu nodded in relief. This White Fox Woman was honest enough—she hadn't lied to him.

"Alright, I've memorized the incantation. I keep my word—I won't kill you today." Ning Xiu strode out of the cell with utter decisiveness, pulling the door shut tight behind him.

Once silence fell again in the cell, the White Fox Woman collapsed to the ground in a cold sweat, muttering under her breath, "Greedy bastard. Once I escape, I'll skin you and break your bones... Uncle, why haven't you come to save me yet? Lan'er can't hold on much longer."

The White Fox Woman had no idea that after leaving the cell, Ning Xiu hadn't gone far. He stood quietly in the corridor, looking left and right, as if waiting for something.

Before long, another executioner—a young man—approached. Ning Xiu recognized him; he was also an apprentice from the Champion Camp. Ning Xiu had crossed paths with him once before.

Ning Xiu walked up and asked, "Brother, have you carried out your execution today?"

"Not yet. I just got the task for Cell 58 in the Huang Zone from the jailer. I'm heading over to do it now."

"Heh heh." Ning Xiu grinned. "How about we swap cells? I'll execute your evil spirit, and you execute mine."

The young man looked puzzled. "What's the meaning of this? What's the difference?"

"A small reason. Don't ask for now, brother. The execution is urgent—can't waste time. Swap with me this time, and if you ever run into trouble later, I'll help you out too. We're both from the Champion Camp, so we look out for each other."

"Well... alright." The young man didn't overthink it and nodded in agreement.

Ning Xiu warned him seriously, "Remember, the Fox Demon locked in there is good at deception. Don't listen to anything she says. Go in and strike immediately—finish it fast."

"Got it." The young man pushed open the cell door and walked straight in.

Ning Xiu then hurried toward Cell 58 in the Huang Zone.

The Demon Subduing Bureau had strict rules. Unless you died, you could never fail, abandon, or slack off on the tasks assigned to you.

Though he had gained something from the White Fox Woman, if Ning Xiu dared not kill her today, it would count as abandoning the task—an extremely serious offense.

From then on, he could forget about joining the Demon Subduing Bureau. The door would be welded shut for him.

Even though Ning Xiu had sworn to the White Fox Woman that he wouldn't kill her with his own hand today, this maneuver didn't technically break his oath.

At most, it was just exploiting a tiny loophole in the wording.