Whoosh!
At sunset, Xu Yan stopped his brush and looked pleased.
Another exquisite painting had been born beneath his hand. It depicted a young man dressed in white as pure as snow, facing a little fox as they ate roast chicken.
The little fox was drawn with exquisite detail, so lifelike that every strand of fur seemed real, as if the wind could stir it.
The young man in white, however, had a very indistinct face, impossible to make out.
This was Xu Yan's usual style. Whenever he appeared in one of his paintings, his face was always blurred, as if hidden behind a mysterious veil.
He hung the painting in the central place of honor in the inner hall. Beside it hung the painting of Jiang Li kneeling to thank him.
Xu Yan had just stepped out of the inner hall when Jiang Li arrived and began sweeping outside the little shop.
After a moment's thought, Xu Yan walked to the door and asked, "Jiang Li, have you ever thought about becoming a cultivator?"
Jiang Li scratched his head and replied with a smile, "My family has been made up of ordinary people for generations. We don't have the talent for cultivation."
In this world, there was hardly anyone who didn't want to become a cultivator. When he was young, Jiang Li had dreamed of it too.
But later, he came to understand that not everyone could become a cultivator. That was especially true for someone from a poor household like his. They could barely afford to eat their fill, let alone become cultivators.
Xu Yan said, "How will you know unless you try? The Tianren Sect will be recruiting disciples soon. If you want to become a cultivator, you can go and give it a try."
After saying that, he went into the back courtyard and began watering the flowers and plants.
As for Jiang Li, Xu Yan had said what he needed to say. What Jiang Li chose to do next was up to him.
"Divine Doctor Xu, when the Tianren Sect recruits disciples, I'll go take the test."
Xu Yan hadn't finished watering the flowers in the little garden when Jiang Li's voice came from the front hall.
A smile appeared on Xu Yan's face, and he continued watering the plants.
Growing flowers and plants was one of his pastimes, after all.
Hm?
Where is this?
Right, it seems to be that mortal young man's home... No. That guy is definitely a profoundly unfathomable old monster.
Su Jiuer jolted awake. Remembering the powerful Great Dao rules and laws of the Dao Intent from before she passed out, she still felt a lingering sense of dread.
Anyone who could leave that kind of supreme Dao Intent in calligraphy and painting was certainly no ordinary person. He had to be an old monster of the utmost strength, a living legend.
"You're awake? You're so tiny, but you insisted on eating so much. You nearly got yourself into trouble, didn't you?"
Xu Yan's voice suddenly rang out, making Su Jiuer tremble.
She turned around and saw Xu Yan grinning at her in amusement. Her eyes welled up without her meaning to.
She was terrified and despairing. She had just escaped from those wicked Demon Race members, only to fall right into the hands of this human old monster of her own accord.
She wanted to cry... Why was her luck so bad?
Xu Yan saw Su Jiuer tremble, then watched her eyes grow damp. She looked so pitiful that he couldn't make heads or tails of it.
Why was this fox acting so foolish? He muttered to himself, "What's going on? Did this fox really make herself sick from eating?"
As he spoke, he reached both hands toward Su Jiuer.
Don't come any closer!
Su Jiuer screamed inwardly in despair. Too frightened to move, she decided to let this human old monster do whatever he wanted and gave up resisting.
She had heard that old monsters who had lived for countless years all had their quirks. For instance, the harder their captive fought back, the more excited they became. So if she stopped resisting, perhaps she could at least die with some dignity.
Xu Yan picked Su Jiuer up and examined her up close. Her body didn't seem to have anything wrong with it.
Then he patted her head, set her back on the bed, and muttered, "Looks like this fox was just born foolish. It had nothing to do with overeating."
Hearing Xu Yan's words, Su Jiuer cursed furiously in her heart: You're the fool! Your whole family's full of fools!
Only after cursing him out did she realize that she was actually on Xu Yan's bed.
Damn it, he actually wanted to share a bed with me! How shameless!
As soon as day broke, Xu Yan got up.
His routine was very regular. He almost never slept in.
After opening the shop and making two bowls of porridge, Xu Yan went into the inner hall.
Just as expected, Su Jiuer was still asleep.
"Little fox, get up!"
Xu Yan called out, startling Su Jiuer awake.
As a beautiful fox, Su Jiuer had a temper when woken up. After Xu Yan roused her, she bared her teeth and claws at him.
But in her true form, she was so small and adorable that she wasn't remotely threatening.
"All right, stop being cute so early in the morning. I've already made you breakfast." Xu Yan grabbed Su Jiuer as he spoke.
Then he took Su Jiuer with him to drink porridge.
Su Jiuer lay on the table in the shop's front hall, utterly dejected. That bastard Xu Yan had just forced her to drink a bowl of porridge, claiming that porridge was good for her health.
She was so angry she wanted to curse. He was clearly an old monster who had lived for who knew how many years and would probably live for who knew how many more, yet here he was going on about porridge being good for his health.
That wasn't even the worst part. Why the hell hadn't he added sugar to her porridge? Was he discriminating against foxes?
Porridge without sugar tasted awful, okay?
"Little fox, let's go breathe some fresh air!" Xu Yan took Su Jiuer out of the shop and sat beneath the cherry tree in front of it, settling her in his arms as his thoughts drifted far away.
He didn't know how long this simple, peaceful life could last. Perhaps one day, circumstances beyond his control would befall him too.
Nestled in Xu Yan's arms, Su Jiuer felt his warmth and scent. She lifted her head slightly and looked at his face.
She wondered why Xu Yan seemed to have the slightest hint of sadness about him. Could a supreme powerhouse like Xu Yan also have times when he was powerless to do anything?
At that moment, a group of people with extraordinary bearing walked down the street, drawing everyone's attention.
They were clearly cultivators. Wherever they went, passersby hurriedly moved aside.
The group of cultivators seemed to be searching for something. From time to time, they even entered people's homes, but they never found anything useful.
One of the men, who was rather heavyset, asked the striking woman in black walking ahead of him with a doubtful look, "Miss, is that little fox from the Sky Fox Clan really in Tianren City?"
The woman in black replied coolly, "The Demon Tiger Clan gave that information to our Lineage. There shouldn't be any mistake."
She didn't want to come looking for some little fox from the Sky Fox Clan either, but the Demon Tiger Clan had approached her Lineage and offered a Spirit Refining Grade Treasure in exchange for her Lineage capturing the little fox and handing her over.
So her Lineage had sent her to Tianren City with a few people to search for the little fox from the Sky Fox Clan.
The heavyset man complained, "There are so many people in Tianren City. Going from house to house looking for a fox—we'll never know when we'll be done."
He had barely finished speaking when he glanced up and spotted a young man beneath a cherry tree, holding a little fox in his arms.