The Nine-Tailed Fox

Why is the Xun Kingdom getting involved too?

Well, there's nothing unusual about it. The Divine Cult has already attacked from Kunlun, and Xun Kingdom isn't far away...

However, the four raccoons seemed to have a grudge against the Immortal Palace. Upon seeing the Immortal Palace's command token, they immediately revealed their true forms, their furry bodies resembling headscarves. They shrieked and pounced forward with their swords drawn. The four soft swords flashed coldly, like venomous snakes spitting their tongues, and stabbed straight at the three cultivators. Their magical power surged, clearly indicating that they had used their cultivation abilities. Their speed was more than three times faster than before, their sword energy was imposing, and their killing intent was fully revealed!

The two rogue cultivators connected to the Xun Kingdom's Immortal Palace were so frightened that their legs went weak, and they tried to flee with their heads in their hands. But the bearded man did not retreat; instead, he advanced, wielding his steel spears in both hands, and attacked in a fit of rage, shouting, "Monster! Give me back my brother's life!"

But this time, the four raccoons were fighting him alone, and they were really going all out. The bearded man was overwhelmed. He unleashed a series of attacks with his twin spears, but the raccoon maids dodged them. Their soft swords lashed out like silver snakes and whips, circling the bearded man's body. He only lasted four or five moves before his chainmail was shattered into chains, his body was covered in blood, several of his energy points and meridians were pierced, and his tendons in his hands and feet were severed. He could only kneel on the ground, leaning on his broken spear, vomiting blood.

The two rogue cultivators from the Immortal Palace fared much worse. The fox maidservants showed them no mercy. One of them had barely pulled out a talisman when a sword flashed and shattered his five fingers, then pierced his mouth and nose with a single strike, killing him instantly. The other didn't even have time to get up and perform a hand seal before being swept aside by two sword energies, his chest cleaved into four pieces with a cross.

Li Fan was taken aback. These four raccoon dogs were quite skilled, and they weren't using human skin, but rather magical transformations into human form. Even when they revealed their true forms, they possessed strength far above trash level, and they could even use sword energy?

'The Profound Heaven Sword Intent... I have a bad feeling.'

By the way, Sword Intent, didn't you have a disciple named Fox Hook? Could it be...?

' The Profound Heaven Sword Intent says, impossible! That brat betrayed his master and ancestors, but he would never dare to pass on the sect's secret techniques to the Demon Race!'

If they've already betrayed their master and ancestors, what else wouldn't they dare to do...? Was it when the Sword Sect was destroyed that their secret techniques were leaked out?

"Profound Heaven Sword Intent said, 'Stop bringing up the destruction of the Sword Sect! Hmph! Let's see what kind of tactics they really have.'"

We can take another look, not only to see the foxes' background, but also to see the background of the Immortal Palace.

In the short time that followed, three purple-feathered thunder eagles, carrying wind and thunder, flew down to the purple fire phoenix and circled above the spiritual cave. On the back of each giant eagle stood three heavenly generals clad in sturdy armor, wearing hooded iron masks, and with lightning bolts on their backs. They each wielded an axe, a bronze whip, and a halberd, and were all at the Golden Core stage.

However, these three Golden Core Heavenly Generals were quite formidable. Li Fan could sense that their cultivation was clearly above the trash level, likely higher than the four fox spirits, and perhaps even at the Golden Core level of Ink Bamboo Mountain. Were these truly the trash from the Immortal Palace?

"Profound Heaven Sword Intent said, 'Hey, you brat, you're incredibly arrogant! Only I can call the Immortal Palace trash!'"

The Nangong Family has been engaged in wars for years, resulting in severe internal strife. Their soldiers and generals lack the support of generals, their supernatural abilities are not being used, and their foundation is insufficient, which is why they appear useless.

"I remember the guardian immortal of this Xun Kingdom is long gone. The Conquering East General Conquers the East, sent by the Three Enclosures to subdue the demons of Baiyue Mountain, should have been Wen Tianjun, who commanded the Thunder Department. Their Thunder Department is a well-established and elite force, with few losses; they're quite formidable. Don't underestimate them, kid."

Oh, the elite troops of the Immortal Palace, huh?

The four foxes looked up at the three thunder eagles in the sky, seemingly aware of the formidable nature of the approaching figure. One of the maids casually grabbed the bearded man and tossed him unconscious towards his two satisfied friends, then turned and retreated to the sedan chair. Apparently due to the influence of the False Moon, the lady dared not reveal herself and had no time to escape. The maids then sat cross-legged around the sedan chair, each holding a talisman, activating it, and chanting incantations to set up a magic array, seemingly intending to hold out until dawn.

The three Golden Core Heavenly Generals from the Thunder Department coldly surveyed the monsters below, observing their tactics. They exchanged glances, and suddenly raised their divine weapons in unison.

Instantly, lightning flashed across the sky, electric snakes danced wildly, and three thunder eagles screeched as the lightning between their feathers converged. Guided by the divine weapon of the Golden Core Heavenly General, they coalesced into a single ball, and in a flash, with a crack and a burst of light, they struck straight down towards the fox's sedan chair!

This divine thunder was incredibly powerful, shattering the magic array set up by the maids in one strike. All four talismans were burned, and the four fox spirits coughed up blood, directly knocked down by the thunder and collapsed to the ground. The lightning only reached ten feet above the top of the sedan chair before being forced away by the halo, causing the surrounding vegetation to burst into flames and sparks to fly everywhere.

"The Profound Heaven Sword Intent said, 'One bolt of lightning isn't enough? Then there's no need to look any further. The Heavenly Generals selected for the Thunder Department can at least strike nine bolts of lightning, and these are three of them; they'd be more than capable of killing this group of demons.'"

The four raccoons clearly understood this as well. The leader let out a sharp cry, drew his sword, and leaped into the sky, heading straight for the Thunder General.

The Three Thunder Generals remained expressionless as another burst of lightning converged, and with a deafening roar, a thunderbolt struck down, instantly turning the maid into minced meat! Blood mist and pieces of flesh rained down, leaving a patch of red dots on the top of the sedan chair.

Li Fan was a little puzzled. Why hadn't the Nine-Tails made a move yet? Wasn't it just playing its zither and exchanging energy blasts a moment ago?

' The Profound Heaven Sword Intent says, divine lightning is specifically effective against demons, and besides, it's pregnant, probably afraid of disturbing the fetus.'

Oh, so it's a pregnant... Holy crap! Sword intent! You went too far! You didn't even tell him beforehand that there were two in the sedan chair! And you even let me go up and grab the pregnant female fox and pierce her collarbone!?

"Profound Heaven Sword Intent said, 'Why didn't you mention that? Didn't I tell you that if we catch one, we might be able to raise a whole litter? Besides, a fox litter can have several litters; it's not necessarily just two.'"

I'm lying down...

Crack! Another bolt of lightning struck! But once again, flesh and blood exploded!

Yes, these raccoon dogs are really going all out, taking turns jumping up to catch lightning for their mistress!

Li Fan frowned after observing for a while. Although these were demons, they hadn't harmed the three rogue cultivators with the big beard. And regardless of whether they were demons or not, even if they were just ordinary pregnant female beasts, being struck by lightning like that was really...

"The Profound Heaven Sword Intent said, 'So, didn't I tell you? If this fox can become your disciple and cultivate, that would be its great fortune; otherwise, it's doomed sooner or later. So, are you going to catch it or not? If you don't act now, even the finest fur will be destroyed by lightning.'"

Damn it! We've got him!

Immediately, Li Fan used his Divine Sense to lock onto the lightning general that was gathering in the sky, preparing for the fourth thunderbolt to strike!

Unexpectedly, Lei Jiang, who was being watched by Li Fan, sensed something! He suddenly swept his halberd and roared, "What kind of monster are you! Spying on me from the sidelines!"

With that tug of his halberd, the gathered thunderclouds and lightning burst forth, scattering across the sky! The heavens were filled with thunder and lightning, and thunderbolts writhed and rolled!

The other two Thunder Generals were also experienced. They immediately set up their steers and changed formation, with the three of them back to back, forming a triangular shape to guard against any sneak attacks!

"How can they be so powerful!" Li Fan was also shocked. He hadn't even released his flying sword yet, and the opponent was already prepared to counterattack! The Nangong Family's good-for-nothings are really too much for them!

Meanwhile, the fox below seized a rare opportunity to strike!

A series of chaotic strings rang out!

The top of the sedan chair was instantly shattered by the explosive sonic wave! A violent whirlwind of sound surged straight into the sky! The immense power of the Dao slammed into the three Thunder Generals in the heavens!

But these three Thunder Generals were truly seasoned veterans! The Nine-Tailed Fox's all-out attack, which struck them in an instant, was still dodged by their mounts! Only the three Thunder Eagles were unlucky; the Thunder Generals used them as stepping stones, and they were all swept into the sonic whirlwind, shredded into blood and gore, with a large number of eagle feathers falling from the sky!

But this attack still forced Sanlei to break up their battle formation!

Then a golden figure, seemingly wielding a sharp sword, flashed out of the sedan chair and lunged at Lei Jiang, who was holding a halberd!

Lei Jiang roared and wildly thrust his halberd! In an instant, he unleashed a hundred halberd shadows in an attempt to block the enemy's attack. However, the golden figure was actually a Sword Light that passed directly through the halberd formation. As if sacrificing himself to stab, the flying sword flew straight into Lei Jiang's arms and pierced through his chest!

The halberd-wielding general let out a miserable scream and fell from the sky; his primordial spirit had been annihilated by a single sword strike!

Hearing their comrade's screams, the other two heavenly generals showed no hesitation whatsoever. Clearly seasoned veterans of countless battles, they wielded axes and whips, attacking from both sides as they charged straight at the sedan chair to exorcise the demon!

The two fox maids immediately leaped up to protect them, but their rudimentary swordsmanship was only good for ganging up on them; they were no match for the two thunder generals in a one-on-one fight. They were cut in two with a single move, their skulls shattered, and they died instantly.

But after this initial thud, another string rang out from the sedan chair, and a golden humanoid sword shadow flew out. With another whirlwind of swordplay and a flash of Sword Light, Lei Jiang, wielding the whip, was unable to withstand the golden figure's sword strikes and was immediately beheaded.

But the last man wielding the axe roared and swung it down with a furious blow! The blow clattered into the sedan chair!

The aura unleashed by the giant axe instantly dispersed the sedan chair, revealing the figures inside.

This was a beautiful young woman, dressed in mourning clothes, holding a guzheng in her hands. Although her body was humanoid, it was graceful and shapely. Her face was hazy, as if some kind of illusion was used to cover it, making it impossible to see her specific features. However, she was clearly influenced by the False Moon, and could no longer maintain her human form, clearly revealing furry beast ears and golden beast eyes. Of course, there were also nine large tails with white fur and black tips.

At this moment, the nine large tails enveloped the fox spirit like banana leaf fans. When Lei swung his axe down, it was blocked by these nine refined tails, narrowly avoiding hitting her neck.

Then the Nine-Tailed Lady pressed and plucked the strings of the zither with her five fingers, producing a clear, resonant sound. A golden figure then appeared, wielding a sword and beheading the Thunder General with a single strike.

Li Fan made a hand seal, holding the Heaven-Slaying Sword in his hand, ready to unleash it.

He wasn't momentarily distracted by the fox-woman's beauty; he hadn't made a move earlier not only because he realized she could handle the Three Thunder Generals on her own, but also because there was a lot of Profound Heaven Sword Intent involved, and she told him to stop.

What happened this time?

' The Profound Heaven Sword Intent says, that figure... uses the swordsmanship of my Beichen Sect... but the sonic technique of using the zither to strike the sword is not from my sect...'

So?

' The Profound Heaven Sword Intent says, it might have seen my disciple practicing swordsmanship... Don't arrest it yet, ask it for me...'

Ask? How should I ask? What's your apprentice's name?

Before Li Fan could speak, the fox flicked its tail, tossed aside Lei Jiang's corpse, picked up its zither, plucked a string, and transmitted its voice, "Thank you for your help, swordsman!"

The great demon had realized that Li Fan had secretly helped her seize the opportunity to counterattack. Otherwise, she would have been struck by successive bolts of lightning, severely injuring herself and forcing her to transform into human form. Not only would the fetus be in danger, but her life might also have been in peril.

Since she spoke, Li Fan also transmitted his voice, "Do you recognize Yan Xingyun?"

The nine-tailed fox was startled. "It is indeed my father! I didn't know you were an old acquaintance of my father! May I come out and meet you?"

... Alright, sword intent, can you catch it now?

The Profound Heaven Sword Intent remained silent for a long time.

' The Profound Heaven Sword Intent said... I knew that beast couldn't cultivate into a human, but I never imagined that this wretch would actually abort his demonic form... How come that dog was beaten to death?'

Oh, so he's another senior brother who only envies the lovebirds, not the immortals... Sigh, it seems his love tribulations are going to be tough...

Li Fan shook his head and asked telepathically, "Your attire suggests your father has passed away?"

The nine-tailed fox, holding the zither, curtsied and nodded slightly. "Senior misunderstands. My husband didn't survive the tribulation lightning. My father went north to Yinshan five hundred years ago and died along with our sect."

... Sword intent?

The Profound Heaven Sword Intent said, "... I'm leaving; our fate has run its course."

Is our fate truly over...?

Li Fan sighed, leaving behind the fox that was still calling out "Senior! Senior!", and concealed himself as he left.