Where in the human world is there not a Dao? Unlocking New Spirit Materials

On the long street, the Fox Demon looked at the smiling scholar opposite him and could not help murmuring the words again:

"That family was vicious—how could the fox be blamed?"

The Fox Demon raised his eyes toward the scholar across from him. The young man still wore a white-faced mask, featureless save for the hollowed-out eyeholes that revealed eyes bright as stars.

For some reason, though he could not make out the other man's features, the Fox Demon could not help feeling that the person before him must possess an extraordinary and striking bearing.

It stirred an inexplicable excitement within the Fox Demon, as though hot blood were boiling up from the depths of his heart, urging him to break through all the delusions of the mundane world and behold the vast universe, broad beneath the stars and moon.

The Fox Demon subconsciously wanted to imitate his smile, and even more, his bearing.

"I..." A smile appeared on the Fox Demon's face, the pointed corners of his mouth stretching upward on either side.

Then he felt something was off and hurriedly rubbed both cheeks, kneading his slightly stiff features to make the curve of his smile gentler and more natural.

Only then did the Fox Demon cup his hands, bow deeply to Chen Xu with a smile, and offer a salute.

"I, I... this little fox, this little fox thanks you, sir, for teaching me!"

The Fox Demon was delighted and excited, so restless he could have scratched at his ears and cheeks on the spot. Yet he bashfully measured the curve of his smile, doing his best to imitate elegance.

Though he had taken human form, understood human speech, and in some respects knew courtesy and propriety better than certain humans, at this very moment Chen Xu could plainly see a fox whose fur had not yet shed from him.

The fox stood upright, with a pointed chin, slanted eyes, and a hibiscus flower tucked beside his ear.

He wore a scholar's robe and scholar's cap. He looked human, yet still retained the unspent instincts of a beast.

It was truly rather comical, yet somehow possessed a wild sort of loveliness.

Seeing this, Chen Xu quietly let out a breath. The Fox Demon could be taught; naturally, that was far better than fighting to the death.

"Meeting is fate. We were merely chatting idly about the Dao, so why must you thank me?"

The fox froze again and cautiously asked, "We... were discussing the Dao? This is what it means to discuss the Dao?"

"Where in the human world is there not a Dao? Knowing gratitude and repaying it is Dao. Keeping one's promises is Dao. Even the fireworks and bustle of this long street at this moment are Dao," Chen Xu said. "It is not as though only boiling wine with pine blossoms and brewing tea with spring water can be called Dao.

"Or Daoist True Persons and Confucian sages, burning incense and tuning zithers, singing lofty melodies too refined for common ears...

"They are Dao, but does that mean we are not?"

The Fox Demon let out an "Ah," his eyes lighting up as his pounding heart grew ever more excited.

He was overjoyed, yet did not know what to say. One moment he adjusted the flower in his hair, the next he touched the cap on his head, while his hands could not resist wanting to rub his face again.

"I, I must repay you somehow." The Fox Demon was troubled. "But earlier, I promised that Lin Family child that tomorrow I would hide inside the coffin and ask whether you were the murderer.

"Though he has died, I must fulfill what I promised. Th-this, what should I do?"

Chen Xu said, "Simply fulfill your promise. Ask when the time comes. As for when you ask, how you ask, and what my reaction will be, those things have nothing to do with your promise. What do you think, Fellow Daoist Hu?"

The Fox Demon's eyes lit up again.

Finally, Chen Xu said with a smile, "Fellow Daoist Hu, if you cultivate in the human world and wish to attain the Dao, then you must understand one thing.

"There are whole people in this world, and there are broken people. The so-called broken people may wear human form, but their natures are wicked. Such people act unpredictably and have no bottom line. Though human, they are not human at all—nothing but vermin.

"Fellow Daoist Hu, you must never learn from such vermin. Do not let this turbid world dazzle your eyes and cause you to lose your bottom line.

"Today, we met and called each other fellow Daoists. If fate allows us to meet again someday, I hope we may still call each other fellow Daoists."

After saying that, he removed his mask.

The Fox Demon stared at him blankly, his words churning through his mind. Once more, he unconsciously imitated Chen Xu's manner. His back straightened slightly, and the somewhat stiff, exaggerated expression on his face became much gentler and more natural.

With his wide sleeves held neatly, the Fox Demon folded his hands before him and solemnly saluted. "It shall be so. I would not dare stray from it."

Chen Xu returned the salute. "I am Chen Xu. Greetings, Fellow Daoist Hu."

The Fox Demon stammered before hurriedly saying, "I, I am Hu Xi. Greetings, Fellow Daoist Chen."

Man and demon saluted each other, then exchanged farewells.

Only after the Fox Demon departed did Chen Xu suddenly hear the clamor of human voices beside his ears. In that instant, all the noise and bustle of the mortal world returned.

Travelers came and went along the long street, and the night market was bustling. Where was there any trace of the Fox Demon?

Their meeting beneath the lanterns had been like an illusion from a strange tale.

But Chen Xu knew none of it had been a dream, because before leaving, the Fox Demon had given him three fox hairs.

The fox hairs were still in his hand, tangible and real, mysterious and resplendent.

[Fox Demon spirit whiskers. After roasting and grinding them into powder, they can be blended with supplementary materials to make Mystic Fox Rejuvenation Powder. It stops bleeding, promotes flesh growth, and heals external injuries. It also has a certain effect on cultivators.]

[You have formed a bond with the Fox Demon and obtained a new type of spirit material. Reward: Firework Value +300.]

Chen Xu was instantly overjoyed. With Firework Value +300, he could return and unlock Fire Control Technique Level 2, or the Summon Wind Technique!

Just as he was rejoicing, Chen Xu was about to store the three fox hairs in Embers Kitchen when he suddenly heard a delighted cry from behind him. "Here, here! The demon aura is up ahead! Hurry, A Jue, let's go!"

Turning around, he saw an exceptionally conspicuous man-and-donkey pair.

A young Daoist in a blue Daoist robe held a compass in one hand and dragged a gray donkey with the other, struggling to pull it forward.

The person went forward, while the donkey backed away.

The young Daoist first rejoiced, then grew anxious, then angry. "The demon aura is right ahead! You stupid donkey, if you keep being stubborn with me, the demon aura will run away again. Come on, hurry..."

The donkey would not move. It brayed, and backed away even harder.

"A Jue!" The young Daoist first shouted angrily, then pulled a mournful face. "Ancestor, can I call you my ancestor? I will never ride you again. Let's go already."

The young Daoist yielded, and the donkey stopped backing away.

At last, the donkey obediently started forward. Just as the young Daoist was rejoicing, he suddenly lowered his head to look at the compass in his hand.

Eh, the compass needle was wrong again.

"Ah!" On the long street, the young Daoist let out a shriek as though he were being slaughtered instead of the donkey. "The demon aura vanished again? Aaaah! Stupid donkey, stubborn donkey, I'm going to fight you to the death!"

"Hee-haw, hee-haw, hee-haw—"

At this end of the long street, Chen Xu silently stored the three fox hairs in Embers Kitchen. Once the fox hairs were taken away, the so-called demon aura naturally disappeared as well.

He played with the two masks in his hand and brushed past the young Daoist.

Leading the donkey, the young Daoist suddenly turned back with an "Eh?" He enthusiastically ran up to Chen Xu, performed a Daoist salute, and said, "Good believer, this humble Daoist is Xuan Yi, the seventy-second-generation disciple of Qingxu Dao Palace. I have come south to gain experience, observe the ways of the world, and subdue demons and capture ghosts.

"I see that you possess an extraordinary aura, good believer. Your knowledge must surely surpass that of ordinary people. May I ask whether you have seen any demons nearby?"

Chen Xu looked at the young Daoist Xuan Yi and asked strangely, "The night market is crowded with people. Why are you so certain that I can recognize demons, Daoist? I am merely a common man of the mortal world. How do I deserve your words 'extraordinary aura'?"

The young Daoist Xuan Yi was left dumbfounded by the question. He scratched his head and stammered, "I-isn't that so? No, that is not right. The moment I saw you, I felt you had to be different from ordinary people. My feeling cannot be wrong..."

Chen Xu was eager to return and cultivate, so he immediately fooled him in all seriousness. "Feelings are illusory and intangible. How can they be certainly without error?

"Daoist, do not let your own mistaken impressions deceive you. Farewell."

At this crucial PK stage, please keep reading! Many thanks, everyone!