What a Letdown

The white fox had always had a good memory.

Earlier, there had been four people in the party from the Heavenly Prison, including a woman...

It really had gone down the mountain into the village earlier, not for any other reason, but because it had sensed a familiar presence.

That fool from the Thousand Illusions Sect, the fellow who had become infatuated with it after the slightest bit of manipulation.

The white fox had been rather delighted at the time. That fellow was probably the Thousand Illusions Sect's last surviving seedling, and it hadn't expected to encounter him again.

If it could take him down, its chances of obtaining the true Thousand Illusions Purple-Gold Bell would increase considerably.

Unfortunately, while the mantis stalked the cicada, the oriole waited behind. Its older sister had come too, concealing her presence and even learning human supernatural arts.

As for the Thousand Illusions Purple-Gold Bell, what it wanted wasn't the bell itself. That was merely a restraint laid down by a Thousand Illusions Sect disciple using supernatural means.

What it truly wanted was the thing inside the bell.

The white fox had initially pondered it for a long time, but no matter what it tried, it couldn't undo the restraint. It could only hide the bell here and let the thing inside quietly absorb the essence of the sun and moon.

The people of the Thousand Illusions Sect hadn't dared do such a thing. They normally kept the bell locked away on a high shelf, tightly sealed, clearly aware that its contents were anything but ordinary.

This was a matter of grinding away like a water-driven mill. Demon beasts had long lifespans, and the white fox hadn't been in a hurry. It had intended to wait quietly until that ancestral relic had eaten and drunk its fill, at which point the seal would undo itself.

But what happened afterward was plain enough. The playful fox had run down the mountain, intending to harvest someone's essence, only to be caught by a certain person in a brothel...

The white fox transformed with a shake of its body, taking on a graceful figure. Black hair spilled down from its shoulders and neck, covering a torn patch at the front of its clothing.

The woman looked capable and brisk, but pain now showed in her eyes. She gently rolled up a trouser leg, revealing a slender stretch of fair skin illuminated by moonlight, dotted with crimson.

After a moment's thought, the white fox deliberately added a few more tears to her clothes. Those torn patches offered glimpses of intimate flesh, along with several fresh, bleeding wounds.

Only after finishing all this did "Lin Qingqing" lean back, resting her limp upper body against a tree. She tilted her head slightly, letting her hair cover half her face.

The whole transformation flowed like drifting clouds and running water, practiced to perfection, and she looked almost identical to the real woman.

She was even a little softer and more alluring than the real Lin Qingqing.

"Heh heh... seamless as a heavenly robe."

This was a demon fox's signature talent, the very tool of its trade.

Unless someone surpassed a demon fox by several major realms, even a cultivator in the middle three realms couldn't see through its disguise.

Ye Wuyou pushed aside the dead branches and quietly studied the woman slumped on the ground.

"Lin Qingqing" had her eyes half closed. Seemingly sensing someone approaching, she raised her head with difficulty to look.

At the sight of Ye Wuyou, she first froze, then revealed a perfectly timed look of delighted surprise.

She really was delighted.

He had been too far away earlier, and the mountain woods too dark for her to see clearly.

Only when he came closer did she realize what a handsome young man he was.

Harvesting essence from a young man like this would even help her wounds heal faster.

"It's you..." she said in delight.

But that was all she could say.

She didn't know Ye Wuyou's name, nor did she know what she had supposedly just been through.

So she could only wait for Ye Wuyou to speak.

Yet Ye Wuyou said nothing. He merely stood before her, looking at her quietly.

Hey, hey, this isn't how it was supposed to go... a wounded, delicate beauty and a young man just beginning his cultivation, alone in the mountain woods at night-shouldn't there be endless things to talk about as we pour out our hearts?

In her eyes, the man's gaze was as flat as a pool of stagnant water. He didn't even look at the places she had deliberately exposed.

But what hadn't she seen before?

I get it. Pretending, are you? Go on, keep pretending.

So we're doing the fresh-faced gentleman meets a wounded older beauty routine.

Lin Qingqing tried to stand, but after struggling several times, she gave him an apologetic smile tinged with pain and said helplessly,

"I was hurt in that tremor earlier. I'm afraid I can't walk. Could you help me?"

"Sure," Ye Wuyou said.

"Lin Qingqing" apparently hadn't expected Ye Wuyou to answer so decisively this time. Before she could react, he wrapped an arm around her and hoisted her onto his shoulder.

Hmm... this turn of events.

She stared at the man's solid back in silence.

Wasn't he supposed to help me up first, then, when I still pretended I couldn't stand, finally sweep me into his arms?

Then she could tease him as much as she liked along the way, right against his chest and heart. Combined with her innate charm arts, there was no fear of him remaining unmoved.

The conditions were a little less favorable now, but... no matter.

"Hey, where are you going?"

"Down the mountain," Ye Wuyou said.

"Down the mountain..."

Going down the mountain meant running into her damned sister. That woman had joined a human sect and was now thriving.

Demon foxes cared nothing for sisterly affection. The original unrest in Green Hill had started with a fight between two vixens who were blood sisters.

Her sister had come at this particular time, bringing an orphan of the Thousand Illusions Sect with her. Clearly, she wanted the Purple-Gold Bell-and her life along with it.

"No, don't go down yet. I just saw that demon fox heading up the mountain," Lin Qingqing said hurriedly, patting the man's back.

"Oh? You can't even walk now, and you still want to catch the demon fox?" Ye Wuyou asked without slowing his steps.

"Well..."

As she was considering how to persuade Ye Wuyou not to go down the mountain, an odd sensation came from somewhere on her backside, and a blush rose to her cheeks.

Well, well, well. Keeping up that act for so long must have been hard on you, handsome boy. Couldn't resist getting handsy after all?

Ahead of her came Ye Wuyou's calm voice.

"Your ass is bleeding."

*?*

"Lin Qingqing" froze. Only then did she realize she hadn't properly dealt with the wound left by her severed tail.

"Oh, oh... I was hurt in that tremor earlier. I-it's nothing."

"Really? Good, then. I thought you had some other embarrassing condition. That would've been rather disgusting," Ye Wuyou said.

Deep breaths. Deep breaths.

At last, Lin Qingqing couldn't take it anymore.

What kind of person is this?!

Why did I have to insist on bewitching him with fox charms?

This brat was only in the first realm, while I was a third-tier demon fox. Even if fighting wasn't my specialty, I could still pin him to the ground and grind him into the dirt.

Right. I'll just use force.

At that thought, Lin Qingqing's expression changed. She finally stopped concealing her aura and let it spill out.

A third-tier demon fox.

Two fox tails suddenly shot out behind her. With a light flick, they wrapped Ye Wuyou in layer upon layer before hurling him to the ground.

"Lin Qingqing" flipped over and landed sprawled across the man's chest.

Her hands roamed lightly over him, her legs pressed together, and her full, round moon of a backside tilted upward, with two white fox tails extending behind it.

The woman's posture resembled a fox's. Her fair neck arched slightly back, and a dangerous gleam shone in her eyes.

A faint pink aura emanated from "Lin Qingqing." Barely perceptible, it nevertheless filled their surroundings.

There. Now I only need to wait quietly for this handsome young man to fall into the illusion.

"Sleep, sleep... sink into sweet dreams. This will be the most exquisite experience of your entire life."

"In exchange, let me devour you..."

"Lin Qingqing" extended a finger and slowly caressed the man's chest, an infatuated smile spreading across her face.

But...

"Why are you still awake?" "Lin Qingqing" wore a strange expression, her eyes fixed on the man beneath her.

She met Ye Wuyou's icy gaze head-on.

Answering a question was basic courtesy. Ye Wuyou considered her question, then asked in puzzlement,

"When your Demon Fox Clan harvests essence, do you all use fake illusions like this?"

"Huh? What else would we use?" The demon fox froze, seemingly caught off guard. She even nodded.

"I see." Ye Wuyou sounded a little disappointed.

I'd wanted to experience a demon fox's famous specialty for myself, but now you're telling me it's only an illusion. All that time wasted. What a...

The next instant, a shrill, agonized wail rang through the mountains, like the unwilling roar of a wild beast.

Having lost another fox tail, the demon fox lay prone on the ground, her aura feeble and her eyes filled with terror, no longer in human form.

"Letdown."