Fox Woman

Biodata

Appearance

• Mostly human form: A humanlike body distinguished by furry fox ears and three fox tails 14.
• Petite build: Small enough for Su Changsheng’s enlarged white-snake form to cast its shadow almost completely over her 27 28.
• Distinctive eyes: Narrow, upturned, phoenix-shaped fox eyes, repeatedly described as captivating 27 28.
• Floral fragrance: Carries a faint flower scent rather than the rank musk associated with some fox demons 28.
• Clothing: At their later meeting, her chest is wrapped in two pieces of hide 37.

Personality

Little Four is a calculating merchant who recognizes valuable talent and adjusts her approach accordingly. She initially tries to sell Su Changsheng an expensive specialized rune method, later offers favorable terms to secure his business, and eventually seeks to recruit him. His growing strength and talisman-making ability make her abandon more aggressive plans 14 28 37.

She advocates honest dealing as the foundation of a stable trading system, even quoting a human book when rebuking the Eagle Yao. That principle coexists with caution and opportunism: she refuses to pursue Su Changsheng after one trade, but later orders surveillance after canceling a planned ambush 29 37.

She is fascinated by human culture, particularly romances between scholars and fox women. Human-style forms of address such as “Fourth Miss” delight her, and she enjoys the Spirit Plant Shop’s imitation teahouse. Her interest also extends to the Seekers’ attempts to uncover the truth about the human world, which she defends despite warnings about contaminated records 41 44.

Abilities & Skills

Level-Three Demonic Aura

• Releases an aura strong enough to send nearby yao fleeing, using it to stop Su Changsheng from leaving their encounter 28.
• No named combat technique or direct battle involving her is documented in the supplied chapters.

Rune Appraisal

• Recognizes the quality of Su Changsheng’s Concealment Runes and approaches him to secure their supply 28.
• Verifies his Lesser Poison Dragon Shedding Talisman by examining its energy and comparing it with her treasured original 37.
• Notices later improvements in his craftsmanship, judging a new shedding talisman to be approaching the original’s quality 42.
• Possession and appraisal of rune methods are established; her own ability to craft those runes is not shown 14 29 37.

Trading and Resource Procurement

• Offers market-price payment, resale services, and reduced exposure for a talisman supplier 28.
• Obtains blood food, rune-making materials, intermediate crafting methods, and wraith beast resources for trades 29 37 43.
• Can arrange for subordinates to fetch demon-art scrolls and handle exchanges 42 43.
• Has limited access to precious resources despite being able to obtain ordinary blood food readily 37.

Equipment / Items

• Original Lesser Poison Dragon Shedding Talisman — A treasured reference talisman used to authenticate Su Changsheng’s work. Its crafting method derives from a pureblood Lesser Yao’s innate rune and is exceptionally difficult to study 29 37.
• Rune-crafting methods — Stocks ordinary methods and specialized methods; supplies Su Changsheng with the intermediate Healing Art method and Little Venomous Dragon Shedding Talisman method 14 29.
• Human-world book — A rare, slightly damaged paper book with twelve pages. Its first seven pages contain unfamiliar writing and bizarre illustrations; the remaining five use Demon Script and include the Demon Art Listening. She does not know why the scripts differ 42 43.
• Demon-art scrolls — Offers animal-hide scrolls recording Bloodthirst Art and Mental Sense; possession does not establish that she practices either technique 42.

Relationships

• Su Changsheng / “Xi” — A valued supplier whom she knows through his white-snake half-demon identity. Their cooperation remains guarded: she wants to recruit him, while he withholds his true identity and remains suspicious of her intentions 28 37 42.
• Eagle Yao — An associate who carries messages and follows her instructions. She rejects his initial suggestion to track Su Changsheng, then later orders him to investigate and attempt recruitment 29 36 37.
• Unnamed elder sister — Little Four hopes Su Changsheng’s shedding talisman will help her. The sister faces pressure from the Yao Stronghold’s higher-ups, but the precise step she is expected to take is not explained 38.
• Spirit Plant Shop stallholder — A familiar confidant who discusses talismans, her elder sister, and human-world materials with her. The stallholder warns her that the Seekers’ records are contaminated 38 44.

Story Role / Major Arcs

Establishing the Trading Partnership

Little Four first appears selling rune-crafting methods at the Yao Market. Su Changsheng purchases four methods but rejects her demand for five hundred jin of wraith beast flesh for a specialized shedding method derived from an Ironhead Snake 14.

When they meet again, she recognizes him despite his changed appearance. After stopping him with her aura, she introduces herself at the Spirit Plant Shop and proposes becoming his rune-buying agent. He accepts a limited arrangement rather than supplying everything she requests 27 28.

Recruitment and Surveillance

After Su Changsheng demonstrates that he can craft an intermediate shedding talisman, Little Four’s assessment of both his value and his danger rises sharply. She cancels a plan to ambush him and orders the Eagle Yao to discover his identity and, if possible, recruit him. She stresses that the Yao Stronghold’s powerful figures are becoming impatient 37.

The Eagle Yao loses Su Changsheng and returns with a worm carcass instead. Little Four is startled by his failure; the stallholder points out that the carcass was likely bait. During the same meeting, she reveals that the newly acquired talisman may help her elder sister 38.

Human-World Materials

When Su Changsheng requests suitable demon arts, Little Four offers Bloodthirst Art, Mental Sense, and access to her rare human-world book. She refuses to sell the book even for a hundred Concealment Runes, but allows him to inspect it 42 43.

Su Changsheng becomes suspicious of the book’s illustrations and cultivation requirements, declines all three arts, and asks for wraith beast meat and rune materials instead. After he leaves, Little Four defends the Seekers’ pursuit of human-world truth against the stallholder’s criticism 43 44.

Absence from the Reopened Market

Su Changsheng looks for Little Four when the Yao Market reopens under stricter rules but cannot find her. Although normally a regular presence there, her whereabouts and the reason for her absence are not established 48 49.

Notable Quotes

“As a person... pah, as a yao, you must act with integrity. That's how you build a stable trading system.” 29

“Cancel the plan to beat the grass and startle the snake.” 37

“Those Seekers crossed endless taboos and chasms, all to pursue the truth of the human world.” 44