Street Oddities

The morning sunlight shone upon Ju'an Pavilion. The jujube tree in the courtyard was covered in yellow-green blossoms, their faint floral fragrance filling the small yard and drifting beyond its walls to permeate much of Tianniu Quarter.

For the common folk living in Tianniu Quarter, this faint jujube blossom fragrance—unlike in previous years—along with the new resident of Ju'an Pavilion, had become a small talking point of the year.

Although few still dared to approach Ju'an Pavilion, it was no longer as terrifying as in past memories. After all, someone had been living there for two months Safe and Sound, and Master Yin from the Academy frequently visited Ju'an Pavilion without any trouble either.

Ji Yuan pulled open the main door of the house and stepped out, stretching lazily. Only someone like him—unemployed and temporarily not short on money—could freely sleep until this hour. Ordinary households would have risen at the first crack of dawn.

"Sun High in the Sky, I alone sleep—what a pity I'm no immortal!"

Muttering this clumsy doggerel verse, Ji Yuan leisurely walked into the courtyard. He took a thin willow branch he had picked yesterday from beside the kitchen, hooked his finger, and a Water Thread rose from the Water Vat.

With a flick of his Fingertips, he infused a trace of spiritual energy into the willow branch using Internal Cultivation techniques, making it stand straight. It moved with the flowing water inside his mouth, changing positions, and within a dozen seconds, his teeth were brushed clean.

"Urgh... ptoo~"

He spat out the murky rinsing water and immediately felt even more Refreshed!

Ji Yuan's tooth-brushing was now far more efficient than before, and he clearly noticed that the residue on his teeth after waking up each day was decreasing. Perhaps one day he wouldn't need to brush at all.

He would be happy to never need to bathe or brush his teeth, but even if he no longer felt hungry, he would absolutely never give up eating.

This world was already so Bored; how dull would it be if he couldn't enjoy good food?

Carrying the bamboo slips of the Chess Sutra and closing the Courtyard Gate, Ji Yuan leisurely set out. Lately, he felt he had "greatly increased in strength" and had begun contemplating when to go out and see the world.

The best proof was that he had fully mastered two volumes of Cultivation Books and had practiced two Martial Arts Manuals quite well. However, regarding the so-called seven realms of true qi in the Iron Punishment Battle Post, Ji Yuan didn't know how to define his own state—after all, he had started with "Innate True Qi."

And now, without the Cultivation Qi Refining Technique, he was temporarily using the true qi circulation method from the Iron Punishment Battle Post as a substitute, running spiritual energy through it and completely eliminating true qi.

Though it felt a bit like wasting the spiritual energy, it was better than nothing, and it had significantly improved his martial arts.

Regardless, he wasn't qualified to show off in front of demons and immortal cultivators, but he should be enough to protect himself among ordinary society.

While reading the Chess Sutra by touch, Ji Yuan walked through the alleys and paths of Tianniu Quarter. When he encountered Residents along the way, they would respectfully greet him with "Good morning, Mister Ji," and Ji Yuan would reply with a Smile.

One advantage of having Ears as sharp as Ji Yuan's was that he could recognize anyone by the sound of their voice, so he never made mistakes when Greeting people.

"Woof woof woof... woof woof woof woof... arf... woof woof woof..."

From the Street at the far end of the quarter came a fierce chorus of barking, as if more than one dog was chasing something.

Then Ji Yuan heard the commotion of a crowd on the street.

"Oh, whose dogs are these, so vicious!"

"Hey hey, a fox!"

"Really a fox! Haha, it's going to get bitten to death!"

"What a waste of that fur!"

"Move aside, move aside! Where's the fox, where's the fox? If we catch it, that's a fine pelt!"

"It went that way, the dogs are chasing it. The fur's already torn!"

"Woof woof woof..."

"Bang~"

"Whimper whimper whimper..."

"There it is! Catch it, catch it! There seems to be something in the fur on its back! Get the dogs away!! Damn dogs, let go, let go!"

"Arf... woof woof woof..."

Ji Yuan frowned. Without knowing why, he quickened his pace. Exiting Tianniu Quarter, he headed toward the noisiest, most chaotic spot nearby. Channeling spiritual energy and using a Martial Arts Movement Technique, he moved like a Green Shadow gliding across the Street—appearing to walk, but actually moving at incredible speed.

If Ji Yuan hadn't used an Illusion Technique, he would have caused chaos among the people and animals on the street.

At a corner of the Street, a crowd of onlookers had gathered.

"Damn dogs, let go! Let go!"

"Bang!"

"Whimper whimper whimper..."

Two fierce Men were beating with wooden sticks at two Big Yellow Dogs that wouldn't release the fox they had clamped onto. The dogs yelped in pain and dodged the blows.

Over twenty onlookers watched as the red fox lay dying at the street corner, bleeding.

"Hahaha, this fox is ours!!"

One of the Men reached out to grab the Fox Tail, but the dying fox suddenly leaped up and darted through the crowd.

"Wow, it was Pretending to be dead!"

"This fox is so smart!"

Someone in the crowd exclaimed.

"Don't let it get away!"

"It can't have run far!"

The red fox fled in utter despair on its injured leg, while those lingering big yellow dogs gave chase once more.

Suddenly, a long-robed green shadow crossed from afar to the front in a few strides.

Carrying a slip, he drifted over like a spring breeze at the sight of him!

The red fox was stunned on the spot, then snapped to its senses, immediately bending its forelegs to bow and wave toward Ji Yuan.

"Wuwuwuwu... wuwuwuwu..."

The fox's pained whimpers sounded like weeping, its body covered in wounds still bleeding, yet it dared not stop its bowing.

The few big yellow dogs circled nearby, barking "woof woof woof" without approaching, while some in the crowd were frightened and others clicked their tongues in wonder.

"Tsk... this fox hasn't become a spirit, has it? It's actually bowing to someone and begging?"

"Mother... it's true!"

"Kinda scary! Just kill it and be done!"

"Who's that person?"

"Mister Ji from Tianniu Quarter, a friend of Master Yin!"

"Right, right, people in Tianniu Quarter say he's an extraordinary person, been living at Ju'an Pavilion for a few months now."

"Tsk..."

The crowd buzzed with curious murmurs, while the two men holding wooden sticks who wanted to catch the fox didn't dare jump out directly, seeing this strange scene before them.

Ji Yuan, however, paid no attention to anyone else, fixing his gaze on this red fox that felt like déjà vu, also spotting the tiger fur hidden beneath the fur on its back.

This red fox had certainly awakened its intelligence, but it had nearly been bitten to death by dogs, so it couldn't be some fearsome demon; there was no trace of malice about it either.

Seeing the fox so miserable, constantly bowing and begging to him, Ji Yuan's heart was deeply moved. Besides, the fox had clearly come to find him, so its injuries were partly his fault.

Ji Yuan raised his head and swept his gaze over the blurry crowd, finding the main parties in two seconds.

"I wonder if you two would be willing to part with this red fox and let Ji have it? The fox pelt has already been torn by the yellow dogs and isn't worth much anymore. Ji is willing to offer a hundred wen. Consider it doing this humble one a favor, how about it?"

Ji Yuan gave a slight bow, speaking as he looked toward the two men holding sticks in the crowd, his calm pale eyes more penetrating than any sharp gaze.

"Uh... it's still fox fur after all, a hundred wen is a bit... hey, what are you doing?"

One of them started to haggle, but his companion twisted his arm, ignoring the complaint and smiling as he nodded to Ji Yuan.

"Alright, alright, if Mister Ji wants it, take it. A hundred wen it is."

"Thank you!"

Ji Yuan took out his money pouch from his sleeve, picked out twenty Dangwu Tongbao coins, and handed them to the two men. Then he looked at the big yellow dogs baring their teeth and felt a bit troubled.

People could be dealt with using money, but what about dogs? Meat bones? Who carries that around when going out!

"Uh, how about you all scatter too?"

Ji Yuan swore he was just trying it out, but the big yellow dogs whimpered a few times and actually walked away, looking back every few steps, leaving Ji Yuan stunned and the surrounding crowd wide-eyed.

Many in the crowd were now too shocked to speak.

Ji Yuan glanced at the growing crowd, sighed, reached out, and lifted the fox, now weak from excitement, into his arms.

"Everyone, scatter now!"

Leaving these words, before the crowd could react, Ji Yuan shifted and squeezed through the throng, passing other onlookers who had come to see the commotion without knowing what was happening, and disappeared into an alley entrance.

Those who turned to look back only saw the curious newcomers rushing in, but no green shadow.

I hope everyone can take a moment to like the character too. There's only one main character for now, just once a day, it's not much trouble!