The Second Coin

In Ning'an County, the closest places to Niu Kui Mountain besides Shuixian Town were the villages at its base.

This time, Ji Yuan made a point of taking Yin Qing and the fox along a small path, heading toward Niu Kui Mountain from the direction of those villages.

After a simple lunch together with Ji Yuan, Yin Qing went home to change out of his school uniform and then bounced along with Ji Yuan out of the city.

The red fox had been hiding in Ji Yuan's arms before leaving the city, and only after they were outside was it let out to follow at their side.

From Ning'an County to the nearest foot of Niu Kui Mountain, the straight-line distance was about a dozen li. With Ji Yuan's current foot speed, even without going all out, it would take less than a quarter of an hour, but with the fox and Yin Qing along, they treated it as a leisurely outing.

In this era, children—especially scholarly ones like Yin Qing—rarely had the chance to travel far from home in their youth. Even though it was still within Ning'an County, the mountain village scenery was utterly captivating to Yin Qing.

Once a child started playing, their energy seemed bottomless; no matter how tired, a short rest would have them bouncing back to life, and Yin Qing's constitution was especially unique to begin with.

One moment he was shouting with joy at a waterwheel, the next he was jumping into the fields to catch frogs and bugs to curry favor with the fox, then he'd want to jump into the river to bathe like the village kids, and from time to time he'd let out loud shouts at the vast fields and forests.

Ji Yuan didn't hold back on the pastries and crispy cakes he'd prepared, letting little Yin Qing, who was usually under strict discipline at home, thoroughly enjoy what it meant to have a carefree outing.

With food and drink and a dog—well, a fox—along for the ride!

Playing and walking, after about an hour and a half, the two of them and the fox reached the foot of Niu Kui Mountain. Following a mountain path trampled out by mountain guests, they spent a little less than half an hour climbing a hill that wasn't particularly tall.

Once on the hill, Ji Yuan didn't let Yin Qing run around recklessly anymore. If he got bitten by some poisonous insect or snake, it wouldn't be easy to explain to Yin Zhaoxian.

The wind on the mountain was cooler than below. Though the hill wasn't high, the trees towered and strange rocks stood everywhere.

Ji Yuan looked at the red fox, which had long been excited, and pointed toward the deeper forest.

"You can go now. I hope you're not just a passing guest in my life, Ji Yuan. If fate allows, we'll meet again!"

"And me, and me! Little fox, don't forget me either! Whatever you do, don't forget me!"

Yin Qing had been holding it in, but when he shouted this, his voice was already choked with tears.

"Mm, right, and little Yin Qing too."

Ji Yuan smiled, his heart a mix of emotions. Yin Qing's expression reminded him of the three turtles, two rabbits, and one parrot he'd accidentally killed as a child in his past life.

The red fox let out a couple of "whines," moved away from Ji Yuan, hopped onto a rock in a few bounds, then turned to look at the big one and the little one, a human-like reluctance in its eyes.

Ji Yuan and Yin Qing stood there, staring at the fox for a while, but it showed no sign of leaving.

"Mister Ji, the little fox doesn't want to go!"

"Maybe it wants to watch us leave."

With that, Ji Yuan didn't explain further. Taking Yin Qing by the hand, he turned and headed down the mountain, the boy looking back every few steps.

After they'd gone about a dozen paces, Ji Yuan glanced back. Sure enough, the red fox was still crouched on that strange rock, watching them.

"Since we've crossed paths, Ji will give you one more gift..."

Looking up at the clouds in the sky, Ji Yuan spoke to the red fox.

"Now that you've set foot on the path of cultivation, you're no longer a simple wild beast. You can lack many things, but not a name. If you don't mind, from now on, call yourself Hu Yun!"

At Ji Yuan's words, the red fox's eyes lit up. Forgetting Ji Yuan's earlier warnings for a moment, it clasped its paws and bowed repeatedly to Ji Yuan right in front of Yin Qing!

"Ah! Mister Ji, the little fox really knows how to bow to people! Aaaaah!"

Yin Qing, who had been puzzling over the strange parts of Ji Yuan's earlier words, was so startled by the fox's bowing that he shouted and screamed.

"Heh, time to go home!"

Ji Yuan patted little Yin Qing on the back and led the child, whose excitement had diluted the sadness, down the mountain.

Ji Yuan was also happy—far happier than the smile on his face showed. Though he was still a bit foggy about things, just now, an arm inside his sleeve had felt a jolt like an electric shock, and the phantom of a chess piece flickered at his fingertip before vanishing.

Perhaps exhausted, little Yin Qing fell asleep on Ji Yuan's back during the return trip.

This directly resulted in the return journey being many times faster than the trip there. Ji Yuan used spiritual qi to power his movement technique, and before long, he was back inside Ning'an County.

By the time he delivered Yin Qing back to the Yin residence, it wasn't even their dinner time yet—truly a half-day round trip.

But as soon as Ji Yuan got home, he went out again. He shed his casual blue robe for a coarse outfit with tight sleeves, and bound his carefree long hair back behind him with a strap.

After quickly finishing these preparations, Ji Yuan leaped with lightness skill, using the elasticity of a jujube branch to bounce out of Ju'an Pavilion. Then, frequently borrowing momentum from rooftops, he was out of the city in no time.

Ji Yuan only knew two simple Illusion Techniques: one called Form Dissipation, and the other called A Single Leaf Blinds the Eye. Their boundaries were somewhat vague and general, but they had their range of application.

Illusion techniques were just that—methods to obscure or divert others' sight so they couldn't see clearly. In short, he couldn't rely on them too much. At least Ji Yuan didn't think his Form Dissipation could truly make him invisible, even in front of ordinary people. A Single Leaf Blinds the Eye was more practical.

The so-called "single leaf" was just a concept, referring to something tiny. The technique of A Single Leaf Blinds the Eye meant that because of a small obstruction, one could never see the full picture or the truth.

Ji Yuan used a few strands of his bangs to cast the spell, making those who looked at his face see it unclearly or mistake it for something else. Since the bangs existed as a real "leaf," this small technique was far more reliable.

The reason Ji Yuan was rushing out now was that on the way back, he'd spotted a carriage traveling on the official road from a distance. The two men riding horses beside it were the same martial-arts-clad men he'd seen at the county office entrance at noon. He wouldn't mistake their voices, so who was inside the carriage went without saying.

Of course, Ji Yuan wasn't petty enough to seek revenge just because someone had gossiped about him behind his back—it wasn't even slander. The main thing was that at noon, when he'd overheard the conversation between the County Vice Magistrate and the slightly plump man, he'd glanced at them. That one glance let Ji Yuan catch a faint glimmer of spiritual light at the plump man's collar.

That definitely wasn't something inherent to the fat man himself; he must have been carrying some extraordinary item.

At this stage, Ji Yuan was in a state of hunger when it came to matters of cultivation and immortality. It was only reason that kept him from running around seeking immortals and asking about the Dao. Now that this opportunity had presented itself, he wasn't about to let it go. At the very least, he had to confirm what it was and find out its origin.

But at noon, he'd clearly heard that the master and his two servants weren't leaving until the next day. Yet now, the carriage was already on the official road.

The wind kept brushing past his face. He'd held back somewhat within the city, but once outside, Ji Yuan unleashed his full movement technique, chasing in the direction he'd noted earlier. After about two quarters of an hour, the carriage finally came into view, just about to leave Ning'an County's borders.

The sky was gradually darkening at this moment, as Ji Yuan silently hung far behind, somewhat troubled over how to achieve his goal.

'Should I just catch up and have a friendly chat? Or think of another way, or simply subdue them, search out the item, and then question them? Put on a fierce act?'

Ji Yuan twisted his face into a grimace in a somewhat neurotic manner, rehearsing a vicious expression—he considered himself to have some talent for acting.

But before Ji Yuan could ponder further, a new variable emerged. From the woods on the left side of the official road ahead, several figures in coarse dark linen clothing darted out, swinging weapons as they charged toward the carriage.

"Not good! There are bandits!"

Two guards slapped their horses' backs and leaped up, engaging the attackers.

The man in yellow attire, facing the assailants, vaulted off his horse while planting a foot on its body for leverage, his fists clenched with a crackling sound as he viciously struck at one of the bandits.

"Die!"

"Clang—"

That powerful punch was actually blocked by the opponent's blade back, and in an instant, the sword was drawn to parry the fist, the blade turning to slash upward diagonally at the foe, the sword flower seeming to split into three.

"Shh shh puh..."

Three cuts cleaved through the guard's fist technique, and one of them made his shoulder spurt blood.

"Wild Goose Feather Three Returns! You're Xiang Feng, one of the Thirteen Bandits of Yan!"

The guard in yellow leaped back to evade two other bandits charging together, shouting in alarm.

Out of the corner of his eye, his companion was also in dire straits, fighting four alone, already wounded in several places.

A dull thud of flesh being struck, and the other guard took a heavy kick, crashing with a "bang" into the still-moving carriage body.

"Stop the damn carriage!"

One of the bandits roared.

"Ah, ah, ouch..."

The carriage driver hastily pulled the reins, crouching and trembling without daring to move, while those inside the carriage were too terrified to make a sound.

Xiang Feng ignored the two guards on high alert, holding his blade as he grinned at the carriage.

"Wei Wuwei, the legend says the Wei family has passed down a piece of Blue Jade for generations, capable of warding off evil spirits. You should have it on you, right?"