“What does that mean!?”
Jiu Baiyun watched as the Gray Feather Mask Man was completely incinerated by the azure foxfire, his expression turning grave because of those words.
What did he mean by “fattened up the surroundings, now it’s time to slaughter”?
“You idiot, still haven’t figured out what it means? If you don’t go back now, those two girls will lose their lives!”
Seeing Jiu Baiyun still hesitating, the Yao Fox Demon Venerable couldn’t help but speak, frustration evident in her tone.
‘His words were so simple—even she could understand them. Why was that blockhead Jiu Baiyun not getting it?’
“A Ran! Su Zhiyun!”
Jiu Baiyun’s pupils contracted sharply as he suddenly understood the Yao Fox Demon Venerable’s meaning.
That thing had been lured here by him, but it had no intention of letting Su Zhiyun go either!
Or perhaps, it wasn’t the only one chasing him!
Without a moment’s hesitation, Jiu Baiyun gritted his teeth.
The eight massive phantom tails formed from azure foxfire behind him retracted instantly, like flames being forcibly pressed back into his body, leaving only his fluffy white fox tail swishing restlessly behind him.
Then Jiu Baiyun immediately turned around and dashed toward the Ancestral Hall.
His silver-white hair whipped wildly in the gale of his speed, and the fox ears atop his head flattened slightly against the wind pressure.
The strange sensation from senses that weren’t his own was especially pronounced, but Jiu Baiyun clearly had no mind to worry about that now.
—
Su Zhiyun carefully placed the ten bundles of sandalwood incense that she had gathered and retied beside the offering table.
Suppressing the aches from her collisions, she forced a smile and turned to A Ran.
“Sister A Ran, I’ve bought the incense! Look, it’s high-quality sandalwood from Chen’s Old Brand in Qingshi Town. The shopkeeper said its aroma is rich and long-lasting, perfect for offerings.”
“Ten bundles total, five hundred sticks. If we use them sparingly, they’ll last over half a month.”
As she spoke, she picked up the top bundle and tried to hand it to A Ran for confirmation.
However, A Ran’s gaze wasn’t on the incense sticks exuding a refined sandalwood scent.
She didn’t even reach out to take them.
She was turned sideways, staring intently out the window, her delicate brows furrowed, her clear eyes filled with worry.
Outside, the last trace of daylight had been swallowed by the ink-blue night.
The mountain forest was deathly silent, with only the flickering lamplight inside the hall casting restless shadows on the window paper.
In the distance, the direction where Jiu Baiyun had disappeared, there was no longer any sign of movement, and even the chilling bird calls had completely ceased.
Su Zhiyun’s hand froze mid-air as she offered the incense.
Watching A Ran’s tense profile and the fingers gripping her clothes, her own heart inexplicably sank.
“Sister A Ran?” Su Zhiyun tried again, her voice much softer.
A Ran snapped back as if awakened, turning her head sharply, her eyes finally landing on the incense in Su Zhiyun’s hand.
“I’m still a bit worried about Brother Jiu…”
Hearing A Ran’s words, Su Zhiyun was momentarily taken aback, then pouted in dissatisfaction, but still consoled her.
“Didn’t I tell you? Your Brother Jiu is a very powerful cultivator. He’ll be fine.”
She couldn’t say much else, but she was sure Jiu Baiyun wouldn’t be in any real danger.
If the System hadn’t indicated that giving the talisman to Jiu Baiyun would raise the safety rate to over 90%, she would never have been willing to hand it over.
Besides, Jiu Baiyun was also a transmigrator like herself.
She had a System, so how could Jiu Baiyun not have some Golden Finger?
If he didn’t have a Golden Finger, Su Zhiyun didn’t believe Jiu Baiyun could have cultivated immortality and survived until now.
However, A Ran seemed to not quite understand the concept of a cultivator.
“What is a cultivator? Are they the same as immortals?”
A Ran’s question left Su Zhiyun stunned for a moment, then she gave a wry smile.
That was hard to explain.
After thinking for a moment, Su Zhiyun finally spoke.
“Well… cultivators aren’t immortals, but they’re just as powerful as immortals…”
A Ran nodded, half-understanding, her eyes still filled with worry as she gazed out at the impenetrable darkness beyond the window.
Even though Su Zhiyun said that, so many mountain sparrows couldn’t be easy to deal with, right?
And the dangers weren’t limited to that.
Thinking this, A Ran’s hand gripping her clothes tightened slightly.
“But… it’s already completely dark…”
Since birth, everyone is told by their elders: once it’s dark, you absolutely must not go out.
The darkness outside is a taboo that must never be touched.
And now it was fully dark.
What Jiu Baiyun would have to face might be more than just sparrows…
After a moment of hesitation, Su Zhiyun also showed a hint of concern.
‘Yeah… it’s dark…’
She really was starting to worry about Jiu Baiyun.
After all, he was her fellow townsman—it was impossible not to care at all.
Besides, the System said the safety rate was 90%.
There was still that remaining 10% that could go wrong.
Su Zhiyun opened her mouth to say something, but before the words came out, a grating sound came from outside the door.
“Creak—creak—squeak—”
The sound was extremely shrill, as if rusty iron sheets were scraping violently against the rough wooden door, one after another, slow and filled with malice, instantly sending chills down Su Zhiyun’s spine and making all her hair stand on end.
The flickering lamplight inside the Ancestral Hall gave a violent jump at that moment, then began to flicker continuously, unstable.
Su Zhiyun and A Ran’s bodies both froze at the same time.
A cold, viscous malice carrying a rotten aura pierced through the door, firmly locking onto them.
Su Zhiyun’s heart pounded wildly.
Even though she was extremely nervous herself, she quickly put down the incense sticks and shielded A Ran, pressing close to the edge of the offering table.
Then she stared fixedly at the violently shuddering door panel and swallowed hard.
“System! What’s going on here!!!”
[Ding! Detected high-concentration anomalous energy reaction!]
[Current danger assessment: Extremely dangerous!]
A translucent panel that only Su Zhiyun could see floated before her.
The crimson light it emitted made her heart skip a beat.
Steeling herself, she looked down, and when she saw the safety rate, she was momentarily stunned.
[Current safety rate: 3% → 38% (continuing to rise)]
‘Seriously, could this System be any more unreliable!!!’
‘You just said it was extremely dangerous, so why is the safety rate getting higher and higher!? It can’t be that the System has figured out a way to break this deadlock, can it?’
She really wished her System could be useful.
After a moment’s hesitation, Su Zhiyun still held a sliver of hope and asked the System.
“System, do you have a solution? Tell me quickly!”
However, the System’s cold voice came, shattering Su Zhiyun’s unrealistic fantasy.
[Negative]
That single brief syllable left Su Zhiyun speechless.
The grating sounds outside grew even more rampant and dense.
The wooden door, under violent scratching, had developed countless cracks, as if it could shatter at any moment.
Seeing this, A Ran couldn’t help but shrink her head back, while Su Zhiyun’s heart was in her throat.
She was about to curse the System for being useless to ease her tension, but before she could speak, the System’s voice sounded again.
[Reminder: This place is the Fox Immortal Shrine.]
As if to confirm the System’s words, the moment the wooden door shattered and the twisted shadow outside was about to lunge in, a chilling cold suddenly emerged.
Before Su Zhiyun could even react, azure flames instantly enveloped the twisted shadow outside the door.
Crackling sounds of burning, accompanied by agonizing shrieks, came through.
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