Chapter 35: The Sly Demon Fox

“So you’re saying I just kissed a man?”

Hearing Lu Xin’s words, Tu Chengli hurriedly looked around, but no matter how hard he searched, he could not find a trace of the young woman. Looking back at the youth in white on the bank, the scholar’s face flushed red, then turned pale, his eyes blazing with fury as if he could spit fire.

“A fox’s tail—damn it, it’s a male fox! My first kiss, my first kiss is gone. You demon, you heartless monster, I’ll kill you!”

The scholar was clearly on the verge of madness, still in the water, shouting and pointing at the demon fox. The youth in white, however, was completely unfazed, covering his face with a flirtatious smile as he tossed the scholar a bewitching wink.

“Demons have consciences too, but all of mine was given to the moon in the sky. Young master, did you enjoy that little intimacy just now?”

“Enjoy your ancestors for eighteen generations! Xin, leave this fox to me—don’t interfere. I’ll teach him what shame and courtesy mean to a proper demon. Of all the ways to harm people, you had to turn into a woman and deceive the loyal. I’m still a virgin—oh, heavens...”

As the scholar wept, he remembered, as he was about to climb ashore, that he was naked, and quickly shrank back into the water.

“Don’t run! Wait till I’m dressed, then I’ll have you begging for mercy under my boot!”

With that, he darted downstream, clearly none the worse for wear. Lu Xin, watching the scholar leave, finally breathed a sigh of relief. With this fellow around, all he did was cause trouble or make a joke of things. No matter how innocent this demon fox seemed, a demon was still a demon; if it came to a fight, it could easily mean life or death.

“Fox, why have you left Qingqiu Mountain to harm people here?”

“Hmph, what fox? My surname is Yue, my name is Not Black, my courtesy name is Graceful Scholar. Do you, a mere mortal, dare offend my imperial might? Brat, since you know I’m from Qingqiu Mountain, how dare you remain here?”

“For no other reason than that I heard you are born with divine eyes that see through all illusions. At the request of a senior, I have come to subdue you.”

Lu Xin’s lips curled in a cold smile. Even as he spoke, he rushed forward, sword in hand, toward the demon fox. Yue Not Black looked young, but as a demon cultivated in the mountains, his reflexes were far beyond human. The moment Lu Xin’s sword slashed out, Yue’s figure was already ten meters away, as if he had teleported.

Lu Xin missed with his strike, his expression changing, and was about to give chase when a sudden gale howled past his ears. In an instant, a mysterious force sent him flying three meters back, crashing painfully into the stones littering the riverbank.

“I have cultivated in these mountains for a hundred and twenty years, feeding on the essence of sun and moon. You, a mere martial artist in mortal flesh, dare speak of subduing me? Hahaha! Truly ignorant of your own mortality.”

Yue Not Black, having subdued his foe in a single move, revealed himself again and planted a foot firmly on Lu Xin’s chest. He waved his long sleeves and laughed to the sky, easily sensing that the youth before him had not begun cultivation, his body devoid of any magical fluctuation. Just an ordinary martial artist—hardly worth his attention.

Lu Xin hadn’t expected the demon fox Master An had assigned him to subdue would be so formidable. Even with the divine Youxian Sword in hand, he could not so much as touch the fox’s robe. Only now did he realize the vast gulf between himself and a true cultivator.

“Are onmyoji... truly so powerful?”

“What are you mumbling? Onmyoji? Hmph. You humans are born mortal, yet you dream of escaping the cycle of rebirth. Such arrogance earns only heaven’s punishment. Boy, though I dwell in these mountains, I have never killed a human. If you call me ‘father,’ I’ll let you go. If not, then today I’ll finally have a taste of meat.”

Yue Not Black seemed in a playful mood, suppressing Lu Xin with magic but not killing him. His huge fox tail swayed behind him, clearly in high spirits. Lu Xin, however, was not alarmed, for he had received from Shi Daoan the secret method for subduing fox demons. Quietly, he pricked his finger and seized the demon fox’s ankle.

“Homage to the Binding Spell for Subduing Demons: Om Bhrim Hum... Balukriti... Uma Mi Hong...”

As Lu Xin chanted swiftly, the once arrogant Yue Not Black fell silent, his body seizing up, unable to move. Under the power of the Buddhist spell, his face grew increasingly fearful.

“What incantation is this? Why does it possess such power?”

Lu Xin gave no answer, rising and using his bloodied fingertip to mark a seal on the demon fox’s brow. The blood instantly soaked into his skin, leaving Yue Not Black limp and feeble, collapsing to the ground.

---

“What are you? That’s the power of the Buddhist order... but you have no magic in you at all. My body, why won’t it move?!”

Yue Not Black was filled with terror, like a frightened child, all his demonic bravado vanished. Lu Xin said nothing, pacing around him, observing as Yue’s face turned deathly pale and tears began to stream down. He burst into sobs.

“I’m just a little fox, struggling alone in the deep mountains. It took me ages to gain sentience and learn to transform, and now I’ve been caught by a nobody like you. Waaaah... For two whole cycles of sixty years, I’ve never eaten a human. If I’d known it would come to this, I’d have killed all those lustful men long ago. Waaaah...”

The demon’s sudden tears caught Lu Xin off guard. Watching his pitiful, sniveling face, Lu Xin couldn’t help but feel a twinge of sympathy. But remembering the fox’s earlier arrogance, he quickly shook off the feeling and set his expression stern again.

“Enough with the act. Foxes are born cunning, all the more so a cultivated demon like you. Don’t worry, I won’t kill you. Just call me ‘father’ and I’ll remove the spell immediately.”

“Father, father, father!”

Before Lu Xin had finished speaking, Yue Not Black shouted the word three times without the slightest hesitation. Lu Xin was utterly speechless. This so-called ‘imperial’ demon had no bottom line, no dignity whatsoever. Remembering how he’d just tricked Tu Chengli by turning into a woman, Lu Xin felt his headache worsening.

“A scholar is trouble enough—should I really bring this thing to Chang’an?”

He hesitated, glancing at the fox demon. Traveling with such a creature could only bring more trouble, not less. And the destination was Chang’an, the emperor’s seat, full of powerful figures. If anyone saw through Yue Not Black’s disguise, wouldn’t the whole city be after them?

The more he thought, the more uncertain he became.

“Hey, I’ve called you father—aren’t you going to undo the spell?”

“What do you mean you’ve called me father? Try that trick again and I’ll make you call me daddy.”

“What’s ‘daddy’?”

“...”

In just a few exchanges, Lu Xin was certain this fox was erratic and shameless, even less reliable than Tu Chengli. He considered simply releasing Yue Not Black and continuing on his way. But knowing the fox’s cunning nature, he feared future revenge. For a moment, he was at a loss.

After a moment’s thought, Lu Xin decided to test the demon fox. He silently chanted and lifted the binding spell. Though he had no magic himself, the incantations and seals taught by Shi Daoan contained a power especially effective against fox demons.

“The spell is lifted. Now, will you listen to my conditions?”

“Heheheh, listen to you? Old man, you’re truly wicked. I’ll eat you first, then we’ll talk.”

Yue Not Black flexed his fingers, eyes narrowing coldly, and in a flash transformed into a white fox the size of a man. He bared his teeth, sharp as blades, eyes glinting fiercely. The sky darkened, clouds covering the sun, and a wild wind howled. Lu Xin felt an overwhelming force envelop him, leaving him unable to move.

“A demon is a demon—no sense of honor.”

“Still boasting on the brink of death! Haven’t tasted human flesh in two hundred years, but today I finally will.”

The transformed fox demon grinned savagely, drooling as he prepared to pounce. But halfway into his leap, his body again lost all strength and crashed heavily to the ground.

He reverted to the form of a young man, writhing in pain.

“Liar! Big liar! You humans are all faithless scoundrels. Waaaah... Father, mother, where are you? Someone’s bullying me, he wants to eat me, waaaah...”

---

“That’s enough, stop your performance. Let’s speak plainly—I have no interest in a fox like you.”

“No interest, yet you torment me! Father, mother, he’s a brute, a brute...”

“Who’s tormenting you? One more word and I’ll cut you down with my sword!”

Lu Xin, exasperated by the fox’s wailing, pressed his blade to Yue Not Black’s neck. The demon fox shuddered and fell silent at once.

“Hero, let’s talk this over. Please, don’t use the sword.”

“Ready to listen now?”

“Yes, yes, whatever you want, just say the word.”

Yue Not Black grinned sheepishly, all innocence and sincerity, looking utterly harmless. Lu Xin, by now, was used to such antics. After a moment’s silence, he sheathed his sword and lifted the spell.

“Go on, then. Cultivate quietly in the mountains, and don’t harm anyone again.”

“You’re just letting me go? Truly?”

Lu Xin nodded and said no more. Yue Not Black was delighted, turned back into a fox, and started off, but after a few steps, he stopped. This time his voice was unusually serious.

“Hero, may I ask you something?”

“Go ahead.”

“Who taught you that seal, and why send you to Qingqiu Mountain to subdue me?”

“A man who has passed away. He asked you to protect me on my journey to Chang’an.”

“Was he a monk?”

“Yes.”

Receiving Lu Xin’s confirmation, Yue Not Black fell silent. He changed back to a young man, his gaze distant, staring at the ground in a daze. His expression grew solemn, his breathing slow, and it did not seem an act.

“I will go with you to Chang’an.”

“What did you say? You know who that man was?”

“I know. Come, let’s return to Qingqiu Mountain. I’ll pack, and we can set out at once.”