I slapped my head. "Oh, right! Can't I just cast a divination?"
I quickly found a flat spot and set up my divination tools.
After a long while, I still couldn't figure it out. My thoughts were a blank.
My Uncle asked me, "Xiaolong, did you figure it out?"
I shook my head. "As soon as I think about Grandpa's birthdate, my mind goes completely blank."
My Uncle frowned and said worriedly, "That's strange. Is something interfering with you?"
Just then, a cold wind suddenly blew through, making the courtyard gate clang loudly.
My Uncle and I instinctively tightened our grip on our flashlights, looking around vigilantly.
Suddenly, I heard a strange sound coming from the courtyard, like someone was sobbing softly.
My Uncle and I exchanged a glance, gathered our courage, pried open the courtyard gate, and walked in.
A eerie aura filled the courtyard. Under the moonlight, a blurry figure swayed in the corner.
My Uncle gripped my arm tightly and whispered, "Xiaolong, be careful."
I took a deep breath and walked towards the figure.
When I got closer, I saw it was a black cat, emitting a faint glow all over its body.
The black cat's eyes stared directly at me, as if seeing through my thoughts.
As I wondered, the black cat suddenly turned and ran off, disappearing into the darkness.
My Uncle and I chased in the direction the black cat disappeared. Not far, we saw an abandoned old house, and a faint light flickered within...
At this moment, a fishy smell assailed me. I smelled it, but My Uncle was completely oblivious.
This fishy smell was almost identical to the smell I'd encountered when I was little.
My Grandpa once told me that animals in the mountains that live for hundreds or even thousands of years all have the potential to become spirits.
But if they haven't reached a certain level, they can't transform into human form. And some can transform into human form, but the time isn't ripe, so even if they look human, they still have a faint animalistic smell.
An expert would know it at first sniff.
Just as My Uncle and I were on high alert, a beautiful and seductive woman walked gracefully, holding a paper lantern, and approached us.
"Wang Xiaolong, are you here looking for your Grandpa?"
Although this woman was as beautiful as a fairy, I knew from the smell that she would need to cultivate for another few hundred years before this fishy smell would disappear.
My Uncle couldn't smell it and reminded me, "Xiaolong, be careful. In this desolate wilderness, in the middle of the night, how can such a beautiful woman dare to be here? She must be a ghost!"
"You're the ghost!" The woman glared fiercely at My Uncle.
"White Fox, stop putting on airs here. Others might not see through it, but do you think I can't? Quickly, tell me, where are My Grandpa and Grandma?"
"Xiaolong, my darling, you really do have some skills. How did you know I was a White Fox?" The White Fox giggled, unable to resist pinching my cheek.
"Enough nonsense, White Fox. Since you transformed into a black cat to lure me here, and now you won't tell me the whereabouts of My Grandpa and Grandma, what exactly do you want?" I said with a righteous expression.
"Oh, quite righteous, aren't we? I can tell you, but how about we make a deal?" The White Fox looked at me seductively.
"What kind of deal?" I became wary.
"Spend one night with me, and I'll tell you everything, alright?" The White Fox chuckled lewdly.
"You damn fox spirit! My nephew is still underage, and you want him to sleep with you? Are you looking for death!" My Uncle finished speaking, picked up a stick, and was about to hit the White Fox.
"Wang Erlong, you bastard, you saw how beautiful Wang Xiaolong's Mom is, and you couldn't bear to marry other women, not even letting go of your own sister-in-law. What right do you have to criticize and point fingers here?" The White Fox didn't take My Uncle seriously at all and retorted.
My Uncle was furious and swung the stick at the White Fox.
The White Fox flashed behind My Uncle, her five fingers splayed, about to grab My Uncle's neck.
"White Fox, try to touch My Uncle, I dare you!"
"Oh, Xiaolong, you're quite protective of your wild Dad. You even speak up for him. Maybe your Dad was killed by your wild Dad."
"You—you white fox spirit, I'll kill you!" My Uncle roared, turning and swinging the stick again.
The White Fox didn't dare to hit My Uncle, so she just circled around me, making it difficult for My Uncle to strike.
"Uncle, stop fighting. She has at least five hundred years of cultivation. How can you hurt her? She's deliberately provoking you, just for fun. Ignore her; let me ask her!"
This White Fox has cultivated to be almost indistinguishable from a real person, except for the lingering fishy smell. Her cultivation is at least five hundred years.
Even if I received My Grandpa's true teachings, with my nascent cultivation, I might not even be able to harm her.
"My darling still has some self-awareness!" The White Fox chuckled lewdly, pinching my cheek again.
"White Fox, stop with these tricks. Just tell me the terms of the deal directly." I said loudly.
The White Fox stopped, smiling, "Alright, I won't tease you anymore. I need you to do me a favor: go to the Forbidden Area of the Back Mountain and retrieve a spirit herb. Once I have the spirit herb, I'll tell you the whereabouts of My Grandpa and Grandma."
"What do you need the spirit herb for?" I asked her coldly.
"Others might not know, but don't you? I need the spirit herb to accompany me in my cultivation, so I can quickly eliminate the fishy smell from my body and strive to become a true human as soon as possible!"
My Grandpa had repeatedly warned me not to approach the Forbidden Area of the Back Mountain; it was extremely dangerous inside.
"How do I know what you're saying is true or false?" I questioned.
The White Fox smiled charmingly, "You can choose not to believe me, but then your Grandpa and Grandma might be in grave danger."
I fell into deep thought. My Uncle, beside me, urged, "Xiaolong, don't go, it's too dangerous."
But thinking of My Grandpa and Grandma possibly being in danger, I gritted my teeth, "Okay, I'll go, but you have to promise that once I get the spirit herb, you'll tell me where My Grandpa and Grandma are."
The White Fox patted her chest, guaranteeing it.
"Uncle, you go back first. I'm going to the back mountain!"
"No, Xiaolong, you absolutely cannot go, it's extremely dangerous there!"
"Uncle, don't worry, I know what I'm doing!"
"No, if you really insist on going, I'll go with you!" My Uncle simply wouldn't agree.
"Uncle, I've been learning skills from My Grandpa and Grandma for over a decade. Even if I can't hurt anyone, I at least have the ability to protect myself. If you come with me, you haven't reached that level, and I'd have to protect myself and look after you, which would make it even more dangerous!"
"Xiaolong, if something happens to you, how will I explain it to My Mom? She'll eat me alive!" My Uncle adamantly refused to let me go.
I knew My Mom doted on me, but I never showed it in front of her.
After all, after I was three, My Grandpa and Grandma raised me, and my bond with them was as deep as the sea.
Even if I went into the back mountain and couldn't come out, for My Grandpa and Grandma, I was willing.
"Uncle, you go back. You not only have My Mom, but also my younger siblings. If something happens to you, who will take care of them? As for me, don't worry, I can protect myself!"