After pushing the last witness into the abyss, Yino clapped his hands in satisfaction. He glanced up at the moonlight, then looked back at the countless lights scattered across the mountains, letting out a silent sigh. He thought to himself that there was still a lot of cleanup work to be done.
Yino casually took a broom and a small vial from his storage ring. He applied the potion that could erase traces to the soles of his shoes and carefully wiped away all his footprints on the cliff. However, he only cleared the footprints up to the edge of the barrier on the back mountain. Beyond that, he left them untouched because when the Wuji Sect’s cultivators came to investigate, he could explain that he had followed Gu Wanglan’s steps to the boundary, where he saw Gu Wanglan leap off the cliff into the abyss in an attempt to escape.
“Reasonable, very reasonable…”
“But it still feels like something’s missing.”
Under the moonlight, Yino clapped his hands again, a sly glint flashing in his cold eyes. As if struck by inspiration, he took out a few fox hairs from his sleeve and deliberately scattered these clues near Gu Wanglan’s footprints.
After finishing everything, Yino returned inside the barrier and nodded with satisfaction.
“I knew something was missing. With the handiwork of the Pleasure Demon added in, everything now makes perfect sense!”
As soon as Yino finished speaking, realizing it was getting late, he hurriedly turned and headed back towards Wuji Sect. As he walked leisurely, he checked tonight’s gains.
“Innate Sword Dao Holy Body…?”
“Heh, I’ll grasp it in one go and refine it instantly! Changing fate starts tonight!”
“Speaking of which, when Gu Wanglan ran away earlier, he seemed to have tossed his sword aside…”
“I’ve been using that lousy black iron sword every day; it’s time I picked up a more impressive one!”
In good spirits, Yino couldn’t help but start talking to himself. Along the way, he found the sword Gu Wanglan had thrown by the roadside and picked it up. Later, he’d just say he found it on the road; surely the elders of Wuji Sect wouldn’t insist on confiscating it.
“Strange…”
“I can’t be lost in the back mountain, can I?”
At some point, Yino felt something was off. His brow furrowed slightly as he carved a mark into an ancient tree with his sword and continued walking according to his memory.
But minutes later, he found himself back at that same tree with the sword mark on its trunk.
“–?”
Yino fell silent. His previously relaxed self-talk now tinged with unease as his cold eyes narrowed. Looking around, he suddenly realized that all those lights from Wuji Sect cultivators searching through the night had vanished.
“Hmm…”
The eerie and distorted déjà vu made cold sweat trickle down Yino’s face. Suddenly, a pair of blood-red kaleidoscope eyes from his memory flashed in his mind. As if guided by an unseen sixth sense, Yino quickly turned around
“Eh?”
There on the marked tree sat a foxgirl in a blood-red evening gown. Her white jade feet embroidered with red totems swung gently beneath her dress.
The girl leaned forward with her hands supporting her chin, her blood-red eyes half-closed in delight as she sweetly smiled at the boy below who had just discovered her presence with shock written all over his face.
“As expected of Young Master! A master at hide-and-seek!”
“Even under my illusion spell, you found me within 5 minutes!”
“Such a tacit understanding between us I’m afraid no other man in this world could be as
fated with me as you are~!
”
The foxgirl spoke happily before leaping gracefully from her perch on the tree branch. Her steps were leisurely as if strolling through fields while Yino was already sweating bullets. Instinctively wielding Gu Wanglan’s sword behind him for protection as she approached step by step he couldn’t help but retreat.
At some point within Yino’s vision, the girl’s enchanting eyes reflected a blood-red peach blossom. Blinking to discern reality from illusion proved futile; within mere moments, the girl vanished from sight entirely.
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When Yino next sensed that sweetly intoxicating fragrance, the girl was already behind him on tiptoe, her jade hand twirling a blood-red dagger while coquettishly wrapping an arm around his neck.
“Young Master… we truly are destined for each other!”
Her voice rose with delight; through those mirrored reflections cast by moonlight, Yino had never seen such a beautiful smile from this little fox before.
…
In Western Region’s Abyssal Forest, a simple yet elegant treehouse palace stood amidst towering ancient trees full of lush foliage.
Inside stood an exquisite young woman clad in a Western-style classical evening gown, with bandages wrapped around her left eye and long hair cascading over her shoulders like waves upon azure seas.
Though primarily red the gown bore many gray-white carnations growing eerily upon its fabric a hauntingly beautiful blend between decay and rebirth complemented by bandages adorning her pale skin a melancholic beauty reminiscent of both ruinous desolation and phoenix-like resurrection intertwined seamlessly together…
Through vast floor-to-ceiling windows beneath which lay an ancient life altar where numerous Full Moon Cult followers performed daily prayers the girl gazed out silently…
“It seems Chen Jianxin’s destiny has been absorbed by Mother Goddess along with some other life offerings…”
“This time Gu Wanglan managed some redemption.”
The girl spoke softly though her tone carried relief the reflection within her moonlit eyes always betrayed hints of sorrowful longing beneath their blood-moon glow…
She thought about certain mischievous little foxes who’d been causing trouble secretly for years now and couldn’t help but chuckle, disdainfully a mocking smirk playing upon lips otherwise shrouded beneath veils woven from irony…
“In destiny’s torrent, what ripples could one little fox possibly stir ”
Raising her glass skyward a long sigh escaped beneath solitary moons…
Yet just as red wine touched lips, that urgent call resounded outside palace walls
“Holy Maiden!”
The door burst open revealing another bandaged female disciple standing anxiously behind window-bound maiden
Ruan Liuli blinked momentarily startled wine held within mouth unswallowed as gaze shifted back
“Holy Maiden we have big trouble!”
“Just now Gu Wanglan’s lifeline snapped! The fruit belonging to him upon Full Moon Tree has rotted away too!”
The disciple expressed nervous unease…
Ruan Liuli’s moonlit eyes widened slightly blinking again seemingly unsure whether she’d misseen something before turning once more toward observation through floor-to-ceiling windows regarding growth cycles upon ancient nurturing trees…
“–?”
“But Mother Goddess received nourishment from Chen Jianxin.”
Ruan Liuli’s brow arched slightly…
Even so the perplexed disciple couldn’t make heads nor tails either
“Exactly that’s what makes it strange!”
“Both Gu Wanglan AND Chen Jianxin are dead…so WHO plucked Mother Goddess’ gifted fruit then?”
“…”
Silence reigned momentarily frozen…
Taking deep breaths inwardly clicking tongue at prospect facing yet another overtime shift cleaning up messes left behind a melancholy expression already present within moonlit eyes grew even more pronounced reflecting disdainful annoyance…
Whoosh
Within ancient celestial hallways where five-element lamps bore sword dao imprints suddenly extinguished themselves abruptly…
…
Simultaneously deep within hallowed halls where crane-haired immortals played chess paused mid-move slowly opening golden divine-imprinted eyes lifting brows upward…
Initially puzzled pupils soon realized something significant causing once-divine unemotional golden irises now reflecting traces mortal anger amidst their ethereal depths…
And just when white-haired immortal furrowed brows tightly , that outer hall saw entrance flung wide open excitedly entered black-robed immortal kneeling below ,
“Master!”
“As you wished, last night Chen Jianxin met his end!”
….
“–?”
In the Twilight Forest, the mountains were alive with lights and noise. Yino felt the small bundle pressed against his back, and with the dagger’s edge at his throat, he resigned himself to being held hostage. After all, he understood that if Jinyue truly wanted him dead, he wouldn’t have survived until today.
”
Oh my benefactor~
, how does it feel to have the Innate Sword Holy Body?” Jinyue asked with a playful smile at some point. Her enchanting eyes glinted mischievously as she lightly traced Yino’s face with her dagger, more for amusement than threat.
“So, you were watching everything all along?” Yino sighed, feeling a headache coming on. He had meticulously planned everything, ensuring Chen Jianxin and Gu Wanglan’s demise and orchestrating Yuyan’s injured retreat. Yet, he had overlooked this most elusive and mysterious fox demon.
“Of course. Not only saw how you seized Chen Jianxin’s Sword Holy Body but also how you drove Gu Wanglan into the abyss…” Jinyue recounted calmly, as if listing cherished possessions. She paused halfway, snorted coldly, and pouted at Yino with grievance: “I watched you toss my fur at the crime scene after your dirty deeds~ Gu Wanglan was right to curse you back then!”
“Yino, you scoundrel! How many fox hairs did you pluck from me at the Mountain Temple? How many places will you use my fur to cover your crimes?!” The more Jinyue thought about it, the angrier she became. She was used to framing others but never imagined being repeatedly set up by Yino!
“Owch”
In her frustration, she bared her teeth and bit down on Yino’s shoulder. Instantly, he felt a sharp pain but couldn’t help a twitch of his lips, feeling an inexplicable sense of déjà vu.
There was no helping it, being too clever for one’s own good had its downsides.
Yino never expected that his little tricks against Jinyue would one day be caught red-handed by her!
“Yino! Were you just smirking?”
“You two-faced hypocrite! You only know how to deceive those two silly girls, Yunjin and Wangxue!”
Seeing him trying hard not to laugh, Jinyue bit his neck again. But despite their playful bickering, she didn’t really bite him hard, just left a row of round little teeth marks on his shoulder.