Chapter 82: Visiting Fox City (2) “If things are difficult, you…
The male fox demon in front of him kindly emphasized again: "You need to give at least three things."
Si Ling nodded: "I understand."
She looked determined and indifferent. Seeing her like this, the fox demon stopped trying to persuade her and turned around to lead her back to the lobby and walked to the elevator door opposite the glass door on the left.
This elevator had no buttons. The male fox demon drew a talisman in the air and cast a spell, pushing it toward the elevator door. The door immediately opened. He gestured "please" to Si Ling, who stepped into the elevator. None of them showed any interest in joining him, and Si Ling didn't ask, watching the elevator door close calmly.
She'd thought it was going up, but as the elevator began to move, she quickly realized it was heading down. She glanced at the palm-sized electronic screen on her right, which still displayed "1." She had no idea where she was, but she had a vague feeling the elevator wasn't slowing down; it was practically at its maximum speed.
She stayed in the elevator for a full three minutes before it finally stopped. In the two seconds before the doors opened, Si Ling could sense the unusual silence outside, even in the confined space. Then the doors opened, revealing an unexpectedly luxurious scene.
In front of the elevator was a small circular hall, only about 20 to 30 square meters. It was decorated in a traditional Chinese style, somewhat reminiscent of the Tang Dynasty, but the ceiling was a semicircular dome. A massive lantern in the shape of a white fox's head hung from the highest point of the dome, almost filling it entirely. The surrounding walls were shaped like Chinese window lattices, separated by 30-centimeter-thick golden nanmu pillars, each carved with patterns depicting fox legends.
Opposite the elevator was a very long corridor. A female fox demon in an apricot-colored new Chinese-style uniform had already been waiting in front of the elevator door. She had a fair and elegant oval face. Her cultivation was obviously higher than the two male fox demons above, and her ears were already beautiful and delicate human ears.
"Hello, Ms. Si Ling, please follow me." The female fox demon politely invited Si Ling to the corridor. Si Ling walked out of the elevator and casually asked her, "I heard that Satan's palace is in the deepest part of hell, but I guess this place is deeper than Satan's palace, right?"
"Yes, ma'am." The female fox demon smiled calmly. "The Fox Market operates under the jurisdiction of Lingbo City, but the Fox Clan itself is not. Satan never interferes with us."
"I see." Si Ling nodded and smiled back.
Although this sounded very impressive, there was no boasting in the female fox demon's tone, and Si Ling knew that there was no exaggeration in it.
In fact, seriously speaking, if the three-tailed fox tribe had not been willing to live here peacefully, the legendary "Fox Ancestor" would have been exactly like the devil in Western legends.
- Help people realize their wishes, but they have to pay three prices that satisfy her. If the price is not enough, she will plunder it herself. This does not sound like a setting that a positive character would have.
But if you fully understand her "setting", you will understand that this is the result of her utmost restraint.
In the Eastern legends of the human world, the nine-tailed fox from Qingqiu Kingdom has a resounding name, mainly because the nine-tailed fox clan has produced some representative figures, such as Daji.
But in the world of goblins, the three-tailed fox clan is the true "legend"①—goblins generally agree that this ancient race is the ancestor of all foxes, born in the ancient frost and snow, and their three tails symbolize the three realms of heaven, earth, and man. As for the renowned nine-tailed fox clan, they are actually the evolved descendants of the three-tailed fox clan.
Because it is an "evolution", the nine-tailed fox clan naturally has many fox demons with stronger talents, but the oldest batch of three-tailed foxes have gone through tens of thousands of years of tempering, and their cultivation should not be underestimated.
The "Fox Ancestor" Si Ling wanted to meet was said to be the oldest of the three-tailed foxes in existence. Her birth predated the Western God Realm, so Satan, thousands of years older than her, certainly wouldn't interfere with her where she lived. On the contrary, Satan should be thankful that she never sought to seize power in Hell.
Si Ling followed the female fox demon to the end of the corridor. At the end was a double-leaf door. The door panels were made of fine wood and painted with golden patterns. They were just some ordinary curves, but they inexplicably exuded a sense of weirdness.
When Si Ling was still some distance away from the gate, she couldn't help but start to imagine the scene inside the gate - since the decorations she had seen along the way were all very luxurious, this door looked equally valuable. She guessed that inside the door might be a magnificent hall, or a modern-style reception room with luxury reflected in the details.
Just as they reached the main door, it opened in the middle. The scene that greeted them was completely different from what Si Ling had imagined. Behind the door lay a vast space, at least several thousand square meters, completely undecorated. Everything was a khaki color, with obvious signs of excavation. There were some murals on the walls, but they were just rough strokes with ordinary dyes. They looked very old, like the murals of ancient people in textbooks.
There is no decent furniture here, just some large and small stones scattered around randomly.
As soon as Si Ling passed through the gate, she saw two little white foxes lying on a big rock on the right. One of them was sleeping in a circle, and the other was licking its fur leisurely. Noticing Si Ling's arrival, the one licking its fur glanced at her and continued to do its own thing. The sleeping one simply didn't wake up, obviously indifferent to the presence of outsiders.
There were many foxes like them here, some in their true form, some in human form, but they were all doing their own thing. Making fires, cooking, playing cards, chatting, and their biggest reaction was to look at Si Ling a few more times.
Is this... a fox hole?
Si Ling pondered.
The female fox demon who led her in still looked calm and composed. She nodded apologetically and said, "These little foxes are very inexperienced and haven't been socialized yet. Please forgive their disrespect."
"It's okay." Si Ling smiled nonchalantly, expressing his understanding.
Soon, they reached the end of the huge fox cave, where another double door appeared, but this time it was made of stone.
The female fox demon paused in front of the stone door. "This is the Fox Ancestor's room. If you regret or hesitate, this is your last chance to leave."
"No, I want to see her." Si Ling said.
The female fox demon nodded, and like the male fox demon, she cast a spell and drew runes in the air, pushing the runes towards the stone gate.
At the same moment the rune seeped into the stone door and disappeared, the stone door slowly opened to both sides like a common automatic shielding door in the human world, and the stone slabs made a rough sound as they rubbed against the ground.
Si Ling held her breath unconsciously and looked inside the door. The scene that came into her sight stunned her.
——This space is not big, only about fifty or sixty square meters. There is a white jade couch against the wall opposite her. In front of the couch is a rectangular coffee table made of the same white jade. There are several round bamboo embroidered cushions on the coffee table, which are obviously for visitors to sit on.
A charming and graceful woman lay on a white jade couch. She looked like a human in her early thirties, her enchanting posture full of charm. She waved a delicate folding fan and smiled at Si Ling. All around her—or rather, the entire wall—was covered in furry white.
Si Ling originally thought that although this decoration style was rare, it was also very comfortable to look at, with a unique warmth. But after taking two steps inside, she caught a glimpse of the white in the upper right corner moving slightly, and suddenly realized that the white in the room was not decoration, but the three tails of the Fox Ancestor!
The female fox demon who led the way entered the inner room with Si Ling, and the stone door closed.
Si Ling stopped in front of the coffee table and nodded to the woman on the white jade couch: "Hello, Fox Ancestor."
"Please sit down." The Fox Ancestor's voice was soft, with a hint of allure.
Si Ling sat down on the bamboo embroidered cushion in the middle. The female fox demon who led the way stood quietly to the side of the door. The Fox Ancestor looked at Si Ling with a pair of smiling eyes: "Tell me, what did you give?"
Si Ling lowered her eyes and took off the backpack behind her, which was the standard prop that Mammon gave her when she enrolled in the Ghost Academy - the backpack with a capacity large enough to hold the entire Hohenzollern Castle.
She took out the things inside and placed them beside her. After being freed from the backpack's magical control, large objects in the human world twisted, deformed, and enlarged. After a few seconds, they finally returned to their original size. It was a pure white square instrument, only half the size of a coffee table but twice as high, plus a set of wearable equipment.
Fox Ancestor narrowed his eyes at the equipment: "Human technology?"
"A sonar device I stole from a Frankenstein." Si Ling nodded. "Human overexploitation has significantly reduced the living space of the demons living in the human world. Many of these species have been forced to retreat to deep forests, where humans cannot reach. However, this high density has led to a shortage of prey, and constant competition for it. This device can be used for hunting, but it can also be used to build a defense system, both offensively and defensively. I believe it can fetch a good price in the Fox Market."
"Not bad." Fox Ancestor nodded nonchalantly, accepting the device, but then said, "But - if your next two things are just like this, you'll be in danger."
Si Ling didn't comment on her words, and took out the next thing and placed it on the coffee table. It was a scroll the width of A4 paper.
Fox Ancestor raised an eyebrow: "What is this?"
"[Rules and Stories Scroll], designed by Mammon himself." Si Ling said, "It's disposable and can open up rules and stories. You can write up to 30 rules and it can be used in the human world."
The Fox Ancestor had been frowning when listening to the first few sentences, but when he heard "can be used in the human world", his brows suddenly relaxed.
"There are many ghosts who want to settle accounts with the human world but have no way to do so." She shrugged lightly and smiled. "That's a good idea."
Si Ling pursed his lips, took a deep breath, and took out the third item.
A blood-red ruby the size of a pigeon egg.
This time, she had just put it down when Fox Ancestor's gaze fixed on the gem: "Vampire Stone?"
"As expected of the Fox Ancestor, you are very knowledgeable." Si Ling lowered his eyes and smiled, "That's right, the Vampire Stone has the miraculous effect of curing diseases, including near-death. It can be used in both the human and earth realms."
Fox Ancestor took a deep breath. Si Ling paused and continued slowly, "--Most importantly, I'm sure you know that as a treasure that the vampire clan is proud of, every piece of Vampire Stone is registered. If it is obtained through illegal means, the vampire clan will notice it once it is used. This piece was obtained through legal means, not through theft, deception or robbery. Using it will not lead to the vampire clan hunting you down - I guess there are no more than three such Vampire Stones on the black market."
"Did the vampire give it to you?" asked the Fox Ancestor with interest.
"It should be considered... an equal exchange." Si Ling smiled faintly, "I helped them do some things."
"Ha, it seems you have some skills." As if he had developed some interest in her, Fox Ancestor propped himself up from the white jade couch and sat up straight. "Now tell me, what do you want?"
"I want to ask you something first." Si Ling stared intently at Fox Ancestor's seductive eyes, which were tilted upwards. "If the price I pay doesn't match what I want, Fox Ancestor will make up for it. If the price I ask for isn't met by Fox Ancestor, how do we resolve this?"
"You're quite arrogant." Fox Ancestor raised his eyebrows slightly and yawned lazily. "We've been operating Fox City for three thousand years. There's nothing we can't handle in the Three Western Realms."
"But..." Fox Ancestor lowered his eyes and glanced at the vampire stone she placed on the table, "If things are difficult to handle, what you have won't be enough."
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The author has something to say: [Notes]
① The legend about the three-tailed fox and the evolutionary relationship between the three-tailed fox and the nine-tailed fox are all made up by me.
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Fox Ancestor: Fox City has been operating for three thousand years, and there is nothing we cannot do in the three western realms.
Si Ling: Damn it, your expression is quite rigorous. If you hadn’t mentioned the West, Xuan Chi and I would have immediately asked to ascend to heaven.
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