Chapter Ninety-One: The Fox Demon of Yancheng
After breakfast, Jiu Ya handed a silver ingot to Sister-in-law Gu as payment for the lodging and meal. "This is too much, young lady," Sister-in-law Gu waved her hands repeatedly, "It's just for a night's lodging and a simple meal, how can it be worth so much silver?"
Jiuya insisted on stuffing the silver ingot into Sister-in-law Gu's hand, "Sister-in-law, please don't refuse. We've bothered you all night, so please accept this little token of our appreciation. Besides, Xiaoyu and Xiaolan are so adorable, so consider it as buying them some little trinkets."
After Li Yue harnessed the carriage, Jiu Ya and her group bid farewell to the Gu family and embarked on their travels. Xiao Yu and Xiao Lan clung to Jiu Ya's clothes reluctantly until Gu's sister-in-law gently scolded them, at which point they let go. The two little girls stood at the door, watching the carriage disappear into the distance, unwilling to return to the house for a long time.
After the rain, the sky was clear and bright, as if it had been washed clean, with not a cloud in sight.
Jiuya lifted the carriage curtain, breathing in the fragrance of grass and earth after the rain. She squinted her eyes, enjoying this rare moment of tranquility.
After a whole night of rest, both horses were full of energy, clattering their hooves as they rode along the road.
They set off in the morning and continued until almost noon, getting closer and closer to the nearest city, Yancheng. The scenery along the road gradually changed, from sparse villages to rolling farmland, then to scattered shops, and finally to towering city walls.
There were no unexpected incidents along the way, and we arrived in Yancheng smoothly.
The city walls were tall and thick, with banners fluttering on the towers. The soldiers guarding the city wore neat armor and solemnly inspected the passersby.
Upon entering the city, one is immediately greeted by the fragrance of flowers, unlike the scent of flowers during the Linzi Peach Blossom Festival. Here, the fragrance is a vibrant blend of blooming flowers. The streets are lined with various flowers, including delicate roses, elegant jasmine, and other unnamed wildflowers, all swaying gently in the breeze.
"Yancheng is much more lively than Changshao." As soon as she entered the city, Jiu Ya felt that the atmosphere of Yancheng and Changshao was obviously different. The streets were bustling with people, the cries of vendors rose and fell, and all kinds of shops lined the streets, presenting a prosperous scene.
Rong Jiang's gaze swept across the street scene, a hint of appreciation in her eyes. "With everything calm and peaceful, it's naturally lively."
Jiu Ya said, "It's good that things are calm and peaceful, otherwise, it's the ordinary people who suffer. If you ask me, the current emperor is not bad." She looked out of the carriage window and saw that most of the people had peaceful smiles on their faces, obviously living well.
When Jiuya first came to the human world from the demon realm, she discovered that the human world was peaceful and serene. Having witnessed too much suffering in the demon realm, Jiuya cherished this peace.
“Governing with virtue brings peace and happiness to the people, and that is the best outcome.” Rong Jiang lowered her eyes.
Jiuya chuckled, "That's true." She paused, then added, "Speaking of which, I've never seen a human emperor before, so I don't know what kind of person he is."
"It's just past noon. We can have lunch, find a place to stay, and then go out and have some fun." Jiu Ya's eyes lit up at the mention of having fun.
Once inside the city, Li Yue slowed down his carriage. He stopped every now and then to ask roadside vendors for information about inns, eventually settling on one with a good reputation.
The innkeeper was a kind middle-aged man. Seeing that Jiu Ya and her group had an extraordinary air about them, he personally led them to the room and instructed the staff to take good care of them.
In the afternoon, Jiu Ya couldn't wait to pull Rong Jiang out the door, with Bai Yu and Li Yue following closely behind.
Yancheng boasts a superior geographical location, with flowers and trees planted throughout the city, ensuring it is adorned with blossoms in every season. However, Yancheng is most famous for its magnificent peony blooming scene in April. Their timing was quite opportune; although it wasn't yet April, the warm weather this year meant the peonies were already beginning to bloom.
The first day was spent admiring peonies and having fun. Jiu Ya led Rong Jiang through the flowerbeds, stopping frequently to admire the various colors of peonies. There were vibrant red peonies, elegant white peonies, and even rare green peonies. Jiu Ya was overwhelmed by the sights and kept praising them.
In the afternoon, we visited a spring highly recommended by the locals. The scenery was beautiful, and we didn't start our return journey until dusk. The spring is located on a small hill west of the city, and the water is crystal clear, said to have beauty and skin-nourishing effects. Many young women and wives were there fetching water, their faces showing piety.
Li Yue drove the carriage toward their destination. As night fell, fewer and fewer pedestrians appeared on the streets, with only a few hurrying along.
Suddenly, the sound of a horse neighing rang out, and the carriage immediately stopped, the horse pawing restlessly.
"What's wrong?" Jiuya, who had been resting against the carriage wall, was startled awake by the sudden stop.
Li Yue tightened the reins. "Miss, it's a Taoist priest fighting with a fox."
A man and a fox were locked in a fierce battle in the middle of the road, their fighting en route to the carriage. The road ahead was largely destroyed, and the area where they were fighting was precisely the carriage's route, forcing Li Yue to stop the carriage. Trees on both sides of the road were snapped in half, and the ground was riddled with potholes, a testament to the intensity of the battle.
"A fox?" Jiu Ya frowned. What a coincidence! She had just seen a fox that night. A sense of foreboding rose in her heart. Could it be the same one?
Wait a minute, Jiu Ya released her divine sense and discovered that the fox's aura seemed off. Although the little fox was seriously injured that night, its aura was still alive. Now, it seemed that the life force had clearly turned into a deathly aura. Her heart sank. That adorable little fox had ultimately failed to survive.
Good heavens, is this Taoist priest the same kind of person as that Qingyangzi? The latter was planning to kill a ghost and was caught by the Underworld Emperor, is this guy fighting a monster? Jiuya couldn't help but facepalm. Why do these Taoist priests always seem to run into trouble?
Little brother, do you know what? Whether it's ghosts or monsters, they're all Rong Jiang's subjects! This luck is truly unbelievable. Jiu Ya secretly glanced at Rong Jiang and, sure enough, saw his face darken.
"Strange?" A cold glint flashed in Rong Jiang's eyes, clearly indicating her dissatisfaction with the Taoist's behavior.
Jiu Ya and Rong Jiang exchanged a glance, both wanting to see what was going on. After the carriage came to a stop, Jiu Ya expressed her desire to get off.
Bai Yu hurriedly lifted the front curtain and helped Jiu Ya down from the carriage. Li Yue also jumped down from the carriage and stood guard protectively in front of the two of them.
Ahead, a middle-aged man in an apricot-yellow Taoist robe stood with a pale, rectangular face and thick, dark eyebrows beneath which gleamed a pair of sharp eyes. He was attacking the young woman opposite him with a whisk. The Taoist's robe was covered in dust, and fine beads of sweat appeared on his forehead, indicating that they had been fighting for some time.
The girl tilted her head back, her captivating eyebrows and pointed chin revealing a truly beautiful and clear face. Two fox ears were faintly visible among her long, black hair. Looking further down, what should have been the girl's slender, soft hands turned out to be fox claws. Her body was covered in wounds, and her white dress was stained crimson with blood.
Even when she was at a disadvantage, her eyes remained stubborn and unyielding.
The fox's claws attacked the Taoist priest fiercely, but the priest remained calm. His whisk suddenly expanded, forming a massive net in the air. Then, the priest drew his copper coin sword from his back, twirled it, and the sword shone brightly. Golden light struck the girl directly, and the net formed from the whisk completely ensnared her. The golden light scorched the girl's soul, emitting a sizzling sound, causing her to groan in pain.
"You fox demon, you committed evil in life and you will continue to do evil even in death. Today, I will completely shatter your soul so that you will never do evil again!" the Taoist priest shouted, raising his copper coin sword once more, ready to deliver the final blow.
"You Taoist priest, spouting all that benevolence and morality, but who did the evil? You dug out my demon core and now you want to dispel my soul?!" The girl was struck by the golden light, and her already inhuman body shrank even further towards the fox, her beautiful face almost unable to maintain its shape.
The Taoist priest, holding a copper coin sword, sneered, "Demons should be killed. You are a wicked monster who has committed numerous evils. What's wrong with me acting on behalf of Heaven?" But a glint of greed flashed quickly in his eyes, clearly indicating that he had other plans for the girl's soul.
After a mournful fox cry, came the girl's voice filled with extreme resentment, "The king and my father will not let you go!" Her body gradually became transparent, clearly having reached her limit.
Upon getting off the car, Jiu Ya saw this scene. She didn't know who was right and who was wrong between the human and the fox, but based on her intuition, she felt that the little fox was not a bad demon.
Just as Jiu Ya was about to make a move, she saw Rong Jiang wave her hand expressionlessly.
The large white net that had trapped the little fox exploded from the inside, shattering into pieces. The golden light vanished instantly, and the girl collapsed helplessly to the ground, barely maintaining her human form.
The Taoist priest was taken aback, realizing his magical artifact was completely destroyed. Then he saw Jiu Ya and Rong Jiang, a flicker of doubt crossing his eyes. He clearly didn't believe these two seemingly ordinary women were capable of destroying his artifact. "It was you?"
"No, they're just two ordinary people." The Taoist shook his head, a fake smile creeping onto his lips. "I'm currently exorcising a demon. You're just ordinary people, so to avoid being accidentally harmed, you'd better leave as soon as possible!"
The Taoist priest advised Jiu Ya and Rong Jiang to leave, not because he was afraid of accidentally hurting them, but because he was worried that the little fox might say something inappropriate and ruin his reputation.
The Taoist priest's face darkened. He was certain that it wasn't these few people who had suddenly appeared who were responsible. So who was behind this? He demanded, "Who is this powerful figure who would help this demon destroy my magical artifact?" His eyes darted around, trying to find the hidden master.
The Taoist priest was very suspicious. Was a fellow Taoist trying to steal the fox's soul from him? The soul of a fox demon who had cultivated for a hundred years was an excellent material for crafting magical artifacts.
A cold snort echoed from the sky, "How dare you, a mere novice, act in such a manner?"
The power contained in the voice made the Taoist priest's face turn pale, and he involuntarily took a step back.
The little fox lay on the ground, groaning weakly. Hearing the voice, it looked up in surprise, "Your Majesty? Your Majesty, is that you?"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
