Chapter 331
After returning from the human city, the little fox kept his promise and began to study hard with Jia Muying's company, striving to grow a ninth tail as soon as possible.
It never knew what Jiamuying encountered outside the cloth shop that day. It only felt that Jiamuying seemed not as lively as before, and there seemed to be something bitter and heavy in her smile.
On another night when the little fox was pestering Jia Muying to tell him a bedtime story, he heard a long and somewhat discontinuous story. The story took place a long, long time ago, so long ago that the human race active in the wilderness had not yet been born, and so long ago that there had never been any fallen beasts between heaven and earth.
Jiamuying's voice was as gentle as ever, but the little fox felt more and more sleepy the more he listened. In the story he told, the person never had a name, and even his experience was a little vague, but he had an inexplicable intuition that this story was deeply connected to Jiamuying.
The little fox did not interrupt his story. It just curled up in the quilt, with its paws on the edge of the quilt and its pair of smart furry ears pricked up.
"So all departed souls will be reincarnated?" After Jia Muying finished telling this story, the little fox blinked his eyes. "If you live long enough and have enough luck, you can meet them again, right?"
Jia Muying did not answer yes or no, he just said: "Waiting is a very painful thing."
It is too cruel to put everything on the illusory luck and pray for that slim possibility.
The little fox stared at him. Jia Muying might not have noticed that a wrinkle appeared between his eyebrows. The little fox asked, "Big Tea Tree, what do you think is the most important component of a person? Is it the soul? Or memory?"
This question had a vague sense of familiarity. Jia Muying opened her mouth, but somehow asked back, "What do you think?"
"Hey? Are you asking me?"
The tuft of smart hair on the little fox's ears trembled, and its furry face showed a hint of contemplation. After a long while, it said it didn't know.
"I think this question is difficult." The little fox turned over in the warm quilt and pressed down his tail that was sticking out of the quilt with his paw. "I have never faced such a dilemma. I don't know how I will answer it."
It whispered, "Perhaps only after I have truly experienced it, will I know the answer."
…
This slightly special story was just an insignificant episode in the long and dull life. The little fox remembered it clearly at first, but soon forgot it in daily life and other stories, leaving only a faint shadow.
Although the story is no longer very recollected, the little fox still remembers the question that arose from the story. Sometimes when it was hanging upside down on the branch of the tree that was the prototype of Jia Muying to bask in the sun, it would squint its eyes and talk lazily in the sun.
"Big Tea Tree, what is the most important component of a person?"
The big tea tree that has transformed into its original form cannot speak, so naturally it cannot give an answer. However, the little fox itself does not expect it to answer. It believes that there will be a day when it will figure things out.
When the little fox got tired of hanging on the branches of the tea tree, its tail would often loosen and it would fall defenselessly from great height. There would always be a branch or a root to catch it skillfully, then give it a slap on the head, and then either put it in the best place to bask in the sun, or the big tea tree would return to its original form to comb its hair and dry its tail.
Oh, what a boring life~
Three years after hearing this story, the little fox grew a ninth tail. When the ninth tail was formally formed, it had a special feeling. Facing Jia Muying, who had been guarding it for nine consecutive days, the little fox showed a smug expression that made him want to be beaten. He raised his head proudly and announced loudly:
"From today on, I have an official name! Big Tea Tree, my name is Nine-Tailed Fox!"
Among the many little foxes in the wilderness, it was the first to come out on top.
The little fox who was promoted to the Nine-Tailed Fox was mysterious for more than half a month after becoming the successor. During this period of time, it often went out early and came back late. No one could see its shadow and no one knew what it was doing. Until one day before dinner, the little fox, no, the Nine-Tailed Fox, wrapped something with its tail and jumped lightly in front of Jia Muying.
It said cheerfully: "Put your hands out!"
Jia Muying opened his palm towards it, and felt a furry touch gently brushing against it. After the snow-white tail disappeared, a mask appeared on his palm.
The mask with a white background looks like it is woven from fox fur and is painted with very beautiful red patterns. On the upper inner corners of the mask, there are two sparkling gems shaped like fox eyes. Under the firelight, the sparkling gems are particularly lively, just like the little fox's usual spinning eyes.
"Hey, this is a gift!" Nine-Tailed Fox was very proud. He could hardly wait to introduce the function of this mask to Jia Muying. "It is woven with the hair that fell off when I just became Nine-Tailed Fox. As long as you wear it on your face, no disguise can deceive you!"
It raised its claws and pointed at two shining gems: "There are the basic magic circles carved by my spiritual power to maintain the operation of the mask. You should also remember to store your spiritual power and maintain it."
There are two little secrets that Nine-Tailed Fox has not told you about this mask. One is that this mask recognizes its master and can only be used by the big tea tree. The second is that the brightness of the gem depends on its mood. The better its mood, the brighter the gem, and the worse its mood, the dimmer the gem.
Neither of these two secrets affects the use of the mask. Let's see when the big tea tree can discover it!
Before Jia Muying could discover the secret on the mask, Kyuubi, who had some strange thoughts as a cub, was struck by a bolt from the blue.
The big white egg that Jiamu Ying had carefully cared for for more than three years, and Jiuwei regretted not roasting it and eating it on the spot, was broken! The shell!
It squatted on the windowsill, looking at the red and gold velvet ball sitting in the eggshell fragments and still speaking coquettishly to Jia Muying, and silently sharpened its claws.
How did this egg hatch?
Jia Muying has recovered a lot of memories in the past three years, such as how to become a qualified red and gold velvet ball breeder, and he has a lot of experience.
The phoenix that was reborn after nirvana didn't seem to be much different from the first one encountered in the phoenix forest, except that its character was much stronger. At least it didn't start shedding tears when it was anxious or aggrieved, crying until even its hair became wet.
Jia Muying skillfully pinched the eggshells into small pieces suitable for swallowing, and patiently fed them to the baby one piece after another, touching its little belly from time to time to make sure it was not overeating.
While feeding the plush dumplings, Jia Muying had a vague illusion that he had not disappeared for thousands of years. He was still with the cubs he raised, leading an ordinary but happy life.
"Chu~" I can't eat anymore~
Hearing the crisp chirping sound, Jia Muying pulled back his wandering thoughts. Looking at the warm velvet ball in his palm with clear and trusting eyes, he slowly suppressed the resentment and sadness in his heart.
...After all, it is different.
The phoenix that had just broken out of its shell basically did nothing but eat and sleep. When the plush ball fell asleep, Jia Muying put it down and gently closed the door.
Before his memory returned, he had already transplanted some trees with particularly delicious fruits, several vigorous sycamore trees, and a lot of bamboos on this mountain.
The fruit of bamboo is called Lianshi. Neither he nor the little fox likes to eat it, but every year when the fruit is ripe, he always subconsciously collects a bag of the fullest Lianshi, then dries it and stores it in a jar, as if he has done this thousands of times.
Jia Muying found a bamboo nearby, placed his hands on the bamboo trunk, and sent spiritual energy to it continuously. The bamboo soon blossomed and bore fruit, producing fresh and plump fruits.
Jia Muying took off all the training tools and looked down to see that the two bright gems on the mask hanging around his waist had dimmed a little. The nine-tailed beast didn't say anything and didn't follow with its body, but the unhappiness in its heart was probably about to overwhelm it.
At this moment, Jia Muying suddenly realized that there would probably be some difficulties for these two cubs to get along with each other in the future.
…
"This is my toy, you are not allowed to take it!"
The white nine-tailed fox pounced on a ball of red fur. The red fur quickly spread its wings and flew to the ceiling with the toy in its mouth, not forgetting to turn around and give it a smug look.
Nine-Tailed Fox had never been wronged like this before. Its nine tails stood up in anger. "You stinky bird! Give my toy back to me!"
“No, no!” The red-gold ball on the ceiling firmly grasped the small doll made of cloth with its claws and said proudly, “If you have the ability, you can also fly up~”
Although the little fox has grown a ninth tail and is qualified to transform, it is essentially still a cub that has just left its infancy. Arrogant and overbearing, it disliked the little phoenix when it was still a big white egg. When the little phoenix broke out of the shell, it became even more displeased, and the two sides would fight from time to time.
Either today Nine-Tailed Fox plucked Little Phoenix's feathers, or tomorrow Little Phoenix kicked Nine-Tailed Fox's tail. Whenever the two little ones meet, they will fight. The scene just now is really commonplace.
The little phoenix grabbed Ninetales' favorite deer stuffed animal with its claws as if in protest, and circled around its head arrogantly, making a provocative "chirp" sound.
Be patient for a moment and everything will be calm. Take a step back... What the hell is this?
The Nine-Tailed Fox swung its tail vigorously on the ground, and its spiritual power worked to reduce its body weight. Using the recoil force at that moment, it leaped high and decisively stretched out its claws. Its movements were so agile that it didn't look like a fox. When it fell, a few pieces of beautiful red and gold fur floated down from the sky.
The smile would not disappear, it would simply shift from the little phoenix's face to the nine-tailed fox's face.
“啊啊啊啊啾啾啾———”小鳳凰發出驚恐的尖叫，它的爪子因為受驚張開，鹿玩偶墜下來，被小狐貍用尾巴接住。
它高高地昂着脖子，像勝利歸來的王者：“挑釁我？這就是代價！”
小鳳凰看着自己絨毛明顯比周圍少的一塊肚皮，崩潰道：“九尾我要在你頭頂拉屎啾！！！”
……
嘉木英：“所以這就是你拆了它椅子的原因？”
“不然呢？！”
九尾憤怒地扒拉着自己的腦袋頂，雖然小鳳凰沒有真的喪心病狂到在他頭頂拉屎，但九尾只要腦補一下“頭頂拉屎”的威脅，就覺得自己已經不幹淨了，這招不僅殺傷力超大，還侮辱性極高。
嘉木英嘆了口氣：“我已經教育過它了！”
這招雖然立竿見影，但确實過于惡心，嘉木英想到如果小鳳凰恢複了自己第一世的記憶再想起這一日的畫面……他懷疑它可能會尴尬到想去再涅槃一次。
九尾幽幽道：“它對我造成了心理創傷。”
嘉木英：“……”
說的也确實是實話。
九尾一邊維持着幽怨的表情，一邊用尾巴掃過來一個簡陋的圓凳：“為了彌補我，以後這就是它的位置。”
崩潰的九尾拆掉了小鳳凰的專屬座椅，并用尾巴迅速給它削出了一個簡陋到沒有任何防護的圓凳，正常情況下此時又應該有場雞飛狗跳，但正心虛尴尬着的小鳳凰沒有絲毫反抗，順從地點了點頭。
想想要是有其他異獸幼崽敢對它這麽幹……小鳳凰換位思考了一下，覺得九尾真是只能忍的好狐貍。
一場風波就這樣在雙方各退一步的情況下莫名其妙地消弭了，就是小鳳凰每次踮着兩只爪子站在圓凳上努力伸着腦袋去夠東西的場景，看起來有億點點心酸。
嘉木英從不摻和它們倆之間的恩怨，因為他發現只要他摻和進來了，無論他怎麽做，兩只崽都會覺得他更偏心另一方，要是讓它們自己解決，反而氣不了多久就會和好，當然，和好不了多久又會雞飛狗跳，主打一個周而複始，始而複周。
在九尾和小鳳凰第N次幹架的時候，嘉木英已經能相當淡然地歪在躺椅上，蓋着條毯子閉眼曬太陽，躺椅搖起來吱呀吱呀的，身邊靈氣混亂，時不時有什麽東西從不遠處竄過去，然後發出“啾”或者“嗷”的聲響。
有時嘉木英會洗點兒水果，削好後擱在躺椅旁的圓木桌上，時不時就有紅紅白白的風吹過去，然後盤子裏的水果就莫名其妙少上幾個，直到變得精光。
從遇到白澤的轉世後，嘉木英恢複的記憶便越來越多，作為“玉川”時的記憶他幾乎已經要全想起來了，他努力抑制自己不去想他消失的那三千多年裏四只幼崽過得究竟有多苦，要在人類的王朝裏闖出有記載的盛名又有多累，在他的記憶裏，他們都還是天真可愛，無憂無慮的孩子，卻眼間成了故事裏的傳奇。
不真切感和已經确定了失去感纏繞在心髒上，就像漫長的不知結束時間的雨季。
記憶恢複的越多，嘉木英便越愛做夢，他的夢裏總是充斥着許多亂七八糟的東西，醒來後大多會忘記，但有時他也會以特殊的視角，見證他缺席的三千多年。
在夢裏，他看見四只幼崽化作人形，有的加入了部落，有的在大荒各處游歷，他看見鳳凰在山間造了一座一模一樣的小院，他看見蒼龍被稱呼為大祭司，他看見白澤和部落裏的人打成一片，也看見麒麟收了一個學生，真正有了老師的樣子。
他也見證了不容情的時間。
一代代人類死去，成為山間的孤冢墳茔，有的的部落發展成城池，于戰火之中完成興衰更替，他養大的孩子風華絕代卻慢慢老去，歲月爬上鬓邊青絲，看不出年齡的皮囊裏栖息着倦怠的靈魂。
這是夢，或許也并不是夢。
但無論如何，他只是一個旁觀者。
一個束手無策的旁觀者。
“嘉木英？嘉木英……”
他幾乎沉浸在這些不間斷的夢裏，但有聲音穿過遙遠的夢境，分不清真假與虛實。
“———大茶樹！”
好像有什麽溫熱的東西覆上了心口，為心口披上了隔離的甲胄，他終于從夢裏掙脫出來，看見九尾頂着紅金色的小鳳凰趴在他的胸膛上，表情難得一致。
九尾仿佛又回到了幾年前和嘉木英離開人類城池的那天，那時它覺得嘉木英的心裏有一場好大好大的雨，它以為幾年過去，這場雨會停歇，沒想到卻終至滂沱。
它将自己毛茸茸的尾巴變大，如厚實的被子一樣蓋在嘉木英身上，難得地不知所措。
它不知道要怎麽阻止這場雨，很多細細碎碎的線索在此時串聯，九尾想起嘉木英移栽的那些樹，想起他建房子做玩具的熟練，想起他在布莊外的悵然若失，想起那個被他忘得只剩淺淡影子的故事。
九尾最擅長捕捉人的情緒，但無論嘉木英怎麽曬太陽，他心裏永遠是潮濕的雨季，并随着時間的推移演變出泥濘一片。
好像從它變成九尾，小鳳凰破殼以後，嘉木英就越來越沒有以往活潑了，他曾經很少用原型，習慣以人形出現，現在也經常變成原型紮根在陽光下，時間還一次比一次長，哪怕以人形出現，在教完他們後，他也總是在二樓的落地窗邊的躺椅上，蓋着毯子曬太陽。
一切改變都似乎有跡可循，又似乎悄無聲息。
“啾……”小鳳凰落在他的頸窩，擔憂地團成一只圓圓的團子，不知道為什麽，它心裏很慌，似乎在遙遠的過去，它曾經歷過一場痛苦的離別。
嘉木英什麽話都沒說，只是摸了摸身上的兩只幼崽，陽光透過窗戶落在他的身上，帶來些微暖意。
……
“大胖雞———”小狐貍如以往一樣，用九條尾巴将自己挂在茶樹的樹枝上，它看到茶樹的樹冠上有了秋日的金黃，“異植也會經歷四季的變化嗎？”
“說了多少遍，不要叫我大胖雞！”
紅金色的團子如今身形長開了些，能看出翅膀和尾巴，但敦實到幾乎沒有脖子，捏一捏就知道都是認真養出來的實心肉，但這并不影響它飛起來的輕盈。
圓滾滾的小鳳凰振翅飛到九尾的邊上，冷酷地用爪子去掰它的尾巴，吓得九尾立刻引體向上，從倒吊改為蹲坐。
“不要鬧啦！”九尾先發制人，“你還沒回答我剛剛的問題呢！”
九尾是異獸，他的傳承裏并沒有提到異植會不會經歷四季榮枯，但小鳳凰似乎與嘉木英早有淵源，九尾甚至還有一次聽到它喊“先生”，那時的嘉木英像被釘住一樣站在原地，他平靜地問小鳳凰知不知道自己剛剛在說什麽，小鳳凰卻是一臉茫然地回答“不記得了”。
“好像……不會？”傳承記憶裏只會留下知識與上一次重要記憶中少量又斷續的碎片，碎片裏好像有什麽綠色的樹影一晃而過，“除非生病了，或者要離開了。”
小鳳凰也注意到了頭頂巨大樹冠中日漸增多的黃葉，它心裏有些沒底，卻還是努力安慰九尾道：“嘉木英有分寸的。”
可事實說明，有些樹的嘴比礦石還硬，明明問題已經明顯到在他們兩個面前無法掩飾，卻還是裝作若無其事。
某一天嘉木英從樹變成人，達成統一戰線的九尾和小鳳凰攔下了他，一臉嚴肅的和他說要好好談談。
九尾氣勢洶洶：“為什麽生病了不想辦法治？”
小鳳凰附和道：“不知道我們很擔心嗎？”
“這并不是病。”嘉木英看着他們擔憂的眼神，“只是我的時間要到了。”
時間要到了的樹，自然會開始凋零，走向枯朽。
從化形之後的第一天他就冥冥之中有所感應，現在的世界叫做［大荒］，而他并不是一棵正常傳承下來的樹。
他早該寂滅在幾千年前的天地災劫中，只是因為未知的原因，有海量的功德湧向了他，将他從虛無裏重新拉回人世間，又支撐着他在幾千年中從一粒種子長成一棵樹。
九尾在他的樹根下安家的那一年，他隐隐觸碰到了化形的契機，于是在來年的開春，他有了人形，名為“嘉木英”。
他之前不知道自己為什麽會将這個名字脫口而出，直到他的記憶恢複的越來越多，他才明白這不是什麽心血來潮，而命運注定，他是玉川，也是嘉木英，他或許應該有另一個名字，叫做“虞荼”。
屬于“虞荼”的記憶恢複的不多，但也足以讓他隐隐明白他為什麽會到這裏，嘉木英的時間不像玉川一樣有幾百年，他只有依靠功德堆砌出來的、十多年的時光。
It was not known whether he had stayed in the distant past for too long and the future ten thousand years later was calling his soul back, or whether this empty space in the long river of fate had been filled and so he was not allowed to stay any longer. Jia Muying could feel that the time he was awake was getting shorter and shorter, and each time he woke up it was more strenuous than the previous time.
The closed river of fate did not allow him to reveal too much, he could only use his so-called gift of "seeing through everything" to tell them about the future allowed by the rules. He did not know what the fate of the two cubs in front of him would be, but that bad intuition was like a spider's thread entwined around his heart, suffocating him layer by layer.
He could only teach them in daily life to be more open-minded, not to be too obsessed with anything, to protect themselves, and to be careful of bad people... As the time they had to wake up before leaving became less and less, he realized that there were more and more things he had not taught them.
After they stopped him and "questioned" him that day, Nine-Tailed Fox and Little Phoenix seemed to have sensed something. They stopped acting coquettishly and naughtily when they learned their lesson. It was as if they had grown from cubs into reliable little adults in an instant.
When autumn came, Tamagawa, like the other trees on the mountain where they lived, also entered autumn. The tall tea trees returned to their original form, with their crowns turning golden, a kind of gorgeous beauty.
Nine-Tailed Fox and Little Phoenix squatted in the pile of golden fallen leaves, waiting for the big tea tree they were familiar with to wake up.
In the evening, the familiar Jia Muying, who would smile at them tenderly, walked them home as she had done countless times before, and no one mentioned the coming dark cloud called separation.
The stars were bright at night. They lay on the roof. Nine-Tailed Fox held its tail and counted the stars through its tail hair. The little phoenix was a little anxious because of the uneasiness similar to that in the blank memory. It was afraid of separation.
Under the night sky, in the starlight, Jia Muying whispered, "Don't be afraid."
The veil of vague memory was lifted again, and he remembered their first encounter ten thousand years later.
"My talent tells me that we will be able to meet again ten thousand years later."
The little phoenix nestled on its neck and asked in a depressed tone, "Really?"
“Really,” he said. “It just takes a very, very long time.”
Some intermittent memories came back to him, and a smile appeared on his lips: "Perhaps in the distant future, you will first encounter a small tea tree that is of the same origin as me."
"The little tea tree from the same family as you?" The little phoenix raised his head blankly, "What does he look like?"
"You'll know when you meet him," Jia Muying said, "but remember to leave him an inheritance in my name, otherwise when I wake up, he and I will have to sleep on the street."
"I won't let you sleep on the street!" The little phoenix was a little unhappy, and said angrily, "Why can he meet you when he grows up? I don't want to pay attention to him!"
"Okay then." Jia Muying smiled, "It's up to you."
The nine-tailed beast that was dozing nearby rolled over and landed right in Jiamu Ying's arms. It asked in a low voice, "Will you still remember me after a long, long time?"
"Yes." said Jia Muying.
"Then if you see me again in the future, you must recognize me at first sight." Kyuubi said, "If you don't recognize me, I will be very angry."
After thinking for a moment, it said fiercely: "If I get angry, you will never see me again!"