After Transmigrating and Humiliating the Cold and Glamorous Demon Venerable - Chapter 8

Chapter 8: A Wise Fox Avoids Immediate Losses

Feng Yunxiao asked the disciples seated below, “Has anyone in the sect recently taken a nine-tailed fox as a spirit pet?”

Zhao Hanxing hesitated for a moment before stepping forward. “Reporting to Master: during the recent hunt, the small beasts brought back by the junior sisters were merely creatures with a bit of spiritual aura. Some did not even have fully awakened intelligence, let alone the ability to shapeshift. Although some have taken spirit foxes as pets, they are merely fire foxes or sand foxes. They carry no demonic or monstrous aura and should not be that demon head.”

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone looked at each other.

During sect hunts, it was not uncommon for cultivators to keep small spiritual beasts they found. Not only are foxes more intelligent than many other small animals, but they are also known to be clingy and protective of their masters once tamed; many keep them as spirit pets.

If the suspicion against the Xuanfeng Sect was based solely on this, it would be somewhat unreasonable.

The six realms all knew that the true form of the Demon Venerable Zhong Xue was a nine-tailed spirit fox.

Even if an ordinary cultivator obtained a nine-tailed spirit fox, they would not dare to hide it; such a treasure would naturally be handed over to their Master. Feng Yunxiao’s statement was effectively saying that Xuanfeng Mountain had no such thing.

Mu Zhuoyan was relentless: “If that is the case, why not bring out all the new spirit pets of the Xuanfeng Sect disciples for the other sects to judge? This would prevent any low-level cultivators who might not recognize the demon from making others think there is intentional harboring.”

Zhao Hanxing said cautiously, “At this stage, the spirit pets may not have acknowledged their masters yet. If they are brought out and frightened, would all previous efforts not go to waste?”

Zhao Hanxing wasn’t certain what kind of spirit pet Ye Lanqing was hiding in her room, but she currently needed Ye Lanqing to help her clear her blocked meridians. If it were discovered that Zhong Xue was being sheltered by Ye Lanqing, she feared Ye Lanqing would have her cultivation base destroyed and be expelled from the Xuanfeng Sect.

Having been suppressed by Chen Yun for so many years, she was truly unwilling to let this chance slip. Even if Zhong Xue was to be caught, it had to wait until after Ye Lanqing helped clear her meridians.

“Spirit pets can be found again if lost, but if that demon head escapes, what face would we practitioners have to stand in this world?” Bai Fengjun, the lead disciple of the White Tiger Sect, stepped forward to stand side-by-side with Mu Zhuoyan.

Chen Yun said coldly, “Even if there is an investigation, it will be conducted by our Xuanfeng Sect itself. This is a sacred sect ground; since when do outsiders have the right to search the mountain as they please?”

Seeing the lead disciples of the three major sects at each other’s throats, a small girl in yellow tilted her head and asked the elder beside her, “Master, I heard that Zhong Xue never caused chaos in the human world. If she successfully crossed her tribulation, she would have joined the immortal ranks. Such cultivation is truly not easy to achieve. Even if she cannot become an immortal, with her around, demons and monsters rarely cause trouble among humans. She is not beyond redemption; why are the other sects so intent on her total extermination?”

The elder whispered, “This is what I told you before: even the so-called righteous sects will attack those who are different for the sake of fame and profit.”

All the cultivators’ attention was focused on the few people in the center of the hall; no one noticed this inconspicuous pair of master and disciple. Hearing the elder’s explanation, the young girl said, “Don’t worry, Master. I will definitely not learn from them.”

Ultimately, out of respect for Feng Yunxiao, the major sects agreed to let the Xuanfeng Sect alone dispatch cultivators to search the mountain for any trace of Zhong Xue.

Inside the small courtyard, Ye Lanqing was distressed as she took stock of the remaining charcoal. This bit of charcoal really wouldn’t last more than a few days.

It was clearly winter, a time when most beasts’ fur grows thick and firm for warmth, yet after Zhong Xue rolled around on Ye Lanqing’s bed, the previously clean bedding was covered in a significant amount of fox hair.

Why would a fox shed in winter?

Ye Lanqing sneezed from the fox hair. Seeing Zhong Xue seemingly trying hard to shake off the loose fur, she said worriedly, “My ancestor, you are so heavily injured; aren’t you afraid of tearing your wounds like that?”

Zhong Xue flicked her tail lightly, not even looking directly at Ye Lanqing.

She was the dignified Demon Venerable; she hadn’t even feared the bone-shattering lightning tribulation. Such external injuries would heal themselves in a few days. Now that her body was recovering, the fur at the injured sites was falling off. She had to shake these off as quickly as possible so that new fur, bone, and blood could grow back sooner.

While thinking, Zhong Xue suddenly felt a sharp pain in her hind leg.

It turned out that Ye Lanqing had reached out toward her, and for some reason, the touch felt like a bolt of lightning from a tribulation. In that instant, her hind leg went numb with pain.

Zhong Xue immediately became alert. Her fur bristled, and she bared her fangs.

“Hah!”

Ye Lanqing pulled her hand back, looking at her fingers which were stinging from the “shock,” and finally realized what happened. In this dry winter weather, the fox’s fur had generated static electricity after rolling on the bed. She had only wanted to see if the wound on the fox’s hind leg was better, not expecting to shock the little fox the moment she touched it.

Looking at the fox’s stance, it likely thought it was being attacked.

“That… listen to my explanation. It wasn’t me who shocked you… I didn’t do it on purpose…”

“Hah!” Zhong Xue let out another low growl.

This little Daoist was actually hiding her true strength; she knows such exquisite spells.

The power of lightning was a spell that could clearly only be learned after entering the Immortal Realm. How could a cultivator with such low cultivation control it so effortlessly?

Seeing Ye Lanqing playing dumb, Zhong Xue felt even more that she was a deep and calculating person. Fortunately, this little Daoist only had twenty years of cultivation; that shock just now wasn’t enough to take her life.

Zhong Xue had originally thought that if the little Daoist dared to be disrespectful, she would fight to the death. But with her current strength, it wouldn’t be easy to take the Daoist down with her…

Forget it. A fox under someone else’s roof must bow its head.

As the dignified Demon Venerable, she naturally understood the principle that “as long as the green mountains remain, one need not worry about firewood.” She would heal her wounds first. As long as she could recover a hundred years of cultivation, even if she couldn’t fight her way back to the Demon Realm, she wouldn’t have to fear this little Daoist.

Though resentful, Zhong Xue retracted her fangs. Seeing that the little Daoist didn’t seem to trust her, she reluctantly wagged her tail and flattened her ears, pretending to be very “pettable.”

“Eh?” Ye Lanqing was puzzled.

Did the little fox believe her words? Not only did it believe her, but it also seemed much friendlier. It had been acting like an arrogant cat, but now it was acting a bit… like a dog?

Ye Lanqing tentatively reached out, wanting to touch the fox’s ear. Just as she was about to make contact, the little fox bared its fangs again, full of wariness.

Presumptuous! Bold!

I merely gave her a bit of a good face; how dare this little Daoist treat me, the dignified Demon Venerable, like a common household animal!

If Zhong Xue could transform into her human form right now, she would definitely give this little Daoist a harsh scolding!

Ye Lanqing pulled her hand back in fright.

Foxes were indeed cunning, pretending to be obedient just to lure her in and try to take a bite. This little fox was truly vindictive.

Forget it, forget it. Luckily she wasn’t bitten. If it won’t let her pet it, then so be it. Ye Lanqing swore in her heart that when she returned to her original world, she would definitely raise an obedient fox and pet it fiercely.

After moping for a while and seeing how much fur the little fox was losing, Ye Lanqing began to wonder if she should find a way to get some fish oil. If the world-destroying Demon Venerable from the novel ended up going bald while in her care, she probably wouldn’t escape being silenced.

To catch fish, she had to go down the mountain, but her status didn’t allow her to leave without permission. Even if she had the chance, how to bring the fish back without being seen was another problem.

Zhong Xue’s blue eyes watched Ye Lanqing unblinkingly. This little Daoist’s eyes are darting around; she must be plotting something bad.

A knock on the door interrupted the stare-down between the human and the fox. Ye Lanqing whispered to the fox, “Someone is coming; you have to stay in the cage.”

Heh. Zhong Xue sneered in her heart.

This little Daoist can summon heavenly lightning with a wave of her hand; would she be afraid of other cultivators? This posturing is nothing more than an excuse to keep me trapped in a cage. These cultivators are truly more hypocritical than the last.

Still, she couldn’t even deal with one little Daoist, let alone her Senior Sister…

After assessing the situation, Zhong Xue obediently entered the cage and curled herself up. A wise fox avoids immediate losses; as the Demon Venerable, she knew how to adapt to circumstances.

Ye Lanqing was dumbstruck by how obedient the little fox was.

“Ye Lanqing, open the door now!”

It was Zhao Hanxing’s voice.

Ye Lanqing clicked her tongue, tidied up the fox hair on the bed, covered the cage with a cloak, and only then dared to open the door.

Ye Lanqing thought Zhao Hanxing probably wanted her help to heal her old injuries. But last time she had only stumbled into it by luck, wanting to get Zhao Hanxing to help her cover up the matter of ruining the Eldest Sister’s dress. To truly heal her was easier said than done.

She barely had enough to eat or wear, and using just a bit of spiritual energy left her exhausted. In the future, she still had to go to the mountains to catch rabbits and the river to catch fish. Raising a fox was so much trouble; how could she have the spare energy to help her in the short term?

Ye Lanqing opened the door reluctantly, intending to brush her off, only to hear Zhao Hanxing say: “Ye Lanqing, I am here on Master’s orders to search for the whereabouts of the demon head Zhong Xue. Do you have anything suspicious here?”

At these words, Ye Lanqing’s heart nearly leaped out of her chest.

She… did indeed have something suspicious here.

However, in the original work, when the Demon Venerable was heavily injured, she was no longer in her nine-tailed form; to ordinary cultivators, she looked like a common fox. Even if Zhao Hanxing found out, it shouldn’t be a huge deal.

Except, she was a low-level disciple; even keeping a spirit pet required the Master’s nod. Hiding a high-grade spirit pet could lead to it being confiscated or her being expelled from the sect.

Strange. This scene wasn’t in the original book.

Seeing Ye Lanqing’s eyes flickering, Zhao Hanxing reached out and pinched a white hair off Ye Lanqing’s shoulder. “What is this?”

“This…” Ye Lanqing’s brain worked at high speed. She said, “Senior Sister, this is rabbit hair!”

“Rabbit hair?” Zhao Hanxing narrowed her eyes, clearly not believing it. Few people would keep a rabbit as a spirit pet, and the length and scent of this fur were clearly…

Inside the cage, Zhong Xue bared her claws, thinking that if the little Daoist dared to hand her over, she would definitely bite her to death.

Ye Lanqing hastily brought out the rabbit fur she had been drying. “It really is rabbit hair… Senior Sister, please forgive me. I was starving this morning, so I went to the back mountain and caught a wild rabbit. Look, this is the skin I just peeled. Once it’s dry, I’ll use it to make a muffler for you to keep out the cold, how about that?”

“You!” Zhao Hanxing had thought she had caught evidence of Ye Lanqing harboring the demon, only to find it was just a trivial mistake.

Remembering Ye Lanqing’s previous timid behavior, she threatened: “The sect forbids disciples from hunting on the back mountain privately. If Master finds out, she might punish you by not letting you go to the dining hall for two days. Luckily it was me who saw it today and not someone else… Junior Sister, last time you ruined the Eldest Sister’s dress, I already helped you. This time, how are you going to repay me?”

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