Wagging My Tail in the Ice Queen CEO’s Embrace - Chapter 40

Watching Ming Ying transform, Fu Anyu recalled what her grandfather had told her over twenty years ago: “Your constitution is special, it easily attracts demons and malevolent spirits.”

This constitution was known among cultivators as the “Demon Furnace” a physique that could only serve as a vessel to provide spiritual energy for demons.

She had been born with immense spiritual power, but due to her young age and inability to control it, her internal organs would often suffer damage from the chaotic surges of energy within her body, leading to fevers and unconsciousness.

It wasn’t until her grandfather gave her a family heirloom, a green jade gourd and a set of spirit-control artifacts, that the spiritual energy within her was regulated by external means, and her condition gradually improved.

The green jade gourd served to ward off demons, but it could only repel formless malevolent spirits and minor demons who had taken human form but possessed low cultivation. A high-ranking fox demon like Ming Ying, however, had no fear of such an object.

Fu Anyu also remembered that when she was nine, her parents, under her grandfather’s guidance, arranged an engagement for her with the son of a Taoist temple master in the suburbs, hoping that the future temple heir would be able to protect their daughter.

Yet, as society opened up over the years, the old engagement contract became obsolete. Now, both she and the temple heir were focused on their respective careers. Even if they happened to meet while working, they would only exchange a brief, polite greeting and nothing more.

After years of persistent cultivation, she had grown strong enough to obtain a demon-slaying enforcement license. She no longer needed anyone’s protection and was no longer targeted by any malevolent spirits.

Over time, she had almost forgotten about her unique constitution.

Feeling that most of her spiritual energy had been drained and the fox in her arms was no longer fluffy, Fu Anyu turned on the light. Seeing the little fox still sleeping peacefully, her expression serene but her body now in human form, with both her external and internal spiritual energy stabilized, she knew the transformation had succeeded.

Fu Anyu didn’t know, nor had anyone ever told her, how a “Demon Furnace” was supposed to provide spiritual energy to demons. Even during her time with Ming Ying, she only knew that the little fox could draw energy from her, but she could interrupt the flow by actively resisting.

This time, she hadn’t resisted, and the little fox had unconsciously siphoned off her energy, a small portion forming the fourth tail, while the majority was used for the transformation.

It had been a long time since Fu Anyu had experienced such a state of spiritual energy depletion. After reciting a chant to cut off the energy flow and gently pushing away the fox tail that was still trying to draw more energy from her, she felt dizzy, her vision darkening and speckled with stars.

Nevertheless, she forced herself up, first sending Du Yunxin a message to request leave, then retrieving a loose orange nightgown from the wardrobe. She lifted the blanket, quickly dressed Ming Ying, and smoothed out the fabric to ensure she was properly covered before lying back down to carefully observe the fox demon before her.

Although Ming Ying’s bone age was indeed over three hundred years, her appearance was remarkably youthful, looking no older than her early twenties. Her face still carried a hint of baby fat, giving her the impression of a well-behaved and serene child. Her features weren’t stunningly beautiful, but they exuded a comforting aura.

In her human form, Ming Ying’s jet-black hair cascaded like spilled ink beneath her, reaching all the way to her ankles. Her long, narrow eyelashes resembled silk tree blossoms, fluttering like delicate, furry little fans with each breath she took.

Whether it was due to insufficient spiritual power or racial limitations, her fox ears and tail refused to retract. The fox ears stood obediently atop her head, but the four tails were rather unruly, occasionally slipping out from under her skirt and causing it to become disheveled.

The four spirit-control devices were still fastened to Ming Ying’s wrists and ankles, yet they seemed to have lost their function, completely failing to absorb spiritual energy. Fu Anyu had no choice but to touch them one by one, manually activating their spirit-control capabilities.

When she reached the device on Ming Ying’s ankle, her fingertips paused on the bell for a moment before she began chanting the incantation.

She wondered how the little fox would react when she woke up tomorrow morning.

Ming Ying realized she had been having strange dreams quite frequently lately.

Tonight, she had another peculiar dream. In the dream, she found herself in a pitch-black space, with only a single source of light before her, shaped like a silkworm cocoon. Thick, mist-like spiritual energy surged from within, swirling around her as if enticing her.

Out of curiosity, Ming Ying tentatively touched the spiritual energy with her tail and could feel it rushing toward her at an astonishing speed, entering her meridians and being absorbed by her dantian. In almost no time, it solidified into her own spiritual power.

She thought to herself that the spiritual energy in the human realm was so sparse, and her own absorption rate in reality was extremely slow, which greatly affected her mood. Why not indulge in this dream and satisfy her cravings? So, she extended her only three tails toward the spiritual energy, formed hand seals to draw it in, and absorbed the energy surrounding the “cocoon” at the fastest possible speed.

Her fox tails greedily devoured the spiritual energy, and Ming Ying rediscovered the joy of cultivating in the demon realm. Her motivation surged as she absorbed the energy while moving closer to the “cocoon,” intending to place her hands on its surface to speed up the absorption even further.

However, the moment her hands touched the “cocoon,” it suddenly shrank, transforming into the form of Fu Anyu!

Startled, Ming Ying hastily retreated.

She saw Fu Anyu floating before her, eyes tightly shut, face pale, and expression full of pain. Unable to resist, she stepped forward and embraced her, calling out fearfully in a trembling voice, “Fu Anyu? Fu Anyu? Fu… Fu Anyu? Sister…?”

The woman in her arms remained silent, her body feeling light and weightless.

Even though she knew she was in a dream, Ming Ying grew increasingly anxious. Remembering that she had just absorbed the spiritual energy from the “cocoon,” she quickly gathered the solidified spiritual power within her body into her palms, placed them on Fu Anyu’s forehead, and transferred the recently absorbed energy back to her.

Even in a dream, she didn’t want anything bad to happen to Fu Anyu.

Especially not because of her unintentional plundering.

If she had known earlier that the “cocoon” was Fu Anyu, she would have turned and left without absorbing any of its spiritual energy.

“Fu Anyu, Fu Anyu…” Ming Ying called out urgently, “Wake up, wake up! Didn’t you say you would help me find my home and take me back?”

The woman in her arms did not respond, but the space around them slowly emerged from the darkness.

When Ming Ying woke up, she felt tears in her eyes. Through her blurred vision, she seemed to see someone lying nearby.

The faint scent of jasmine and pinewood lingered around her.

“Fu Anyu!” Ming Ying exclaimed in shock, instinctively reaching out to push the person.

As she stretched out her hand, her tears fell, and her vision finally cleared from the misty haze. It was then that she realized the limb she had extended was not a fox paw but, a human hand.

Fair-skinned, with slender and long fingers, it was her own hand!

Ming Ying froze, thinking she had entered another new dream. Just as she was at a loss, the hand resting on the person beside her was caught.

“I’m here.” Fu Anyu’s voice reached her ears, tinged with exhaustion and even sounding a bit weak. “Be quiet. I took the day off, so you can go back to sleep.”

After saying that, she released Ming Ying’s wrist.

Ming Ying responded blankly, not even sure what she had said. When she came to her senses, she had already withdrawn her outstretched hand and placed it before her eyes, examining it in disbelief, her mind buzzing.

Had she… transformed into human form?!

When did this happen? Why hadn’t she felt anything at all?

To confirm whether she was dreaming, Ming Ying resorted to her old method: she raised her scalded paw, intending to take a deep whiff of the medicinal oil scent, only to find that her snow-white paw, wrapped in bandages, had also turned into a hand.

Ming Ying choked on the breath caught in her throat, coughing uncontrollably.

Fu Anyu, who had been catching up on sleep, furrowed her brows and reluctantly opened her eyes. She helped the coughing Ming Ying sit up and patted her back.

“Want some water?” she asked softly.

Ming Ying was still coughing and frantically waved her hand in response.

Nevertheless, Fu Anyu got out of bed to pour her a glass of water. As she moved around, she felt her steps were somewhat unsteady.

Once Ming Ying finally stopped coughing, she trembled as she reached out to take the glass of water Fu Anyu handed to her. Even when she felt the water going down her throat, it still didn’t feel real.

“How did I transform? When did it happen?!” she asked Fu Anyu in astonishment. “Why… why aren’t you surprised at all?”

Fu Anyu had lost most of her spiritual energy to Ming Ying and was still slowly recovering. The cost of this recovery was her physical strength. At this moment, no matter how surprised she felt inside, she didn’t want to say another word.

Ming Ying fired off a string of questions but received no answers. Instead, she watched as Fu Anyu closed her eyes and lay back under the covers, looking completely indifferent. Ming Ying grew both anxious and annoyed. She glanced at the time and realized it was already 10:15 in the morning, they were still at home and hadn’t left!

“Fu Anyu! Wake up! You’re going to be late for the meeting!” She hurriedly shook Fu Anyu. When the other woman cracked open her eyes, her gaze as cold as a freshly unsheathed blade, Ming Ying lowered her voice timidly. “Sis, it’s time to get up.”

“I took the day off. I’ll go tomorrow,” Fu Anyu said, wishing she could turn the little fox back into her original form and tuck her under the covers so she wouldn’t keep disturbing her sleep. “If you’re hungry, go find Xiao Du.”

She truly didn’t want to utter another word.

Ming Ying didn’t dare to go out. She had just noticed she was wearing an orange nightgown, likely put on her by Fu Anyu, and nothing else. Since she could remember, she had always worn clothes given by her mother and had no idea how to transform her fur into garments. She could only awkwardly lie back down and cautiously inch closer to Fu Anyu.

“Sis…” she whispered softly, “I… I can’t go out like this.”

“Then change back,” Fu Anyu suggested with her eyes closed.

But Ming Ying didn’t dare to revert to her fox form. She was afraid that if she changed back, she might not be able to transform into human form again.

Becoming human should have been a joyous occasion for her, yet she never expected to find herself in such a predicament over clothing. She couldn’t possibly wear Fu Anyu’s undergarments, and suitable shoes and socks were nowhere to be found at the moment. Without these essentials, she couldn’t even go downstairs to meet Du Yunxin.

Ming Ying hugged her tail in frustration, clutching her already protesting stomach, feeling utterly helpless and on the verge of tears.