Becoming a fox fairy from Liaozhai

Chapter 851: Showing your noble hand
After the vicious dog that had been chasing the old fox and the young man left, Ziyun Mountain finally returned to silence. Until nightfall, the Hidden Dragon Formation operated normally, the hidden dragon raised its head to inhale and exhale the primordial energy of the moon, drawing down the moonlight to illuminate the valley.

Only then did they hear the faint sound of water coming from the valley.

A drenched old fox trembled as it climbed onto a pine branch hanging in the valley, shaking off the water droplets.

It turned out that when the vicious dog searched up the western mountain, the old fox discovered it and took a risk by jumping off the cliff into the river. He held his breath and hid in the water to avoid the vicious dog's pursuit.

After the young man cut down the old pine tree, the fox hid under its dense branches, half of its body submerged in water, daring not to reveal even the slightest hint of its presence.

It wasn't until the moon was shining brightly that the old fox, unaware of the danger, cautiously climbed onto a pine branch to dry its fur. Having spent the entire day in the water, the old fox was clearly suffering from hypothermia; its breathing was labored and muffled, the cold seeping into its lungs.

The old fox, chilled by the cold air, was bathed in moonlight when it expelled its inner core, which shone like a bright pearl. The core was hidden in the branches of a pine tree, only revealing a faint glow. The old fox used the core to expel the cold air from its body, its expression gradually calming. It then bowed to the moon, using the moonlight to refine the core's energy, preventing the cold air from invading and altering its nature.

As the inner energy was refined and purified, the old fox no longer waited until the moon disappeared before stopping his practice. The inner elixir's radiance gradually faded, indicating that he was about to finish.

Just then, the Hidden Dragon Formation suddenly moved. A giant hand formed from clouds reached out from the formation, grabbed the inner core, and quickly disappeared into the formation.

Just as the old fox was about to finish its practice and swallow the elixir, the inner elixir suddenly disappeared, causing it to tremble with fear and blood to flow from all seven orifices.

The old fox let out a mournful cry, like a broken string losing its sound, and actually spoke in human language, each word filled with tears of blood: "Who is the master who stole my inner core? This little fox begs for its return!"

It kowtowed and said, "This little fox is nearing the end of its lifespan. It has no talent to cultivate immortality and has only relied on its dull and stubborn spirit to refine this inner core for more than fifty years. It is waiting for its lifespan to end so that it can rely on the inner core to transform into a ghost immortal and avoid the suffering of sinking. I beg the senior to have mercy, I beg the senior to have mercy!"

It kept bowing its head and crying out incessantly.

Zhang Daoren sat in his cave on the cliff of West Mountain, the purple clouds in front of him transforming into a giant hand, tightly gripping the inner core.

Hearing the old fox's mournful cries, Zhang Daoren frowned and shouted, his voice like muffled thunder: "Get out! Or I'll kill you right now!"

Heavy purple clouds surged out from the Hidden Dragon Formation, and the shockwave sent the old fox flying, crashing onto the riverbank and tumbling several times.

The old fox shed tears and could only flee, trembling: "Alas!"

"Alas!" The fox's cry faded into the distance, disappearing into the Purple Cloud Mountain.

Zhang Daoren's heart gradually calmed down. Looking at the inner core floating like the moon in the purple clouds, his gaze became firm: "If Heaven gives it to me and I don't take it, I will suffer the consequences. Even an old fox fears death, so how can I not fear death? With this inner core, there will be no more obstacles to my spiritual cultivation. Once I reach the sixth rank, I will be a terrestrial immortal!"

"This mere wild fox, if it falls into my hands, I'll spare its life. If it fell into someone else's hands, I'm afraid they'd skin it and make it into a fox fur coat. By taking its inner core, I've freed it from being coveted by others. Isn't that a good thing?"

With this thought in mind, there were no more worries in my heart.

Looking at the Profound Yin Tonifying Pill, Zhang Daoren rearranged the Hidden Dragon Formation, protected himself with purple clouds, and swallowed the inner core in one gulp, refining the Taiyin divine power within.

On the other side, the old fox let out a few mournful cries and fled into the mountains and forests. Soon, it transformed into a wisp of white mist, skimming along the ground, and then slipped under the corner of Gong Mengbi's robe, disappearing without a trace.

"It's done." Gong Mengbi said calmly, looking at the Hidden Dragon Formation.

Chun Jing Shu's expression turned grave. She asked, "What should the envoy do? Kill him?"

Gong Mengbi asked curiously, "Do I look like a bloodthirsty person? Zhang Daoren spared the old fox's life, so of course I should spare his life too."

"In that case, I beg you to show mercy, fellow Daoist!" The Hidden Dragon Formation suddenly opened, and layers of purple clouds surged out from the cave on the western cliff, crossing the mountain stream like a rainbow bridge, and landed in front of Gong Mengbi.

A middle-aged Taoist priest was enveloped in purple mist. His face was ashen, and his magical power was rapidly fading. He was none other than Zhang, the Taoist priest who had swallowed the inner elixir.

At this moment, Zhang Daoren felt as if he had swallowed not a bright moon, but a bottomless spring. Not only could he not refine any of the Taiyin divine power, but all his essence, energy and spirit flowed into this spring. His magical power, which he had cultivated for many years, was constantly being lost, almost causing him to lose his spirit and shatter his Dao heart.

However, ever since he swallowed the inner core, his whole body has become stiff and he can't move. It's like he's trapped in a nightmare, completely unable to control himself. His body is churning like a stormy sea, but all he can do is worry helplessly.

He was already unable to control his own body, so he was even less aware of what was happening in the outside world, and he was even more unaware that he was enveloped in purple clouds and had arrived in front of the demon examiner.

Ziyun landed in front of Gong Mengbi. Gong Mengbi's eyes widened slightly, and a faint moonlight seemed to flow in his slender eyes.

"Who are you?"

The purple clouds surged and gradually transformed into a hazy human figure, which said to Gong Mengbi, "I beg you, envoy, to show mercy and spare my old friend who has not had an easy time cultivating."

Gong Mengbi laughed and said, "You've been hiding your true face and won't even show it, yet you come to beg for mercy from me with just a few words? If you have the ability to manifest spirits through magical artifacts, then just force out the things that shouldn't be eaten for him yourself."

The figure in the purple clouds became clearer, and it could only be vaguely discerned that it was a Taoist priest. The purple cloud avatar said, "This Purple Cloud Banner is a magic treasure that I gave to an old friend. It was originally my magic treasure and was used for protecting the Tao, so it can barely be infused with spiritual energy, but it cannot undo your exquisite magic. Moreover, this is his demonic test, and I cannot interfere."

“Envoy, I now serve in the Heavenly Palace and have some connections with your elders. Please do me a favor so that we can meet again in the future. This old friend of mine once had a deep connection with me, but his roots were not deep enough, and he could not enter the Dao in his previous life. He still has a chance in this life. I will pass on the Dharma and guide him to enlightenment so that this connection can be fulfilled.”

Gong Mengbi asked sincerely, "I don't know which elder in my family you are on good terms with. I have never heard of it, and no one has ever mentioned it."

The avatar of the Purple Cloud was taken aback, watching Zhang Daoren's continuously draining magical power, and said, "So be it. The envoy is unwilling to let go, presumably because he is wary of the losses during the demonic test. This avatar of mine is formed from the Purple Cloud Banner, and the Purple Cloud within the banner is refined by combining the energies of Profound Yin and Profound Yang, which is of great benefit to cultivation. If the envoy is willing to make an exception, I am willing to give him the Purple Cloud Banner to compensate for his losses."

As he spoke, his spirit dispersed back into purple clouds, which continued to shrink inward until they finally transformed into a purple cloud banner that fluttered above Zhang Daoren's head.

"It is indeed a fine treasure. To refine such a treasure would require hundreds of years of painstaking effort. However, I am the Demon Trial Envoy. How can I accept bribes and disrespect the Demon Trial? I am under the supervision of the Demon King of Guidance. If the Great Demon of the Azure Heaven were to punish me, I would not be able to bear the consequences. Please leave."

The purple cloud banner suddenly trembled, and the purple clouds, like a flood bursting its banks, surrounded Gong Mengbi and the others. In an instant, only purple energy could be seen filling the void, blocking all escape routes.

The figure of Ziyun, in disguise, kept pacing around Gong Mengbi, scolding, "This won't do, that won't do, what do you want! You little demon test envoy, do you really think I can't do anything to you?"

Gong Mengbi, holding the golden book, said, "What should I do? Everything is in the golden book."

He read out the verdict: "There is a practitioner named Zhang, who is hereby tested by the Heavenly Palace with the Golden Register. Zhang is unable to resist temptation, his faith is not firm, his roots are shallow, and his virtue is lacking. He must remain steadfast in his precepts for fifty years before the door to the future can be opened."

The golden book glowed, recording the judgment of the demonic test within. He looked at the wandering avatar and said, "My judgment should be fairly fair. What do you think?"

"Speak," he said, ignoring the enraged Ziyun avatar. With a mere wave of his hand, the dragon-drawn carriage sucked in the servants and Chun Jing Shu, who had already fainted from the shock. Gong Mengbi boarded the carriage, patted the azure dragon, and ordered it to continue moving forward.

Ziyun blocked Gong Mengbi's path, but when Qingjiao came, Ziyun lined up again, unable to stop him at all.

The purple cloud avatar reappeared behind the carriage and sneered, "What a demonic test envoy! We'll meet again someday."

Gong Mengbi turned around and looked at her, a dangerous glint in his narrow eyes: "It is my great honor."

Their eyes met, and thunder seemed to surge through the void.

Behind them, in a short while, Zhang Daoren was robbed of fifty years of cultivation and good fortune. The spring was finally filled, disappearing from his body like a smoothed-out pit. It would be at least fifty years before he reached the threshold of advancing from the seventh to the sixth rank again.