Enter Chang Xiangsi and help Jingzhai fight

The ceiling of the inner wall of the door is low, and below it is an entrance connected to a copper wall, which looks like a winding maze.

I walked over carefully, and Tu Shanjing smiled at me and said, "I see. The mechanism here is arranged in the same order as the stone fox tail above. The one above the middle tail is in charge of the mechanism."

I praised him, "You are worthy of being called a young master! I wonder how you figured out the mystery?"

As he walked inside with me, he replied: "I didn't know at first, but then I heard the thieves say that they would defeat them one by one, and I remembered the only description of the holy land in the ancient books I had looked up before. It only said 'Nine tails gather together, one tail blocks the sun, two tails heal...' Although it kept talking about the nine tails, I guess the hot springs in Xueyun Cave came from here, and must be related to healing."

I laughed and said, "So how do you tell which one is the second one?"

His face was slightly red, and he whispered, "When I grew them myself, I started from the top of the first tail, following the rule of north up and south down... So I guess the one in the middle and slightly north is just that."

I imagined his snow-white fox body, looking back at his two big furry tails. I thought it was very cute and couldn't help laughing out loud.

His face turned even redder, and he said, "Okay, okay, stop laughing. Let's go in and explore again."

I nodded, and suddenly an idea came to my mind, so I said to him: "Sir, do you have a way to restore that nine-tailed fox to its original state?"

He smiled down at me and asked, "Are you worried... that they will come in?"

I replied: "Yes, it's better to be prepared."

He looked around and saw a small bronze statue of a nine-tailed fox inside the bronze door. He said to me, "There is only one inside this door. I think it is the mechanism of the door. Please move away and let me try."

I walked into the bronze door and saw him holding the nine-tailed beast of the bronze statue and turning it to the left, and the bronze door slowly closed. He then turned it to the right, and the bronze door slowly opened again.

He waved to me and I walked closer.

He said to me, "I will go out later. Turn left and close the door. When I finish the arrangement, it will be your turn. Turn right and open the door."

I answered, and when I saw him walk out, I closed the door.

I heard the sound of the bronze statue twisting outside, and soon he called me to open the door.

I looked outside, but couldn't see any changes except that the nine-tailed fox statue, which had originally turned around, had returned to its right side.

He walked in and said to me, "There are indeed two sets of mechanisms inside and outside the door, and they don't interfere with each other. I restored the one outside the door to its original state and wiped off the dust of the real mechanism."

After he revealed it, I took a closer look and saw that only the nine-tailed fox statue in the middle had a handprint on top, while the person next to it was covered in dust and looked no different from the other statues.

He turned the mechanism inside the door and the bronze door slowly closed.

I followed him into the maze and saw a large open space with a desk in the middle. There were exits on all sides. I counted them and there were still nine.

He looked solemn, walked to the table and examined it carefully, and said after a while: "There is a Bagua mirror inlaid here. The Bagua gives birth to the Nine Palaces, which probably correspond to the nine exits. You wait here for a moment, I will go and check it out first."

I grabbed his sleeve and said fearfully, "Sir, are these nine exits like the fox's tails with different names? If so, there may not be danger inside. Please be careful."

He nodded: "Don't worry, I will be careful. I will start from the first palace."

After saying that, he entered the cave on the north side, and disappeared with the corner of his clothes waving.

I stood there alone, feeling that there were holes everywhere, and no matter which direction I stood, there was nothing behind me, full of loopholes. I could only walk and stop on the spot.

After a while, I heard no movement, and couldn't help calling out, "Sir? You may have heard it? Is there no danger?"

His voice came from afar, saying, "It's okay, I'm safe. Wait a moment, I'll be back soon."

I felt a little more at peace, and no longer felt the chill on my back, so I waited obediently where I was.

Not long after, he walked out of the hole he came in from, turned around and said "Huh?", then strode towards me.

I hurriedly asked, "What's in the cave? Why are you so surprised?"

He replied, "I was just surprised that I came out of the original cave. The maze is winding and there is no danger. There is only a mural in the middle, which shows a nine-tailed fox blocking the sun with its tail. It says that this is the sacred place of the fox clan, and those who are not foxes cannot break through the barrier to come in. That's why the man was bounced out by the barrier just now. I guess these nine caves also correspond to the nine tails in the ancient books of my clan. Wait for me to try another one."

After saying that, he immediately went into the hole next to him.

I continued to wait there, but this time it took a little longer.

When he came out, I saw that he looked better, so I asked him hurriedly, "Sir, is this cave as you expected?"

He nodded and said, "Yes, there is a painting of a fox healing in this cave, and there is also a stone platform full of spiritual power next to it. I just used up some spiritual power, so I sat on it to recover. If I am right, except for the real exit, I am afraid that each of these cave entrances will have to go around and around and eventually return to this place. I am just not sure whether the three-tailed fox hunting or the five-tailed fox nesting is the exit. The other foxes are even less useful and are less likely to be exits."

I thought about it and said, "Sir, hunting means leaving the nest, so we chose the word 'out'. Building a nest means returning to the nest, which also coincides with the hidden meaning of this place. Both of these make sense, but I can't figure out which one is right, so I guess I'll have to trouble you to find out again."

He replied: "Yes, I don't understand it either. I think they are evenly matched. So you wait for me. After this exploration, we will know the answer."

I looked him in the eye and said, "Sir, be careful."

He patted my shoulder and walked into the hole corresponding to the third tail.

This time it wasn't so smooth, because not long after he entered, I heard him fighting, the weapons hitting the thick copper wall, making a sound of golden swords. I hurriedly shouted, "Master, do you want me to help you?"

He didn't answer, probably because he couldn't get away, and the sound of fighting disappeared.

To make matters worse, I heard the big bronze door outside slowly open. My hair stood on end. I didn't know who was coming, whether it was an enemy or a friend.

Fortunately, Tu Shanjing seemed to still have some strength left. A thick fog gradually spread out from the cave entrance and then enveloped me.

Although the white fog enveloped me, it could also cover anyone who came in. So for me, although it provided shelter, it also added to my sense of fear.

I wanted to move closer to the two holes he had explored, because I knew that those two holes would not reveal any terrifying mechanisms just because I got close.

After taking a few steps, I felt a weight on my back and someone was approaching me.

I was so scared that I wanted to jump up, but the person behind me held me down and whispered, "Don't be afraid, it's me."