Volume 2, Chapter 140 – Be Careful of Girlfriends Who Shed Fur

Song Shiyuan didn’t understand why she had to endure all of this.

Before joining Lingxiao Sword Sect, she was just an ordinary young lady from a prestigious family.

With many siblings in the family, Song Shiyuan’s legitimate mother died early. She wasn’t particularly favored at home, but because she had a decent relationship with her legitimate elder brother Song Shixuan and followed him around like a little tail when she was young, acting as his sidekick, Song Shiyuan hadn’t suffered too much mistreatment in the Song family.

Since childhood, Song Shiyuan seemed out of place compared to others in the Song family. Her relationships with her many siblings were all rather cold.

Like a transparent person, only relatively close to her elder brother Song Shixuan.

She grew up ordinary and unremarkable.

If not for later displaying cultivation talent no weaker than her brother Song Shixuan, she might have, like most prestigious family daughters, found an ordinary young master from a prestigious family to marry.

Just like Huang Xifeng once was. But Huang Xifeng eventually broke free, no longer confined by the walls of the prestigious family.

Song Shiyuan didn’t have that kind of courage, nor that kind of pressure.

She was just a slightly prettier, more innocent, ordinary girl. Then she joined Lingxiao Sword Sect without incident, becoming a sect member.

Steadily cultivating and leveling up, plainly training alongside her sect brothers.

She had never provoked anyone, nor wanted to make enemies with anyone.

Song Shiyuan never felt there was anything special about her.

Ordinary and unremarkable as she was, she had nothing on her worth anyone’s schemes.

In terms of looks alone, she had seen many women more beautiful than her.

Yet it was this plain and ordinary her who was inexplicably abducted during a training expedition.

Now, Song Shiyuan carefully recalled. Fox clan experts raiding across a thousand miles just to capture her to be a female consort?

This matter was full of conspiracy from the very beginning.

Before this, Song Shiyuan had never encountered fox demons. But Fox Palace Steward Hu Xian’er had targeted her specifically.

Song Shiyuan didn’t understand why she in particular was chosen to become a piece in this game.

“Hehe…”

She didn’t understand. She truly didn’t understand.

Everything she experienced in Fox Palace seemed to be lies.

Those within the game could only see a fog.

She was like a puppet, arbitrarily manipulated by invisible strings.

Song Shiyuan’s body trembled lightly.

She rubbed her palm.

After being dazed for a moment, her fists suddenly clenched tightly.

“Master… what do you think about this matter?”

Song Shiyuan’s voice was hoarse.

“The little fox demon, was she really as Sect Master Liu said?”

Qu Qingtang’s tone paused slightly. “Shiyuan, I haven’t seen her, so I can’t make rash conclusions.”

“Even if she truly felt reluctant, she couldn’t disobey Hu Xian’er’s orders, right?”

Song Shiyuan bit her teeth. “So Master’s meaning is that this Hu Xian’er… is the mastermind behind everything I’ve encountered?”

“Sigh…” Qu Qingtang let out a sigh. “Hu Xian’er is Fox Palace Steward. She has ambition and means. She not only manages all matters big and small in Fox Palace, even the fox clan army at the front is under her command.”

“So… Master didn’t tell the Fox Monarch about what she did?” Song Shiyuan said, “Hu Xian’er used the name of the Fox Monarch’s adopted daughter to marry off ‘Ming Zhaoxi.’ That Fox Monarch truly knew nothing at all?”

“Shiyuan…” Qu Qingtang became serious. “Zhuxin hasn’t managed Fox Palace affairs for a thousand years. She’s not skilled in such matters.”

“Hu Xian’er is Zhuxin’s right hand, and Hu Xian’er’s actions were originally for Zhuxin’s sake. Even if this matter were told to Zhuxin… it would have no meaning.”

“Moreover, I’m originally from the sword sect. I stay here only for Zhuxin. I shouldn’t arbitrarily interfere in Fox Palace affairs.”

“I understand…” Song Shiyuan suppressed her voice. “Everything is because of Hu Xian’er…”

Song Shiyuan recalled when she first met Hu Xian’er.

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At that time, Hu Xian’er had already begun laying traps for Song Shiyuan.

It was Hu Xian’er who captured Song Shiyuan, and it was Hu Xian’er who made Song Shiyuan become the Fox Monarch’s female consort.

And likewise, it was Hu Xian’er who sent the little fox demon to Song Shiyuan’s side.

Song Shiyuan said in a low voice, “If not for Hu Xian’er, I wouldn’t have been captured to Fox Palace. If not for Hu Xian’er, I wouldn’t have met that little deceiver…”

Song Shiyuan clenched one hand into a fist, gripping it tightly.

She seemed to be grasping something that caused her unbearable heartache, pressing the fist forcefully against her chest.

She was trembling.

She gritted her teeth, trembling with fury.

“Everything… is because of Hu Xian’er.”

“She’s the mastermind…”

“It’s her… who forced that little deceiver onto a path of no return.”

“Master, am I right?”

Qu Qingtang lowered her eyes. She sighed, “I know you harbor resentment.”

The Song Shiyuan before her had reddened eyes, clenched fists.

Her anger and unwillingness were completely written on her pretty face.

This was precisely the effect Qu Qingtang wanted.

“But Hu Xian’er is currently among the fox clan military, commanding heavy troops.”

“You can’t get close to her.”

“I know.” Song Shiyuan said, “With my status and strength, I don’t even have the qualifications to stand before her and question her.”

“But… I still want an answer…”

“Why me specifically? Why use this method?”

Song Shiyuan covered her chest.

“It truly…”

“It hurts so much.”

Qu Qingtang looked at her, silent for a while.

She felt the timing was ripe.

“Shiyuan, I cannot come forward to help you deal with Hu Xian’er.”

“But I have a way to let you avoid the fox clan experts’ detection.”

“To let you successfully infiltrate the fox clan army and find Hu Xian’er.”

Song Shiyuan raised her head slightly, staring blankly at Qu Qingtang.

Qu Qingtang took out two talismans from her storage space.

“This is an aura concealment talisman I made myself. It’s enough to let you avoid detection by experts below the Eighth Realm.”

“This is a sword qi talisman made by Jiang Hongliang. It contains a wisp of Jiang Hongliang’s sword qi and can release one Eighth Realm sword qi attack.”

Qu Qingtang placed the two talismans in Song Shiyuan’s hands.

“Master…” Song Shiyuan held the two talismans, unable to speak. “If you help me like this and the Fox Monarch finds out…”

“She won’t know.” Qu Qingtang said, “There’s only this one sword qi talisman. If you don’t see Hu Xian’er, don’t use it no matter what.”

“However, you’re already a Fifth Realm cultivator. Dealing with a six-tailed white fox who isn’t skilled in combat isn’t difficult.”

Lingxiao sword cultivators naturally countered fox demons.

Fox demons had the weakest combat power at the same realm.

For Song Shiyuan at the Fifth Realm, killing a six-tailed white fox was a very simple matter.

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“Thank you… Master.” Song Shiyuan said.

“That’s good then.” Qu Qingtang said, “Zhuxin is still waiting for me. I won’t stay here too long.”

“Because of last night’s events, she’s already expressed her displeasure to me, wanting me to send you away soon…”

Qu Qingtang paused. “You… decide for yourself.”

Song Shiyuan nodded. “I understand, Master.”

“My affairs won’t implicate Master.”

Qu Qingtang was very satisfied with Song Shiyuan’s response.

Such an obedient disciple.

She was preparing to leave when Song Shiyuan called out to her.

“Master, I have one last question.”

Song Shiyuan lowered her head slightly, her cheeks seemingly shrouded in shadow.

“Where did Master obtain that portrait of ‘Ming Zhaoxi’ from before?”

Qu Qingtang knew she was asking about Lu Zhuxin’s portrait.

“That portrait…” Qu Qingtang said, “Hu Xian’er has many similar portraits. They should be portraits left behind when she was selecting candidates.”

“I understand…” Song Shiyuan murmured in a low voice. “Master, I’ll leave Fox Palace tonight.”

“Mm, I wish you success.”

Song Shiyuan kept her head lowered. Her tightly clenched fists never once relaxed.

Qu Qingtang left the courtyard.

She let out a slight breath.

“The plan is progressing smoothly.”

“If Song Shiyuan can succeed, then she can simultaneously solve two troublesome individuals for me…”

‘Two?’

“Of course.” Qu Qingtang laughed lightly. “I didn’t give her those talismans for nothing.”

“As soon as she finds Hu Xian’er, that talisman will…”

“Snap!!”

Qu Qingtang snapped her fingers.

“Make them perish together.”

Bodies obliterated, no evidence would remain.

‘Host, aren’t you afraid of being suspected by the mission target?’

“I think…”

“No.”

Qu Qingtang said.

“The one who killed them was Jiang Hongliang’s sword qi.”

“After Jiang Hongliang left Fox Palace, he disappeared searching for Song Shixuan’s whereabouts.”

“This was something Jiang Hongliang did.”

“What does it have to do with me?”

Qu Qingtang laughed lightly.

“After all… I’m just an Immortal Venerable who cannot casually kill.”

Whether Song Shiyuan or Hu Xian’er, both were major enemies obstructing Qu Qingtang’s goal.

Song Shiyuan needn’t be mentioned.

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As for Hu Xian’er, she had long seen through Qu Qingtang’s ill intentions. As the fox clan’s actual power holder, how could she allow such a dangerous person to remain carefree by the Fox Monarch’s side?

Previously, Hu Xian’er had already brought people to stop Qu Qingtang once.

Naturally, Qu Qingtang couldn’t forget.

That white fox was very clever.

Continuing to keep her around wasn’t a good thing.

And now, Qu Qingtang had found this method to deal with those two major threats. Her mood inevitably improved.

“Now, the only problem is that Divine Lord.”

“Her feelings for me, exactly how far have they progressed?”

‘System notification: target’s affection level, no change.’

Here it was again.

Qu Qingtang said helplessly, “Is the affection level module upgrade complete?”

‘No.’

‘The system’s application for module upgrade requires time.’

“Then there’s no relatively accurate value as reference…”

Qu Qingtang rubbed her chin.

If going by the affection level value the system currently detected, Qu Qingtang’s efforts during this time were almost all futile.

But if going by the intelligence Ming Zhaoxi provided, Qu Qingtang’s pursuit of Lu Zhuxin was almost successful.

Qu Qingtang’s heart leaned toward the latter.

She felt that when Lu Zhuxin interacted with her, the budding affection and tender feelings she displayed didn’t seem fake.

If she truly had no feelings, how could she have done those things to Qu Qingtang that night?

That night, if Lu Zhuxin had refused, Qu Qingtang wouldn’t have touched her.

The system and Ming Zhaoxi gave two completely different conclusions.

“However… this is actually easy to verify.” Qu Qingtang’s fingertips lightly tapped her own neck.

She recalled the sensation when she touched Lu Zhuxin’s neck this morning.

That place was the fox demon’s Rain Dew acupoint.

“Her heat period is still continuing. If no intervention is made and only soothing is provided, it can’t quell the lustful restlessness of the heat period.”

“To completely calm a fox demon’s lustful restlessness during heat period, there’s only one method.”

‘You want to plant a Pure Yang mark on her?’

“A fox demon in heat period, after being planted with a Pure Yang mark by a sword cultivator, will slowly become extremely dependent on the marker.”

“This dependence and closeness doesn’t only come from the physical body, but will also slowly affect the fox demon’s consciousness.”

This was a subtle, gradual change.

“So… such intimate matters are only done between dao companions.”

As the divine being, Lu Zhuxin couldn’t possibly not know the rules she herself wrote.

“The only ones who can suppress an Eighth Realm fox demon’s heat period are Eighth Realm sword cultivators.”

“Huang Xifeng already has a dao companion and isn’t in her selection range.”

Qu Qingtang’s eyes narrowed slightly.

“If she’s willing to let me mark her, then it means Ming Zhaoxi was right.”

“If she’s unwilling to let me mark her, then it means…”

‘Then it means the system’s detection results weren’t wrong.’

Qu Qingtang raised her head, looking at the sunlight above.

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“The passion of heat period, relying solely on soothing and relief, only treats the symptoms, not the root.”

“Tonight’s passion may be even more unbearable than last night.”

…

Song Shiyuan still kept her head lowered.

Her fists were clenched tightly, her nails seemingly about to dig into her flesh.

Having experienced betrayal, having experienced deception, realizing everything might be a monstrous lie.

Naturally Song Shiyuan would feel anger and pain.

Even more…

“Everything was false?”

“What else is real?”

“Why… even you are deceiving me… Master…”

Song Shiyuan’s delicate body trembled lightly as she let out a cold laugh.

Both painful and angry.

However, more than that was self-mockery…

She slowly raised the hand she had been clenching tightly all along.

From the moment Qu Qingtang left, she hadn’t released it once.

She thought that after learning everything might be a deception, she would be furious beyond measure, wishing she could eliminate all those who deceived and schemed against her.

She thought she would feel heartache, thought she would mock herself for deeply believing that fox demon. Would feel sad that she never emerged from the maze of deception.

However… these weren’t it.

Pain and anger, these negative emotions, were at this moment completely overwhelmed by another emotion.

Song Shiyuan raised her hand toward the sunlight, slowly opening her palm.

That emotion was called joy.

She actually felt happy.

“Hehe…”

At this moment, the joy in her heart completely covered the anger of being deceived.

She was happy, she was delighted, she was trembling with excitement.

Sword cultivators held swords, hand and sword in communion.

A pair of jade hands, not only slender, tough, and with powerful finger strength.

The tactile sense in the palms was even more incredibly keen.

Earlier, when Song Shiyuan grabbed Qu Qingtang’s garments, she noticed something unusual.

At this moment, in Song Shiyuan’s palm, a small tuft of fox fur was reflecting cherry-pink colors under the sunlight’s illumination.

Cherry-pink foxes, even in the sword sect’s secret archives, had never been mentioned.

This tuft of fox fur came from an aberrant fox completely excluded from the fox clan’s various major tribes.

In Fox Palace, she was also unique.

Song Shiyuan looked at the small tuft of fox fur in her palm, weeping tears of joy.

She used one hand to grasp her slightly trembling wrist, as if cradling a priceless treasure.

“That’s wonderful…”

“So you truly didn’t die…”

“My little fox demon.”