Chapter 106: Turned Into a Little Fox

Chapter 106: Turned Into a Little Fox

He should've seen this coming.

If Shen Lian truly despised him, he could've easily used one of his weird pills against him.

But Shen Lian didn't.

Yan Huaixuan said softly, "Shen Lian..."

The next moment, Shen Lian shoved a pill into his mouth.

Yan Huaixuan furrowed his brow but chewed and swallowed it anyway, then asked, "What is this?"

Shen Lian just chuckled at him.

Yan Huaixuan felt his perspective sinking lower and lower.

Until Shen Lian was looking down at him.

Yan Huaixuan paused, then turned to look in the mirror, only to find he'd been turned into a little snow-white fox.

Yan Huaixuan raised his hand, and the fox in the mirror raised its paw too.

But since Yan Huaixuan wasn't yet used to his new form, the paw-raising move looked pretty ridiculous.

Yan Huaixuan was about to make a hand seal with two fingers when he heard Shen Lian snicker from above.

Yan Huaixuan froze and looked up at Shen Lian's face, but because he was now so short, he had to crane his neck just to see him.

Even so, he caught the smile tugging at the corner of the young man's lips.

Yan Huaixuan found himself stunned—it had been ages since he'd seen Shen Lian smile like that.

Shen Lian noticed his gaze and immediately pressed his lips together, saying coldly, "Don't get any ideas. There's nothing between us. You're staying like this tonight. Tomorrow, I'll decide whether to give you the antidote, depending on my mood."

Yan Huaixuan paused, then lowered his hand, dropping the seal.

It didn't take him long to get used to his new body, and he hopped onto the table.

Yan Huaixuan looked at Shen Lian. "What if you're still mad tomorrow?"

Shen Lian hadn't expected Yan Huaixuan to still move with such steady, noble grace even as a fox—still looking like a protagonist at first glance.

Moreover, even as a fox, he was clearly distinguishable from others—a fox's fox.

Shen Lian thought flatly, *So this is what a dragon-conquering protagonist looks like?*

"Ah Lian?"

Shen Lian snapped out of it and saw the little fox tilting its head slightly to look at him.

Shen Lian paused.

Honestly, he looked way better as a fox than before.

He lifted his chin. "We'll deal with tomorrow when it comes."

Yan Huaixuan reached out a paw and hooked it onto Shen Lian's robe, lifting his head, his big, clear round eyes looking dead serious.

"Ah Lian, you better keep your word."

The little fox's fur was all puffed up and looked super soft, with big round eyes that were cute and innocent.

Shen Lian froze, totally caught off guard.

Before he knew it, his hand was already petting the little fox's head. The moment he felt that warm, fuzzy feeling in his palm, Shen Lian realized what he was doing and yanked his hand back. "I didn't promise you anything."

With that, Shen Lian sat down to meditate right away.

Yan Huaixuan, though, was deep in thought, replaying how Shen Lian had just rubbed his head.

*Ah Lian... likes little foxes?*

When Shen Lian came out of his meditation, he felt something warm pressed against his legs. He opened his eyes and looked down to see a fluffy ball curled up in his lap.

Shen Lian blinked, then realized who it was.

"Yan Huaixuan, who said you could get near me?"

A hint of irritation crossed Shen Lian's brow as he grabbed Yan Huaixuan.

But the little fox just leaned in, wrapping its paws around Shen Lian's hand. "I thought Ah Lian liked that."

Then the little fox pressed its head against Shen Lian's cheek on its own.

By the time Shen Lian reacted, that fuzzy feeling had already brushed across his cheek.

He couldn't help it—his hand went right back to rubbing the little fox's head.

Even though he knew this was Yan Huaixuan, seeing a little fox adorably nuzzle him and wrap its tail around his arm—Shen Lian just couldn't connect it to Yan Huaixuan.

He forced himself to look away and shoved Yan Huaixuan off. "Yan Huaixuan, no antidote for you today."

Yan Huaixuan paused, hooking his paw onto Shen Lian's sleeve. "Ah Lian..."

Seeing the little fox's head droop, Shen Lian finally felt a bit satisfied.

That's what he gets for daring to climb into his bed just because he'd turned into a fox.

With nothing else to do, they were holed up here, and for now, they didn't have to worry about being found.

Before leaving, Shen Lian had left He Ci a message, telling him not to come looking and that he was fine.

Every day, He Ci left a message on the jade token, letting Shen Lian know everything in Floating Cloud City was fine.

When people asked about Shen Lian, He Ci would say he'd gone off to find herbs for pill refining.

Shen Lian would only reply with a single line.

"All is well."

And then He Ci would go quiet.

But Shen Lian knew he couldn't tell how much longer his friendship with He Ci would hold out this time.

After thinking it over, Shen Lian decided to help Yan Huaixuan deal with his inner demon first.

But after flipping through all the books, he could only reach one conclusion.

Once an inner demon takes root, it grows stronger with its host's power, until it eventually fully seizes control of the body.

A grave look flickered across Shen Lian's face.

Just then, a fluffy little paw plopped down onto the page of his book.

The little paw even splayed its toes, puffing out like a flower.

Shen Lian: Squeeze, squeeze, squeeze.

Wait—Shen Lian looked up and glared at Yan Huaixuan. "Didn't I tell you to stay out of here?"

The little fox tilted his head at him again. "Don't worry about the inner demon. I can keep it in check."

Shen Lian scoffed. "But you can't guarantee you can keep it suppressed forever."

He'd finally figured out how Yan Huaixuan suppressed the inner demon—a simple, crude method: using half his spiritual power to hold it down.

This sealed off a huge chunk of Yan Huaixuan's power, and if he were forced to use it, the inner demon could break through the other half's restraints and take over his body.

Exactly what had happened to him before.

This made Yan Huaixuan's power super unstable.

Yan Huaixuan tried to say more, but Shen Lian shoved him away. "Quit bothering me."

Watching Shen Lian keep flipping through the books for a solution to the inner demon, Yan Huaixuan couldn't help but curl his lips a little. He didn't say anything else, just quietly lay nearby, watching Shen Lian.

Until Shen Lian had gone through half the ancient books without finding any real solution.

Seeing Shen Lian's eyes getting tired, Yan Huaixuan closed the book for him. "Get some rest."

Shen Lian shot him a look.

Yan Huaixuan immediately hopped into his arms.

Shen Lian froze. "Who said you could come over?"

Yan Huaixuan looked up. "I figured you wanted to pet me."

He nudged his head under Shen Lian's hand.

Shen Lian...

Shen Lian, weak-willed as ever, rubbed him again.

A hint of amusement flickered in Yan Huaixuan's eyes. It seemed... he'd found Shen Lian's weak spot?

But little did he know, the next day Yan Huaixuan wouldn't be smiling anymore.

When Shen Lian came back that morning, he had a fluffy little puppy cradled in his arms.

Yan Huaixuan's smile froze on his face.

Shen Lian raised an eyebrow. This puppy was way clingier than Yan Huaixuan—squirming and rolling around in his arms, even licking his hand.

Compared to this dog, Yan Huaixuan was nothing.