Chapter 19 The Little Fox Fairy

Ji Xiang went out of Xizhimen and Xibianmen, from the inner city to the outer city, his steps flying.

Outside the outer city, one could see a range of mountains not far away. This was Jade Spring Mountain, where people often drew water and sent it from the two gates of the west city to Shuntian Prefecture.

There were two temples built in the mountain by Emperor Yingzong of the Ming Dynasty, and Jade Spring Mountain was also a summer resort for the emperor... Of course, since Emperor Jiajing, no emperor had been there for fifty or sixty years.

The mountains and forests were lush and quiet. It was said that the scenery of flying rainbows often appeared in the mountains, full of spirituality.

Ji Xiang went straight into the deep mountains and old forests of Jade Spring Mountain.

There was also an interesting legend about Jade Spring Mountain. It was said that during the time of Emperor Yingzong of the Ming Dynasty, an old white fox lived under the mountain. Later, when Emperor Yingzong traveled and entered Jade Spring Mountain, he had to pass by the old fox's cave. The old fox did not dare to collide with the holy驾 (jià, imperial carriage), so he ran to Mount Tai overnight, and then became a fox immortal under the command of Bixia Yuanjun.

There were many animals in the deep mountains, full of spirituality. When they saw Ji Xiang appear, they would observe secretly instead of running away directly, but there were no monsters or anything like that. It seemed not so easy to find a monster who could speak human language.

So, he used the simplest method!

"Please, Jade Spring Mountain Land God, come and see me quickly!"

With a stomp of his foot, a pillar of clear smoke shot into the ground, and the surrounding ground shook. After only five or six breaths, another wisp of white smoke emerged from the earth, circled twice, and turned into a small old man. When he saw Ji Xiang, although he didn't know the other party's origin, he felt the strong national威 (wēi, power) emanating from him, and immediately bowed down. Anyway, there was no harm in bowing.

Wouldn't it be rude to hit someone with a smiling face?

Of course, the Land God was also horrified. He was closing his eyes and resting in the Land Temple when he was suddenly summoned by a wisp of clear smoke. The power was so great that it was shocking, and he couldn't resist at all!

This was different from the call of a spell. The call of a spell was like knocking on a door or making a phone call, and the Land God could choose not to answer, but the power Ji Xiang used made the Land God tremble in his heart, secretly thinking, could this be the great divine power of "拘神" (jū shén, arresting spirits)!

"Are you a Land God引 (yǐn, guiding) from heaven, or did you become a god from a local mountain spirit?"

Ji Xiang asked casually, and the Land God respectfully replied, "This little god was originally an insect spirit in the mountain, named Jia Qu. In the past, Jade Spring Mountain had other Land Gods, but they died in the great chaos at the end of the Yuan Dynasty. This little god was enlightened by Celestial Master Zhang during the reign of Emperor Yingzong and became the Land God of Jade Spring Mountain."

Ji Xiang was a little surprised. Divine insects like Jia Qu only appeared in trees over a thousand years old.

But since the other party was a local spirit, Ji Xiang was satisfied:

"Do you know if there are any fox spirits or rooster spirits in Jade Spring Mountain who are good at the art of transformation?"

The Land God smiled shyly and responded, "Outside of Shuntian, in Jade Spring Mountain, where are there so many妖精 (yāojīng, goblins)? If the holy one wants to find a fox spirit, there isn't one, but there is a fox仙 (xiān, immortal) cultivating in the mountain."

"That's good, take me to find it!"

Ji Xiang found his target, his eyes flashing with joy, feeling that he could save time. But the Land God stopped him:

"This, is the holy one going to kill it? That's not allowed... That fox claims to be a small immortal from the Longhu Mountain Celestial Masters' Hall, cultivating here. It won't be long before it goes to Mount Tai to take the exam and become a Sun and Moon Palace Divine General. It's on the Longhu Mountain Immortal Register..."

Ji Xiang laughed, "I'm not going to kill it, I'm just asking it for a favor. Do I look like someone who kills people at the drop of a hat?"

Ji Xiang persuaded him kindly. The Land God saw that Ji Xiang didn't really look like an evil person, and he also had a Wudang Mountain palace牌 (pái, badge), and he was also afraid of Ji Xiang's power, so he led Ji Xiang to cast an earth escape spell, and in a puff of smoke, they arrived at a deep mountain spring pool.

Ji Xiang thought that the Land God's earth escape spell was good. It could turn his body into light smoke in an instant and transfer him between two places. It was a pity that he didn't know遁术 (dùn shù, the art of遁 (dùn, escape)) now.

So he asked the Land God for the secret of this special遁术 (dùn shù, art of escape). The Land God said that even if Ji Xiang learned it, he wouldn't be able to master it, because it was a unique skill of the Earth God.

But Ji Xiang had his own诀窍 (juéqiào, knack). With the Cloud Talisman Heavenly Book in hand, he only needed to know the earth escape spell, and then write it with incense and fire. A small earth escape would come easily.

When the escape technique was cultivated to the highest level, it could reach the powerful level of "touching shadows and disappearing". During the Hongwu period, there was a Taoist priest named Leng Qian who could perform water escape with just a drop of water; holding a handful of soil in his hand, he could immediately move to a very distant place. People like this could not be caught at all.

"Earth Walking Technique, thank you for your guidance."

Ji Xiang obtained the spell of the Earth Walking Technique, thinking that it would save him time "running away".

The pool in front of him was not big. Not far away was a cave. The Land God told Ji Xiang that the fox immortal was inside, and then bid farewell to Ji Xiang, turning into white smoke and disappearing into the ground.

Ji Xiang looked ahead and suddenly found various small符纸 (fúzhǐ, talisman papers) pasted on the surrounding rocks. Ji Xiang reached out, and the talisman paper on the tree glowed with a faint golden light, rejecting Ji Xiang's touch.

"Golden Light Charm! Is it really a fox from Longhu Mountain?"

There was a Fox Immortal Hall on Longhu Mountain, where the foxes were all psychic divine foxes. This Fox Immortal Hall was like a key high school before taking the college entrance examination. After completing their studies, the little fox immortals would go to Mount Tai to take the official fox immortal exam. If they passed, they could become officials in the Heavenly Court.

Therefore, foxes were special existences among妖仙 (yāoxiān, demon immortals). The ancients said that the灵 (líng, spirit) of foxes was between humans, gods, and ghosts.

But although these charms were densely pasted, most of them were not powerful enough. They were defective products among defective products. Ji Xiang just reached out, operated his mana, and shattered a Golden Light Charm with a flick of his finger.

Only then did Ji Xiang realize that the other party's Golden Light Charms were not drawn so standardly. Some places were crooked, so the power was very weak.

In a few strokes, he removed the talisman papers here, and Ji Xiang walked straight forward with a large handful of waste符 (fú, talismans) in his hand.

He heard a crisp, child-like voice coming from the fox cave by the pool: "天地玄宗，万炁本根 (Tiāndì xuánzōng, wàn qì běn gēn! The mysteries of heaven and earth, the myriad energies originate from the source)! This is the best Golden Light Charm I've ever drawn!"

"Huh?!"

A gust of fragrant wind swept out, and a little red fox窜 (cuàn, darted) out, holding a glittering Golden Light Charm in its hand, looking at Ji Xiang warily:

"Stop, who are you, how can you break my array!"

Ji Xiang looked at the pile of Waste Paper Bridge in his hand.

Array?

The little fox's voice was crisp, and it grinned. Then, seeing Ji Xiang holding a large pile of符纸 (fúzhǐ, talisman papers) that it had drawn, it panicked.

"Ah! My Golden Light Charms, you, you, you compensate me... for the talismans!"

"You, you, don't come over, I studied at Longhu Mountain, see this newest Golden Light Charm in my hand? Even three or five wild boars can't get close to me!"

"I don't want to hurt anyone, don't force me!"

The little fox's eyes widened. Ji Xiang took two more steps forward, and the little fox warned him with more符纸 (fúzhǐ, talisman papers), raising its claws and loudly offering a talisman:

"天地玄宗，万炁本根 (Tiāndì xuánzōng, wàn qì běn gēn! The mysteries of heaven and earth, the myriad energies originate from the source)! Go!"

The Golden Light Charm flew out!

Ji Xiang grabbed it with a slap and crumpled it into Waste Paper Bridge.

The little fox was stunned on the spot.

Ji Xiang walked quickly towards the little fox.

The little fox's voice changed from high-pitched to murmuring in an instant. It was so scared that it kept whimpering. Seeing that Ji Xiang didn't stop, it waved its claws repeatedly and趴 (pā, lay prone) on the ground:

"No, no, no, you don't have to pay for the talismans! Big brother, don't mess around, let's talk nicely."

Ji Xiang looked at the little red fox: "Are you really a fox from the Longhu Mountain Fox Immortal Hall?"

The little fox confessed seriously: "I used to be... I used to be a student at the Fox Immortal Hall."

"But because I couldn't learn how to draw Golden Light Charms after three years of study, I was asked to withdraw from school on the grounds of 'academic failure'."

Ji Xiang nodded: "I see, so you can use the art of transformation?"

The little fox拜 (bài, folded) its claws: "A little bit."

Ji Xiang said: "Okay, time is tight, Fox Immortal, I need you to help me cultivate!"