180 - Divine Mastering Dragon System

Chapter 850: The White Fox ... Why is it a temple fair? The bustling crowd emitted a mix of noises and scents, and the view was slightly different from usual. Xiang Shi Yan shook her head in confusion, instinctively using her paw to scratch at her nose. Both her paw pads and her black nose had a peculiar, soft, and moist texture, and Xiang Shi Yan could even catch a whiff of her own scent. It was the warm and familiar smell of an ordinary wild beast. The wild fox, wearing an expression of dignified pride, sat perched on the head of a Buddha statue, calmly raising a paw. However, despite the abundant spiritual energy flowing within her, she couldn’t harness it as easily as she expected. Xiang Shi Yan focused on her paw, which was touching the air. The spiritual energy wrapped around it was stable, yet the purification spell she imagined didn't manifest at all. Xiang Shi Yan had turned into a wild fox, visibly weak and unable to use her immortal powers. "Though very cute," a bothersome whisper murmured, noting the gray fox’s ear twitching on the screen, then shifting into a more serious tone, "Ahem, this must be an illusion. I advise the host to leave this place quickly; your situation is quite dangerous. Best to escape from He He as soon as possible." "Even so... where should I go?" Xiang Shi Yan rubbed her paw against the dirt on the Buddha statue’s golden body, and the man watching over the statue finally noticed the irreverent beast, shouting and waving his arms to chase her away. Understanding the situation, Xiang Shi Yan leapt down from the statue, stepping cautiously on the rain-soaked stone tiles, looking around attentively. Illusions are diverse and are indeed a forte of the fox clan, but Xiang Shi Yan, having grown up on Yu Cang Mountain, had hardly any opportunity to encounter them. Illusions focus on trapping the heart, leaving people stranded in an illusion by conjuring up what they desire or fear to disrupt their mind. As long as one remains steadfast, the escape path can be found. However, He He's methods were unlikely to be so simple. In the worst-case scenario, Xiang Shi Yan might have to shatter the entire illusion with her divine sense to break free. The street was bustling, filled with crowds, as vendors called out to each other. Some small dishes emitted incredibly enticing aromas, causing Xiang Shi Yan’s stomach to growl involuntarily. She hurried on her way. Her ears, standing tall, picked up the surrounding jubilant laughter and chatter, and she could even feel the vibrant and warm atmosphere floating in the air. It was indeed a scene she had never witnessed in her life. The distant city walls had familiar outlines. Xiang Shi Yan attempted to run in that direction but found an invisible wall blocking her path. This world consisted only of a circular street surrounding a round lake, with people moving incessantly in loops. The fox pawed at the indistinct wall before her, lost in thought as she gazed at the cityscape that seemed somewhat familiar. When she was young, Xiang Shi Yan lived with her mother in a manor on the outskirts of the capital; it wasn't isolated, as it stood slightly elevated against the mountain. Her room was in the attic, and she had a window offering a panoramic view of the distant and colorful lights. In her childhood, the capital was peaceful and rarely plagued by natural disasters. The citizens were prosperous, and such festivals would be hosted during holidays. They could last for three to five days, with people inviting deities from the mountain temples. At night, a long procession of lantern bearers would carry a deity sedan chair winding its way from the distant mountains to the brightly lit city center. Sometimes, children would go together, but more often, they were taken by their parents. During such times, the lonely Miss Xiang would start watching from the window at dusk, observing them disappear into the distance, followed by the distant lights growing dim. Xiang Shi Yan recalled that during one Mid-Autumn Festival, the main family in the capital sent for her and her mother to join them in the large house for the holiday. However, her mother drank herself into oblivion, leaving only Xiang Shi Yan to go alone. The carriage passed by the lights near the City God Temple, and she stole a glimpse outside the curtain. That encapsulated all of her impression of the temple fair. After the family banquet ended that night, a few cousins came by to bully the little stammerer, calling her a fatherless and motherless wild child. Young Xiang Shi Yan could only hide in the rock garden to secretly wipe away her tears, leaving the servants scrambling to find her. She vaguely remembered crying pitifully and being spotted by a clan cousin a few years younger than her, who then gave her a sugar painting of a flying dragon. To be honest, Xiang Shi Yan felt she had been privileged with fine clothes and food since childhood, far better off than her senior sister Yu Ming, who had faced hardship from a young age. Now, looking back, she felt there was nothing much to be dissatisfied about; it was just a youthful, insignificant longing. Even as she traveled the world, Xiang Shi Yan never had the leisure to join in such festivities. How could this illusion possibly trap her? Like a small dog-sized fox darting chaotically through the bustling crowd, Xiang Shi Yan became increasingly adept in this form. She dashed like a gray-white shadow, slipping past one person after another, leaving plum blossom-shaped muddy prints on their shoes. The temple fair was overly crowded, and in her struggle to escape the throng, she leaped onto the lakeside, shaking off the water. The fox's fur puffed up. A wild fox running around was quite eye-catching, and as Xiang Shi Yan squatted there briefly, foreign children who were setting floating lanterns along the river came over to pet her. “It does seem a bit familiar...” The little fox stretched her neck to dodge the hands of two identical girls trying to scratch her, but she was caught by the ear and subjected to some rough handling. Adjacent to the street, the bamboo grove was planted by her hand; identical twin girls were everywhere in the crowd. The lake encircled by the long street also looked strikingly familiar. It was only when floating lotus leaves were illuminated by drifting lanterns that Xiang Shi Yan realized how similar it was to the place where she had once rescued Hua Ye. “System, I can’t deduce the exit of this illusion array; do you have any method?” The gray fox, wary of getting entangled with roadside children, dashed lightly along the lakeside. “Grrrrr...” Her stomach let out another ungraceful growl, to which Xiang Shi Yan had no answer. She searched for a long time, unable to calculate the exit or ascertain the position of the array's core, leaving her somewhat at a loss as she wandered aimlessly. “Please hold, Host, analyzing the information stream...” So hungry...these mortal delicacies have never seemed so enticing. Xiang Shi Yan instinctively squatted by a stall, neither too close nor too far, gazing at the wisps of white steam rising from the steamer in a trance. This superficial bustle couldn’t possibly be her obsession; there must be something more she hadn’t realized. Suddenly, footsteps echoed behind her, causing Xiang Shi Yan to pause. She was sitting near the transparent barrier, with an empty little bridge behind her. This was the passage connecting the capital's streets, where most visitors to the temple fair came from, yet this bustling crowd was already within the circular street and ignored the bridge completely. It felt isolated from the busy street, even somewhat quiet. Earlier, Xiang Shi Yan had watched for a long time without seeing anyone cross the bridge. How... It was during this moment of hesitation that a hand cautiously landed on her. Xiang Shi Yan’s fur bristled as she sprang up, turning to face the stranger with a low, threatening growl. The noble-dressed girl was also startled, retracting her hand nervously. Her dark, bright eyes widened as she softly comforted, “Shh—shh—calm down, little fox, it’s okay…” Xiang Shi Yan's ears instinctively drooped, confused and at a loss. She took two steps back, looking at this familiar yet unfamiliar person. The girl’s face carried traces of resemblance to Xiang Shi Yan, but her snow-white, delicate skin was entirely different from the dull, sallow woman in Xiang Shi Yan’s memory. The little fox stared intently at those lively black pupils, the vibrant aura radiating from within. “Don’t be afraid; I won’t hurt you.” The girl crouched down, reaching out to the little fox with airplane ears, “Good child, come to me…” Words Xiang Shi Yan had only heard in her dreams as a child were now casually uttered to a ragged wild fox by Xiang Huai Lei, transforming into a completely different person from the woman who once sat silently drinking in the courtyard. Xiang Shi Yan felt somewhat afraid. The gray fox arched her back, slowly retreating with each step, as if the young girl calling to her was some monstrous threat. Why... is this woman appearing in my illusion? And with this face... Xiang Shi Yan had never seen her mother’s youthful appearance. In her memory, that woman seemed born with a world-weary, cold demeanor, devoid of love or desire, ruining herself year after year, ultimately drinking herself to death at just over thirty. Clearly, the girl before her wasn’t real, merely a puppet manifesting from her illusions. With a gentle expression, the girl looked helplessly at the retreating little fox, standing up and gradually stepping back. She watched as the gray fox flicked its tail and darted into the bamboo grove. Noticing the little fox hadn’t gone far, its black eyes glaring from the ground. Xiang Huai Lei hesitated to leave, watching her own hands that had touched the fox, as if recalling something, reluctantly taking a few steps back into the crowd. As night fully descended, Xiang Shi Yan looked up at the clear, full moon, bounding after her. If the endless cycle of the temple fair was merely a maze with hidden exits, it certainly wouldn’t be that straightforward. She glanced up at the sky, vaguely estimating the time. When Xiang Shi Yan first woke, there was still some daylight, but now it was entirely night. She wondered if this was why the crowd seemed denser than before, though their origin was a mystery. The fox cautiously walked along the fringes of the street vendors, in the slightly more open spaces at people's feet, as she tried to pick up the scent of the girl amidst the myriad of smells in the air. Unlike Xiang Shi Yan, Xiang Huai Lei couldn’t dart around people’s feet. She hadn’t walked far when Xiang Shi Yan caught up with her, while the simple-minded girl, glancing left and right, remained completely oblivious. Xiang Shi Yan felt a twinge of emotion. At over three hundred years old, the female cultivator still remembered how her emotions spiraled out of control more than ever before the woman’s death. One winter, while bedridden, she kicked over the brazier, spilling hot coals onto the doctor who had come to treat her. Her intimidated daughter didn’t dare defy her mother’s hoarse yelling, resigning herself to secretly stealing a wine bottle for her. The dying woman had completely lost her composure, smashing the empty bottle over her timid daughter’s head in a drunken outburst. The fox instinctively stretched out her short paw, clumsily touching her own forehead. The scar had disappeared soon after Xiang Shi Yan embarked on her immortal path. She only felt her ears, instinctively pressed flat, with even the fuzz on her scalp bristling. The unfamiliar animal body reacted on its own. Maybe there was some inexplicable resentment in her childhood, but now Xiang Shi Yan couldn’t continue to hate her. What kind of miraculous secret technique could allow someone whose heart had been literally carved out to linger on for so many years? Yet, all of Xiang Huai Lei’s emotions had long since vanished from that thoroughly battered body and soul. Ordinary people’s lives might extend another three to five years under such circumstances, barely resembling a living person. Xiang Shi Yan dared not assert that the woman stubbornly clung to life for her sake, but at least Xiang Huai Lei had offered her a home for thirteen years. The young girl wandering around gradually slowed her pace, while the little fox hid behind the sugar candy vendor’s stall, cautiously poking half her head out, observing as Xiang Huai Lei, intrigued, paused to inspect a stall. At the mask vendor’s stall, a scholar dressed in white took a white fox mask from the stunned vendor's hands. When he turned his head slightly to look at the girl, his beautiful almond-shaped eyes gleamed from beneath the mask, hinting at laughter. The girl started, replying a bit shyly, and the two engaged in a cheerful conversation. The girl chattered away, while the man watched her with focused and affectionate eyes. However, Xiang Shi Yan inexplicably felt his gaze flick briefly to her. Eyes identical to her own flashed with a touch of coldness. Xiang Shi Yan saw his hand move subtly. This animal body couldn’t react as swiftly as her thoughts, leaving Xiang Shi Yan to witness a marble-sized steel ball embed itself into her brow. Author's Note: Feeling a bit under the weather these days, so apologies everyone QAQ. Thank you to all the little angels who cast overlord votes or donated nutrient packs between 2022-10-12 13:31:35 and 2022-10-15 35:35:55~ Special thanks to the little angels who threw landmines: Author Added Yet 4 times; Thanks to the little angels who donated nutrient packs: Crane's Group Admin 5 packs; Author Added Yet 4 packs; Thank you all for your support; I'll keep working hard! No pop-up ads on this site, permanent domain (xbanxia.com)