Chapter 31

"Fox spirit?" Xu Mo's face was full of disbelief. He had imagined many possibilities, but never expected that the Lord of Qingqiu would actually be a fox spirit. He was skeptical and pressed, "How do you know he's a fox spirit? Did he tell you?"

"No, no, he... he..." Luo Shi waved her hands repeatedly, stammering for a long time, seemingly at a loss for words. After a while, she said, "He hasn't, his body is still..." She was so wary of the Lord of Qingqiu that she dared not say it directly.

But Xu Mo understood her meaning, "You mean his body is still a fox."

Luo Shi looked frightened and quickly stopped him, "Shh! Big Brother Xu, don't say that. If the Lord of Qingqiu knows you disrespected him, he might be angry and punish you. That would be troublesome."

Seeing her nervousness, Xu Mo became even more puzzled, his expression fluctuating. This was a real world; how could there be ghosts, foxes, or spirits? But seeing Luo Shi's serious and fearful expression, it seemed to be true.

He thought for a moment and asked, "Can he use magic?" He thought: If he can use magic, then he is really a fox spirit. If not, it's likely just a setup.

Luo Shi was taken aback, "I don't know."

Xu Mo was surprised, "How can you not know?"

Luo Shi said, "He might, but he hasn't used it on me."

If that was the case, it was really hard to judge. Xu Mo frowned, thought for a moment, and asked, "Did he tell you himself that he is a fox spirit?"

Luo Shi shook her head, "He didn't tell me, but I can tell. And the Lord of Qingqiu, he... he can't speak."

"That makes sense," Xu Mo said, as if he had a sudden realization. "This fox must have undergone special training, making it more human-like, so it was sent out to impersonate a fox spirit and trick you."

Luo Shi sighed, "Big Brother Xu, you haven't met the Lord of Qingqiu, so you have this idea. Do you think a trained fox can write?"

Xu Mo was surprised, "He writes to you?"

Luo Shi nodded, "From start to finish, he communicates with me by writing. At first, he tried to use sign language, but I couldn't understand it, so he switched to writing."

Xu Mo was shocked, "He knows sign language?"

Luo Shi didn't answer, continuing on her own, "I went to No. 13 Qiuxia Road, where an old servant welcomed me and led me into the courtyard. The courtyard was huge, filled with flowers and trees. Standing among them, I couldn't see what was deep inside the courtyard."

"The old servant took me in an electric cart through the flowers and trees. It took several minutes to reach a lake, where reeds grew everywhere, and from deep within the reeds, the sound of a flute could be heard."

"The old servant let me off and pointed to the lake, saying, 'The Lord of Qingqiu is waiting for you in the lake. Go over by yourself.' He left without waiting for my reaction. I was very curious but didn't dare to ask more. Looking around, I saw no boats, and the reeds blocked the view of where the Lord of Qingqiu was in the lake. I thought, 'How am I supposed to get there? Swim?'"

"I hesitated, but the flute music was cheerful and beautiful. I didn't know what song it was, but I assumed it was the Lord of Qingqiu playing. Not knowing what to do, suddenly the flute music grew closer, and the sound of water breaking came from deep within the reeds. The reeds swayed, clearly indicating a boat was approaching."

"I was delighted, thinking, 'It must be the Lord of Qingqiu, who knows I'm here and is coming to pick me up. He must have known I would reach the lake.'"

"Remembering what the old man in the bamboo forest said, I was curious about the Lord of Qingqiu's unusual appearance. I couldn't help but open my eyes wide, eager to see what he looked like as soon as possible."

"The flute music grew closer, and as the reeds by the lake began to sway, a small boat emerged. I only glanced at the boat and was stunned. The old man in the bamboo forest had told me the Lord of Qingqiu's appearance was unusual, but I never imagined it would be like this."

Luo Shi was in awe and dared not describe the Lord of Qingqiu's appearance or her thoughts when she saw him, but Xu Mo could guess from her expression.

Luo Shi continued, "The Lord of Qingqiu sat in the middle of the boat, looking at me and still playing the flute. I asked in a daze, 'Are you the Lord of Qingqiu?' It was a bit rude, but fortunately, the Lord of Qingqiu didn't mind. He nodded and gestured for me to come aboard."

"The shock in my heart didn't lessen, but I remembered what the old man in the bamboo forest had said, so I didn't lose my composure. I went aboard the boat, and the Lord of Qingqiu gestured for me to sit down. He steered the boat into the lake. Only then did I notice that in front of him was a small table, on which there was a teapot, two teacups, and a small stove with boiling water."

"I sat across from him at the table, and the Lord of Qingqiu picked up the teapot and poured me a cup of tea."

At this point, she turned to Xu Mo again, "Big Brother Xu, if you had seen the Lord of Qingqiu, you wouldn't think like that. Apart from his appearance and inability to speak, his manners, expressions, and even his eyes, all felt human. He can write, use sign language, make tea, steer a boat, and play beautiful music. If it's just training, what kind of training could turn a fox into this?"

Xu Mo was stumped and didn't know how to respond. Foxes have limited intelligence, and simple training couldn't achieve this. He thought: Could there really be fox spirits?

He then remembered the black eagle he saw in the North Mountain. That black eagle seemed to understand human speech, which simple training couldn't achieve. However, compared to the Lord of Qingqiu, the black eagle was far inferior, like comparing the sky to the earth.

If the black eagle's understanding could be achieved with special training, theoretically, it might be possible. But the Lord of Qingqiu was different. Think about it: writing, sign language, making tea, steering a boat, and playing the flute—this isn't a fox; it's a human.

If there were really spirits and ghosts, the Lord of Qingqiu could have cultivated into a fox spirit. But is it possible to cultivate into a fox spirit? Foxes have a lifespan of only ten to twenty years. How could they cultivate into a spirit in such a short time? What would they cultivate with?

This is a real world. Ginseng, Polygonum multiflorum, and lingzhi mushrooms are not as magical as legends say. Even if you ate ten-thousand-year-old ginseng, Polygonum multiflorum, and lingzhi mushrooms every day, you couldn't become a spirit, assuming they even existed.

If so, how did the Lord of Qingqiu cultivate into a fox spirit? Divine enlightenment? But there would have to be a deity first.

Looking at Luo Shi, he thought: If there are no fox spirits, how do you explain what she saw? Is she lying to me? No, that's impossible; she has no reason to. If she isn't lying, then what is the reason?

He suddenly thought of a possibility and his heart skipped a beat. Could Luo Shi have been hypnotized, and everything she saw was just an illusion?

The more he thought about it, the more he believed this was the case. He pressed, "What did the Lord of Qingqiu say to you?" He had asked this before, but Luo Shi didn't say anything.

As expected, the result was the same this time. Luo Shi shook her head and said apologetically, "I'm sorry, Big Brother Xu. If I could say, I would have told you long ago."

Xu Mo wasn't willing to give up and said, "You can't reveal anything at all?"

Luo Shi hesitated.

Xu Mo, reading her expression, immediately said, "You don't have to say the specifics, just tell me the general idea. That should be fine, right?"

Luo Shi seemed to waver but was still hesitant and didn't answer.

Seeing this, Xu Mo didn't ask for her opinion and directly asked, "Did the Lord of Qingqiu figure out what your calamity is?"

Luo Shi, young and lacking social experience, didn't realize Xu Mo was trying to get information from her. She thought about it and, believing it wasn't a secret, answered honestly, "He did figure it out, but he didn't tell me directly. He said if I knew, it wouldn't work."

Xu Mo asked, "Has he already helped you eliminate the calamity?"

This question wasn't closely related to the secret the Lord of Qingqiu wanted to keep, so Luo Shi's guard gradually dropped, and she shook her head, "Not that easy. A calamity that's ten thousand times worse than death, how could it be eliminated so easily?"

Xu Mo, seeing she was hooked, was delighted but kept a straight face and asked, "Has he helped you eliminate part of it?"

Luo Shi, without any guard, said, "The Lord of Qingqiu said my calamity is special, and others can't help. I have to save myself."

"Ah!" Xu Mo pretended to be casual, "He told you how to eliminate the calamity, and you're in such a hurry to go back to prepare for it?"

"Yes," Luo Shi nodded.

"Can others help? Or can only you do it?" Xu Mo glanced at her and said lightly.

"Only I can. If others help, it won't work," Luo Shi replied.

"Ah, be careful. When you're eliminating the calamity, it's best not to let others know. If, for example, your sister accidentally helps you, all your efforts will be in vain," Xu Mo said, feigning concern.

"No, that won't happen," Luo Shi shook her head and blurted out, "Others can't help even if they want to. There's no one else there except me; it's in the deep mountains..."

Suddenly realizing something, she stopped and looked at Xu Mo angrily, "Ah, Big Brother Xu, you're trying to get information from me."