Chapter 51

"Sure!" Lin Fan enjoyed reading miscellaneous books. In the "Chronicles of the Eastern Zhou and the Warring States," there was a story about a king who set up beacon towers. Whenever the enemy invaded, he would light the beacon towers to summon the feudal lords for help. The king had a concubine who rarely smiled, but she would only laugh when she saw the beacon towers lit and the feudal lords leading their troops to the rescue. So, the king lit the beacons just to make her laugh, playing a trick on the feudal lords. When the enemy truly invaded, the feudal lords no longer believed him, and the king and his concubine were killed.

Ximen Shuai said, "I know this story, but how can we make the fox spirit take action? Do you want to make her laugh?"

Lin Fan shook his head and looked at Ximen Shuai, "Last time at Dagu Pass, you chased the Nine Palace Palace Master of the Devil Sect for seven days and nights, using all sorts of tricks, being persistent and shameless, making her wish to eat your flesh and drink your blood. If you can do the same to the fox spirit, she will be so annoyed that she will hit you, and you will run away. Then the fox spirit will have no choice but to ask the Hundred-Eyed Demon Lord to drive you away."

"Will it work?" Ximen Shuai asked.

"Imagine a fly buzzing in your ear every day. I think a normal person or a fox spirit would find it unbearable, right?" Lin Fan said, "Besides, whether it works or not, we won't lose much."

Ximen Shuai was worried, "I am so outstanding. What if the fox spirit recognizes my worth and agrees to be with me?"

"Spicy chicken threads, you are so naive," Lin Fan said with disdain. "Get ready and change into your Ximen Shuai outfit."

...

"... Seeing the lady is like seeing a celestial being..." Ximen Shuai changed into his white scholar's robe, took his folding fan, and began to flirt with the thousand-year-old fox spirit. Several disciples tried to stop him, but Ximen Shuai easily dealt with them. Then Ziyè took action, but Ximen Shuai was not in a hurry, slowly engaging in a cat-and-mouse game.

Ziyè's cultivation was slightly lower than Ximen Shuai's, and she should not have been so flustered. However, Ximen Shuai had the Seven-Breaking Banner, one of whose abilities was to break illusions. Ziyè's powers were centered around the Purple Pupil Technique. Once the Purple Pupil Technique failed to create illusions for Ximen Shuai, she could not harm him.

At this point, the thousand-year-old fox spirit could no longer sit still and used wood-based magic. Beast spirits and spirit beasts cultivated inner dan, allowing them to use one of the five elements freely, progressing faster in their understanding than ordinary cultivators. With the characteristics of beast spirits, their magic was infinitely varied. Ximen Shuai secretly cursed himself for boasting too much. Although the thousand-year-old fox spirit only had two hundred years of cultivation left, her attacks were ruthless and relentless. He had to maintain a good image, so he gently waved his fan, "Since the lady is dismissing me, I will leave and come back tomorrow."

Ximen Shuai wanted to leave, and neither Ziyè nor the thousand-year-old fox spirit could stop him. Lin Fan watched the struggle in the Green Valley with the Heavenly Eye Talisman while roasting a beggar's chicken. When Ximen Shuai returned, he pulled off a chicken leg, but Ximen Shuai shook his head, "Playing the beacon towers trick on the feudal lords did not work."

"No, it did work," Lin Fan said. "Since you will come back tomorrow, they will just send a disciple to deliver a message, no need to activate the Green Screen."

Ximen Shuai asked, "What's next?"

"Next, we won't show up. We'll come back the day after tomorrow," Lin Fan said. "The Hundred-Eyed Demon Lord is busy with his sect and can't stay in the Green Valley forever. Now, with rumors of the Heavenly Border Sect and the Blood Shadow Sect joining forces, he has to be extra cautious. I'm just worried he might pull the rug out from under us."

Ximen Shuai asked, "Pull the rug out from under us?"

"Yes, if he moves the fox spirit to the main headquarters, we can only watch helplessly," Lin Fan said. "To prevent this, you need to continue pretending to be a messenger of the Heavenly Border Sect and send a message to the main headquarters of the Purple Pupil Sect, saying that the Heavenly Border Sect invites the Hundred-Eyed Demon Lord to meet near the main headquarters to discuss important matters."

Ximen Shuai asked, "What if he goes?"

"Usually, he won't. He will send a hall master or a trusted subordinate. If the Hundred-Eyed Demon Lord goes, it will be a ploy to lure the tiger away from the mountain, and we can take the fox spirit calmly." Lin Fan was not certain, but now was the time to strengthen Ximen Shuai's resolve, after all, he was the one fighting while Lin Fan watched from the sidelines.

Ximen Shuai suddenly understood, "You want to keep the Hundred-Eyed Demon Lord busy on both fronts, making him and me run around."

Lin Fan helplessly said, "This is the only way to break the Green Screen."

Ximen Shuai thought for a moment and found no problem with it, so he set off immediately. The next dawn, the Hundred-Eyed Demon Lord received the report and rushed to the Green Valley, searching the area thoroughly but finding no trace of Ximen Shuai or Lin Fan. He waited for half a day, but Ximen Shuai did not appear.

In the afternoon, a disciple from the main headquarters arrived and reported to the Hundred-Eyed Demon Lord that the Heavenly Border Sect's leader invited him for a meeting. The Hundred-Eyed Demon Lord stayed one more night and returned to the main headquarters the next day. The next afternoon, the Green Screen was activated again, and the Hundred-Eyed Demon Lord headed back to the Green Valley. When he arrived, he found that Ximen Shuai had been there, and this time, he was even more outrageous, claiming he wanted to practice dual cultivation with the fox spirit's lover. The Hundred-Eyed Demon Lord was furious and began searching the mountains again, but found nothing.

The next morning, the Hundred-Eyed Demon Lord left again. Lin Fan sighed, thinking that if the Hundred-Eyed Demon Lord were smarter, he would have taken the fox spirit away or stationed some sect experts, which would have been less troublesome. Lin Fan and Ximen Shuai were wrong; this time, the Hundred-Eyed Demon Lord left but secretly stationed four disciples nearby.

As soon as Ximen Shuai appeared, he was surrounded by the disciples. Ximen Shuai cursed Lin Fan for being unreliable and the Hundred-Eyed Demon Lord for being despicable. However, after the fight, Ximen Shuai had the upper hand, thanks to the Seven-Breaking Banner. The Purple Pupil Technique was incredibly powerful, but because it was so strong, the disciples of the Purple Pupil Sect focused their cultivation on it. After Ximen Shuai broke the illusion with the Seven-Breaking Banner, they had no way to deal with him. Instead, the thousand-year-old fox spirit, with only two hundred years of cultivation, gave Ximen Shuai more trouble.

Ximen Shuai also fully displayed his rogue side, touching and pinching the fox spirit during the fight, which infuriated her, but she had no way to deal with him. In the end, she had no choice but to activate the Green Screen again and wait for the Hundred-Eyed Demon Lord's rescue.

While Ximen Shuai was busy, Lin Fan ate chicken and thought about it. He realized he had made a mistake. The reason the feudal lords did not come in the story was because of the lack of trust between the king and the feudal lords. Now, Ximen Shuai was frequently showing up and flirting with the fox spirit, so the Hundred-Eyed Demon Lord would not stay away.

...

Ximen Shuai looked at Lin Fan for a long time, making Lin Fan feel uneasy. Lin Fan could only say, "Alright, I am Zhao Kuo, only good at talking the talk."

"I have no problem with you being Zhao Kuo, but why would someone as smart as me listen to a Zhao Kuo?" Ximen Shuai was speechless. He had been running around these past few days because he thought Lin Fan's analysis was good, and the beacon towers trick had a good chance of success. Now, it turned out to be nonsense, and the only effect was to anger the Hundred-Eyed Demon Lord.

Unable to break through by force or by strategy, the two of them thought hard in the back mountain. Lin Fan said, "How about you run a few more trips and tire out the Hundred-Eyed Demon Lord?"

"..." Ximen Shuai looked at Lin Fan with a murderous intent, and Lin Fan could only smile apologetically.