Chapter Five: A Match Made in Heaven

  One intends to stay, one pretends to take advantage of the situation.

  A postmodern business society tempered by deceit and cunning, a detached observer of the intrigues and power struggles in the world.

  It was a perfect storm, and the fire spread rapidly.

  Qian Yiqun saw that the fox was so talkative, and naturally had some doubts in his heart. However, as a naive and innocent young man who had not yet entered society, he still did not think that the fox's pit was dug so deep.

  The fox's plan succeeded, and Qian Yiqun found a backpack. He jumped inside and excitedly shouted: "Let's go!"

  Qian Yiqun carried the "Bai Mei Tu" and had a nearly thirty-pound fox on his back, walking down the mountain. After being cleansed by the Xiantiandao Qi, Qian Yiqun only now knew what it meant to have sharp ears and bright eyes, with a body as light as a swallow. Along the way, the grass was green and the leaves were fragrant, like something tangible teasing the young man's senses, making him exclaim in his heart: "The wonders of nature are like this, yet I had never experienced it in my past two lives."

  "Come to think of it," Qian Yiqun looked up at the sun, "there's a feeling that something is off."

  "You've just shed your worldly dust and are still feeling fresh; it'll wear off in a couple of days." The fox cub retorted from within the basket.

  Qian Yiqun thought for a moment and also made sense, his footsteps quickened, and he said: "Great Immortal, the 360 enchanting spirits on the 'Bai Mei Tu', how long will it take to recover?" He himself was like having a spring dream in the illusion, after waking up, he had forgotten more than half of it, thinking that the enchanting spirits on the picture were "consumed" by him and needed time to recover.

  Who would have thought that the fox spirit listened with great surprise and asked in a sharp voice, "If this demon wasn't dispersed by you, how could it disappear without a trace?"

  "What's going on?!" Qian Yiqun exclaimed in surprise, "How could I have scattered?"

  The fox said with a shrug: "You don't even know yourself, how would I know?"

  "Great Immortal!" Qian Yiqun was somewhat anxious, as if he had picked up a wallet, but instead scattered the banknotes in the wind. He hastily asked: "How can we get them back now?"

  "As far as I know, if the person possessed by the demon spirit dies, the demon spirit will naturally return to the picture." The fox recalled, "However, I've also heard of cases where someone forcibly separates the demon spirit and incorporates it into their own body."

  "So I can only wait in vain?" Qian Yiqun felt disheartened, the treasure he had just obtained was now a semi-finished product, and even if he wanted to take it back, he couldn't.

  "This thing, to say the least, is quite arrogant. In fact, it's just something that weak people do." The fox disagreed and said, "The path of cultivation, the most stable way is to observe one's mind and become a saint, eliminate the six desires and eradicate the three poisons. Although there are right results from other paths, the road is not as easy to walk."

  "Please enlighten me, great immortal!"

  "After you return, be careful and vigilant at all times, store without guarding, and naturally the work will be done." The fox said sternly, secretly laughing to himself.

  Qian Yiqun's throat was stuck. Hu Li said that it is too easy to ascend to immortality and enter sainthood, and only Xuan Yuan Huangdi and the Taoist ancestor Lao Jun have achieved this from ancient times to the present.

  It is easy to know, but difficult to do. Even if ordinary people know where the ladder is, how can they do it? Xiao Qian may not have had a birthday over 20 years old in two lifetimes, and he doesn't have an adult's thinking or life experience, but that doesn't mean he's stupid. The fox tried to deceive him, so naturally he also heard the fox intentionally evading, seeming to know everything, but actually not leaking a single word.

  At this thought, Qian Yiqun said to himself: You old fox, you think you can deceive me? I'm not quite up to par yet. The only thing is, I don't know what the crux of the matter is, so I have no way to grasp it!

  Just as he was hesitating, a soft and gentle female voice suddenly sounded in his ear: "Immortal elder, don't be deceived by this ferocious beast."

  Qian Yiqun's foot slipped and he almost fell over, thinking to himself: "Am I hallucinating?"

  "My humble abode is sudden, please forgive me, immortal sir." The soft female voice said, "This little slave was originally residing in the 'Hundred Beauties Painting', and when the immortal sir entered the painting to appreciate the hundred beauties, a hint of spiritual awareness was left behind to communicate with you."

  Appreciating the picture... Qian Yiqun's mind suddenly recovered some fiery memories, and he felt a little hot. He thought to himself: "The ferocious beast you mentioned... is it this fox that can speak human language?"

  "The Xianchang Mingjian, it is absolutely not a fox-like creature." The demon spirit said, "It is the ancient ferocious beast Bai Ze."

  "Is the White Marsh also a ferocious beast?" Qian Yiqun thought to himself. If this fox is indeed the White Marsh, it seems he has really picked up a treasure. The White Marsh is said to know everything from heavenly phenomena and geography to the smallest details of human life. It can see into the past and future, speak human language, and once helped the Yellow Emperor create a ghostly divination chart - which included 11,520 varieties.

  It turns out that he is a senior in his own industry and a big shot in library management.

  "People only know that Bai Ze is knowledgeable and powerful, but they don't know that even the Yellow Emperor had to use great effort to subdue it." The woman's voice trembled with fear as she spoke, "It's been passed down that it appears when the world is at peace, but in reality, it feeds on the vengeful spirits of chaotic times."

  "White Ze dispels evil spirits, it turns out to be like this." Qian Yiqun suddenly enlightened.

  Since the Middle Ages, "Bai Ze Tu" has been extremely popular, with almost every household having a copy. The book records various names, appearances and methods of exorcising monsters, accompanied by monster paintings. Once people encounter monsters, they will search for them according to the pictures.

  "So our family says it's a ferocious beast because once it's born, it will surely bring chaos to the world." The woman said.

  Qian Yiqun thought to himself: Who says it isn't? Nowadays, it's already the third year of Chongzhen's reign. Li Zicheng, Zhang Xianzhong, and the Manchu people are all coming. When the time comes, I'll just change my clothes and shave my head... What era is more chaotic than this if not a chaotic one?

  Thinking of this, Xiao Qian's heart tightened involuntarily. The woman's voice could read minds, wasn't it a bit too much to reveal so much? She quietly waited for two breaths, but didn't see the woman respond, so she tentatively asked: "Why aren't you speaking?"

  "My humble abode has seen the immortal elder remain silent, I dare not speak rashly." The woman's voice replied.

  Qian Yiqun finally put his mind at ease: It seems that she can't read minds, but rather I subconsciously choose to talk to her and she can hear me.

  "That's right," said the woman.

  Qian Yiqun thought to himself, unable to control his subconscious, and became entangled again. Now his inner self has connected with a suspected charming spirit through audio communication, but he doesn't know where the microphone's mute button is. Behind him, he carried a fox, which was actually an ominous beast that foretold chaos - Bai Ze. The treasure in his arms was completely useless, and it seemed that his future path was indeed shrouded in thick fog.

  "Are you a demon? Do you know how to deal with Bai Ze?" Qian Yiqun asked.

  "My family calls me the Immortal of Books, but I am not a charming spirit from the Zhou Dynasty." The woman said, "I was originally an inner official during the Yuanguang years, but my original name has long been forgotten. I was sealed in this 'Hundred Beauties Picture', named as an immortal but actually a ghost, please have mercy on me, Immortal."

  I couldn't climb up to you anyway, what a pity... Money Yiqun muttered to himself, fortunately not letting Shu Zhongxian hear it.

  "As for capturing Bai Ze..." The immortal paused, saying "I really don't know."

  The fox in the backpack suddenly let out a sneeze and said, "Young man, can you feel some eerie atmosphere?"

  Qian Yiqun heard this eunuch's voice and his whole body was covered in goosebumps: "Don't scare me, where did a ghost come from under the bright sun?"

  "If it's really a fierce ghost, why would it be afraid of the sun?" The fox lifted its head to glance at the sun, "Besides, it's already past noon, and the yang energy is gradually waning while the yin energy is growing."

  "Don't scare me." Qian Yiqun quickened his pace, as if he had been frightened.

  He was indeed frightened, not because of the fierce ghost, but because this fox's nose was really too spiritual. The female ghost in the book said a few words to herself, and the fox sniffed out her breath, it seems that she is not a good person to mess with.

  Hukou is not far from the county town, Qian Yiqun ran all the way onto the official road, and didn't bump into those tourists going to Hukou. When he arrived at the gate of the county town, the soldiers of the patrol inspector's office were all familiar faces, and they passed through the gate after exchanging greetings. However, looking at their eyes, they seemed to be quite playful, as if they were watching something rare.

  Qian Yiqun was filled with suspicion, and after checking that his clothes were in order and there was nothing out of the ordinary about him, he quickly walked towards home.

  "You've finally thought of coming back!"

  A seventeen or eighteen-year-old girl stood at the entrance of the alley, with a bun on her head, wearing a tight emerald green jacket, with peach blossoms on her face and new moon eyebrows. She looked similar to Qian Yiqun in three or five ways. Seeing her hands on her hips, her eyes raised, a hint of anger lingering between her eyebrows, it was clear that she was very dissatisfied with Qian Yiqun's return home at this time.