Chapter 4: You Deceive Me and I Cheat You

  The fox walked back and forth in the stone hall for over a hundred rounds, finally waiting for Qian Yiqun to come out. It approached two steps, sniffed a strange smell, and hastily retreated, shouting: "Spring color smoke? Is it Fengyue Mirror or Bai Mei Tu inside?"

  Qian Yiqun's face was exhausted, his eyes were red, and he leaned against the wall with one hand, saying weakly: "The Hundred Beauties Painting."

  "Wow! I didn't expect 'Bai Mei Tu' to also enter Lang Huan's courtyard, I really don't know which great person is so generous." The fox smacked its lips, as if it had eaten something delicious.

  Qian Yiqun leaned against the stone wall to catch his breath, thinking: A master's move is known at a glance, it seems that this fox really has some skills. He touched the scroll in his pocket and said: "This picture... Could it be used for people to indulge in lust?" In fact, Qian Yiqun had looked down after coming out and knew that he hadn't physically entered that strange room, so saying it was lustful wasn't quite accurate.

  "How many have you had?" The fox asked with a sly smile.

  "I don't know, how can I get through?" Qian Yiqun felt dizzy and his mind was a complete blank. The experience he had just gone through seemed like a dream, with not even half a point of reality to it.

  "As long as you hold on to your true self and make those demons helpless, it's naturally over." The fox smiled and said, "You can count the scrolls to know."

  Although it's not a real fight, a man's competitive spirit is still needed, even when facing a fox. Qian Yiqun felt that his performance just now was quite tenacious, as if he couldn't be moved by the eight winds, with the flavor of sitting alone on the golden lotus platform. He took out the scroll, held it with both hands, and slowly opened it...

  "What? How did it become empty?" Qian Yiqun's muscles tensed up, and the previously full page of beautiful women had all disappeared, leaving behind a faintly yellowish large blank space.

  The fox approached and took a look, then retreated and said, "Where did you let them go?"

  "Me?" Yiqun looked bewildered, "How can I order them around? They're all embroidered."

  "The 'mei' in 'Bai Mei Tu'," said Hu Li with a smile, "isn't the same as this 'mei'."

  Qian Yiqun's whole body chilled, and he spat out a cold breath: "Is it the charm of a ghost?"

  "You really have a bit of insight." The fox praised, "There are 360 enchanting spirits on this, transformed into female bodies, each with their own skills, used by Taoist priests to practice their methods."

  "What's that?" Qian Yiqun asked curiously. Although the Ming Dynasty was flourishing in terms of Confucianism, it was surprisingly more open-minded about relationships between men and women than his previous life. Not only were there various legal and illegal brothels, but also all sorts of quacks, Taoist priests, and charlatans selling elixirs and secret formulas, even teaching people the art of "adopting yin to supplement yang". Little Qian had never tried it before, but he had heard a lot about it.

  The fox was laughing so hard that it was holding its belly and rolling on the ground, making "heh heh" sly laughter sounds. After a long time, it finally stood up and said: "The 'Wind and Moon Mirror' and 'Hundred Beauties Picture' are the secret treasures of the Fuyajou sect. Although the cultivation method is twice as difficult to achieve half the results, if one's innate talent doesn't match, it's easy to go crazy and lose one's soul, but if they do match...

  "Can you become an immortal?" Qian Yiqun asked back.

  The fox demon's heart was filled with joy: It seems that becoming an immortal has become your little son's fate. Haha, wait till I get a good grasp on you, this life will be worth living.

  "Relying on it to become an immortal, isn't that a bit too much!" The fox shook its head and swished its tail.

  Qian Yiqun was extremely tired, seeing the fox intentionally teasing him, so he had to cooperate and say: "How about comparing?"

  "It's like having a pillar in the wall!" The fox laughed loudly.

  Qian Yiqun was not a stranger who had traveled halfway, but also a native of the city, and after listening to it, he couldn't help but wonder: "What's going on?"

  "When others build a house, they want it to be strong, so they set up a pillar between the walls. But when the big house is about to collapse, it will surely perish." The fox and dog sat in front of him, with an air of superiority. If not for their physical limitations, they might even stroke their whiskers.

  Qian Yiqun's mouth twitched and he said, "Then why is there still someone cultivating this technique?"

  "Young man, the law and the art are not the same." said the fox. "The law is the ladder to ascend to immortality, while the art is just a scenic view along the way. This 'Bai Mei Tu' was originally a law, but the disciples of the Fu Xiang Sect were incompetent, using it as an art, which eventually provoked public outrage and led to their downfall."

  "They shut their own doors and stay at home, what business is it of theirs?" Qian Yiqun was greatly puzzled.

  The fox, although unaware of what "Wei Wei" meant, could also understand Qian Yi's confusion and replied: "You don't know the power of this diagram. Each charm can be released and possessed by a person. Those who are possessed by the charm will have supernatural powers, as if they were divine. This diagram has 360 charms, so the Fu Xiang Sect can have 360 people with divine powers, how can it not make people fearful?"

  "Is it difficult for Masters to have divine powers?" Qian Yiqun was surprised in his heart and secretly thought: Isn't this a high-magic world? Why does it seem like having divine powers is not easy?

  "In today's world, there are probably only a few dozen people who can prove their spiritual powers." The fox turned its eyes around twice, "Don't tell me you think it's those Tibetan monks talking about spiritual powers? No, no!" The fox lifted its paw and stroked its long whiskers, saying slowly: "We're talking about the spiritual powers of the Five Elements Realm."

  The five boundaries of the realm, from low to high, are: Yao, Bao, Yi, Shen, Dao.

  The so-called demonic communication refers to witches and gods borrowing the power of evil spirits to do things that ordinary people cannot do, which is a very low-level way.

  What is meant by bao tong, is the power produced due to the fruit of karma, either predicting the future or having the ability to change oneself. Some are like innate special functions. Qian Yiqun interrupted and asked: "You transmigrate with your spiritual wisdom intact, is that also bao tong?"

  "I am an ancient spiritual being, different from humans." The fox said, "Furthermore, I've never heard of a reincarnated being who didn't lose their spiritual wisdom. All the enlightened beings I know have reached the realm of divine powers before regaining their past wisdom. Hmm, if someone can find the Three Lives Stone, they might be able to recall it even in the Realm of Dependence."

  Qian Yiqun nodded slightly and thought to himself: It seems that even in this high-magic world, I'm still an outcast. Ah...

  "What is meant by 'relying on the common' is that one borrows the Dharma treasures and does things at will." The fox said, "Most of today's practitioners are like this."

  "What about Shen Tong and Dao Tong?"

  "Quietly contemplating can verify spiritual powers," said the fox. "Realizing the middle way is to verify the Tao's power. You don't need to think about these two anymore."

  "Why!" Qian Yiqun was deeply hurt, in his expectation, the game of being a delivery boy was just a trivial matter for kids, and only reaching the pinnacle was the ambition of a real man.

  "An iron pestle can be ground into a needle, but a wooden pestle can only be ground into a toothpick." The fox sneered, "With your talent, you'll probably just end up in a mediocre position anyway."

  "I, Xiao Ye, am destined for greatness!" Qian Yiqun gazed around at the countless caves where clouds and mist gathered. "Fox Great Immortal, I'm afraid this 'Hundred Enchantresses Chart' won't be of use to me anymore. How about recommending a cultivation method?"

  "Try touching it again and see if you can get in?" The fox looked like he had a clever idea.

  Qian Yiqun forced himself to cheer up, and touched each one again, until his hands were red and swollen, but he still didn't get sucked in, and he couldn't help feeling disappointed.

  The fox spirit smiled and said: "This Lang Huan's Separate Courtyard can only be opened once every three years, and each time it is opened, only one hole can be entered."

  Qian Yiqun secretly thought to himself, "What a pity", and then asked: "Isn't that just like hitting the jackpot? Like when I drew this useless 'Bai Mei Tu', wasting an opportunity?"

  The fox smiled secretly in his heart: Those who can open the door and come in naturally know which stone cave has what. As for opening the door once every three years... Haha, you little boy first provide me with three years of roasted mutton!

  "Everything goes with fate." The fox's face was solemn, "Fortunately, you are still young, in the next three years, first build a solid foundation, and later there will be a good base."

  Qian Yiqun thought to himself: Three years later, who will help me open the door? How can I keep this old fox by my side?

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