Li Yuanping arrived to find the entire alley sealed off, its ends deserted, the street devoid of a single soul, with two rows of clan soldiers standing in line.

The Qi Cultivation yao creatures, imbued with Demonic Qi, could cause severe illness with a light touch and death with a more substantial contact. As a result, not a single townsman lingered.

That fox was sitting on a deserted stall by the street, with legs crossed, eagerly waiting. Originally a wonton stand, its vendor had long since fled for his life, leaving a mess behind.

Chen Donghe stood beside the fox, silently gripping his sword with a solemn expression, prepared for danger. He had reached the Fourth Layer of Qi Cultivation and ranked among the top in his family. 𝕗𝚛𝚎𝚎𝐰𝗲𝗯𝗻𝚘𝚟𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝕞

An Zhiyan sat across from the fox carefreely, holding a bowl of wontons and smacking his lips. Even at nearly a hundred years old, he still indulged in the pleasures of eating, his mouth shiny with oil, enticing the fox to salivate.

"Yuanping pays respects to the senior!"

Li Yuanping recognized the fox, which indeed matched the descriptions in the rumors; he hurried forward to greet it with a bow. The fox made a squeaking noise and called out:

"Where is Li Tongya!"

Upon Li Yuanping’s arrival, An Zhiyan, having left his bowl, stood up, and Chen Donghe nodded, both calling out in unison:

"My lord!"

Li Yuanping replied to them, then turned to the fox and respectfully said:

"Senior, the old ancestor is currently cultivating in his Cave Mansion. Please, come to the mountain to speak!"

The fox moved its narrow snout, glancing around with its slender eyes. It looked at the light golden Great Formation on Lijing Mountain and hesitated, then spoke in a muffled voice:

"Let’s make an agreement first... I am a close friend of your old ancestor, and I even have a reputation in the Demon Cave. If you deceive me to enter the formation and kill me, Da Li Mountain will not let this go easily!"

"Why would senior say such a thing?"

Li Yuanping smiled apologetically, waved away the following clan soldiers and An Zhiyan, and led the fox through a golden barrier into the mountain paths. The fox muttered gloomily:

"So gravely injured... that he can’t even show his face down the mountain."

Li Yuanping knew that half of the news about Li Tongya came from this fox, and the fox likely knew the secrets behind it. He chuckled wryly inwardly, thinking:

"Indeed, a cunning fox spirit, always scheming."

He simply replied:

"Please wait for a moment, senior, and you will understand once you see him yourself. It’s been only a few months since I last brought medicine for healing and essence cultivation to see the old ancestor on the mountain. I also don’t know his current condition."

The mountain path wound through the landscape, and as the man and fox walked together, Meichi Mountain Cave Mansion appeared before them. Li Yuanping, seeing the tightly closed stone door, hesitated before stopping his steps and respectfully said:

"Please wait here, senior...my brother will be here shortly to open the Cave Mansion."

Although the White Banyan Fox had been a close friend of Li Tongya for many years, it was, after all, a yao creature. Li Yuanping couldn’t shake off his concerns, especially since Li Tongya was seriously injured. If the fox harbored evil intentions, they might not have a way to restrain it.

Li Yuanjiao was at the Middle Stage of Qi Cultivation and possessed Foundation Establishment Talismans. Li Yuanping preferred to have his brother Li Yuanjiao escort the fox inside. The fox nodded in vague understanding, only to hear a grating noise as the stone gate creaked open.

"Let it come in."

Li Tongya’s voice was hoarse. Li Yuanping had no choice but to nod and gesture for the fox to enter. The fox, with no suspicion, hurriedly scampered into the Cave Mansion.

Inside the Cave Mansion, Spiritual Energy was abundant. Dharma Lamps on the walls emitted a bright white light. Li Tongya sat cross-legged on the stone bed within the Cave Mansion, smiling at the fox.

On the stone table in front of him, a variety of Spiritual Objects and Elixirs lay scattered, shining brightly. Most remained untouched, lying undisturbed on the table.

"Li Tongya!"

The fox exclaimed with a squeak, then noticed Li Tongya’s white hair, withered complexion, and gentle eyes watching it. The fox was shocked, darting forward to grasp his hand and inspect it, its nose buzzing, and exclaimed:

"This... this..."

Li Tongya laughed heartily, responding:

"Thanks to you gathering information, I was able to save my life from Furious Moha’s hands!"

"You’re laughing your mother’s laugh."

The fox, having picked up who-knows-what language, cursed with a scowl, squeaking:

"Your path has been severed."

"Not just that."

Li Tongya lifted his sleeve, revealing his arm beneath, covered in cracks, oozing light green liquid drop by drop. Dipping into this liquid, he said softly:

"My cultivation level has regressed."

Pointing at the spiritual objects on the stone table, Li Tongya shook his head helplessly and said:

"I told them not to bother sending these things over. The younger generation has such earnest hearts – it’s just a pity that most of it is of no use, merely a waste."

The fox quietly swallowed its saliva, squeaking:

"If you ask me... there’s a simple solution! You are showing signs of shattered viscera and a disrupted flow of Qi. I know a spell that can simulate human heart, spleen, stomach, lungs, and liver, putting them inside your chest and abdomen. Then have your disciples gather Qi for you for several months, one by one replenishing all the organs. Within three years, you will be as good as new!"

The fox grew more excited as it spoke, squeaking and gesticulating wildly:

"As for your severed path, we can find a horned dragon, feed it with six thousand six hundred people, create a blood pool, and every three years... you can extend..."

At this point, the fox suddenly stopped as if waking from a dream. Li Tongya shook his head and replied:

"This spell to simulate organs – you must be using living people, right? As for gathering energy for the organs, you’re using the blood sacrifice... And this technique to mend the path, it’s dark magic."

He raised his eyebrows, smiling:

"I, Li Tongya, come from a humble farmer’s family, a life of lowly worth. Though I’ve killed many in my life, the vast majority were evildoers and cultivators, or only when it was truly a matter of safeguarding my life and property. I have never entertained the thought of slaughtering innocent civilians... My only wish has been to survive."

"This is the family rule left by my father... it’s also the bottom line of my house."

As the word "bottom line" left his mouth, Li Tongya suddenly recalled a shining, luminous mirror. He paused before continuing:

"The Li Family might not be saints, but we have no need for these immortal techniques... just forget it."

"You!"

The fox was momentarily stunned, then, feeling wronged, said:

"It’s just eating people! Isn’t that how it’s always been? If you don’t eat, there are others who will!"

Seeing Li Tongya remain silent, the fox couldn’t contain its frustration and stood up from the stone bed, baring its teeth and shouting:

"Old-fashioned! You don’t recognize good intentions when you see them!"

No matter what the fox said, Li Tongya sat at the head of the table, smiling as he watched it. The fox rambled on for a while before suddenly bursting into tears, cursing:

"I still have over a hundred years to live; how will I get by!"

The fox indulged in self-pity for a while before stopping, opening its mouth wide – as large as a basin – and spat out a fruit with a "plop", smooth as jade beads, emitting a cool, luminous glow.

Fiddling with it using its paw, the fox then said:

"This is my precious Hua Shang fruit. To you cultivators, it’s considered a precious medicine, capable of enhancing mana and vitality. Swallow it, and perhaps you may cling to life for a few more years, exerting yourself a few more times."

Li Tongya was startled, at a loss for how to decline, when the fox had already closed its ears, wagging its tail as it hopped off the bed, cursing:

"This puts me at quite a loss... We agreed to look out for our own lives, but here you go, about to breathe your last in a few years."

Without waiting for Li Tongya to speak, the White Banyan Fox jumped out of the cave mansion.

Li Tongya was left in the cave mansion, silent, staring at the Hua Shang fruit in his palm shining with white brilliance, resembling a luminous pearl. All his mixed feelings turned into just a heavy sigh.