Fox Spirit: One Sword Sweeps the World

Page 27

He picked up his shoe and shook it; a delicate crimson velvet flower on the shoe's surface dazzled the eye.

"Hey, when did you get a flower? It's quite pretty."

"Li—Zi—Zai!" Wang Quanzui's voice suddenly rose, his drunkenness almost completely gone. "Those are my shoes! Grandma Wang embroidered velvet flowers for me by hand!"

Li Zizai paused for a moment, then held up the shoes to examine them closely, before scratching his head: "Your shoes? What about mine? Mine are black with cloud patterns."

As the two were arguing, Aoki Hime suppressed a laugh and gestured with her chin toward a spot not far away: "Take a look at what Brother Ji is holding, doesn't it look like it?"

Everyone looked in the direction of the sound and saw Ji Wuji standing on a stone bench with one foot and holding a black cloth shoe high in the other hand, with the shoe opening facing down, pouring wine into his mouth.

The wine dripped down his shoes, soaking his clothes, but he was oblivious. He even slapped the stone table and shouted, "Drink up! Today's wine is exceptionally mellow and fragrant, hahaha, good wine, good wine!"

Wang Quanzui sighed, rubbing his forehead: "If he sobers up and realizes he used your shoe as a wine jug, will he chase after you with a sword?"

Li Zizai shrank his neck and muttered, "I definitely can't outrun him."

"But speaking of which," he said, glancing at the black shoes in Ji Wuji's hand, "these shoes are really good quality; they don't leak even when pouring wine. I'll definitely go to that shop again next time..."

"Give me back my shoes first!" Wang Quanzui reached out to snatch them.

Li Zizai stepped back, scratched his face, and said somewhat guiltily, "Um... it might have a bit of a smell. I couldn't help but spit it in just now... You'll have to make do with these?"

"Li Zizai—! I'm going to kill you!"

A sharp cry, accompanied by the crisp sound of a wine jar falling to the ground, exploded in the night, startling the roosting birds in the woods into fluttering flight.

The culprit, Li Zizai, had already slipped away to the other side of the campfire with his shoes in his arms, leaving Wang Quanzui standing there, hands on his hips, jumping up and down.

Li Zizai, clutching Wang Quanzui's embroidered shoes, darted behind Wang Quanba Ye, poked half his head out, made a face at Wang Quanzui, then turned to Wang Quanba Ye, deliberately putting on a pitiful act in a high-pitched voice.

"Big brother, look at your sister! She's got such a fiery temper, she almost scared the soul out of me."

"You bullshit!"

Wang Quanzui was so angry that his eyebrows stood on end. He clenched his fists and was about to rush over, but Qingmu Yuan grabbed him.

She stomped her foot, her cheeks flushing even more with anger.

"You're the one who stole my shoes and spat in them, and you still have the nerve to complain!"

"Hahaha—" Wang Quanbaye finally couldn't hold back as he watched the farce unfold before him.

He reached out and patted Li Zizai on the shoulder, his eyes full of mockery. "Zizai, you were the one who messed around with my sister's shoes first, so why are you complaining now?"

"How about this, tomorrow I'll have the embroiderers in my household make a few pairs of exquisite embroidered shoes and send them to your residence as an apology on behalf of my sister, what do you say?"

"Hahahaha!" The surrounding boys and girls burst into laughter.

Ji Wuji, who was not far away, had just finished drinking the wine in his "shoe pot" when he heard this. He slapped his thigh and laughed, shouting, "If you ask me, it should be embroidered with a big red flower to match Brother Zizai's temperament!"

Li Zizai's face instantly turned bright red. He quickly waved his hand and muttered something under his breath.

"I don't want those embroidered little shoes! If word gets out, where will I, Li Zizai, put my face?"

Although he was reluctant, a smile appeared in his eyes and brows, and he laughed along with everyone else.

Amidst the commotion, Li Quzhuo, with his sharp eyes, was the first to spot the figure in white at the cave entrance. He immediately waved the wine jar in his hand and exclaimed, "Hey, little Qinghan, we've been waiting for you!"

Upon seeing Mu Shenqi following behind Mu Qinghan, he immediately raised an eyebrow and teased, "Shenqi, why are you so slow? Dragging your feet, are you suffering from kidney deficiency?"

"Kidney deficiency?" Mu Shenqi had just stepped across the cave entrance when he heard this and suddenly stopped in his tracks. His eyes widened instantly, as if he had suddenly remembered something. He rolled up his sleeves and rushed towards Li Quzhuo.

"Damn it, wasn't it you who stabbed me in the kidney when I wasn't looking last time?"

Li Quzhuo was forced to take two steps back, looking completely bewildered. "Kidneys? What kidneys? You want to eat pork kidneys? Buy them yourself."

"Huh? It really isn't you? Don't let my thick eyebrows and big eyes fool you into thinking I'm easy to bully."

"Haha, you have thick eyebrows and big eyes? Well, don't close your eyes yet."

"I've already opened it as wide as I can."

"Ha ha ha ha--"

Seeing this, the people around started to laugh and jeer.

Mu Qinghan coughed twice, interrupting their argument, his voice still cold and clear.

"Something came up on the way, which delayed me for a while."

Li Quzhuo winked at him and didn't press the matter further. Instead, he beckoned to Mu Qinghan, "Qinghan, please sit down. The wine has just been warmed up and is waiting for you!"

"Hahaha—how wonderful! Let's all drink to our hearts' content!"

Seeing Ji Wuji coolly chugging wine while carrying a pair of black shoes, Mu Qinghan was slightly taken aback.

"What is he doing..."

"Hey, don't worry about him, that's just his taste."

"Huh? Is that so?"

"He's been different from others since he was a child."

"Oh? Little Qinghan, you've finally arrived! Come, come, let's have a three-cup drink together."

"Little Qinghan, what do you think of this mask?"

"Haha, that's good. This is for you."

"Then what do you think of mine?"

"Hahaha, bro, I told you your mask was ugly, hahaha—"

Chapter 35 Abnormality

"So... what are we going to do wearing these masks?"

"Go and seek the truth of the world."

"The truth of the world?"

"You guys have probably seen that clip too, right, those outside the industry..."

"That's a forbidden zone, brother, do you want to go there?"

"No, we should first venture into the inner circle, slay demons and monsters. Once we are strong enough to enter the inner circle, we will go and see what's outside."

"Hmm...that sounds interesting. Righting wrongs? Hehe, we're all masked heroes."

The campfire crackled and burned in the open space.

The orange-red flames leaped merrily, illuminating the faces of the boys sitting around them.

Mu Qinghan sat alone in the corner, gently stroking the fox mask in her hand with her fingertips.

The mask has a blue base with fine silver thread patterns embroidered along the edges.

Two snow-white fox ears stand upright at the top, with a downy texture that feels soft and delicate to the touch.

He lowered his eyes, his gaze fixed on the mask, but a small figure flashed through his mind without warning.

The girl's eyes were red at the corners, and her ears drooped.

Her body, curled up in her own arms, rose and fell gently, her slender fingers unconsciously clenching the front of her clothes.

Mu Qinghan's fingertips suddenly paused, and her eyes flickered with a moment of confusion.

That distant memory suddenly became clear because of this mask, and a slight soreness inexplicably welled up in my heart.

"What's wrong, bro? Daydreaming?"

A cheerful voice broke his daze.

Mu Shenqi, carrying two bowls of rice wine, strode over to him, plopped down on the ground, and handed him one of the bowls.

He glanced at the mask in Mu Qinghan's hand, raised an eyebrow and smiled, "What's wrong? Did you think of something?"

Mu Qinghan simply shook her head slightly.

"Would you like to try it?"

Mu Shenqi shook the wine bowl in his hand, and the rich aroma of rice wafted out from the rim of the bowl.

“Before, you were too young, and your father always said that alcohol was bad for your health and wouldn’t let you touch it. Now that your cultivation is stable and you’re of age, try this homemade rice wine; it’s very good for warming your body.”

Mu Qinghan looked up at the wine bowl his brother had handed him; fine rice residue floated in the clear wine.

His gaze sharpened, and he took the bowl.

Without the slightest hesitation, he tilted his head back and drank the rice wine in the bowl in one gulp.

"Gudong..."

The liquor glided down my throat, carrying a faint sweetness, yet also accompanied by a slightly spicy burning sensation.

"Gudong..."

After taking the last sip of wine, Mu Qinghan put down the empty bowl, a faint blush rising on her fair cheeks.

Seeing that he drank it down so readily, Mu Shenqi patted him on the shoulder and laughed, "Good lad, you're really straightforward! This rice wine has a low alcohol content, so you won't get drunk. It's okay to drink a little more."

Mu Qinghan didn't reply, but instead turned her gaze back to the fox mask.

Tu Shan Ya Ya was munching on a candied hawthorn when she suddenly caught a glimpse of a familiar figure emerging from the mist.

When she saw that the person who came was Mu Qinghan, she was so surprised that her eyes widened and her fox ears stood up.

He opened and closed his mouth several times, but the words that were about to come out seemed to be frozen, and he couldn't utter a single word.

"Hello, vixen." Mu Qinghan stood not far away, her clothes fluttering in the mountain breeze, her tone devoid of emotion.

"You're the vixen!" Ya Ya suddenly snapped out of her daze, hid the candied hawthorn behind her back, and stomped her foot. "My name is Tu Shan Ya Ya, remember that!"

Although her words were tinged with anger, the tips of her ears secretly blushed.

"Heh... Hello, Tu Shan Ya Ya."

Mu Qinghan's lips curved into a very faint smile, his usually icy face softened with tenderness, and his gaze fell on her, as if filled with an unyielding warmth.

Ya Ya's heart skipped a beat when she saw that look, her cheeks flushed, and her fingers tightened unconsciously around the candied hawthorn.

"What do you want? Why did you suddenly come to Tushan?"

He used to always have a cold face, but his gentle demeanor at this moment left her somewhat at a loss.