You said you would practice martial arts. Have you mastered the Tiangang Dharma?

Chapter 498 The Nine-Tailed Fox That Has Passed Through the Years
Time is the longest wait. When Jiang Qiu was flipping through the ancient books, Yiwei, Jiuweihu and Ah Xiong also followed the elder guarding the pavilion to flip through the ancient books. In the eyes of the elder guarding the pavilion, the greatest value of these books is to identify whether there is a chosen person.

Yes, the elder guarding the pavilion does not know the method to go to the fourth heaven. The method is all in the book. As long as one is the true chosen one, one can find the answer through the ancient book. Therefore, he has always accepted everyone. Even the young Aying has read many books in it, but it was of no use.

In fact, he did not expect to find the answer from Jiang Qiu and others, but he himself also wanted to know the answer to the fourth heaven.
First, the nine-tailed fox, as the original body, was the first to come into contact with the contents of the ancient book. The long river of time left traces on it, which contrasted with her snow-white hair.

In the long-ago story, before the morning mist had dispersed, the leaves of the moonlight vines were already gleaming with pearlescent light. A girl from the Qingluo tribe carried a rattan water bottle and walked barefoot on the moss-covered pebble path. With a slight turn of her wrist, the morning dew that had been stored in the bottle all night turned into silver threads, soaking the curled vines. The fluff on the leaves was stained with water droplets, reflecting thousands of rainbow colors in the gradually brightening morning light, awakening the sleeping spirit butterfly.

These tiny creatures with wings as thin as cicada wings emerged from the flower buds, drawing golden trails in the mist with phosphorus powder. The oldest butterfly king perched on the knot of a thousand-year-old tree, and its tentacles lightly touched the bark, and the tree spirits that had been sleeping all night yawned and stretched out their branches. The lantern fruits at the ends of the branches lit up one after another, dyeing the indigo sky covering the forest into honey color.

The spiritual spring was surging at the foot of the West Mountain, and the water surface was filled with a layer of spiritual energy like glass. A young man from the White Fox tribe sat cross-legged on the green jade stone beside the spring, with the tip of his tail hanging in the water and drawing runes. The spring water was rippling with tiny starlight, and these light particles rose to the air and turned into translucent fish, swinging their tails and swimming towards the village where the smoke was rising. An old woman from the Fire Fox tribe was cooking morning dew porridge in front of a stone stove. When the fish sank into the pottery pot, the shadows of lotus flowers bloomed in the green smoke.

Under the glazed tiles of the cottage hang vines of night-blooming primroses, a spiritual plant that blooms only on moonlit nights. At this moment, the lavender buds shrink into a water drop shape. The copper bells on the eaves ring without wind, waking up the ferret curled up on the roof. The little fellow shakes his fluffy tail and leaps onto the persimmon tree covered with morning frost. Before the ice crystals that fall from the tree fall to the ground, the bamboo spirit that has been squatting for a long time jumps up and swallows them.

When the sun climbed up the eastern cliff, the entire evening primrose field suddenly shone with silver waves. The root network buried underground transformed the morning light into flowing light veins, which flowed into the roots of the sacred tree along the channels paved by lichens. The emerald birds on the treetops began to sing, and each of their clear cries would shake off a few leaves covered in gold powder. These fallen leaves turned into spirit moths halfway through the drift, fluttering towards the awakening spirit field.

When the fragrance of steamed cakes with pine needles wafted from the kitchen, the sound of pounding clothes could be heard from the washing platform downstream of the spiritual spring. Shark silk was spread out on the bluestone slabs, and the elderly clam girls hummed ancient tunes, and water drops condensed on their fingertips and bounced on the gauze surface. Each drop of water was wrapped in a miniature rainbow, which turned into flowing cloud patterns after seeping into the fabric. Young fox girls chased barefoot in the shallows, and when their toes touched the water surface, the sleeping rain flower stones began to ripple.

When the sun was hanging in the sky at noon, the whole holy land was enveloped in a pale golden halo. On the white jade floor of the training ground, hundreds of demon youths were practicing breathing techniques with the white-haired and youthful Turtle Immortal. The white air they exhaled condensed into various auspicious beasts in the air. The shadows of Pixiu and Qilin chased each other across the herb garden, startling the eared mice that were stealing the red fruit and causing their fur to explode.

The purple crystal beehive deep in the medicinal field trembled slightly, and the queen bee tapped her antennae lightly, and the worker bees lined up to fly out of the hexagonal nest. The sound waves generated by the vibration of their wings awakened the dormant dragon blood ginseng, and the dark red ginseng whiskers broke through the ground, catching the spiritual particles floating in the air. The vine demon guarding the medicinal field stretched lazily, and the lily of the valley at the end of its hair suddenly bloomed, releasing a fragrance that made all insects sleepy.

In front of the cave on the cliff of the West Mountain, the elder of the Fire Fox Clan was holding a spiritual power channeling ceremony. The nine-tailed phantom swayed behind her, and she tapped the rock layer with the coral staff in her hand, and the restless fire spirit in the earth veins flowed along the chiseled runes to the smelting pool. The boiling red slurry in the pool rolled and gradually condensed into transparent Phoenix Stone. The swordsmith guarding the pool immediately sprinkled star sand into it, and feather-like patterns appeared on the surface of the cooled ore.

At 3:30 pm, the clouds suddenly gathered. The thunder spirit shuttled through the cumulonimbus clouds, and the lightning generated by the friction between its scales was absorbed by the array of giant mushrooms below. These luminous mushrooms, with a diameter of more than ten feet, trembled gently, transforming lightning into a stream of bright blue light, which was guided into the underground spiritual veins along the mycelium. The moment the raindrops fell, all the leaves of the grass and trees glowed with green light, forming an inverted bowl-shaped barrier, and the rain curtain hovered three feet above the ground like a crystal curtain wall.

Countless swimming spots of light appeared in the rain curtain, which were water spirits weaving new springs. The transparent spring girls stood up from the stream, with water grass in their hair dripping with pearls. They held crescent-shaped shell cups in their hands to collect rainwater, and the nectar in the cups gradually filled up and poured back into the river. The frog boy squatting in the reeds took the opportunity to jump up, and his tongue flew over the fireflies in front of him. The gurgling sound made by the movement of his cheeks scared away the clouds in the reflection.

After the drizzle at 3 p.m. washed away the dust, a rainbow bridge was built from the east mountain to the west mountain. The flower fairies floated by with bamboo baskets on their shoulders, and clusters of new stamens grew wherever their skirts swept past. They scattered the seven-color light dust they collected in the center of the rainbow bridge. When the light dust touched the rainbow, it turned into spirit birds with long tails. When these birds flapped their wings, they would shake off rainbow scales, and the mushrooms that were touched by the scales would instantly swell several times.

The glass dome of the library was now flowing with aurora-like colors, and the scent of ink overflowed from the carved window lattices, condensing into a virtual shadow of ink splashing in the corridor. A star map composed of fireflies floated between the bookshelves. Whenever a demon reached out to take a book, the corresponding star cluster would flicker. The ink monkey squatting beside the inkstone suddenly squeaked, and it turned out that the old turtle fairy's beard fell into the brush-washing pool, and the ink lotus in the pool immediately folded its petals.

As the smoke from cooking rises again, flocks of birds fly over the Emerald Forest. Each bird holds a glowing fruit in its beak, and they drop it into the altar in the center of the forest. The mountain of fruit slowly sinks into the earth veins. The ancient inscriptions on the surface of the altar light up one after another, transforming the essence of the sun and the moon contained in the fruit into spiritual energy that nourishes the earth. The gargoyles guarding the altar roll their eyes and shake off the dust on their wings.

As dusk fell, the Moonlight Vine began to grow for the second time. The vines climbed up the sacred tree, the new tendrils stretched in the evening breeze, and the fluorescent veins on the back of the leaves gradually lit up. The girls of the Qingluo tribe came together, and the fluorite hairpins in their hair complemented the light of the vines. When they joined their hands and chanted, the silk stamens hanging from the vines spit out flower buds condensed from spiritual energy. These flower buds suddenly bloomed when they floated to the height of the tree canopy, releasing a light mist with a sweet scent.

The starry sky at the hour of Xu is particularly low, as if you can reach out and grab the stars. The old men of the demon tribe gather at the observatory, using tortoise shells to predict the direction of tomorrow's earth veins. The young men fly kites between the stars, and the airflow caused by the fluttering of their clothes awakens the sleeping cloud spirits. These cotton-like little creatures rub their eyes and float away, forming the totems of ancient demon beasts in the night sky.

At midnight, all the luminous plants flickered three times at the same time, which was a signal that the holy land was entering a deep rest. The spiritual spring stopped surging, and the water surface formed a mirror of moonlight; the wind whisper grass folded its leaves, storing the accumulated whispers in the ground veins; even the most lively ear mice curled up into a fur ball, with their noses against their tails and fell asleep. Only the night-watching wood spirits were still patrolling. When they touched the ground with their toes, the luminous moss along the way would light up and dim, rising and falling like breathing. In this eternal cycle, every life in the demon clan holy land has found its own rhythm. The trajectory of dewdrops rolling down banana leaves is synchronized with the rise and fall of the mermaids' singing; the arc of light drawn by fireflies coincides with the surge of the ground's spiritual energy; even the sound of new bamboo shoots breaking through the ground happens to fall between two heartbeats. As all things breathe in and out, they maintain the tranquility of this paradise that has not changed for thousands of years.

When the last batch of star sand sank into the groove of the altar, spiral lines of the Milky Way appeared on the surface of the jade. The elder Black Turtle on duty pressed his front paws on the Kan position, and the Luoshu pattern on the shell began to flow with green light. The twelve bronze animal heads around the altar sprayed water mist at the same time, interweaving in the air to form the Xiantian Bagua formation diagram.

The yin-yang fish in the center of the formation suddenly swam, the white fish biting the light rope hanging from the moon wheel, and the black fish swallowed the spiritual energy rising from the earth veins. At this moment, the energy of the entire holy land completed a large circulation: the essence of plants and trees overflowing from the medicine field on the east side turned into emerald streams, the residual heat of the lava in the weapon refining workshop on the west condensed into red gossamer, the sound waves from the piano platform in the south mountain rippled golden ripples, and the frost rising from the cold pond in the north valley formed a silver spider web.

The four great witches stood in four directions, their instruments resonating with the energy flows of corresponding attributes. The jade hairpin of the Azure Dragon witch moved the green stream, the flame-patterned drum of the old man Suzaku absorbed the red silk, the bone flute of the white tiger boy gathered the golden ripples, and the ice crystal mirror of the black tortoise woman reflected the silver net. When the four-color light streams collided at the top of the altar, the colorful light rain that burst out sprinkled on the edge of the barrier, repairing the tiny cracks caused by the erosion of time.

At the moment of midnight, all the demons felt the vibration of their spirit veins at the same time. The fetus in the pregnant woman's belly opened its eyes, and the light spots of inherited memory flashed in its pupils; the dying Udumbara suddenly bloomed again, and the prophecy of the next guardian appeared on the petals; even the newly born spirit rabbit stood up, and its front paws unconsciously drew ancient blessing runes.

This energy tide that spanned the past and present lasted for seven full breaths. When the moonlight turned from indigo to silver, the altar, which had completed its mission, fell silent again. But the remaining spiritual fragments in the air were still floating, like countless tiny stars falling on the hair of the sleeping demons, accumulating new vitality for the coming dawn.
The nine-tailed fox did not have much feeling when she saw such a scene. Even though she had followed Jiang Qiu in the third heaven for at least sixty years, when she was in the first heaven, she had rarely come into contact with the demon culture. She herself was just a native fox with nine tails. How could she understand so many things and how could she digest so many things?
Even though she saw a lot along the way, due to the wind and rain, she had no intention of paying attention to the areas she had passed through, nor did she understand what their connotations and significance were.

She slept for a long time and then set out on her journey in a daze. She felt very confused. If it weren't for her master Jiang Qiu by her side, she would have almost lost the meaning of life.

Because life will eventually run out, she will also grow old. The laws of the third heaven have constrained her soul and bound her body. Now she should just treat it as flipping through a book, savoring the culture that she had not paid attention to before.

Maybe before you know it, you are gone and you can no longer remember why you are looking for the fourth heaven.
This is the situation on the Nine-tailed Fox's side. As her first incarnation, the One-tail who inherited the identity of the Nine-tailed Fox God, saw more interesting contents in the ancient book.

Although One-Tail had the same experience as the Nine-Tailed Fox, and even their souls were the same, their situations were actually quite different. From a certain perspective, even if One-Tail's lifespan ran out in the Third Heaven, her existence would remain in the First Heaven for a long time.

Even though the journey was long and she had experienced a lot, her name had always been circulated in the First Heaven. She was the god who once helped the nine-tailed fox resist the heavenly calamity, the Nine-tailed Fox God. The people of a city were singing praises to her name, and the squirrel demon also served as a priest to sing her name forever. As for the spiritual fruit forest on the edge of Taihu Lake behind her, her name, the Nine-tailed Fox God, was also sung continuously.

Until now, it is still thriving. Even after ascending to the second heaven, the title of god has been established, and the power of faith is endless.

Even though countless years have been spent in the Second Heaven, there are still people who remember the words "Nine-Tailed Fox God"
The book she flipped through no longer showed the holy scenery of the Third Heaven, nor the flavor of the demon race, but——

The desolate land stretches endlessly, with yellow sand all over the sky and the sun blazing. In this dead land, an ancient altar stands alone. It has been eroded by time, with broken stones and mottled moss, as if it is the only life in this uninhabited land. On the altar, a nine-tailed fox statue stands proudly, its shape is lifelike, and it seems that it will break free from the constraints of the stone sculpture at any time and turn into a real spirit beast.

The statue of the nine-tailed fox is lifelike, with nine tails that seem to flutter in the wind. The slender fox tails outline elegant arcs, and each tail is delicate and soft, as if it would tremble at the slightest touch. The statue's eyes are deep, with the corners of the eyes slightly raised, revealing a subtle cunning and wisdom. Its ears tremble slightly, as if it can hear the whispers of the wind in the distance, or capture the subtlest sounds between heaven and earth.

The sun shines on the nine-tailed fox, and the surface of the stone sculpture reflects mottled light and shadow, adding a bit of mystery and majesty to the statue. However, the area around the altar is desolate, with no trace of life, only the whistling wind and the flying sand. Occasionally, a lonely sand crow will circle over the altar, making a dull cry, breaking the deathly silence.

However, in this desolate land, the altar and the nine-tailed fox statue seem to be waiting for something. Their existence transcends the limitations of time, as if they are relics of ancient times, carrying ancient power and secrets. In the afterglow of the sunset, the shadow of the statue is very long, blending with the altar, which makes people think of the long and mysterious story behind them.

Time passes silently. The desolate land, the lonely altar, and the nine-tailed fox statue all quietly tell the secrets of the ancient legend, waiting for the arrival of the destined person.
(End of this chapter)