Notes on Longevity

Chapter 195 The Green Fox's Spell Conceals Poison; Xiao Changgong Finds the Answer in the Courtyard

The cat demon wielded the arrow, making a quick step as if to pierce Xiao Changgong's heart. At that moment, he sensed the green fox, transformed from Qiushui, rushing towards him.

He slightly turned his head, his cold, vicious gaze meeting Qiu Shui Hu Niang's dark blue fox eyes. The fox raised its paw, its sharp claws gleaming in the rainy night.

The cat demon seemed to sense something from the fox's claws, so he abandoned his attempt to stab Xiao Changgong in the heart and instead bent down to dodge the fox's sharp claws. The stone path in Fuyang was slippery in the night rain. After dodging the fox's attack, he threw the arrow in his hand and, using the force of the arrow combined with his movement and magic, slid to the wall at the alley entrance.

He turned abruptly, the fox's claws fell to the ground, and a blue light shone from beneath her feet, gradually transforming into black smoke as she approached Xiao Changgong with light steps. The dark black smoke was nauseating, and moreover, it suddenly dispersed in all directions as she transformed back into human form and shielded Xiao Changgong behind her.

Sun Gong immediately looked around, unsure of what to do with the three men who seemed to be at odds with each other. He worriedly muttered to himself, "Why hasn't the Commandant arrived yet?"

However, what worried him most was not that, but that red light suddenly emanated from the scattered black smoke. The black and red shone and intertwined, and finally disappeared with a roar.

Sun Gong and his soldiers covered their ears at the sound, but neglected the horses. Startled, the horses neighed and hoarse, and the soldiers fell off their horses one after another.

Sun Gong's silver helmet fell to the ground, his face slamming hard onto the stone pavement. At the same time, a black and red spot, invisible to the naked eye, landed on his cheek. Suddenly, he felt a piercing pain, a sensation of flesh and blood separating.

"what!"

Sun Gong touched the icy, bone-chilling flesh and blood on his face, which was gradually being corroded, and his miserable howls echoed in the rainy night.

"Sun Da!" The sight of bones and flesh intertwined was horrifying to the soldier who had gotten up and tried to help him up.

Cat's Eyes turned around, frowning and glaring at Qiu Shui, "Are your hands and feet poisonous?"

"Tch, I'm covered in poison. If you're so capable, let me touch you again!" Qiu Shui was no longer nervous after protecting Xiao Chang Gong behind her. She stared at the cat demon with a playful smile, gesturing with her hands.

The cat demon shuddered at the words. After shaking off Xiao Changgong, he was about to leave quickly, but Qiu Shui slapped him so hard that he was stunned and captured. Now, when he recalled the moment when her icy hands grabbed his neck, he felt a chill of fear.

Fortunately, she didn't use poison at the time, otherwise he would be like Sun Gong now, his whole body rotting and eventually turning into a pile of bones.

The cat demon's earlier glare turned into wariness. He stared at Qiu Shui and asked, "Why are you chasing me?"

Standing behind Qiu Shui, Xiao Changgong grunted incredulously upon hearing this. He then revealed half of his body and pointed menacingly at the cat demon, shouting, "You cat demon, you stole my candied hawthorn! I'm definitely going to settle the score with you!"

"But I haven't eaten anything all day. I had no choice," the boy, who was actually a cat demon, said earnestly and righteously.

Xiao Changgong was furious when he heard this: "You fox spirit, you don't think you haven't eaten all day, do you? Let me tell you, I haven't eaten either!"

The cat demon frowned, its eyes filled with disbelief, and its words were even more amusing: "You didn't eat either? But what does that have to do with me?"

"Hmm?" Xiao Changgong grinned and sneered, while Qiu Shui chuckled and said, "You two are so interesting."

"It has nothing to do with you?" Xiao Changgong was dumbfounded. He never expected that someone who had stolen what should have been his candied hawthorn would say such a thing. He couldn't stand it anymore. Immediately, Xiao Changgong stepped past Qiu Shui and activated his magic, saying, "Today I'll make sure you have something to do with me. You dare to steal my food? I'll cripple you!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Xiao Changgong, who was activating his magic, glowed with a red light, and a strong sense of oppression surged from the cat demon's heart. Immediately, he knew something was wrong and turned to leap away again. But how could Xiao Changgong, who had already activated his magic, let him have his way?

"The Dharma represents heaven and earth."

With a low growl, Xiao Changgong's body began to change. His clothes were suddenly covered by bristling fur, which then embedded itself into his flesh. Moments later, a gigantic fox head replaced Xiao Changgong's human head along with his ever-growing body.

The Autumn Water Maiden stared at the several-zhang-tall Xiao Changgong with disbelief in her eyes. His cultivation was clearly inferior to hers, so how could he possibly use the divine power of the Dharma Body of Heaven and Earth?
The girl named Qiushui couldn't understand it.

Looking at Sun Gong, who had turned into bones, in the rain, their eyes were filled with terror and fear. Before they could recover from the sight of the skeletons, they suddenly saw Xiao Changgong transformed into a gigantic fox demon several meters tall, as large as a human. They were so frightened that they lost their senses and fainted amidst a series of terrified screams.

When Qiu Shui came to her senses from Xiao Chang Gong's Dharma Body, she couldn't find him. She knew that Xiao Chang Gong had gone to chase the cat demon, but she didn't rush to follow him. Instead, she braved the night rain to retrieve the candied hawthorn that had fallen to the ground and was wrapped in her magic.

She frowned and pouted as she looked at the bright red candied hawthorn in her hand, thinking to herself, "This fox actually has such a supernatural power, but why don't I?"

She stood dejectedly in the rain, but quickly recovered. He smiled with relief and muttered, "Never mind that for now. I'll have him teach me after we deal with the cat demon."

Qiu Shui spoke playfully in the rain, then followed closely behind. However, on the way, she seemed to see a blue light in the distance rushing towards Xiao Chang Gong and the others.

She stopped, her heart tightening. She bit her lip and said, "Could it be that we've attracted that immortal from Zouma Temple?"

With that thought in mind, she immediately rushed off with all her might, trying to take Xiao Changgong away before the "immortal" arrived, otherwise they would be in big trouble.

Meanwhile, the cat demon, who had been relentlessly pursued by Xiao Changgong and his companion, cursed inwardly, "What bad luck I've had today! I've run into such a troublesome fellow. Now I'm probably going to go hungry again tonight."

The cat demon thought to himself, glancing back to see if Xiao Changgong was chasing after him again. Clearly, he didn't know that Xiao Changgong was using the Dharma Body to pursue him.

When he could no longer see Xiao Changgong, he assumed he hadn't followed, so he slowed his pace, searching for a direction, thinking to himself, "Now that I've shaken him off, I still need to eat. But where should I go?"

"The woman's house?" But when he thought of the woman's fierce appearance, he shook his head repeatedly: "No, that person looks like a fierce demon, I can't go there again."

“Oh, right,” he suddenly remembered something, “the pastry shop not far from that restaurant is good.”

However, he quickly lowered his head: "If I hadn't been looking for something to eat, I wouldn't have eaten this sickeningly sweet stuff."

However, there's no other way for him to do this now.

Having said that, he chose a direction and was about to leave. But at that moment, he suddenly felt that the sky seemed to have become even more gloomy, as if the dark clouds had completely obscured the moon, leaving no trace. However, a sense of crisis also arose in his heart.

He looked up sharply and saw a colossal statue bending over and staring at him. Its bloodshot eyes and sharp, prickly hair pressed against his back.

A fox head with a long snout and erect ears appeared in his eyes, sending chills down his spine.

He had never seen such a huge creature before. He looked at the enormous fox that had sheltered him from the rain with great fear and made to run away, but it was too late.

Xiao Changgong roared and stretched out a fox hand towards him, then clenched it into a fist and rushed straight towards the cat demon.

"boom!"

The cat demon, sent flying several meters by Xiao Changgong's punch, had a deep gash in the wall. Hearing the noise, the people inside lit lamps and grumbled as they came out of the room. Just as they were about to say something, they saw Xiao Changgong, his body flushed red and his appearance terrifying, staring at them.

So, he pretended to be calm, but was actually terrified, and returned to his room, closing the door tightly.

As the lights went out, Xiao Changgong stared again at the cat demon who had fallen to the ground. He saw that the demon's eyes were wide open in fear, and its heart was pounding wildly.

At this moment, the loud noise once again woke the people from their sleep. They lit lamps and went outside to look, but when they saw Xiao Changgong's huge figure, they suddenly turned around and went back into the house, ignoring everything outside.

The cat demon was on its last breath, but Xiao Changgong was still furious. He was heartbroken. He had finally managed to find a string of Tang nurses, but they had been destroyed by the cat demon. He had no intention of hurting people or his own kind, but the cat demon was so hateful that he had no choice but to kill it.

Seeing Xiao Changgong's restless body, the cat demon knew that he might die here today.

Just as Xiao Changgong was about to make his move, a beam of fire came from the horizon and struck his massive body. The fireball was no bigger than his palm, but when it hit him, it was like the lingering, inextinguishable flames left by a thunderbolt.

The intense, burning pain spread throughout his body almost instantly, and his divine powers of manifesting heaven and earth also became ineffective at this moment.

Xiao Changgong staggered, panting as he ran towards the direction from which the fireball had come. In the distance, he saw a blue figure approaching him. He didn't have time to think much, assuming it was the cat demon's helper. The spell dissipated quickly, but he still prepared for a battle.

"Hurry up, it'll be troublesome if that person arrives." Qiu Shui suddenly appeared beside Xiao Chang Gong. She was carrying a string of candied hawthorns. She pulled Xiao Chang Gong and waved, summoning a wisp of green smoke before turning inside.

The heavy, muffled sound of iron hooves landing on the stone pavement sent a chill down my spine, making me feel a sense of unease and fear, as if countless ants were crawling and gnawing at my heart.

The cat demon, who was originally on the verge of death, actually regained some strength under the iron hooves. He struggled to his feet, turned his head to look at the approaching heavily armored cavalry, then transformed into a black cat, endured the pain, and darted into the alley, disappearing without a trace.

The blue figure arrived first at the broken wall. He stood with his head held high, looking like a young man with his hands behind his back, but his wrinkled face told people that he was old.

"Master Yuyang, those three demons not only caused trouble in the city, but also killed the patrol soldiers. Please help us capture them."

The speaker was Commandant Zhou, who bowed respectfully to Yuyang and pleaded.

“It’s too late.” Yu Yang turned around and said with his aged face, “Those two fox demons have already left the city. I’ve only just stabilized the formation in the temple and can’t go far. As for that cat demon, he’s already half-buried in the ground and won’t live any longer.”

"What about our brothers? They just died like that?" Commander Zhou looked at Yuyang in disbelief upon hearing this.

Yu Yang did not answer him, but turned and walked towards Zoumaguan, and then said, "Life and death are predestined, so don't blame anyone. If he dies, even if I go out and kill them, he won't come back to life, so it's better to leave it as it is."

"Master of Yuyang Temple!"

Having said that, Yu Yang rode away on the wind in the rainy night, leaving behind only the furious Commandant Zhou and his soldiers.

He glared angrily at the gap in the wall, determined to capture the three demons no matter what.

Boats on the river outside the city, when will the night rain stop?
Inside a deserted, darkened pleasure boat, Xiao Changgong gazed resentfully at the city of Fuyang. He had almost killed that cat demon.

But Qiu Shui told him, "There is a Taoist temple on a mountain outside Fuyang City, and the abbot of the temple is the number one person in the world today, known as the immortal of this era."

"An immortal?" Xiao Changgong turned around and looked at Qiushui with curiosity, full of doubt.

“Yes,” Qiu Shui said, holding the candied hawthorn still covered by magic. Looking at Xiao Chang Gong’s confused expression, her originally firm words suddenly became somewhat uncertain: “Anyway, I heard it from someone else.”

Finally, she added, "But this person is really amazing."

"Back then, I heard about him and, out of curiosity, secretly sneaked in once. I was almost slapped so hard I nearly died. After that, I never dared to go back. Nor did I dare to cause trouble in Fuyang City. That's why I went to that restaurant to sing for a living."

Although Qiu Shui was reminded of some sad things, she still smiled and joked with Xiao Chang Gong.

"Oh, right," she said, then suddenly remembered that Xiao Changgong hadn't eaten anything, and hurriedly reached for the candied hawthorn to hand to him. However, she hesitated and withdrew her hand, saying with a silly smile, "I almost forgot, all my spells are poisonous. Don't rush to eat it, even though it won't kill you."

After she finished speaking, she handed the candied hawthorn to Xiao Changgong with peace of mind. "However, it's best to wait a couple of days before eating it."

"But don't worry, it definitely won't break."

Xiao Changgong found Qiu Shui's current expression somewhat amusing. He lay on the edge of the pleasure boat, watching the rain fall into the river, and said weakly, "Actually, I'm quite curious too. Why are you so different in the restaurant compared to now?"

"What?" Qiu Shui asked, tilting her head as she saw Xiao Chang Gong, the cat demon, take the candied hawthorn. "What does this mean?"

"I said, when you were in the restaurant you were like a woman who knew how to navigate social situations, but now you're like a little girl who hasn't grown up yet. It's quite amusing."

Xiao Changgong withdrew his gaze and said with great envy.

He came down the mountain for two reasons: first, he was curious about what Fuyang City, the most prosperous city in the human world, looked like; second, the old demon in the mountain had just told him to go further afield and see more of the place to find his own path.

Having grown accustomed to sparsely populated villages and towns where everyone could treat each other with sincerity, he found it difficult to adapt to the unpredictable and scheming nature of the capital. That's why he envied Qiu Shui, who could be both adaptable in public and carefree in private.

However, Qiu Shui thought about the same thing. She said, "Isn't this good? Human relationships are just for the purpose of staying in the human world, while being playful and cute is my true nature. Although I don't want to be like this, there's nothing I can do. In the human world, we are demons, and we have to be a little bit subdued by their rules. Otherwise, how could we be able to freely enter and leave the capital city of the human world like we are now?"

“That’s true.” Xiao Changgong stood up and took the candied hawthorn from Qiu Shui without any hesitation. Then he walked to the side of the boat and said to her, “I owe you this candied hawthorn. I will definitely pay you back when I have the chance.”

"Are you leaving?" Miss Qiushui asked.

Xiao Changgong grunted twice and was about to leave when he turned to Qiu Shui and said, "To be honest, I've never seen a human or demon say they're cute or naughty. You're shameless."

Upon hearing this, Qiu Shui sat up in surprise. She glared at Xiao Chang Gong, but instead of being angry, she shouted, "You ate my candied hawthorn and you still say I'm shameless? Then give me back my candied hawthorn."

Xiao Changgong chuckled: "I won't pay it back."

After saying this, Xiao Changgong leaped onto the river and walked on it. As the night deepened and the rain subsided, he finally disappeared from sight.

"This little fox is really interesting."

Qiu Shui smiled as she watched Xiao Changgong's figure disappear, then sighed and turned to look at Fuyang City: "It seems I can't enter the city for a while. Maybe that 'immortal' is waiting in the city. I don't want to go looking for trouble."

Having said that, a wisp of green smoke rose from beneath her feet, and as the smoke thickened, Qiu Shui transformed into a green fox, finally coiling up and disappearing onto the flower boat.

"Huh?!" The rain in Zhoujia Village had stopped, but it was already afternoon.

Ping An and the others, along with the Zhou family grandfather and grandson, sat around the wooden table, listening to Xiao Changgong recount this past event. They were all shocked, especially She Li, who looked at Xiao Changgong with disbelief. Suddenly, he laughed and said, "I never expected this. You actually danced for people. Come on, why don't you dance first, and let me see how you do?"

She Li's sudden uncharacteristic behavior stunned Ping An and Yang Shouren. Ping An stared at She Li somewhat awkwardly and said, "Senior brother, this isn't right. After all, Senior Brother Xiao is just like me, inexperienced in such matters."

She Li was about to answer him when she saw Xiao Changgong come to Ping An's side. "I said, junior brother, who is like you? I'm just not used to being in a crowded place. Unlike you, you're really like a child."

When Xiao Changgong heard Ping An call him "senior brother," he immediately became interested and teased him in this way.

However, when She Li saw Xiao Changgong call Ping An "Junior Brother," she grabbed his fox ears and said fiercely, "Who's your Junior Brother? If you keep making up these nonsense, I'll beat you up."

Yang Shouren watched the three of them playfully bickering, too embarrassed to interrupt, and could only smile and watch them continue their antics.

However, Zhou Ziping seemed enlightened. He looked at Xiao Changgong and slowly said, "So, the fox spirit and Black Face met more than a hundred years ago. It's just that Black Face doesn't remember me, and I know why. What I'm curious about is, how come you didn't recognize Black Face when you met him? All these years, he hasn't changed at all; he's still the same as before."

Upon hearing this, Xiao Changgong suddenly felt awkward. He scratched his head and smiled at Zhou Ziping, saying, "These things are all in the past, let's not talk about them anymore."

(End of this chapter)