The Little Fox's Immortal Cultivation Encyclopedia

The fox stretched out its paw, pressed it against the tree trunk, and closed its eyes to sense its surroundings.

The inner core leaped lightly in his abdomen, and a wisp of magical power flowed out along his body and entered the peach tree.

There was no reaction; it was as if the house was empty, with the doors wide open and no defenses, everything laid bare to the fox.

A thick, honey-like liquid was flowing through the branches of the peach tree.

The first thing the fox sensed was the power of incense offerings and prayers. Having been a god, the fox was very familiar with this aura. It could tell that these prayers were the beautiful wishes of the people of Tao County, the surrounding villages, and even people from further afield for the Peach God.

These aspirations, accumulated over a century, form the underlying character of the peach tree.

Going deeper, you come across something that smells of grass and wood.

The fox recognized what it was. Just as the fox inhaled and exhaled the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, the peach tree also absorbed and exhaled the essence of heaven and earth day and night, transforming it into streams of magical power that circulated within the tree's veins.

Although the fox has never seen any other creature that can breathe like a fox, it is not surprising considering that the peach tree lives at least a hundred years longer than the fox and is a tree.

The third thing was something that Fox was extremely familiar with.

Those malevolent energies were coursing through the veins of the peach tree. If the veins of the peach tree were compared to willow branches, each willow branch would be as sinister as when we first met.

Unbeknownst to them, the fox had already mingled with the ways of gods and immortals, witnessing all sorts of strange things. These experiences made it easy for the fox to sense that something was amiss.

The willow tree has no magical power, but the peach tree has cultivated for many years. How did it get entangled by Yin energy to this extent?

Before the fox could investigate the reason, the liquid suddenly surged, as if it were alive, and devoured the magic power completely.

"No." The fox shook its head. Although its magic was pure, compared to the Peach God, it was like inserting a shiny, smooth hair into a knotted coat of fur—completely useless.

The fox looked down, and although it could no longer explore inside the tree trunk, it still had its nose.

So close, the stale air below was so thick that the fox's eyes could barely open.

It stretched out its claws and unleashed its signature move.

Dig holes.

The ground was very hard, and although the fox's strength was no longer what it used to be, digging was still extremely difficult. The fox dug hard for quite a while before the ground had just sunk a small layer.

"Da Liu, you come too." The Yin energy was still very deep, so the fox wasn't afraid of them being corrupted.

"Hey, what are you doing?" The neighborhood servants nearby were attracted and startled. In broad daylight, why was someone sneaking around digging up tree roots?

"Hey, you..."

The fox flicked its tail, disrupting the five senses.

The laborers also joined the pit-digging team.

The speed increased, and the fox could sense that the Yin energy underground had become almost tangible, like a huge block of ice, trembling slightly because of their movements.

A voice suddenly rang in his ears: "The Yin energy has now solidified into a tangible form. If you rashly dig or disturb the earth, the evil energy will leak out and spread in all directions. It will corrupt living beings, causing their bodies to rot and their minds to go mad. It will pollute the earth's veins, causing an imbalance of Yin and Yang. It will destroy houses, breed evil spirits, and ultimately bring disaster to the city, making it irrecoverable."

The fox suddenly stopped.

"Utter ruin?"

Inside the county government office.

Duan Mianli looked at the mountain of files in front of him, his brows furrowed, and he let out a long sigh.

Before he and Magistrate Zhang arrived, the previous magistrate barely attended to government affairs, and the yamen runners and officials under him protected each other, resulting in corruption.

But that's not always the case. The former county magistrate was an exception; he diligently recorded every case.

Although that damned magistrate disliked him, because of his presence, far fewer people bothered him with their grievances and complaints, so the magistrate turned a blind eye.

Unfortunately, the county constable and the previous county magistrate disappeared together, so these files were left unorganized and simply placed in the warehouse.

He has been back in the county for nearly half a month. Besides using the guise of a demon hunter to investigate clues and ruthlessly eliminate a group of corrupt officials, he spends at least half a day every day organizing files, but there is still little progress.

Duan Mianli suppressed his irritation and sat down to tidy up for a long time, but he still couldn't calm down. After thinking for the third time whether the county magistrate was holding a grudge and had killed the county magistrate to escape punishment, he finally let go of his anger and went out the door.

The yamen runners who remained in the county government office were all performing their duties, and Magistrate Zhang was also handling official business in the hall. Duan Mianli was extremely bored and was just about to go out to see if there were any more blind people when he suddenly saw a familiar figure.

"Hey, Elder Niu?"

Chief Niu, dressed all in white, was sneaking into the county government office. Startled by Duan Mianli, he turned around tremblingly, saying, "Lord Duan..."

"Where have you gone off to instead of working at the yamen?"

"Well, the Autumn Equinox is coming soon, I'm going to offer sacrifices to the gods..."

Duan Mianli grabbed him and said, "You always make excuses when I ask you to do something, but you're quite enthusiastic about worshipping gods and ghosts. I think you're up to no good, afraid of revenge from those who died unjustly!"

Duan Mianli remained deeply troubled by the attack on the mountain god temple, and he always suspected that there were spies of a sorcerer hiding in the county government office.

Leaving aside how the sorcerer knew their whereabouts at the mountain god temple, they had already rushed to the county early on the morning of the 14th. Apart from the county government officials, no one knew that they had arrived in Tao County.

However, people began to disappear one after another that same day. If there were still demons lurking outside the temple at the time, why did Chang Sheng not reappear after his failed assassination attempt? There is no other explanation for his swift retaliation except that there was a traitor within the county government.

Duan Mianli spoke bluntly, and Niu Qizhang understood the subtext; his face darkened as well: "You're spouting nonsense! Have you forgotten Lord Zhang's words?"

Duan Mianli had spoken to the county magistrate about it, but Zhang Enhuai said his logic was flawed and far-fetched, telling him not to speak recklessly without evidence. But who was this Elder Niu? Did he dare use the county magistrate to pressure him?

"Then tell me, why didn't they act earlier or later, but waited until we came back before making their arrest?"

"Lord Duan, you're far too arrogant. Have you forgotten that day was the fourteenth of July?" Elder Niu sneered. "On the fourteenth of July, the gates of hell open, auspicious for ancestor worship and deliverance. If I were a demon, I would naturally choose this day too!"

Duan Mianli laughed angrily: "Are you out of your mind? Tomorrow is the Autumn Equinox, you're offering sacrifices to your ancestors today, while others celebrate the fifteenth, you celebrate the fourteenth?"

Niu Qizhang trembled with rage: "Lord Duan, you have a bad memory! This isn't your capital. In Yunling Prefecture, we celebrate the Ghost Festival on the fourteenth!"

Duan Mianli's smile froze as he suddenly remembered something.

After their failed assassination attempt at the mountain god temple, the sorcerers made no further moves.

Previously, he had always thought that it was because he had relied on the friendship between Magistrate Zhang and his senior brother, Abbot Yun, that he was able to invite Abbot Yun to help him, which made those demons back down and dare not act rashly.

The previous magistrate had clearly vanished into thin air within the county office, and Chang Sheng had become a cripple right under his nose. Now, he and Magistrate Zhang were stationed at the county office, so why hadn't those sorcerers even made a single attempt to probe them?

They never saw themselves as dangerous; they would give it a try, and if they succeeded, great, but if they failed, it didn't matter.

An even worse thought came to mind: perhaps they had already achieved their goal during the handover between the two county magistrates?