Becoming a Fox Spirit from Under One Person.

Zhang Zhiwei dropped the piece of wood, leaned back, tucked his chin in, and raised his hands above his head: "Master, do you think I still have a chance?"

"It's gone."

Zhang Jingqing flicked her sleeves and drew a wisp of lightning from her fingertips, striking towards Zhang Zhiwei.

Zhang Zhiwei swayed and hurriedly dodged away. The lightning flashed past his Taoist robe and landed on the bluestone ground, splashing up a few fragments of light.

"You dared to run now, so you've made some progress."

Zhang Jingqing turned to look at the fox, a gentle smile hidden in her eyes.

"The Fox Fairy Temple in Jinxi is indeed efficacious. I suppose my meager three sticks of incense are not enough to express my gratitude."

The fox replied, "You're too kind, Master, but I do have a request."

"There's no need to ask; just speak up."

Chen Ruoan asked, "Which peak in Longhu Mountain is most likely to receive the moonlight from the heavens and is suitable for moon worship and cultivation?"

The fox was exhausted and about to collapse.

···

Night fell on Longhu Mountain, bathing the thousands of peaks in its clear light. The moonlight, like a ribbon, flowed slowly across the dark green peaks and between the cliffs.

Chen Ruoan sat cross-legged under the moon, practicing the "Moon Worship Method" and the "Mysterious Yin Protection Method." The moonlight and mountain mist embraced each other, and his human form and fox form changed simultaneously.

"Two years of fox cultivation is not as good as twenty years of human cultivation, which is reasonable. The problem is that this human body is too superficial."

"Human life is precious, human life is precious, so why don't foxes have their own lineage?"

"Foolish Su Daji, foolish Tushan clan, foolish Hu Tianzu..."

Chen Ruoan was muttering to himself when he heard a soft voice behind him.

Why do you insult foxes?

Chen Ruoan looked back and saw the moonlight bathing the forest. Under an ancient tree lay a snow-white fox. Its fur was as white as snow, its tail was soft and fluffy, and there was a faint charm in the corner of its eyes.

"Just venting a little," Chen Ruoan replied. "I didn't expect there to be other cultivators in the mountains. What's your name?"

"Bai Xian'er".

Chen Ruoan looked surprised and continued to ask, "Are you the daughter of the Yellow Fox Fairy of the Fox Fairy Hall, Senior Little White Fairy?"

“It wasn’t like that before, but it is now. I’m bound by the incense offerings here.”

Chapter 79 Incense and Thunder Tribulation

What does it mean to be bound by incense and offerings?

Chen Ruoan asked in confusion, and the white fox, its eyes filled with sorrow, leaped and disappeared into the moonlit night.

The next day, Chen Ruoan arrived at the Fox Fairy Hall on Longhu Mountain.

Here, the green tiles are covered with moss, the vermilion doors are half-closed, and the steps are swept clean by the Taoist priests, leaving no trace of dirt.

Inside the shrine stood two fox spirit statues, one yellow and one white. The lamplight flickered before the altar, and a lingering incense smoke drifted in. Autumn was already in full swing outside the mountains, and occasionally distant sounds could be heard, but within the ancient hall, only tranquility and the lingering fragrance of dust remained.

As new intellectual trends emerged, many people broke free from feudal theology. Even the Fox Fairy Hall on Longhu Mountain could not escape the fate of becoming deserted.

This Fox Fairy Hall can't compare to Chen Ruoan's small village temple.

"What are you doing here?" Zhang Jingqing walked in from outside. "Are you interested in the fox spirit being worshipped?"

Chen Ruoan replied, "Last night I met a little white fox. She said she was the little white fairy on the stage, but also said she wasn't before. I didn't understand what she meant, so I wanted to take a look."

Zhang Jingqing found a cushion and sat cross-legged. Seeing that the fox was interested, she began to tell some legends about fox spirits.

The two fox spirits, yellow and white, enshrined in the Fox Fairy Hall of Longhu Mountain can be traced back to the Northern Song Dynasty.

Legend has it that when the Celestial Master Xujing was cultivating in the mountains, he saw a pregnant yellow fox suffering from a heavenly tribulation. He felt compassion and used his Taoist magic to plead for her to be saved from the tribulation.

The yellow fox survived the ordeal, and out of gratitude, she vowed to convert to Taoism and dedicate herself to good deeds. The beautiful white fox she gave birth to was Little White Fairy.

The mother and daughter fox spirits were devoted to protecting the Dao, often secretly helping the Celestial Master's Mansion to pray for rain, relieve drought, and ensure the safety of the area. Their miraculous deeds were repeatedly fulfilled. The Daoist community and the villagers were grateful for their virtue, so they built the Fox Fairy Hall in Longhu Mountain and enshrined the statues of the yellow and white fox spirits. The incense has burned for hundreds of years.

···

"It's just a story, and it's bound to be embellished by later generations as it's passed down. Adding a touch of legend makes it seem more convincing during its spread, it's an old trick, haha," Zhang Jingqing said without any hesitation.

Chen Ruoan glanced to the side.

Why does it feel so strange to hear these words coming from the mouth of a Celestial Master?

"Then what happened to the little white fairy yesterday?"

Zhang Jingqing stared at the ashes in the incense burner and explained, "Incense has an irresistible attraction for you small beasts who cultivate. That white fox was originally a wild fox that had attained Qi, but it was attracted by the incense and stayed in the mountains."

"In our view, incense is the sincere wish of people to worship gods, and it is a legitimate merit recognized by heaven and earth. It is only for the gods and protectors who have been granted official titles. This white fox has no title given by heaven, and has no merit to help the world, yet it steals incense and steals the blessings of people, committing the crime of theft and usurpation."

“I originally intended to deal with it, but this little fox was corrupted by the White Immortal’s faith and occasionally came down the mountain to do good deeds. Over time, I stopped caring so much about it.”

"The forced occupation of the memorial tablet backfired?" Chen Ruoan sorted out Zhang Jingqing's words.

In this world, the offerings of legitimate deities are not so easily stolen, much like the "mask of divinity."

The deeper the faith and will that a deity embodies, the greater its power, but at the same time, the greater the risk that the person playing the role will suffer from the corruption of their divine status.

If they cannot find a connection with reality, some shamans are prone to cognitive impairment and become completely lost in their role as deities.

The little white fox was stealing incense offerings and got caught up in people's faith in the "Little White Fairy." It's estimated that with the recent rise of new ideas and the decline in incense offerings, it was able to escape for a short while and catch its breath.

"Incense and faith, they really are strange things," Chen Ruoan remarked.

"Who says otherwise? Incense makes you feel joy and pleasure, and makes you crave that kind of happiness, which means it can't lead you onto the right path. When you can face it calmly one day, you won't need to care about the drawbacks that incense brings to your spiritual practice."

"Mm," Chen Ruoan replied, but he knew he wasn't after any excessive "joy."

He has a sweet tooth, and the incense is delicious, that's all.

In the fox's view, it was strange for a cultivator to eat the clouds and drink the dew, and those who drank the northwest wind were even more pitiful.

Zhang Jingqing added that the abilities obtained from incense offerings must be based on the wishes and power of the people. "Divine masks" and fox-like supernatural powers almost all follow this principle.

Playing the role of the Monkey King, his abilities are limited to the Seventy-Two Transformations for escaping the Three Calamities; playing the role of Qin Qiong, his ability is "vector thrust," derived from the concept of "door gods," intended to keep all calamities and persecutions at bay; the people of Liangshan believe that foxes are "spring gods," so Chen Ruoan can cultivate some wood-element magic.

According to this theory, if someone were to perform an illicit ritual for a fox and develop it into a belief, some misfortunes would also befall the fox.

Elves must be extremely careful in choosing their partners.

Chen Ruoan nodded. He had earned his place through hard work and solid achievements, without much involvement from others. Fortunately, he hadn't chosen a famous figure to usurp his position.

Zhang Jingqing calculated the time and remembered a date.

"Speaking of which, Little White Fairy is about to undergo a tribulation of lightning."

The fox was taken aback: "I don't think Bai Xian'er's cultivation level is that high, so why is she about to face the tribulation of lightning?"

"The tribulation of lightning isn't that mysterious; it depends on what you're doing. The tribulation of lightning you're thinking of stems from the act of seizing creation during cultivation, so the 'Dao' has to filter it. But Little White Immortal is just using the tribulation of lightning to cleanse her fox body and make amends for her mistakes."

"Then you can't just make a few symbolic chops?"

"Hehe, I only act on behalf of Heaven, not on behalf of Heaven to punish. However, based on the good deeds Little White Fairy has done in recent years, I will write a few talismans to help pray to Heaven."

Zhang Jingqing stood up with a smile and said to the fox, "Don't worry, the tribulation you and Little White Fairy want are completely different things."

The tribulation of lightning you are about to encounter will be more ferocious and violent.

···

Chen Ruoan had always lamented that there was no fox ahead, but fate had to arrange for a white fox to scout the way.

On the day the white fox underwent its tribulation, dark clouds hung extremely low, rolling thunder swept across the sky, and purple-blue lightning flashed between the clouds.

The little white fairy dog ​​sat atop the mountain, its snow-white fur fluttering slightly in the wind, its head held high, facing the roaring sound in the sky.

Grateful for their past friendship, Zhang Jingqing raised her hand and wrote several talismans, sincerely praying.

boom!

A thick bolt of purple lightning crashed down, and Little White Fairy ascended towards it.

A white shadow weaved through the lightning. The Taoist priests on the mountaintop could no longer see the scene in the sky. With the help of his golden eyes, Chen Ruoan watched as the little white fairy bravely clashed with the lightning.

Soon, the white fox let out a mournful cry and fell heavily to the ground.

Its brow was filled with the foul air of indiscriminately consumed incense, yet its cultivation dissipated like smoke into the mountain breeze.

When the thunderclouds dispersed, the white fox was still the same white fox, but it no longer possessed any intelligence or signs of drawing upon Qi to awaken its wisdom. It had completely transformed back into an ordinary little fox in the mountains and forests.

"Is it over, or did it succeed?"

Animals don't easily obtain Qi, and Little White Immortal's cultivation dissipated in an instant.

Chen Ruoan watched quietly, and perhaps it was a case of "feeling the pain of seeing the same kind of thing," but the scene evoked a cool and shallow sadness in him. The feeling was very faint, like the lingering smoke from an incense burner after it had burned out. Once the smoke dissipated, it would leave behind a faint trace of melancholy.

Zhang Zhiwei tucked his hands into his sleeves and said, "Fox, the military tribulation hasn't arrived yet, it's too early to be thinking about the lightning tribulation."

"In this world, who is not facing war and calamity? Can a fox remain unscathed?"

The war will be over soon.

"When your tribulation is about to begin, I will help you pray to the heavens."

"It seems that Master Jingqing's prayer was not successful."

Chen Ruoan recalled the previous scene. What level of cultivation was required to avoid disasters, pass the selection process, and successfully seize the creation of heaven and earth?

As the fox planned its path of cultivation, Zhang Zhiwei began to speak arrogantly.

"Why don't you delay for a few years? Maybe by then my cultivation level will far surpass my master's. It's just a little plea, nothing much. Heaven will definitely be more willing to give me face."

Zhang Zhiwei crossed his arms and spoke eloquently, his tone exuding a carefree and unrestrained spirit.

But before he could finish speaking, the strange celestial phenomenon that had just dissipated suddenly returned, with clouds churning and thunder rumbling.

"Why is there another tribulation of lightning? Who is undergoing this tribulation?"

Zhang Zhiwei was filled with doubt. His fellow disciples had already slipped away to a great distance. Chen Ruoan leaped into the air a hundred meters away, keeping a safe distance.

Oh no, this is bad!

Zhang Zhiwei sensed something was wrong and looked at his master beside him. Zhang Jingqing's Qi surged, clearly indicating that he was fiddling with something.

Zhang Zhiwei remained expressionless and raised his hand to indicate, "Master, I request to retract what I said earlier."