Chapter 199: How Have You Survived Until Now?

Hu Yun was terrified into a daze. The old turtle, abandoning its previous mild demeanor, had become more frightening than Lu Shan Jun as he remembered him. The terrifying aura, crucially, was directed entirely at Hu Yun.

He racked his brain, but couldn't recall ever offending the old turtle.

'Could Mr. Ji have offended him?'

From Hu Yun's perspective, this was the only explanation. He had been born and raised on Niu Kui Mountain, never making enemies, and the old turtle's mood had only shifted dramatically after he mentioned Mr. Ji.

'Mr. Ji, you've really put me in a bind!'

Hu Yun was shaking with fear, his voice trembling. He brought his front paws together and bowed several times to the old turtle, pleading in submission.

"Grandfather Turtle, I'm just a little fox... if Mr. Ji offended you, it... it has nothing to do with me!"

Dozens of feet away, Ji Yuan nearly choked on his own blood hearing this, and even the old turtle on the river surface clearly paused in surprise.

"Hehehehe... You fox, why are you so incredibly fortunate... *crunch, crunch*..."

The subsequent sounds were the remaining willow wood, bark and all, being ground into powder by the old turtle's hardened beak. Though toothless, the turtle's actions vividly conveyed the essence of "gritting one's teeth."

As soon as the old turtle spoke, Hu Yun realized the problem might lie with him, not Mr. Ji.

Turtles are typically very slow, with extremely low breathing rates, especially a spiritual old turtle. However, this one was panting rapidly and heavily, and its cold-blooded eyes were even bloodshot.

A terrifying demonic aura slowly emanated, utterly dreadful to Hu Yun. While Lu Shan Jun had also been formidable, he had never displayed such a facet to the red fox.

Fortunately, the old turtle's demonic aura stayed close to the river's surface, otherwise it might have drawn the attention of the underworld's night patrol. Still, for Hu Yun, it was horrifying enough; he even had the illusion that even Mr. Ji might be powerless against this turtle demon.

"Tell me, how many years have passed since your spiritual awareness became clear and you were no longer muddled?"

The old turtle's voice was a bit hoarse and cold, but sounded significantly calmer, allowing Hu Yun to breathe a small sigh of relief.

"Since I gained awareness, roughly fifteen years have passed..."

"Fifteen years? Only fifteen years! Hahahahahahaha... Just fifteen years... I suppose for the first nine of those years, even with your awareness, your life was still much like an ordinary fox's, wasn't it?"

The old turtle laughed grimly, its eyes fixed on the red fox, who instinctively tried to avoid its gaze.

"How did you know that?"

The old turtle sneered again.

"Six years, you refined your horizontal bone in six years! Although your spiritual and demonic energy are shallow and your magic isn't obvious, refining your horizontal bone in six years truly shows a sage's guidance! Fox, guess how long it took this old turtle to refine his horizontal bone and speak?"

Hu Yun wasn't foolish. Given the old turtle's present condition, it had likely taken him a considerable amount of time. Furthermore, although Lu Shan Jun hadn't mentioned it, Hu Yun had sensed the great tiger's astonishment when he first met him after refining his own horizontal bone.

"You probably took... several decades?"

"Heh, thank you for thinking so highly of me. However, cultivation for turtles like myself is incredibly difficult, and I was all alone. It took me a full two hundred and thirty years to refine my horizontal bone. That's simply no comparison to your 'heaven-blessed talent' of six years."

As these words, heavy with the passage of time and struggle, rang out, even the large green fish trapped in the water grew silent. In truth, it too had been cultivating for decades.

Hu Yun was stunned once more. The time frame was simply too long, beyond his comprehension. Even Lu Shan Jun wasn't yet two hundred years old.

"To receive guidance from an immortal and be named Hu Yun, you likely gained many benefits during your recovery that you weren't even aware of. Truly, like your name suggests, a fox ascending directly to the heavens, hehehe..."

The old turtle gazed at the crescent moon, speaking a few words with a sigh. Then, it suddenly fixed its cold gaze on Hu Yun again, causing the red fox to shiver violently.

"If that's the case, so be it. Every demon has its own aspirations and fate. But you, fox, knowing full well it was a rare opportunity, actually ran away! Do you realize how many demons cultivate bitterly for centuries and won't even get a tenth of the chance you had? Do you know how many demon cultivators believed they could seek a sage's guidance only to be killed by immortal cultivators? You were fated to meet an enlightened master, yet... alas..."

At this point, the old turtle sighed heavily.

"It's too late to speak of these things now. You abandoned your opportunity, and it will be difficult to find such a chance again. But at least you received the name Hu Yun, which is considered a direct blessing. If I were my hundred-year-younger self, consumed by envy, I would have bitten your head off with that very snap!"

"Is... is that how it is...?"

Hu Yun mumbled blankly to himself, filled with a sudden sense of dread.

"Heh, do you think cultivation is always so smooth? By the way, was this dark wooden token also given to you by Mr. Ji?"

"Oh... yes, yester... back then Mr. Ji..."

Hu Yun's mind was slightly muddled at the moment, and he almost let something slip. But even that single word alerted the old turtle to something amiss.

"Hmm!?"

The old turtle snorted heavily.

"Were you about to say 'yesterday'?"

Sweat beaded behind the red fox's ears. He suddenly pointed at the river and shouted, "Mr. Ji!"

As the old turtle subconsciously turned its head, Hu Yun darted towards the bank, only to be met by a rising wall of water.

*Splash*

A wave, two zhang wide and one zhang high, erupted from the riverbank, submerging the willow roots. The red fox crashed headfirst into the water wall and was immediately pulled under.

*Splish, splash... splish, splash...*

Hu Yun and the large green fish were now trapped by the current beside the old turtle, whose massive head was barely a fist's width from the fox's.

After a moment of intense fear, Hu Yun suddenly noticed that the old turtle's expression was no longer ferocious. Instead, it was tinged with a strange apprehension, and its voice had become cautious.

"You... did you... recently see Mr. Ji again? This wooden token... I, this old turtle, didn't scare you just now, did I?"

Observing the old turtle's expectant yet apprehensive expression, Hu Yun felt an impact even stronger than when it had abruptly lashed out and bitten the tree trunk. He inexplicably found himself feeling a little sorry for it.

Before the "outbreak of conflict," the old turtle had casually shared bits of its experiences, mostly about its cultivation journey and "seeking the Dao."

These included how many years it spent on various tasks, how it had tried to forge good karma by helping mortals only to suffer for it, and how it had been so badly beaten trying to approach certain immortal cultivators that it could only flee and later dared not even come ashore.

At the time, Hu Yun had mostly found these stories amusing, laughing along, and the old turtle had simply chuckled. But now, reflecting on them, he suddenly understood the profound desolation embedded within.

This realization was subtle, yet under the empathy of their spiritual senses, Hu Yun perceived it with great clarity.

He seemed to have many words he wanted to say, but in the end, only one escaped his lips.

"Mmm..."

A short distance away, Ji Yuan lay motionless on a tree trunk. He wasn't looking at Hu Yun or the old turtle, but rather thoughtfully observing the moon reflected in the distant river.

'A flower in the mirror, the moon in the water...'

On the other side, after Hu Yun answered, the old turtle's spirits lifted.

"Then... do you know where Mr. Ji is? Is he also in the city?"

Hu Yun instinctively glanced at the prefectural city, then nodded to the old turtle.

*Splish, splash...*

The water stirred. Hu Yun felt himself slowly rise, then a current gently lifted him onto the bank. The water that had soaked his fur receded back into the river, leaving his fox body dry and refreshed.

At the same time, the large green fish was released from its confinement, allowing it to swim freely.

The old turtle had wanted to ask Hu Yun for an introduction, but felt it was too awkward after their recent exchange. It decided to build a better rapport first.

"Could you tell this old turtle about your reunion, and also about that tiger spirit you mentioned earlier?"

The red fox lay quietly by the riverbank, looking first at the large green fish, then at the old turtle, before finally speaking after a moment of thought.

"A while ago, I came down the mountain and quietly made my way into Ning An County to see if Mr. Ji had returned..."

Hu Yun generally recounted the trivial events of that period. Adhering to the principle of not revealing wealth, he spoke of the wondrous jujube tree but omitted any mention of the fiery dates. He continued his narrative until he reached the point of Mr. Ji's sermon on the moon platform in the mountains.

The old turtle's breathing noticeably deepened, growing much heavier. Beneath the river's surface, its feet paddled rapidly, causing ripples and splashes nearby.

Hearing Hu Yun describe Mr. Ji seating himself on the moon platform of Niu Kui Mountain, accompanied by the tiger spirit and Hu Yun himself, the old turtle grew impatient, eager to know what was said.

"And then? What did he say? Quickly, tell me what he said!"

Hu Yun tilted his head, gazing at the crescent moon, and thought for a moment.

"He seemed to have recited a very strange text. I remember it was called 'Wandering at Ease' (Xiaoyao You)."

As soon as the words "Wandering at Ease" registered, the old turtle instinctively knew it was significant and grew even more impatient, completely forgetting any reservations.

"What about the content? What was it? Please, Fellow Daoist Hu, tell me in detail, even a few sentences would be helpful!"

Hu Yun's fox paw vigorously scratched his face. He pondered deeply for a long time before finally giving up.

"It was too convoluted and too long. I've forgotten it all..."

"You! You! You, you, you, you... ah!"

Large waves surged by the riverbank, frightening Hu Yun, who leaped several times towards the shore to escape. The large green fish also swiftly swam far away.

Both the fox and the fish watched in fear as the old turtle thrashed and roared amidst the surging waves, an atmosphere of extreme frustration with no outlet.

'This cursed fox, repeatedly letting go of heaven-sent opportunities—how has it survived until now?!'

The old turtle's body thrashed wildly, and its heart was so vexed it felt like spitting blood.