Chapter 688: Fox Heart, Human Heart

"Get up. It is I, Ji, who sought your help; there's no need for such a grand gesture."

Ji Yuan gently lifted his hand, and Huli felt a soft force rise through him. He found himself unable to remain kneeling; his body stood up as if against his will.

Ji Yuan smiled and looked Huli up and down again.

"You are a spirit fox with an open spiritual aperture, capable of harnessing some spiritual power. The transformation I've cast on you will last for a while. Use this opportunity to gather your entire family and bring them to me. Go on."

With Ji Yuan's command, Huli naturally didn't dare to delay. He bowed repeatedly while backing away.

"Yes, yes, this little fox will go right away. Immortal Master, please wait here. This little fox will return very soon!"

After saying this, Huli turned and stepped out the back door, quickly disappearing with a few agile leaps. He knew the other foxes hadn't run far, not even beyond the bounds of the Wei family estate; it was just a very large, abandoned manor.

The moment Huli exited the house, the excitement he had been trying to suppress could no longer be contained. After a few steps, he suddenly leaped skyward, and with a burst of power from his feet, he soared dozens of feet into the air.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!"

While airborne, Huli flailed his limbs wildly, only to discover he could seemingly leverage the air itself. Stepping on air felt like stepping on cotton, and he could control his descent to some extent, much like the "lightness skills" of martial artists. He glided forward effortlessly, covering nearly a hundred feet before finally touching down.

"Hahahahaha, hahahaha... I can fly! I can fly!"

From inside the dwelling, Ji Yuan listened to the excited laughter and shouts from afar. He couldn't help but recall his own past; back when he couldn't fly, he, too, would be overjoyed simply by leaping very high.

Having Huli find the other foxes in his current state was also a way for him to discreetly persuade them on Ji Yuan's behalf and provide tangible proof. It was also more fitting for Huli to reassure the anxious foxes than for Ji Yuan to do so himself.

As Ji Yuan expected, Huli's current condition was the best demonstration. Filled with excitement, he quickly found each fox, easily convincing them to willingly follow him to meet Ji Yuan.

Thus, in less than fifteen minutes, over twenty foxes had gathered once again in the cluttered room, standing in a line before Ji Yuan, bowing in reverence. Some had assumed human forms, while others remained as foxes. Their postures varied, but their yearning and devotion were strikingly similar.

"Immortal Master Ji, we have a total of thirty-two spirit foxes. Twenty-six are here, and Xiaohua has gone to find the other five. They will all come to see you together soon!"

Huli said, looking at his kin around him, then bowed to Ji Yuan.

"Please have mercy, Immortal Master."

Huli, who already held some prestige among the foxes, now subtly emerged as their leader. While gathering the others, Huli claimed he had long recognized the extraordinary nature of the gentleman, which was why he deliberately stayed when everyone else fled. This, combined with his current state, further enhanced his persuasiveness.

Seeing this, the other foxes also hurried to bow together. Whether in human form or as foxes, their bowing gestures were meticulous, showing unprecedented reverence.

"Please have mercy, Immortal Master!"

"Yes, all of you, get up. This matter cannot be explained in just a few words. I, Ji, will stay in this abandoned estate for a while. During this time, I will gradually explain things, and I will also observe your character. Depending on your individual circumstances, I will guide you on matters of cultivation..."

Seeing the obvious excitement on all the foxes' faces, Ji Yuan knew what they were all longing for.

"Very well, let's discuss your cultivation first. Please sit..."

Ji Yuan's voice was gentle, and he used no magical commands, yet it possessed a calming power. Whether in panic or excitement, even the restless foxes quieted down, subconsciously doing as Ji Yuan bid.

Although this group of foxes still retained some of their wild nature, Ji Yuan found them relatively clean. As the saying goes, "no one is perfect," and the same applies to demons. While these foxes had stolen some roast chickens and wine, it wasn't an unpardonable offense.

Because the foxes' cultivation was indeed shallow and their problems obvious, Ji Yuan pointed out the crucial issues in a few words, greatly enlightening them. Though they didn't receive profound methods, they were no longer as bewildered as before.

Two hours later, Ji Yuan left the dwelling and found a suitable house to rest. The group of excitedly impatient foxes, after respectfully seeing Ji Yuan off, resumed their feast. What hadn't been finished earlier could be eaten again; a little dirt didn't matter at all.

Behind the abandoned Wei Estate was a special courtyard. Some surrounding buildings had been considerably damaged, with only a few remaining intact. This was the very place where Ji Yuan had once stayed overnight, and it was on that night that a group of neither-human-nor-corpse beings from the Wei family had tried to ambush and kill him.

The environment here was tranquil, and it was a familiar place, so Ji Yuan chose to reside there temporarily again. A few mornings later, Huli trotted to the courtyard entrance. Through the half-missing gate, he peered inside. Jinjia stood motionless outside the courtyard, like a guardian deity, his eyes seeming never to close.

The spiritual power Ji Yuan had imbued in Huli had long since dissipated, but even so, Huli's vitality and spirit were remarkably different from before. Furthermore, there were tangible changes: at least one was very noticeable – Huli could now maintain his transformed appearance even in daylight.

At the courtyard gate, Huli straightened his clothes and checked the position of the sun. Instead of stepping directly inside, he confidently knocked on the half-missing door.

"Knock, knock, knock..."

"Mr. Ji, it's me, Huli. We've gathered enough suitable herbs and are back! We can go exchange them for money and pay back what we owe for the stolen roast chickens and wine!"

"Knock, knock, knock..." "Sir, are you awake?"

Not long after, Ji Yuan opened the door, yawned, and stepped out.

"Hohum... Hmm, alright. Let's go, we'll take a stroll in the city together."

Ji Yuan was quite pleased with the foxes' efficiency. What made him even happier was that their claim of remembering the shops and households from which they'd "borrowed" food wasn't just talk; they could indeed list every single one, including the precise location and how many times they'd stolen from each.

If Ji Yuan hadn't appeared, they might have gradually forgotten over time, perhaps becoming increasingly untamable and even starting to harm people. But at least at this stage, the situation was two points better than Ji Yuan had imagined.

"Sir, how shall we go?"

"We'll walk. Do you have a carriage or a horse?"

Ji Yuan knew Huli was wondering if there would be an opportunity to ride the clouds and mist, but Ji Yuan had no such intention.

Including Jinjia, the three left the abandoned Wei family estate and soon arrived in Luping City. Even during this time of war, it was still a relatively prosperous and stable place compared to Zuyue Kingdom.

The streets were bustling with pedestrians and merchants, full of lively noise. This was Huli's first time appearing in Luping City before sunset, and he had never seen so many people out on the streets. He followed Ji Yuan and Jinjia, both curious and somewhat timid, his eyes darting around, looking here and there, making him appear a little comical.

"Carry yourself with more grace. If you want to look, look openly."

"Yes, yes."

Huli agreed, but his improvement was very limited. Ji Yuan said no more; such things came with habit. The smell of herbs grew stronger nearby, and Ji Yuan knew the pharmacy was close even without looking.

They arrived at a rather large shop called Qicaotang. Ji Yuan stopped outside the pharmacy, while Huli, carrying the burlap sack, entered alone.

Behind the counter, a middle-aged shopkeeper was clicking an abacus and making an entry in a ledger. Seeing someone enter, he first sized up Huli, then glanced at the two burlap sacks in his hands, before finally asking.

"Sir, are you here for a consultation or to pick up medicine?"

"Uh, well, I'm here to sell herbs."

"Sell herbs?"

The shopkeeper stroked his beard and scrutinized Huli again. Seeing the tension in his expression, he thought for a moment and pointed at the sacks.

"You've brought some wild-collected herbs to sell, haven't you?"

"Yes, yes, exactly! These herbs were all collected from deep mountains, very difficult to reach. Please see how much they're worth. I need to sell them to pay people back!"

Huli lifted the burlap sacks onto the counter and poured out all the herbs. Upon seeing them, the initially indifferent shopkeeper was secretly startled. There was lingzhi, fleeceflower root, and Solomon's Seal, and even several thick, old ginseng roots. It was clear at a glance that these were all precious, aged medicinal herbs.

The shopkeeper picked up a ginseng root, weighed it, and then examined it closely. It wasn't completely dried. He then looked at Huli, who was full of tension and expectation, and after a quick thought, he smiled.

"I'll take all these herbs. How about two strings of copper coins?"

"Two strings of copper coins?"

Huli paused, then before the other could answer, he pressed on.

"How many roast chickens and how much wine can two strings of copper coins buy?"

"At least dozens of roast chickens, and several jars of good wine!"

Huli frowned. This was slightly insufficient; it wouldn't cover all the foxes' debts, and Mr. Ji had said they needed to pay interest.

"Shopkeeper, this money is... somewhat..."

"What? Is it too little?"

The shopkeeper pre-empted him with a cold laugh.

"Don't think I don't know these herbs are ill-gotten. Giving you two strings of coins instead of reporting you to the authorities is already a favor. How about this, I'll add another string. That's all there is!"

"This, well... alright then, three strings of coins it is..."

Just as Huli hesitated, about to agree, Ji Yuan's voice suddenly rang out from nearby.

"Wait a moment!"

Huli looked behind him. Ji Yuan was slowly walking into Qicaotang. He quickly bowed.

"Sir!"

"Hmm."

Ji Yuan shook his head slightly, looking at Huli and the shopkeeper. He had originally intended to let Huli handle the transaction himself, even knowing he would surely be swindled, so he could learn a lesson. But this swindling was simply too excessive.

"Shopkeeper, there needs to be a bottom line to everything. To try and swallow this entire sack of herbs for less than three taels of silver, isn't that a bit much?"

Originally, three strings of coins would roughly equate to three taels of silver. However, the copper coins in Zuyue were of poor quality; one true tael of silver was worth nearly one and a half strings. So, three strings of coins weren't even two taels, a drastic difference compared to the herbs' true value, making it quite egregious.

"This, sir, your words are quite serious. These herbs are clearly ill-gotten, perhaps stolen from another pharmacy. It's already good that I haven't reported him to the authorities. It seems he knows you. Are you perhaps accomplices?"

Ji Yuan's entry carried a certain demeanor that prevented the shopkeeper from looking down on him, but he still tried to be stubborn.

"Ill-gotten? Herbs in the mountains are ownerless. Whoever digs them up naturally owns them."

Ji Yuan approached the counter, picked up an old ginseng root, gently twirled its rootlets, and rubbed off some dirt from its top.

"Some of the dirt on this old ginseng is still slightly damp. It's clearly just been dug up, isn't it? As the proprietor of Qicaotang, surely you can see that these old ginseng roots are currently so plump that they couldn't possibly be dried medicinal materials, correct?"

"Hmph, perhaps he stole or robbed someone else's freshly collected herbs. I see this fellow has shifty eyes; he's definitely a petty thief. Dare he say he's never stolen anything?"

"You... you... I have stolen things, but only food! These herbs aren't stolen by me; Sir can vouch for me!"

Huli pointed at the shopkeeper, his heart burning with indignation. He was both distressed and unable to fully refute.

"Aha... So you are a thief! I knew by your appearance you were no good!"

The shopkeeper's voice instantly rose several octaves. Some of the shop assistants inside and outside gathered around, and even passersby outside stopped, attracted by the noise and looking confused.

"Sigh..."

Ji Yuan sighed, shook his head, and said to Huli.

"Pack up the herbs. We're not selling them here. Let's find another place."