Chapter 699: Foxes Each Have Their Own Ambitions

The foxes awoke, unsure how much time had passed. The first to stir noticed it was already dark, yet some foxes remained motionless by the stream, like statues. By the time most of them were awake, the sun had risen once more in the sky.

Huli was the last to wake. When he finally opened his eyes, it was already broad daylight, and the other foxes were all gathered around him, watching.

“How long has it been?”

“It must have been a day.” “Yes, I feel the same way.”

“Hmm, a day indeed.”

“Great-grandpa, I saw myself standing on a mountain peak, admiring the moon.” “I saw myself jumping among the flowers.”

“Me, me, me! I saw myself turn into a human and even get married!”

“Oh? Got married? To a human or a fox?”

“A fox, of course! Humans are so ugly, with so little fur. How could one live like that?”

“True.” “Good point…”

“Great-grandpa, what did you see?”

Huli, however, showed little excitement on his face. He simply took a deep breath to compose himself, glanced at the book on his lap, closed it, and addressed the group of foxes.

“I have decided to leave this place and travel far away, taking this book, *Wandering Dreams in the Clouds*, with me,” he declared. “If I don’t go far, I will eventually be wanted by Da Zhen.”

“But, but this is Zuyue.”

A fox said this, and Huli shook his head.

“Zuyue is simply not developing into anything significant; it’s best to be as far away from here as possible,” Huli stated. “Of course, if you don’t want to come with me, you can return to the mountain. There shouldn’t be any problems, and you can even use the visions you saw yesterday to cultivate well, as long as…”

Huli recalled what he had seen in the book, then hesitated for a moment before continuing.

“As long as you live peacefully and mind your own business, your starting point will be higher than other monsters, and you’ll be safer.”

This was a subtle suggestion for some of the foxes to leave. Many of them, understanding the implications, began to hesitate.

“Can we, can we come with you…”

A fox, looking hesitantly at *Wandering Dreams in the Clouds* in Huli’s embrace, spoke half a sentence before being immediately cut off by Huli.

“No! There is still a choice now, but once we leave this forest, the direction we take will be our path forward. Any wavering afterward will only lead to eternal damnation.”

Huli knew there would be consequences, though he wasn’t entirely sure what they would be. While “eternal damnation” was something he had made up, he didn't just say it to scare the foxes; he genuinely believed it.

“Has anyone not seen the scenery in the book?”

When Huli asked this, the foxes exchanged glances, but no one answered. This pleased Huli; it seemed they all possessed understanding.

“Since you all have understanding and have seen the visions, it means you’ve all gained something,” Huli said. “I plan to continue heading northwest. I don’t know if I’ll ever return to Xiaoliu Mountain or this place again. Those who wish to come with me, do so; those who don’t, please don’t follow. It will be more peaceful that way.”

After speaking, Huli sat cross-legged where he was, tucking the book into his chest. He didn't get up immediately, but instead sat resting, absorbing wisps of spiritual energy from his surroundings for half an hour.

During this time, the surrounding foxes chattered softly, some discussing, some debating, some filled with worry, others with excitement. Thirty-one mouths spoke much, and Huli listened intently, yet maintained a calm composure.

While others simply observed the visions, Huli had also been contemplating this matter deeply. His sense of mission was now the strongest among all the foxes, and he had come to terms with it.

After half an hour, Huli opened his eyes again. Without a word, he stood up, withdrew his illusion, and transformed back into his gray-furred fox form. Then, without a glance or a goodbye, he dashed off towards the northwest.

“Great-grandpa, Great-grandpa!” “Brother Li!”

“Uncle!” “Wait for me…”

Before the foxes could fully react, Huli was gone. They instinctively stood up. A small group immediately leaped up and followed him, while another small group stood but hesitated, not moving. The majority, however, started at a trot to give chase.

Among those trotting foxes, some started quite fast but gradually slowed down, while others, after a brief jog, quickened their pace to pursue.

The morning sun had risen. Huli bounded out of the forest at the foot of the mountain. Behind him, several foxes leaped out as well. He glanced back and saw that in such a short time, more foxes had emerged, with several more silhouettes visible behind them.

Huli ran a few hundred yards further, then stopped. The foxes around him also came to a halt.

The foxes exchanged no words. They all turned around and sat facing the forest.

Time slowly passed. Gradually, seven or eight more foxes emerged from the forest and ran towards them. Together with the earlier arrivals, they sat in two rows.

By evening, as the sun began to set in the west, the forest was already cast in shadow.

“Great-grandpa,” the little red fox beside him said to Huli, “no one else will come now.”

The gray-furred fox beside him squinted his narrow eyes, patted the red fox’s head, nodded, and spoke.

“Let’s go.”

With that, led by the gray fox, the fifteen foxes all stood up and once again ran towards the northwest, none of them looking back.

Each fox had its own aspirations, and no one could say which choice, at that moment, was the right one.

Even though they had become monsters, Huli and the other foxes were far from powerful. They often tried to avoid danger, but they dared not delay their journey.

During the day, they would find a place to rest, collectively read *Wandering Dreams in the Clouds*, and then practice cultivation together.

At night, the foxes would emerge from their hiding spots and continue their journey. They weren't running aimlessly; after a few days, a special “Cloud Map” had appeared within *Wandering Dreams in the Clouds*.

The "Cloud Map," a term originally used by immortal cultivators and later widely adopted in the cultivation world, charted the landing points for various realm ferries and large flying artifacts. The flight paths of the realm ferries weren't clearly marked, but the numerous immortal ferry ports were the primary components of the Cloud Map.

Sensing this Cloud Map, the foxes now had a direction. They traveled northwest, their lives simple and joyful as they journeyed.

One summer evening, in a mountain village near Yuelu Mountain, a farmer got up in the night. Just as he stepped outside to relieve himself, he suddenly heard a disturbance from the backyard.

“A choked squawk…!”

It was clearly a chicken’s crow abruptly cut short. Hearing the sound, the farmer’s urge to urinate vanished. He grabbed a hoe from beside the house and cautiously crept towards the backyard.

From a distance, he peered towards the chicken coop. There seemed to be a dark figure crouched there, with several other dark shapes darting around.

“Who’s there? How dare you steal my chickens! I’ll bash your head in with this hoe!”

The farmer yelled, waving his hoe, and charged towards the chicken coop in the backyard. This clearly startled the figure there.

“No, no, no! It’s a misunderstanding, a misunderstanding! Please, hold your hand, hold your hand!”

The dark figure near the chicken coop quickly leaped away from it. Around him, many small, cat-like shadows scrambled and jumped over the fence.

The farmer, hoe still raised, reached the figure but ultimately didn't strike. He nervously watched the dark, hunched figure.

“Who are you, and why are you stealing my chickens?”

By the moonlight, the farmer could see it was a slightly chubby man. Outside the chicken coop, an old hen lay on the ground, seemingly dead, surrounded by chicken blood.

“A misunderstanding, a complete misunderstanding!” the man stammered. “It’s too hot during the day in midsummer, so I travel at night. Passing by here, I saw a fox jump into your yard to eat chickens, so I came in to catch it… Oh, if you don’t believe me, two hens are dead here. Consider them bought by me. I’ll buy a few more, pay you, give you silver!”

“Silver?”

“Yes, yes, silver!”

The man pulled a money pouch from his robe and took out some broken silver pieces. At that moment, his stomach also growled.

“Grrr…”

“Uh, heh heh… I’ve been traveling half the night, I’m starving…”

The farmer, being kind-hearted and having seen the silver, put down his hoe despite his lingering doubts. He glanced at the sky; the distant horizon was already tinged with golden-red.

“In that case, come sit inside my house.”

“Alright!”

Though the man wasn’t actually nervous, he pretended to wipe sweat, indicating he had been very scared. Then, casting a glare towards the direction beyond the fence, he followed the farmer to the front of the house.

This man was indeed Huli, leading the fox group on their journey. The situation that night was that a young fox, both hungry and greedy, had heard chickens crowing as they passed by. Overcome by its fox instincts, it had charged in, wanting to eat. By the time Huli arrived, it had already killed two hens.

As dawn broke and the villagers began to stir, the farmer’s house on the edge of the village was bustling. Already, there were more than a dozen guests in the courtyard early in the morning.

Huli, naturally adept at reading people, waited until he had paid and dawn had fully broken before telling the farmer that he wasn’t alone. He had brought many people, his entire family. He explained that he had previously feared that such a large group would cause alarm, but now that the villagers were awake, he offered to buy a meal from the farmer’s family.

Half an ounce of silver for a table full of food was a deal anyone would readily accept. Moreover, with over a dozen people, truly a whole family with men, women, old, and young, the farmer’s family gladly agreed. They butchered chickens and ducks and prepared vegetables, making the courtyard a lively hub of activity early that morning.

Thanks to several months of cultivation, while their spiritual progress wasn't immense, the foxes had benefited significantly. At the very least, all the foxes except Huli could now maintain their human illusions during the day.

Fragrant aromas were now wafting from the kitchen, and chicken soup was bubbling on the earthen stove nearby. The foxes seated on the long benches in the courtyard drooled with anticipation, a sight that amused the busy farmer's wife as she passed by. Among these guests were several charming young girls. She had initially thought they might be from a wealthy family, but now they seemed quite plain and endearing.

“The food will be ready soon,” she called out. “Shall we eat inside or in the courtyard?”

The foxes quickly responded.

“In the courtyard!” “Yes, yes, the courtyard is perfect!”

“That’s right, it’s cooler in the courtyard…”

“Indeed, host family, please don’t trouble yourselves. We are travelers, and eating in the courtyard will save you the trouble of cleaning up afterward.”

“Very well, then we’ll eat in the courtyard. Just move a round table out!”

The farmer’s wife chuckled as she went inside. She appreciated the consideration shown by this group. However, once she entered the house, all the foxes, including Huli, turned their heads to look in the direction of their house.

At the head of the main hall inside the house stood a statue of a deity. A stick of incense was lit in a small censer in front of it. The statue depicted a serene old man with flowing robes and a long beard, gazing with a smile towards the outside of the hall.

Unable to articulate the feeling, the foxes simply dared not approach the statue.