Smack!
Honghong slapped Ren Kurogane's hand away from her head and smiled.
"That's enough! I'm not going to try to kill myself anymore."
"Good. And you need to stop hating yourself, too. Also, whenever you have some free time, go look at the fated-bond missions you've completed. Look at the successful cases and let yourself feel happy for a change. Don't spend every day dwelling on the pain of the past."
"And another thing…"
Ren was about to continue, but then he met Honghong's smiling face.
They looked at each other for a few seconds before Ren smiled as well.
"All right. Looks like I've been worrying too much."
The moment they emerged from the cave, Ren spotted Yaya charging toward them from a distance, practically radiating murderous intent.
"You stinking tiger! What were you doing here with my sister?!"
Yaya launched a flying kick at him. Ren sidestepped, raised both hands, and caught her securely. He spun around once before gently setting her down on the grass.
"What happened, Yaya? Why are you so angry?"
"Don't change the subject! Tell me what you were doing in that cave!"
Yaya positioned herself in front of Honghong, glaring at Ren as if he were a thief caught sneaking into their home.
Ren gave her a mischievous grin.
"Hehe~ Well, obviously, we were doing something that made us both very happy!"
Before Yaya could explode, Honghong's iron fist slammed into Ren's face.
"If you ever spout nonsense like that again, I'll seal you inside the Tree of Acknowledgement!"
Ren went flying. Taking advantage of the opportunity, he promptly made his escape.
Honghong then scooped up Yaya, who was still standing protectively in front of her, and carried her back into the cave.
"Yaya, there's something I've never told you. Since we're here now, I think it's a good time to tell you about it."
…
Honghong finally coming to terms with her past was undoubtedly good news.
That afternoon, Rongrong even made a special trip to see Ren. She stared at him with a complicated expression for quite some time.
Only when Ren began to feel embarrassed did she finally smile.
"Thank you, Lord Tiger."
With that, Rongrong left without lingering.
The Demon Alliance had only recently been established, and there was still plenty of work to do.
One day, Dongfang Yuechu sent a letter reporting that the One Qi Alliance had held some kind of newcomer competition. He had won by an overwhelming margin and had already become a prominent figure within the alliance.
However, Dongfang Yuechu also mentioned that Wangquan Baye had an Evil Beaked Beast attached to him. He wanted to know whether Honghong understood what was going on.
As it turned out, Honghong had no idea why Wangquan Baye would have an Evil Beaked Beast on him either. Evil Beaked Beasts were parasites of the Tree of Acknowledgement. Under normal circumstances, only people who had entered into fated bonds had a small chance of being afflicted by one.
But Wangquan Baye wasn't a fated-bond participant. How could an Evil Beaked Beast have attached itself to him?
Honghong came to Ren to ask whether he knew anything about it.
"Wangquan Baye has an Evil Beaked Beast attached to him?" Ren stared blankly at her. "But he hasn't entered into a fated bond. How could one have attached itself to him?"
"You don't know either?" Honghong frowned. She had expected to get an answer from Ren, but even he was clueless.
"Could it be something minor?"
After Honghong left, Ren didn't give the matter much further thought.
Wangquan Baye didn't have much of a role in the story, and Ren genuinely had no idea why there was an Evil Beaked Beast inside him.
He did know a little about those creatures, though. They had appeared quite early in the story, only to be casually dealt with by Yaya and the others almost immediately. They were little more than disposable monsters that showed up and got taken out in the same breath.
"Come to think of it, I wonder whether Fengqi has made her escape yet."
With nothing better to do, Ren headed to the Tree of Acknowledgement to look for a way inside.
His suspicious behavior quickly attracted Rongrong's attention. Her cultivation method involved establishing a connection with the Tree of Acknowledgement, so she had noticed Ren's presence long ago.
She had no idea what he was up to, though.
After watching him for a while, she saw him actually begin digging around the tree's roots. Unable to contain her curiosity any longer, she appeared in front of him, her eyes wide with confusion.
"What are you doing?"
Ren looked up and met Rongrong's rather comical gaze.
He hurriedly stood up with an awkward smile.
"Well, you see… I…"
His eyes darted from side to side as he avoided meeting hers.
After all, Fengqi was still a taboo subject in Tushan. He had no desire to stir up trouble.
Rongrong stepped closer and studied him with an amused smile.
"You're not looking for Fengqi, are you?"
Ren sucked in a sharp breath.
He hadn't expected Rongrong's intuition to be so good. She'd guessed his intentions in an instant.
Since there was no point hiding it anymore, he gave an embarrassed laugh.
"As expected of the smartest fox in all of Tushan. You figured it out immediately…"
Rongrong smiled.
"Go on, then. Why are you looking for her? Don't tell me you intend to let her out."
Ren shook his head vigorously.
"No, no, no! Why would I let her out? I'm here because I want to kill her!"
After saying that, Ren cautiously glanced at Rongrong's expression. Fengqi was also her adoptive mother, after all. Saying something like that right in front of her was rather insensitive.
Rongrong stared at Ren.
Far away, on another mountain peak, Honghong was also watching the information Rongrong had shared with her, her expression complicated.
"Kill Fengqi? You really are willing to do anything…" Honghong murmured.
Beneath the Tree of Acknowledgement
After learning Ren's intentions, Rongrong asked, "Why?"
As far as Rongrong and Honghong were concerned, Fengqi had already been thoroughly subdued. She no longer posed any threat to them.
If Ren still wanted to kill her despite that, it could only mean that Fengqi would do something in the future that made him believe she needed to be eliminated.
Ren sighed.
"In the future, Fengqi will merge with an outside black fox and become the Black Fox Lady. She'll become a major obstacle to Tushan's fated-bond missions. That's why I want to eliminate her before she becomes the Black Fox Lady."
"Merge with an outside black fox?!" Rongrong and Honghong exclaimed together.
Both immediately became alert.
Honghong transformed into a streak of red light and flew straight to the Tree of Acknowledgement. Within seconds, she had landed beside the other two.
"What happened? Why would Fengqi get involved with creatures from beyond the Circle?" Honghong asked urgently.
Ren shook his head.
"I don't know. All I know is that in my era, the Black Fox Lady's forces had already grown into a major power, one that couldn't be ignored within the Circle."
The two sisters exchanged glances. Both looked grave.
Honghong turned back to Ren.
"Tell us everything you know about the black foxes! Honestly, how could you only bring up something this important now?"
Ren smiled bitterly.
"I was worried you'd overthink things…"
"Enough. Just tell us about the black foxes," Honghong urged, sitting cross-legged on the grass.
Ren began explaining.
"I don't understand all the details myself. But from what I read online, you Tushan fox demons grow stronger by completing fated-bond missions and experiencing other people's emotions. The black foxes are different. They directly plunder the feelings between people in fated bonds and force that power into themselves to become stronger."
Seeing Honghong staring at him with wide eyes, Ren realized that his explanation might have been a little complicated. He simplified it.
"The biggest difference between your cultivation methods is this: you wait for the chicken to lay eggs, while they kill the chicken to get the eggs!"
"Oh!" Honghong exclaimed, finally understanding. "Got it! Let's go kill Fengqi right now!"
"Huh?"
This time, Ren was the one left dumbfounded. He hadn't expected Honghong to agree so readily. He had assumed he'd need to persuade her for quite a while.
"Surprised?" Honghong asked with an amused smile. "If you'd asked me before, I definitely wouldn't have agreed. But I've come to understand a few things now. Let's go!"
Honghong thought to herself, I can no longer change Fengqi's misguided way of thinking. Rather than wait for her to oppose me in the future, it's better to take her out of the picture for now. Once I revive her through overwhelming power in the future, she'll surely change her mind!
Ren didn't quite understand what Honghong had figured out, but he didn't ask.
Whatever. As long as we can get rid of Fengqi, it's a good thing.
He followed Honghong and Rongrong into the Tree of Acknowledgement. At last, he came face-to-face with Fengqi, the old fox who had caused so much trouble for Tushan.
Fengqi was taken aback when she saw Honghong had brought an outsider inside.
"Fengqi, this will probably be the last time we meet," Honghong said coldly.
"Oh?" Fengqi frowned.
Her other clones had already escaped. Even if her main body here were killed, it wouldn't make much difference to her.
Still, she couldn't understand what had happened to make Honghong come here to kill her.
No. I haven't established a connection with the Tree of Acknowledgement yet. I can't die now!
Fengqi was still thinking when her eyelids suddenly grew heavy. Her thoughts ground to a halt.
In the final moment of her life, only two words echoed in her ears.
"Wind rises…"
Who's calling me?
After that, Fengqi lost consciousness forever.
The instant her main body died, the clone near Huang Fengling sensed what had happened.
"The main body is dead? Her soul was completely erased in an instant?!"
A figure who looked exactly like Fengqi muttered in shock.
"Have those foxes really grown that powerful? Was it Yaya?"
The little girl thought through countless possibilities in an instant.
But the situation at Huang Fengling could no longer simply be abandoned. Little Niangniang made her decision.
"Things have already progressed this far here. And there's still Longwan…"
Huang Fengling could be abandoned. After all, the whole scheme had been set up by Fengqi to steal Honghong's power. Now that the main body was dead, something major must have happened on Honghong's side, so there was no longer any point in continuing the scheme.
But the power at Longwan was simply too great.
It was dragon power—a force far beyond their own.
If she could take control of it, she would instantly possess strength surpassing that of the Four Great Demon Emperors. She might even gain the standing to speak to the legendary Third Young Master as an equal…
But for Little Niangniang, staying alive mattered more than gaining power!
"No! Staying alive comes first!"
With Fengqi's control severed, Little Niangniang's own consciousness immediately took over.
She couldn't care less about Fengqi's schemes or assets. After thinking it through, she decided to find a mountain without a Demon King, claim it as her own, and live a comfortable life with plenty to eat and drink!
Unlike Little Niangniang, however, Fengqi's other clones continued causing trouble. Each possessed part of Fengqi's memories, and each believed herself to be the real Fengqi. Naturally, they still intended to fulfill her ambitions.
They simply weren't strong enough yet, so they remained hidden, waiting for another opportunity to rise.
Inside the Tree of Acknowledgement
Honghong and Rongrong stood frozen in shock.
They had still wanted to exchange a few more words with Fengqi, but Ren had erased her so completely with a single gust of wind that not even her corpse or soul remained.
They hadn't even managed to speak to her. When Fengqi died, she hadn't realized what was happening. She'd actually thought Rongrong had used some new spell to block her senses.
Honghong turned to Ren, a huge question mark practically hanging over her head.
Ren gave her a sheepish smile.
"I was just worried that leaving her alive would lead to complications later!"
Rongrong finally recovered. Her eyes narrowed into their familiar cheerful expression as she smiled.
"All right. Since the matter's settled, I'd better get back to work. Sigh… I'm so jealous of you two. You get to spend your days without worrying about all those tedious affairs!"
Her figure dissolved into green wisps and vanished before their eyes.
It turned out that the Rongrong who had been talking to them all along was merely a clone.
Rongrong has an ability like that? Ren wondered.
The clone had felt so real that he couldn't tell the difference. It hadn't felt like an ordinary construct made from spiritual power at all.
After leaving the Tree of Acknowledgement, Ren asked Honghong curiously, "By the way, where's Yaya these days? I went to her place looking for her, but she wasn't there."
"Yaya…" Honghong sighed. "I told her what happened to us back then. It seems to have hit her pretty hard. She's been sitting at the summit for the past two days."
"I see. I'll go find her!"
Ren transformed into a gust of wind and disappeared in front of Honghong.
Watching the spot where he'd vanished, Honghong puffed out her cheeks unhappily.
"That idiot…"
At the Summit
Yaya lay beside the cliff, her legs dangling over the edge as she stared blankly at the sky.
After landing, Ren leaned forward and blocked her view.
"What is it? Feeling all emo?"
"Go away! Leave me alone!" Yaya snapped.
"Come on. Being emo isn't part of Yaya's character."
Ren sat down beside her and spoke softly.
"Hmph! Why can't being emo be part of Yaya's character? Yaya wants to be emo!"
Yaya turned her back on him.
Her eyes drooped, and an unmistakable sense of hurt filled them.
Ren said nothing. Instead, he reached into his clothes, pulled out a wrapped chicken leg, and held it out to her.
"Freshly roasted chicken leg from Yao Xin Zhai. Want a bite?"
Yaya's nose twitched.
The next instant, she snatched the chicken leg from Ren's hand and devoured it in a flash.
Crunch, crunch.
She chewed noisily, crushing even the bones and swallowing them before speaking.
"Stinking tiger, am I really stupid and useless?"
"Yes."
"You don't have to comfort me. I—what?! Did you just call me stupid and useless?!"
Yaya, who had been feeling down a moment earlier, suddenly sprang into action. She tackled Ren to the ground and glared at him fiercely.
But Ren simply stared back at her without expression.
The moment Yaya met his gaze, the anger in her heart vanished.
Then tears the size of beans rolled down her cheeks.
"Waaaaah!"
"It's because I'm so stupid! I'm such an idiot!"
"I never knew how much pain my sister was carrying inside! I never realized how much she hated her own strength!
"I only ever thought about how powerful she was. I never once stopped to wonder why she'd suddenly become so strong!
"A fox demon's power comes from emotions. If my sister suddenly became stronger, something must have happened to her! Something must have hurt her so badly that she grew stronger because of it! And I… I never even thought of that!
"How can someone like me claim that I love my sister?!"