The usually quiet forest was now noisy and chaotic as Jiaolong chased its prey, clearing away obstacles to concentrate on not losing it.
Thach Anh had to run and hide at the same time, as her small body couldn't run fast enough; sooner or later, the creature would catch up to her. While running, she saw a ravine ahead, a dead end, but there was a vine there. She clung tightly to the fox in her arms, grabbed the vine, swung in a circle, and leaped over Jiaolong, landing behind it.
However, Thach Anh's small hands couldn't hold on, and she slipped from the vine. Her tiny body fell heavily to the ground, rolling and...
*Crack!*
"AAAAAAAH!!!" - Thach Anh screamed in pain.
Her left arm hit the ground hard, breaking it. She let go of the fox, clutching her broken arm and rolling on the ground, tears welling up in her eyes as she tried not to cry out.
The dragon braked sharply, its lower half sliding off the cliff while its upper body clung on. Seeing this opportunity, the fox grabbed Thach Anh's trousers. She took a deep breath, struggled to stand, and continued running.
"What bad luck! There's no metal here, only wood, earth, and water... Where am I going to find metal?" - Thach Anh
As soon as she got out of the forest, Thach Anh was breathless from running so much.
"Finally, I'm out of there. It was such a hassle..." - Thach Anh
"Yep-yep-yep."
"What bad luck! Losing my outer jacket and having to go home wearing only my overalls like this, I'm definitely going to get scolded. What bad luck!" - Thach Anh
"Yep-yep-yep."
"Yes, yes, sorry for getting you into trouble too. But if I lied, it would be okay, right?" - Thach Anh
"Of course it would be okay."
Thach Anh was startled and slowly turned around. Behind her was Aunt Quynh, her mother's sister-in-law. Besides her grandparents, her mother also had a younger brother who was three years younger. Her uncle's family lived with her mother-in-law. Their house wasn't far from Thach Anh's, so they often met for meals and drinks.
It could be said that the two families were very close. They could always ask each other for help with any difficulties. Aunt Quynh's gaze fell upon her with a scrutinizing look.
"Hello, Aunt Quynh." - Thach Anh
"Running away again, aren't you?" - Aunt Quynh
"Yeah, I'm looking for a way to cultivate my skills." - Thach Anh
"What kind of cultivation involves bringing an animal along?" - Aunt Quynh
"It's like this..." - Thach Anh
Then she recounted everything she had done, from running away from home to wandering in the forest, taking in a fox, and then being chased by Jiaolong.
After hearing the story, Aunt Quynh understood.
"Alright, I'll cover for you this time, but only this time, otherwise we'll both get scolded." - Aunt Quynh sighed dejectedly.
"Yes! Thank you, Aunt Quynh! Ouch!" - Thach Anh happily raised her hand, but her arm ached.
"But that hand of yours is a bit hard to hide, you need to bandage it first." - Aunt Quynh
Her aunt took the fox from her hand, and the two of them went back to her maternal grandparents' house. As soon as they arrived at her parents' house, she was greeted by maternal grandfather Ngoc and grandmother Bich, who led her inside and offered her a simple dinner. Although their house wasn't as big as her paternal grandparents' mansion, her maternal grandparents were very generous.
"Eat more, you look too thin." - Grandfather Ngoc
"That's right, did your parents not feed you enough again?" - Grandmother Bich
And so they kept stuffing her mouth until her stomach was full.
Late at night, Thach Anh struggled to climb into bed with her bulging belly full of food, finding it difficult to breathe. When she finally got in, the fox was fast asleep. After being bathed and cleaned, it was revealed to be a white fox.
Underneath the mattress, a name was sewn on; she had named the fox "Huli".
Thanks to her aunt's expertise in animals, the fox knew how to care for it. It had been cured and fed well – truly the luckiest fox in the food chain.
Her finger gently touched the fox's ear, and it twitched slightly. This adorable reaction made Thach Anh chuckle, but her gaze fell on the empty space where the fox's tail should have been, filling her with both heartache and anger.
"If I find out who the culprit is who harmed you like this, I will definitely not let them get away with it!" - Thach Anh
After swearing her oath, Thach Anh yawned deeply and immediately fell asleep.
The clouds in the night sky gradually parted, allowing the moonlight to shine through the window where Thach Anh slept soundly. The blanket beside her was gently pulled up and covered her, a slender, white hand brushing away a lock of hair from her face. She let out a soft groan and fell asleep instead of waking, while the mysterious woman smiled eerily.
"What a naive child. Bringing random animals home without knowing if they're dangerous, yet recklessly saving them and even naming them. Sooner or later, this kindness will be exploited." - Huli
Huli looked down at the child's carefully bandaged arm with a pensive expression. Recalling the child's actions and the promise it had just made, though childish, warmed the woman's heart.
"How about I, the fox you named Huli, repay your kindness?" - Huli
Her hand gently glided to the child's forehead, opening a path into the child's inner core, the place where the child's spiritual essence resided.
Upon entering, the Fox Woman was astonished by the vast space. Not only that, within this space was a small cluster of light—the spiritual essence. She approached to examine it and sensed a stream of energy leaking from within, yet unable to radiate outwards because several parts of the spiritual essence were covered in metal, only allowing a faint glimmer of light to escape.
And it seemed as if those metal parts were gradually enveloping the spiritual essence. Huli sensed something ominous.
"This child... seems to have a problem. So, is this why this kid is searching the forest for things related to fire?" - Huli
Huli raised her hand to cast a spell, then pointed her finger at the spiritual root, unleashing a red flame that enveloped it. Although the metal wasn't very thick and could be melted, metal is different from water; it doesn't evaporate but rather remains and can cling back.
"This isn't good. If things continue like this, nothing will be resolved. If that's the case, I'll have to use this 'method'." - Huli
Huli began performing hand seals continuously, at such a rapid pace that it created afterimages. A mystical purplish-red light flashed between her eyebrows.
"[Heaven and Earth are boundless, all things share the same root!]"
A drop of blood shot out from her heart, landing in her dantian. The spiritual root, previously held captive by metal, suddenly burst into flames as if fueled by oil.
"[Using spirit to guide blood, using blood to nourish the soul. The fox spirit manifests, the spiritual root opens its way!]"
The illusory fox spirit tilted its head back and let out a piercing cry that tore through the night. Its body transformed into a silvery-white beam of light, hurtling straight into the spiritual root. The excruciating pain, like tearing through her meridians, made her roar.
"[Yin and Yang intertwine, demonic energy transforms into immortality.]"
Huli opened her eyes wide, clasped her hands together, and shouted.
"[FUSE!!!]" - Huli
The spiritual root radiated a dazzling light throughout the space.
_________
At dawn, Thach Anh was awakened by the crowing of a rooster. She woke up, instinctively rubbing her eyes with her left hand. Then she was astonished to realize something.
"MY ARM!!! IT'S HEALED!!!" - Thach Anh
Her scream was so loud that even the chickens outside the coop jumped in surprise.
Thach Anh examined her left arm, then clutched it like a long-lost treasure.
"Oh, my arm! Thank goodness you healed it. Otherwise, how would I be able to practice?" - Thach Anh
Turning to look at the fox staring at her, she picked it up and spun it around joyfully.
"Huli, look! My arm is healed! It's truly miraculous!" - Thach Anh
"Okay, okay, can you stop spinning? It's making me nauseous." - Huli
She stopped spinning when she heard someone's voice. Looking around the room, she saw no one. Confused, she thought she must have misheard.
"Here, it's in your hands." - Huli
Looking at the fox before her, she seemed to see its eyes slightly curved upwards as if smiling.
"Yes, it was me who spoke." - Huli
The chickens outside, eating grain, jumped in surprise at the scream from inside the house.
"YOU CAN SPEAK?!!!!!" - Thach Anh