Madam, please ascend.

Chapter 368 The Drunkard Fox
That was an event from thousands of years ago, but Aunt Chun still remembers it vividly, as if it were yesterday.

At the time, she did not know that the person in front of her was a sword immortal. She only thought that the person looked dull and stupid, with a jade gourd that looked very valuable tied around his waist. She could hear the faint sound of water tinkling, and it seemed that it contained wine.

What kind of sucker is this? Exposing their treasure like this, don't they even understand the principle of not flaunting their wealth?
I'm going to teach you a lesson today!
In the bustling crowd, her petite figure went unnoticed. Unconsciously, she moved closer to the sucker and reached out a small hand toward the jade gourd.

The gourd had a shimmering, precious light on it; it was clearly no ordinary object and would surely fetch a good price.

All she could see was "wealth," and she never imagined that such a precious treasure could be so easily hung on someone's waist; the owner must not be an ordinary person.

Just as she was about to succeed, a large hand suddenly covered her small hand, gripping it firmly like a pair of pliers.

The drunkard adjusted his straw hat and said with a smile, "Miss, you mustn't steal this wine gourd."

She immediately tried to pull away, but the man held her too tightly, and she couldn't free her hand no matter what she did.

The drunkard raised an eyebrow, his eyes seeming to say, "Don't bother, you can't escape."

She could only lie and say, "Who, who wants to steal it? I just thought it was pretty and wanted to touch it a couple of times."

"Actually, this gourd is nothing, but the wine inside is my lifeline."

"You have no manners at all; why do you keep swearing?"

The drunkard looked surprised: "What's wrong with me?"

She said, "We don't even know each other, why are you talking about your manhood with a young girl?!"

The drunkard was speechless.

She pressed her advantage, saying, "If you don't let go, I'll call for help!"

The drunkard released her grip, but she found herself trapped in place by a spiritual force, unable to move or speak.

Then, the drunkard's words broke her defenses: "The little fox finally transformed into human form, but instead of learning anything good, she's become a complete scoundrel."

This person actually saw through my background at a glance?

Oh no, he's a cultivator!

But who would dress so plainly as a cultivator, blending seamlessly into a crowd...?

She was no longer the arrogant person she had been before; she was trembling with fear, thinking to herself, "Big Brother, Second Brother, Fifth Brother, Sixth Brother, I'm doomed today."

Don't follow my example in the future. It's best to stay away from human towns. Who knows if there might be some cunning wolf lurking there...

She kept muttering to herself, as if she wanted to say everything she had to say for the rest of her life.

However, after waiting for a long time, the drunkard did not "exorcise the demon," but instead took off the gourd from his waist in front of her, pulled out the stopper, and drank the wine in it in one gulp.

He tilted his head back to drink, shaking the gourd three times as if he wanted to shove his head inside and lick it clean.

Seeing this, the little fox thought to itself: Tsk, what a poor and pathetic sight. I'm just unlucky to have fallen into your trap.

But just as she was complaining to herself, the man threw the jade gourd at her, wiped his mouth, and said, "You are a beautiful woman, why did you become a thief?" Then he left gracefully.

The immobilization spell was then lifted, and the little fox, clutching its precious gourd, stood there for a long time, unable to recover from its shock.

What does it mean? !

It's one thing to call me a thief, but what do you mean by calling me "family"?
You're human, I'm a demon, who's family with you?
The little fox grew angrier the more it thought about it. Although it had finally gotten its long-awaited treasure, it couldn't be happy at all.

Perhaps the drunkard didn't exude any dangerous aura, or perhaps for some other reason, but she suddenly became very interested in him. With a flick of her eyeballs, she followed him as if possessed.

This time, she was careful and deliberately kept her distance from him, even using her innate supernatural power to conceal herself.

As an ancient demon race, the fact that the nine-tailed fox was able to escape being imprisoned in the demon capital shows that its talent for escaping is extraordinary.

She was very confident. She had been discovered by the drunkard before because she had underestimated him. This time, when she got serious, he definitely wouldn't be able to find out.

As you can see, the drunkard was completely oblivious and went to the biggest tavern in town on his own.

He inquired with the shopkeeper about how much "Liyuan Spring" liquor was left this year, intending to buy it all at once, only to hear that the remaining liquor had been bought by wealthy families in the north of the city.

The drunkard, who had remained unfazed when his belongings were stolen, now looked distraught.

The little fox thought to itself, "Is he out of his mind from drinking? What's the point of reasoning with these mortals? I never hesitate to take their things."

Then the drunkard left the tavern and walked dejectedly towards the north of the city. He was quite patient and actually began to search house to house.

Persistence pays off, and he finally found the family.

The male head of the household died many years ago. He was a heavy drinker, so the widowed woman would buy some fine wine every year to offer as a sacrifice.

The drunkard tried to negotiate with the lady of the house to exchange his calligraphy and paintings for some drinks.

It's quite a coincidence that the deceased not only loved wine but also had a deep passion for landscape painting.

The woman actually nodded in agreement.

The little fox, perched on the roof, watched anxiously, thinking, "Why don't you just steal the wine directly? Why go through all this trouble?"

Besides, that widow was looking at you strangely, as if she wanted to "skin you alive and devour you." Didn't you feel that?

Having spent many years navigating the treacherous waters of the human world, she was no innocent white lotus in the dark; she could tell at a glance that the widow had developed feelings for the drunkard.

"Tch." The little fox was unconvinced, thinking to itself what was so great about a drunkard, but it still couldn't help but take a closer look at the guy who was pretending to be weak while actually being strong.

This man was tall and wore a bamboo hat, yet his imposing presence was undeniable. He carried a bamboo basket filled with scrolls, and his attire suggested he was a traveler on a long journey.

As for his features... the little fox suddenly felt a flush on his face and mentally commented, "So-so."

Her eyes darted around, and suddenly an idea came to her. With a slight twitch of her nose, she followed the smell of alcohol to the warehouse.

Inside, there were wine jars piled up; it turned out that the Liyuanchun wine jars were stored here.

The little fox opened the jade gourd and began filling it with wine. But as soon as it started filling, it discovered a hidden world inside, seemingly never going to be filled.

She refused to believe it and poured all those dozens of jars of fine wine into it, but in the end, it was only half full.

"This wine gourd is actually a magic treasure!" The little fox was even more surprised, not understanding why the drunkard would give it to him for no reason if the gourd was so precious.

Furthermore, he was clearly a practitioner of spiritual cultivation, so why did he mingle in the secular world, appearing impoverished and destitute, yet still painting to exchange for wine?

I can't figure it out, I don't understand it.

The little fox left the warehouse and continued to hide in the shadows, spying on the drunkard.

He was very different when he painted; his whole demeanor instantly became... "as if divinely inspired."

"Is he just putting on an act?" The little fox didn't dare get too close and could only watch from afar. Although she was unconvinced, her eyes had already been filled with the image of that drunkard.

As dusk approached, the drunkard put down his brush and ink, and a large landscape painting was finally completed. The pretty widow praised it repeatedly, and somehow changed into a revealing outfit.

With her snow-white shoulders exposed and her skirt slit high, she looked like a female monster about to devour people.

The little fox listened to the widow saying that the beautiful scenery in the painting was truly intoxicating, and suggested that they enjoy the view while drinking. "I'll go and fetch some wine right away," she said.

"Shameless." She rolled her eyes, thinking to herself, "I'm really sorry, but the wine you've been longing for is gone!"

Sure enough, a moment later, the lady of the house cried out, "The house has been burgled! All those 'Liyuan Chun' books are gone!"

The drunkard wasn't angry after hearing this. His eyes flickered, and he looked directly at where the little fox was hiding. He left the scroll with the family as agreed, and then quickly followed them.

The beautiful widow stared in disbelief, her heart filled with mixed emotions, feeling as if she had missed a great opportunity.

The little fox turned and ran. Seeing the person getting closer and closer, it quickly sped up, its steps like the wind, wishing it could sprout wings out of thin air.

Unfortunately, even if she could grow wings, she wouldn't be able to escape; she's truly a case of "no escape even with wings."

When she finally managed to escape to a high building in the city, the drunkard suddenly appeared in front of her.

He left the painting behind, which means he had noticed the little fox long ago, but had never pointed it out.

Before the drunkard could say anything, the little fox threw the jade gourd over, saying, "Here's a drink for you!"

The drunkard looked surprised and wanted to say something, but his craving for alcohol was too strong. He shook the gourd vigorously and smelled it. Sure enough, it was a top-quality "Liyuan Spring" liquor.

He immediately drank heartily, marveling that it still tasted the same as before, and that it was worth the special trip he had made.

The little fox didn't leave; she just watched him drink, her eyes hiding some inexplicable emotions.

The drunkard glanced over there. The girl stood gracefully, lively and cute. The key was that she had nine tails dancing in the wind behind her. Although she tried to hide them, they were completely visible to him.

To actually run into a nine-tailed fox who's fallen on hard times and turned to thievery, it seems this world really isn't very friendly to the demon race.

The drunkard was amazed, for although the nine-tailed fox was still a young girl, her beauty was already beginning to take shape.

If such a stunning beauty were to grow a few more years older, she would likely become a monstrous source of trouble, causing countless disasters.

Of course, it's also possible that next time you might encounter a person of ambition who will subdue the demon and make you a victim of their sword.

The little fox kept a distance from the drunkard and said, "I'll return the gourd to you, so I don't owe you anything. Besides, you drank my wine, so you owe me a favor."

The drunkard said while drinking, "I traded the wine for my painting, what's it to you?"

"If I hadn't stolen the wine, that pretty widow would definitely have been clinging to you, and you wouldn't have had the chance to enjoy the opera." The little fox said this without realizing that she was also clinging to someone.

"That's true." The drunkard appreciated the gesture and offered a way out.

The little fox unconsciously moved closer and said, "My name is Chunli, what's yours?"

The drunkard raised an eyebrow, surprised that her name sounded somewhat similar to "Liyuan Chun" (a famous Peking Opera troupe).

The wine was fine, and the woman was beautiful.

Chunli pressed on, "I'm talking to you, are you deaf?"

The drunkard suddenly said, "The fox's tail is showing."

Chunli was startled. She touched behind her back and realized she had been tricked. She was so angry that her face hardened, and she was about to scold someone.

The drunkard then said, "The King God is coming."

He dipped his fingertip in the wine, wrote his name in mid-air, and then casually wiped it away.

Chunli memorized those three fleeting words, a sweet smile appearing on her face, thinking to herself, "I'll remember you."

She chattered on and on like a sparrow, "What did you mean by 'a beautiful woman' before? Do you want to be family with me?"

Wang Shenlai was stunned to find that the Nine-Tailed Fox was illiterate.

Chunli added, "Let me make this clear beforehand: my younger siblings are all demon beasts, so you're not allowed to bully them when you come."

"Not the family you mentioned, but a talented man and a beautiful woman."

"What does that mean?"

"beauty."

"Oh? You think I'm pretty?"

……

After hearing that story, Yunyi wondered if he would only be considered sensible if he called her "Master's Wife".

Wen Daoxian, who was standing next to him, felt extremely uncomfortable, pretending that he hadn't heard anything at all.

Chunli rested her chin on her hand, her expression filled with resentment: "The days I spent with Wang Shenlai were truly carefree."

Yun Yi inquired, "Could it be that Aunt Chun went out with him to find drinks?"

"What else can he do besides looking for wine? He's such a clueless blockhead."

Yun Yi didn't respond; he wouldn't dare to speak ill of his master behind his back.

Chunli suddenly smiled brightly again: "But I'm still very happy to hear news about him. As long as he remains single, I won't be angry with him."

Yun Yi quickly put in a good word for his master, saying, "Master only has a little pageboy by his side now, who is a turtle spirit in human form."

"He's smart enough. If he's finally figured it out but still doesn't think of me, then I'll have to settle the score with him."

At this point, Chunli changed the subject: "Xiaodao, what's wrong with you? Did you grow thorns on your butt?"

Poor Wen Daoxian acted like a child in front of his ancestor, honestly replying, "I was just thinking... how about we get down to business first?"

Chunli: "Isn't the matter of our ancestors important?"

"It's important business, it's important business."

"You're no longer fun once you grow up. You used to follow me around naked, begging for candy when you were little."

Upon hearing this, he first sighed and covered his forehead.

Even if he becomes the head of the Wen family and reaches the Dao Integration Realm, he will always be a junior who can't hold his head high in front of the ancestor.

Yun Yi couldn't help but laugh, so he could only help out by saying, "This Bai Ze has coincidentally merged with Tianzhu. I'd appreciate it if Aunt Chun could take a look."

He gestured for the little golden beast on his shoulder to come over obediently, and Bai Ze immediately did so.

Chunli then let Wen Daoxian go and began to examine Bai Ze closely. "You are supposed to be one of the strongest bloodlines of the demon race, how did you end up in such a sorry state?"

Bai Ze whimpered, "The spiritual energy in the demon capital is so thin that we can hardly get enough to eat. I almost starved to death back then."

"Consider yourself lucky. The Bai Ze clan is naturally blessed with excellent fortune and is close to the Heavenly Dao. That's why you were able to 'eat' the Heavenly Pillar by chance; otherwise, you would have died long ago."

Yun Yi said, "The biggest problem now is that someone wants to destroy the Heavenly Pillar, which will inevitably implicate Bai Ze."

Chunli said casually, "That's easy. Just separate the little guy from the Heavenly Pillar."

"?"

"Consider yourself lucky to have run into me. If you had fallen into someone else's hands, you certainly wouldn't have survived."

Chunli gently poked Bai Ze's nose, causing the little guy to sneeze.

She said lazily, "Xiao Yi, you and Xiao Dao go out and play first. I still need to make some preparations here."

Upon hearing this, Wen Daoxian felt as if he had been granted a pardon and immediately pulled Yun Yi to bow and take his leave.

(End of this chapter)