The Little Fox's Immortal Cultivation Encyclopedia

Chapter 93 The First Night at the Academy

The little monkey looked around and saw that all the children in the room were copying books diligently. Apart from a few rummaging through the table and bending down to find pens, no one was paying attention to him, so he quietly rolled up his sleeves.

It continued writing, but after only a few words, the monkey hair on its wrist was soaked with ink again. It looked down at itself, then wiped its hand with its other hand, leaving both paws black.

"This fur—" It was his own fur after all, so the monkey swallowed the rest of his sentence and focused his attention on his arm. At least he didn't rub it on the paper anymore, but then trouble struck his pen again.

This stroke was supposed to be a short horizontal line, but the monkey wrote it as a long, drawn-out stroke. After a moment's thought, it subconsciously tried to use the tip of its pen to brush away the excess part, but after trying for a long time, it didn't work and instead created a black blob on the paper.

The monkey looked at the fox for help, but saw that it was still staring intently at the table, with four or five pens flying around in front of it.

Shuai Shuai went to look at the children who had lost their pens. Their eyes swept over the fox's desk several times, and the pens were floating there brightly, but they seemed not to see anything.

"You cheated again."

"Quiet down, the fox is cultivating." The fox was focused and multitasking, and its ability to control objects with its magic was becoming more and more proficient.

The little monkey moved to a different spot, skipped the word, and continued writing. Its right hand, gripping too tightly, became a little sore, so it switched to its left. The resulting characters were crooked and slanted sharply to the left. Fortunately, the characters it wrote with its right hand were just as bad, and most people couldn't tell the difference.

"The fox has finished writing." The fox put away its pen, revealing a sheet of paper in front of it covered with neat and orderly writing.

The little monkey looked at its own paper again. It had only written half a page, and there were ink spots everywhere. In some places, the ink was too thick, so the monkey repeatedly smeared it, and even created holes.

"How annoying!" The little monkey threw down his pen, dipped his finger in the ink, and began to draw on the paper. First, he drew a round dumpling, then two thin lines; that was the nasty fox.

Shuai Shuai examined the drawing with satisfaction, then began to draw himself carefully again. In the drawing, he sat dignified on the altar, while a fox lay timidly beneath him.

The fox approached and said, "Didn't I tell you that in a little while it will be Hai Shi (9-11 PM) and we'll be going to the dormitory to sleep? The lights must be turned off at that time, or we'll be punished if we make noise?"

The little monkey's heart skipped a beat. He crumpled the paper in front of him into a ball and said stubbornly, "I wasn't paying attention just now. Now I'm going to write properly. Don't bother me."

As it picked up its pen, it suddenly heard a bell ring.

"Is it time?"

"Um."

The children packed up their desks and headed outside. One by one, the oil lamps went out, and the monkey sat in the gradually darkening lecture hall, bewildered.

With a sweep of its breath, the fox cleaned up the ink spilled on the monkey, the table, and the ground. It then beckoned to the monkey, saying, "Come on, I'll take you to the dining hall. It'll be too late; the monks will be coming to patrol the night."

The little monkey quickly stuffed the paper into his sleeve and jogged a few steps to catch up with the fox.

The academy has two dormitories, one on the east and one on the west. The west side has shared dormitories for six people, while the east side is slightly better, with shared dormitories and private rooms for four people.

The academy was a place of education, and on the surface, it didn't care about family background or social status; it only allocated dormitories based on talent and learning. However, the fox had sought the help of Magistrate Zhang, and the headmaster was a devout follower of the Fox God. With their combined efforts, the usual practice was broken. The headmaster immediately offered to make room for the fox in a private room.

However, the fox refused. It wasn't that the fox intended to make the monkey suffer; rather, it had its own reasons.

Fox specifically chose this academy, firstly because he was familiar with it, and secondly because it did not focus on the imperial examinations and only accepted teenagers. The teaching method was more about teachers instructing children by example.

Both the fox and the old wine maker agreed that only by living and playing with the children could the creature gradually integrate into the human world without them even realizing it.

After all, not all animals are as intelligent as foxes.

The fox praised itself again, feeling it had worried itself sick over the fall, and decided to make it up to the monkey later. Without stopping, it pushed open a door to the east wing of the dormitory.

Shuai Shuai stood at the doorway and peered inside.

Pu Caiyu sat by the window, while the chubby boy squatted beside the bed, reaching under the mattress to pull something out.

"You're here! Come in quickly," Pu Caiyu said warmly, grabbing the chubby boy's hand. "Don't hide it anymore, take it out quickly."

The chubby boy reluctantly took out a paper package, picked out a piece of pastry of moderate size, and handed it to Shuai Shuai.

Shua Shua reached out to take it, but the fox stopped her, saying, "Thank me first."

Shuai Shuai repeatedly clasped his hands in greeting, glanced at the fox, and when it nodded, he happily took it, pulled down the cloth covering the lower half of his face, and stuffed it straight into his mouth.

Its eyes lit up, but the two children were stunned.

"So much hair—" the chubby boy blurted out.

"It was born sick, don't be afraid, it won't affect you." The fox chose an empty bed, gestured to measure its size, and felt that if a human lay down, it would be a little cramped.

"I see—" Caiyu looked at Shuai Shuai sympathetically, then took out a few candied fruits and handed them to Shuai Shuai, "I have some here too."

The chubby boy was a little embarrassed and gave all his snacks to the monkey.

He ate everything that came his way, stuffing it all into his mouth until his cheeks were bulging.

"What's your name?"

The fox looked around, walked to the bed by the window, and answered for the monkey: "Its name is Monkey Wine. It fell and hit its head when it was little, so it can't talk very well yet. Just ask me if you have any questions."

"You're the one who hit your head." The monkey held back, seeing that the fox hadn't told it to fall down.

"Caiyu, let Houjiu sleep in this bed."

"Okay." The chubby boy was a little reserved because he had to share a room with this adult, but for some reason, Caiyu felt that this young master had a kind face and a sense of intimacy.

The fox chuckled and silently pulled out various kinds of food from its tail, arranging them one by one on the couch. The chubby boy's eyes widened in amazement, and all traces of awkwardness vanished instantly.

Just kidding, do you think being with a fox will keep you talking?

After sharing for a while, seeing that it was getting late, everyone turned off the lights and went to bed.

The monkey lay comfortably on the bed, turning from side to side. Although the bed didn't shake, which made it a little uncomfortable, the softness of the bedding immediately won it over.

But as soon as the monkey closed its eyes, it felt a beam of light shining directly at it, making it unable to sleep. It opened its eyes in confusion and saw only the soft moonlight.

Is the moonlight on Earth really that bright?

Just as doubt arose in its heart, it saw a pair of hands holding an inkstone, steadily handing it to its front.

"There's morning reading tomorrow at dawn, so hurry up and write," the fox said gently.

"This is so annoying!" The little monkey bared its teeth and claws, resignedly getting up to copy the text.

Laughter erupted around them. Pu Caiyu peeked out from under the covers and whispered, "It's alright. I couldn't sleep either, so we can chat."

The chubby boy proudly pulled out a book: "Ding ding ding—The Legend of the Fox Fairy, a newly published edition!"

The little monkey pricked up its ears.