Over three hundred years ago, the Divine Mountain collapsed, and the Cave Abyss, which birthed countless ghosts and monsters, appeared in the mortal world.
In these times, demons rampaged across the land. In the western border of the Dayong Kingdom stood a mountain entirely occupied by spirits and demons called Dali Mountain.
Dali Mountain was shrouded in clouds and mist, lush and verdant, with beautiful and serene scenery. The Spirit Fox Clan ruled this mountain range. The Spirit Fox Clan was intelligent and mild-tempered, protecting the many small animals and weak demons in the mountains. The little demons respected them greatly, and for three hundred years, Dali Mountain had remained peaceful and prosperous.
A gentle breeze swept through, and in the lush grass, a snow-white little rabbit darted past, leaving behind a trail of tiny paw prints.
Rabbit Tuan was very small, no bigger than the palm of a human hand, with soft and fluffy fur like a dandelion puff.
His eyes resembled glistening black grapes, his nose was pink and tender, his paw tips were pinkish, and his two ears stood upright, vigilantly listening to the surroundings.
He was called Qixue, a rabbit spirit, and the most beautiful little rabbit on Dali Mountain.
But his days were not easy. Perhaps due to foxes’ innate love of hunting rabbits, he was often chased by the underage foxes of the Spirit Fox Clan. Once caught, he would be nibbled and licked until his rabbit fur was soaked, utterly losing all dignity.
Qixue’s demon power was weak, and he couldn’t fight them, so he could only keep running. Fortunately, he was fast, escaping six or seven out of ten times.
But today, his luck was clearly poor. He had just escaped the hunting circle when he heard the Spirit Foxes’ movements again.
“I smell him. He’s nearby. Search carefully, don’t let him get away.”
“Yes, Young Master!”
The leading young red fox was the young master of the Spirit Fox Clan, Sang Chi, who loved bullying Qixue the most and always led the hunts against him.
Qixue crouched in the grass, glaring at that fiery red fox tail, grinding his teeth in hatred.
If he could beat him, he would really bite off Sang Chi’s tail, turning him into an ugly tailless fox and seeing how arrogant he could be then.
But reality was cruel. Not to mention Sang Chi had so many underlings with him—even in a one-on-one, Qixue couldn’t win. So he swallowed his anger, dug a hole, and fled, sneaking into the shrine at the mountain’s peak.
The shrine was quiet and empty, with incense candles burning silently, sending up wisps of white smoke.
The solemn and majestic statue gazed down with indifferent eyes, emotionless yet seeming to pity all things.
She was a goddess who had emerged from the Cave Abyss with immense power, blessing demons across the world, the guardian deity of all demons.
Demons all revered her, and Qixue was no exception. The little Rabbit Tuan dragged over a fruit about his size, hopped onto the offering table, and gently placed it in the silver dish.
“Lady Shanyin above, please bless this disciple to transform into human form soon, so I can go down the mountain to find my benefactor…”
Rabbit Tuan mumbled devoutly, bowing his front paws to the statue.
The Rabbit Clan was limited by their race and had poor cultivation talent. He had cultivated for a full hundred years and was the most accomplished rabbit in the clan, yet he still hadn’t transformed into human form.
But he believed that diligence could make up for weakness. As long as he worked hard, one day he would become human!
Qixue prayed for a long time and unknowingly fell asleep against the offering fruit while pillowing on it. He had been running nonstop and was exhausted, needing a good rest.
In his dream, Qixue was surrounded by radishes. He lay happily in the radish pile, munching away. Halfway through, he suddenly felt hot—it turned out he had bitten into a fire ginseng disguised as a radish.
No… this wasn’t just a dream; why was he really getting hotter?
Qixue’s body burned as he opened his eyes, but everything was foggy and unclear.
He felt like he was inside a blazing furnace, his head spinning and aching terribly. It felt like he was sick. Qixue struggled to jump down from the offering table, planning to find some herbs outside to chew.
But he was too weak; what he called jumping was more like tumbling off.
Qixue landed in a daze, stars bursting before his eyes. In the blur, he vaguely saw his rabbit paws turn into slender white human fingers.
An illusion? Was it because he wanted to become human so badly?
As Qixue thought this, he quickly realized he wasn’t mistaken. His front paws had truly become human hands, the fur receding, his body stretching and lengthening, silky black hair cascading from his shoulders, the tips brushing his snow-white, slender legs.
Had he… accumulated enough cultivation and naturally transformed into human form?
Qixue sat shocked by the offering table, taking a long time to recover.
He was overjoyed, believing he had received Lady Shanyin’s blessing. He clumsily shifted his body, knelt on the cushion, and kowtowed in thanks: “Thank you, Lady, for your blessing. Thank you, Lady…”
His voice, clear and pleasant like a mountain spring, echoed in the silent shrine until, at some point, the orange incense flames flickered, turning a demonic scarlet. A vast, profound, dark aura enveloped the entire hall.
“Qixue…”
A cold, seductive female voice softly called Qixue’s name, interrupting his prayers.
Her fair, beautiful hand caressed his cheek, long nails painted with rouge but not harming him at all, merely stroking every inch of his skin tenderly: “So beautiful…”
Qixue jumped in fright and opened his eyes. What entered his view was a bewitching woman’s face, seventy percent similar to the statue but a thousand times more beautiful, gazing at him lovingly.
She was surrounded by faint mist, her figure flickering in and out like an illusion, profound and mysterious.
It was Lady Shanyin… She had manifested!
Qixue froze for a moment, then prostrated himself excitedly: “This disciple greets Lady!”
“No need for formalities.”
Lady Shanyin’s finger tapped lightly, virtually lifting him up. Her dharma body was close, yet her voice seemed to come from the distant horizon, gently entering Qixue’s ears.
“I came for you, Qixue. I need your help. Are you willing?”
Hearing that Lady Shanyin had manifested for him, Qixue’s head spun with excitement. Without even asking what it was, he agreed passionately: “This disciple is willing to go through fire and water for Lady, without hesitation!”
Lady Shanyin chuckled softly and tapped his forehead: “Don’t rush. Watch this first, then answer.”
As power surged in, Qixue’s mind filled with new knowledge, allowing him a glimpse of the Heavenly Dao.
Their world was merely a romance novel. The two protagonists were men who would come to know and love each other, join forces to overthrow the Dayong tyranny, slay the emperor, seize the throne, and unify the realm.
Calamity would then befall the demons. These two would bolster humanity, nearly exterminating the demons, even driving Lady Shanyin back to the Cave Abyss, sealing her eternally in endless darkness.
Learning this, Qixue trembled with rage, hating the protagonists to the bone—not just for the demons and Lady Shanyin, but for the Dayong emperor they killed, who was Qixue’s lifesaver.
Over a dozen years ago, while playing on another mountain, he had nearly been shot dead by an imperial hunt’s arrow. The three-year-old emperor had shielded him, allowing him to survive.
But in the novel, the emperor was the great villain opposing the protagonists. He was pierced through the heart by a sword, his corpse hung from the city gates, pelted with rotten vegetables by the masses, forever branded a tyrant even in death.
Qixue’s heart ached for his benefactor, his eyes reddening as he looked sadly and angrily at Lady Shanyin: “What does Lady want this disciple to do?”
“Good child.”
Lady Shanyin stroked Qixue’s hair, smiling faintly: “Bound by the Heavenly Dao, I must entrust many things to you. I want you to enter the palace, gain the emperor’s favor, and then…”
Her blood-red lips slowly uttered: “Turn this world upside down.”
Qixue paused: “Can… this disciple do it?”
“Of course.” Lady Shanyin lifted his chin. “Do you find me beautiful?”
“Lady is naturally supremely beautiful,” Qixue praised sincerely.
“You are far more beautiful than I.” Lady Shanyin smiled. “Because you are so stunning and transformed right in the shrine, you awakened this dharma body of mine. Even I am moved—what more they?…”
She leaned to Qixue’s ear, whispering: “Your beauty is your greatest asset. No one can resist loving you.”
Lady Shanyin’s dharma body soon dissipated. Before leaving, she left words and gifts.
“After going down the mountain, find Wei Huai. He is Dayong’s Great General and the emperor’s close friend; he can help you enter the palace.”
Qixue gained three rabbit fur strands. In crisis, plucking one and holding it would summon Lady Shanyin’s response.
The novel was sealed in his sea of consciousness, summonable at will.
Finally, she blessed him: As long as he maintained human form, no one would detect his rabbit demon identity—not even powerful Daoists.
“Thank you, Lady.”
Qixue bowed to the statue several more times, unable to hide his excitement. Though furious, being entrusted by Lady Shanyin and soon seeing his long-missed benefactor filled him more with thrill and joy.
He would complete her task perfectly, kill those so-called protagonists, and turn the world upside down!
But what did he look like exactly? For her to say he was more beautiful than she was—that was impossible, right?
Qixue touched his cheek, trying to stand, but his legs wouldn’t obey. Being human was too hard—how did two legs stay steady? Couldn’t he walk on four?
He stroked his smooth legs, troubled, when noise erupted outside the shrine—the familiar annoying bunch: “Young Master, A Xue must be hiding here. We’ve searched everywhere else.”
“Then let’s go in.”
The underage Spirit Foxes poured into the shrine, led by Young Master Sang Chi. They respected Lady Shanyin greatly and behaved properly upon entering, not daring to disturb anything.
The red fox sniffed the air, catching a unique scent of flowers, grass, and herbs amid the incense: “He really came in.”
One Spirit Fox spotted a figure in the hall and pointed: “Young Master, is that A Xue? He finally transformed?”
“Impossible… He’s so dumb; give him another hundred years, and he still couldn’t.”
Sang Chi muttered but trotted to the hall entrance. Seeing the figure clearly, he froze.
The figure faced away, but the silhouette alone screamed beauty.
The beauty was stark naked, reclining on the cushion, with jet-black long hair, a slender waist, skin like water-kissed white lychee glowing snowily under candlelight—utterly erotic.
Just the back view stunned the little Spirit Foxes. Only Sang Chi regained composure somewhat, transforming into a handsome youth and entering the hall, calling: “Dumb bunny?”
The closer he got, the stronger Qixue’s unique scent. Sang Chi confirmed it was him and grew expectant. The little rabbit was dumb but truly pretty; his human form shouldn’t be bad…
He bent down, grabbed Qixue’s wrist, and turned him around forcefully, revealing his face—and instantly froze.
Sang Chi knew Qixue would be good-looking, but this moment’s impact was overwhelming, the stunning beauty leaving him speechless.
Foxes produced beauties of seductive allure, but Qixue’s was pure, extreme clarity—like misty rain, hazy moon—pristine, untainted, crystalline, transcending the mortal dust.
Ebony hair, snowy skin, brows like fine ink, lips like pink cherries. His exquisite eyes held shimmering water, flowing with tender affection. One glance softened Sang Chi’s body, words failing him.
Sang Chi’s heart thundered, ears reddening as he removed his outer robe and draped it over Qixue. He turned his face away, not daring to look below after seeing Qixue’s face.
Qixue clutched the robe’s edge and said: “Turn your face back.”
Sang Chi hesitated, eyes downcast as he turned: “What?”
“Am I pretty?” Qixue asked.
“…”
Sang Chi blushed and nodded lightly. “Beautiful.”
“Good.”
Qixue smiled sweetly, a smile so captivating it ensnared the soul. He gently placed his hand on Sang Chi’s shoulder. His hand was exquisitely beautiful too—ten slender fingers, a palm thin and even, fingertips tinged with pale pink like the finest powder jade.
Mimicking Lady Shanyin’s gesture, he hooked Sang Chi’s chin.
“Guess what I want to do most after transforming into human form?”
Sang Chi forgot even to dodge, letting Qixue toy with him as he pleased. He stammered, “Go down the mountain to see your benefactor?”
“I do want to see him, but you guessed wrong. What I want most is actually…”
A heavy slap landed squarely on Sang Chi’s face, knocking his hair crown askew. The ice-clear, jade-like beauty shed his fragile willow-in-the-breeze demeanor. With resentment surging to the heavens, he delivered several resounding slaps to his longtime nemesis.
“Beat you! Stinky fox, I’ve put up with you for years. Do you really think I’m some pushover just because I don’t eat meat?!”
