Chapter 52: Ungrateful Heartless Immortal Venerable

【Task-specified node reached.】

05 leaped out from a thicket of bushes. By the time he poked his head out, a pair of fiery red fox ears had sprouted atop it—fluffy and soft.

Before him lay a serene and peaceful little village, nestled at the foot of verdant mountains like a paradise cut off from the rest of the world.

This book was set in the Cultivation World.

And the target of this mission was the once-in-a-millennium prodigy of that world, the protagonist gong Zhou Si.

A few years earlier, during the brutal Human-Demon War, Zhou Si had suffered grievous wounds and lost all his memories. The kind-hearted protagonist shou Ji Huai had rescued him and taken him in as an ordinary villager.

He had spent a tranquil stretch of time in this small village.

Amnesia had even led him to privately pledge his life to the protagonist shou right here.

05’s current persona was that of a heartless, cunning fox.

He had stumbled upon the amnesiac protagonist gong and the protagonist shou, whose innate constitution was uniquely special.

Greedy impulses stirred within him, and he resolved to seduce them both, draining their cultivation and spiritual energy in the process.

In the original text, he had of course failed—and paid for it with his life.

But now, he had to succeed. Or more precisely, he had to succeed in keeping those two apart.

This time, however, 05 first glanced at his status panel and let out a breath of relief.

His role in this world was that of a fox demon. Which meant he had demon arts at his disposal!

With demon arts, he could make someone swell up with a big belly.

Sure, it was actually a malicious spell for siphoning away a person’s cultivation.

But 05 was making the most of it.

The most important thing in this world was… well, okay, the task came first.

But a close second was this: he absolutely, positively could not get tangled up with the mission target again.

Having psyched himself up, the little fox burst out from the bushes in a flash. One of his hind legs was lame, but he could still move with nimble grace.

Skirting along the base of the village’s earthen wall, using tall weeds and low fences for cover, he slipped silently to the outermost fenced courtyard.

Just then, a plainly dressed woman emerged from the yard. She kept glancing back over her shoulder as she walked, chattering away.

“…Listen to Auntie here—a single man like you needs to settle down and start a family. You need someone at home who knows when you’re cold or hot. That’s what real living is all about!”

She appeared to be an enthusiastic matchmaker.

The little fox waited until she was well out of sight before cautiously peeking his head around and peering into the yard.

Two young men stood there. One was taller and more upright, his broad shoulders and narrow waist impossible to conceal even beneath the plainest short-sleeved tunic.

He had tied his long hair casually behind his head. His features were deep and profound; even in amnesia, a trace of heavenly pride lingered in his brow.

This was the protagonist gong, Zhou Si.

The other was the protagonist shou, Ji Huai.

Years of manual labor had given him a body that was even and sturdy, if not quite as perfect as Zhou Si’s. His features were clear and handsome, his eyes pure like a clear mountain spring.

Zhou Si held hunting tools in his hands, apparently on the verge of heading out.

“You’re really going to take Auntie’s advice and go look at some girl?” he asked.

“No,” Ji Huai replied. He kept his head down, sorting through his farming implements, his tone even. “Auntie just got enthusiastic and brought it up.

“It’s not even ink on the page yet.”

Zhou Si responded with frank openness. “Anyway, it’d just be partnering up to get by. Things are pretty good between the two of us right now, aren’t they?”

Ji Huai paused, lifting his gaze to study him. He seemed to be mulling it over.

Zhou Si was an excellent hunter, after all, which meant meat on the table far more often.

If Ji Huai got married, Zhou Si would have nowhere to stay. He knew that was the real reason behind Zhou Si’s words.

The two of them were straight as arrows—no feelings involved whatsoever.

Still, after a moment’s thought, Ji Huai felt something was off.

“It’s not entirely about partnering up, is it?”

Zhou Si considered, his expression growing even more nonchalant. “I’ve heard men can do that sort of thing with other men too. As long as I’m not the one on the bottom, trying it out wouldn’t hurt.”

“…”

Zhou Si pressed. “Want to try now, or tonight?”

Ji Huai hesitated slightly. “…Let’s wait until tonight.”

Wait—they couldn’t even have kids. Was there really any point in trying?

“Does that make us husbands now?”

No, that absolutely wouldn’t do.

Just as they reached that point in the conversation, the fox hurriedly shouldered the gate open and bounded into the yard with a loud bang.

He had meant to seek out Ji Huai.

But he hadn’t anticipated Zhou Si’s reaction. The moment Zhou Si laid eyes on the fox, they lit up. Without a second thought, he snatched up the nearby axe and hurled it!

Fur delivered right to his door! And such glossy fur, too.

05 gave a startled yelp. The axe hurtled past him with terrifying force, nearly grazing his body before brutally splintering the firewood stack behind him.

In his panic, he shifted to human form on instinct—but the transformation was imperfect. Those fiery red fox ears remained prominently perked atop his head.

Zhou Si’s pupils contracted in shock at the sight. “Demon!” he blurted.

Ji Huai watched in stunned silence as the fox turned into a living, breathing person.

05 seized the moment and lunged straight for Ji Huai, his voice laced with panic. “Mr. Ji! Save me!”

Zhou Si immediately stepped in front, blocking the way with wary vigilance. “Careful! He’s after you.”

“No, no, no! I’m an old friend!” 05 protested frantically, his eyes darting to Ji Huai in desperation. “I’m the little fox you saved before. I’m here to repay the favor. Ah!”

Zhou Si clearly wasn’t buying it. He struck out anyway.

“Who’s friends with a demon!”

Terrified, 05’s tail nearly slipped out of hiding. With a whoosh, he reverted to his fox form and nimbly burrowed into Ji Huai’s arms.

There, he curled into a shivering ball of fiery red fluff, his voice a pitiful whimper. “Mr. Ji!”

“W-Wait!” Ji Huai caught the warm, soft bundle on reflex. In the end, his heart softened, and he held Zhou Si back.

“You… you’re that injured little fox from before… Xiao Wu?”

The fox in his arms was breathtakingly beautiful, its coat gleaming like the finest satin. It lifted its head at just the right moment, gazing up at Ji Huai with eyes that seemed to speak volumes—obedient, pitiful, nodding gently.

Zhou Si was utterly speechless. “He’s a fox demon!”

As expected of the Immortal Venerable—even without his memories, his instincts screamed that demons had to be slain.

But Ji Huai, cradling the warm, fluffy bundle and meeting those clear, innocent eyes, simply couldn’t bring himself to do it.

Reading the room, 05 cautiously shifted back to human form.

His human appearance was equally striking: natural fox eyes with upturned corners, long lashes, a high nose bridge, and lips that curved slightly upward at the corners—even unsmiling, he carried a roguish hint of mischief.

He fully embodied the term “fox demon.”

Right now, the little fox was straining to look as earnest as possible, staring without blinking as he spun his tale.

“I’m really here to repay you.”

Zhou Si crossed his arms and scoffed. “Repay us? Can you conjure gold and silver? Or maybe some grain?”

Hu Wu faltered. He could indeed use spells to create illusions.

Ji Huai refused outright. He could not possibly turn leaves and stones into gold to deceive others.

Hu Wu instantly softened his voice and put on a pitiful expression again. “I just want a place to stay.”

Zhou Si snorted with laughter. “How much meat would that require?”

“I’ll save my share for him,” Ji Huai said, shaking his head.

Zhou Si could not understand it. “Why?”

Ji Huai let out a sigh. He was soft-hearted, after all. “Didn’t I pick you up when you were badly injured and unconscious back then?”

“I’m human.”

“He’s… one now too, isn’t he?” At least he appeared to be.

“I can do work.”

Hu Wu quickly pledged his loyalty. “I can hunt for myself too!”

“Then why come here?” Zhou Si asked disdainfully, glancing at Hu Wu’s leg. Even in human form, he walked with a limp.

“A lame fox.”

Hu Wu was left speechless.

Zhou Si pressed on. “If you keep a demon like this around, aren’t you afraid he’ll eat you in the middle of the night?”

Ji Huai ignored the question. Instead, he turned to ask why the fox’s leg had not healed yet. Back when it had still been a fox, a hunter’s trap had broken its leg, which was why he had kept it for a while. He had never imagined it was a demon—and yet the injury lingered.

Hu Wu hurriedly replied, “Once my magic power grows stronger, it definitely will…”

Zhou Si cut him off without mercy. “Hah, what a waste.”

Hu Wu gritted his teeth inwardly. Damn it—he was indeed weak in cultivation, but wasn’t he banking on stealing this guy’s power?

Ji Huai insisted on keeping the fox, so Zhou Si stopped bothering and went out hunting on his own.

Hu Wu trailed closely after Ji Huai to the vegetable garden in the backyard, even trying to help with the farm work.

His movements were clumsy, however, and his bad leg made things worse. Before long, his face was smeared with dirt.

Ji Huai could not bear to watch. He simply told him to rest.

“Xiao Wu, what did you really come here for?”

He handed him a cloth.

“There’s nothing much I can offer you here. When you were a fox, I could feed you scraps of meat. But as a demon…”

Ji Huai did not truly believe a fox demon lacked for meat.

Hu Wu blinked his eyes. “I want to stay here because I want to be by your side.”

Ji Huai felt a bit dazed at first, then his face grew faintly red.

Hu Wu was simply too good-looking. With that aggrieved look in his eyes—deep, affectionate, his soft ears drooping—Ji Huai, who was only a simple village youth and had never seen anyone so beautiful, found himself at a loss.

Yet Hu Wu was already scheming ahead in his mind.

In the future, once Zhou Si recovered his memories, Ji Huai would embark on the grueling path of cultivation and head to the sect in search of him—only to be utterly forgotten.

In his unwillingness, Ji Huai would begin cultivating as well, only to discover he possessed the once-in-a-millennium Five Elements Spirit Body. The spiritual energy of heaven and earth would naturally gather around him. That was precisely why the amnesiac Zhou Si instinctively wished to remain by his side.

Ji Huai’s progress would be astonishingly swift. Yet in the end, to save Zhou Si, he would shatter his own Golden Core and sever his path to immortality.

As a mere mortal, all he would gain was Zhou Si’s final fleeting companionship.

But on Zhou Si’s long road to ascension, such a brief moment would pass like a blink. Who could say whether the immortal Zhou Si would even remember that such a person had once existed in his life?

Hu Wu’s mission was to prevent Ji Huai’s needless sacrifice.

After resting for a while, Hu Wu simply shifted back into his fox form. In this shape, he could at least pass tools or dig small pits from time to time, offering some help.

Ji Huai had always liked small animals, and this fluffy creature’s charms left him utterly enchanted. The thought of chasing him away vanished entirely.

“Be careful. Don’t go out during the day.”

If the other villagers saw him in his fox form, they would surely catch him and skin him alive.

And if they caught sight of his beautiful human form… well, that would likely spell trouble too.

Hu Wu nodded with a sly grin. “I know.”

That evening, Zhou Si returned shouldering a massive wild boar. The villagers along the way gasped in amazement, all praising his astonishing strength.

Hu Wu poked his head out at the noise, amused. Zhou Si was a Nascent Soul Cultivator at heart—even without his spiritual power, his physical body was no match for any ordinary man.

Zhou Si had barely stepped into the yard when he spotted the fox crouching there sneakily, drooling over his kill.

Hu Wu was hungry, it was true. He had cultivated into a spirit, but with a missing leg, treats like wild boar were rare indeed.

He looked up and met Zhou Si’s irritated gaze. Sheepishly, Hu Wu ducked his head back.

Ji Huai handled the cooking. He had set aside a bowl of meat for Hu Wu, but Zhou Si snatched it away and ate it himself.

Hu Wu swallowed enviously. Unable to watch, Ji Huai fetched another bowl.

But before the fox’s paw could touch it, Zhou Si swiped it again.

Hu Wu muttered under his breath. “Are you eating two bowls…?”

Zhou Si shot him a glance. “Did you hunt the boar?”

Hu Wu gave up and spent the rest of dinner miserably chewing vegetable leaves, seething in silence.

The mud hut had only one bedroom at first. Zhou Si’s arrival had prompted them to clean out the woodshed as a makeshift second room.

Now they had two proper sleeping spaces.

The two protagonists had even discussed trying their hand at “playing husband and wife” that night—but the fox’s arrival had driven it from their minds.

Ever vigilant, Zhou Si volunteered to keep an eye on the fox. “Sleep in the woodshed with me.”

Ji Huai worried he might slaughter the creature in the night. “You should stay with me instead.”

In the end, all three ended up on the large kang bed, with the fox sandwiched in the middle.

Deep into the night, Ji Huai had fallen into a deep sleep.

Hu Wu, however, suddenly opened his eyes. His pupils darted about in the darkness, gleaming with cunning.

His nose twitched faintly. He could clearly sense intense, unstable waves of cultivation emanating from Zhou Si.

That vast and majestic spiritual power was now sealed deep within his Dantian by horrific internal injuries and a vicious Great Demon Restriction, prevented from circulating.

What had once been a heaven-shaking force had become a torment due to its master’s lost memories—he knew not how to guide it, and it rampaged wildly through his meridians instead.

Sure enough, in the latter half of the night, Zhou Si suffered another “attack.”

His face was ashen as paper, veins bulging on his forehead, beads of cold sweat pouring down.

He clenched his teeth unconsciously, muffled groans of agony escaping his throat.

Unable to resist, the fox got up and edged closer.

He never expected that the moment he drew near, Zhou Si’s hand would clamp down on his wrist like an iron vise.

Zhou Si’s eyes snapped open. In the pitch darkness, they burned with a terrifying intensity, sharp as a blade freshly drawn from its sheath.

Hu Wu’s heart nearly stopped. He thought for a moment that Zhou Si had regained his memories.

“I—I wanted to help you!” Hu Wu whispered urgently by way of explanation. His wrist throbbed with pain.

“I know your meridians are damaged. You’re also afflicted with a potent snake venom!”

Zhou Si was in too much pain to speak, but the strength in his hands never wavered. The wariness and scrutiny in his eyes bored into Hu Wu like a drill.

The fox hurriedly explained himself, softening his voice to a pleading lilt.

“Your instincts are telling you to save yourself and heal your wounds, which is why you’re holed up here. This mountain is brimming with spiritual energy, true. But you can’t build up enough power to recover by feeding on ordinary blood and flesh!

You need spiritual herbs packed with more spiritual power—or spirit beasts.”

“Spiritual herbs are rare, though, and spirit beasts are far stronger. You can’t catch them on your own.”

“I… I can help you! We can figure it out together!”

Zhou Si gasped for breath, cold sweat beading on his forehead, but his eyes gleamed with sharp intensity. “Is that right? By your logic,

the spirit beast with the richest spiritual power in these woods wouldn’t happen to be the blood and flesh of a certain fox demon, would it?”

Hu Wu’s face drained of color at those words. He whipped his head around to flee, only for Zhou Si to pin him down even harder.

“So it really works?”

“N-No!”

Hu Wu denied it in a panic, his voice cracking with a sob.

Zhou Si stared at his terrified expression and wasted no more time. He lunged forward and sank his teeth into the vein at the side of Hu Wu’s neck.

“Wah!” Hu Wu yelped in pain with a short, sharp cry. He struggled for a moment before going limp, as if accepting his fate.

In truth, he was furtively watching Zhou Si guzzle his blood.

A flash of triumphant glee crossed Hu Wu’s face. So easy to fool.

Drink up. The more you swallow, the deeper my demon arts will take root. As a fox demon, he was born to counter certain snake venoms.

Soon enough, his spiritual power would slip unnoticed into the other’s dantian. Then… it would be like a mouse let loose in a granary. If he didn’t let him feed, he could even bloat the fool’s belly till it burst!

Yet all the while, he whimpered pitifully from his lips, his voice soft and heartbreaking: “It hurts… it hurts so much… Drink easier… I, I don’t wanna die… waaah…”

In the end, Ji Huai jolted awake. He took in the sight of Zhou Si forcibly pinning down the little fox, the fox wailing and sobbing about the pain, and recalled Zhou Si’s words from earlier that day. Alarm flooded through him.

“Zhou Si, what are you doing??”