Chapter 61: Two Tails

Two tails!

Bai Jiujiu’s eyes went wide. The cat demon in Bai Hun’er’s arms…

“Meow~”

The cat jumped down from Bai Hun’er’s embrace, ran to Bai Jiujiu’s feet, and rubbed its head affectionately against her shin.

Behind it, two cat tails formed a heart shape. In its eyes, a faint glimmer of dependence and greed could be seen.

‘That look… could it be…’

“Xia Qiuqian…?”

“Meow?”

“Little Qiugan? That’s a lovely name.”

Bai Hun’er nodded approvingly and reached out to pet the cat in Bai Jiujiu’s arms, but the cat flicked its two tails and disdainfully swatted her hand away.

‘Hey!’ she thought. ‘This cat came right up to me and licked my hand when it first saw me. I only picked it up to bring to Jiujiu because it seemed so friendly. Now that it sees my little sister, it’s already sick of me?’

‘Sure, Jiu’er is the cutest, most unparalleled beauty in the world, so it’s only natural I can’t compare. But still… to see the cat that was all smiles a moment ago now lying in Bai Jiujiu’s arms, looking at me with such contempt…’

‘So sad~’

Bai Hun’er pouted, squatted in the corner, and began drawing circles on the ground in distress.

Ahaha.

Holding Little Qiugan, Bai Jiujiu scratched her chin with an awkward laugh.

“By the way, Mom, did you meet any of your clansmen?”

Bai Jiujiu turned to Su Po, who was covering her mouth with a light laugh, and asked curiously.

“I did.”

“Who? Who? What do they look like? Any special traits?”

‘Could it be that wicked disciple Su Ling’er came to see Su Po? After all, they both have the royal bloodline of the Qingqiu Fox Clan.’ From watching Long Zhi’s memories, Bai Jiujiu knew that Su Ling’er had met Bai Jiu’er before but didn’t know her name. So maybe they met at this point in time.

“It’s a little fox that hasn’t taken human form yet. As for traits, its markings are silver, which is quite rare in our clan.”

The trait of the Qingqiu Fox Clan is that they can control the various elements of heaven and earth, and markings appear on their bodies representing their abilities. One tail equals control over one element, but they can also choose to specialize in one element. Royal bloodline Qingqiu foxes can cultivate to nine tails, mastering all laws without perishing.

This is why the Qingqiu Fox Clan has endured for thousands of years since ancient times.

Bai Hun’er chose to specialize in fire control, so her markings are primarily red. On one hand, Su Po also specializes in fire, making teaching easier; on the other hand, it’s useful for starting campfires to cook outdoors. When they faced Chihun earlier, they had to deal with her flames.

‘Silver markings? Then it’s not Su Ling’er. Ling’er already learned to transform, and her markings aren’t silver. Just a plain Qingqiu fox?’

“Then why didn’t it come with you, Mom?”

“That little one said it’s afraid of humans and didn’t want to come along. We agreed to meet tomorrow on this mountain to choose a piece of land for our clan’s revival.”

Su Po had originally planned to forget her mission to revive the clan, but when she met this surviving clansman, the flame of purpose burned anew. Regardless of whether Su Po wished for a peaceful life, she could not rewrite the call of her bloodline.

“I see…” Bai Jiujiu felt something was off, but she couldn’t pinpoint what.

They talked more, and Bai Jiujiu learned more about the Qingqiu Fox Clan.

“Mom, since your clan is so powerful, are there any weaknesses?”

‘If I can live a peaceful life, I’ll be better prepared when facing Chihun. I just hope my body doesn’t get wrecked by her.’

“Weaknesses?” Su Po didn’t dwell on it, simply taking it as her daughter’s casual question.

The cat in Bai Jiujiu’s arms perked up its ears, listening intently.

“According to what my father—your maternal grandfather—once said, about five thousand years ago in the ancient era, the ancestors of the Qingqiu Fox Clan made a deal with a god on the moon. They offered themselves in exchange for the ability to master all laws. But in the end, they killed the god during the offering. The god was furious and, as they died, placed a curse on the entire Qingqiu Fox Clan.”

“Every full moon, any demon with Qingqiu Fox blood loses most of its power, and its aura becomes more human-like. Especially for royal members, the loss is greater—about ninety percent—and their bodies become as fragile as humans’, their aura indistinguishable from a human’s.”

Su Po told Bai Jiujiu this story, adding that she had heard it from her elders, so she didn’t know if it was true, but the side effects were real.

This indirectly explained why Su Po had dared to enter the city seven years ago on the Mid-Autumn Festival.

‘So if we face Chihun on a full moon night, we can defeat her.’

But why didn’t Su Ling’er have these side effects?

Bai Jiujiu frowned slightly. When she had watched the moon with her five disciples on Cloud Mountain, Su Ling’er hadn’t shown any strange changes.

‘Strange.’ Bai Jiujiu didn’t think Su Po would deceive her.

As she thought, she noticed she was still holding the silver coin her father had given her.

“Ah, I still need to buy buns!”

She looked up. The sun had already set behind the evening clouds.

By the time she reached the town, it would probably be dark. In this era, especially in a small town, no one dared to open their doors after dark, for fear that some wandering ghost or demon would snatch them away.

In the evening, they all ate burnt sweet potato porridge. Luckily, Bai Hegui had been quick to put out the fire, so only the bottom of the pot was scorched; the porridge was still edible.

After dinner, Bai Jiujiu went to the riverbank, took off her clothes, and prepared to bathe. Little Qiugan followed behind her.

Su Po had set up spells around the area, so there were no mosquitoes or biting insects.

The river water was crystal clear, cool and refreshing.

Bai Jiujiu stood in the water and looked at her reflection in the shimmering surface: a young, immature body and a childish, innocent face. Not as mature and alluring as in the real world, but fresh and pleasant.

Most notably, her appearance was the same as in the real world: white hair, red eyes—except the snake-like vertical pupils were gone.

Exactly the same face.

‘Come to think of it, Old Master Song Ming also said that I look exactly like Bai Jiu’er.’

‘Ah well.’

Bai Jiujiu disturbed the water’s surface, sending ripples across the river. She just wanted to be an ordinary person in this dream, enjoying the warmth she never felt in her past life.

“So, my good disciple, why are you here…”

Bai Jiujiu said quietly, not turning around, addressing the cat standing on the riverbank.

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