That morning, Bai Heng was crouched on the hillside basking in the sun as usual.
Sunlight slowly rose from behind the eastern mountain ridge, bathing the entire Qingxi Village in a warm golden glow.
Wisps of cooking smoke curled upward.
Roosters crowed and dogs barked in succession.
Everything seemed no different from any other day.
Bai Heng narrowed her eyes, lazily sweeping the village with her divine sense.
Suddenly, her ears twitched slightly.
From the direction of the village entrance, two unfamiliar auras were approaching.
She opened her eyes and activated her Heavenly Fox True Pupils, looking toward that direction.
On the mountain path, a young man and woman were slowly walking toward the village.
The man appeared to be in his early twenties. He wore a moon-white scholar’s robe and carried a book chest on his back, his steps steady and unhurried.
The woman was seventeen or eighteen years old.
She wore a green dress, had delicate features, and carried two large bundles as she followed behind the man.
Bai Heng’s gaze landed on the man’s face, and she froze for a brief moment.
It was the scholar named Xu Cheng.
Two months ago, he had stayed in the village for three days, claiming he was heading to the prefectural city to take the autumn imperial examination.
At the time, Bai Heng had observed him and detected no spiritual energy fluctuations.
His bearing had also seemed weak and scholarly, so she had not thought much of it.
But now…
Bai Heng’s divine sense gently swept over him before immediately withdrawing.
Xu Cheng’s body clearly contained flowing spiritual power.
He was at the mid-stage of Foundation Establishment, with condensed and solid spiritual energy and a solid foundation.
The beautiful maidservant behind him was also a cultivator, at the early stage of Foundation Establishment.
Bai Heng crouched on the hillside, watching the two of them enter the village.
A trace of doubt rose in her heart.
Two months ago, he had clearly concealed his aura and disguised himself as a mortal.
Why was he no longer hiding it upon his return this time?
Did he feel there was no longer any need?
Or was it deliberate?
Xu Cheng’s return caused some ripples in the village.
Of course, these were ripples that only cultivators could detect.
From the hillside, Bai Heng watched the few Qi Refining spies from afar.
The man surnamed Zhou, who was chopping firewood today, was clearly distracted.
He kept glancing toward the village entrance.
The village woman washing clothes paused for a moment before continuing to scrub, but her movements were noticeably slower than usual.
The peddler surnamed Liu had not set up his goods stand today.
He only left half his door open and sat inside, staring at something unknown.
They had all sensed it.
The sudden appearance of two Foundation Establishment cultivators in this small village made these Qi Refining spies feel like birds startled by the twang of a bow.
Yet they dared not make any moves.
They could only continue playing their roles, pretending they knew nothing.
Bai Heng shifted her gaze toward the solitary courtyard in the northern part of the village.
The scholar surnamed Chen had unusually stepped out of his house today.
He stood at his courtyard gate, glanced once toward the village entrance, then turned and went back inside, closing the door behind him.
The door closed very gently, yet it carried an indescribable weight.
In the slightly larger residence in the southern part of the village, the widow surnamed Wang was hanging laundry in her courtyard.
Her movements were calm and no different from usual, but Bai Heng noticed that after she finished hanging the clothes, she stood motionless in the courtyard for a long time, staring in the direction of the village entrance.
Bai Heng withdrew her gaze and mentally noted down all these abnormalities.
Those two were indeed not simple.
As for Granny Jiang?
Bai Heng looked toward the small courtyard beside the old locust tree in the center of the village.
In the courtyard, Granny Jiang sat at the entrance sunbathing.
She was hunched over with her eyes half-closed, looking no different from any ordinary old woman her age.
Lin Lan crouched beside her, holding needle and thread as she mended an old garment.
The two of them behaved as usual, occasionally looking up at passing villagers, completely unaffected by the sudden arrival of the two Foundation Establishment cultivators.
Watching them, Bai Heng felt slightly reassured.
Granny Jiang was at the mid-stage of Golden Core.
To her, those two Foundation Establishment cultivators were probably no different from children.
She naturally would not care.
Xu Cheng was arranged to stay in the same empty house as before.
It was the same room he had rented two months ago, right next to the scholar surnamed Chen.
The house had remained vacant, and the village chief had it tidied up for him.
The beautiful maidservant followed him, carrying two large bundles—one filled with clothes and daily necessities, the other packed full of books.
The villagers gathered to watch the lively scene and whispered among themselves.
“This young man is back again. He says he’s preparing for the spring imperial examination.”
“He even brought a maidservant. Quite the grand display.”
“He’s a scholar aiming for official honors. It’s normal to have someone to attend to him.”
Xu Cheng politely thanked the villagers who helped him, his attitude humble and courteous, exactly the same as when he had come before.
Only this time, he made no effort to conceal his cultivation.
Or rather, he had never intended to hide it.
The beautiful maidservant was quite lively.
After they settled in, she began moving around the village, smiling at everyone and speaking sweetly. Within a few days, she had become familiar with the villagers.
The children especially liked her.
She always had novel little trinkets—grasshoppers woven from straw, decorative knots made of colored thread, and various unnamed snacks.
The children would crowd around her, chattering and asking questions nonstop. She never grew impatient, answering each one with a smile.
“Sister, what’s your name?”
“My name is Lu Mingshuang. Just call me Sister Shuang.”
“Sister Shuang, what is your relationship to Young Master Xu?”
Lu Mingshuang blinked, smiling mischievously.
“I’m his maidservant.”
The children didn’t quite understand what a maidservant was.
They only knew this sister was very nice, so they gathered around her every day.
From the hillside, Bai Heng watched the scene from afar.
She noticed the way Lu Mingshuang and Xu Cheng interacted.
It didn’t look like a master-servant relationship.
It looked more like siblings.
One time, while Xu Cheng was reading in the courtyard, Lu Mingshuang brought him tea and placed it beside his hand.
She stood there watching him for a moment, then suddenly reached out and lightly knocked him on the head.
Xu Cheng looked up and glared at her.
Lu Mingshuang giggled and ran off, calling out, “Young Master, please enjoy your tea~”
The way she said “Young Master” was particularly playful and teasing.
Xu Cheng shook his head and went back to reading, but the corners of his mouth were clearly curved upward.
Watching this, Bai Heng formed a new guess about the true relationship between the two.
A few days later, Lu Mingshuang heard about the white fox from the children.
“Sister Shuang, there’s a white fox in the mountains! It’s so beautiful!”
It was a little boy from the village nicknamed Iron Egg. He gestured excitedly as he spoke.
“Sister Qin Yu has seen it several times and even brings food for the white fox!”
Lu Mingshuang grew interested.
“Oh? What does the white fox look like?”
Iron Egg thought for a moment.
“It’s white. Really white, whiter than snow. Sister Qin Yu said its eyes are very intelligent. When it looks at people, it seems like it understands everything.”
Lu Mingshuang raised an eyebrow slightly.
That evening, when she returned to the house, she mentioned it to Xu Cheng.
“Young Master, guess what I heard in the village today?”
Xu Cheng was reading by the lamp and didn’t look up.
“What?”
Lu Mingshuang sat down beside him and lowered her voice.
“There’s a white fox in the mountains. The village children have seen it several times. They say the fox is very intelligent, doesn’t bite people, and even accepts food from that little girl.”
Xu Cheng’s hand paused slightly while turning a page.
He looked up at Lu Mingshuang.
“Has it awakened its intelligence?”
Lu Mingshuang nodded.
“Most likely. Otherwise, why wouldn’t it bite and even accept food from people?”
Xu Cheng fell silent for a moment, looking thoughtful.
“This mountain is getting quite lively.”
Lu Mingshuang blinked at him.
“Want to go take a look?”
Xu Cheng shook his head.
“No need. As long as it doesn’t cause trouble, we won’t bother it.”
He paused, then added, “Besides, we didn’t come here for this.”
Lu Mingshuang nodded and said nothing more.
That night, Bai Heng crouched at the entrance of her rock cave as usual, gazing down at the village below.
Moonlight bathed her, coating her snow-white fur with a silvery sheen.
Her gaze fell on the small courtyard beside the old locust tree.
In the courtyard, Granny Jiang’s room was lit, while Lin Lan’s room was already dark.
She was waiting.
Roughly half an hour later, the hunched figure emerged from the courtyard and slowly made her way along the path behind the village toward the woods.
Bai Heng stood up and leaped down from the rock in complete silence.
She did not follow immediately.
She waited a while to confirm there were no abnormalities nearby before heading toward the woods.
The moonlight was beautiful, illuminating the forest path clearly.
When Bai Heng reached the edge of the woods, she slowed her steps and extended her divine sense.
Inside the dilapidated mountain god temple, Granny Jiang’s aura was clear and distinct. There was no one else.
She entered the woods and stopped in front of the temple.
The door was ajar, emitting a faint light. Bai Heng raised her front paw and gently pushed it open.
Inside the temple, Granny Jiang sat cross-legged on the stone steps beneath the statue, looking at her.
“You’re here?”
Her voice was calm, as if she had expected Bai Heng to come.
Bai Heng walked through the doorway and crouched in front of her.
Granny Jiang looked at her and smiled.
“Don’t worry. Although this mountain god temple is rundown, I’ve set up restrictions around it. As long as no one above late-stage Golden Core is present, no one will know what we’re doing here.”
Bai Heng nodded without asking further.
Granny Jiang got straight to the point.
“You came to ask about the two newcomers?”
Bai Heng hummed in affirmation.
“What did you notice about that Xu Cheng?”
Granny Jiang raised an eyebrow slightly, a hint of approval in her eyes.
“You’re quite direct.”
She paused, then said slowly, “You couldn’t see through the scholar surnamed Chen and the widow surnamed Wang, right?”
Bai Heng nodded.
Granny Jiang smiled.
“It’s normal that you couldn’t. They are both at late-stage Foundation Establishment—more than a full major realm above you. It would be strange if you could see through them.”
She paused.
“But late-stage Foundation Establishment is still just Foundation Establishment. They could hide from you, but not from me.”
Bai Heng listened quietly.
Granny Jiang continued.
“Over these past few days, I’ve roughly figured out their identities.”
She pointed toward the northern part of the village.
“The scholar surnamed Chen is from Qingxu Sect.”
She then pointed toward the southern part.
“The widow surnamed Wang is from the Feng Clan.”
Bai Heng’s tail tightened slightly.
Qingxu Sect. The Feng Clan.
The two names Yun Qing had feared most before his death.
Granny Jiang looked at her, her expression grave.
“Both at late-stage Foundation Establishment, and they sent elite talents from the younger generation. It seems those people care a great deal about Yun Zhuo.”
Bai Heng remained silent for a moment.
“They’ve been here all this time, yet they’ve done nothing.”
Granny Jiang nodded.
“That’s the strangest part.”
She paused.
“If they were only here to monitor him, sending a few Qi Refining spies would have been enough. Why send two late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivators to stay here for two whole years?”
“If they wanted to act, they should have done so long ago. Why remain motionless?”
Bai Heng said nothing.
She had pondered these questions many times herself.
Granny Jiang suddenly asked, “What do you think is the reason?”
Bai Heng was silent for a moment.
“They’re waiting for something.”
Granny Jiang nodded.
“I think so too.”
She gazed at the moonlight spilling through the temple entrance, her eyes deep and profound.
“Waiting for what? For the seal on Yun Zhuo to show movement? For someone to come into contact with him? Or for a specific opportunity?”
Bai Heng did not answer.
Granny Jiang withdrew her gaze and continued speaking about the new arrivals.
“As for Xu Cheng and Lu Mingshuang…”
She paused, the corners of her mouth curving slightly.
“That Lu Mingshuang is quite open. She’s using her real name.”
“Lu Mingshuang, from the Lu family of Wu Province.”
Bai Heng’s heart stirred.
The Lu family of Wu Province.
She had read about them in the traveling notes of the Green Pine Daoist.
The Lu family was one of the most powerful clans beneath the three great families of Li Kingdom.
In terms of foundation and strength, they were second only to the Feng, Han, and Wang families.
“The proud daughter of the Lu family serving as someone’s maidservant?”
Bai Heng asked.
Granny Jiang smiled.
“You noticed it too? Those two don’t act like master and servant. They act more like siblings.”
Bai Heng nodded.
Granny Jiang continued.
“The Lu family and the Liang family have been joined by marriage for generations. The two families have been closely tied through marriage for over a thousand years.”
She looked at Bai Heng with deeper meaning in her eyes.
“For the Lu family’s proud daughter to willingly pretend to be a maidservant and call him so affectionately, Xu Cheng’s true identity isn’t hard to guess.”
Bai Heng narrowed her eyes slightly.
“The Liang family?”
Granny Jiang nodded.
“Although the Liang family has declined somewhat in recent generations, their close relationship with the Lu family remains. It’s perfectly normal for the younger generation of the two families to travel together.”
She paused.
“As for whether Xu Cheng is his real name or if he goes by something else, it doesn’t matter.”
Bai Heng committed all this information firmly to memory.
Granny Jiang suddenly asked, “Are you wondering why people from the Liang and Lu families have come here?”
Bai Heng did not deny it.
Granny Jiang smiled.
“I want to know too.”
She stood up, walked to the temple entrance, and looked out at the moonlight.
“People from Qingxu Sect, the Feng Clan, the Liang family, the Lu family, and those Qi Refining spies of unknown origin… A tiny village like Qingxi has become quite lively.”
Bai Heng walked over and crouched beside her.
Moonlight bathed them both, stretching their white and gray figures long across the ground.
Granny Jiang suddenly spoke.
“That little girl, Qin Yu, really likes you.”
Bai Heng paused slightly.
Granny Jiang turned to look at her, her eyes carrying a trace of amusement.
“I see that girl running into the mountains every day to bring you food. And you—picky little thing—only eat the wild fruit she picks herself.”
Bai Heng did not reply.
Granny Jiang smiled and continued.
“That girl has a good heart. She’s pure and kind, without so many schemes. Qin Shi and his wife raised her well.”
She paused, her tone carrying a hint of emotion.
“It’s a blessing for Yun Zhuo to have such a sister.”
Bai Heng nodded.
The moonlight flowed quietly.
After a long while, Granny Jiang suddenly asked, “Little fox, have you thought about how you’re going to tell Yun Zhuo everything when that day truly comes?”
Bai Heng was silent for a moment.
“I haven’t figured it out yet.”
Granny Jiang smiled.
“Neither have I.”
She turned and slowly walked out of the temple.
“Let’s go. We’ve talked enough for tonight.”
Bai Heng nodded.
She took one last look at the dilapidated mountain god temple, then turned and stepped into the moonlight.
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