Chapter 489: The Land of a Rising Dragon

“

Woof! Woof! Woof!

”

The fierce barking of hunting dogs, the mournful cries of foxes, and the shouts and curses of the soldiers all blended into a chaotic and blood-soaked scene.

When foxes became a plague, it was only natural for people to hunt and kill them—just as it had been with the tigers that once plagued Jinhe County. But no matter how justified the act, the brutality of it was undeniable. Feeling uneasy at such a sight was only human.

Just as Song You was about to pull Lady Calico closer to cover her eyes, a strange wind suddenly rose on the battlefield.

“

Whoosh...

”

Sand and dust swirled up instantly, obscuring vision.

Even the wilted vegetable leaves by the roadside were lifted into the air, drifting about.

“

Awoo... awoo...

”

The once fierce and imposing hunting dogs immediately tucked their tails, hunched their necks, and whimpered pitifully.

The soldiers instinctively raised their sleeves to shield their faces from the raging wind, squinting as they looked ahead.

From nowhere, a yellow fox emerged.

It was roughly the size of a hunting dog. Though its pointed snout resembled that of a typical fox, its proportions differed slightly from the common breed. The most striking feature was the two long strands of fur resembling eyebrows—each nearly a chi long—dangling from above its eyes, swaying elegantly as it walked through the wind.

The soldiers gasped in shock.

The yellow fox walked forward unhurriedly, its steps graceful and poised. It spared not a single glance at the soldiers, the foxes, or Song You.

It moved as if it were merely passing through by chance.

Yet, the raging wind that swept through the streets originated from it. Wherever it walked, the storm followed—howling at its fiercest.

One of the lower-ranked officers among the soldiers was bold enough to shout, “What kind of demon is this?!”

“Yellow Captain! Attack!”

“Black Captain!”

The officer urgently commanded the hunting dogs to charge forward.

But no matter how much the officer urged them, the hunting dogs—who were usually so bold that they would even dare to fight bears and leopards—refused to move forward.

Worse still, when the fox suddenly stopped and turned its head to look in their direction, every single dog immediately lowered itself to the ground. Their ears flattened as they whimpered softly, too afraid to advance.

The soldiers were both shocked and enraged.

Yet among warriors, there were always those with courage—under broad daylight, there were still men willing to battle the supernatural.

Some drew their bows and fired, but the arrows barely flew a few feet before clattering uselessly to the ground. Others charged forward with blades in hand, but the moment they stepped past a certain point, it was as if their shoes and feet had been glued to the ground—they could not take another step.

Those on horseback tried to spur their mounts forward, but no matter how hard they struck or pulled at the reins, the horses refused to budge.

Soon, even their weapons felt as if they had suddenly gained dozens of extra jin—too heavy to hold up, slipping from their grips one by one.

At this point, every soldier was filled with terror.

From the second-floor windows of the surrounding buildings, frightened murmurs and gasps spread among the townspeople. One after another, they slammed their shutters closed, not daring to watch any longer.

Yet the strange fox remained utterly indifferent to them all.

Even the ordinary foxes seemed to fear it greatly. They trembled in place, unable to move, until it had walked some distance away—only then did they seize the moment to flee.

Song You still stood by the wall, beside him Lady Calico and the jujube-red horse. Perched atop the horse's head was a little swallow.

Four pairs of eyes, all in near-identical postures, silently turned to watch the fox.

As if sensing something amiss in their gaze, the fox suddenly halted mid-step. Its movements froze for the first time as it turned its head back toward them.

For the first time, surprise flickered through its eyes.

Whoosh...

With a gust of eerie wind, the fox vanished.

At that moment, the soldiers' weapons, their trapped feet, and everything else that had been mysteriously restrained returned to normal. Only the hunting dogs remained paralyzed with fear, ears and necks tightly drawn in, still too afraid to look in the fox's direction.

“What kind of demon was that?”

“This is bizarre!”

“What do we do now?”

“Report this to the supervising military official!”

“This is too uncanny...”

“There's a Daoist priest over there...”

“Forget about him! Hurry up, let's go!”

With that, the soldiers gathered up the foxes they had managed to kill and quickly left. The townspeople, too, remained hidden indoors, unwilling to open their doors or windows.

For a moment, it seemed as if the entire city of Fuyou was deserted—leaving only the Daoist and his small group standing in the empty street.

“What was that?”

The young girl turned back to look at her Daoist priest.

“A wind fox.”

The swallow perched on the horse’s head answered her.

The group continued forward, the rhythmic

clop-clop

of hooves echoing over the quiet stone-paved street.

As they walked, the wind rose again.

This time, the wind was much gentler—yet it sent a chill through the ever-vigilant Lady Calico, making her so startled that she nearly flipped backward on the spot. She barely managed to keep herself in check before whipping her head around.

At some point, another fox had appeared beside them. It was none other than the long-browed fox from earlier.

Without anyone noticing, the strange fox had somehow slipped into their midst, now casually walking alongside them, keeping pace with effortless ease.

A shiver ran down the young girl’s spine, making the hair of her neatly tied bun puff up slightly.

The fox turned its head toward them.

Then, it opened its mouth—and spoke in human language.

“Heir of Hidden Dragon Temple?”

“That’s right.”

Song You turned his head to meet its gaze, his steps never faltering. After a brief moment of thought, he asked, “Have you met our sect’s Grandmaster Fuyang?”

“I haven’t lived that long,” the fox replied, “but I have met Daoist Tiansuan.”

“Grandmaster Tiansuan...” Song You was slightly taken aback.

“Unexpected, isn't it?” The fox continued, walking alongside them at an unhurried pace. “Back then, the troubles facing Great Yan were far worse than most people realized. The empire should have fallen into chaos already, but your sect’s Daoist Tiansuan was too brilliant.

“Not only did he extend the empire’s lifespan, but his methods were so subtle that most never even realized Great Yan had been teetering on the brink of disorder. Countless people were unknowingly used by him to stabilize the realm, yet neither they nor he himself were ever fully aware of it.”

“And then?” Song You asked.

“And then Great Yan only grew stronger and more prosperous over the decades—reaching an unprecedented peak. Even for the next few hundred years, no one will likely match it. Because of that, people stopped believing the crisis ever existed in the first place.”

“I truly didn’t expect that.”

Song You answered honestly.

Yet he fully believed the wind fox’s words.

There was no need to trust the wind fox’s words entirely—just the fact that it had met Daoist Tiansuan was enough to confirm that the world had indeed once stood on the brink of great upheaval.

“And you?” The strange fox turned its head, staring directly at him. “You don’t intend to extend the empire’s lifespan as well, do you?”

“Unfortunately, I don’t possess my grandmaster’s abilities.”

“That’s true. Among all the generations of Hidden Dragon Temple’s successors, I doubt any of them had greater skill than that man!”

Song You merely pressed his lips together slightly, neither agreeing nor disagreeing.

Each successor of Hidden Dragon Temple had their own strengths—perhaps some were more capable than others, but the fox's statement was ultimately just its own perspective.

Legend had it that wind foxes were skilled in divination and could glimpse the future. Of all the temple’s successors, it had only ever encountered Daoist Tiansuan. Since that Daoist’s abilities closely aligned with its own, it was natural for the fox to revere him above all others.

“But you... I find you even more unusual than your grandmaster...” The fox’s sharp gaze fixed on him, and suddenly, its voice grew high-pitched. “You must have an even greater ability!”

“I wouldn’t dare claim such a thing.”

“What is it? What is it?!” The fox suddenly seemed to go mad.

“You...”

“Tell me! Tell me now!”

“Calm yourself.”

“...”

The fox froze, and in an instant, it was calm again. It glanced ahead, then turned its eyes back to them. “I’ll find out sooner or later anyway.”

“And why have you come here?”

“You don’t know?”

“I don’t.”

“How can you not know?”

“As I said, I do not possess my grandmaster’s abilities.”

“You really don’t know?!”

“...”

“If you tell me what ability you possess, I'll tell you why I'm here—why this place has become a gathering point for spirits and demons. How about that?”

“I cultivate the Four Seasons Rotation Method, which have boundless mystical applications. I have also studied many other techniques and am proficient in magical combat.”

Upon hearing this, the strange fox suddenly grew agitated again and began shouting frantically, “Not that! Not that!”

“Then what else?”

“Not that!”

“If you don't want to say, then forget it.”

“...”

The fox froze, looking as if it were holding something in, struggling not to burst.

The group continued walking toward the western part of the city gate, the streets eerily empty.

The fox kept pestering him, but the Daoist refused to answer. He even acted as if he no longer cared to hear the secret of this place. How could that be allowed?!

It had already made up its mind to reveal the truth—if it didn’t say it now, it might just die of frustration.

“This is a land where dragons rise!” The strange fox suddenly declared to Song You.

“...”

Song You halted his steps for a brief moment.

The fox, pleased by his reaction, continued walking as it spoke, “The world is about to fall into chaos—ah, no, it has already begun to unravel. I can feel it. Someone is trying to extend its lifespan again... It wasn’t you, was it?”

“...”

“Chaos is coming! Chaos is coming!”

“...”

“The next emperor will come from this very place!”

The fox proclaimed, as if there was no one else around. Fortunately, foxes had naturally soft voices, and the wind dispersed its words before they could carry too far.

“Hey.”

“Mm?”

“I've heard that wind foxes have knowledge of the heavens above and the earth below, that they can read the stars, divine the future, and even live for a thousand years.” Song You's tone remained calm. After a slight pause, he continued, “Yet why has no one ever seen a thousand-year-old wind fox?”

“What do you think?”

“In my opinion, it's because they can't keep their mouths shut.”

“Hahaha...”

The strange fox burst into laughter, its voice resembling that of a child.

A gust of wind swept through—when it passed, the fox was gone.

Ahead of them lay the western part of the city gate.

𝕗𝕣𝐞𝐞𝘄𝐞𝚋𝚗𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹.𝚌𝕠𝚖

The young girl immediately began turning her head frantically, scanning in all directions as if caught in a sudden fit. Though she kept walking, she searched for a long time but couldn't find any trace of the fox. Only then did she withdraw her gaze and ask, “Did it leave?”

“It left.”

“That fox could talk!”

“But it couldn't play the

qin

.”

“Mm...”

Lady Calico froze for a moment, then shook her head exaggeratedly. But it didn’t stop her from continuing to ask questions.

“Are all foxes crazy?”

“Foxes are naturally full of energy and have lively, erratic personalities. When they get excited, they tend to act a little... unhinged,” Song You answered truthfully. “But although that was called a wind fox, it wasn’t truly a fox. It only looked like one. Most likely, it has nothing to do with the foxes that have been gathering in the city.”

“Then what is it?”

“A spirit born of heaven and earth.”

“Born of heaven and earth...”

By now, they had passed through the western part of the city gate.

As they entered the archway, the light dimmed. Emerging on the other side, the brightness returned, revealing rolling mountains stretching endlessly before them. A winding official road snaked through the peaks, disappearing into the horizon.

The young girl turned her head up again, staring at the Daoist. Her face was fresh and clean, her eyes clear and full of puzzlement.

“Then why is it called a wind fox, but the other foxes aren’t?”

“The ‘wind’ in wind fox means the wind that blows,” the swallow perched on the horse's head softly corrected. “Wherever a wind fox walks, the wind follows.”

“It also refers to turbulent winds and shifting clouds—symbolizing times of great change,” the Daoist added gently as he walked along the official road, leaning on his staff. “Throughout history, whenever a wind fox appears, great upheaval is sure to follow.”

“Throughout history!”

“Yes...”

“Mm? Does history have a sky of its own too?”

“It does...”

Song You lowered his head to look at her, his voice calm. “And it is vast.”