Chapter 29: News of Bai Yunfei

Chapter 29: News of Bai Yunfei

Lin Jiufeng looked at the white fox, not expecting her background to be so tragic.

Her father had been killed by the Supreme Patriarch of the Taishang Sect, her mother had exhausted her very life force giving birth to her, and she herself had been sealed away for a hundred years due to being born with insufficient vitality — only to emerge into the world and be hunted everywhere for her pure white fur.

A tragedy of the highest order.

"How do you know the Yuhua Ascension Scripture?" Lin Jiufeng asked curiously.

By all logic, the white fox and Zhou Sheng had never met, so it should have been impossible for him to pass the Yuhua Ascension Scripture on to her.

Could it have been through her mother?

The white fox looked puzzled. "What Yuhua Ascension Scripture?"

"The white immortal radiance you unleashed inside the Canon Pavilion when you broke free from me just now," Lin Jiufeng said.

"That's something innate to my bloodline — it works sometimes and not others. My mother said it was passed down to me by my father," the white fox explained.

Lin Jiufeng stared at her in astonishment. He hadn't expected that the Yuhua Ascension Scripture could be passed down to the next generation in such a way.

"Since you and my father were Senior Brothers, I'll be taking his biography and leaving," the white fox said, slowly backing away.

"Wait." Lin Jiufeng called out to stop her.

The white fox immediately tensed, eyes fixed warily on Lin Jiufeng, her body poised and ready — the moment he made any move, she would bolt.

Even if escaping from his grasp would be nearly impossible.

She would not simply sit and wait to be caught.

Lin Jiufeng noticed her posture and understood she was on high alert, that she didn't trust him. He spoke gently: "If you leave now, you're just delivering your beautiful fur straight to the people waiting outside. You'd be better off staying. I'll make a three-point pact with you — as long as you don't leave the Yuhua Sect's mountain gate, you may go wherever you please within it. I'll also teach you the Yuhua Ascension Scripture. The reason your father was hunted by the Taishang Sect all those years ago was precisely because of this technique. The white immortal radiance within you is a fragment of the Yuhua Ascension Scripture — don't you want to learn it in full?"

The white fox eyed him with suspicion, uncertain whether to believe him.

Lin Jiufeng smiled. "If I didn't want you to leave, I'd simply grab you — you certainly couldn't escape. There's no need for me to waste my breath like this."

The white fox asked, puzzled, "Why are you being so kind to me?"

Lin Jiufeng chuckled. "Because your father was a genius of Yuhua Sect, and he was my benefactor."

After all, the first time Lin Jiufeng had activated his Heavenly Comprehension ability was when he read Zhou Sheng's biography — it was through that he had comprehended the Yuhua Ascension Scripture, reversed his aging, and risen against all odds.

Now that he had found Zhou Sheng's surviving daughter, Lin Jiufeng would naturally help her in whatever way he could.

The white fox paced back and forth, unable to make up her mind.

Seeing this, Lin Jiufeng turned and walked away, waving his hand as he went. "Stop agonizing over it. Tomorrow morning I'll be on the roof of the Canon Pavilion cultivating. Come find me then, and I'll pass you the oral formula of the Yuhua Ascension Scripture."

The white fox watched Lin Jiufeng's retreating figure grow smaller and smaller, and her body gradually relaxed. She murmured quietly, "I'll stay for a few days first and see whether this Daoist actually teaches me the Yuhua Ascension Scripture. Then I'll decide whether to leave or not."

The next day.

As the morning glow first rose, Lin Jiufeng sat cross-legged on the roof of the Canon Pavilion, absorbing the dawn light, breathing in Spiritual Energy, his whole body light and his aura ethereal — like an immortal drifting among the clouds.

On a nearby mountain peak, the white fox stared unblinkingly at Lin Jiufeng, still undecided.

At that moment, Lin Jiufeng's voice drifted over: "If you don't come soon, the morning glow will pass. Remember — the morning is the best time of the day, and the finest time for cultivation."

The white fox pursed her lips but didn't argue, and quietly drew closer.

When she arrived at the rooftop of the Canon Pavilion, Lin Jiufeng casually sent out a stream of white immortal radiance that cascaded down and enveloped her, startling her. She fixed her gaze on him intently.

Lin Jiufeng made no further movement. He sat in meditation with his eyes closed and said softly, "Sense it carefully. This radiance will guide you in learning how the Yuhua Ascension Scripture circulates."

In the next instant, the white fox felt the radiance enter her body, flowing along her meridians, rousing the Yuhua Ascension Scripture hidden within her and setting it into motion together with the external energy.

She could feel her entire body as though soaking in a warm spring — utterly comfortable.

She glanced at Lin Jiufeng, then obediently lay down nearby, keeping a short distance from him, and quietly immersed herself in the sensation.

Lin Jiufeng opened his eyes, looked at the peaceful white fox, and allowed a faint smile to cross his face. He had finally earned a sliver of her trust.

And so it was — a Daoist and a white fox, cultivating quietly side by side on the rooftop of the Canon Pavilion, neither disturbing the other.

The morning glow swept over them both, as though draping them in a veil of immortal light.

When Lin Jiufeng's meditation session ended and he rose to greet the white fox, she too sprang to her feet immediately — and bolted.

She refused any further contact with him.

Lin Jiufeng shook his head. The white fox had clearly been badly hurt by humans before; her wariness ran deep. Dissolving it was not something that could be done in a short while — it would take time to smooth away those wounds.

Time flowed on.

Several days passed in the blink of an eye.

During this period, Lin Jiufeng went to the rooftop of the Canon Pavilion every morning to sit in meditation and cultivate.

The white fox came every time, keeping a certain distance from Lin Jiufeng, following along to study the Yuhua Ascension Scripture.

Lin Jiufeng never exchanged a single word with her, yet each time he wholeheartedly transmitted the Yuhua Ascension Scripture to her.

When the morning session ended, the white fox would immediately run off, and Lin Jiufeng never asked where she went — as long as she didn't leave the Yuhua Sect's mountain gate, that was enough.

Aside from accompanying the white fox in cultivation each morning, Lin Jiufeng spent the rest of his time as he always had — reading, contemplating the Dao, maintaining his calm and unhurried composure, undisturbed by the world around him.

He moved at his own pace, steady and methodical.

Within Yuhua Sect, a serene and tranquil atmosphere pervaded everything.

Even the white fox, cautious and suspicious by nature, gradually found herself growing fond of the ambiance of Yuhua Sect.

After all, there were no schemes or intrigues here, no treachery or deception — only a gentle old Daoist and three fledgling young disciples.

This kind of life suited the white fox well, and so she came to find Lin Jiufeng for cultivation every single day without fail, and never once mentioned leaving Yuhua Sect.

And just like that, Yuhua Sect gained one more member.

During this time, besides diligently teaching the white fox the Yuhua Ascension Scripture and pursuing his own cultivation, Lin Jiufeng was also keeping an ear out for news from the outside world.

Bai Yunfei had left Yuhua Sect over a year ago. Where he was now, and what had happened to him, Lin Jiufeng had no idea.

Though he was fairly certain Bai Yunfei was most likely fine, what if he wasn't?

And so Lin Jiufeng frequently extended his Divine Soul to its limit, sensing the conversations of people three thousand li away, hoping to catch some word of Bai Yunfei.

Heaven rewards the persistent — and on this particular day, Lin Jiufeng actually heard someone discussing the matter.

"The Taishang Sect's experts have been withdrawing from the Million Mountains one after another lately. Word is they failed to capture the juvenile Qilin."

"How could they possibly catch it? A juvenile Qilin is the hope of the entire Demon Race. Once it grows up, it will inevitably become the leader of the Demon Race — would those top-tier great demons ever allow the Taishang Sect to take it?"

"True enough. I heard there were several battles, and quite a few Eighth Seal Dao Ancestors were killed. The Taishang Sect couldn't hold on and had to pull out of the Million Mountains."

"The Taishang Sect lost face in the Million Mountains — they'll certainly want to reclaim it somewhere else. Yuhua Sect's Sect Master Bai Yunfei is in danger."

"You mean the Taishang Sect is going to move against Sect Master Bai Yunfei?"

"Absolutely. Bai Yunfei has been so conspicuous this past year — how could the Taishang Sect have the patience to tolerate that? The reason they haven't acted before is because their top experts were away. Now that they're back, one Bai Yunfei is just the right target to make an example of."

"Then Bai Yunfei is finished. The Taishang Sect has no shortage of Eighth Seal experts."

"Indeed. It all depends on whether Bai Yunfei can escape in time. If he doesn't flee soon enough, he'll be in very real danger."