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Wang Fulai greeted Master Ji with a bow: "I've been busy with many matters and made Master Ji wait for a long time."
Master Ji looked at Wang Fulai, suddenly waved his whisk, and a gust of wind arose in the side hall. Wang Fulai was invigorated by the wind, immediately feeling refreshed and dispelling days of fatigue and anxiety.
She looked surprised: "This is..."
Master Ji smiled and said: "Benefactor Wang need not worry. What has been troubling your family is a red fox that has cultivated into a spirit. I have been tracking it for months, not expecting it to run to Qingde City and harm the people."
Wang Fulai was both shocked and delighted; outsiders only knew a demonic evil troubled her house, not that it was a fox demon. Master Ji's arrival and immediate identification showed his true skill.
Wang Fulai quickly bowed deeply to Master Ji: "Please, Master, save my Wang Family's young and old."
Master Ji was seated and accepted Wang Fulai's bow before standing up to help her rise: "Benefactor Wang, rest assured. As a cultivator wandering through the mortal world, besides forging the body and spirit, one should also exorcise demons for the benefit of humanity. My visit this time is precisely for demon extermination."
Fang Zhou felt these words sounded familiar. He turned his head and looked at Ling Xiaoyue, and noticed she was also looking back, her gaze clearly saying — see, didn't I tell you so.
Pfft, birds of a feather.
Fang Zhou originally thought Master Ji seemed dignified and might be an expert, but it turns out he was just a freeloader.
Wang Fulai was, however, very pleased: "Then I'll entrust this to you, Master. Please, move to the main hall, I will arrange a banquet immediately to welcome and refresh you."
Saying this, she glanced hesitantly at Ling Xiaoyue and Fang Zhou, the two freeloaders who still sat there unmoved when the host was present, truly impolite.
Wang Fulai initially wanted to send them away, but then thought better of it, opting to show her generosity in front of Master Ji since the Wang Family was not short of food.
Importantly, these two young people were good-looking, especially this young man. Though his facial features weren't very gentle and his stature was quite tall, he really was attractive—keeping him as a young husband could be nice.
Fang Zhou was unaware that he'd been earmarked by Wang Fulai in a blink, only feeling that the Sect Hierarch's gaze upon him had softened a lot.
A sudden apprehension crossed his mind—could this old cow be craving tender grass?
Why does everyone want a piece of me wherever I go?
Wang Fulai instructed the housekeeper to take care of Fang Zhou and Ling Xiaoyue and then led Master Ji out of the side hall.
The Taoist boy strutted past Fang Zhou, grunting continuously like a little pig.
...
The housekeeper arranged rooms for Fang Zhou and Ling Xiaoyue, it seemed like they would be staying over at the Wang Family.
By now, Fang Zhou was more resigned to freeloading, so he comfortably took a bath, washing off the grime.
After bathing, he retreated to his room to meditate, knowing from the housekeeper that Master Ji would start the ritual for demon extermination after nightfall; there would surely be excitement tonight, and he needed to be fully alert.
During this time, the system's task had not been triggered, possibly due to his comfortable living conditions. Though Ling Xiaoyue was not considerate and often crude, his safety was assured with her around.
Fang Zhou wasn't about to endanger himself deliberately to trigger tasks, so getting stronger had to rely on continuous practice.
Laziness is incurable, diligence is the handsomest trait.
I'm not being humble; the above is about me.
He practiced until night fell before stopping, feeling rejuvenated and the weariness from days of travel completely erased.
He stepped out of his room to see moonlight like water, a bright moon hanging in the sky.
In front of the room was a courtyard with artificial hills and flowing water, where Ling Xiaoyue lay on a hill, holding her small wine jug, under the arc of the moon, sipping wine.
Fang Zhou stared at her, mesmerized. Under the moon, Ling Xiaoyue—with her graceful and ethereal posture—seemed like a spirit.
This was the most beautiful woman he had seen in his two lifetimes.
Ling Xiaoyue lowered her head towards Fang Zhou: "Disciple, do you know why the moon shines?"
Fang Zhou of course knew, but it wasn't knowledge he was supposed to possess, so he shook his head.
"Then let me tell you."
Ling Xiaoyue's lips curved slightly: "The moon shines because... it's lit by the sun! Haha!!"
She laughed uncontrollably, doubling over with laughter.
Fang Zhou watched her, bewildered by the moonlit Ling Xiaoyue laughing like a fool.
This was the most foolish woman he had seen in his two lifetimes.
...
Under Master Ji's guidance, the Wang Family's servants bustled around, and finally, after nightfall, constructed an altar in the large courtyard.
By the time Fang Zhou and Ling Xiaoyue arrived, Master Ji was dressed in a dark yellow Daoist robe, holding a whisk, and had already ascended the altar to begin the ritual.
Wang Fulai, with the housekeeper and a group of servants, stood on the side, watching nervously.
The Taoist boy stood below the altar, jealously glancing at Fang Zhou.
Before Fang Zhou arrived, he had been the center of attention among the Wang Family, basking in the worshipful gazes of many women.
```
But after Fang Zhou arrived, those boring women all abandoned the Daoist boy, their eyes seemingly glued to Fang Zhou, even Wang Fulai, the head of the Wang Family, was no exception.
Hmph, a bunch of fickle women, blinded by their own folly!
The little Daoist boy was so frustrated that his teeth itched.
Noticing the envious and jealous gaze of the Daoist boy, Fang Zhou sighed softly.
Alas, being handsome is not his fault, nor is being so eye-catching, it's just what fate had in store for him.
If possible, Fang Zhou would rather be more ordinary and not so handsome.
But it is the will of heaven, probably just his destiny, alas.
Fortunately, the ladies were merely looking and did not cause any disturbance, their focus was still on Master Ji, who was performing the ritual. This was crucial to successfully exorcising the demon tonight, which was related to the future peace of the Wang Family.
The fox demon had recently become increasingly brazen, especially after the Wang Family sought people for Demon Extermination; it almost came every night, and tonight was certainly no exception.
The night was like water, the entire Wang Family estate was quiet, with only the slight noise of the night wind rustling through the treetops.
Just then, a cold wind blew suddenly from nowhere, mixed with faint laughter.
"Here it comes!"
"The fox demon is here!"
The servants of the Wang Family were in turmoil; had it not been for the housekeeper leading several Protectors sternly ordering them to stop, these servants would probably have started scattering and running away.
They also didn't want to stay, but Master Ji had instructed to gather as many people as possible to increase vitality, and Wang Fulai had asked them to remain.
Wang Fulai was also somewhat panicked, but she was not disoriented because she had witnessed many such incidents in the past month. Unfortunately, every time the fox demon appeared, the extraordinary individuals she invited were defeated and fled.
Thinking of this, Wang Fulai looked hopefully towards Master Ji on the altar, who was a revered elder from Qinghua Mountain and wouldn't be easily defeated, right?
On the altar, Master Ji, with a solemn face, loudly declared, "Minor tricks, show yourself immediately!"
After speaking, she grabbed a handful of incense ashes, murmured a few words, and with a forward sweep, the scattered incense ashes instantly turned into a flame, spreading in all directions and suddenly exploding, illuminating the entire courtyard brilliantly.
"Good!"
Wang Fulai couldn't help but cheer; this kind of power had never been exhibited by other extraordinary individuals.
Fang Zhou was also somewhat shocked and couldn't help but ask Ling Xiaoyue, "Can you do this?"
Ling Xiaoyue pinched his ear: "You actually compare your teacher with juggling, showing no respect at all."
Your actions aren't any better than juggling.
But Ling Xiaoyue saying so, does it mean that Master Ji is just a juggler?
After Master Ji demonstrated her skills, the fox demon still did not appear, but the laughter in the cold wind became more and more apparent, carrying a mocking tone.
Seeing Wang Fulai showing a doubtful look, Master Ji snorted coldly, "Damn fiend, since you refuse to show yourself, let this poor Daoist force you out, disciple, protect me!"
The little Daoist boy replied and drew his longsword, standing firmly in front of the altar.
Master Ji performed several flashy moves with her whisk, placed both palms together in front, murmured spells, but felt somewhat panicked inside.
If the demon fox didn't appear, her specially prepared fox-destroying medicine would be useless.
The cold wind grew stronger and the laughter more piercing, causing the flowers and trees in the courtyard to rustle loudly.
The people of the Wang Family were also made unsteady by the wind, Wang Fulai quickly called out to Master Ji, "Master!"
Master Ji responded, "Don't panic, I am using my Mana to force the demon fox to show itself!"
The cold wind quickly turned into a violent wind, blowing people in the courtyard haphazardly. Fang Zhou, relying on his extraordinary physical condition and strength, barely managed to not be blown away.
Ling Xiaoyue, standing by, hadn't even had her clothes flutter; the wind seemed unable to touch her.
Just then, a red light suddenly leapt out from the darkness, its form unclear, flying instantly among the Wang Family people, knocking several Protectors in the front off their feet, their bodies splitting apart in midair.
Finally, the servants couldn't hold on any longer, crying and screaming, scattering in all directions, cursing their luck for not having more legs.
The entire courtyard instantly turned chaotic, the red light rampaging through the crowd.
"Master!!"
Wang Fulai, knocked to the ground, cried out for help toward the altar!
Master Ji stared intently at the red light, "Don't panic, this is a Mana adjustment, I'll kill this demon fox immediately."
The red light, as if hearing Master Ji's voice, turned and flew towards the altar.
The little Daoist boy, facing the red light, boldly shouted and charged forward with his sword, then tripped over his own feet and fell flat, unconscious, performing flawlessly like a king of the entertainment industry.
The red light passed over the unconscious Daoist boy and flew straight towards the altar, where Master Ji seized the opportunity and took out the fox-destroying medicine she carried, throwing it forward.
Having purchased it at a high price, it was effective even against cultivated fox demons, especially against female foxes, and she had tested it on many foxes before coming.
The fox-destroying medicine hit the red light, spraying a large amount of white powder, but the anticipated scream did not occur; the red light merely shivered and continued flying towards the altar.
Master Ji was dumbfounded and blurted out: "Don't come... don't come over!!"