Free Web NovelJust when Hu Xiaoqi thought she had won—
The hand she was gripping suddenly liquefied, slipping through her fingers like running water. freeweɓnovēl.coɱ
Then—
The red-haired fox, the first one Vieya had freed, threw herself forward and slammed straight into Hu Xiaoqi’s stomach, locking her in a tight hold!
“Run!”
Hu Xiaoqi’s eyes went wide. She hadn’t expected the other foxes to attack her!
And what she hadn’t expected even more—Vieya really ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) was a slime girl, a slime girl who could wield a Holy Sword and liquefy her entire body!
Vieya looked like she was beginning to recover from the poison, but the red-haired fox clung to Hu Xiaoqi without letting go. Hu Xiaoqi bared her claws, ready to end that red fox’s life once and for all—
But a voice echoed in her head!
“Didn’t you promise me you wouldn’t hurt anyone?! I won’t lend you my body anymore! Not lending it!”
“Hmph. Don’t forget who gave you everything you have now!”
Hu Xiaoqi’s eyes hardened. She grabbed the red fox by the waist and flung her back into a cage, then turned to charge straight toward Vieya.
But to her surprise, Vieya didn’t move. She stood still until Hu Xiaoqi broke free—then turned her head and ran for the exit!
Her footsteps weren’t fast.
Looks like the poison’s still slowing her down.
Heh. Compared to me, you’re still a hundred years too early to play with toxins.
Hu Xiaoqi was sure she could easily catch up and drag her back!
A fox’s eyes could pierce the dark. Her sharp gaze caught Vieya’s retreating figure—
And suddenly, she slammed into an invisible wall of liquid.
Not good! The thought barely formed before a suffocating pressure struck her.
At that same moment, the Vieya who should’ve been ahead appeared behind her.
“Since you’ve figured out what my true body is,” she said coldly, “then let me show you how a slime fights.”
“Vieya!!”
Trapped inside a transparent water sphere, Hu Xiaoqi screamed, her cry piercing through the dark and echoing through the entire underground chamber!
Then—
Vieya, fully liquefied, raised her index finger and made a silent shh gesture.
Rumble...!
Rumble...!
The entire underground passage began to quake violently, as if an unseen metal bull were charging through!
But it wasn’t a bull—it was water.
A vast, sky-filling flood of pale blue water, surging like a dragon!
Hu Xiaoqi floated helplessly within the sphere, eyes wide. She hadn’t imagined Vieya’s true body could be this massive.
At the same time, she realized what Vieya was planning. She struggled desperately to get out—but dozens of cold, delicate little hands pressed against her body, chaining her from head to toe like the shackles of souls.
“Don’t even think about running!”
BOOM!!!
The impact this time was hundreds of times stronger than before.
With a thunderous crash like the ocean collapsing, the entire underground corridor burst apart!
The imprisoned fox girls screamed, terrified, huddling together into a trembling ball of fur.
The furious blue liquid poured in from the entrance like a waterfall. Just as they thought they were doomed—
Hu Xiaoqi’s body, swept up in that blue torrent, was hurled to the ground, her fur drenched and clinging in tangled tufts.
The fox girls were petrified—but then they noticed Hu Xiaoqi wasn’t moving at all. She seemed unconscious. The strange blue liquid that had engulfed everything suddenly froze in place, motionless.
One curious little fox reached out and touched the solidified surface.
It felt cold and springy, like jelly.
But before they could wonder further, footsteps echoed from the now-widened entrance.
A humanoid figure, entirely blue and translucent like jelly, stepped forward.
She walked across the frozen blue surface, each step sure and measured.
As she approached, the liquid all around her seemed to recognize its master and flowed back toward her.
Gradually, her human form took shape again, color returning, clothing reforming over her body.
When she was fully restored, the massive flood of blue liquid vanished completely.
The red-haired fox recognized her first and called out, trembling, “Benefactor?”
“Hmm?”
Vieya picked up a small white pearl from the ground, studied it, then popped it into her mouth. She looked up, amused, at the fox girls huddled together.
“Say that again?”
“Benefactor...” ×N
This time, it wasn’t just one fox—it was a chorus.
“......”
Vieya felt she might have overdone it a little. She scratched her cheek awkwardly with a fingertip.
Her gaze drifted to the unconscious, bedraggled Hu Xiaoqi lying nearby. Softly, she changed the subject.
“Is she really from the same clan as you?”
The fox girls glanced at one another, unsure how to answer.
...
Above the theater, there was neither moon nor stars—only a vast, dreadful void.
Below—
On the red-carpeted stage, dozens of fox girls stood barefoot upon the scarlet cloth. Their fur came in every color, their tails varying in number.
At the center lay the most striking of them all—the white nine-tailed fox—bound hand and foot with red silk ribbons.
“Benefactor,” said the red-haired fox softly, “little Qi used to be a good fox. Among us, she was the smartest.
But one day, she came back saying we’d never have to worry about food again, never have to fear terrifying monsters or cruel humans...”
They told Vieya a long story—starting from their tribe’s gathering grounds, to the changes Hu Xiaoqi brought, step by step leading to what they had become today.
“In truth,” the red-haired fox said sadly, “we share the blame for what she’s become. If we hadn’t been greedy for an easy life, if we hadn’t longed for days without hunger... if we’d never left the Monster Forest...”
Her ears drooped.
“Then little Qi wouldn’t have fallen this far. She could’ve had a better life... if not for us.”
“......”
Vieya leaned back in her chair, silent for a long time.
At last, she opened her eyes again, gazed at the still-unconscious Hu Xiaoqi, and sighed faintly.
“Wake her up. No matter what, we still need to hear her side of this.”
...
The moon emerged from behind the dark clouds.
Its cold light poured over the vast courtyard before the shrine.
Countless masked figures stood there silently.
Unlike the carefree, laughing chaos during their battle with Fairy’s Wings, these ones stood solemn, heads bowed.
It looked like a funeral.
At their feet glimmered a six-pointed magic circle drawn in silver powder.
In the courtyard—
Only one masked figure was seated. Her attention wasn’t on the circle, but on a crystal ball beside her.
Inside the transparent orb shimmered the scene of the theater where Vieya was.
She watched it intently—until, suddenly, the image flickered. The clear vision turned black.
“Still as entertaining as ever... No wonder you ruined Baishui’s operation last time.”
She chuckled.
Her eyes, blue as glass, reflected the moonlight, shimmering like flowing sapphire.
“Only this time, you’ve exposed your weakness completely...”
She smiled faintly.
“Next time—what will you do then?”
