The ancient road down the mountain is covered with autumn leaves and colorful forests.
Occasionally, the moist soil is exposed, and it is covered with the footprints of wild wolves and clouded leopards.
A mule passed by silently, with a thin village elder sitting on its back, his body swaying, and two Taoist priests holding swords in front of him, walking very quickly.
"It takes two days to get to our place, thank you two Taoist priests for your hard work."
"We are not working hard, the village elders are the ones who suffer. Those who stay in the village are the ones who suffer." Lin Jue added, "While there is time on the way, the village elders can talk about the fox monsters in the village."
"OK……"
The village elder sat on the back of the mule, looking reminiscing. He hesitated for a moment, and then asked: "Actually, these fox demons have always lived next to our village, and we have known each other for a long time."
"We've known each other for a long time?"
"yes……"
Lin Jue nodded, not surprised.
There are the most stories about fox monsters and fox spirits circulating in the world. This is not only because there are the most fox monsters and fox spirits in the world, but also because they often live together with people.
This kind of thing is not surprising.
So I just let the village elder continue to talk.
"I don't know where to start. I only know that a few years ago, these fox demons were divided into two parties. They didn't get along with each other and often fought at night. There were people in the village who were invited by them to help. Even the old man also
They once came to my door at night and asked the old man to bring a hoe and pole to help them fight. The old man didn't go, and not many people in the village came.
"Not long after, they seemed to have a winner, and only one side was left.
"After a period of time, these foxes were rarely seen again, and the previous encounters with foxes in the village were rarely heard of anymore.
"Until the past two years, someone's home was robbed. At first, I didn't know who did it, but later I found out that it was these foxes. After they were discovered, they simply tore their faces apart and asked for money. If they didn't give it, they would be in trouble.
, we reported it to the government and invited gentlemen from nearby villages, but there was nothing we could do about it, so we had to offer it.
"Three days ago, for some reason, they went crazy. They harmed people in the village and wanted boys and girls. We were all scared. Many people ran out of the village and invited Jianghu people to come, but they were also killed by them.
.”
The village elder on the back of the mule said and couldn't help but glance at the white fox following them.
The fox seemed to be aware of it, and turned to look at him while jumping lightly.
The old man was afraid and immediately looked away.
"There is no other way. I heard that there is a Fuqiu Temple in Yishan. The Taoist priest is very good at exterminating monsters. But I also heard that there are monsters everywhere recently. It seems that we have made an appointment. Our village is far away from Guiguan.
, no one in the village dared to go such a long way, for fear of being killed on the way. I am only an old man, and it is not a loss even if I die, and I come here alone to ask for help."
"The old gentleman is righteous."
An old man who has lived for most of his life and has no loss in death is willing to risk his life to come to such a remote place to ask Taoists to save his village neighbors. Only such an old man is worthy of the title of rural sage.
And for such a person, no matter how talented Lin Jue is, he obviously deserves more respect.
"But is the old gentleman in the village really a fox demon?"
"What? Of course it's a fox demon."
"Has your true form ever appeared? Does it look like a fox?"
"The original shape has appeared, just like an ordinary fox." The old man said for a moment, then glanced at the fox next to him, "But this fox is different from the Taoist Priest. He is almost like an ordinary fox."
"Aren't all foxes afraid of dogs? Don't there any dogs in the village?"
"I have raised them, but those foxes are of high moral character and there are so many of them that the dogs in the village have long been subdued by them."
"I see."
Lin Jue nodded, thoughtfully.
There are too many fox spirits in the world, and information flow is not smooth these days. People's knowledge is limited, and it is difficult to form a unified understanding, so it is very confusing.
These rumored fox spirits are not only like humans, but also have their own races, clans and even factions. Many of them are not even foxes at all.
This is why Taoists talk about fox demons and fox spirits separately——
Is there a difference between the words demon and spirit?
To get to the bottom of it, look for the original and source word meanings. There may be differences. However, words and words are all used for communication. Over time, they are used to confuse them, and there is no difference in fact.
Just like gods and immortals.
There was originally a difference between gods and immortals, but now, many people in the sky who are called immortals are actually conferred gods, and many people who are called gods are actually immortals who have cultivated themselves. Therefore, "immortal" has become a common term in the actual use of the world.
It is no longer necessary to distinguish the specific meanings of the two words in detail, and there is no need to rely on the source as the only correct answer.
That's what goblins are like.
However, "Fox" is really special.
Just like the previous dynasty, people in the previous dynasty admired and loved dragons, but how could real dragons be seen casually?
So over time, "dragon" became confused.
When people see a big crocodile in the water, they call it a dragon, and a small crocodile is called a pig dragon. When they see a big snake that has successfully cultivated, they call it a dragon. When a carp becomes a spirit, it is also called a dragon. Even some ordinary little snakes
, either out of respect or out of endearment, when calling it or even writing it in poetry books, we also call it dragon.
Later, it became even more exaggerated.
People may go to the mountains and pass by the roadside and see some strange things, making them shine or fly away in the wind, which they cannot understand. But as long as such things touch water, people will exclaim that they are dragons.
Then when you go down the mountain, you can brag with your family and friends.
In fact, it satisfies people's yearning and desire to see and find dragons.
The same goes for fox demons and fox spirits.
People in this dynasty love fox spirits. If you see a monster in a village or city in the secular world, and it has the ability to change, and you don’t know what it is, just call it a fox. In this way, you will be like the protagonist in the book, and you will see no change.
Now that I have become a testing fox, I have made friends with such a magical spirit. I can be complacent, I can feel that I am wonderful, and I can brag to others.
In fact, it may not be a fox.
Therefore, Taoists split the word "goblin" in order to distinguish them. The fairies cultivated by foxes in the mountains are called fox spirits, while those in the world who do not recognize their true form are called fox spirits.
What Lin Jue wanted to find was the goblin transformed into a fox.
Although the fox demons have their own clans and factions, they must have communicated with each other. From this, we may be able to learn roughly where the fox that I have raised for more than two years comes from.
When we reached the foot of the mountain, a voice suddenly came from the mountain:
"Do you still dare to go down the mountain at this time?"
When the old man sitting on the back of the mule heard the strange noise, he thought it was not a human being and was frightened. In his panic, he almost fell off the back of the mule.
But I saw two young Taoist priests calm and composed.
"Why not?"
"I heard that Emperor Yujian made a great decision and dispatched the Three Saints of the South, many spiritual officials, star kings, and heavenly soldiers and generals, vowing to eradicate the Corpse Tiger King. Looking at this battle, the Corpse Tiger King will not be able to escape this disaster no matter what!
In order to get a chance of survival, he will order his monsters to cause chaos in the world. The bigger the noise, the better. If you go down the mountain, those monsters will fight you tooth and nail!"
"It's more time to go."
The Taoist just said this.
There was no more movement in the forest.
Lin Jue and Lin Jue looked at each other, took out their paper donkeys, turned into two gray donkeys, led the mules and rode on the donkeys.
A skinny mule, an elegant Taoist.
The crisp sound of hoofbeats came from the mountains.
It was already afternoon. It took the old man more than two days to get here. As the two of them hurried on, they were almost there the next night.
But it was almost dusk.
"Senior brother..."
The little junior sister on the donkey shouted.
"What's wrong?"
To be continued...