Chapter 5: Awakening Leisurely, Three-Tailed Fox

  In the midst of darkness, time seemed endless, and he didn't know how long it had been when he finally woke up on the ninth day. As soon as he opened his eyes, he saw Xiao Qing standing by the bed, her face full of concern, her big eyes shining with joy, staring at him motionlessly.

  Xiao Qing saw that Chu Jiu had woken up, her heart was filled with joy and she immediately turned around to shout loudly towards the outside: "Miss, Meng Er sister, come quickly and take a look! Young Master Chu Jiu has woken up, he's awake!" Her own face was also filled with delight!

  On the ninth day, looking around, I found myself lying on a bamboo bed, surrounded by a very simple but exceptionally clean small bamboo house. In the distance, there seemed to be the sound of a guqin, faint and gentle, yet extremely pleasant and comfortable beyond words.

  Lin Meng'er and Bai Zhu Ye are not good at playing the zither, who is outside?

  What was even stranger was that on the opposite side of the bed, there was a fiery red patch, about the size of a cat, with a face and tail, staring at me with its eyes wide open. On the ninth day after waking up from sleep, my eyes were blurry, and I couldn't see clearly, but I could only see that thing's two round and shiny eyes, also fiery red, just as I was about to ask Xiao Qing, that patch of fire suddenly let out a "Woo Woo" sound, jumped off the bed, and in the blink of an eye, it had already run out through the door, its movements extremely agile!

  "What's that?" Chu Jiu asked in surprise, although it was vague, but he also saw that the animal had three tails on its back, and asked in a low voice.

  Xiao Qing laughed and said, "It's a fire fox that has become spiritual! These past two days, it has been guarding you by your side. It even refused to go out and play with Xiao Bai. Its mind is also strange. Now that it sees you've woken up, it seems embarrassed and ran away!"

  Chu Jiu nodded, but didn't know who "Little White" was. He only knew that there was a nine-tailed fox breed in the world, which was born like ordinary foxes, but every hundred years of cultivation would grow an extra tail. When all nine tails were fully cultivated, after another hundred years, that is to say, after living for a thousand years, this nine-tailed fox could transform into a human and become a thousand-year-old fox demon. However, these were just legends, mostly heard from Master Bo and Fifth Master when they told stories to Lin Meng'er during her childhood, with Chu Jiu listening in on the side. After all, there were almost no people in the world who had really seen a thousand-year-old fox demon! Chu Jiu thought again, if that was true, then this three-tailed fire fox would be three hundred years old, and it was unclear whether it was real or fake.

  On the ninth day, his head was dizzy and he couldn't think anymore. He wanted to sit up, but a severe pain struck his chest, and his limbs were still icy cold. He furrowed his brow and tried to circulate his Qi again, but his internal energy was still unable to gather. The "Cang Yang Xuan Qing Qi" was gone without a trace, and even the "She Tian Xin Fa" was powerless to summon it. It was as if a stone had sunk into the ocean, something that hadn't happened in seventeen or eighteen years. His entire body's meridians were still icy cold, like being frozen in place, and his Du Meridian was even more rigid than before. His internal energy was exhausted, and it seemed that his internal injuries had not been treated yet. He thought to himself, feeling a pang of sadness, that the leader of the Cang Lang Sect was an extraordinary cultivator, one of the top masters in the world. Even Wu Gou, the old demon sect elder, couldn't escape disaster at his hands. He himself had been severely injured by the other's decades of accumulated power and didn't know if he could survive this calamity.

  Fortunately, he felt a scorching heat near his heart pulse, and there was an internal force surging around it. The mysterious gate was intact, apparently he had taken the spiritual medicine, and a senior master had used his internal force to calm down the area around his heart pulse, so he didn't die immediately.

  Xiao Qing saw that he was about to get up and hastily pressed down on his shoulder, saying: "Chu Jiu Gongzi, your injury has not healed yet, lie back down for now, don't get up!" Then she took another pillow over and Chu Jiu put it under his head, half-reclining, and indeed felt a bit more comfortable. He asked: "Huh? Xiao Qing young lady, I have internal energy surging in my chest, who has been channeling internal energy for me?"

  Xiao Qing replied: "This is certain, but the specific situation, I'd rather not say. Wait until you've recovered and come out of the house, then you'll understand!"

  At the ninth hour, he nodded slightly, and his eyes had already recovered. Seeing Xiao Qing beside him, although her face was filled with joy, but her complexion was pale and wan, he knew she must have been guarding him day and night, truly caring for him. He said: "Xiao Qing, thank you for taking care of me by my bedside all this time. I'm sorry I couldn't get out of bed to express my gratitude." He paused for a moment, then asked: "Xiao Qing, may I ask how many days have passed since I fainted?"

  "Let me calculate, from the night before last, yesterday, to this morning, you've been unconscious for almost two days and two nights! We arrived here on the evening of September 16th, and now it's already the morning of September 18th!" Xiao Qing lowered her head, counted on her fingers, thought for a moment, and then said.

  She saw that Bai Zhu Ye and Lin Ming Er had not yet entered, and continued: "That day, after you fainted, Sister Ming Er cried non-stop, it was scary! Mr. Chu Qi led us for two hours, found this valley, and worked with the fairy maiden to treat your injuries overnight, saying that she protected your heart pulse and could save you for a few more days. Mr. Chu Qi left the valley early yesterday morning, saying he would invite another expert to treat your injuries, while the fairy maiden ordered us to have me decoct medicine for you every three hours to keep your meridians from freezing to death!"

  That little Qing is a Miao girl, she speaks straightforwardly without beating around the bush. These past few days, she heard Mr. Chu Qi and Immortal Maiden saying so, and directly passed it on to Chu Jiu, without considering that someone with such severe injuries as Chu Jiu would feel uncomfortable or have an adverse reaction upon hearing people say he was severely injured and might not recover.

  At the beginning of the ninth hour, he let out a bitter laugh. His injuries this time were so severe that even Chu Qi, who was known for being all-powerful and unmatched in his abilities, was unable to help him. He could only go seek assistance from an even more powerful figure, but it seemed unlikely that such a person existed. Now, just being able to preserve his life and not die already seemed like the limit of their capabilities! Moreover, Chu Qi was already the most mysterious and powerful figure in the Jianghu. Who could possibly surpass him in cultivation? The leaders of the two major sects in the Wulin, the Taishan Beidou Shaolin, and the Wudang?

  However, he was not willing to let others worry about him by nature, so he forced a smile and said again: "Thank you, Little Qing, for taking care of me by my bedside for two days and two nights. I'm not in a position to thank you now, but when my injuries are healed, I will definitely thank you!"

  "No... not..." Xia Qing hurriedly laughed and shook her head, "Young Master, your words are wrong. Jiang Er sister has been by your side from last night to this morning, guarding you until a few hours ago, when she finally went to rest next door under the persuasion of Fairy Sister!"

  She smiled slightly and continued: "And my young mistress, since recognizing you as the one who used the 'Xuanyang Heaven Sword' to block Shen Que's attack on her at the 'Wait for the Moon Inn', has not slept for several days and nights. Along with Sister Ming'er, she has been taking care of you too. It was only a few hours ago that she finally went to rest next door after being persuaded by Fairy Sister. I'm just lucky to have taken care of you for a few hours before you woke up!"

  On the ninth day, I heard Xia Qing's words and knew that what she said was absolutely true. My heart was moved, and this movement of my heart pulled on my heartstrings, causing another wave of icy pain like needles stabbing me. However, I gritted my teeth and endured it!

  He saw Xiaqing turn around, and there was still a large bandage on her back, with faint bloodstains. He hastily asked: "Xiaqing, how is your injury?" Xiaqing smiled: "My injuries were all external wounds, thanks to Miss's bandaging, now they're basically healed. And Miss and Ming'er are also fully recovered. Only you still need to be taken care of by the fairy maiden, not daring to slack off in the slightest!"

  On the ninth day, after hearing everything, he knew that Lin Meng'er had fully recovered and felt at ease. However, he was puzzled in his heart - who was this "Fairy Maiden Auntie" mentioned by the little green girl? It seemed to be the master of this three-tailed spirit fox!

  So it seems that the "Fairy Maiden" mentioned by the young green girl, is actually the person Wu Gou Lao Zong wanted to find.

  An important figure in the Demon Sect, even the elders of the Demon Sect respectfully address him, yet he is hiding here. Indeed mysterious, who could it be? What identity?