No matter how one looked at it, Yu Sheng had finally understood how Hu Li could shoot her own tail like a projectile.
He wasn’t sure how other fox spirits in this world operated, but it was clear Hu Li's lineage had taken a unique path, one far removed from ordinary beastly combat...
At the moment, the fox spirit girl sat across from the dining table, awkwardly grasping a pair of chopsticks, shoveling the food from her bowl into her mouth with great speed.
It was merely the simplest of noodles, mixed with some leafy vegetables and sliced ham, along with two fried eggs.
Yet, Hu Li savored it like it was the most exquisite delicacy in the world, eating in a manner that could hardly be called graceful — but her enjoyment was absolute.
In strict terms, this was the first hot meal she had eaten in years.
Previously, the biscuits and instant noodles Yu Sheng had brought her were good enough, but sitting at a safe dining table, enjoying a steaming bowl of food, carried a completely different feeling.
“Slow down, there’s more in the pot if you want,” Yu Sheng watched Hu Li with a hint of pity as she finished her bowl almost in the blink of an eye.
He gently nudged her hand, “You’re holding the chopsticks wrong. Look at how I do it.”
Hu Li raised her eyes from the bowl, glancing at Yu Sheng's right hand.
As she chewed on her fried egg, she clumsily adjusted her grip on the chopsticks.
She learned quickly.
“Benefactor, am I eating too fast…” After finishing her bowl, Hu Li raised her head, a little embarrassed.
She noticed that Yu Sheng’s noodles were only half-eaten, and beside him, Erin had a bowl in front of her, untouched. “I just feel like if I don’t eat quickly, it might be gone at any moment.”
“It’s fine, you’ll adjust in time. Besides, with your constitution, eating a few hearty meals won’t harm your health,” Yu Sheng couldn’t help but chuckle, “If you run out, I can get you more.”
“Mm-hmm.”
Before Yu Sheng could stand up, Erin spoke up from her perch on the shoe cabinet: “Let her finish my bowl first.”
The little doll pushed her bowl over to Hu Li with both hands.
Hu Li thanked her and didn’t ask why food was placed in front of a doll that wouldn’t eat.
Instead, she lowered her head and quickly started consuming the food.
Once the meal was finished, Yu Sheng noticed that Hu Li’s bowl and chopsticks were practically spotless — she had licked them clean enough to reflect a human silhouette…
After cleaning up the kitchen, Yu Sheng changed into his clothes before heading out.
He found a suitable outfit for Hu Li from his own wardrobe.
To be honest, it was quite ill-fitting; he was much taller than the fox spirit girl.
His clothes hung loosely on her no matter how he adjusted them.
Pajamas could be managed by a few sizes, but outdoor clothes weren’t so easy to fit.
In the end, Yu Sheng had to use several hidden safety pins and make-shift stitching just to secure the clothing comfortably on Hu Li without making it look too out of place.
Even so, a girl just over one meter sixty wearing clearly oversized men’s clothes looked rather strange, but thankfully—Hu Li's beauty made up for this oddity.
It turned out that looking good truly had its advantages, and the fox spirit indeed had a lovely face.
This allowed her to walk about looking like a pretty girl with questionable fashion sense.
While Yu Sheng was busy adjusting Hu Li’s clothes, Erin sat cross-legged atop the shoe cabinet, resting her chin on her hands as she watched the spectacle.
When Yu Sheng finally finished, she couldn’t help but murmur, “Hu Li, you can retract your ears and tail, but why can’t you just change your height? Or your clothes—these are mine ‘transformed’ myself! Can’t you fox spirits do that too?”
“Powerful fox spirits can!” Hu Li immediately defended her kind, “My father said that strong fox spirits can even grow as tall as mountains in the blink of an eye! They run in the mountains and forests with thousands of divine guardians chasing after them. If captured, they could be judged for five hundred years! But I can’t! I’ve only learned to refine my ears and tail…”
Erin listened, taken aback, with a rather confused expression, “Um, that doesn’t sound like something to be proud of… Hey, you’re speaking more fluently now, aren’t you?”
Hu Li squinted her eyes, looking quite pleased, “I’m getting used to it as I speak.”
Erin's gaze shifted back to Yu Sheng, her thoughts apparently wandering.
Abruptly, she spoke again, “So you two are going out together…?”
“Of course,” Yu Sheng nodded, “She has no clothes or shoes, and she can’t go out shopping alone, so I’ll be taking her.”
Erin rested her chin on her hands, “I want to go out too.”
Yu Sheng was startled.
He had finally pieced together why the doll had been thinking so deeply since morning, but this revelation caught him off guard: “You? How can you go out? You’ll scare people as a sixty centimeter doll strolling around town!”
“You can carry me,” Erin declared confidently, “I’ll disguise myself.”
Yu Sheng was momentarily confused: “How will you disguise yourself?”
Erin simply slumped down, her limbs going limp, her eyes wide open in a comically exaggerated unseeing gaze.
Even the sparkle in her eyes seemed to fade.
Her voice echoed in Yu Sheng and Hu Li's minds: “See? Doesn’t this look more ordinary? There are plenty of dolls in toy stores. If you toss me in like this, I could sit in the window all day without anyone noticing…” Yu Sheng was dumbfounded, utterly astounded by Erin's creativity.
However, the thought of carrying a doll around felt awkward to him, “But isn’t it a bit weird for a grown man to be carrying a doll around?”
Erin’s eyes lit up instantly.
In the next moment, she jumped from the shoe cabinet, landing on Yu Sheng’s head: “You didn’t think it was weird when you carried me around to fight monsters in other realms! After battling, why are you reluctant to take me out? I could leave your head covered in bite marks — you wouldn’t even be able to put on a band-aid!”
Yu Sheng found himself flustered by the overzealous doll on his head, finally managing to pry her off and toss her to the stunned Hu Li: “Alright, alright, I’ll take you out, but you must make sure she carries you.”
Erin immediately looked satisfied — she just wanted to leave the house; it didn’t matter who was carrying her.
In truth, she wouldn’t even mind being stuffed in a suitcase; she could unzip it and sneak a peek outside.
She hadn’t seen the outside world in what felt like ages.
“It’s just that your painting is a bit troublesome,” Yu Sheng frowned, looking at the frame Erin was carrying on her back.
Since it was there, Hu Li had to awkwardly support the doll's body while ensuring the frame didn’t block her view. “It’s eye-catching, and it’s cumbersome as well.”
“Then I’ll just take it off and hold it,” Erin said, reaching back to remove the frame, “As long as I don’t get too far away.”
Hu Li nodded and didn’t wait for Yu Sheng to speak before taking the frame from Erin.
Then suddenly, a flurry of tails appeared behind her with a “thump,” and she stuffed the frame into one of her tails.
This time, Yu Sheng couldn’t help but exclaim.
He realized the process of Hu Li hiding things in her tail wasn't what he had first imagined: “... How did you do that?! Is that a special storage space?!”
Hu Li blinked, then recollected herself, unfurling her tail and explaining in detail for the first time: “This one is for storage, these two are for cuddling and keeping warm when I sleep, and these few can be used as blankets or used flexibly to grab things. Aside from the storage tail, the others can be used for fighting…”
Yu Sheng’s expression froze: “... Are you saying you can shoot them out?”
“Yes.”
“Is this the result of ‘refining’?”
“Yes.”
Yu Sheng thought for a moment and could only marvel at how extraordinary fox spirits were.
They were much more wondrous than humans.
…
In the special operations team’s second division, Song Cheng arrived at the office more than twenty minutes later than usual.
Just as he settled in at his desk, the monitor lit up, revealing the unchanging, cool visage of Bai Li Qing, the director of the special operations bureau.
“It seems you’ve been to the ‘Train’ already,” Bai Li Qing’s calm voice came from the speaker, “Not a smooth journey?”
“Not particularly, just a bit cumbersome,” Song Cheng replied, unruffled by the director’s sudden contact, though he awkwardly shook his head, “The compartments of today’s ‘Train’ were more complicated than usual, and I realized we had already missed our stop when returning to reality.”
“What was the outcome of the interaction with passenger 22?” Bai Li Qing queried directly.
“... Director, something seems off,” Song Cheng adjusted his posture, leaning slightly forward, “Regarding Wutong Road 66, the passenger replied, ‘No such station’ — while unusual, it wasn’t too far-fetched. But the strangest part is when I asked about 'Nightfall Valley'…”
He paused, his expression growing serious: “Passenger 22 told me that station has been canceled.”
For the first time, he saw a distinct look of surprise on Bai Li Qing’s face.
He had always believed her expression was set in stone.
“This answer is unprecedented,” Song Cheng cautiously observed the changes in Bai Li Qing’s expression, “As you can see…”
“Immediately arrange for a deep-dive team to execute a deep dive.” Bai Li Qing quickly instructed.
(End of Chapter)