Chapter 54 — The Demon's Passing

Within the scorching underground cavern, waves of heat rolled endlessly. Beneath the platform, crimson magma churned and surged, now and then bursting forth with explosive cracks.

Zhang Qingyue felt his breathing gradually becoming difficult, as though even the air he drew in remained scalding all the way down into his lungs. In this place where a single carelessly placed step seemed liable to strike sparks, the white six-tailed fox ahead still lay quietly where it was, looking for all the world as though it were enjoying itself.

He stood rooted to the spot, gazing ahead, hesitating for a moment in his heart. In the end he walked forward, and as he did so, he unconsciously tightened his grip on the Dark Iron Staff in his hand.

The platform was long and narrow, stretching deep into the surface of the lava lake. As Zhang Qingyue drew nearer and nearer, the surrounding temperature grew fiercer still, until it was nearly unbearable.

Whether it was the searing heat or something else, Zhang Qingyue's throat was dreadfully parched, yet he dared not let his attention wander in the slightest. His eyes were fixed tightly upon that fox.

He came to a halt three paces away from it.

At this closer distance, he could see more clearly, and a sudden realization struck him: this was indeed a beautiful fox. Its pure white fur, from head to tail—especially in a place like this, a hell of flame—remained as snowy as ever. Not a single stray hair marred it; there was not even the faintest trace of singeing.

Only, its eyes were closed, and between them a slight furrow had gathered, as though a trace of pain hung upon its brow.

Zhang Qingyue looked at it, yet in his heart countless thoughts flashed by like lightning. From Xiaochi Town until now, all he had heard was that a "three-tailed demon fox" laired here and wrought havoc. But looking at the fox before him, it was clearly not the same three-tailed demon fox he had fought just moments ago.

He vaguely recalled that in his childhood he had once heard his eldest senior brother, Song Dayi, say that the world was vast and full of wonders, that where mountains and rivers held spiritual beauty, devils and demons were likewise plentiful. The old legends held that among beasts, the fox was a creature of exceptional intelligence, and many of them cultivated until they became demons. And within the fox-demon clan, one lineage possessed the greatest spiritual affinity, and it had a peculiar trait: the higher one's cultivation and the deeper one's mastery of the Way, the more tails one grew.

Looking at this six-tailed fox before him, Zhang Qingyue's heart gave a jolt.

Just then, the six-tailed fox seemed suddenly to wake from a deep sleep. Its tails swayed faintly, its head shifted slightly.

Then it opened its eyes.

Within those black, profound pupils was reflected the figure of the young man before it, faintly tense.

Zhang Qingyue started, stepped back, and held the Dark Iron Staff across his chest, concentrating his spirit in guard. Unexpectedly, the six-tailed white fox merely looked at him, its body still sprawled in that hollow of bluestone, showing not the slightest intention of attacking.

So man and fox faced each other in standoff. No sound surrounded them but the endless churning of the lava lake's surface, as though it had existed for ten thousand years—and yet it seemed so very distant.

The air remained scorching, drifting between man and fox.

"Young man." A low voice, seeming to carry a trace of weariness, issued from the fox's mouth and broke the silence here: "What have you come here for?"

From the fox-demon's voice, Zhang Qingyue once again confirmed that this fox bore wounds or illness—that was why it spoke so weakly. Yet even so, he dared not be careless. He said in a deep voice, "You demon creatures bring harm to the world. I am of the orthodox path, and today I shall rid the people of a scourge."

The six-tailed white fox regarded him, its gaze flickering. There was no anger in it, nor mockery—only a calm, faint looking. After a long while, it shifted its gaze away and said evenly, "Fine ambition."

Zhang Qingyue was taken aback, then frowned and shouted, "Spare me that nonsense. Get up at once, I—"

"You mean to kill me, don't you?" The six-tailed white fox suddenly cut him off, asking in a mild tone.

Zhang Qingyue had not expected it to speak so bluntly, and for a moment he was checked. But he recovered himself at once and said, "You demon foxes wreak havoc upon the world and do great harm to men. My killing you is acting on behalf of Heaven!"

The six-tailed white fox turned its head sideways, and in its eyes there seemed a measure of mockery, and a measure of desolation. "Young man, I would guess you are not yet twenty?"

Zhang Qingyue gave a cold snort. "What of it? I shall subdue demons and vanquish devils all the same."

The six-tailed white fox lowered its head slightly, as though suddenly stirred by some feeling, and said softly, "Yes. You humans are truly favored by Heaven in the cultivation of the Way. We of the fox clan toil bitterly for a thousand years and more, yet the gifted among you surpass us in a mere few hundred years—just like that old fellow Shangguan..." Here it suddenly stopped, gave a bitter laugh, shook its head, and looked at Zhang Qingyue. Slowly it said, "Young man, you are so young—how would you know that we of the fox clan wreak havoc upon the world and do great harm to men?"

Zhang Qingyue sneered. "That three-tailed demon fox, your companion, harasses the folk of Xiaochi Town day and night. She has not only seized countless cattle and sheep, but taken human lives as well. Is that not wreaking havoc upon the world and doing great harm to men?"

The six-tailed white fox was silent a moment, then said, "True. I have heard her speak of this. It is as you say. Three days ago, when she went to Xiaochi Town, that father and son dared to stand in her way. It happened that my illness was grave that day, and her mood was foul, so she killed those two fools who knew not enough to fear death."

Zhang Qingyue said angrily, "What have you to say to that?"

But the six-tailed white fox said blandly, "You mistake me. I am not defending myself to you. Even had I gone that day in her place, I would have killed them just the same."

Zhang Qingyue flew into a rage. He leveled a finger at it and shouted, "Then how dare you claim you do not wreak havoc upon the world and do great harm to men? Demon, die!" As the furious shout rang out, blue light surged up along the Dark Iron Staff, and in another instant it would have been loosed into the air.

The six-tailed white fox showed no intention of moving, still lying there unmoving, and said coolly, "This 'world' you speak of—what do you mean by it?"

Zhang Qingyue was checked again. Thoughts spun through his mind, and suddenly, for some inexplicable reason, looking at this six-tailed white fox before him and listening to its low words, he thought again, without rhyme or reason, of that scene of ten thousand people returning.

Faintly, dimly, as though somewhere deep in his heart, a nameless voice was calling out.

The radiance of the Dark Iron Staff slowly faded. But the white fox's voice went on: "In your eyes, this so-called world is one in which your human race holds sway, is it not? All things under Heaven exist for you humans to take as you please. Any resistance at all is wreaking havoc upon the world and doing great harm to men—is unforgivable wickedness, deserving of ten thousand deaths. Is that not so?"

Zhang Qingyue looked at it, silent and saying nothing. He did not know why that three-tailed demon fox and this six-tailed white fox both seemed to like speaking to him. But what he understood even less was why these words, which sounded so heretical and rebellious, should have such a hold upon his mind.