Chapter 60: The Art of Metamorphosis—Nine Transformations

The fox demoness, Jiao Na, cast an enchanting gaze, gently biting her crimson lips. She deliberately let the thin gauze on her body slip even further, revealing her exquisite beauty without reservation.

Cui Yue had never witnessed such a sight before. His face turned scarlet, nearly sending blood gushing from his nose, and he stammered uncontrollably.

“You, you... you wretched demoness, you have no shame at all!”

She giggled, her voice sweet and teasing. “My good sir, you’d best not struggle. Let me drain you dry, and you’ll reach paradise all the sooner.”

These words slipped from Jiao Na’s lips as if it were the most natural thing in the world. Small wonder—she didn’t take the frail man before her seriously at all. In her eyes, snuffing out his life was as easy as crushing an ant. Her teasing was nothing more than a cat toying with a mouse, amusement before the kill.

Such deadly words, spoken by a woman of such breathtaking beauty, revealed a heart as venomous as her face was lovely.

A chill ran through Cui Yue’s veins. Drain me dry?

Good heavens, that’s death by exhaustion!

Images flashed through his mind of himself collapsed in a heap, nothing but a pile of mud, or turned into a puddle of corpse oil, like those ghosts in the movies.

He shivered but refused to be cowed, raising his voice in defiance.

“I’ll skin you alive, rip out your tendons, chop you up, and feed you to the dogs before you lay a finger on me!”

Hmph!

Jiao Na snorted lightly, a mocking smile on her lips.

“With you? You can still talk tough now, but soon not even your bones will be left.”

“Oh? Is that so? What if you add me to the equation?”

Suddenly, a languid voice sounded from behind.

Qingquan appeared behind Cui Yue, adjusting his glasses and speaking softly.

Jiao Na’s brows furrowed at the sight of the newcomer. Her expression shifted rapidly; she shed her coquettish demeanor, her face darkening instantly.

“It’s you? That wretched priest?”

“That’s right, it’s me. I’m surprised you remember.”

Jiao Na glared at Qingquan, her beautiful eyes nearly spitting fire. She gritted her teeth.

“Hmph, of course I remember. Do you think I could forget the one who cut off my tail? I’d recognize you even if you were reduced to ashes.”

Qingquan said nothing, merely brushing the collar of his shirt as he spoke in an icy tone.

“Last time, I spared your life, hoping you’d mend your ways. But you’ve learned nothing and still harm the innocent. This time, I’ll destroy your demon soul for good.”

Jiao Na sneered coldly.

“Very well. You refused the road to heaven and chose to barge into hell instead. I’ll kill you today and save myself the trouble of hunting you down later.”

Cui Yue was beginning to piece things together. It seemed Qingquan and the fox demon had a past enmity—something about a severed tail? Did this bespectacled oddball really chop off her tail and cripple her cultivation? Now, fate brought them together for a reckoning of old and new scores.

“Enough talk. Take this!” Jiao Na shouted, striking first with a palm wreathed in demonic wind.

Suddenly, a purple light swept over the two men. Before Cui Yue could react, Qingquan pushed him aside, calling out sharply.

“Watch out!”

Qingquan sprang forward, both fists raised.

“Break!”

A golden light flashed between his fists, meeting Jiao Na’s blow head-on. With a surge of strength, the purple light shattered like glass, scattering into a rain of violet sparks.

Jiao Na snorted, a cruel smile on her lips. Her slender fingers formed an intricate pattern, and she began chanting:

“Grandfather Hu San above, grant me divine power. Command the spirits of the Three Dings and Three Jias. With my form, summon your deeds. Mind and spirit as one—grant me the power to seize the soul. Now, go!”

Cui Yue was utterly bewildered. What kind of world is this, where even monsters know sorcery?

It’s not just their strength—what’s truly terrifying is when they can scale walls. And worst of all, they know magic!

He couldn’t help but wonder: was she a legendary nine-tailed celestial fox?

Qingquan’s eyes narrowed at the spell in Jiao Na’s hand. He was taken aback—her magic had grown dramatically in just a few days. He shouted sternly:

“Demon, you’ve already formed a demon core and stand on the threshold of the Great Dao. Why cast aside your future and commit such atrocities?”

Jiao Na’s pride was palpable; her face turned cold as she spat back:

“Hmph! Mind your own business, priest!”

Her hands never stopped weaving the spell.

The atmosphere in the hall shifted abruptly. The people who had been peacefully dreaming moments ago now moved as if possessed. One by one, they tumbled from their seats, landing on all fours, clawing at the ground with fingers like talons. Their eyes gleamed with a beastly light, stripped of all humanity, and guttural growls rumbled from their throats.

“What in the world is this?” gasped Cui Yue.

He stared in shock at the crowd, who just moments ago had been perfectly normal, now transformed into snarling beasts.

Even Zhang Hao, usually lost in his own lustful daze, was circling around Cui Yue and Qingquan, his yellow-stained teeth bared, drool pooling at his feet.

Panic-stricken, Cui Yue shouted:

“Zhang Hao, you son of a—wake up! You’ve all turned into wild dogs! Da Zhuang, wake up!”

Qingquan blocked Cui Yue with a grave look.

“It’s useless. They’ve fallen under the fox demon’s Transformation of Nine Forms, their minds enslaved by her demon will.”

“What’s this ‘Transformation of Peanuts and Wine’ magic? Qingquan, aren’t you a sorcerer too? Hurry and break her spell!”

Cui Yue had no idea what kind of spell it was—he only saw his friends turned savage, about to tear him apart. In desperation, he frantically urged the bespectacled oddball.

“I never expected this fiend to be so powerful. With her will possessing their bodies, we can’t break the spell unless we defeat her.”

Jiao Na looked supremely pleased, seeing her two adversaries hesitate. She was determined to grind them to dust to vent her pent-up fury.

With a flick of her spell, she shouted, “Attack!”

The enchanted crowd responded instantly, springing at Qingquan and Cui Yue like wild beasts, their movements swift and vicious.

Cui Yue broke out in a cold sweat as several dark shapes darted toward him from all sides. Spotting the lead attacker, he cursed aloud.

“Zhang Hao, you traitor, you turncoat! I always knew you’d betray us—dying under the fox demon’s spell, happy to be her lackey. You never showed this much loyalty before, but now you’re the first to charge!”

Zhang Hao, now lost to reason, lunged at Cui Yue with a snarl.

Qingquan, too, was surrounded, three or four shadowy figures hemming him in.

With a sharp cry, Cui Yue dodged aside just in time, narrowly missing Zhang Hao’s snapping jaws. He lashed out with his right foot.

“Take this!”

His kick landed squarely on Zhang Hao’s lower back, sending him sprawling into a row of empty chairs with a heavy crash.