Because of her previous experience of drawing water into dry wells in the north, this time Yun Shu only spent a month grinding the Body-Tempering Pills into powder and sprinkling them into the well water of various northern cities.
When she returned to Xindu City, it happened to be the Mid-Autumn Festival.
Night fell, and the full moon hung like a wheel in the sky, enveloping the city, which was brimming with the warmth of daily life, in a blanket of faint silver glow.
The streets were brightly lit.
The shops along the streets were hung with colorful lanterns of all kinds. The sweet aromas of osmanthus cakes, mooncakes, and roasted chestnuts mingled together, wafting into people's noses with every gust of the evening breeze.
Families, young and old alike, strolled together. Laughter and chatter spilled out from every alleyway. Children ran around carrying rabbit lanterns, while adults chased after them, shouting to slow down and watch their step.
Concealing her figure, Yun Shu stood beneath an old tree at a street corner. The little fox perched on her shoulder, the tip of its tail swaying back and forth.
Its bright amber eyes stared at a nearby sugar painting stall for a long time before reluctantly shifting away.
“Host, if I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, I wouldn't have believed this world could become so beautiful.”
At this, it couldn't help but sigh. “When I did missions in this book world with my previous hosts, we only ever met bad people and witnessed human tragedies. One of my hosts even saw people trading children to eat during a famine. She was so terrified that she dropped dead on the spot and returned to her original world. I begged her and even offered to add ten billion in bonus points, but she absolutely refused to return to this world for any more missions.”
“Perhaps it's not people eating people, but the chaotic times eating people,” Yun Shu said, glancing down at the little fox.
“In extremely harsh environments, very few people can hold onto their principles, let alone remain kind.”
The little fox tilted its head. “I get it. It's like how if people see someone steal and not get punished, others will start stealing too. If they see a good person get bullied and no one helps, others naturally won't dare to be good anymore. But you, Host, changed this environment. You allowed good people to live well and ensured the bad got the punishment they deserved. As a result, people's hearts began to turn toward goodness.”
“Then, when they see good people being rewarded, they'll gradually realize that being a good person is actually worth it.”
As it spoke, its eyes grew brighter and brighter. “Host, have I gotten a lot smarter again?”
Yun Shu patted the little fox's head. “System, your ideological progress is quite impressive. Keep it up.”
“Hehehe, then can I have a sugar figurine?”
The little fox bit Yun Shu's sleeve and pulled her toward the sugar painting stall, pointing its paw at an adorable little fox sugar figurine displayed right at the front.
“Host, I want this one...”
Yun Shu rummaged through her pockets, only to find a few copper coins left. Almost all the money she had made had been gobbled up by this greedy little pig of a fox.
Fortunately, she had the Attracting Wealth and Treasure Set, and the skill of its hand-held accessory, the Coin-Leaf Branch, was turning stone into gold.
Otherwise, she wouldn't have even had a few coppers left.
It would have been fine if it just had a large appetite, but the little fox was an artificial intelligence. It didn't actually feel hunger or fullness; it was just purely greedy for taste.
“Once I buy this sugar figurine, don't ask me to buy anything else,” she warned the little fox before taking out the copper coins. “And absolutely no more taking a single needle or thread from the public!”
“Fine,” the little fox pouted. “They were the ones who insisted on giving them to me. It's not like I asked for them...”
Yun Shu squinted at it.
“Don't think I don't know that you wrote down what you wanted to eat on a slip of paper and purposely let Shen Yu see it.”
Guiltily, the little fox hung its head.
There was also a statue of it in the Divine Lady Temple, and people often left offerings for it. Once, it had snuck a bite.
Since then, Shen Yu and the others had constantly come up with new ways to make all kinds of delicious food and place them in the Divine Lady Temple to tempt it.
“Host, I was wrong...”
Looking at the pitiful little fox, Yun Shu gently placed the copper coins on the stall. She reached out, took the fox-shaped sugar figurine, and handed it over.
“Eat up.”
Both of them were invisible.
Thus, to anyone else, this scene appeared incredibly bizarre and baffling.
The old man selling sugar paintings had been looking down, adjusting the color of his freshly brewed syrup. When he looked up, he found that a little fox sugar figurine had vanished from his stall, replaced by three copper coins.
The old man froze.
“This... this...” His mouth hung open, unable to utter a full sentence for a long time, the bamboo stick for drawing sugar still clutched in his hand.
The auntie selling osmanthus cakes next door leaned over to peer at his stall, teasing with a smile, “Old Zhang, you made a sale so quickly today?”
Old Zhang stammered, “I... I didn't sell it...”
He pointed at the three copper coins on the stall, then at the empty spot. “It... it vanished on its own. The moment I looked up, only these three coppers were left.”
The auntie guessed, “I recall your sugar figurine was drawn in the likeness of Lord Spirit Fox. Could the Lord have thought you drew it well and taken it?”
Hearing this, passersby stopped and began to chatter.
“I heard that Lord Spirit Fox beside the Divine Lady loves mortal food. It makes perfect sense that the Lord would take a liking to it, given how lifelike the old man's drawing is.”
“Indeed, indeed.”
Looking at the three copper coins supposedly left by the spirit fox, Old Zhang muttered, “Did I really draw it that well?”
“Old man, even Lord Spirit Fox descended to the mortal realm specifically to buy your sugar figurine! How could that not be considered well-drawn?!”
The surrounding crowd chimed in, agreeing enthusiastically.
Surrounded by the crowd, Old Zhang's ears flushed red.
He had been drawing sugar paintings for decades, barely scraping by on this craft to support his family. This was the first time so many people had praised his work. It turned out that even humble street vendors like them could receive appreciation for their craft...
Urged on by the crowd, he began drawing another sugar painting, putting more heart into it than ever before.
The golden, translucent syrup flowed as his wrist flicked, and a nine-tailed fox gradually took shape, looking incredibly lifelike.
Gasps of admiration rose from the crowd one after another.
“Host, do you want a bite?”
The little fox held up the sugar figurine.
“No, it's covered in your drool.” Yun Shu coldly rejected the little fox and walked ahead.
The little fox felt down for a brief moment, but then it devoured the sugar figurine in a few bites and happily trotted after Yun Shu.
Even though its host acted disgusted, it was magnanimous and wouldn't hold a grudge. They were still the absolute best of friends.
As midnight approached, the people enjoying the festivities began to head home.
The street vendors also started packing up their stalls, the rumbling of wooden wheels rolling over stone slabs echoing from near and far.
Yun Shu walked at a leisurely pace. The little fox mimicked its host, strutting with its head held high and its fluffy tail swaying left and right behind it.
As she passed by the brightly lit Divine Lady Temple in the center of the city, she suddenly stopped and turned to look inside the hall.
The temple doors were half-open, and the candlelight flickered inside.
The Divine Lady statue in the center of the hall stood with lowered eyes. In the shifting light and shadow, her face appeared compassionate yet distant. Right on the futon in front of the statue knelt a tall, upright figure.
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