Chapter 224 - Great White Fox (2)
Chapter 224 – Great White Fox (2)
Su Daji and Bai Ting had lost their consciousness, but the four bandits and Jiang Mo were left shocked upon seeing a huge white fox. It descended from the dark sky, covering the two young women with its own body.
Jiang Mo's heart almost jumped out of his chest when he saw what had just fallen on top of his sister. He was somewhat familiar to the fox in front of them, but he had never paid much attention to his sister's odd companion. However, he had never thought that it wasn't just a simple wild fox that Su Daji had taken a liking to.
Did the fox come here to save Su Daji? He wondered.
The fox took a defensive stance and bared its sharp fangs towards them. Under the bleak and faint moonlight, one could see its amber eyes glowing ferociously.
The four bandits pulled the reins of their horses, forcing them into a stop. However, the same couldn't be said for Jiang Mo, who decided to race forward, He didn't wish to leave Daji's life to the wild fox.
His face got the darkest it could get. He might have looked agitated at the moment, but he was scared about his sister's safety. While the bandits were stupefied by the sudden appearance of the wild fox, Jiang Mo seized his chance and killed them swiftly.
Their cries of pain resounded in the area, piercing through the stillness of the night. Once done, Jiang Mo heaved a sigh and glanced at the fox, who had returned to its normal size. He found it hovering next to Su Daji, with its muzzle pressed against her slender neck.
Jiang Mo stood still, his eyes widening and the grip on the hilt of his sword tightening. His warning gaze never left the fox and Su Daji. Just what was the fox trying to do with his sister?
'Calm down, human. I'm not going to harm her.' The fox raised her head and met his gaze.
"Y-you can speak human language?" He asked in shock.
Was he hallucinating? No. It couldn't be just a figment of his imagination.
'Since you can hear me, I suppose you have also killed enough humans. It would only take another five thousand lives before you turn into a demon.'
"What did you say?" Jiang Mo exclaimed. He couldn't understand what this fox was talking about.
'You might not know it, but humans who committed a grave sin and reaped ten thousand human lives would change as a person,' the fox nonchalantly answered through telepathy. 'They would suffer constant pain and lose their logical mind as they approach that milestone.'
Jiang Mo shivered at that. He wasn't sure why, but he felt like this wild fox was trying to tell him something. Did the fox mean that he was getting close to becoming a demon himself?
"…w-what are you trying to do with Daji?" He asked, purposely ignoring what the fox had just said about him.
'Removing the remnants of a black magic spell placed on her neck. You are lucky I managed to arrive on time, or else she had already become a soulless puppet of the ninth prince.'
The ninth prince?! Jiang Mo's eyes widened. Just what had his sister got to do with that vicious and violent man?
The night when Su Daji disappeared came into his mind, and he shivered. He then cursed himself inwardly for not questioning Su Daji about what had truly happened that night. Right now, this unknown creature was telling him that the ninth prince had placed a mark on his sister.
'Both of them are still alive, but they need medical intervention.' The fox's words brought Jiang Mo to reality as he gently picked up Su Daji's and Bai Ting's bodies from the ground. He then used an emergency firework he had on him to inform his subordinates of their whereabouts.
They should be able to reach and find them in half a sichen, considering the distance they had crossed from the camp.
Jiang Mo applied pressure on Bai Ting's acupoints to stop her bleeding after he made sure that Su Daji wasn't hurt anywhere.
While they waited for rescue, Jiang Mo took the chance to question the fox.
"What are you? And why are you staying next to Daji?" He narrowed his eyes on the beast with suspicion.
The fox scoffed and turned her attention to the crescent moon above them.
"I am what your kind called… a 'fox spirit'."
"Then, you are a demon?"
"You can say that, but there are actually many kinds of demons that exist in this world."
"Then, why Daji? What do you want from her?" Jiang Mo asked again.
"Just curious to see how long she would be able to keep her soul clean. Unlike you, Su Daji's soul was pure and clean, unmarred with any taints or sins most humans like you have," the fox replied, not bothering to look at the young man. She didn't care whether he believed her or not.
"Then… what about Daji and the ninth prince?" He questioned.
"You'll have to ask her about that. I merely removed the mark because I didn't want her to die so soon."
Jiang Mo had no words to refute those words. He could only stare at the unconscious young woman next to him. He should have let her go when he had a chance. However, now that Xuan Yanrui knew about her existence, he feared that the ninth prince would take a liking to her and snatch her away.
It didn't take long before his troop found them. There weren't many casualties from the sudden attack of the bandits, as most had managed to flee for refuge. That night, no one dared to sleep, not that they could after just what happened earlier. They waited for dawn to arrive, but none dared to lower their guards.
A piercing ray of sunlight caused Su Daji to wake up. The moment she opened her eyes, she felt sore all over her body. She wasn't even sure whether she was dead or alive, as she tried to remember what had happened.
She stiffened when the glimpses of last night came back.
The attack, the pursuit, and the arrival of the white fox…
Su Daji remembered that she and Bai Ting were being chased by the bandits. When they reached the cliff, she and her maidservant had willingly accepted their deaths by then. Who would have thought that she survived the ordeal of the night and managed to come back alive?
Wait. Where was she, anyway? If she was caught by the bandits, then she would be in deep trouble; if her brother's troop managed to save her, then that meant that she was extremely lucky.
Su Daji was leaning to believe that she had been captured. For this, she was expecting heavy torture from these bandits.
'Calm down, woman. You are back in the camp.' The familiar voice of the great white fox made Su Daji snap her eyes open and sit up. The fear she was nursing in her heart vanished, and it was replaced by great relief.
"I-I'm alive?" She asked, staring wide-eyed at the white fox in front of her.
"Very much so, I believe, if you can act like this. You have been unconscious for three days. I was half-tempted to eat you if you weren't planning to wake up soon." The fox scoffed, but Su Daji knew that her companion didn't have any intention to eat her at all.
"Then, what about Bai Ting? Did she…?"
However, Su Daji wasn't able to finish her question. Although Bai Ting was just a maidservant of hers for some, the young woman was close to her heart.
"Your human is alive, too. She's still recovering from her injuries, though." The fox informed her.
Su Daji released a breath she didn't know she was holding. Knowing that not only she survived, but also did Bai Ting, brought so much relief to her. She didn't know what she would do if her maidservant's life perished just so Bai Ting could protect her.
"That's good to hear."
"What's so good to hear?" Jiang Mo's familiar voice reached Su Daji's ears, and she turned her gaze towards him.
"Great fox, would you please give me and Lady Daji some privacy to talk?"
Weirdly enough, Jiang Mo spoke to her fox companion. Did something happen that she had no idea about?
The fox stood up and left without a word, despite Su Daji's wordless begging for her company. The young miss had this feeling that Jiang Mo was angry at her about something.
"I'm so sorry for causing you trouble. Daji knows she was wrong this time." She lowered her head, not daring to look at her brother.
Jiang Mo remained silent and only stared at Su Daji's lithe body. He had almost lost her that night.. If it wasn't for the fox's interference, the bandits might have captured and made off with her already.
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