Chapter 57: The Pipe Fox's New Contract

Although he could not yet fully comprehend the mysteries within, Gu Xiangnan had a strong intuition that this was no ordinary sword.

He gently caressed the scabbard, already planning to consult his master at the first opportunity to learn how to wield this divine weapon.

Gu Xiangnan carefully hung the sword on the wall. Then, he picked up the Shennong Cauldron.

His master had once told him that, according to ancient texts, pills refined in the Shennong Cauldron could grant immortality. If that were true, it would defy the very order of heaven.

He was determined to prepare such pills for himself and all seven of his senior sisters.

Earlier, his second master had said that the toxins in the Rejuvenation Frost required an antidotal pill to neutralize them. How convenient!

"Looks like I’ll have to call gentle Second Master tomorrow and ask for the pill recipe," he muttered to himself.

Gu Xiangnan locked the Shennong Cauldron safely away in the cabinet. Then he lay on the bed, fiddling with the snuff bottle.

If Suzuki Genjiro hadn’t lied, there was a pipe fox sealed inside this snuff bottle.

Gu Xiangnan pulled out the stopper, pressed one eye to the mouth of the bottle, and peered curiously inside.

Aside from the painted scene within, it was empty—just like any ordinary glass bottle.

Gu Xiangnan frowned. Had he been tricked by Suzuki?

Impossible! At the brink of life and death, Suzuki must have known that deceiving him would not end well.

Most likely, the pipe fox was simply too frightened to come out.

Gu Xiangnan remembered the wild monkeys he’d seen in the mountains, which were always wary of humans. Back then, he often fed them, and over time, they grew close and let him pet them.

He decided to find some food to see if he could lure the pipe fox out.

He rummaged through the kitchen, but Su Hanyan was always busy and rarely cooked at home. There was nothing to eat but a string of candied hawthorn in the fridge, which Wang Mei had bought and not yet eaten.

Since she had already returned to her post, he thought it best not to let the treat go to waste.

Gu Xiangnan took the candied fruit back to his room. Yet, no matter how he tried to entice it, after an hour of effort, there was no response.

Resigned, he placed the candied hawthorn on a plate in front of the snuff bottle and went to bed.

Once his breathing had grown steady and deep in slumber, a graceful silhouette quietly appeared at his bedside.

Gu Xiangnan was sleeping soundly when he suddenly felt a tickling at his feet. He shifted position, half-awake.

Something was burrowing into the covers, crawling upward from his feet until it nestled in his arms. A strange, sweet fragrance wafted to his nose.

"Senior Sister... here to help me with my cultivation?" he murmured, half-dreaming.

Suddenly, his hand brushed against something soft and furry.

"What the—!"

Gu Xiangnan snapped wide awake, sitting up abruptly.

"Princess, turn on the light."

The room lit up instantly.

He saw a beautiful girl lying on his bed. She appeared to be about eighteen, with long white hair tied into twin ponytails and a pair of fluffy fox ears atop her head.

She was exquisitely lovely, her round eyes bright with cunning and spirit. Petite and delicate, she wore a short kimono.

Gu Xiangnan was momentarily stunned. The girl was extraordinarily pretty.

"Who are you?" Her voice was sweet as honey, tinged with an adorable innocence.

"Are you the pipe fox?" Gu Xiangnan was a little dazed.

"How rude! You must address me as Lord Pipe Fox!"

Her tone was imperious, but her sugary voice made it hard to take seriously.

Gu Xiangnan found it almost comical. He reached out to pat her head and laughed, "Little girl, why are you talking so pompously? Who are you trying to impress?"

The girl leapt off the bed in alarm, retreating a full meter.

"How dare you! I am the shikigami of the Kyuyama Clan, the most prestigious family in Fusang. How dare an ordinary mortal like you lay a finger on me?"

Gu Xiangnan's brow furrowed, his gaze suddenly icy.

"Remember, from this day on, you belong to me, Gu Xiangnan."

The girl pondered for a moment, arms crossed, chin lifted, eyes narrowed with pride.

"Very well. I've been confined too long. I suppose I have no choice but to follow you now. Come, let us forge a contract."

"You expect me to come to you just because you command it?" Gu Xiangnan sneered. "Are you ordering me?"

She replied coldly, "Don’t you wish to form a bond with me?"

"Hmph." Gu Xiangnan snorted. "I never said I wanted to bond with you."

The girl was taken aback. "If you don't wish to contract with me, why did you release me?"

Gu Xiangnan explained that he’d only noticed the design on the snuff bottle moving and had been curious to investigate.

She too found it strange. "This snuff bottle is indeed peculiar. Ordinary glass could never restrain me."

Regaining her composure, she urged, "Quick, bind with me. Let’s sign the master-servant pact."

"You as the servant, I as the master. Your descendants will serve me for generations. I will ensure your family’s peace and prosperity forevermore."

As expected, this fox was sly indeed.

Gu Xiangnan shook his head. "Sorry, not interested. Find someone else. Back to your bottle—I'll return you first thing tomorrow."

The girl was dumbfounded.

In Fusang, the ten great families had all thrived under the protection of pipe foxes. Yet here, in the Central Plains, she had been flatly refused!

She assumed Gu Xiangnan simply didn’t know her origins and thus failed to appreciate her value.

"Do you realize what you’re missing? Do you know what we mean to Fusang?"

"No, and I don’t care."

Her words stuck in her throat, leaving her frustrated beyond measure.

She proceeded to reason with him, laying out facts, examples, and benefits of keeping a pipe fox. She chattered on for an hour.

"Please, just go back into the bottle," Gu Xiangnan groaned, on the verge of collapse. He climbed into bed and pulled a pillow over his head.

The girl knelt beside him, continuing her lecture.

Finally, worn thin by her persistence, Gu Xiangnan said offhandedly, "Fine, I’ll sign the pact—me as master, you as servant."

"Deal!" she agreed without hesitation.

After decades trapped in the snuff bottle, she would not let this opportunity slip away now that she was finally free.

"I have just one request," she said, holding up a small finger.

Gu Xiangnan frowned. "You dare make demands?"

"From now on, you must feed me those red round things I saw earlier."

"What are those?"

She brought over the bamboo skewer from the candied fruit, her eyes alight with anticipation.

"Oh, candied hawthorn. No problem." Then Gu Xiangnan remembered something. "I should give you a name."

"Let’s call you... Taoyao."

"Very well, my lord."