Chapter 414: The Red Fox Mask

Hu Yun was extremely excited to be traveling with Ji Yuan again, especially to somewhere as far as the capital of Dazhen. He looked around from atop the cloud, watching the mountains and rivers recede into the distance below.

He also tried to find topics to chat with Ji Yuan about, asking about the Yin family, Lu Shan Jun, and Ji Yuan’s experiences.

Ji Yuan also briefly inquired about Hu Yun’s cultivation progress. It was clear that this fox had indeed grown a lot since they last met. He had deeply understood an obvious truth: diligent cultivation was the foundation of his fox life. Otherwise, he would have had to stay on Niu Kui Mountain for the rest of his life, and would have to endure great loneliness.

Therefore, the red fox now cultivated quite diligently, just like Lu Shan Jun had before, spending every spare moment cultivating near the promontory.

In fact, all animals and spirits that had gained spiritual intelligence went through this stage. Of course, many would later go astray, such as those who became uncontrollable after harming others for personal gain.

The man and the fox rode away on the clouds, and with the help of the wind, only an afternoon passed before Ji Yuan and Hu Yun arrived in the sky above the capital of Dazhen.

Ji Yuan had no intention of taking Hu Yun to the Tongtian River at this moment. Although the Old Dragon had heard of this fox, Hu Yun did not know anything about the Old Dragon, or even that there was a True Dragon in the Tongtian River. Taking him to Tongtian River would probably frighten the fox.

Ji Yuan and Hu Yun landed in a secluded alley in the city, then emerged from the alley and walked onto the streets of the capital.

Despite Ji Yuan’s concealment technique, Hu Yun still followed closely behind him, because he felt more comfortable in his proximity. At this moment in the capital of Dazhen, even in winter, the red fox could feel a strange, surging heat. Although it didn’t cause any harm, it made him feel somewhat irritable and uncomfortable.

“Mr. Ji, there are just too many people in this city. Everyone’s tempers are all piled up together. I feel like I’m walking in a fire…”

Hu Yun couldn’t help but complain, and Ji Yuan looked up at the sky and pointed.

“What do you see?”

“What?”

The red fox also looked up at the sky, finding nothing unusual in the blue sky and white clouds.

However, in Ji Yuan’s vision, two scenes appeared: there was, of course, the blue sky and white clouds, but there was also a fiery red aura rising and swirling in the sky. A huge red cloud was forming in the sky above the capital, and the fiery aura vaguely resembled an enormous, powerful array formation.

“Now that the year is drawing to a close, every household is preparing for the New Year. The atmosphere is joyful and the spirit of humanity is strong. Human vitality is at its peak, and thus so is the element of Fire. It forms a faint array in the sky, deterring and repelling all other beings.”

“Repelling me?”

The red fox stretched out its paw and pointed at himself.

Ji Yuan smiled.

“Actually, it’s mainly against ghosts and evil spirits. It is useless against those with high cultivation levels, but you are a properly cultivating fox spirit. You’ll get used to it, and it won’t have much of an impact.”

As they spoke, the crowd around the man and the fox grew denser. Hu Yun could see some yellow and spotted dogs in the city; each time he spotted one, he would still subconsciously move closer to Ji Yuan. Once bitten, twice shy: he would probably never forget his experiences for centuries.

“Mr. Ji, where is the Yin family’s residence? Do you know the way? Don’t get lost, you might…”

Hu Yun didn’t continue. He had heard Mr. Ji talk about how he had gotten lost several times before, and he was afraid that Ji Yuan wouldn’t know the location of the Yin family’s residence. But how could Ji Yuan be bothered by directions now?

“Master Yin is a high-ranking official in the court, the prime minister of the country. Of course, he cannot live in a remote place, nor can he live in the bustling city. He likely lives on Yongning Street or on one of surrounding main streets, close to the palace, so that he can enter the imperial city to see the emperor at any time.”

As Ji Yuan spoke leisurely, he pointed in the direction of the palace as he walked. However, the surrounding crowd was too dense, and Hu Yun was a short fox, so he naturally couldn’t see anything.

After walking for a while, the red fox suddenly let out a loud cry.

“Oh no!”

“Hmm? What’s wrong?”

Ji Yuan looked down and saw the red fox stand upright on its own two hind legs, frantically groping around in front of and behind himself, even reaching out to touch his fluffy tail before turning to Ji Yuan with a mournful face.

“Mr. Ji, we came in such a hurry, I forgot to bring gifts for Yin Qing and Master Yin… It’s been so many years since we last met, I didn’t bring anything…”

For a moment, Hu Yun looked extremely dejected. He had imagined this kind of occasion many times before, but he always struggled with what he might bring as a gift. What did Niu Kui Mountain have? He didn’t dare to steal from ordinary people’s homes. He had been hesitant for so long, so when Ji Yuan finally took him away he still hadn’t prepared anything

“I originally wanted to dig up some jade in the mountains, but I couldn’t find any. I wanted to get some gold like Lu Shan Jun, but I couldn’t find any either… All I know how to do is catch insects and rabbits…”

Looking back now, Hu Yun really felt like the most useless fox spirit in the world.

“They will be happy at your presence. Why do you feel the need to bring gifts?”

“But…didn’t you also bring some preserved meats and sauces from Ning’an County…?”

Hu Yun muttered to himself. Ji Yuan naturally heard him. Although he was a little amused and exasperated, he realized that this was a rare instance of Hu Yun’s intentions being pure, so he asked again.

“Then what else can we do? What can we buy here? The Dazhen’s capital is a magnificent city, outstanding in this world. We can buy things for other countries, not to mention goods from Dazhen, as long as you have money.”

Hu Yun immediately looked up at Ji Yuan with hope in his eyes.

“Mr. Ji, do you have money?”

Ji Yuan calculated his current net worth and answered with certainty.

“Yes, I have two taels of silver and three hundred and sixty cash.”

“That should be a lot, right? What can you buy with that?”

Although Hu Yun hadn’t seen much of the world, he had studied both with Yin Qing and on his won for a while. He knew that silver was quite valuable, and that ordinary mortals in the world liked silver.

Ji Yuan considered the prices in the Capital Prefecture.

“Well, it depends on what you buy. You can buy a lot of rice, grains, and other ordinary things, but if you really want to buy something precious, no amount of money will be enough.”

“That makes sense. Let’s go take a look and see if there are any toys!”

Hu Yun remembered that when Yin Qing was with him in private, he once said that he envied other children whose fathers made many wooden swords, shields and birds as toys, while he only had books. At that time, Hu Yun thought that Yin Qing must like toys.

Ji Yuan thought to himself that Yin Qing probably didn’t like toys anymore. Even back then, it was just a memory. But he didn’t want to ruin that beautiful feeling. Besides, how expensive could toys really be?

“Okay, let’s go to the market and see what looks like fun. Let’s go to the Temple Administration Lane. There are temple fairs almost every day during the year-end season, and that’s where you’ll find the best wares.”

“Okay, okay, let’s go to the Temple Administration Lane… uh, Mr. Ji, did you really mena to say the Temple Administration Lane?”

Hu Yun stopped again, a conflicted expression clearly visible on the furry fox’s face.

“That’s right in front of the gate to the underworld. what I get caught because you tried to take a monster like me there?”

Hu Yun knew that Mr. Ji was quite capable, but in the end, he had much real-world experience. Mr. Ji was capable, but just how capable was he? The City God of Ning’an County gave Mr. Ji face because they were from the same hometown, but this was the capital region!

“Don’t worry, Mr. Ji. I know the various spirits and deities in the capital region. They’ll give me some face. Besides, isn’t it worth taking a little risk for you to buy a gift for Yin Qing?”

Hu Yun hesitated for a moment, then gritted his teeth.

“Alright, I trust you, sir. Let’s go to Temple Administration Lane!”

Ji Yuan smiled and then led Hu Yun in a different direction. They did not speed up their pace or use their supernatural powers. It took them about three-quarters of an hour to reach the front of the temple.

“Selling steamed buns, freshly baked!”

“The finest sandalwood…”

“Lanterns! Buy a lantern for your child; there are even riddles inside!”

“Rouge and face powder…”

“Buy a Peace and Safety Talisman! It’s been blessed by the City God!”

…

The temple fair here was quite large, and the crowd was dense. Everyone was beaming with joy, and the sounds of vendors hawking their wares and haggling fill the air. Hu Yun was completely stunned. The small town of Ning’an County simply could not compare to the scene before him.

Seeing Hu Yun looked somewhat dazed, Ji Yuan picked him up and held him in his arms to prevent him from being trampled by the dense crowd, and also to allow him to see some of the items on the stalls.

“Come on, when you see something you like, tell me.”

As Hu Yun wandered through the temple fair, he saw lanterns, rattles, and wooden figures, birds, silk flowers, and sugar figurines. Hu Yun was overwhelmed and had no idea what to choose.

Suddenly, Hu Yun saw something—a leather mask—and immediately pointed it out.

“Mr. Ji, over there, that mask, I want that mask!”

The booth was off in the distance, so Ji Yuan couldn’t see which mask he was, but he could hear the vendor’s shouts, so he moved to the front of the stall.

“How much did the mask cost?”

“Mr. Ji, I’d like the fox-faced one!”

Hu Yun whispered in Ji Yuan’s arms. Although she knew that Mr. Ji had cast a spell, she still looked as if she was afraid that others would hear.

The stall owner was calling out to someone in the other direction when he heard the voice and turned around. He saw a refined gentleman with an extraordinary air standing in front of his stall and quickly greeted him respectfully.

“Which kind of mask would you like, sir? I have cat masks, monkey masks, fox masks, and ghost masks.”

“Hmm, I’ll take the fox-faced one.”

“Alright!”

The stall owner picked out a red fox-shaped mask, held it in his hand, and introduced it to Ji Yuan.

“I used leather as the base, sewn with silk thread, and even added fine fur and painted it with rouge. You see, this fox face is so lifelike, and it’s the New Year, so the red color is very auspicious…”

The stall owner, who had rambled a lot, finally asked a question.

“Hmm, sir, you have an extraordinary air about you. How about one hundred coins?”

“One hundred coins?”

Ji Yuan held the mask in his hand, weighed it in his hand, and then rubbed over it inside and out; the texture was indeed quite nice.

“That’s a bit expensive. How about this, I’ll take it for fifty coins.”

Based on Ji Yuan’s experience from her previous life, she managed to haggle down the price by half. The stall owner looked pained, gritted his teeth for a long time, and then finally said something.

“Alright! Seeing that you’re a scholar, I’ll accept this slight loss today. A fair price, fifty coins it is!”

Upon hearing this, Ji Yuan knew that he had still overpaid, but there was no need to haggle any further.

He paid the money readily and took the mask.

As he left, Hu Yun was overjoyed, clutching the mask. It wasn’t just because the mask was beautiful, but also because he realized that his minor supernatural abilities could finally be put to use, and he could give Yin Qing a special gift.

Just as he was feeling happy, he suddenly felt a chill. He turned around and looked towards the temple fair behind him, and saw at least seven or eight people dressed in official uniforms but shrouded in yin energy bowing and clasping their hands in his direction. They were clearly not bowing him, the fox monster.

T/n: Apologies for dropping the ball on translations this week. I had a pretty bad migraine yesterday and the day before, but we should be all good for now! Big hugs to everyone