Chapter 311

Chapter 311: New Year

In the mountains and forests, the ground once blanketed in thick snow now lay scorched, emitting wisps of blue smoke.

It resembled a black blemish on the face of a jade-skinned beauty, utterly unsightly!

A massive two-tailed snow-white fox crouched beside the scorched earth, its elongated fox eyes radiating a bone-chilling cold.

“Xiao Qi…”

It extended a paw to scoop up a bit of the smoldering soil, speaking in human tongue: “Human cultivator!”

Its voice was laden with an indescribable bitterness and rage!

Beside the two-tailed snow-white fox sat a smaller two-tailed spotted fox, shaking its head as it said, “This place has already been designated as the mountain gate of the White Tiger Sect. Xiao Qi shouldn’t have come.”

Smack!

The snow-white fox slapped the spotted fox across the face, sending it flying: “This is our Fox Clan’s homeland!”

The spotted fox landed in the snowy ground a dozen steps away, rolled, and quickly bounded back, its fox face now marked with several bloody scratches.

Yet it remained unangered, saying, “You’ll have to ask our ancestor about that.”

The snow-white fox fell silent.

One tail transformed into a beast, two tails into a spirit beast, three tails a great beast, four tails a beast king!

It was merely a two-tailed fox; what power did it have to overturn the decisions made by the great beasts above?

But how could the snow-white fox swallow its resentment while watching its beloved offspring turn to dust?

“I will find the murderer and devour him alive!”

The spotted fox curled its lips into a seemingly sarcastic smile: “Then you’ll need to seek out our ancestor; her Heavenly Merit technique is the strongest in our Fox Clan.”

“Don’t tell me what to do!”

The snow-white fox roared hoarsely, raising its sharp claws.

However, the spotted fox didn’t want to be hit again and suddenly dashed into the dense forest, leaving behind a single sentence.

“I don’t want you to end up like Xiao Qi!”

The snow-white fox’s eyes turned crimson as it bared a row of sharp, white teeth.

It looked as though it was ready to devour someone!

Meanwhile, far away, more than ten miles distant, Wang Chen felt a strange sensation and couldn’t help but glance back.

After advancing to the Purple Palace level, his Soul Points surged, and his Spiritual Power became extraordinarily strong, far surpassing his abilities at the Qi Training stage.

Wang Chen had keenly sensed the approach of danger just moments ago, leading him to decisively retreat.

He didn’t even take the snow-white fox’s body with him.

One must note that the skin of such a fox could fetch a significant number of spirit stones.

Yet, Wang Chen faintly felt that even putting the fox’s body into his storage bag might expose him.

Just like the storage bags of evil cultivators that he couldn’t accept.

He would have to find another place!

Thinking this, Wang Chen’s figure darted toward White Tiger City like an arrow released from a bow.

For the next few days, Wang Chen remained in the city, not venturing out again.

The New Year was fast approaching.

White Tiger City grew even livelier.

Since the Four Seas Trading Association had established a branch in the city, the Giant Whale had made three round trips.

A special docking station had even been constructed outside the city for it.

The Giant Whale not only brought a vast quantity of supplies to White Tiger City but also a significant number of immigrant cultivators.

The recent beast tide had ravaged not only the original Xian City but also many nearby immortal cities in the Yulong Mountain Range, with some cities even falling into ruin.

The number of refugees surged abruptly.

Originally, the Giant Whale would take a group of native residents from Xian City away each time it arrived.

However, the last two trips saw far fewer cultivators departing.

Everyone knew that the outside world was far from peaceful, and many places were not as favorable as the rebuilt White Tiger City.

With the influx of immigrants and refugees, housing prices in the city soared, and no vacant shops remained.

All industries began to flourish.

Especially as December drew to a close, people hurried out to purchase New Year’s goods, emptying their storage bags to celebrate the New Year, making business in the city exceptionally bustling.

Wang Chen had specifically crafted a batch of auspicious New Year charms, riding this wave of excitement and earning a tidy profit.

On New Year’s Eve, the streets and alleys of White Tiger City suddenly grew eerily quiet.

Snowflakes drifted onto the empty main street, while the warm glow of every household’s windows shone through, and the sound of firecrackers crackled in the small courtyards.

Wang Chen had closed his shop early to prepare his New Year’s Eve dinner for himself.

Since his arrival in this world, he had grown accustomed to spending the New Year alone.

Originally, Wang Chen still owned two houses in the city, but due to the recent surge in housing prices and the market’s inability to meet demand, he had decisively sold them.

His wealth in spirit stones had surpassed a hundred thousand.

He had never been as prosperous as he was now and planned to celebrate a truly bountiful New Year.

Tonight’s main dishes for the New Year’s Eve dinner were braised beast meat and steamed river fish, which might sound ordinary, but Wang Chen had used second-grade food ingredients, costing him a significant amount of spirit stones.

In addition to these two hearty dishes, Wang Chen had also purchased two jars of top-quality spiritual wine.

In short, he wasn’t going to treat himself poorly.

When the table was set with delicious food and the spiritual wine laid out, just as he was about to indulge, someone suddenly knocked on the shop door.

Who could it be?

Wang Chen set down the chopsticks he had just picked up and went to open the door.

At the entrance stood a thin middle-aged cultivator, who smiled at Wang Chen with a flattering expression: “Wang, my fellow traveler.”

“Xu?” Wang Chen raised an eyebrow. “What brings you here on New Year’s?”

The middle-aged cultivator, named Xu Hongcai, was a native of Xian City, where his ancestors had lived.

Wang Chen had met him by chance.

Though Xu Hongcai’s cultivation level wasn’t high, he was quite charming and had made many friends, acting somewhat like a local influential figure.

Wang Chen didn’t have a close relationship with Xu Hongcai, but considering his wide connections, he was willing to give him some face.

“I got kicked out,” Xu Hongcai said, looking gloomy. “Actually, there’s nothing going on with Sister Li, but Sister Lu doesn’t believe me…”

Wang Chen found himself speechless.

The Sister Li and Sister Lu he mentioned were widowed cultivators living nearby.

Clearly, Xu Hongcai hadn’t mastered the art of time management and ended up having a mishap on New Year’s Eve!

Xu Hongcai rubbed his hands together, grinning as he asked, “Wang, my fellow traveler, could you let me stay for one night?”

Wang Chen chuckled helplessly. “Come in.”

Xu Hongcai might be a bit of a flirt, but he was a decent person.

Upon entering, he saw the steaming table full of delicious food and couldn’t help but swallow hard.

Wang Chen said, “Since you’re here, let’s eat together.”

He was never the stingy type; now that he had taken Xu Hongcai in, he didn’t mind sharing the New Year’s Eve dinner with him.

“Thank you, my fellow traveler!”

Xu Hongcai solemnly bowed to Wang Chen, nearly teary-eyed. “I will never forget your great kindness!”

Wang Chen shook his head, saying, “You exaggerate.”

He handed a pair of bone chopsticks to Xu Hongcai, gestured for him to take a seat, and poured a cup of spiritual wine.

Having someone to share the New Year’s Eve dinner with was actually quite nice.