Passing through the glittering golden gate, light and shadows intertwined. A warm, fragrant breeze greeted them as they returned to the thatched cottage with the fire basin from earlier. A calligraphy painting hung on the wall, depicting snow-capped mountains shrouded in mist. Unlike typical worldly inscriptions, it bore only three characters: “Ruixue Lu” (Auspicious Snow Cottage). There was neither a seal nor a signature.
So, this thatched cottage was indeed Ruixue Lu.
Inside the cottage, besides the children who had come out earlier, there were three strangers – two men and a woman. One man appeared to be in his twenties, with an honest face. The other was around forty, with stern features. The woman looked about seventeen or eighteen, with an apple-shaped face and an endearing smile.
The three remained silent, their gazes fixed on a bronze mirror on the table. No one spoke, nor did anyone look at the newcomers. Lei Xiuyuan felt uneasy and couldn’t help but move closer to Xiao Bang Chui, whispering, “Big Sis… did we pass?”
Xiao Bang Chui shook her head. She seemed preoccupied and said nothing, finding a corner to crouch in. The children’s initial elation at leaving the forest was dampened by the current silent atmosphere. They exchanged glances, none daring to speak first.
“We’ve seen everything that happened in the forest,” the middle-aged man suddenly spoke, his tone authoritative. “You’re the first group to return.”
He fell silent again. Was this encouragement? Or did it mean something else? Did the second selection count as passing? Everyone grew more anxious.
Soon after, the second group of children successfully returned to Ruixue Lu. This group was even smaller, with only two members. One of them, though her clothes were dirty, was exceptionally beautiful with a noble air – it was the young princess.
Upon entering, she surveyed the room. When she spotted Ji Tongzhou, she smiled slightly, her radiance suddenly dazzling. Even Lei Xiuyuan, who deeply resented her, was momentarily stunned.
“Prince Ying indeed arrived a step ahead,” the princess approached Ji Tongzhou. “Lan Ya admits defeat.”
Prince Ying? Ye Ye wasn’t wrong; this boy was indeed of noble birth!
Ji Tongzhou seemed to relish the awed looks from others. He glanced towards Xiao Bang Chui, thinking, “How about that? She must be terrified now.” He was sure she would regret her previous disrespectful and rebellious behavior, actions that could have warranted the execution of her entire clan several times over.
Xiao Bang Chui didn’t notice his triumphant demeanor. Hidden in the corner, she was quietly calling out to the hoarse-voiced old man. Her curiosity about him had grown uncontrollable. Who was he? Human or ghost? She couldn’t see him, and it seemed only she could hear his voice. Had he possessed her?
Earlier, facing the fox demon with its overwhelming aura, he had mentioned “stealing his things” and said, “Although it’s not even a thousandth, it can still be useful.” What did that mean? Most peculiarly, the fox demon in the forest was identical to the one she had encountered in Qingqiu. Her master had said that each demon had its unique aura. If an illusion was created based on a demon’s aura, it would surely manifest as the aura’s owner. Did this mean the forest fox demon’s aura belonged to the nine-tailed fox from Qingqiu?
Putting all these pieces together, a sudden realization struck her. Could it be that the severely injured fox demon hadn’t escaped but had attached itself to her?! But that didn’t make sense either. Both Dongyang Zhenren and Zhenyun Zi were presumably powerful immortals. How could they have failed to notice a fox demon attached to her?
“Old sir, stop pretending to sleep,” Xiao Bang Chui deliberately provoked him. “I know who you are. You’re that nine-tailed fox demon!”
He wasn’t falling for this tactic and ignored her completely.
Xiao Bang Chui asked several more times, but he remained stubbornly silent. Her persistence kicked in; the more he refused to speak, the more she wanted to ask. She was determined to annoy him into responding. In her ten years of life, she had never talked for so long. She kept asking and talking, and as dawn approached, suddenly a hand tapped her shoulder. Bai Ligelin’s clear but tired voice sounded behind her.
“Xiao Bang Chui, what are you muttering about here by yourself?”
Xiao Bang Chui jolted, realizing her back and waist ached from hunching all night, and her throat burned from talking so much.
“Nothing…” She drained her water pouch in one go and looked around. The cottage now held several more people, roughly a few dozen in total.
Bai Ligelin, whose clean clothes from the morning were now filthy, sat beside her, exhausted. She whispered, “I’m dead tired. That fox demon was terrifying… If it weren’t for Ye Ye’s desperate move, we might not have made it back.”
Fox demon? Did they encounter one too? Xiao Bang Chui quickly understood. The forest was vast, and thousands of people couldn’t have all gone in one direction. Surely, fox demons were stationed at exits in all directions, and defeating them was necessary to pass through the gates and return to Ruixue Lu.
However, Ye Ye’s ability to subdue a fox demon was truly remarkable. Even Ji Tongzhou couldn’t move when it released its demonic aura at the end. How did Ye Ye manage it?
“Where’s Ye Ye?” Xiao Bang Chui asked.
Bai Ligelin pointed in another direction. “Over there, lying down. My sister is taking care of him. He probably won’t be able to move for a while.”
Xiao Bang Chui looked over and indeed saw Ye Ye lying pale-faced on the ground, his head resting on Bai Changyue’s lap, half-conscious. For some reason, she had noticed from the moment she met them that there was a subtle atmosphere between the two, a feeling outsiders couldn’t penetrate.
Lei Xiuyuan and Gelin beside her sensed it too. They exchanged awkward smiles, and Bai Ligelin changed the subject: “By the way, Xiao Bang Chui, how did you deal with the fox demon?”
Xiao Bang Chui rarely hesitated, but now she did. “It was… everyone working together, and then…”
She didn’t know how to explain. Gelin and the others were her friends, and she didn’t want to casually brush them off. But she was even more reluctant to mention the possibility of the nine-tailed fox demon being attached to her.
“Then Big Sis single-handedly shattered the fox demon,” Lei Xiuyuan proudly recounted Xiao Bang Chui’s heroic feat. He felt even happier when Big Sis was in the spotlight than if it were himself.
Bai Ligelin was stunned. “Really? Xiao Bang Chui, you’re that powerful! Was it a technique your master taught you before?”
This blabbermouth crybaby… Xiao Bang Chui mumbled evasively, deciding to let them believe it was a magical technique that subdued the fox demon.
As they were talking, the middle-aged man suddenly stood up and said, “Alright, the time has come.” With a sweep of his long sleeve, he retrieved the bronze mirror.
Was it noon already? The children in the cottage immediately perked up. Were they about to announce who had passed?
The apple-faced young woman smiled and said, “Listen up, everyone. Now, those whose numbers I call out will leave. Those not called will stay.”
Had it begun? The children’s faces showed a mix of tension and anticipation. Those whose numbers were called would leave, meaning those not called had passed, right? Xiao Bang Chui’s palms were sweaty; she was more nervous than anyone. She had only returned to Ruixue Lu with the help of the attached fox demon. Would anyone notice? Her nervousness was mixed with endless guilt and fear; her heart was about to leap out of her throat.
The young woman called out numbers rapidly, quickly moving from the 100s to the 200s. When she called “265,” Xiao Bang Chui almost stopped breathing. She was 276. Would her number be called?
Unexpectedly, after 265, the young woman jumped directly to “276.” Xiao Bang Chui’s heart sank. She was called? She hadn’t passed? Had they discovered her poor aptitude? Or had they detected the real fox demon within her?
Her mind buzzed with various thoughts, alternating between fear and despair. In a daze, she looked around. Nearby, Bai Ligelin, Ye Ye, and Lei Xiuyuan were looking at her sympathetically, while the other children whose names weren’t called showed expressions of wild joy and pride.
“Well… I’ll go out first…” She felt as if her voice was coming from far away, indistinct.
Pushing open the door, snow and wind hit her face. Several children were already standing outside, each with an ashen face and a look of disbelief. She probably didn’t look much better.
Snow was still falling on the peak, the world was reduced to just black and white. Xiao Bang Chui didn’t know what she was looking at. Would she be captured next and executed along with the fox demon inside her? Should she try to escape now? But this was a cliff thousands of feet high; how could she descend without a rope?
Maybe being executed wasn’t so bad. She had tried her best but still failed the second selection. What about her master?
“Creak,” the door opened again. This time, Ji Tongzhou came out, his face ashen, looking lost. He passed by Xiao Bang Chui without a glance, standing alone in the distance, lost in thought. A few of his lackeys who had come out earlier rushed to comfort him, but he kicked them away one by one.
He hadn’t passed either?
Soon after, a few more children came out with pale faces. They were among those who had returned first with Xiao Bang Chui’s group. A vague thought suddenly occurred to her: Could it be that those left inside were the ones eliminated? How could they possibly eliminate the children who returned first and defeated the fox demon?
As if to confirm her thoughts, the children who came out were all those who had returned before noon, including Princess Lan Ya, who started crying as soon as she came out. After a while, Lei Xiuyuan came out too, crying silently since he exited. The Bai sisters and Ye Ye followed, looking miserable.
Seeing Xiao Bang Chui, Bai Ligelin cried, “How could we not have passed? Didn’t we defeat the fox demon and return before noon?”
Ye Ye, still pale, leaned heavily on Bai Changyue’s shoulder. He looked around, noticing only about a dozen people outside, all of whom had returned to Ruixue Lu before him. After pondering for a moment, he suddenly said, “Perhaps… those who came out are the ones who passed?”
Xiao Bang Chui nodded, “I thought so too. Everyone outside defeated the fox demon and returned first.”
Bai Ligelin, tears still clinging to her eyelashes, immediately brightened at their words. “Really?”
Bai Changyue, who rarely spoke, suddenly nodded and said, “We passed. I heard it. The woman inside is saying so.”
“Geez, doing it this way could scare people to death!” Bai Ligelin complained vehemently. Turning back to see the others still dejected, with Lei Xiuyuan crying as if he might faint, she slapped him on the back and shouted, “Don’t be sad! We all passed!”
The children looked up at her, hope suddenly filling their faces.
Bai Ligelin announced loudly, “We all defeated the fox demon and returned successfully before noon. If that’s not passing, are they saying those who came later and didn’t even see the fox demon passed instead?”
Her words were powerful. The children immediately burst into excited chatter. Even Ji Tongzhou smiled, seemingly wiping his eyes discreetly – he must have been shedding unworthy tears earlier.
Lei Xiuyuan’s crying stopped too. He timidly tugged at Xiao Bang Chui’s clothes, mumbling, “Big Sis, is it true? Did I pass?”
Xiao Bang Chui nodded firmly, “We all passed!”
She could barely contain her excitement, amused and exasperated at her earlier despair. Calming down, she realized that if powerful immortals like Dongyang Zhenren couldn’t detect the fox demon within her, how could others? Still, the mysterious person with the hoarse voice remained a concern. Throughout the first and second selections, she had relied on him yet felt some aversion. Could he be the nine-tailed fox demon?
As everyone had predicted, soon the three adults opened the door and let them in. The young woman smiled, handing each a large package, saying softly, “You are all children with excellent aptitude, outstanding will, and abilities. The Fledgling Phoenix Academy welcomes you. Here are your disciple robes and name tags, with other necessities in the package. Please arrive at Huaguang County in Yue Kingdom before the third day of next month. A carriage will take you to the academy.”
Xiao Bang Chui hugged her package, trembling with excitement and smiling unconsciously. But no one noticed her; every child who passed was immersed in wild joy. Bai Ligelin alternated between crying and laughing, Lei Xiuyuan pressed his face against his package, mumbling something, and even Ye Ye’s face was flushed with excitement.
For a long time after, they felt as if they were in a dream. Rainbow deer carriages took the children back to their homes. Xiao Bang Chui and her friends had nowhere to go, but since all five had passed the initial selection in Lu Gong Town, they were sent back there.
Xiao Bang Chui kept taking out her name tag to look at it. The tag was made of an unknown metal, bright yellow and crescent-shaped, with an ancient and clean pattern. The back was engraved with “Fledgling Phoenix Academy” in the seal script. It felt heavy in her hand. However, her tag was different from the others. While the others had their names engraved in seal script on the front, hers had “Xiao Bang Chui” written in brush calligraphy.
She specifically asked the apple-faced young woman about this. The woman smiled and said, “You’re already part of the academy. This name isn’t presentable. On the day you enter school, a teacher will give you a formal name, and then we’ll make a proper name tag.”
Was “Xiao Bang Chui” not presentable? She felt a bit regretful. Her master had given her this name. When he found her by the river, someone nearby was using a wooden bat to wash clothes. The master saw that the laundry woman was very beautiful and, feeling inspired, named her Xiao Bang Chui (Little Wooden Bat)… Well, thinking about it now, it did seem a bit unpresentable.
When they returned to Lu Gong Town, it was already the middle of the night. The town was pitch black, with only two flickering lights at the inn’s entrance.
The five children were still excited, chattering non-stop along the way. After all, all their friends had passed, and they could study together at the Fledgling Phoenix Academy for a year without separating. Ye Ye, being slightly more mature, got two rooms at the inn. Although they initially planned to rest early after a long day and night, they ended up gathering in one room to talk.
“Xiao Bang Chui, Lei Xiuyuan, do you have any matters to settle at home first?” Bai Ligelin asked, lying on her sister’s lap like a cat.
Both shook their heads. Lei Xiuyuan had long been homeless, wandering about, and Xiao Bang Chui had no intention of going back. Dongyang Zhenren had brought her to Lu Gong Town, flying for a whole morning. If she were to return to Qingqiu on foot, who knows how long it would take? What if she couldn’t make it to Huaguang County in time?
“Then the five of us can travel together!” Bai Ligelin grinned widely. “Five people, how lively!” She raised a hand, her face beaming with hope and joy. “In the future, we’ll all become the most powerful immortals!”
In the mist-shrouded forest of the second selection, two figures suddenly appeared. The black-veiled woman bent down to pick up a blank talisman paper from the ground, looked at it, and respectfully handed it to the white-bearded old man behind her.
“The seal on it has been broken?” the old man asked, slightly surprised. “Did those children do this?”
“It was a ten-year-old girl called Xiao Bang Chui,” the black-veiled woman briefly recounted the events of that day. “The nine-tailed fox’s demonic aura sealed in the paper disappeared, so naturally, the seal broke.”
The old man silently walked around the area. The miasma here was less dense than in other places as if something had purified it. Reportedly, the fox demon had vanished at the girl’s light touch, and the sealed demonic aura had disappeared with it, leaving behind a purifying aura. It was highly likely that the demonic aura had been exorcised. The girl was only ten? Such ability at such a young age was truly rare.
“Her… aptitude is very ordinary,” the black-veiled woman thought for a moment, then added, “During the initial selection, her aptitude shouldn’t have allowed her to pass. But for some reason, I sensed that her body seemed full of spiritual energy, several times more than ordinary children, so I let her pass the initial selection.”
“Oh?” The old man raised his eyebrows with great interest. “What’s her name? Xiao Bang Chui? Hehe, bring her to me next time for a look.”