Chapter 5: A Fox Spirit?

It seemed to be autumn; the ancient forest was ablaze with color, golden leaves mingling with the blue sky and white clouds, forming a vivid oil painting. At this moment, inside the hollow of a towering tree dozens of meters high, Yu Qiye had reverted to his true form, pecking at the last flesh and blood of the three-colored celestial deer.

Truly befitting the word "celestial."

The taste was indeed exquisite.

Delicately tender.

Perfect texture.

Moreover, in terms of cultivation enhancement, it far surpassed other demon tribes.

In just a few days, Yu Qiye’s cultivation advanced by an entire rank.

According to demon lore, his power might have reached the mid-stage of a great demon.

Not only that, his understanding and application of the new “Untraceable” trait were far beyond that of the three-colored celestial deer.

“Untraceable on the three-colored celestial deer is truly a waste,” he sneered, taking human form and standing atop the treetop, eyes fixed on an ordinary wild boar below.

A common wild boar, likely foraging nearby.

Now, raising his right hand, a faint glow shimmered.

Looking closely, it was a black feather.

With a swift whoosh,

the black feather tore through the air, flying straight toward the boar.

Just as it was about to pierce the boar’s body, Yu Qiye’s gaze locked onto the feather.

Ripples appeared in the space around it.

A slender figure replaced the feather’s position, appearing close to the wild boar.

“Snort, snort...” the boar seemed startled, panicked beyond measure.

But before it could scream any more, a right hand pressed down on its body.

Boom!

A surge of demonic wind gathered, and a thick scent of blood filled the air.

...

The black feather shot forward, the gaze fixed, the positions exchanged.

Like flowing clouds and water, it was seamless and complete.

This was Yu Qiye’s understanding of “Untraceable.”

Using it for escape was truly a poor application.

Its true opening was in battle.

Mysterious and extraordinary.

Unfathomable.

One misstep, and like the wild boar before him, one could be reduced to a spray of blood.

Unfortunately, this “Untraceable” trait cannot yet exchange positions with living beings.

According to Yu Qiye’s understanding, all life possesses a will and instinctively resists.

Objects, however, are different.

But this is not absolute.

Perhaps, by elevating this trait to red or even golden, it might then be able to exchange places with living beings.

Even so, Yu Qiye was very satisfied with this trait.

With it, his combat strength increased by at least two ranks.

...

The hunt continued.

Yu Qiye once again took his original form, spreading his wings into the sky.

Not long after, he appeared on a treetop.

Raising his eyes, he saw a lake in the distance.

Sunlight shimmered on the rippling surface, as if the water was adorned with scattered silver fragments, or like wrinkled green satin.

“What’s that?” Yu Qiye’s pupils contracted slightly.

He saw a slender figure deep beneath the lake’s surface.

Skin as white and smooth as mutton fat jade.

Waist-length silver hair glimmering with flowing light.

And... a pair of long, fox-like ears.

“A fox demon!” Yu Qiye recognized the figure’s origin immediately.

He had wondered why there were humans deep within the primeval forest.

Turns out, it was another demon tribe.

Moreover, one famed for its beauty—the fox demon clan.

It’s worth noting that demon tribes now followed two paths.

One was to cultivate the Dao body, greatly accelerating cultivation.

The other was to revert to the ancient demon path.

Among them, the fox demons were the most representative of the first path.

Almost all of them took human form.

Many had transformed multiple times.

It was said some fox demons were indistinguishable from humans.

Only a few parts retained fox demon traits—for example, their fox ears.

This fox demon before Yu Qiye was just such a case.

And she was undeniably beautiful.

Even surpassing the most glamorous celebrities from his past memories by several degrees.

Especially her refined elegance, which stirred an instinctive admiration in Yu Qiye.

It was clear that although he was a crow being, he retained the aesthetic sense of his former human life.

[Race: Fox Demon Clan.]

[Rank: Great Demon Peak.]

[Traits: Immortal Claw (Red), Ultimate Transformation (Purple), Ancient Demon Body (Red), Enchanting Eyes (Purple), Mastery of Claw Techniques (Blue), Peerless Physical Arts (Blue).]

Staring intently, Yu Qiye fell silent.

Two reds, two purples.

Undeniably a genius.

A true genius.

“Such a genius is not to be trifled with.”

Though Yu Qiye enjoyed hunting, he was no fool.

He knew which enemies were worth provoking and which were not.

Had it been otherwise, he wouldn’t have left Flower-Fruit Mountain to come to this primeval forest.

“Preying on the weak and fearing the strong” may sound unflattering.

But in this perilous ancient world, it was the best means of survival.

...

Time passed quietly, and two years slipped by.

Through his efforts, Yu Qiye finally reached the peak of the great demon stage.

Here, he had to thank the repeatedly enhanced white trait “Devouring Flesh and Blood.”

Now, it had ascended to a red trait.

Named “Flesh Evolution.”

[Flesh Evolution (Red) — Able to continuously evolve by devouring flesh and blood. Bloodline, body, and everything else will evolve, with hope for a final evolution at the end!]

Every six months, there was an opportunity to upgrade a trait.

Two years meant four chances.

Yu Qiye reserved three of those chances for this trait.

Ultimately, he pushed it to this level.

If before, when Yu Qiye devoured a demon, he absorbed less than one or two units,

Now, devouring one demon might yield six or seven units.

Truly terrifying.

It was precisely because of this trait that Yu Qiye’s cultivation skyrocketed in just two years.

Devouring flesh and blood was already a shortcut.

Not to mention Yu Qiye’s absurd absorption rate.

One equaled five.

Devouring a few more, his cultivation soared rapidly.

As for the last trait upgrade opportunity, Yu Qiye saved it for the purple trait “Untraceable.”

It was now officially renamed.

[Flash Step: Using the gaze as a guide, one can instantly leap to a distant space—an ultimate form of spatial contraction.]

...

Besides these old traits, Yu Qiye had plundered many others over the two years.

For example, Mastery of Axe Techniques,

which he had taken from a bull demon.

And Novice Blade Techniques,

stolen from a tiger demon.

Unfortunately, Yu Qiye did not cultivate with blades or axes.

He merely integrated them into his trait repository.

He did not study them further.

However, there were two traits he cared deeply about.

One was a blue trait:

[Metal Consumption — Capable of devouring metal, extracting metallic substances to strengthen a specific part of the body.]

This trait had great potential.

And it suited Yu Qiye perfectly.

Because he bore black wings.

If those wings were continuously strengthened and transformed into the legendary divine iron celestial gold,

Yu Qiye might possess the most terrifying weapon.

So this trait would become Yu Qiye’s next major focus for enhancement.

The other was a purple trait:

[Demonic Heart — Possessing a demonic heart that can aid you in entering demonic states, greatly boosting combat power, but at the cost of slight changes to your personality.]

Though purple, this trait was unusually formidable.

However, Yu Qiye chose not to integrate it.

He did not wish to alter his personality because of a trait.

If he changed, would he still be himself?

“These two years of growth have been truly gratifying.”

With heartfelt admiration, Yu Qiye spread his wings and settled on a very familiar treetop.

There, the lake remained as before.

Above it, the bright moon hung high.

Moonlight dripped down like countless scattered silver fragments upon the water.

She should be arriving soon!

Lost in thought, a silver-white fox darted out from the depths of the forest.

She leapt, her figure aligning perfectly with the bright moon in the sky.

To the naked eye, her form shifted continuously, eventually transforming into a slender, graceful humanoid figure that landed in the lake, sending a cascade of water droplets scattering into the air.