I searched for corpses in the Wuding River to extract entries

Half a month later, the much-anticipated day of the results announcement finally arrived.

On this day, Red Fox did not go to see the announcement of the results.

Chihu was standing on the second floor of the hotel a hundred meters away. He could easily see the large characters written in a flamboyant style on the gold list:
The first place in the exam was awarded the title of Jinshi, followed closely by the famous name - Zhou Qiangguang.

Faced with this glory that countless people envied, the red fox simply raised the corners of his mouth lightly, and an imperceptible smile passed across his face.

Then, he calmly shifted his gaze away from the gold list.

Then, the red fox gently pulled down the curtains beside him, as if to isolate himself from the noise of the outside world.

He turned around and began to talk enthusiastically with these dignitaries whom he had just met, and his words and actions showed calmness and confidence.

It didn't take long before the silence was broken by the sound of hurried horse hooves.

I saw a minor official riding a horse and running towards me. He ran as fast as he could and shouted loudly:
"I got it, I got it! Who is Master Zhou Qiangguang?"

Hearing the sound, the red fox still sat at the table, his expression as usual, unperturbed by fame or disgrace.

His expression seemed to tell everyone that he had expected all this.

The other people at the same table were all surprised and stood up and went downstairs.

He took the initiative to welcome the clerk who brought the good news, and the scene became extremely lively.

Following the established traditional rules, the red fox generously took out a heavy silver ingot from his sleeve as a reward for the minor official for reporting the good news.

Afterwards, amid the warm support and cheers of the people around him, Chihu changed into the bright red top scholar uniform that the clerk had specially brought for him.

This gorgeous outfit, as hot as flames, made him look even more heroic.

Zhou Qiangguang is already tall and handsome, and now with this simple outfit, he looks even more extraordinary.

Surrounded by the crowd, Red Fox slowly walked down the stairs, and then lightly rode on the tall horse that the clerk specially brought for him.

This is a majestic horse with shiny hair and steady hooves.

According to the rules of previous years, after being named on the list of successful candidates, the new top scholar would be paraded through the streets on horseback.

At this moment, the red fox was filled with immense excitement.

He could clearly feel that it was not just his relatives and friends,

Even the common people gathered on both sides of the street began to give him some faint thoughts.

The corners of his mouth inadvertently rose slightly, outlining a faint smile.

"Sister, after all, you are so ignorant that you are so stubborn in attaching all your magical powers to one person.

If you could read more books, you would realize that no matter how strong a person's mental strength is, it would be difficult to compete with everyone in the world!

When I return home in glory this year, I will let you witness it with your own eyes...

Gaining fame and reputation is the most suitable way of cultivation for the Qingqiu Fox Clan!"

There was an indescribable excitement in the red fox's heart. He could clearly feel that his seventh tail would be born in the next few days.

This premonition made him firmly believe that it would not take too long for all nine of his tails to be complete.

By then, he will be able to officially surpass the white fox and achieve the nine-tailed fox!

Just as Chihu was immersed in his beautiful vision, he was suddenly stopped by someone who shouted, "Zhou Qiangguang!"

The clerk beside him quickly approached the red fox and reminded him in a low voice:

"The man who came is the current Jingzhao prefect, Lord Jia Hu. He was the top scholar twelve years ago!"

When the red fox heard the majestic voice, he quickly jumped off the horse, turned around and bowed respectfully to the visitor.

Although Na Jiahu looks young, his eyes and brows reveal a calmness that comes from having experienced many vicissitudes of life, and his majesty is revealed naturally.

The red fox clasped his fists and saluted, with a hint of respect and doubt in his tone: "I wonder what important matter the prefect wants to discuss with me?"

Upon hearing this, Jia Hu patted Red Fox's shoulder affectionately, his tone full of emotion:
"Thinking back to the past, I was just like you, riding my horse with great joy and seeing all the flowers in Chang'an in one day..."

At this point, he suddenly leaned close to the red fox's ear and spoke in a very low voice.
"Qi Guang!"

"You are also a member of the Qingqiu Fox Clan, right?"

These words were like a bolt from the blue, shocking the red fox's heart.

Over the past hundred years, he had seen countless Taoists and monks, some of whom were just filling in the gaps, while others were very accomplished.

But even the monks in the palace did not recognize his true identity.

Now, his identity was revealed so easily by someone he had just met. How could he not be frightened?

Jia Hu seemed to see through the red fox's nervousness and change of color. He smiled calmly and whispered in the red fox's ear again:
"Don't panic, don't panic. You and I are of the same kind, both from the Qingqiu Fox Clan. It is fate that brought us together."

When Chihu heard this, the doubt in his eyes gradually dissipated: "So you are the senior... No wonder you can tell my identity at a glance."

Jia Hu patted Chihu's shoulder again: "You go ahead, we'll meet again someday!"

At the same time, he sent a message to Chihu: "Three days later, Chunfeng Restaurant."

……

Chunfeng Restaurant, private rooms on the third floor.

Jia Hu sat there, seemingly touched by some profound memory, and slowly spoke:

"When I smell you, I remember three thousand years ago."

He narrowed his eyes slightly, as if he had crossed the barrier of time and space:

"At that time, I was just like you, I still had that foxy smell on me."

The red fox sat opposite, listening to Jia Hu's story, but his heart was full of doubts.

He didn't understand why Jia Hu suddenly brought this up, so he said respectfully, "Please enlighten me, senior."

Jia Hu stood up, slowly walked to the window, gently closed the window, and pulled down the curtain to block out the noise from the outside world.

He turned around, looked at the red fox with deep eyes, and said, "I don't deserve your advice, but I do have some experience."

He paused, then continued, "Do you know that we, the Qingqiu Fox Clan, are actually a cursed clan?" This sentence was like a bolt from the blue, shocking the red fox: "How are we cursed? Why have I never noticed it?"

Jia Hu shook his head and sighed:

"Do you know why we, the Qingqiu Fox Clan, are different from others and feed on thoughts instead of drinking morning dew and swallowing spiritual energy like ordinary monsters?"

The red fox hesitated for a moment, and finally said:
"Because... the practice of absorbing thoughts seems to be faster than other methods..."

There was a hint of uncertainty in his voice.

Hearing this, Jia Hu laughed out loud: "You are indeed a rookie who knows very little about the history of the clan."

"The reason is actually very simple," Jia Hu said slowly, "that is, there was an ancestor of the Qingqiu Fox Clan who accidentally offended a certain immortal god."

"That great god was furious and cast a curse, causing our Qingqiu fox tribe to absorb and use spiritual energy at only 10% of the efficiency of ordinary spirits."

Hearing this, the red fox suddenly understood and nodded: "I see, no wonder I always found it so difficult to absorb spiritual energy."

Jia Hu sighed and continued, "But there is always a way out. Just when our Qingqiu Fox Clan was facing a desperate situation, another ancestor opened up the way of mind."

"That ancestor was the most gifted of the Qingqiu Fox Clan. He enchanted the emperor at that time and caused chaos in the world."

"Although the ancestor's ending was not very good," Jia Hu said with a hint of regret, "he did pass down the method of mind, which enabled our Qingqiu fox clan to survive in adversity and continue to this day."

Red Fox was extremely surprised. He had never thought that his own clan actually hid so many secrets and past events.
And these were things he had never heard from his sister.

He couldn't help but wonder secretly, did his sister know nothing about this, or did she deliberately hide it and not tell him?
Seeing this, Jia Hu couldn't help but smile meaningfully, and he said slowly:

"It's really rare to meet a fellow tribesman here. I wonder what you think about all this now?"

"If I have the ability, I will naturally help you."

After hearing this, although Chihu was grateful, his doubts did not dissipate. He could not help but ask, "Senior, have you been living in human society and hanging out with them for so many years?"

Jia Hu nodded and answered affirmatively: "Of course. If you were not in a high position and had great power, how could you easily obtain those thoughts?"

At this point, Jia Hu couldn't help but smile sarcastically, and he continued:

"Could it be that you are really like those ancestors who only know how to seduce those ignorant scholars on the road, and then serve them tea and water and wait on them for the rest of their lives?"

When the red fox heard this, he instantly thought of his sister and his heart was beating fast.

He then raised his doubts: "But senior, what if there is a change of dynasty, or if you are forced to step down?"

Upon hearing this, Jia Hu's lips curled up into a relaxed smile, as if this problem was nothing to worry about at all: "Isn't this easy? All we need to do is find a suitable body to possess."

He paused, with a hint of sarcasm in his tone: "Three-legged toads may be hard to find, but people with two legs are everywhere in this vast sea of ​​people, aren't they easy to find?"

After hearing this, Chihu showed an expression of disbelief on his face. He widened his eyes as if he had heard a fairy tale: "Could it be that Senior has been living like this for thousands of years?"

Jia Hu stroked his long beard and smiled even more happily: "Of course it is so. For us, changing our bodies to live is just a common thing."

The doubts in the red fox's heart did not dissipate, and he continued to ask: "Then the senior must have given birth to the nine-tailed beast a long time ago, right?"

However, to his surprise, Jia Hu showed a disdainful look at this time:

"Nine-tailed fox? What's so good about cultivating a nine-tailed fox? Have you ever seen a truly powerful nine-tailed fox?"

The red fox was curious about his words and couldn't help but exclaimed, "Ah!" Then he said, "I'd like to hear more about it. Senior, please enlighten me."

Jia Hu's eyes flashed with a gleam, and he began to speak slowly: "Cultivating the Nine Tails is actually the orthodox way of cultivation for our Qingqiu Fox Clan. Once the Nine Tails are cultivated, one can directly reach the realm of Yangshen Zhenjun. Those with advanced cultivation can even reach the level of Divine Fire Venerable."

At this point, he changed the subject, revealing a hint of helplessness in his tone: "It's just that my Qingqiu Fox Clan is weak in combat. If you were just a nine-tailed fox, you would become a hot commodity in the eyes of others, and everyone would want to kill you."

"When that time comes, your entire body, whether it's your fur, inner elixir, or flesh and blood, will be a treasure that all monks dream of."

After hearing this, Red Fox couldn't help but have an ominous premonition in his heart. He asked nervously: "So, if we transform into human bodies, we will definitely be safe?"

Jia Hu nodded, with a hint of confidence in his tone:
"Of course. Although my Qingqiu Fox Clan is weak in combat, we are unrivaled in the world in terms of illusion and transformation. Even if a venerable stood in front of me, he would not be able to recognize me easily."

The red fox nodded, wanting to tell his sister the news as soon as possible.

After all, if what Senior Jia Hu said is true, then after the nine tails are transformed, it may not bring blessings, but endless disasters.

Seeing this, Jia Hu said slowly, "Do you know what the essence of the mind is?"

The red fox did not dare to neglect and quickly replied according to the script: "The Nine-Life Heart Testimony says that the so-called mind is the consciousness of all living beings."

After hearing this, Jia Hu nodded with satisfaction: "Yes, you remember it very clearly."

He paused and continued:
"In the final analysis, we, the Qingqiu Fox Clan, are different from other monsters. We were able to cultivate into human form and possess the ability to read other people's minds, but we didn't have to practice day and night like other monsters."

"It depends on the power of many, many humans who have expectations of you and are able to satisfy them."

After hearing this, the red fox suddenly understood and nodded, "So that's how it is. No wonder my sister only taught me to serve you. It seems that this is also the same as taking the imperial examinations, practicing by satisfying the hearts of others."

Jia Hu smiled calmly, shook his head and said, "How can they be the same?"

"In the past, we, the fox clan, served others only to satisfy one person's desire. This kind of cultivation is not pleasant, and the efficiency of cultivation is also very slow."

"And the people who have high hopes for a top scholar like you are the entire country!"

"Every move you make affects the hearts of countless people. Although you will be scolded for it, the thoughts you receive will naturally be countless!"

"And just a few thoughts like these can allow you to transform, what if there are more..."

"Wouldn't it allow you to call the wind and rain and make your wishes come true?"

Hearing this, the red fox was also moved.

It seems that the path I have chosen is the most correct one.

Jia Hu saw his excitement and opened the window, letting a ray of sunlight shine on his face:

“So the will of all living beings is something that all the gods and immortals in heaven need.

"Therefore, when we serve as officials in the court, even if you fake your death and escape, the people may still erect a golden statue of you."

"When that time comes, we will be granted titles of nobility, be enshrined in the ancestral temple, and enjoy incense. It will only be a matter of time before we achieve enlightenment and become immortals!"

"Qi Guang... the path you stumbled upon is the best way out for our Qingqiu Fox Clan!" (End of this chapter)