Chapter 117

The nine-tailed fox's ears twitched and suddenly it raised its head to look in the direction of the corner.

There was no one in that direction anymore, but the fox's ears remained upright, its fox-like eyes vigilantly and coldly staring at the spot where Xixi had stood.

However, after just a moment, it withdrew its gaze.

"What are you running for?" The nine-tailed fox swiftly blocked Yan Xingwei, who was trying to escape. "We haven't finished the inspection yet."

Saying this, it once again pressed its head against Yan Xingwei's neck and sniffed. Not detecting any unfamiliar scent, its expression relaxed slightly, and it loosened its grip.

Yan Xingwei quickly broke free from its restraint, tightened his collar, and turned around in shock to look at it.

Why was this nine-tailed fox talking to itself and sniffing his neck like that?!

Yan Xingwei had lived for over thirty years. Except for the recent ten years of career struggles, he hadn't really suffered much. Not to mention that no one had ever coveted his body.

This was his first time being so targeted in life, and the person doing it wasn't even human.

Yan Xingwei felt like his entire being was ruined.

He wanted to question the fox, but when he met its eyes—so self-righteous and without a hint of shame—he realized that no matter how angry he got, it would be useless.

As a grown man, bringing this up would only cause more trouble.

Was he supposed to get furious just because the fox sniffed him?

Yan Xingwei was so angry that he couldn't speak. He stuttered, "You, you, you..." for a while, but in the end, nothing came out. He wiped his neck forcefully, blushing and walking away.

Zhu Chu was already familiar with performing rituals. Since there were ordinary people present, the other Taoist priests didn’t use the flashy techniques his master typically employed. He lost interest and kept glancing around.

When Yan Xingwei came back, Zhu Chu immediately noticed and couldn’t help but utter, "Eh?"

An He Guang, who was just as idle, sensed the gossip in the air and immediately followed Zhu Chu's gaze. "What's going on? Any gossip?"

Zhu Chu hesitated for a moment.

He wasn't sure if it was just his imagination, but he felt that after Yan Xingwei had disappeared for a while, his complexion seemed a bit too flushed.

Normally, Zhu Chu wouldn't speculate too much about others' private matters, but Yan Xingwei's current state made him think back to how his master had once interacted with his junior brother in private—

The corners of his eyes red, his gaze moist, and his body language soft, as if he had just been ravished.

"Cough! Cough, cough..."Zhu Chu suddenly became startled, choking on his own saliva and coughing violently.

An He Guang looked at him strangely, completely confused.

Zhu Chu, feeling embarrassed by his own unfounded imagination, quickly waved his hand and said it was nothing, though his gaze couldn't help but keep darting toward Yan Xingwei.

Yan Xingwei still looked as disheveled as ever. Although his good looks gave him a bit of a decadent handsome vibe, no matter how one looked at it, he was not the type who would let anyone manipulate him.

His master, on the other hand, was even more remarkable!

Zhu Chu couldn't help but cover his face, thinking how could he associate his formidable master with such an image?

What an unthinkable thought!

Ke Xingzhou glanced at his apprentice curiously, but seeing his evasive gaze and awkward smile, he was completely confused.

Fortunately, at that moment, the Taoist priests had almost finished their ritual, and Daoist Qian approached to ask if Ke Xingzhou wanted to conduct a ritual for appearances as well.

Ke Xingzhou thought for a moment, then made a hand gesture, waving it toward the sky.

Suddenly, a warm breeze rose from the ground, brushing over everyone's bodies and blowing into the deep mountains ahead.

The forest was stirred by the wind, the leaves rubbing together, producing a rustling sound. A distant animal's call echoed, the sound clear yet far off.

Everyone felt their minds clear and the fear that had plagued them for days gradually dissipated. They now felt incredibly relaxed, their thoughts completely at ease.

Meanwhile, in a place they couldn't see, the nine-tailed fox suddenly raised its head, looking in this direction.

Its furry ears and large tail suddenly emerged, as though it could no longer maintain its human form.

However, the warm breeze didn't harm it. It simply passed through its fur, carrying away a few inconspicuous stray hairs.

At the same time, the distant forest began to change.

The world in its eyes was completely different from what others saw—its divine beast nature allowed it to connect to the perception of all the animals in the forest, so the nine-tailed fox could clearly sense the joyous feelings of the creatures in the woods.

For the nine-tailed fox, the warm wind was probably just a way to clear a few stray hairs, with little practical use. But for the spirits and wandering ghosts in the forest, it helped cleanse their internal energy, greatly benefiting their cultivation.

It even saw a few wandering souls lifting their heads and gazing into the air. Their previously dull, lifeless eyes slowly became clear, and then they were taken away by the approaching ghost messengers.

When everything ended, countless golden rays of merit, like fine raindrops, drifted toward this direction and entered Ke Xingzhou's body.

Ke Xingzhou could probably see these golden rays of merit too, as a faint smile appeared on his face.

The nine-tailed fox suddenly went into a daze.

It seemed... it had seen this scene before.

To be honest, as a nine-tailed fox, its memory was far clearer and more complete than that of an ordinary human.

The moment it awakened into a divine beast, it not only received the legacy memories left by all the nine-tailed foxes throughout history, but also regained all its memories from birth to the present. Therefore, it was absolutely certain that it had never seen Ke Xingzhou before.

But that feeling of familiarity lingered, as if it came from the depths of its soul.

Could it be from a past life?Or did some senior nine-tailed fox leave behind a legacy filled with strange things?

The crew members exchanged looks, and in each other's eyes, they saw surprise.

"Do you guys feel any changes in your bodies?"

"Yes, yes, I feel like my body has suddenly become a lot lighter. The back pain from moving things earlier seems to have eased."

Everyone looked at Ke Xingzhou, the one among the Taoists who least resembled a Taoist priest, their expressions filled with surprise.

They were all from the entertainment industry, so they naturally knew Ke Xingzhou. He was a popular contestant on the latest reality show, "All-Purpose Idol," and they knew his persona was that of a Taoist priest.

However, just like the netizens, they had initially thought that Ke Xingzhou had only learned some trivial skills in a Taoist temple. Maybe he knew a little Taoist magic, but nothing much.

Even when they saw him here, they thought that Yan Xingwei's budget wasn't enough, so he had to hire a Taoist of this level to hold the scene.

But now it seemed that he really had some skills.

Their gazes toward Ke Xingzhou immediately became filled with respect, and they also developed an inexplicable interest in metaphysics.

As the forest gradually calmed, the second female lead suddenly had an idea: "Xixi, when we get back, let's go visit the Xiaoyao Sect. I heard online that it's very effective there; you can ask for anything."

She said this happily, but there was no response from Xixi.

The second female lead turned to look, only to find that Xixi's face was pale, and she looked completely dazed.

Thinking it was the shock from yesterday that hadn’t worn off, the second female lead didn't think much of it and worriedly asked Xixi if she wanted to go back to her room and rest: "Anyway, we have a day off today, and we're not sure if the next scenes will be filmed. If you're scared, I'll go back with you. This way, that pervert can't spy on you anymore."

Xixi, still reeling from the shock of what she had just seen, snapped back to reality at those words, and her expression slowly turned strange.

The second female lead noticed the change and felt uneasy: "Xixi? Are you alright?"

Xixi smiled oddly, then suddenly displayed a look of panic: "I think... I think I’ve caught the person who was spying on me."

"What!"

Her voice wasn't too loud, but it was just enough for everyone around her to hear.

The main creative team immediately surrounded her, asking anxiously, "You caught him? Where is he? How did you catch him?"

Xixi looked troubled and a bit embarrassed: "I just went to the bathroom and saw a strange man... I remember his eyes very clearly, it has to be him."

Everyone immediately thought she had encountered the voyeur in the restroom.

"What the hell, this guy never learns, still sneaking into women's restrooms to spy?"

"So it really was a person! Does that mean we can continue filming our movie?"

"He’s probably still at the inn. Let’s go find him and confront him. We should also call the police!"

A group of people rushed toward the inn, while Zhu Chu and the others took a while to figure out why they were suddenly so agitated.

"Did you catch him?" Zhu Chu exclaimed, "It really was a living person?"Earlier, his master and so many Taoist priests had said they couldn’t find the cause, and he thought it was something caused by an unknown existence. But it turns out it wasn’t, right?

For some reason, Zhu Chu felt inexplicably disappointed.

However, catching the voyeur was still a good thing. The group followed back to the inn, only to see Xixi leading the crowd directly to the third floor.

The third floor was where the Taoist priests stayed, and apart from that, only Yan Xingwei had a room. Before Ke Xingzhou and the others arrived, the other rooms were all empty.

Zhu Chu exclaimed, "Wow," and was about to say how bold the voyeur was, committing such a crime and then hiding right under the Taoist priests' noses.

Is this what they mean by "the most dangerous place is the safest place"?

The others were also surprised.

It wasn’t until Xixi led everyone to Yan Xingwei's room that Zhu Chu froze and quickly stopped them, "Hey, wait... you’ve got the wrong room, right? This is Director Yan’s room!"

The group, who had been all fired up, turned around and realized it was indeed Yan Xingwei's room number, so they hesitated.

"Xixi, are you sure the person is in there?"

"Yeah, it's impossible that anyone is hiding in Director Yan's room, right? If there's a misunderstanding, this could be bad."

Everyone spoke at once, but Xixi was very determined, her face pale as she stared at the door, her body swaying slightly.

She was certain the voyeur was in that room, and her expression seemed to show a deep hatred for whoever was hiding inside. The others didn't hesitate any longer. One person stayed behind to call Yan Xingwei and explain the situation, then they broke down the door.

Yan Xingwei’s room was a bit messy, with scripts scattered around. His personal belongings were few, and there were a few costumes from the shoot on the sofa.

Next to the costumes was a sewing kit.

The Taoist priests had been in here yesterday, so they weren’t surprised. However, the crew members froze upon seeing the scene.

"How did the costumes from the shoot end up here? Didn't they get damaged and sent for repairs?"

Everyone simultaneously thought of the same thing. They exchanged glances and shock was reflected in their eyes—

"Did Director Yan actually fix these himself?"

The disheveled, brooding handsome guy was actually hiding in his room mending clothes? This feeling was quite strange.

The group’s mood shifted subtly, but they quickly remembered the reason they were there and began looking around, feeling tense.

However, after searching the entire room, they couldn’t find the voyeur Xixi mentioned.

They even checked behind the curtains, but the room was empty. The window was also tightly closed, locked from the inside.

When Yan Xingwei received the call, he rushed up from downstairs. Upon seeing them in his room, his expression darkened. "Who gave you permission to enter my room?"

The group felt guilty and wanted to explain, but Xixi responded with a question of her own, "Director Yan, we’re looking for the person who was spying on me. What’s wrong with that? Is there some secret in your room that we need to avoid?"

Her tone was so sharp, and her gaze so piercing, it was completely different from how she usually acted toward Yan Xingwei. The others couldn’t help but look at her.

Yan Xingwei also glanced at Xixi, not understanding what was going on with her.He rushed over in a hurry, and indeed, he felt a bit guilty—after all, that quirky Nine-Tailed Fox was still in his room.

Xixi's thoughts were not lost on him, but he didn’t like her, so he never responded to her.

That being said, if the Nine-Tailed Fox found out about this, it would surely cause a whole mess.

Thinking this, Yan Xingwei anxiously circled the room, but luckily, he quickly spotted the familiar Nine-Tailed Fox figurine on the display shelf.

...At least that guy was smart enough to hide.

Yan Xingwei let out a sigh of relief, but just then, the way others were looking at him suddenly became strange.

The main creative team had always gotten along well, especially Xixi, who seemed to be from a wealthy family but never acted like a spoiled young lady. She not only ate and lived with the crew but also frequently helped others.

Being a victim of voyeurism was not something anyone could joke about, and they instinctively believed Xixi's account, assuming she had seen the voyeur enter Yan Xingwei’s room, which was why she brought them here.

But now, there was no one in the room, and Yan Xingwei was even showing signs of relief…

One of the more straightforward team members couldn’t help but speak up: "Director Yan, this wouldn’t have anything to do with you, would it?"

Yan Xingwei was stunned.

He didn’t immediately react, but when he realized what the other person meant, his face immediately darkened.

The atmosphere in the room grew tense, and everyone was waiting for Xixi to speak up.

However, for some unknown reason, even though everyone had so clearly started to suspect Yan Xingwei, as someone who liked him, Xixi didn’t seem eager to explain on his behalf.

Instead, she stared fixedly at Yan Xingwei and asked, "Director Yan, is there anyone else in your room?"

Yan Xingwei frowned.

The Taoist priests had mentioned this issue before, so Yan Xingwei was well aware that the existence of the Nine-Tailed Fox couldn’t be known to others. He shook his head firmly. "No. Don’t overthink it. The Taoist priests will definitely catch that voyeur."

Xixi gave a bitter smile, her gaze lingering on Yan Xingwei, her words cryptic: "But you said it yourself."

Yan Xingwei: "?"

Her mental state was clearly off, and Yan Xingwei instinctively felt danger. Just as he was about to speak, an untimely voice suddenly cut in: "What the hell? Are you guys doing this?"

The crew members froze for a moment and turned around.

Right beside the handsome Taoist priest in the entertainment industry, an assistant-like person stared at them speechlessly.

Zhu Chu: "Didn’t you guys forget? When this girl was being spied on, Director Yan was with you and us. He has magic or something, can he just magically create himself to spy on her?"

Zhu Chu paused and glanced at Xixi, thinking that if Yan Xingwei really wanted to do something, this girl probably wouldn’t refuse.

But before speaking, he instinctively felt it would be disrespectful, so he held his tongue.

However, his comment reminded the others.

They suddenly remembered that when they rushed upstairs, Yan Xingwei was indeed with them, even falling behind because he wasn’t in great shape.How did they not think of such a key issue earlier?

The most absurd thing was that even Yan Xingwei himself had forgotten about it. He hadn’t thought to refute it just now.

The atmosphere became awkward for a moment, and everyone awkwardly looked at Yan Xingwei, not knowing what to say. Some people even glanced at Xixi, suspicious of how quickly her attitude toward Director Yan had changed.

Xixi, however, remained very calm. Facing the questioning gazes of everyone, she merely lowered her eyes slightly: "Maybe I was mistaken."

This reason usually wouldn't be enough to fool everyone, but since she was generally a good person and had just been frightened yesterday, they didn’t have the heart to blame her.

"Since it’s a misunderstanding, then forget about it."

Just as everyone was about to settle things, they suddenly heard a deep, magnetic male voice coming from outside the door: "Why should we forget about it?"

Everyone froze.

Upon hearing that voice, Yan Xingwei's heart skipped a beat.

The Taoist priests' expressions also subtly changed, and they all looked toward the door—somehow, the Nine-Tailed Fox had slipped down from the display shelf, transformed into a human form, and walked into the room wearing the crew's costume.

The top-tier, god-like appearance crafted by nature itself caused a strong shock to everyone present.

Especially a tall man like him, with an almost imperceptible aura of fragility that made his narrow waistline even more striking. This involuntarily triggered a protective instinct in people.

Perhaps because they had already seen it earlier, Zhu Chu quickly regained his composure and glanced at his master.

Hmm, his master's appearance was still more to his taste.

Fox demons and such, they're all charmers, aren't they?

The Nine-Tailed Fox’s gaze lingered on Yan Xingwei for a moment before quickly locking onto Xixi across the room.

There was caution in the Nine-Tailed Fox's eyes, but his tone was smug: "I also stay in this room. Are you saying I spied on you?"

Upon hearing this, everyone fell silent.

They gradually snapped out of the shock caused by the Nine-Tailed Fox’s appearance, realizing that just now, they had blushed and had their hearts racing in front of such a tall man. They couldn't help but turn red in embarrassment.

They then looked at Xixi.

They had to admit, what the Nine-Tailed Fox had said was ridiculous.

If it were anyone else in the room—except for the Taoist priests and Ke Xingzhou—they might have thought the person had the motive to spy on Xixi.

But the Nine-Tailed Fox’s appearance was so extraordinary that when the words "spy" and "him" were linked, everyone’s first reaction was "impossible."

Xixi’s expression darkened as she was watched by everyone. Her gaze was fixed firmly on the Nine-Tailed Fox's face, her expression clearly in disbelief.

She had only seen the Nine-Tailed Fox’s back earlier, and since Yan Xingwei had never mentioned this person, she had assumed it was something he couldn’t bring himself to talk about.

How could he… how could he be so good-looking?

The shock from that face was so overwhelming that she didn’t realize until later that the costume the Nine-Tailed Fox was wearing belonged to a character who had always been left vacant in the script—the most beautiful woman in the Six Realms of the Nine Provinces.

Xixi had originally come to audition for this role, but after Yan Xingwei saw her performance, he had actively suggested she try for the role of the female lead instead.She had previously thought that this was a signal that Yan Xingwei was interested in her, but now it seemed…

Xixi turned to Yan Xingwei and questioned, "You gave this role to him? A man? I was the one who auditioned for this role first... Why?!"

Yan Xingwei furrowed his brows. The Xixi he knew before wasn’t like this, and he didn’t understand why she suddenly became so hysterical.

At that moment, Zhu Chu’s out-of-place voice sounded again: "Why even ask? You’re not as good-looking as him!"

Xixi: "…"

Everyone: "…"

Zhu Chu didn’t just sting with his words but also looked at Xixi as if she were a fool.

To be honest, this girl was quite good-looking. In today’s entertainment industry, she could easily be considered top-tier.

But comparing people always ends with one person losing, and comparing goods ends with something being thrown out. She was pretty, but that was when compared to ordinary people.

Now standing opposite her was the Nine-Tailed Fox!

Besides her master, where else could one find a beauty who could compete with the Nine-Tailed Fox?

Xixi’s face paled. She stared at the Nine-Tailed Fox for a long while but couldn’t find any words to rebut. She could only force herself to look away and stare at Yan Xingwei: "I disagree. I am now notifying you as an investor, and I do not allow this person to join the cast. Otherwise... otherwise I will withdraw my investment and I won’t act anymore!"

As soon as she finished speaking, everyone in the crew’s face changed drastically.

Before they could even be shocked that Xixi was actually an investor in the movie, they were stunned by the news that she would quit acting.

The scene instantly became chaotic. Everyone was trying to persuade her to reconsider and not to sulk over a petty argument with the director.

A few people who were close to Xixi even wanted to ask Zhu Chu to apologize.

But when they turned around, they found that Zhu Chu was nowhere to be seen.

Then they heard his voice coming from downstairs—

"Director Yan! Director Yan, our Xianyang Sect’s actor has arrived! Your crew just happened to have an open female lead role, right? I’ve got one! And I also have investors, can Wanli Group handle it?"

Xixi: "…?"

The crew: "???"

Everyone instinctively looked at the Taoists present, since that phrase "Xianyang Sect" sounded like some Taoist name.

Some blunt people even directly asked, "Do Taoists also mix in the entertainment industry?"

The Taoists: "…………"