Mortal: Fairy Song Yu has issued you a task.

Chapter 16 Insightful Understanding

The sharp claws came hurtling through the air with a piercing sound, but stopped abruptly at the last moment.

A thin, ethereal shield of spiritual light instantly materialized in front of Song Yu's chest, successfully blocking the sneak attack.

"You beast!" Realizing what had happened, Lin Jingchu suddenly reached out and grabbed the back of Xueyun Fox's neck!

Meng Yao, who was standing nearby, also made a move at the same time.

However, both of them missed their target.

With a twist of its waist, the Snow Cloud Fox, like an eel, instantly broke free from Song Yu's hands and disappeared into the grass as if diving into water.

"What a brilliant earth-遁术! This Snow Cloud Fox is no ordinary demon beast!" Zhou Qinghe, who was a little further away, exclaimed upon seeing this scene.

Song Yu's face was slightly pale, but his eyes remained calm.

In the blink of an eye, her keen intuition detected the fox's unusual aura, which prompted her to activate the protective spiritual shield of her top-tier personal magic artifact, the Cloud-Weaving Robe.

However, even if it wasn't activated in time, the fox demon's claws alone wouldn't be enough to break through the main body of the Cloud-woven Robe; the outer garment would inevitably be damaged, leaving the wearer in a disheveled state.

Her sapphire blue eyes flickered slightly, and she said in a deep voice, "Over there!"

Before she finished speaking, she had already summoned her jade flute and leaped after it. This Snow Cloud Fox possessed a strange aura; she had to capture it!

"Senior sister!" "Junior sister, please wait!"

Lin Jingchu and his two companions dared not delay and hurriedly mounted their magical artifacts to follow closely behind.

Song Yu stepped onto the jade flute, his figure darting forward like a startled swan, his eyes flashing with a faint light as he used his keen intuition to firmly lock onto the fleeing aura.

The snow cloud fox seemed to realize that it was being closely followed, and kept changing direction, but it could not shake it off.

Just as Song Yu was skimming over the treetops and getting closer, Xueyunhu suddenly leaped up—right in front of him was a steep cliff!

The snow cloud fox neither dodged nor avoided, but instead plunged headfirst into the stone wall.

"It's that earth-遁术 again!" Song Yu immediately stopped in front of the cliff.

"Junior sister, wait for me! What if we encounter danger and you get hurt?"

Meng Yao, who was following closely behind, stopped immediately, her voice filled with lingering fear.

Lin Jingchu and Zhou Qinghe also arrived one after the other.

When Lin Jingchu saw that Song Yu stopped in front of the cliff and did not chase after him into the rock face, the worry in his heart was finally relieved.

It seems that it really was the corpse demon's divided soul. Fortunately, Song Yu did not rashly chase after it.

"What a pity. If I had brought a few Earth Escape Talismans beforehand, this little fox wouldn't have escaped like that." Song Yu looked at the steep rock wall with regret.

"This fox is skilled in earth-遁 (earth-遁 is a type of magical escape technique), we can't catch it even with talismans alone," Lin Jingchu advised, then asked, "Senior Sister, why are you so determined to capture this beast?"

"My cultivation method is somewhat special," Song Yu said carefully. "Just now, I sensed a sinister aura emanating from it, which allowed me to protect myself in time. Therefore, this fox is highly problematic, and I intend to capture it and hand it over to the sect."

"It's really getting late." Meng Yao, still shaken, advised, "Since we've lost them, we should head back to the sect. If you go back too late, our master will probably worry and scold us."

"This fox's earth-遁 (earth-遁 is a technique that allows one to escape through the earth) is so exquisite that catching it today will certainly not be easy," Lin Jingchu echoed. "Besides, as outer disciples, it is not appropriate for Senior Brother Zhou and me to linger outside the sect for too long. We should return first."

Song Yu sighed softly, "That's enough for today."

She turned to Zhou Qinghe and said solemnly, "Junior Brother Zhou, could you please come back and look for that Snow Cloud Fox when you have some free time?"

The chilling aura emanating from that snow cloud fox always made her feel inexplicably uneasy.

Just as Zhou Qinghe was about to nod in agreement, Lin Jingchu spoke up first: "Senior Sister Song, that chilling aura might just be due to the fox accidentally being tainted by some kind of malevolent energy. Snow Cloud Foxes are timid and cautious by nature, and after being frightened like this, they will surely flee far away. Even if Senior Brother Zhou comes many times, he will have difficulty finding any trace of it. Perhaps we should just give up here."

Although it was a pity to lose the reward of the "Insightful Understanding" trial card, all he wanted to do right now was to keep Song Yu away from the Snow Cloud Fox, which was suspected to be a split soul of a corpse demon.

You should know that even Old Demon Han almost got caught in there. Apart from the two Nascent Soul stage elders, anyone else in the Falling Cloud Sect who chased after them would probably just be easy prey.

If it's just a matter of dying at the hands of the corpse demon, that's fine. But if it successfully bewitches you and breaks the seal, then things will get really interesting.

Although Zhou Qinghe was somewhat puzzled by Lin Jingchu's sudden intervention, he still nodded in agreement.

Song Yu murmured to himself, "Some kind of malevolent energy?"

She had been cultivating peacefully within the sect and had never been exposed to malevolent energy.

The four turned their magical artifacts around and, each with their own thoughts, sped back towards their sect.

As the autumn sun sets in the west, it casts a golden glow, transforming the outer cloud and mist restrictions of the Falling Cloud Sect into a magnificent spectacle.

After passing through the sect's protective barriers, Song Yu and Meng Yao stopped their magical artifacts to bid farewell, since Bai Feng Peak and Tian Quan Peak were not in the same direction.

"Junior Brother Lin, Junior Brother Zhou, thank you both for your help today. I'll take my leave here." Song Yu said, cupping his hands in greeting.

Although we gained nothing today and encountered unexpected changes, it was still a valuable experience.

"Senior Sister Song, Senior Sister Meng, you're too kind. Farewell."

After saying that, Lin Jingchu and Zhou Qinghe headed towards Tianquan Peak.

Song Yu and Meng Yao then changed direction and flew towards Bai Feng Peak in the east.

"Junior Sister," Meng Yao asked hesitantly, "should we inform our Master about today's events?"

Upon hearing this, Song Yu pondered for a moment, then gently shook his head: "We haven't captured the Snow Cloud Fox yet, so this is just empty talk and only causes Master unnecessary worry. Let's leave it at that for now."

"That's good then." Meng Yao secretly breathed a sigh of relief. If it had been reported, she would have been in for a good scolding for failing to protect him.

Just then, Song Yu's figure suddenly stopped, hovering in mid-air.

Her clear eyes lit up again as she quickly looked down at a forest below.

"Junior sister, what's wrong?" Meng Yao, who had flown half a body length ahead, turned around in confusion.

Just then, two figures flew out from the distant forest, one to the left and one to the right, quickly disappearing. Judging from the speed at which they were using their flying magical artifacts, they were clearly two Foundation Establishment cultivators.

Just now, her keen intuition detected an extremely subtle divine sense sweeping over her.

Within her divine sense, she detected a chilling aura that, though different, was equally sinister.

Song Yu watched the two hurried figures walk away and said calmly, "It's nothing, let's go."

Although Baifeng Peak is slightly shorter than the other five peaks, it is more elegant and refined, offering a unique landscape.

After the two passed through the restrictions of Bai Feng Peak, Song Yu said to Meng Yao, "Senior Sister, you go back to your cave first. I will go and report to Master."

Meng Yao nodded and flew towards the mountainside on her magical artifact. Song Yu, on the other hand, headed straight for the summit.

Amidst the clouds and mist, a refined and elegant mansion, adorned with exotic flowers, appears and disappears.

Song Yu passed through the restrictions of the mansion and arrived at the front of a pavilion in the mansion.

"Mother, I'm back."

The door opened inwards automatically, even without any wind.

A plump young woman with striking features resembling Song Yu emerged from the house.