When a whale falls, all things thrive.
As the celestial fox's corpse disintegrated into nothingness, a surge of visible vitality spread out from Baiyun Mountain.
This is what is meant by taking from heaven and earth and using it for all things.
The celestial fox, trapped within the three realms and six paths, unable to transcend, returns its body and magical power to the earth upon death.
A wave of immortal and demon power swept through Yunmeng Mountain, where everything flourished, and withered trees turned green.
Springs long dried up gushed with new water, tinkling melodiously.
The birds, beasts, insects, and ants that dwelt in the mountains frolicked with joy. This scene was as if the land of the immortals in a hidden paradise, with deer, cranes, monkeys, and colorful pheasants singing!
Inside Baiyun Cave.
Xu Qing stepped inside, and his vision immediately brightened.
Inside was actually a stone chamber, roughly the size of five or six ordinary houses, but without tables, chairs, or beds—a completely empty dwelling.
Xu Qing scanned his surroundings and did not find a place where the Celestial Scripture was engraved but instead saw a small fox hole behind the stone chamber.
Xu Qing pondered for a moment, plucked a strand of Corpse Hair, and blew it into the hole.
The next moment, his avatar manifested at the other end of the stone cave.
The avatar turned around to look, and at the end of the cave was a fully furnished dwelling.
Inside were stone beds, benches, chairs, and stools, even a stone brush made of fox hair; stone statues of the Profound Lady and Lord Yuan...
The statues of the Nine Heavens Profound Lady and Lord Yuan were full of needle holes pierced by spells of nightmare curses, and their stone eyes were gouged out and placed on stone dishes, with stone tongues strung together by stone spikes, pinned onto a chessboard.
"..."
Xu Qing's eyelid twitched. This fox was truly vengeful!
Unfortunately, the Heaven-Reaching Road was broken, and such spells could not affect the immortals and gods in the upper realms.
Xu Qing continued walking inside and encountered more peculiar sculptures, likely made by this old fox out of loneliness and boredom.
Passing through the dwelling, there was a water pit one or two feet deep, and across it was another cave entrance.
Xu Qing was speechless—cave within a cave indeed!
However, the cave was big enough to accommodate a person, so Xu Qing bent low and squeezed through the stone cave.
Originally, Xu Qing thought he would have to cut another path or crawl through a new hole, yet unexpectedly, the Celestial Scripture that he was so curious about was engraved on the stone walls on either side of the cave.
However, when Xu Qing concentrated to comprehend it, the script of the Celestial Scripture began to blur; the more he wanted to see, the less clear it became.
Xu Qing suddenly recalled an event Lord Yuan had recounted to him at Mingyue Ravine, about the origins of the celestial fox.
Lord Yuan had said that the Celestial Scripture was different from mortal writings. Those who were taught openly belonged to yang, while those who secretly stole it belonged to yin. In broad daylight, yin energies would hide, and naturally, the script would be invisible.
This is the conflict of yin and yang. To discern yin and yang and find the fate with the Celestial Scripture, one must comprehend it on a moonlit night and during the hours of Xu, Hai, and Zi.
At that time, if all the faint green scripts manifest, the opportunity has arrived; if no script appears, then there is no fate, and the Celestial Scripture remains hidden.
At present, it was still early before Xu, Hai, Zi hours, nor was it a moonlit night. Even if he had fate, the Celestial Scripture would not appear.
"The Celestial Scripture has two parts: Tian Gang and Di Sha. Di Sha has seventy-two methods; the celestial fox learned thirty-seven, but not a single Tian Gang."
Xu Qing pondered, realizing that not only does seeing the Celestial Scripture require fate, but even deciding whether to learn Tian Gang or Di Sha is beyond his control.
"Today is the ninth, still six or seven days until the moonlit night, so there's no rush."
Exiting Baiyun Cave, before leaving, Xu Qing specifically took out the Shan He She Ji Ding and used the authority of Baiyun Mountain to seal the cave entrance again, while also unleashing the lingering mist of Baiyun Mountain, completely shrouding the divine mountain.
...
Before the Dayan Army front, Wang Liang and others did not dare relax. Even though Baiyun Mountain had returned to calm, the soldiers continued to maintain the Nine Palaces and Eight Trigrams formation, lest the demon escape control.
Yet just as everyone's nerves were taut, Baiyun Mountain was suddenly enveloped in mist, making it impossible to see.
Wang Liang furrowed his brow, still in doubt, when he saw a familiar figure emerge from the clouds and fog, descending before them.
At this time, Xu Qing looked the same as when he left, still wearing the same azure robe and white garment, but there was something indescribably different about the sacred master before them.
No one could say what exactly had changed.
"Thanks to the assistance of all the soldiers, the demon in Baiyun Cave has been subdued. The marshal can order the army to sound the retreat; I will honestly report the details later."
Xu Qing's expression was earnest, but even though he spoke thus, in truth, he could not reveal the details!
...
On the eve of the army's return to the capital, Wang Liang came to find Xu Qing once more, to bid farewell.
"That day, the demon was indeed formidable! I saw a black rainbow piercing the sun and ghostly shadows flying; the fifty-mile radius of Baiyun Mountain seemed like a spectral Ghost Realm, clearly a monster with countless lives on its hands..."
Xu Qing's gaze was thoughtful, yet he could not refute.
"Conversely, sir, your righteousness and magical power are exceptionally pure, like an immortal or a saint..."
Xu Qing remained silent.
He understood that Wang Liang was referring to the blood lake fragrance shrouding Baiyun Mountain when Lady Bao Sheng manifested her appearance.
It turns out, apart from the demon and Lady Bao Sheng, he did not seem so much like a good person?
"Wang Liang, at this moment you are not a marshal, nor am I the sacred master you speak of. If you have something to say, feel free to speak candidly."
The middle-aged general in the marshal's robe and golden armor coughed lightly, glanced around for a moment, and then looked at Xu Qing with some hope.
"Sir..."
Seeing that Xu Qing was still smiling, seemingly unchanged since they first met at Wanshou Village, Wang Liang finally couldn't hold back and asked the question that had been pressing on him for so long: