In the mortal world, a hundred years is but a dream, but its weight is no lighter than any living being.

Su Yu'er and the three fox sisters sat quietly at the table until the smoke in the incense burner dissipated, slowly coming back to their senses. They felt as if they had gained some understanding, something stuck in their chests that they wanted to express, but when they tried to speak, they found that there were no words to describe such emotions.

Hu Mei supported his chin with one hand and sighed with melancholy. He said, "I think I understand why so many sisters long for the mortal world. Although it may not be as good as I originally thought, it is still good, and even more genuine."

Su Yu'er rarely nodded in agreement.

She glanced at Wei Yuan, who was leaning against the door, thought for a moment, and proposed a suggestion that immediately received the agreement of the two fox sisters.

"Should we go to the city outside and see these two old people?"

For some reason, the Qingqiu, which had always forbidden young fox girls from going out, surprisingly agreed this time. However, the old fox elder who guarded the road to Qingqiu smiled and made another request, saying, "But you need to find a trustworthy guide."

This old fox was said to be very old.

When he was young, he had traveled in the mortal world and left the name of Tianhu behind.

After encountering some things, he gave up the prosperity of the outside world and returned to Qingqiu to guard this crucial road. In the entire Qingqiu Kingdom, not many fox spirits knew the name of this old man or his age, but everyone had an impression. When they were young, they had all begged for candy from the old fox.

As they grew older, they respected him more.

With the words of such an elder, the three fox sisters had no choice but to return and block the relieved commander at the door.

Because this matter of going out was ultimately because of himself, Wei Yuan had to take on this responsibility. This time, it was different from when he arrived in Qingqiu. Before, he opened the passage with a token, but this time, he walked through the main gate.

The one guarding the gate of Qingqiu was an old man with white hair.

The three fox sisters walked in front, and the reality of Qingqiu was different from the dream. Except for Su Yu'er, Hu Mei and Su Yan'er were a bit excited. They whispered to each other and occasionally couldn't help but laugh. Wei Yuan walked behind them.

After Su Yan'er and the other two greeted the old fox immortal, they left the Qingqiu Kingdom.

When Wei Yuan passed by, the old fox smiled and bowed, "These three children have troubled the General."

Wei Yuan was surprised, but immediately returned the bow before following them.

Su Yu'er and the other two were waiting outside. Su Yu'er turned her head and looked at the place connecting the two realms. She vaguely saw the Qingqiu guardian and the human youth talking, but she didn't pay much attention.

The city in the dream and the mortal world had similar structures.

The three fox sisters used a simple invisibility spell, while Wei Yuan only concealed his sword behind him.

They crossed a bridge and walked along an old road lined with tall phoenix trees on both sides.

In the distance ahead, they could see the tall flagpole in the school. The impression from the dream and reality intertwined, giving people a sense of sentiment. Wei Yuan bought some fruits, went to the hospital, and claimed to be a friend of the old man's grandson, entrusted to come and visit them.

The old man in the hospital bed was already asleep again.

The old lady was surprised to see someone coming to visit and hurriedly asked him to sit down.

Originally, she was going to fetch some water, but Wei Yuan naturally wouldn't let the old lady do such things. He went to wash the fruits and placed them on the cabinet next to the bed. Looking at the peaceful expression of the old man, the old lady said somewhat embarrassedly, "It's rare for you to make a trip. You've really troubled this young man."

Wei Yuan smiled and said, "What trouble is there?"

"It's rare for you two to come all the way here, so harmoniously. I envy that. It's rare for me to have the opportunity to see it in person, so I can't let it slip away."

Wei Yuan chatted with the old man about some trivial matters here, while the three fox sisters, who were invisible to the naked eye, listened attentively. Their soft hair revealed furry ears as they stood quietly or sat on the windowsill, swinging their legs, their eyes full of curiosity.

They chattered about trivial matters.

It was just an ordinary life, but witnessing their lifelong emotions, it felt different.

Su Yan'er and Hu Mei listened attentively.

Su Yu'er was originally engrossed in listening, but she gradually sensed a strange aura.

Her eyebrows furrowed slightly. She didn't want to get involved in unnecessary troubles, but this aura was too unpleasant, making her extremely dislike it. After a little thought, she whispered to Wei Yuan, concealing her true purpose and only saying that she wanted to take a walk around. Wei Yuan didn't seem to think much and just nodded.

Su Yu'er still maintained the invisibility spell and walked out of the ward.

Following the unpleasant aura, she walked towards the northeast. The stronger the aura became, the more she walked, until she stopped in front of a ward. Su Yu'er followed the nurse who entered the room and looked at one of the beds. There lay an extremely thin young man with tightly closed eyes, and the unpleasant aura emanated from him.

There were family members beside him, wiping tears and crying to others.

Su Yu'er pondered for a moment and lightly tapped her finger, using her fox spirit powers to make these family members slowly recount what had happened.

She glanced at the medical record in the nurse's hand.

Name: Du Hongyi.

Age: Twenty-nine.

..................

Du Hongyi was reported missing seven days before anyone called the police.

The person who reported it was his fiancée.

Because Du Hongyi hadn't returned home for a long time, she was very worried. At first, she thought it was because Du Hongyi had said before that he planned to go to Changbai Mountain for a trip, thinking that he had delayed his return due to having too much fun. But later, she realized something was wrong. His phone couldn't be reached, and there was no reply to the messages on the internet.

When she asked people from his workplace, she found out that Du Hongyi had been out of contact for such a long time.

This made her extremely anxious, and she immediately called the police.Later, the police investigation revealed that Du Hongyi had returned here by car on the same day he climbed Changbai Mountain. However, when the surveillance footage was reviewed, something extremely strange was discovered. After getting off the car, he walked in a dazed manner towards a secluded place. It was only after an extensive search with rescue dogs that Du Hongyi was found.

He had become emaciated, as if he had withered away.

He was obsessed and unconscious. When he woke up, he only shouted for Azi, Azi, as if he had gone mad. He didn't recognize the people around him and angrily questioned why they had separated him from his wife, claiming that he was clearly at home with her.

When Du Hongyi's mother reached this point, she couldn't help but wipe away her tears.

"That place was not a luxurious mansion at all!"

"When he was found, he was lying straight in the coffin, barely alive."

"After he was rescued, he didn't seem like a person anymore. He was like a fox or a wild dog in the wilderness. We could only bring him here to take a look."

As she spoke, she started crying again. The relatives and friends around quickly comforted her, but they couldn't help but look at Du Hongyi, who had fallen into a deep sleep under the effect of tranquilizers, with a hint of pity in their eyes. Su Yu'er extended her finger and stirred the air slightly. An invisible aura was drawn to her finger from Du Hongyi's body, causing her to look disgusted.

After taking a glance at the room, she walked out and called Su Yan'er and Hu Mei over. She briefly explained the situation and then demonstrated the aura, saying:

"It's a fox spirit."

"These fox spirits cause harm outside and absorb people's yang energy to tarnish the reputation of our Qingqiu. Clearly, they are the ones responsible for these evil deeds, but in the end, it implicates our lineage."

Su Yan'er said, "What should we do? Should we inform the elders?"

Hu Mei's eyes brightened, and he rubbed his hands together, saying, "The current leaders of Qingqiu don't like to meddle in human affairs. It would be useless to talk to them. It's better if we go and capture this fox spirit that harms people. Or we can send it to the Jin Yiwei in the mortal realm! Hehe, the elders will definitely look at us in a different light then!"

Su Yan'er was also slightly tempted.

They were all young and impulsive, and coming from prestigious families, they didn't look highly upon these wild spirits and monsters that harmed people. After a brief discussion, the three of them decided to personally deal with this troublemaker.

Su Yan'er then said, "Should we inform Wei Gongzi?"

Su Yu'er thought for a moment and shook her head. "Let's not."

"I don't think he has much cultivation and his spells are weak. He relied on that spiritual beast to capture the evil spirit yesterday. These fox spirits are particularly good at targeting men and have many enchanting methods. Now that his spiritual beast is not by his side, we shouldn't harm him unintentionally."

"Let's think of a way to distract him."

"Alright."

Wei Yuan was chatting with the old man when he suddenly heard a crisp voice calling out to him.

"We really want to try the desserts that the girls outside like. Could you please buy some milk tea for us? I want the vanilla flavor."

"I want lemon juice."

"Hehe, please do us this favor, Wei Gongzi."

Wei Yuan was slightly surprised but reluctantly agreed to their request. While the old man was being questioned by the doctor after waking up, he muttered in his dream that a young man pushed him and then he woke up, leaving the doctor confused. It couldn't be that there really are immortals, right?

The nearby nurse muttered, "Who knows?"

"Maybe there are, who knows? The world is so big."

This statement made the old lady unable to help but laugh and look at Wei Yuan, saying, "Xiao Wei, what do you think?"

"In modern times, we still have to rely on science."

"It's probably just an ordinary dream for the old man, no need to explain too much."

Wei Yuan replied, then raised his eyebrows slightly and saw three fox women who had cast invisibility spells walking in a certain direction. Wei Yuan had promised the old fox fairy to take care of these three fox women, and he was curious about what they were up to.

After exchanging a few more pleasantries, he got up to leave.

The old lady was surprised. "Won't you stay a little longer?"

It can be hard to make great work when its stolen from "p𝑎wread.com".

Wei Yuan smiled and said, "No, there are still some things I need to take care of."

His voice paused for a moment, and he sincerely said, "We might not have many chances to meet in the future. I hope you two can continue like this."

Perhaps it was rare for someone to say such words seriously. The old lady was taken aback and slowly nodded in agreement.

"Thank you."

Wei Yuan smiled and walked out.

There was a young man carrying a bag, hurriedly walking in. Wei Yuan politely stepped aside and let him enter first. The old man on the bed seemed to be awakened by the footsteps and slowly opened his eyes. He turned his head to see who was making such a fuss, only to find that it was his grandson.

Before he could feel happy, his gaze fell on the man who smiled and nodded at him and then walked out of the room. Even though he was getting older and had become more accepting of everything, the old man still felt a shock in his heart. He almost instinctively wanted to sit up.

The young man who had rushed over quickly tried to stop the old man's intense movement.

"Hey, wait, Grandpa, you just laid down. Lie down first."

But the old man slapped his hand away in disgust.

Unfortunately, with just this interruption, the young man had already left.

The old man could only sigh and lie back down. The old lady was happy to see her grandson and smiled as she handed him freshly washed fruits. After exchanging a few pleasantries, she said, "Look at you, why didn't you stop your friend from leaving?"

"Friend? What friend?"

The young man looked confused.

The old lady was shocked. "Wasn't the young man who just left your friend? He came to visit your grandfather on your behalf."

The young man shook his head. "No."

"I've never seen him before."

"I have."

It was the old man on the bed who spoke. He lay down, resting his head on the pillow, but his mind was buzzing. He remained silent for a long time before saying, "He was the one who pushed me in my dream, and then I woke up. And, I always feel like I've seen him before..."

It was as if he had returned to his youth, riding his bike, and making awkward small talk.

His peripheral vision caught something.

On the side of the road, there was a young man dressed in black with a sword on his back.At that time, the trees on both sides of the road were not so old, and the leaves could not completely cover the road.

He couldn't believe it and said almost dreamily:

"I have seen him before."

"Seventy years ago."

"He was exactly the same as he is now..."

The room fell into silence.

PS: Thanks to Tomato and Lemon for the reward, thank you~

3,800 words~ I found that staying up late once again messed up my adjusted schedule. I'm a zombie now.