Chapter 27: The Fox Chat Group—Banned Five Hundred Times a Day

"A ghost fox?"

Upon hearing Wang Dali's words, both Chu Tian and Chen Meng became intrigued. Even Song Shiyun, who was sitting behind the counter playing on her phone, perked up. Although she was a ghost, who could resist a bit of gossip?

"Yeah! Some time ago, a plot of land in Shang City was scheduled for development. To everyone's surprise, they unearthed an ancient tomb at the site," Wang Dali said, a look of helplessness crossing his face. "One of the workers, eager for a look, accidentally triggered some mechanism in the tomb and opened the main gate."

"Suddenly, the gold and silver treasures inside were exposed to everyone's eyes. Then, chaos ensued..." Wang Dali sighed. Although there are national regulations requiring all unearthed artifacts to be turned over to the authorities, with so much gold, silver, and jade laid out before them, it only takes one person to start a frenzy. In the end, everyone grabs a little; who knows who took what? Even if items are recovered later, who’s to say if someone managed to stash something away?

After all, wealth stirs the heart.

But if it had been an ordinary tomb, that would be one thing. Who could have guessed that a ghost fox was sealed inside?

As the workers scrambled to grab loot, someone accidentally shattered a plum vase. The ghost fox sealed within escaped, and instantly, all the workers collapsed in the tomb, unconscious.

While there were no fatalities, subsequent medical checkups revealed that every single one of them suffered from a severe depletion of vital energy. It would likely take them a year or two to recover.

"That ghost fox had been sealed in the tomb for who knows how many years. Now that it’s out, it must be absorbing human essence to restore its strength," Chen Meng mused. "But it's surprising that it only left them depleted rather than taking their lives. Could this ghost fox actually be a 'good' one?"

"Who knows?" Wang Dali replied helplessly. "Once the ghost fox escaped, it vanished without a trace. Whether it's good or bad is impossible to say. If it really is a 'good' fox, then absorbing a bit of essence with mutual consent is no big deal."

After all, young people today have such rich nightlife; even without a fox involved, wouldn't those reckless youths seek out like-minded company to burn off their excess energy anyway?

Because of this, the Orthodox Daoist Alliance doesn't interfere much. As long as no one is harmed, they allow these spirits some room to cultivate within the rules. Besides, the young people wouldn't necessarily appreciate the interference.

"The fear is that the ghost fox isn't 'good.' If it causes casualties or creates a larger stir, we’ll be on the defensive," Wang Dali said.

"So, what do you want to do, Brother Wang?" Chu Tian asked.

"I came to you to ask your better half: among you foxes, do you have a way to contact each other?" Wang Dali asked. "The ghost fox may have been buried for centuries, but the way you fox spirits communicate shouldn't have changed that much, right? If we could get in touch with it, we could at least put it on file."

"That..." Chen Meng’s mouth twitched at Wang Dali’s question. "We used to have ways to contact each other, but no fox has used those methods in years."

"What? You don't use them? Why?" Wang Dali asked, stunned.

"Well... with smartphones, who has the spare energy to waste on telepathic long-distance communication?" Chen Meng pulled out her phone. "We just build group chats and exchange contacts. It costs next to nothing in data."

"This... hold on. What kind of groups? Penguin groups or WeChat groups? How come I didn't know about this?" Wang Dali asked. He was, after all, an administrator for the Orthodox Daoist Alliance.

"We have our own app," Chen Meng said. "You know how it is—when foxes chat, the topics can be a bit... explicit. We used to use Penguin, but we got banned over five hundred times in a single day. Eventually, some of the clever younger generation in our clan learned to code..."

"Fine. So you really have no way to contact that ghost fox?" Wang Dali looked at Chen Meng.

Chen Meng shrugged. "I can ask in the group, but those old-fashioned methods of communication are only known to our ancestors. Plus, since this ghost fox just got out of the tomb, it would have to be the one to reach out to us. But it's weak right now; to have enough power to contact other foxes, it would have to absorb a lot of essence. I’m worried that by the time it’s strong enough to reach out to the clan, it will have already done something wrong."

"Damn it, that’s a disaster," Wang Dali groaned, his face falling. "Forget it, sorry to bother you. I need to go back and get my team working overtime. At the very least, I can't let this ghost fox cause any more trouble in Shang City."

With that, Wang Dali cupped his hands to Chu Tian. "Brother, I'm off!"

"It's almost noon, not staying for a bite?" Chu Tian asked.

"No way. If things go south, I won't be eating—I'll be the one being eaten!" Wang Dali said, then hurried to his sedan with his secretary and drove off.

Watching Wang Dali leave in such a flurry, Chu Tian swallowed the words he was about to say.

*Why are you in such a rush?*

*It’s just a ghost fox.*

*Just because Chen Meng can't find it doesn't mean I can't.*

Chu Tian stroked his chin. What was he, anyway? A Leopard-Tail Demon Underworld Envoy. His job was to escort the wandering souls of beasts. If he was already doing the work of the Black and White Impermanence, could he really fail to sense a centuries-old fox spirit in his own territory?

Well—admittedly, it was daytime, his senses were a bit dulled, and the ghost fox was probably keeping a low profile. He hadn't sensed it yet.

But once night fell, if he put in a little effort, could that ghost fox really escape his perception as long as it was still in Shang City?

"What are we having for lunch?" Song Shiyun asked from behind the counter.

"It's Thursday," Chen Meng said out of the blue.

"V me 50?" Chu Tian turned to look at Chen Meng.

"Must be a family bucket!" Chen Meng grinned. If a fox doesn't eat chicken, what else is there?

"Got it. Shiyun, place the order!" Chu Tian walked to the entrance of the haunted house, lay down on the recliner, and continued sunbathing.

Song Shiyun rolled her eyes at the sight. The fate of a working ghost: doing chores for the boss, getting paid, and then using the boss's money to play the stock market and run his company during free time. And when they made money, she still had to order takeout for him.

Truly, there are no human rights for ghosts!