Cultivation Struggles of a Lowly Fox

*Scribble Scribble*

*Staaaaare~*

Never mind! Aiko did dislike her staring at her so much! It was like she was trying to burn holes in her body with that gaze, but whenever Aiko would try to glance at her or ask her, she would look away!

Aiko erased the previous Inscriptions and applied her own. Some Paper Lamps couldn’t be re-Inscribed, as the person who previously inscribed them made the grooves too deep, which meant that Aiko couldn’t scrape away the previous grooves.

”Why are you placing those Paper Lamps there?” Chen Jing asked, not understanding the meaning of her actions.

”Because they can’t be re-Inscribed.” Aiko said flatly.

”Why?” Chen Jing asked. Her voice dripped with curiosity.

”The grooves are too deep, even if I tried to erase the previous Inscription, I don’t have the room necessary to carve a new one.” Aiko shook her head.

”Oh...” Chen Jing nodded obediently.

Aiko continued working for the rest of the day. The work went faster than she expected, as the Paper Lamps were made out of paper and it was easy to create grooves in them.

It WOULD be possible to Inscribe the Runes as is, without needing the grooves, but in that case, during rains or humid environments it might mess up the Inscription as the Inscription Ink was very cheap and of low quality.

The grooves would help to keep it in place even in case it would slightly liquefy, preserving its effects.

”But I heard that you can just Inscribe directly-...” Chen Jing was about to continue before she was stopped by the Little Assassin’s questionable gaze, as if she was trying to tell her ’Are you stupid?’.

Chen Jing blushed slightly and coughed awkwardly. ”I’m very new to Inscriptions, so I don’t understand much...” She confessed.

”You can’t directly Inscribe it as is, the Inscription Ink is cheap and would be washed away.” Aiko said dismissively, making Chen Jing even more embarrassed.

Aiko finished Inscribing for the day and went to meet Chen Hai.

...

”I will be leaving and I will come back tomorrow.” Aiko said slowly, but firmly, not giving him an opportunity to say no.

”Very well, our doors are open if you wish to return.” Chen Hai was not upset nor did he hold any negative emotions towards this little Assassin. Outside the fact that she picked such dubious missions...

”Thank you.” Aiko left the room immediately.

”How many Paper Lamps she fixed again?” Chen Hai asked his Shadow Guard.

”12, Master.” The Shadow Guard replied politely.

”12...” Chen Hai tapped the table. ”Remind me how many Paper Lamps was the previous Inscription Cultivator able to do.”

”He made over 200 of them, Master.” The Shadow Guard didn’t know how to properly answer, so he told him the number of all Paper Lamps Inscribed by that Inscription Cultivator.

”And in a day?” He stopped his tapping and supported his chin with his hand.

”2, Master.” The Shadow Guard suddenly paused.

”So you did see the abnormality too.” He mused.

”This slave is useless and asks Master for punishment.” The Shadow Guard prostrated, pleading.

”No need. Have you tested the new Paper Lamps?” He asked while stroking his chin.

”We only tested one... Master.” The Shadow Guard confessed.

”And?” Chen Hai asked, curious about the results.

”That’s... we don’t know if we measured it correctly, Master.” The Shadow Guard felt his body weakening from fear.

”Just say it.” He impatiently pushed the Shadow Guard.

”Even if we had 200 of those new Paper Lamps. The consumption would be the same as 1 old Paper Lamp.” The Shadow Guard shuddered as if this was not the case for the other Paper Lamps he would be heavily punished.

”WHAT?!” Chen Hai jumped out of his seat, slamming his hands on the table. ”Is that the truth?!” He glared at the Shadow Guard.

”This lowly slave doesn’t dare to lie to Master.” He kowtowed repeatedly and the wooden floor kept making a cracking sound.

”Take me there.” He urged his Shadow Guard. He wanted to see the new Paper Lamps.

...

”Art! This is Art!” He laughed like a maniac, not believing that this beautiful engraving was possible, but it was in front of him and he had to believe it.

”Butler, tell me the report again!” He laughed heartily.

”Yes, Master.” He bowed gracefully. ”These new Paper Lamps, while consuming next to nothing as they gather the ambient Qi, are also slightly brighter compared to the old ones. The Qi Gathering is not invasive and during the running, I have invited a few Cultivators to Cultivate next to the Paper Lamps.” He paused.

”This was to make sure that the ambient Qi wouldn’t drop, making advancements more difficult.” He repeated the report.

”What we found out was that not only did it not affect their Meditation, but the Paper Lamp would also dim if the Cultivator consumed too much ambient Qi. This means that it’s safe to place these around the Seclusion Wing, saving us even more money that we would have to spend maintaining the Blazing Torches.” The Butler repeated the rest.

”Incredible! Simply incredible! Our Clan can rise like this easily, as we will be able to save so many Spirit Stones. We can then buy more Spiritual Treasures to adjust the Seclusion Wing, making it riches in Qi, speeding our advancements!” He laughed again.

”If she returns make sure to cater to her every need! If she is bullied in our Town and I hear you didn’t step in...” He glared at them. ”You don’t have to return to this Mansion.”

”””Yes, Master!””” Everyone said in unison.

”Chen Jing.” Chen Hai gently looked at his daughter.

”Yes, father?” Che Jing was also excited to hear the Butler’s report.

”Do you still like Inscriptions?” He smiled at his daughter.

”Yes!” She replied without hesitation.

”Then make sure she recognizes you as her Disciple!” He chuckled.

Chen Jing was shocked and taken aback since her father would not allow other Inscription Masters to take her as a Disciple. ”Can I?” She asked, unsure if her Father was joking.

”Can, you can! I will help you with it! But we have limited resources until next month, so it’s impossible to shower her with gifts.” He shook his head sadly at the lack of resources. That kind of Master would be a godsend to his daughter. Screw the fact she is a Fox, she is much better than those old lecherous geezers that are Inscription Master, but at best with Grey Tokens.

Chen Jing beamed. ”I will do my best, Father!” She hugged her father happily.

...

Aiko left the town. The feeling of being watched only intensified, but fortunately it was not like on the Shadows Peak where she didn’t know their location.

There were a total of 5 assailants hiding in the Shadows.

Aiko ran with average speed into the forest, allowing them to catch up.

They slowly emerged from the Shadows blocking Aiko’s path. Aiko appraised them with her senses, but no matter how she looked at them... ’Why are they so weak...?’

The Assassins appraised the little girl. They smirked as it would be easy to kill her as she was not even as fast as they were.

Aiko didn’t really have any emotions since they were too weak, yet so sure of themselves that it made her confused. She didn’t understand where that confidence was coming from.

She was unaware that [Pseudo-Human Body(Prototype)], would allow her to mask her beast energy for everyone under Nascent Soul, unfortunately for them, they were only Early/Middle stage Golden Core Cultivators. They wouldn’t be able to see through her, unlike the Shopkeeper (Grandpa).

The first one unsheathed his daggers and dashed towards Aiko.

Aiko was on alert as her senses warned her about the daggers. She shouldn’t touch them.

Aiko picked up a nearby rock and...

*Ding*

A crisp sound of a rock hitting someone’s head.

”Agh!” He stumbled backwards, startling the other Assassins.

They all drew weapons and rushed at the little girl who was courting death. They were never humiliated like this before and they would not have this!

Aiko was not trained in her human body for combat. She didn’t know how to properly block or disarm as such her only functioning way of defending herself would be rocks if she didn’t want to turn into a Fox and reveal herself.

She threw one rock after another and soon this turned into stalemate. They might not be as powerful as Aiko, but they were highly trained Assassins.

They could defend themselves from the rocks with some difficulty and they were waiting for her to tire out, so they could finish her without the risk of getting their heads slammed with rocks.

Unfortunately for them, they kept defending and defending, but the only party that was tiring out were the Assassins in front of Aiko, as Aiko had inhuman stamina even in her pseudo-human form.

*Clang* *Crack*

Over time Aiko was able to crack their weapons with the sheer force of her rocks, making the Assassins flustered.

*Ding*

Aiko was finally able to hit one Assassin on the head and he immediately passed out.

Fear rose in the other Assassin as the spine-chilling sound of rocks hitting that Assassin’s head spread. They didn’t want to end up like he did, they didn’t want to die because of a rock!

They frantically defended, some even taking out throwing knives and trying to hit the girl with them.

Unfortunately for them, Aiko was in top condition when it came to stamina, while they were already tired. Those knives either missed her or were too slow to hit her to begin with. So she was able to avoid all the surrounding danger.

*Ding*

Another Assassin was knocked- no, killed. She actually killed that one, but now that she looked at his body, it was obvious why, as he was too skinny to protect his body from rocks that felt like cannonballs.

*Ding*

Aiko ’disposed’ of the other Assassins and breathed in relief. Those daggers and knives were seriously dangerous as they made even her hair stand straight.

Aiko approached the Assassins. She wondered if they had any goodies on them or if she could find some kind of hint as to where they came from.

The first one was the dead Assassin. He didn’t have anything on him, not even Pouch, tokens, money, nothing.

Aiko frowned. This was probably what Assassin was like, but it still upset her that she had to deal with them and not even get any kind of reward.

Aiko clicked her tongue and walked towards another dead assassin. This time he had 5 Silver Coins.

’Fuck! I got scammed!’ Aiko cried out. If she knew they were so poor she would throw rocks casually, not worrying about damaging treasures on their bodies.

Aiko felt like she was wronged for this, so she stood up and walked towards another Assassin.

This one was out cold, but she couldn’t sense any movement from him. She rummaged through his robes, but yet again there was nothing.

Suddenly her senses warned her of danger behind her so she jumped sideways.

A knife passed through where she just stood.

One Assassin was conscious and looking at her like she was some kind of monster.

Aiko frowned and picked up a nearby rock to throw it at him.

*Ding*

Another satisfying crunching sound and he was dead just like that.

Aiko sighed but staggered. There was some pain in her right-hand pinkie.

She looked at it and her pupils constricted. Her finger was slowly turning green and there was a very slight cut on the tip of her finger...