Chapter 68: Foxy’s Memories of Her Hometown
(This novel is translated and hosted on bcatranslation.)
A slender, dark-haired girl, looking rather pretty and not much older than a teenager, strolled along the busy street. She wore a man’s baggy clothes that clearly didn’t fit her at all, and in her arms, she carried a strange gothic doll. The doll’s eyes looked eerie, as though it had died without ever closing them. This unsettling sight drew more than a few curious stares from the crowd passing by.
Yu Sheng felt a bit like he had miscalculated how tricky this outing would be. Bringing both Foxy and Irene into the city was proving to be far harder than he had first imagined. All along the way, they had attracted so many curious glances. Some people were eyeing Foxy, who seemed to be gawking at every new thing like a child seeing the world for the first time, while others were openly staring at Yu Sheng himself, as if trying to figure out what kind of odd pair they made.
Yet Yu Sheng had no choice but to stick close by Foxy’s side. She was completely unfamiliar with this world’s ways. She didn’t even know what money looked like here. To be fair, the fact that she understood you needed money at all was something of a miracle—apparently, long ago she had lived in a “civilized” place of some sort. Still, her old memories of a well-ordered society didn’t match the reality of Boundary City. Everything worked differently here, causing all kinds of unexpected hiccups.
For instance, when they passed a parking lot, Foxy was amazed by the rows of vehicles resting quietly in place. She couldn’t stop marveling at how peaceful it was and how the “celestial vehicles,” as she called them, just sat there waiting. Yu Sheng had absolutely no clue what she was talking about at first.
“Back in my hometown,” Foxy said softly to Yu Sheng, “our carriages and ships all had spirits. They would never just wait quietly outside a mountain gate like these. They loved to run, leap, and play! If an immortal or a demon needed to stop somewhere, they would leave their vehicles with a special steward. The steward would let them roam about close by, or there would be a large space—sometimes even a tiny pocket dimension—where these living carriages and ships could move freely. We called it a ‘self-service parking lot.’”
As she explained, Foxy pointed at a nearby car. The driver seemed to be struggling to park, edging slowly into the spot. “Look at that one,” Foxy whispered with innocent puzzlement, “it’s so clumsy. Where I come from, even a child’s rocking horse would tease it.”
Yu Sheng quickly pushed Foxy’s hand down. “Don’t point,” he warned her quietly.
Foxy nodded, looking slightly confused. “Oh. Sorry.”
Yu Sheng wiped a bit of sweat from his forehead. He found himself growing more and more curious about Foxy’s mysterious hometown. When he first met her, he had imagined a traditional world of cultivators, immortals, and demons. But then there were these strange ideas: a “tour guide Immortal” and “hundreds of peacekeeping Immortals catching a demon fox for breaking forest protection laws.” Now, even children’s toys there seemed to have spirits. The more he thought about it, the more baffled he became.
He began to wonder if Foxy’s world could even be described as normal. It sounded impossible—or at least nothing like the worlds he knew.
Sadly, Foxy herself wasn’t able to paint a clearer picture. She had left her hometown when she was still very young, and countless years spent suffering in the Otherworld had dimmed her memories. Even trying to recall them seemed to confuse her.
“I really don’t remember much,” Foxy said softly, her voice full of wistful longing as she tried to piece things together for Yu Sheng. “I recall the elders saying it wasn’t always like that. They said a powerful heavenly being descended one day and taught the people who were always fighting to live differently. Over a very long time, our world changed. We learned to live alongside these heavenly beings. We could travel among the stars in the blink of an eye. I remember elders talking about how the stars changed position every few years because the heavenly beings were adjusting some sort of grand pathway. My father worked on those pathways—his job was to push aside anything that drifted into them and then fine them for causing trouble.”
Foxy’s eyes gleamed with pride as she went on, “My father was a pilot of a huge ‘celestial shuttle’—bigger than any building! He called it a ‘starship.’ The spirit of that starship was truly remarkable. All someone had to do was lie down in a special pool aboard the ship, give it orders, and it would soar through the cosmos. It could even catch things traveling faster than light with some treasure called… um, I think it was the ‘Moon Orbit Snare.’”
Stunned by this fantastical tale, Yu Sheng shot a quick glance at the doll tucked under Foxy’s arm. Irene, who pretended to be just a lifeless toy, was likely hearing all this too. Inside his mind, Yu Sheng reached out and asked, “Do you have any idea what she’s talking about?”
Irene’s voice echoed inside Yu Sheng’s head, sounding dry and skeptical: “Not a clue. Do you actually believe this story? She might be making it all up. Ask her again in a few months, once her mind is clearer. You might find the story has changed completely by then.”
Yu Sheng frowned slightly. Irene might have a point—Foxy’s strange tales could be the result of her scattered memories. But they were filled with such vivid details that he found it hard to dismiss them outright. Still, it was impossible to know if these were true accounts or just muddled dreams.
Regardless, Foxy’s words had made a strong impression on him.
“Stop overthinking,” Irene’s voice cut into his thoughts. “Your top priority now is to get Foxy some proper clothes. Your real challenge has arrived.”
Yu Sheng’s face darkened at the reminder. Right… getting Foxy decent clothing was going to be tricky. He hadn’t even stepped into a women’s clothing store before, and he certainly had no experience choosing outfits for a girl—especially one who came from a world so different from his own.
But there was no escaping this task. He had taken Foxy under his wing, so he had to see it through. He might not have expected this sort of errand, but here he was.
Just as Yu Sheng braced himself and guided Foxy into a large shopping mall, determined to at least try, he spotted someone familiar out of the corner of his eye.
A short-haired girl—thin and small—stood on the other side of the street. She looked about seventeen or eighteen, her lips pressed together in a calm, composed way that made her seem older and wiser than her years. At first, Yu Sheng couldn’t remember where he had seen her before. Two or three seconds passed, and then it clicked: this was the girl who called herself “Little Red Riding Hood.”
Today, she wasn’t wearing the dark red cloak that had helped him recognize her before. Instead, she wore a bright jacket, which had nearly fooled him. Even so, he could sense it was her.
Yu Sheng suddenly felt relieved. He might have just found the savior he needed.
At almost the same moment, Little Red Riding Hood seemed to sense his gaze. She looked up sharply—and for a brief instant, her eyes were as keen and predatory as a wolf’s. Then that look vanished so swiftly it was as if it had never been there at all. She recognized Yu Sheng, and her eyebrows rose slightly in surprise.
Little Red Riding Hood crossed the street without delay. Her eyes flicked over Yu Sheng, examining him from head to toe, before she spoke. “Are you… here to buy something?”
Yu Sheng tried not to feel too self-conscious. “Is it strange for me to be shopping?”
“Oh, not at all. It just surprised me.” Realizing she might have sounded rude, Little Red Riding Hood tilted her head in apology. Still, curiosity danced in her eyes. She knew Yu Sheng came from that odd Otherworld place called Wutong Road, and she had half suspected he wasn’t truly human. Seeing him out here, shopping like any normal person, felt quite unexpected.
Could he actually eat normal human food? The silly thought popped into her mind uninvited, and she almost smiled at the idea.
Her gaze shifted and fell upon Foxy, and the odd doll in her arms. Little Red Riding Hood frowned, focusing on the doll. Its eyes looked dull and lifeless, and for a moment, the girl raised her finger uncertainly.
“Is that… dead?” she asked, puzzled.
Irene, who had been trying to remain still and silent, nearly sputtered with rage. Her eyes almost lit up in indignation. Inside Yu Sheng’s mind, her voice erupted in a fury: “Dead?! How dare she call me dead? She’ll pay for this a thousand times over! Yu Sheng, insult her for me! Don’t just stand there!”
Yu Sheng did his best not to grin. He glanced at Irene’s frozen expression and told Little Red Riding Hood calmly, “She’s quite offended. Trust me, if she could speak right now, she’d be saying all sorts of colorful things. I’d rather not repeat them.”
Inside his mind, Irene’s insults grew even more inventive.
Little Red Riding Hood couldn’t hear these mental exchanges, but she could imagine something close to it. She looked at Irene a few more times, intrigued. “You have a… very unusual arrangement here,” she murmured. “You’re actually taking her outside like this?” Then her eyes rested on Foxy’s oversized, mismatched clothes. “So you’re out to buy new clothes for her, aren’t you?”
Yu Sheng shrugged, trying to ignore Irene’s outraged muttering in his head. “Yes. That’s exactly why we’re here. I was just thinking about how to do it, and then I saw you. Can I ask for your help?”
Little Red Riding Hood took only a second or two to understand what he needed. She eyed Foxy’s baggy outfit and gave a small, knowing smile. “I see. This is something new for me, but…” She paused for a moment, as if considering. “I’ll help you. Don’t worry. It’s no big deal—but you’ll have to owe me a favor after this.”