Raising a Fox Spirit in My Home

The Vital Orb

It took only a split second for Li Yundong to realize that Su Chan wasn’t pouncing on him, but on something behind him . When Su Chan flew past him, Li Yundong didn’t turn . Instead, he ran forward, using his body as a shield to block the green flash he’d noticed earlier . Something solid rammed into his chest, but he held on, then pushed back with all his might . The green light disappeared, and the living room went dark once again . A petite figure stumbled to the floor and skidded along the floor until it hit the wall .

Ruan Hongling was up on her feet in an instant . "Out of my way, you fool!"

Li Yundong ignored her and turned around to check on Su Chan .

Su Chan was weaving agilely around Lin Youfa, dodging all of his vicious punches .

"Damn it! I thought you said you’ll handle this girl!" Lin Youfa yelled when another one of his punches missed . "You said you’ll take on the girl while I duel Zhenren Li! That was the deal!"

Clenching his jaw, Li Yundong turned around to face Ruan Hongling again . So those two were in cahoots after all . Ruan Hongling pulled something out from behind her back . Li Yundong activated his telescopic vision and squinted through the darkness . The object was small and thin, though he couldn’t make out what it was; Ruan Hongling had quickly hidden the object behind her palm .

"Don’t worry about me, Yundong!" Su Chan’s voice sounded behind him . "I can handle him!"

"How dare you underestimate me, girl!" Lin Youfa growled .

Before Li Yundong could turn around to see what was going on, one of Ruan Hongling’s arms rose, after which she gave her hand a sharp flick . The movement was so subtle and quick that Li Yundong almost missed it . Thin rays of green light streak through the air towards Su Chan . Li Yundong reacted instinctively by stepping into the rays’ path with his palms raised . There were three of rays in total, but Li Yundong only managed to block two of them with his palms; one of the rays whizzed past his ear .

"Ahhh!!!" Su Chan screamed in pain .

Shit! Li Yundong whipped his head around and saw Su Chan kneeling on the floor with one hand holding on to her shoulder .

"Hah! You’ve let your guard down, girl!" Lin Youfa’s leg swung out in a roundhouse kick aimed at Su Chan’s head . Li Yundong burst forward and once again used his body as a shield .

CRACK! He grunted when a powerful force slammed into his ribs . Li Yundong wrapped his arm around Lin Youfa’s leg, trapping it against his ribs . With one leg raised, Lin Youfa’s balance and defense was compromised . "Take this, you son of a bitch!" Li Yundong kicked Lin Youfa in the groin as hard as he could, then sent Lin Youfa away with a hard shove . Lin Youfa stumbled, fell, and then rolled on the floor a few times .

Alas, it didn’t seem like Li Yundong’s attacked did much damage at all . Lin Youfa got back up in no time .

"Come! Let us have our duel, Zhenren Li!" Lin Youfa burst forward and tackled Li Yundong .

Li Yundong lowered his center of gravity and pushed back against Lin Youfa’s shoulders . Li Yundong knew he shouldn’t allow himself to be taken down to the ground; Lin Youfa’s size and strength would give him a huge advantage in a ground fight .

The following few seconds was a battle of raw strength with Li Yundong trying his best not to let Lin Youfa overpower him .

"Oh no, you don’t, demon witch!" Ruan Hongling shouted .

A split second later, Su Chan was right beside him . Her hand shot out and struck a spot on Lin Youfa’s chest . The force pushing back against Li Yundong’s body weakened almost instantly . Li Yundong gritted his teeth and pushed his legs harder . Just a little bit more...

A green ray whizzed past his head and struck Su Chan’s back .

Su Chan’s body sagged to the floor, where she lay completely motionless .

"Nooooo!!!!!" Li Yundong’s blood boiled inside his veins . "Dieeee!!!!!!" He drove forward with his legs .

Lin Youfa gasped, clearly taken by surprise by Li Yundong’s sudden burst in leg strength .

"Arrrgggghhh!!!" Li Yundong pushed harder, forcing Lin Youfa backwards . Eventually, they stumbled through the sliding door into the balcony . Li Yundong lowered himself even more and drove his shoulder into Lin Youfa’s groin . Then, he roared, and hoisted Lin Youfa’s 2-meter-tall body into the air . "Go to hell!" Li Yundong hurled Lin Youfa’s body over the railing .

Li Yundong turned around and re-entered the apartment . A golden radiance lit up the living room the moment he walked in . He glared at Ruan Hongling who was staring back at him fearfully . Without taking his eyes off Ruan Hongling, Li Yundong kept walking until he reached Su Chan’s body . A red spot had already formed on Su Chan’s shirt . His princess was moaning and groaning as her body twitched and rolled in a series of violent convulsions . She looked like someone having a seizure .

"You think I won’t hurt you just because you’re a woman?!" Li Yundong yelled . The living room flashed in gold . "Again and again . . . You come in here and try to hurt us . . . " Li Yundong raised his gaze sharply . "No more . . . This ends now . "

"I’m sick and tired of this bullshit..." Li Yundong growled, stepping towards Ruan Hongling . "I’m going to end this tonight . I’m going to end you . . . "

Ruan Hongling backed away from Li Yundong fearfully . "Y- You . . . "

"What! What about me?! What the f*ck do you people want!" Every piece of glass in the apartment shattered . The Jindan’s aura radiated outwards from Li Yundong’s body like a golden blaze . Li Yundong kept moving forward, forcing Ruan Hongling out onto the balcony . When Ruan Hongling’s back hit the balcony’s railing, he stopped .

"I’ve warned you time and time again not to bother us . . . " Li Yundong growled . "And yet you keep coming back . "

Defiance replaced the fear in Ruan Hongling’s eyes . "Wake up, you blind fool!" she yelled . "That a look at that girl you’re so obsessed with! She’s a fox spirit! She’s manipulating you! She’ll drain your Yang Qi one day and then leave you to die!"

Li Yundong reached into his pocket and pulled out the talisman .

"You leave me no choice . . . " Li Yundong said coldly . The talisman glowed with a green light the moment it came in contact with the golden aura emanating from his body .

There was a gasp . "T- That’s . . . Th- The . . . Five Thunders Spell . . . " Through the golden light, Li Yundong could see that Ruan Hongling’s face had grown pale .

Before he could get another word out, Ruan Hongling disappeared from the balcony in a flash of green light .

***

Li Yundong laid Su Chan on his bed . Su Chan’s body was still convulsing violently . Her lips were chapped and her face pale . She looked like she was in unbearable pain . Li Yundong cupped her cheeks . "Su Chan! Talk to me . How can I help? Tell me what to do?"

Su Chan whimpered and rolled around on the mattress . Li Yundong went into full-blown panic mode . God damn it all to hell! Li Yundong punched his thigh . He looked around the bedroom . Should he perform the massage again? Maybe take her to the hospital? Li Yundong leaped up from the bed . "Hang on, okay? I’m taking you to the hospital . " Li Yundong ran to his wardrobe, wanting to retrieve the rest of his cash .

"Yun . . . Yun . . . dong . . . "

Li Yundong turned away from the wardrobe and ran back towards the bed . He grasped Su Chan’s cold hands . "What? What? What can I do, princess? Just tell me what to do..."

Su Chan shook her head a few times, then released a sharp cry . Her hand shot out to grab his collar . "N- No . . . Hos . . . pi . . tal . . . Don’t . . . "

"I’ll give you the massage . " Li Yundong moved to stand up but was yanked back down by his collar .

"Use . . . useless . . . Take me . . . t- to . . . motel . . . " Su Chan’s eyes rolled to the back of her head . "Too . . . Dangerous . . . H- Here . . . Zi . . . Zi Yuan . . . might come . . . "

"But you’re in pain!" Li Yundong yelled .

Su Chan’s breathing turned ragged . "N- needle . . . in pocket . "

Li Yundong patted her pocket, then pulled out a long, dark needle .

Su Chan’s body twitched a few times, the veins and cords on her neck pulling taut against her skin .

"Okay . . . I’ve got the needle . What now?" Li Yundong wiped away the sweat on Su Chan’s forehead .

"B- Bai . . . hui . . . L- Ling . . . "

"Lingtai?" Li Yundong said .

Su Chan nodded .

Li Yundong got to work immediately . The convulsions stopped the moment Li Yundong poked the needle into her Lingtai . Slowly, her breathing evened out . And when Li Yundong poked the needle on her Baihui, the colors returned slightly to her face .

Li Yundong put the needle away . "Are you still in pain?"

Su Chan nodded . "Need to hurry . . . Have to push the aura out . . . C- Can’t do it here . . . "

Li Yundong didn’t waste time arguing with her . He picked her up from the bed and ran out of the bedroom towards the door .

"Wait . . . " Su Chan said when they were at the doorway .

"What is it?" Li Yundong asked .

"F- Forgot . . . something . . . " Su Chan pointed at something on the floor .

Li Yundong glanced to his right and saw the Hello Kitty piggy bank lying on the floor .

Li Yundong sighed, then walked over to pick up the piggy bank . "You’re practically half-dead, and you’re still worried about this thing?"

Su Chan’s fingers trembled when she took the piggy bank and hugged it to her chest . "Y- You . . . need the money . . . "

Tears stung Li Yundong’s eyes . He picked Su Chan up and left the apartment .

***

After they got into a cab, Li Yundong wanted to smack himself in the head . He’d forgotten to take the cash out from his wardrobe amidst trying to help ease Su Chan’s pain . Now he didn’t have enough cash left to pay for their cab ride . With a heavy sigh, he reached for Su Chan’s piggy bank .

Su Chan pulled the piggy bank away from his reach . "No . . . " She shook her head . "There’s some in my pocket . "

Li Yundong pulled out a fifty from inside Su Chan’s pocket . "I thought you’ve put everything in there . " He pointed at the piggy bank .

Su Chan forced out a smile . "No . The money inside Hello Keedee is for some other purpose . . . "

"What purpose?"

Su Chan hugged the piggy bank tighter . "Just . . . I plan to use the money to look for you in case you abandon me one day . . . "

The tears that he’d been holding back since they left the apartment finally flowed . He sniffed and wiped his cheeks . "D- Don’t be stupid . . . " Li Yundong sobbed . "I’ll never abandon you . . . "

Li Yundong wiped his tears with his sleeve, then regarded Su Chan affectionately . "You’ll always be my best girl . "

***

"P- Please turn around while I do this . . . " Su Chan pleaded .

Yundong frowned and lowered himself onto the mattress . "What? Why?"

Su Chan shook her head weakly . "I don’t want you to see me like this! Please . . . Yundong . . . Please . . . "

Yundong nodded and turned around to face the wall . "Okay . . . I won’t look . Just . . . Will you feel better if . . . I mean after you do whatever it is that you’re about to do?"

"Y- Yes . . . "

"A- Are you sure you don’t need any help?"

Su Chan bit down on her lip . She could use some help, to be honest . But she didn’t want Yundong to see her like this . Plus, if the removed her Vital Orb from her body, there was a chance that she would...

No . She didn’t even want to think about that . Right now she didn’t have a choice . She would die if she didn’t flush the Divine Aura out of her body within the next hour .

"I can manage," Su Chan said shakily . "I just need you to look away . . . Please?"

"Okay . "

"Promise me you won’t look . . . " Su Chan gritted out .

Yundong sighed . "Okay, okay . I promise . Now hurry up and do your thing," he said . "God, you were in so much pain just now . "

Su Chan got into a meditative posture on the bed . She stared at Yundong’s back for a few moments, then took a deep breath . A bulge slowly formed on her lower abdomen . Her chest heaved, and the muscles in her throat constricted .

Seconds later, a colorful orb floated out from Su Chan’s mouth . The orb glowed brightly, lighting up the entire hotel room .

"What the— Hey! What’s with the glowing thing? What the hell is going on . . . " Yundong said .

"Don’t!" Su Chan pleaded . "Don’t turn around . . . Please, Yundong . . . I beg you . . . Please . . . "

Yundong’s back stiffened, but he didn’t turn around .

Su Chan sighed and removed her hands from her Vital Orb . The colorful sphere hovered in front of her, just a few inches away from her chest . Green tendrils rose from the sphere like a bunch of luminous seaweeds . The tendrils seeped into Su Chan’s body . Su Chan sighed as a cooling sensation coursed through her meridians . Moments later, white tendrils rose from her skin, and she felt the last vestiges of her pain leave her body .

Relief coursed through her, until her body started to itch all over .

***

Li Yundong tamped down his curiosity and resisted the impulse to turn around . The fact that the whole frigging room was glowing like crazy didn’t help .

He knew something was wrong the moment the bed started shaking . What the f*ck? "Su Chan?" Li Yundong said warily . "What’s the matter? Why’s the bed shaking?"

"I- I’m fine . . . "

Li Yundong clenched his jaw . "No! You’re not fine! What the hell is going on?"

"No! Don’t turn around!" Su Chan shrieked . "Just . . . Just gimme a minute, okay? I’m almost done . . . . "

Li Yundong took a deep, calming breath and balled his fists . The bed stopped shaking, but there was now a series of scratching sound . Slowly, the bright lights in the room started to dim .

Li Yundong felt the mattress dipping behind him .

There was a loud gasp . "Oh, no, no, no . . . " Su Chan groaned .

Suddenly, the room dimmed as the colorful lights diminished .

"Su Chan . . . ?" Li Yundong struggled not to turn around . "What’s the matter Su Chan? You’re scaring me . . . "

There was a snivel, which turned into sobs . That was when Li Yundong decided that enough was enough .

He turned around . "No!!!!!" Su Chan screamed . "Don’t look at me!!"

Li Yundong froze .

"Oh my God . . . "