"Little fox, what's wrong with you?"
In the cave, Wang Zhong, who originally intended to release the Nine-Tailed Fox as his playmate, was now somewhat anxious. This anxiety wasn't his own, but the fox's.
After releasing the little fox, it first curiously looked around the cave, then wandered around leisurely. Afterwards, for some unknown reason, the little fox seemed to sense something and became extremely agitated, pacing restlessly in the cave.
Then, it suddenly bit Wang Zhong's trouser leg and kept dragging him towards the outside of the cave, as if wanting him to go somewhere.
Picking up the little fox biting his trouser leg, Wang Zhong gently stroked its soft fur and soothed it, "Don't worry, don't worry."
"Even though you can't speak, I can feel your emotions."
"Tell me bit by bit through your emotions, okay?"
The little fox quieted down a bit, but its emotional urgency did not decrease in the slightest.
After a while, Wang Zhong sensed that besides anxiety, there was another emotion from the little fox: hunger!
"You want to eat!"
Wang Zhong guessed with a frown.
The little fox tilted its head, not understanding the words, but Wang Zhong, using their connection through emotions, projected a feeling of hunger.
Receiving this feeling, the little fox immediately struggled, its little head shaking like a drum.
"Something similar to hunger!"
"Longing, craving!"
After this emotion was conveyed, the little fox stopped struggling and nodded repeatedly.
"What is there in the Death Canyon that is attracting the little fox?"
Wang Zhong's eyes flickered, and after thinking for a moment, he decided to go and see.
Although he didn't know what it was or if there was danger, the little fox was now one with him, and Wang Zhong couldn't ignore such a strong craving from the other party.
The Death Great Canyon was dangerous, but the Ghost Douluo was still outside, and his own strength was not bad. With a little caution, he could ensure his safety.
"Alright, you lead the way, I'll follow you."
Wang Zhong placed the little fox on the ground, signaling it to go first, and he followed.
However, at this point, the little fox made a very strange move. It pressed itself tightly to the ground and cautiously crawled towards the cave entrance, as if avoiding something.
Wang Zhong instantly understood this action: "You don't want the Ghost Douluo to follow us, right!"
Receiving this emotion, the little fox jumped up, squatted on the ground, and nodded its little head repeatedly.
"I understand!"
"Third Spirit Skill, Wood Clone."
A wood clone identical to Wang Zhong emerged from the ground. It stretched its limbs, nodded, and walked out step by step, disappearing from sight in a short while.
In another cave in the distance, sensing Wang Zhong's movement, Ghostly suddenly awoke from his cultivation and slowly followed.
Within Wang Zhong's mental perception, Ghostly had already left. However, he did not move immediately. Instead, he held the little fox and waited for a while.
Only when Wang Zhong felt that Ghostly's mental scan could no longer reach this place did he put down the little fox.
The moment he put it down, the little fox shot out like a fiery red lightning bolt, a "whoosh" sound accompanying its rapid departure.
Wang Zhong's feet moved, about to chase after it immediately. But he suddenly remembered that if the wood clone moved too far away, it would lose its vitality and turn into a wooden puppet. At that time, Ghostly would surely react and come back for him.
Moreover, the other party wasn't strictly monitoring, but guarding, fearing he might get into trouble.
He activated his spirit skill, and a wooden token appeared in his hand, with a sentence naturally forming on it: "Sorry, Elder Ghost, I have some urgent matters and need to leave for a while. I cannot let you know. I will return soon, please do not worry."
He placed the wooden token where he usually slept. After thinking for a moment, he also placed a well-carved statue of Bibi Dong from his soul tool next to it. He worried that if he was gone for too long, the woman who treated him like her own child might come looking for him.
Leaving the wooden carving behind was also a form of appeasement.
Thinking that Bibi Dong might come, Wang Zhong pondered for a moment longer, and finally carved a small, simple fox head on the back of the wooden token.
Having done all this, Wang Zhong then ran out of the cave and quickly sped towards the direction of the little fox, as sensed. Ten breaths later, he caught up with it.
Seeing Wang Zhong arrive, the little fox suddenly increased its speed and dashed rapidly eastward, in the direction of the rising sun.
Wang Zhong followed closely, not daring to linger for even a moment.
Logically speaking, such rapid travel would absolutely disturb countless spirit beasts, causing chaos and attracting attacks from powerful spirit beasts. However, Wang Zhong seemed to be very lucky. All the way, he did not encounter a single one.
On the other side, Ghostly, who was following the wood clone, hid in the shadows, occasionally observing the situation around Wang Zhong to ensure his safety to the greatest extent possible.
If there were only minor dangers, such as a venomous snake or a spirit cat or a lone wolf, he would not interfere too much. If the spirit beast was too strong, he would subtly reveal a trace of his aura to drive it away.
After traveling nearly a thousand meters, under Ghostly's watchful eye, Wang Zhong suddenly sat down cross-legged, assuming a posture for cultivation and meditation.
"Cultivating here?"
"Why so sudden? Is he about to break through? But his aura doesn't quite feel like it. Why is that?"
In the shadows, Ghostly was utterly bewildered by Wang Zhong's actions. However, sensing no danger around, he let Wang Zhong be.
An hour passed, then two hours passed. The sky had already darkened. Ghostly sensed something unusual.
At this moment, a hundred-year-old Mandragora Serpent quietly slithered towards Wang Zhong, who was by his side.
The Mandragora Serpent, with its body as thick as a bowl, cautiously looked around. The Death Canyon was fraught with danger, and at its hundred-year level, it was merely food for other powerful spirit beasts.
Its body slithered past Wang Zhong's side without even a glance, as if no one was there.
This scene completely jolted Ghostly back to reality. He suddenly appeared in front of Wang Zhong, placed a palm on his shoulder, and probed with his mental power. This was no flesh and blood body, but clearly a wood clone!
"You little brat, you actually dared to play a trick on me!"
Ghostly was almost amused to anger.
He had been here thinking he was secretly protecting him, who would have thought that the little guy had already discovered him and played this trick on him.
"When I get back, I will definitely make you suffer a little."
Black mist swirled, and Ghostly's figure, along with Wang Zhong's wood clone, disappeared from the spot simultaneously. Dozens of breaths later, carrying the wood clone, he arrived back at the cave where Wang Zhong had been.
"Little fellow, you're really something!"
"Not only did you discover me, but you also played such a game with me."
With a displeased look on his face, Ghostly placed the wood clone at the cave entrance and walked in boldly. Since he had already been discovered, there was no point in protecting from the shadows. It was better to be direct.
But there was no sign of Wang Zhong in the cave. Seeing the wooden statue of Bibi Dong placed where Wang Zhong slept, and a wooden token, Ghostly walked forward. The words on the wooden token caught his eye.
His pupils constricted, and Ghostly exclaimed, "Not good!"
"This little scoundrel, does he really think this Death Great Canyon is so easy to traverse!"
"Even a Titled Douluo faces death at every step, how dare you, a Spirit Ancestor, run around so recklessly!"