Ye Tiancheng felt a chill in his heart. Wasn't this the same red-clothed woman who had suddenly appeared and snatched the Fuxi Qin fragments when he thought he had finally gathered them all?
At this moment, the little fox had already disappeared somewhere, yet Ye Tiancheng could vaguely guess what was happening without much thought.
There was no one else in this space, and the entrance was still sealed. Therefore, the only people standing here should be Ye Tiancheng, Azhi, and the little fox!
This left only one possibility: the little fox was that red-clothed woman. This wasn't to say that Ye Tiancheng hadn't figured out the little fox's gender all this time, but rather that both Ye Tiancheng and Fatty had seen a person with long red hair.
Because of this attire, people instinctively reacted by assuming it was a woman. In reality, someone with long hair and red clothing could also be a man, but fixed thinking had influenced Ye Tiancheng.
Ye Tiancheng couldn't help but frown. He should have learned this lesson long ago. Not long after the red-clothed woman disappeared, another person with long red hair appeared, who was eventually discovered by Ye Tiancheng and Fatty to be a man. Perhaps that was a subtle hint from fate, but Ye Tiancheng hadn't considered it.
Moreover, at that time, Ye Tiancheng and Fatty tracked the red-clothed woman to a place where she vanished into thin air. Then, at the spot where the clues ran out, Ye Tiancheng found the little fox. Wasn't that enough to prove something?
He must have transformed into a child to deceive Ye Tiancheng and the others when he realized he couldn't escape.
Ye Tiancheng suddenly felt a bit ridiculous. He had genuinely wanted to believe the little fox, and after finally placing his trust in him, this was the outcome. The little fox's appearance from the very beginning was a deception.
However, Ye Tiancheng patiently restrained himself and did not act impulsively. If it was a two-on-one situation, although he was confident in his ability to protect himself, he might not be able to obtain the Fuxi Qin fragments.
If these items fell into the hands of Azhi and the others, it would not be so easy for him to acquire them later.
Ye Tiancheng secretly raised his guard against the little fox, who had transformed into the red-clothed figure, but the red-clothed figure made no move, causing even Azhi to become impatient.
Azhi, who had been unable to gain the upper hand against Ye Tiancheng, ferociously shouted at the little fox again, "What are you waiting for? Why aren't you attacking?"
The little fox remained standing there, motionless. He lowered his head, making it impossible for anyone to see the expression on his face or the emotions in his eyes.
Subsequently, Azhi seemed to realize something and roared at the little fox, "Don't tell me you're betraying me because you've developed feelings for a human! We are one! You are merely a manifestation of my separated soul! We are the same! You are betraying me for someone else?"
Hearing Azhi's words, Azhi's reaction didn't seem faked; he was genuinely angry. Ye Tiancheng's heart stirred. Perhaps blinded by rage, Azhi completely disregarded Ye Tiancheng, his current opponent, and suddenly turned, lunging directly at the little fox.
Ye Tiancheng's reaction was faster than his brain could process. Almost instinctively, he turned and blocked, taking Azhi's blow squarely. Fortunately, he had been bracing for the attack, so he didn't suffer any serious injuries, only a slight impact and a muffled groan.
It was only then that the little fox reacted. He looked up in alarm at Ye Tiancheng, who had blocked for him, confusion, sadness, and inner conflict swirling in his eyes. He couldn't help but open his mouth, "You..."
Ye Tiancheng said, "If you don't know who you should help, then hurry and leave. Don't stay here."
Azhi looked at Ye Tiancheng as if he were an incomprehensible madman. He roared at Ye Tiancheng, "Are you sick? What business is it of yours? He hid his identity and ambushed you! To you, he should be an enemy, a traitor! And you're meddling to help him?"
Ye Tiancheng's gaze flickered slightly, but he didn't explain directly how he viewed the little fox after such a sudden turn of events. Instead, he mockingly said to Azhi, "I don't care what his identity is or who he is. As long as you're unhappy, I'm happy. Who told us we're enemies?"
These two people who didn't play by the rules almost drove Azhi mad. "Are you insane! Harming yourself to harm others!"
Ye Tiancheng remained silent, but in his heart, he thought that while his actions were definitely harming others, it was uncertain whether they were also harming himself.
The Nuwa Stone, having accompanied Ye Tiancheng, was secretly assisting him even though it wasn't actively fighting. It was boosting Ye Tiancheng's combat power, and the runes it had previously drawn on Azhi's inner core couldn't have been without effect.
It spoke to Ye Tiancheng in secret, "Stop dawdling. Lead him out quickly, take the Fuxi Qin fragments, and leave."
Ye Tiancheng responded in his heart and then intensified his offensive. Azhi, forced to don his old skin that had already swallowed the inner core, immediately tried to flee. But Ye Tiancheng immediately pursued. The moment Azhi passed through the entrance, the Fuxi Qin fragments indeed detached from him.
This time, it was Ye Tiancheng's turn to snatch the item and run. After obtaining the Fuxi Qin fragments, he grabbed the little fox, who had transformed back into his adult form, and bolted.
At this moment, Azhi was merging with his old skin, and the entire space of the strange market would collapse. Thousands of malevolent spirits would surge out in an instant. He had to run fast.
Ye Tiancheng didn't forget to place a breath-concealing talisman on himself and the little fox. The entire process was so fast that Azhi had no time to react before Ye Tiancheng had already dragged the little fox away and disappeared.
The Nuwa Stone angrily exclaimed, "Why did you drag him along?" and dissipated into the wind. Ye Tiancheng didn't even listen.
After finally escaping, Ye Tiancheng, with the little fox in tow, rushed towards the direction agreed upon with Hou Mingzhu and the others.
Once they were completely safe, Ye Tiancheng finally had the time to speak to the little fox properly. "Little fox, we agreed before that we would go back together and go home with Mingzhu, Qingcheng, and the others. I just messaged Mingzhu, and she said we should eat first before leaving. Shall we go eat together?"
"Or, if you don't want to go back with me and eat, do you want to leave on your own?"
The little fox stood quietly beside Ye Tiancheng, strands of hair on his cheek gently fluttering in the wind. His features were exquisite and perfect, and his dark eyes sparkled like stars, containing emotions that Ye Tiancheng only vaguely perceived at this moment. There was a hint of bewilderment and helplessness in the little fox's eyes.
"I, I'm called Little Fox? What is our relationship?" Oh, as expected, he's a boy. The habit of identifying gender based on clothing and hair seems to be something that needs to be changed.
However, what was the little fox saying? He wasn't joking, was he?
Ye Tiancheng looked at the little fox incredulously. "Are you joking? What nonsense are you talking about?"
The little fox sensed that Ye Tiancheng's emotions might not be good and waved his hands repeatedly in fear. "No, no, it's nothing?"
Ye Tiancheng thought that perhaps the little fox was also surprised by the day's events? Maybe something went wrong when he transformed into a child, and he forgot his past. Now that he was exposed, perhaps because he had developed feelings for Ye Tiancheng, he didn't help Azhi.
But because of his exposure, he might have thought Ye Tiancheng wouldn't easily forgive him. Seeing Ye Tiancheng speaking to him so kindly and not treating him badly, he might have been surprised and didn't know how to react, thus saying nonsensical things?
Suddenly asking if he was Little Fox and what their relationship was, as if he had amnesia, was very strange.
Ye Tiancheng's own feelings were quite complex. However, because the little fox had clearly sided with him earlier, and hadn't even told Azhi about the tricks he had played on him, seeing Azhi fall into his trap, Ye Tiancheng didn't blame him too much, thinking that the little fox might also be confused.
Whatever it was, all the current difficulties would be resolved, and they would be safer. Then they could talk about it.
Therefore, Ye Tiancheng patiently said to the little fox, "If you have no objections, shall we go together? To eat?"
The little fox looked at Ye Tiancheng hesitantly. Although he was a bit afraid to speak, knowing that he would eventually be exposed if he waited too long, he finally chose to tell Ye Tiancheng.
He suddenly reached out and grabbed the hem of Ye Tiancheng's clothes. Ye Tiancheng felt his clothes tighten and frowned, looking at the little fox and saying, "What is it now?"
Then, Ye Tiancheng heard the little fox stammer, "Um, I don't have any objections, but I think I just lost a bit of my memory."
Seeing Ye Tiancheng's expression turn strange, the little fox quickly sped up his speech. "I'm not lying to you. When you were fighting with that person, whoever they were, my mind went blank. I only heard you saying some nonsensical things."
"I can't remember anything, I just feel that you are very familiar and kind, and at that time, you protected me, and then you took me away. I want to follow you."
"But now, I truly can't remember anything. I don't even know my own name."
Ye Tiancheng was speechless for a moment, and he and the little fox looked at each other, not knowing what to say.
Given the previous incident, the little fox was very likely allied with Azhi. Perhaps because Azhi was trapped, he was released by Azhi to specifically snatch the Fuxi Qin, but then something went wrong, and he hid his identity and stayed by Ye Tiancheng's side.
In this situation, how much of the little fox's words were true was truly debatable and required further confirmation and discernment.
Ye Tiancheng fell silent for a moment, but then he thought that this was not the right time to dwell on such matters. Hou Mingzhu and the others were still waiting for these little foxes. Leaving this place as soon as possible was the best option.
Therefore, Ye Tiancheng finally said to the little fox, "I don't know if what you're saying is true, but it's not convenient now, and the situation is special. Since you're willing to follow me, then come with me for now."
"However, I'll warn you in advance, whether you've truly lost your memory or are faking it, you'd better be honest and don't do anything bad. Otherwise, I won't be polite."
The little fox was in a state of confusion and only had Ye Tiancheng, whom he found familiar and kind. Although Ye Tiancheng was being quite stern with him now, he had protected him, and didn't abandon him when they were fleeing. The little fox still didn't want to leave him.
So, the little fox obediently nodded and agreed, saying, "I understand. I'm not lying. I'll go with you."