Is this Shen Li from childhood?
Shen Tang watched it anxiously wail in its milky voice, trembling with fear, the nine tails almost shaking into wavy lines... couldn’t help but chuckle, much cuter than when grown up.
Shen Tang stood under the tree, opened her arms, "Don’t be afraid, jump down, I’ll catch you!"
The little fox seed unable to see her, ignoring her offer of help and continued to howl anxiously on the tree.
Shen Tang thought it was afraid of strangers, so she wanted to climb up and fetch the cub, but her hand passed through the trunk as if through air.
Shen Tang was stunned for a mont, tried again, and it was the sa.
She turned her head to look at the palace wall beside her, plunged her head into it, and walked through like a wandering ghost, then effortlessly ca back out.
"System, what’s going on?" She had never encountered this situation before.
The system explained: [The spiritual environnt simulates the real environnt completely, but ultimately, everything here is fake, constructed from Shen Li’s ntal mories. His ntal state is extrely unstable now, suppressing your spirit body, and the spiritual space is on the verge of collapsing. It’s uncertain how long it can last, so this situation is quite normal.]
"So, doesn’t that an I can’t do anything here?" All the effort spent getting in would be wasted.
[The host can try to gather spiritual power.]
Shen Tang nodded, and before she could take action, she heard a chorus of chaotic footsteps and exclamations from behind her.
"Little Highness, why did you climb up the tree! We’ve been looking for you for ages and thought you’d gotten lost!"
"Heavens, this tree is so tall, what if you fell and hurt yourself!"
"Your Highness is too mischievous, too dangerous!"
A group of palace servants and guards rushed over, flustered.
The youth at the front with the upright posture looked a bit familiar.
Shen Tang involuntarily looked a few more tis, then her lips twitched as she recognized it was Qiu Yang.
He was much younger than she rembered, looking about fifteen or sixteen years old, with proper and tough features, and a hint of youthful naivety, completely unlike the sly allegiance he displayed later on.
Qiu Yang hurriedly climbed the tree and brought the little fox down. The cautious look on his face feared holding it in his mouth would lt it, cradling it in his hands feared it would fall.
"Mother~" The little fox suddenly looked in a certain direction, called out in its milky voice, leapt from his arms, landed on the ground, and scampered away with its nine fluffy tails swaying.
The little fox happily pounced into the embrace of a elaborately dressed female.
Shen Tang also looked over, a trace of surprise flashing in her eyes.
The female had bright red hair identical to Shen Li’s, and her graceful, ethereal stance suggested how impossibly beautiful she must be, yet sohow, Shen Tang couldn’t see her face clearly, as if a vague film obscured it. The impression was one of warmth like a spring day, faintly perceivable as a beauty but utterly indistinct.
Shen Tang soon understood the reason; the spiritual illusion realm was built from Shen Li’s mories.
The figures in those mories had gradually blurred.
It was because so much ti had passed that not even the owner could recall what she looked like anymore.
Shen Tang hadn’t deliberately inquired into Shen Li’s background, but had heard that the late Empress died very early.
The late Empress returned to the palace with the little fox.
Shen Tang contemplated for a mont, then followed.
The surrounding scenery changed at light speed, and before she knew it, she entered the dead of winter, with thick, fluttering snow covering the rooftops and towering palace walls, the palace paths blanketed in a thick layer of snow.
The Beastn were not in a hurry to clear the snow and ice from the roads, happily playing chase in the snow, many even transforming into their beast forms and rolling in it.
Due to its geographic location, the Yiyuan Empire’s climate was much hotter than that of the Night Glow Empire, and snow was rare even in winter. The beastn in the city were excited to witness such heavy snowfall.
Zhuqiong Palace was where the Emperor and Empress resided; the Little Prince was too young to need a new palace, living with the Beast Father and Beast Mother.
A man with long white hair sat serenely by the window, dressed in white undergarnts, a heavy black fur robe draped over his shoulders, adorned with intricate floating golden patterns, dignified and elegant, noble and graceful.
The man’s appearance was incomparably handso, with long eyebrows reaching his temples, captivating golden eyes, a nose straight as carved from jade, and lips a soft red but not too flamboyant. Behind him, nine fluffy white fox tails swayed softly in the air, with golden lotus markings at their tips.
The blend of demonic and divine auras was seamlessly harmonious, like sothing from a painting, making it hard to look away.
Shen Tang stood, transfixed in the courtyard, gazing at the tall figure by the window. The man’s facial features were at least four or five tenths similar to Shen Li’s, making his identity easy to discern.
The late Emperor of the Yiyuan Empire, Shen Li’s Beast Father, Ji Lin.
This late Emperor had passed away many years ago, yet she didn’t expect to see him in the depths of Shen Li’s mories.
Shen Tang once heard Qiu Yang ntion in his rambling recollections that the late Emperor had poor health, bedridden for years, and had passed away early, the year Shen Li ascended the throne at nine.
At this mont, the late Emperor seed healthy, with no sign of infirmity.
Ji Lin’s fingers were long and jade-like, as he placed a white plum branch from the yard into a vase.
Upon hearing the outside sounds, his handso face showed a gentle smile as he went over, "Xiao Li’s back?"
"Father, I missed you so much~ I was very good today, and ca back before dark!" The red little fox launched itself like a cannonball into his arms.
This version of Shen Li wasn’t as chubby as when they first t, noticeably grown, appearing about two or three years old.
Its nine tails were longer and fluffier, the subtle gold hue at the tips clearer, matching the golden lotus markings on his father’s tail, although its markings were intertwined with golden fiery cloud patterns, appearing more majestic and splendid.
Fox cubs at this age are particularly lively and restless. Ji Lin initially didn’t want it constantly running outside, but couldn’t stop it; under pressure, it started climbing walls and jumping trees, so it was better to let it out to play, with Qiu Yang and others closely accompanying for protection, instructing it to return before dark.
Fortunately, the little fox was also well-behaved, always returning on ti.
"Did you have fun today?" Ji Lin asked, gently combing his fingers through his son’s fluffy fur, after a day of playing wildly outside, its paws were black.
"Yes, but everyone always holds back for , so my true skills are never on display!" The little fox found a comfortable spot in his father’s embrace, felt the soft caress, and closed its eyes comfortably, purring as it laid down drowsily from play.
Ji Lin laughed, "You’re the esteed Prince, different from others, and destined to be the future Yiyuan Monarch; you can’t afford any mishaps. If they accidentally hurt you, it would be an offense worthy of beheading, and no one could take on such a burden."
The little fox thought about it, acknowledged the reasoning, but still felt sowhat disgruntled.
Ji Lin looked at its adorable, bumbling appearance, couldn’t help but shake his head with a smile, slightly helpless.
The bloodline of the Nine-tailed Fox Clan was increasingly rare, largely because they were highly prone to dying young.
He highly valued this child, wishing to provide the best protection, though it sowhat limited its freedom.
But there was no way around it; holding this position required bearing all this.
After these carefree years, the burden on its shoulders would beco even heavier.
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