Chapter 562 - 460: Squirrel Demon: You Can Buy Dresses in Celestial Wolf City

"Sister One-tailed, are you bored?" Ah Xiong immediately guessed her thoughts. Supporting herself on the stone slab, she sat down on the cliff’s edge right beside her, suddenly half a head shorter. "How about I take you for a walk nearby?"

"Hm?" One-tailed was a little surprised. Under the current circumstances, they were supposed to be guarding Jiang Qiu and the Nine-tailed Fox. This wasn’t their home, after all; it would be bad if they ran into any danger. But now, Ah Xiong was actually suggesting they leave for a while. "Master told us to keep an eye on our surroundings, you know..."

"Let’s just stroll around the immediate area, organize these miners, and explore the mining zone," Ah Xiong said cautiously. "They’re scattered all over the place. It looks so dull."

It was true. The miners were all standing around foolishly, each and every one of them looking lost and bewildered. It was truly strange. Even Ah Xiong didn’t like seeing such a scene.

’I should just organize the miners and get them to do something.’

’It’s just no fun when they aren’t doing anything.’

After all, Ah Xiong had been with One-tailed for eight years and had grown used to a life of wandering around. That was much more interesting than just sitting here blankly.

’Besides, patrolling the mining area is a form of watching over things, right?’

Soon, One-tailed understood what she meant. "You want these miners to go back to mining?"

"Mhm," Ah Xiong nodded. "I want to see why they mine and how they do it. I heard a miner say that Celestial Wolf City is huge and has everything, but you have to trade what you dig up to get anything.

This stuff. Spirit Stones."

She casually pulled a crystal-clear Spirit Stone from behind her back. It was a fluorescent blue, emitting a soft glow and exuding a captivating allure.

She had casually chipped it off a Spirit Stone deposit. It broke off crisply and contained a great deal of Heaven and Earth Spirit Charm. It would be an excellent resource for Cultivation.

One-tailed had actually noticed this type of ore long ago but wasn’t particularly interested. She herself didn’t need to cultivate; her very existence was a form of Cultivation. Now, however, she was curious about what Spirit Stones meant to Celestial Wolf City.

"Alright. Let’s go find some miners and ask what good stuff is in Celestial Wolf City, what Spirit Stones are used for, and why they’re mining."

At this thought, One-tailed scrambled up from the cliff’s edge. Her large, sparkling eyes shone. With her hands on her hips, she looked down at the thousands of miners and called out in a clear voice, "All members of the Demon Race, look here! Anyone who knows about Celestial Wolf City can step forward. If I’m pleased with what I learn, I might offer you my temporary protection. Otherwise, you all go mine!"

’I don’t know why these miners are willing to stay here, but they aren’t stupid. They must be afraid of something, which is why they don’t dare to act rashly. If I promise to protect them, maybe someone will step forward.’

’Even if they ignore me and don’t believe I’ll protect them, I can still use mining as a threat. I’ll just whip anyone who’s unwilling to mine!’

’Besides, mining is their job. If they don’t want to mine, then telling me about the Celestial Wolf Race is their best option.’

Just as she was thinking this, sure enough, a member of the Demon Race stepped forward. It was a rather short demon dressed in tattered clothes. One could faintly see she was female, but she had a tail and a pair of brown ears on her head. She seemed to be a Squirrel Demon. "My lady, I... I can tell you what you want to know about Celestial Wolf City!"

Her voice was hoarse, but she shouted with all her might, as if she desperately needed to seize this opportunity—this chance to live.

Among the crowd of demons, she was the smallest and thinnest, like a young maiden thrown into a group of burly men—a pitiful sight.

After she finished shouting, the other members of the Demon Race showed little change in expression. They just seemed wooden and stunned, not believing in One-tailed’s so-called protection.

From a certain point of view, the concept of "protection" didn’t really exist in this world. At most, those of the same bloodline within a Great Demon Race might choose to help each other out.

And One-tailed was clearly not of the same race as them. Plus, her strength was terrifying—at the level of an Ancestor, no matter how you looked at it. Why would she possibly protect the young of another tribe?

They didn’t believe her, so no one followed the Squirrel Demon’s example and shouted out. This made the Squirrel Demon seem ostracized. All alone, her momentum faltered, and she seemed to gradually realize her own naivety. ’That’s right... why would Her Ladyship protect me...’

’Maybe Her Ladyship really meant what she said, but who can guarantee if it’s true? Even in Celestial Wolf City, lying is perfectly normal. The existence of all kinds of transactions proves the saying that there’s no business without deception. Every deal is about profit. If there’s something you need, they’ll sell it to you for several times its price in Spirit Stones.’

’The current situation is that my knowledge of Celestial Wolf City can’t possibly be worth her protection.’

’Even though she’s one of the culprits who slaughtered the entire Celestial Wolf Race in this mining area, with power like that, she basically has no need to worry about danger.’

’But me, a demon of the Spirit Control Realm... I might be a Dominator in the outer regions, but in Celestial Wolf City, I’m just a lowly, unlucky demon with a little bit of strength.’

’The gap between bloodlines is vast, so I know perfectly well that I have no real value.’

At this thought, the Squirrel Demon felt a wave of sorrow. She lowered her head, swallowed, and didn’t dare to look up again at the petite figure standing on the cliff.

WHOOSH—

However, with a light whoosh of wind, One-tailed, flicking her big, fluffy tail, leaped from the heights and landed with a soft *pat* right in front of her. A pair of small, delicate, bare feet stepped onto the dirt of the mine pit. They looked so soft, and from the Squirrel Demon’s perspective, they were dazzlingly white.

She abruptly looked up, her gaze meeting that of the smiling, child-like One-tailed. Her ruby-like pupils gleamed, and a small canine tooth rested gently on her pink lip. "Hmm~ why are you all digging for ore here?"

"Because I offended the Celestial Wolf Race. They captured me and brought me here. I can’t leave for at least ten years."

Although she was inwardly surprised that this powerful being was genuinely interested in Celestial Wolf City, the Squirrel Demon didn’t hesitate for a second. She immediately dropped to her knees, her head bowed. She didn’t dare look at the other’s face—a work of art, as if carved from delicate jade—for fear of causing offense. She could only stare at the floor of the mine pit. But unconsciously, her gaze again fell upon that pair of jade-like feet, white and spotless. They were too dazzling. Each toe was like a pearl, so mesmerizing that her vision blurred.

"Oh, so you were captured and brought here." One-tailed didn’t seem to notice her stare and continued her questioning. "Then what’s the use of mining for Spirit Stones here?"

"We mine Spirit Stones for the Celestial Wolf Race. They use the Spirit Stones to create currency for trade in Celestial Wolf City. Inside Celestial Wolf City, many things must be bought with Spirit Stones. For example, clothes..."

As she said this, she subconsciously swallowed and looked at One-tailed’s feet with pity. They were such a work of art, yet they were shoeless, stepping in a filthy mine pit.

’Then again,’ she thought, considering her own situation, ’even my so-called shoes are in tatters, and my clothes have started to stink. I should be more worried about whether my stench will offend this Ancestor Level person...’

"Buy clothes?" One-tailed’s interest was piqued. She casually plucked at the vine-woven skirt on her body, her delicate, white figure partially visible. "Is it expensive? How many Spirit Stones does it take?"

’I understand the concept of bartering. Isn’t it just trading Spirit Stones for clothes? That’s easy enough to understand. Still, it feels like a bad deal. Spirit Stones are precious Cultivation Resources.’

’But on second thought, I don’t need Spirit Stones for my Cultivation. And for some reason... ever since I got this human form, I’ve found myself wanting clothes to cover my body more and more...’