Inside the room.
The White Fox didn't seem bothered by Qin Fu's threat at all.He set his hat aside and smiled faintly.
"Hello there. Name's White Fox."
"Void."
Qin Fu's tone was icy, but White Fox merely chuckled, poured himself a cup of tea, and blew gently across the surface.
"No need to be so guarded. I mean no harm.""I was simply passing through.""Though, since fate has us meeting—how about joining the Shadow Assassins? I can put in a recommendation."
He sipped leisurely, eyes never leaving Qin Fu.
"With one successful mission to prove your strength, you could skip the lower ranks and be promoted straight to Shadow Assassin. Interested?"
Qin Fu's brow lifted slightly.So the offer just comes walking to my door?
Still, he didn't agree immediately.
"And the benefits?" he asked evenly. "What's in it for me?"
White Fox set his cup down and smiled.
"Plenty. Secret divine arts, enchanted blades, rare materials—everything a cultivator could need. You can trade for them freely.""With your strength, climbing from the bottom would be a waste of time."
Qin Fu fell silent, feigning thought. The White Fox didn't rush him, sitting with the calm confidence of someone used to winning.
After a long pause, Qin Fu nodded.
"I can join—but I won't be forced into anything I don't want to do."
White Fox blinked, then grinned.
"Fair enough. But you'll have to tell that to the leader yourself. I'm just a small-time Shadow Assassin—don't expect too much authority from me."
Qin Fu's brows furrowed slightly, then relaxed.
"Forget it. I'll go with you tomorrow. Whether your leader agrees or not doesn't matter—as long as I can trade for your resources."
White Fox's grin widened. He tipped his hat back on and leapt gracefully out the window.
Moments later, a knock sounded at the door.
"Young Master of the Void," came the butler's voice, "the banquet is ready. My master asked me to invite you personally."
Qin Fu stored the [Secret Scepter], rose, and followed the butler through the corridor.
The halls were strangely quiet.Odd, he thought, but chose not to question it.
In the original timeline, Meishan Villa had only been mentioned in passing. He remembered Mei Daxia's lifelong wish for a son to inherit his swordsmanship—but beyond that, there wasn't much known.
Still, this eerie emptiness was unexpected.
Rounding a corner, Qin Fu glimpsed some servants cleaning debris from the earlier battle. He rubbed his cheek, a bit embarrassed.
Thankfully, the banquet hall wasn't far.
When he entered, he was surprised to see the vast dining room occupied by only Mei Daxia and his family of three.
Mei Daxia stood at once, smiling broadly.
"Madam, this is the Void Young Hero I told you about—so young, yet already a martial arts prodigy!"
Qin Fu felt his face heat.Martial arts prodigy? Me? I'm a mage who can barely throw a punch.
The only "close-combat training" he had came from being beaten half to death by Gojo Satoru during "lessons."
Gojo's advice echoed in his mind:
"If it's kids, sure—smack them around. But if it's a real fighter, keep your distance, or you'll be crying in seconds."
And he wasn't wrong.
Pushing the thought aside, Qin Fu returned the greeting politely.After a round of introductions, everyone took their seats.
Three rounds of wine later, the mood had lightened.
During this period, Mei Daxia asked his son to practice a set of swordsmanship and invited Qin Fu to comment.
Qin Fu, of course, had no real martial arts foundation. He could only offer suggestions on internal force control, mixed with a few martial arts insights gleaned from novels.
Still, Mei Daxia was amazed. Over and over, he exclaimed in surprise and delight. If someone hadn't stopped him, he might have even wanted to become sworn brothers with Qin Fu despite their different surnames.
By the end of the evening, Mei Daxia had even drunk a little. Qin Fu wasn't fazed — with his improved physical attributes, his drinking capacity had increased naturally.
But he was bewildered by Mei Daxia's behavior. Didn't the stories depict him as a serious, stern man? And yet here he was, singing and laughing after a few drinks.
Late at night, Qin Fu had no idea how he ended up back in his room. Exhausted, he fell asleep immediately.
The next morning, as the sun rose, Qin Fu slowly woke. Instantly, the [Secret Scepter] appeared in his hand, void power surging.
The White Fox, sitting calmly in the room, raised his hands innocently.
"No malice, I swear!"
Qin Fu's eyes glinted coldly.
"Don't push me to be ruthless next time."
Seeing the White Fox submit, Qin Fu put away the [Secret Scepter], already calculating in his mind how to optimize a mechanism for automatically triggering it. Eat a trench and grow wise—this mistake won't happen again.
Lost in thought, he followed the White Fox outside.
On the way, they ran into the bald old man.
"Young Hero of the Void, what's this about? Are you not staying at Meishan Villa longer? Why not extend your visit?"
Qin Fu smiled faintly.
"No, it's nothing like that. The purpose of this trip in the Void was to compete with Mei Daxia, and that wish has been fulfilled. I also want to see the world beyond.""The Void is still young and ignorant. Mei Daxia didn't hold a grudge—he treated me with kindness, and I feel deeply ashamed. Please apologize to Master Mei on my behalf as well."
He bowed respectfully and then turned to leave with the White Fox. The housekeeper could only return the bow and hurry to report to Mei Daxia.
Once they caught up with the White Fox, Qin Fu glanced at the 25-hour countdown to the mission.
"Do I have to complete a task to join?"
The White Fox paused, slightly surprised, and thought for a moment.
"It seems not… but to officially become a Shadow Assassin, you still need the leader's approval…"
Before he could finish, Qin Fu interrupted calmly:
"Then I'll join first. After that, I can complete any task and gain the leader's approval. Isn't that logically the same?"
The White Fox felt a strange, inexplicable good impression of Qin Fu. He secretly checked his internal force, confirming he hadn't been affected by charm or manipulation. Only then did he relax.
"Very well. In that case, I'll take you to the nearest stronghold for the formalities."
He leapt into motion, but then paused, glancing at Qin Fu suspiciously.
"Your speed is too slow. I'll take you faster," Qin Fu said calmly.
The White Fox pointed in a direction, still wary.
The next second, he felt as if he were clinging to the back of a speeding truck. His face contorted in terror as he shouted:
"Slow down!!! I feel like I'm going to die!!!"
Before he could finish,
"Bang!"
He slammed face-first into a thick branch and fainted.
Qin Fu watched the White Fox collapse and the corners of his mouth curled up slightly.
I swear, this was definitely not intentional…