If the sight of the colossal blue wolf spewing out wind blades caused a storm to brew within Liu Zhenhan's heart, then the shock brought about by the "thing" that appeared inside the case was equivalent to a tsunami.
The thunderclaps and lightning outside the porthole continued unabated, the flashes of light illuminating Liu Zhenhan's forehead, slick with beads of sweat quietly trickling down and across his face down to his mouth.
A surge of salty taste filled his mouth, bringing his wandering thoughts back to reality. Unbelieving, he rubbed his eyes, just as another flash of lightning streaked past, making the contents of the case blindingly bright.
Inside the large wooden case lay about four or five people haphazardly, the one at the bottom drenched in water. Their long hair floating aimlessly in the water resembled seaweed on the ocean floor.
What sent chills down Liu Zhenhan's spine wasn't the fact that these were dead bodies, but that all those stuffed in the case were women, and women he had never seen before.
Among them, a girl was lying on her back, her curly, fiery red hair, charming and attractive face... and a big red tail.
The tail draped in the accumulated water, each flash of lightning causing it to resemble a flickering flame, leaving behind seizure-like afterimages in Liu Zhenhan's mind that teetered on shock.
"How...is this...possible..." Liu Zhenhan covered his face, a wave of agonizing pain coursing through his nose as he gripped it tightly.
Liu Zhenhan nearly fell into the water before frantically clambering up the wooden crate. He felt an incredible sensation of every single pore on his body trembling as though suffocating.
"Fox…demon…" Liu Zhenhan's voice turned eerie and strange, as if hands were choking him.
He just stood dumbfounded in front of the crate, gazing at the ghastly pale complexion of the girl as his mind spiraled into chaos.
The fox demon in the case slightly moved its tail, creating tiny ripples in the tranquil accumulated water.
Liu Zhenhan's pupils instantly dilated.
He felt utterly bewildered for the first time, having never experienced such an emotion even when he faced the colossal blue wolf.
The hull of the wooden boat made a creaking sound again, the discordant friction between the planks and the Dragon Bone sending chills down his spine, warning Liu Zhenhan of the ship's impending disintegration.
Liu Zhenhan gritted his teeth, lifting out the barely living fox demon. Peering back into the case, he saw a pile of fox demons, at least four or five of them, half-immersed in water. Some had perfect facial contours, their bodies lying face up, while others had their bodies submerged with large tails peeking through the bottom hem of their tightly fitted long gowns, floating on the water surface.
Liu Zhenhan felt a wave of dizziness wash over him.
The girl he held emitted a hint of warmth from her frosty chest, her heart still beating. Liu Zhenhan forced himself to dismiss the sight of her large tail, pulled up a table, kicked off its legs, and firmly tied the "fox demon" to it using the old ivy from behind.
The ship listed abruptly, and Liu Zhenhan slipped, just barely steadying himself.
He drew out the gleaming machete and, summoning strength from who knows where, hacked an enormous hole in the wooden board of the ship's hull in just a few blows.
Carrying a table on which the fox spirit was bound, Liu Zhenhan stuffed Guoguo, who was clutched by his ear, onto his back, and with the table, barged through the gaping hole. Splinters flew everywhere as he and the table plunged into the icy seawater, creating a giant splash.
Liu Zhenhan lost all his thoughts except the urgent need to escape. The ship was likely going to sink to the seabed, and the whirlpool it would create upon sinking would be inescapable, even for a swimming elephant.
Dragging the table, he was paddling with hands and feet in the water while lamenting the loss of the jar of fine wine. Tasting the salty seawater, he licked his lips repeatedly.
When he finally swam to the shore after great difficulty, he gasped for breath as he watched the wooden ship lodged between the reefs making a deafening cracking sound. Water spouted like fountains from the deck's cracks and the ship slowly stood upright before slowly sinking to the seabed.
The wind and rain gradually quieted down, leaving only the bubbling sound of the seawater around the distant rocks. It was a scene of utter desolation on the sea surface with floating corpses, debris, and an eerie silence.
Liu Zhenhan wiped the droplets off his face. Several splinters embedded in his arm from the crash earlier caused him to grimace in pain.
The fox spirit bound to the table had her head tilted to one side. Liu Zhenhan bent over and felt her pulse on her neck. Luckily, she still had a weak pulse. Through the top of her dress, he could see a bruise on her fair shoulder caused by the impact.
Liu Zhenhan gave her mouth-to-mouth first; the fox spirit had a bout of violent coughing and vomited a lot of seawater. Liu Zhenhan, who only had basic knowledge of battlefield first aid and bandaging, didn't dare to do much more. He wanted to unbind her but was worried about possible fractures. So, he decided to drag the table towards his home.
In the midst of the hustle, Liu Zhenhan didn't forget to feel the large bundle behind him. Thankfully, Guoguo's large ears and the large fruit within were still erect. Out of all the curved knives, he now only had the one he had used to break open the window. He had no idea where the rest, along with the jeweled scabbard, had been tossed in his panic.
Once home, he hastily tried to find some firewood to heat water and bathe the little fox spirit; her body was losing heat too fast. If it continued, she would freeze to death.
Liu Zhenhan, having somewhat recovered from his initial shock, wondered how a fox spirit could drown. He had grown up listening to Strange Tales, and this fox spirit—who he decided to refer to as the girl—still had a pulse, was breathing incredibly weakly, and had severe injuries. She seemed nothing like those supernatural beings who could manipulate the weather.
All the firewood outside had gotten drenched in the downpour; there was no dry firewood left. Liu Zhenhan stepped outside, then smacked his forehead, cursing himself repeatedly for being so scatter-brained and making silly mistakes.
There was not enough time left to search for dry firewood. Seeing the shivering little fox spirit, her lips turning purple as her eyes remained closed and her fiery red tail quivering, Liu Zhenhan was utterly frantic.
An idea popped into Liu Zhenhan's head.
Gently holding her in his arms, Liu Zhenhan closed his eyes and used his burning body to warm her up.
This must be a dream, he thought to himself.
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