Trekking up the sordid and dreary path, Zhou Shang finally reached the mountain's peak where the Ever Eclipse monastery was located. The setting sun glowed orange and ominous over the horizon, a blanket of thick mist cascading through the gradually darkening blue mountains. The sound of howling wolves could be heard in the distance.

Demon hunter though he was, trained in fighting monsters, hardened by life in the wild and all of its challenges, even for him, the ambience was a touch too unpleasant.

He reached the foot of the stairs and dismounted from his horse. He collected his hides, and other such treasures, and slung the fox demon's limp body across his shoulders.

In front of him stood a long stairway made of stone, leading up to the mountain's peak, his destination. Trudging slowly up the steps, the higher he climbed, the thinner and colder the air became. He began to curse the added weight of his bounty and treasures, feeling the ache in his ever tiring muscles. Finally, he reached the top, wheezing and dragging his feet.

The entrance to the monastery was protected by a decorative glazed archway, adorned with a pair of sculpted lion guardian statues.

As Zhou Shang passed through it and began approaching the front doors of the building, a crow swooped down with a loud shriek, just barely missing his face before veering off in a different direction, nearly knocking him back down the steps.

He cussed under his breath, watching it fly away for a moment before hastily proceeding to knock on one of the heavy wooden doors.

A young child, with not a single hair on his head, garbed with a traditional bright coloured robe, opened the door and signalled for Zhou Shang to come inside. The monastery was quiet, and yet bustling with priests. It had a very traditional structure to it and was permeated with a strong, fragrant scent of sandalwood. In one area, there were a few young children reading scriptures, and in another, a group of strapping young priests chanting in unison.

In the far right corner, Zhou Shang saw a long stand holding an endless row of cages in a variety of shapes and sizes. Some of the captured inhabitants were tiny, whilst others were as large as himself. The cages contained creatures ranging from wood sprites and elemental spirits to small, harmless demonic entities, such as cat, rabbit and weasel demons. Most of them were rather weak beings or ones who moved slowly and were easy to catch. They were perfect to use for experimental purposes, as well as for familiar bonding.

In front of one of the cages, Zhou Shang spotted a young priest holding a scroll on which he was writing down notes.

Zhou Shang hurried across the hall to speak with him, hoping to finalize the transaction and leave as soon as possible.

Luckily for him, the process was swift and efficient. He described his stock to the young priest, a snowy fox demon, possibly a cub, although it was difficult to tell its age since demons shrink in size when losing power.

The head priest, who was in charge of handling the beasts, was called over to approve the transaction which he did by handing a heavy bag filled with coins to Zhou Shang and then hurrying him out of the monastery.

Once Zhou Shang had been escorted out of the premises, Bai QingYue's limp fox form was tossed unceremoniously into a small wooden cage. After half a day he managed to regain much of his strength, but he intended to keep playing dead until he would be able to execute an escape plan.

Regardless, he was too tired to stay awake and needed more rest, in order to regain enough energy as swiftly as possible. The bloodied little fox blinked several times, and then slowly shut his eyes.

When a few hours had passed, Bai QingYue's ears perked up. He couldn't suppress the involuntary movement as there were too many noisy humans all around him. He opened his eyes slightly and looked around, squinting in the bright light. Sure enough, he could no longer pretend to be dead.

The white-furred cub was surrounded by more than a dozen priests, all of them gawking at him curiously.

"Is this really a fox demon?"

"I sense very little power, but no demonic origin."

"Actually he is kind of cute. Perhaps we can keep him as a familiar…?"

Bai Qingyue's blood pressure rose. Hearing such a remark caused his forehead vein to nearly pop. His tiny fluffy paws curled inward, resembling angry small, closed fists.

How dare these pesky little worms even dare to think of keeping him as their servant?!

Suddenly, the room fell silent as a venerable man, trembling with old age walked into the circle of priests.

It was the head abbot who held respect and authority all over the monastery and all its two hundred disciples. The gathered priests immediately ceased their prattling once they caught sight of their leader.

With his many years of experience, there was little that the senior priest had not seen before. And yet, he had no answer as to who this fox really was. The only conclusions he could reach at this point were, firstly, this fox was definitely not dead as the demon hunter had suggested, and secondly, that it was also definitely not from this realm.

"This fox is very much alive. He is merely weak, however, I am uncertain of his origins or intentions in coming to our world. I believe he is not from our land, but from a different plane." The head abbot announced as he came to his conclusion.

Indeed, this fox's aura was too bright, shining with a godly halo. Now that he had mentioned it, all of the other priests began to sense it too, and they stared at the small furred beast in awe. Nobody here had encountered a creature from another realm before.

The head abbot sensed that, as time passed, this little fox would gradually become stronger and more dangerous. His apprehension towards the creature spiked, and he knew he had to make a swift decision, for the safety of the monastery. He addressed the muttering crowd once more, and they fell silent.

"I sense that now he might be weak, but he grows more powerful by the second. His spiritual aura shows a force to be reckoned with. It would be dangerous to keep him alive. We should, therefore, make sure to kill him first of all, and only afterwards may we absorb his life essence in order to heighten our most talented disciples' cultivation.