The shopkeeper's legs gave way and he landed on the floor with his butt, his mind unable to process everything that was taking place at that moment.
The second the imprisoned spirits' and demons' bindings were shattered, they simultaneously bolted out of their cages, wreaking havoc everywhere.
Knowing that he was the target of their hatred, the shopkeeper immediately ran out of the store for his dear life before the spirits could exact revenge and kill him!
He instantly jumped on his mount's back and flew to Grandmaster Zhu Zhang's halls, hoping to appeal to him for the reimbursement of his shop, and more importantly, to arrest that wicked girl!
Just because she was stronger doesn't mean that she could come over and ruin his life as she pleased! There are laws in the sect for a reason!
His shop. His livelihood. All gone…
Meanwhile, a majority of the magical beasts had already escaped, breaking through the see-through walls and crashing into the entrance door, turning it into a pile of rubble. The shop was reduced from a luxurious establishment to a rundown house as though a stampede had passed through it.
Li Meirong stayed in the shop until she could make sure every last one of the "animals" was free. Wanting to hasten the process, Snowball helped the smaller captured spirits with their binds, such as the sprites and the bloodsucking fireflies stuffed inside glass jars.
Meanwhile, Inside the inner room, only the Fox Demoness and her kits remained. Li Meirong went back inside, bent down and personally opened the cage. The Fox Demoness warily stepped out of the cage.
Li Meirong's eyes started to water at the scene. The poor fox was covered with wounds; she must have nearly fought to her very last breath before she was captured.
She thought of her poor wounded Snowball and wondered if he had also suffered from battling hunters. He was but a little fox and the wounds covering him were terrible, not unlike the mother fox before her eyes.
"Don't worry, you're free to go now…"
The fox kits followed after their mother, one at a time. When they got out of the cage, their first action was to leap onto Li Meirong, perfecting the term "puppy pile".
Her heart was suffused with honey, baby foxes were the most adorable creatures in the whole wide world!
She let them nip her sleeves and hop on her lap. One of the kits even got tangled in her hair.
Now, what was she going to do? She really wanted to adopt all of them!
While the fox cubs were preoccupied with their new object of interest, their mother shapeshifted into a humanoid form.
A tall, regal woman, with long, luscious hair and a beguiling pair of eyes materialized amid a puff of smoke. She was dressed in a simple, light green dress. Three hazel coloured tails sprouted from her back. Her wounds were mostly covered by her garment except for a few visible bruises on her neck.
Li Meirong was momentarily stunned by the beautiful woman. Was she the fox mother? She just changed into a person!
Not to mention, she was so enchantingly captivating...Li Meirong thought that she was the most beautiful person she had ever seen other than the Zhu's.
"You turned into a human…" Li Meirong whispered in awe, stating the obvious.
One of the cubs barked in response, as though he proudly responded, "Of course, silly girl!"
The beautiful mother covered her lips with the palm of her hand, hiding her smile. "For us Fox Demons, after three thousand years we are able to change into human form but we don't turn into humans. We remain foxes who are able to camouflage better in society." she turned to the side in order to better show her furry tails for a proper explanation, "my kind acquires a tail for every thousand years of our lives. After rigorous practice, we are also able to conceal them from sight."
"Oh...I understand." Even the simple looking animals were formidable! Didn't this mean that beautiful fox mom was more than three thousand years old?!
This world felt truly magical for Li Meirong at this very moment. She knew that demons were able to grow stronger as they aged but to change into a human shape? That was wholly unexpected!
As she kept contemplating her newfound discovery, Li Meirong spread her hair to the side and untangled the kit who messed around with her locks.
The Fox Demoness bowed her head and said, "I wanted to thank you for saving my family, were it only a few days more, my cubs would have been taken away from me! In order to repay your kindness, I am willing to match my female cub as a mating pair with your Fox Spirit cub."
The Fox Demoness kindly suggested, thinking that Li Meirong's original intention for going inside the shop in the first place was to offer her fox cub as a potential, future stud.
The image of golden and snow coated fox puppies happily playing in her cabin made Li Meirong feel tempted by the prospect!
Unbeknownst to her, a very grumpy Bai Qingyue waited outside the room and peeked through the open door, overhearing the conversation. At first, he was about to angrily rush inside and throttle the stupid mother but when he saw the Cubs tossing and playing with Li Meirong. The sight instantly placated his ire, making his cold eyes soften as he imagined his own young playing on their mother's lap.
Surely, my wife won't sell me off...
Bai Qingyue held his breath, waiting for Li Meirong to refute the mother's words.
"That sounds great!" Li Meirong's melodious voice could be heard as she answered cheerfully.