Cultivation Struggles of a Lowly Fox

The Queen stared at Aiko for some time. She was confused about the effects of the bath.

'I have not even used that Pill yet and this is what happened?' The Queen once again probed her little ones Beast Core. 'I still don't understand...' She shook her head.

Aiko munched on the meat that the Queen made her, she was replenishing her Beast Core Energy.

Aiko stared at the dumbfounded mean Fox and snorted.

The Queen's lips twitched, but she didn't say anything, she would interrogate her little servant once she learned how to talk.

'She wants to Evolve, which means she will be able to talk.' The Queen abruptly paused her thoughts. 'Does she want to talk with me so soon that she would rush it?' Her heart was quite sweet.

Meanwhile, Aiko was thinking about what to do with the Evolution.

'The system says it won't advance my Beast Rank... Does that mean that the Level requirements stay the same or will they still advance?' Aiko pondered on it. The system didn't want to tell her about that and there was another problem.

'Give me a refund you goddamn scammer!' Aiko roared at the system.

[[Appraisal] Activated!]
[Grass]
[Rock]
[Tail]
[Dirt]
[Ring]
[Pouch]
[Human?]

Not only the appraisal was complete shit, but it even cost her so much Stamina!

'At least give me some useful information about things!'

[Grass: Plant]

'@%#$#@%$' Aiko slurred her curses at the system for this useless thing that didn't want to level up.

'I will get you for this system!' Aiko made a vow in her heart to properly punish the system for this scamming.

'I will remember everything!'

The very cool [The Ever Shaping Cauldron] was another problem that cost her 1,000 points.

'How the fuck am I supposed to eat metal!? And what kind of metal?!' Aiko was upset, she thought that she would just have to make this thing outside and then pair with it like she would have to with those fancy [Storage Rings].

That was not the case. The User had to swallow metal, melt it inside her stomach, transfer it around her Beast Core and then shape it by the manual that came with it!

'I don't even have that Divine Sense thingy! How am I supposed to do that!'

...

Aiko was crumbling, she was currently with Elder Shu who was once again grooming her tail. It seemed like Elder Shu fell in love with her tail as she didn't do anything else, but pick up combs and comb her tail.

[Enhanced Beauty: Lv.1->4]

Aiko was currently practising advanced Rune that would make things softer. It's only usable on cloth or anything that can be used in clothing, the exceptions are metals.

She was already somewhat familiar with most Runes from Elder Shu and how to write them, but it was a different thing when she actually tried Inscribing it.

She wasn't clumsy, but each Rune had strange endings that she had to pay attention to.

If she didn't properly end it those endings would leak Qi out of the material causing it to crumble like it happened with that table.

She was not very good at this as it required much higher precision than what she currently could achieve and her fox form was too clumsy to make up for it when it came to Inscribing.

Aiko spent another week with Elder Shu when Elder Open Pervert came to them.

"I will be taking our Disciple, there are more Runes to teach her." The Perverted Elder said.

Elder Shu didn't have a nice expression. "You are overdoing it."

"But she learns well, the more Runes she learns the better for her." The Pervert calmly proclaimed.

'He has no shame.' Elder Shu shook her head, while it's true more Runes means easier advancing, that doesn't mean that her little disciple would like to demonstrate such strange Runes.

...

The Perverted Elder 'kidnapped' his little disciple and taught her his Runes for a week straight.

Aiko was crumbling the whole time as she didn't like him nor his Den, she was really embarrassed being here, but...

[Linguistics: Lv.4->5]

'Why did it have to level up now!' Aiko cried in her mind as she watched her Linguistics Level when that pervert talked about the usage of the Runes.

What was even worse... the system also mocked her.

[Earned new Title: [Closet Pervert]]
[Closet Pervert]
[Perverted people are more attracted to you and will try to tempt you more.]

'Just what did I do to deserve this!' Aiko cried in her mind again, but this time she also cursed the system to the nine Hells.

...

Fortunately, the Elder lightbulb arrived to the rescue and moved Aiko to his place where he explained his own Runes and usages.

Fortunately, Aiko didn't obtain any more embarrassing Titles, but she also didn't level up anything. It seems that either these Runes are too easy or not well described for them to count towards her Level.

...

Lastly, the Inky Head moved her to his place and taught her about most of his Runes, while they still had about another week before they had to leave for the [Inscription Apprentice Test].

[Linguistics: Lv.5->6]

The journey by itself would take around a month as that conference is quite far from here.

...

"Again." The Peak Elder frowned seeing Jade Fox.

"Again and I will be coming too." The Queen picked Aiko who had steam rising from her head from all the Runes the Peak Elder hammered into her mind.

Inky Head narrowed his eyes. "You are not an Inscription Cultivator."

"I can hold my ground well." The Queen snorted at him.

"We will see about that." The Peak Elder glared at Jade Fox, challenging her to an Inscription Duel.

They both readied their wooden plates and Inscribed on them.

Naturally, the Peak Elder was completely left in the dust when the Queen Inscribed 34 Runes on the plate without disintegrating it and within a minute.

The Peak Elder only managed 15 in 2 minutes.

'What the...' The Peak Elder's eyes shook as he couldn't believe what happened to the wooden plate in front of him.

It was perfectly maintaining its Qi and didn't leak anything, not to mention the Runes were stable even when Inscribing at that kind of speed.

"Very well, do you wish to challenge the [Inscription Apprentice Test] too?" The Peak Elder asked with some hope.

"What will I get in return?" The Queen knew that they wanted to use her to obliterate Human Inscription Cultivators, but she wouldn't do that for free.

"What do you want?" Inky Head didn't know much about Jade Fox, just that she was extremely beautiful and wealthy because of her Mate.

The Queen placed Jade slip in front of the Peak Elder and he read it.

He frowned several times, but ultimately...

"As you wish, but you need to get the first spot." The Peak Elder negotiated.

"Half, the other half for first spot." The Queen would not be outdone by the old fossil, after all, she was a much older fossil.

"Fine." The Peak Elder conceded.

The Queen caressed Aiko who was now sleeping in her arms.

"How long before the departure and can we make a bath along the way?" The Queen asked.

"Still about the Beast Core." Inky Head sighed. "I will arrange it with the Sect Leader. The departure is in 5 days."

"Very well." The Queen nodded and left, leaving the Peak Elder alone with 20 fewer years of lifespan from the stress.

...

The Queen was preparing the bath.

'If it happens like previously and the Bath is better it would be best to save the Pill for the next bath, after 50% Beast Core Purity the progress slows, but the benefit from the Beast Core doesn't increase.'

The Queen clicked her tongue. She was a bit upset that she let her little servant Beast Core get so bad. 'Let's hope that strange phenomenon can offset the demerits, but for now, let's allow her to bath in Human form so that the next time she doesn't need to bath in the open for all eyes to see.'

The Queen also made a few blinding powders.

The Queen let her fluffball drift on the newly prepared lake, the last one was still unusable and dirty. She didn't have time to clean it and it would probably stay like that for a long time.

The Queen went through her possessions and those that she took from her sweetie just in case she would lose them.

She had a Storage Ring in front of her and an additional pouch. That pouch was always around her little sweetie's neck.

The Queen opened the pouch. There were a lot of herbs and Pills, but most of them were low quality.

'We can sell those with low quality so she doesn't accidentally eat them and then dirty her Beast Core.' The Queen transferred all the low-tier Pills and left the high-quality inside.

'I still can't believe she found such Pure Moon Stone...' The Queen paused. 'She won't be able to use it, but we can keep it for the time being.'

The Queen had no intention of selling it as it could strengthen their future enemies and she didn't want that.

She stopped over a vial with liquid inside. 'WHAT!? WHAT IS THIS ESSENCE DOING HERE?!' She was completely stunned. 'I need to hide this thing...'

She then glanced at the Storage Ring. She took it in her hand and browsed it.

She stiffened and her face completely flushed red.

'T-t-t-that little rascal!' The Queen glared at Aiko.

The Storage Ring was filled to the brim with all kinds of sex toys or erotic things.

'I... can't believe she is keeping this ring.' The Queen was completely red from embarrassment. Her little pure servant was not so pure.

'... Is this her preference...?' The Queen paused, her face stiff. 'Don't tell me she is into girls...'

This would complicate things since each Fox Village had their own little test that would make you into full-fledged adults.

The Queen was stunned for some time, but then she recovered. 'Don't tell me she is after me?!' She glanced towards that floating little rascal. 'I-i-is that why she kept sleeping on my tails?!' The Queen was completely flustered and didn't know what to think.

'S-she is just a Cub, calm down, she can't be attracted yet-Wait what am I saying!???' The Queen's mind was in turmoil. 'Do I even want her to be attracted to me? She is just a servant... right?' She couldn't answer her own questions.

...

[Medicine Bath 4]
[Beast Core Purified by 10%!]
[Beauty per Level increased by 50!]

[[Bath Enjoyer] Triggered!]
[Medicine Bath 3]
[Beast Core Purified by 10%->15%!]
[Beauty per Level increased by 50->100!]

Aiko woke up with a pleasing notification from the system.

She jumped out of the lake with her Quick jump transforming into Fox midway.

She landed near the still flustered mean Fox and stared at her.

'W-why are you staring at me?!' The Queen was even more embarrassed. 'And why are you prettier?! It happened again! What is wrong with your body?!' The Queen was embarrassed AND had a headache again. 'I'm glad you get a better effect, but it's dangerous to be so pretty.'

Even the Queen had some attraction to her little fluffball now.

'While it can't compare to the upper realms, considering she is still in the beginning...' The Queen frowned. 'Good thing I'm going with her, otherwise I can't imagine what might happen to her...'

Aiko laid down on her tails, making the Queen's tails wet.

A chill went up the Queen's spine and she burned red again.

'Y-y-you rascal!' She was scolding her Mate in her mind.

'Dry me! Dry me!' Aiko demanded while rolling on the Queen's tails.

"F-fine! Stop!" She used [Clean] on her and on herself to dry her tails.

Aiko noticed the Queen's red face and snickered.

"Y-you!" The Queen was even more self-conscious. "Tell me about this then, hmpf!" The Queen snorted and she levitated the Storage ring in front of her fluffball.

Aiko turned into her Human form, she liked to play with her fingers now that she had quite good coordination. She played with the ring happily in front of the Queen and she was even more speechless.

'Y-y-you are doing this on purpose!' The Queen wanted to scold her right this moment but paused.

Aiko finally looked into the Storage Ring and stiffened.

'W-what?! Why is this filled with sex toys?!' Aiko's mind blanked and that goofy smile was wiped out of her face.

Her mind blanked, but one particular memory resurfaced.

She was inside a Vault with different-shaped dildos, she then found a Storage Ring and a strange Vial and kept them.

Aiko stood up and got in position.

She then threw the Ring with all her strength into the middle of the pond and left her dark past behind.

...

Meanwhile, the Queen's mind was blank, so blank that she fished that Storage Ring out of the Lake and kept it...