Chapter 32

Qingyao had indeed caught a cold from the chill.

By the time they reached the hospital, she had woken up in discomfort, squinting her eyes and whimpering softly. In this weather, there were many sick children, and the emergency room was packed even in the middle of the night. The two demons waited for their number until dawn. Every so often, Qingyao would sniffle or cough, and every cough tugged painfully at the hearts of the two great demons.

Hu Yuanfei paced back and forth, restless. "Why is she coughing? She didn't cough when she was sick last time."

Lang Xiao, annoyed by his pacing, snapped, "Quiet down. Last time it was an upset stomach, not a chill."

"Human cubs are so fragile," Hu Yuanfei muttered, though his eyes never left Qingyao. Seeing her in such distress, he reached out and pressed his hand to her forehead.

His hand was very cold, and he feared it might startle the cub. Just as Lang Xiao moved to swat his hand away, she saw Qingyao lean her face into his palm, seemingly comforted by the chill.

Hu Yuanfei stared at her actions in disbelief, his eyes widening as he whispered, "She’s pressing against my hand!"

Although he would usually nuzzle the cub's cheeks, doing so in his original form meant there was always a layer of fur in between, and the sensation had never been this clear. The cheek beneath his palm was so small and soft that it felt as if a little too much pressure might break it. At that moment, Hu Yuanfei’s heart couldn't help but soften.

This cub was so adorable and so precious.

Hu Yuanfei stayed in that exact position for over an hour without moving, continuously using his demonic energy to keep his palm cool for the cub’s comfort. Only when their number was called did he finally retract his stiff arm. Looking at Qingyao, he saw that two faint white palm prints were almost visible on her face.

Fortunately, Qingyao was usually healthy, and her condition was not serious. After the doctor prescribed some medicine, they were allowed to go home.

By the time they arrived, it was already broad daylight, and the breakfast stalls outside were all set up. Despite having done nothing more than take a child to the doctor, both demons felt inexplicably exhausted. Hu Yuanfei listlessly reached for the door handle, but before he could touch it, the door opened from the inside.

Behind the door, a cat and a dog looked at them with eager expressions.

"Welcome back."

The feeling of entering what seemed like a VIP lounge left Lang Xiao and Hu Yuanfei stunned. Hu Yuanfei let out an "Ah," adding, "I forgot we had two little demons in the house."

Li Bai trotted to Lang Xiao’s leg, looking up and asking softly, "How is she? Is she feeling better?"

Lang Xiao nodded. "They prescribed some medicine. The doctor said it's nothing major and she’ll be fine in a few days."

Li Bai sighed in relief, wrapping her tail around herself, her brows furrowed with a hint of self-reproach. "I wish I could have brought her back sooner yesterday. I don't know how long she had been out there by the time I found her."

Lang Xiao glanced at her with slight surprise. Seeing Li Bai’s genuine concern for the cub, she couldn't help but think of the kittens in the basement—those that clearly weren't her own offspring but had likely been rescued by her. Such a kind-hearted little demon was in danger out there; keeping her around might not be a bad idea.

Unaware that she had already been accepted, Li Bai crouched nearby, watching the cub take her medicine and drift back to sleep. She patted the child's back gently, and once the cub was settled on the bed, she followed her into the room, curling up on the floor by the bedside like a guardian cat.

As for the yellow dog, Hu Yuanfei dragged him aside once they entered the bedroom. The fox and the dog sat face-to-face—one relaxed, the other tense. The yellow dog didn't know what the great demon wanted to ask, and its tail was stiff as a rod.

"If you have any questions, feel free to ask," the dog ventured.

Hu Yuanfei didn't really have a specific agenda; he was just thinking about the Golden Retriever they had saved earlier. Before they arrived, the dog had already been rescued by other small demons, and they had simply stumbled upon the aftermath.

"Do you know a Golden Retriever?"

The yellow dog blinked in confusion. It knew far too many Goldens—at least eighty or a hundred.

Seeing its confusion, Hu Yuanfei changed his question: "Then do you know two dog thieves? What grievances do you have with them?"

The yellow dog understood immediately. It seemed the two powerful auras it had sensed back then were these two great demons. Its stiff tail flickered slightly. "They are humans who often drug and steal dogs in the city. Several of my friends were snatched by them and sold to dog meat processing plants. That day, I saw them taking dogs out of the city, so I followed their truck, waiting for a chance to rescue them. Halfway there, I saw them spraying the dogs with water guns. I got angry and couldn't help but attack them," the yellow dog explained. "I have never killed a human."

Hu Yuanfei could tell it hadn't killed anyone, just as the little cat demon hadn't.

"I am not here to hold you accountable for your actions. You did well!" Hu Yuanfei affirmed.

Being praised by such a powerful senior, the yellow dog’s head lifted instantly, its eyes sparkling. "Really?"

"Of course. If it were me, I would have done the same. By the way, how long have you been a demon, and how did you gain sentience?"

The yellow dog wagged its tail, subconsciously feeling this was a secret that should be hidden, but since the senior before him was so much more powerful, there seemed to be no need for concealment.

"I am over fifty years old, born in the Southwest Province. When I was young, I met an old Taoist priest. I don't know what he fed me, but after eating it, I vaguely gained some consciousness. Later, I realized I was different from other dogs; not only could I think, but it seemed I stopped aging."

By the time it was twenty, the dogs the yellow dog had grown up with were already too old to walk, while it was still in its prime. This state continued for thirty or forty years; the second generation of dogs it knew had all passed away, yet it remained lively.

The yellow dog didn't understand anything. When it first discovered it could speak, it was so excited that it immediately told the human who fed it. The human collapsed in shock, and when she woke up, the yellow dog saw the priest she had called. That was the most severe injury the yellow dog had ever suffered; with its shallow cultivation, it had almost been killed by that priest.

The yellow dog fled the city where it had lived for so long and began a life of wandering.

It wasn't until it arrived in Xinghuan City that it met a tabby cat, Li Bai. At the time, Li Bai was fighting a human who abused cats. The human had beaten her until she was covered in blood with a stick. Although Li Bai could already use demonic energy to attack, she was too severely injured to resist further. At the critical moment, the yellow dog, a total stranger, rushed forward without hesitation and saved her.

At the time, the yellow dog hadn't realized Li Bai was also a demon, until it saw her recover at a speed far exceeding that of a normal animal, and realized it had met one of its own.

Li Bai was very grateful for the rescue; she would have died otherwise. To repay the favor, Li Bai, who was over a decade older than the yellow dog, taught it her rudimentary methods of using demonic energy. As the two spent time together, they discovered their situations were very similar and had remained companions ever since.

After listening to the yellow dog's brief account, Hu Yuanfei was intrigued by the old priest. Helping an ordinary animal gain sentience and embark on the path of cultivation was extremely difficult. Just how powerful was this old priest to do it so casually?

"What was that old priest's name? Which temple was he from, and what did he feed you?"

The yellow dog shook its head. "I don't know him. I was a stray in a rural village. The village was very poor, and my parents were village strays too. After I was born, I lived outside and searched for food everywhere. I remember I was always hungry when I was little. I had many siblings, and I could never get enough to eat."

That day, starving, it had planned to go into the fields to find insects. It ran to the entrance of the village and met the wandering old priest.

The priest looked quite elderly, his hair and clothes a mess, leaning on a wooden staff as he rested under a tree at the village entrance. When the yellow dog saw him, it approached to sniff him, hoping for food. The priest broke off a piece of steamed corn bun for it; it didn't taste good, but the dog ate it with relish.

After finishing, it nuzzled the priest and went to the fields to forage. It vaguely remembered finding only a few grasshoppers that day and was still hungry when it returned. Seeing the old priest hadn't left yet, it went up to nuzzle him again and placed a field frog it hadn't eaten yet at his feet. The old priest patted its head and seemed to say something, but it couldn't understand. He then reached into his robes and fed it something else.

The yellow dog completely forgot what that thing looked like, only remembering that after eating it, it wasn't hungry anymore, and its body felt warm and sleepy. Later, the priest stayed in the village for a few days, performing rites for villagers who had lost loved ones, and then he left. The yellow dog never saw him again.

These fragmented memories were things it had recalled only after repeatedly pondering why it was different. It had always remembered him, hoping to meet that old priest again.

Not getting the answer he wanted was within Hu Yuanfei's expectations. He patted the yellow dog's fur. "Forget it if you can't remember. You can just settle down and live here."

Having been petted by the powerful senior, the yellow dog’s ears perked up high. It felt quite happy.

With that affirmation, the yellow dog felt much more at ease and was no longer so reserved in the house.

After taking medicine for two days, Qingyao’s fever was completely gone and her nasal congestion had improved, though she still coughed occasionally—especially whenever she got excited or happy.

Neither demon was in the mood to go out for work. They had postponed all non-essential orders for the past few days, dedicated to staying home and accompanying the child.

A significant event had occurred over these two days. The person they helped the police find the day before yesterday had been airlifted out by helicopter at dawn.

Local news and newspapers had been reporting on it extensively yesterday, highlighting that the person had been found safe. They had also specifically mentioned the names of the two demons, thanking citizens Hu Yuanfei and Lang Xiao for venturing into the snowy mountains to lead the way and find the person.

Because the matter was resolved promptly and effectively, both of their "courageous citizen" rewards were significantly increased, from five thousand to ten thousand—ten thousand for each of them.

This caused Hu Yuanfei’s strained financial situation to improve instantly, and his tail was practically wagging with pride.

What made him even happier, however, were the praises and flattery from the customers in their group chat.

"Boss Hu, I didn't expect you to be able to find people, not just catch mice or find pets!"

"Exactly! Boss Hu and the Boss's wife were even on TV. I thought I heard wrong when I heard your names."

"You should include this news clip in your next advertisement; it's a living endorsement."

"Does the boss have a Weibo account? I'll repost it for you."

"Yeah, I'll see if the local news official account posts it, and I'll help you promote it then."

Hu Yuanfei danced around with his phone, then turned to tug at Lang Xiao. "Look, we're famous! Hehe, they're all praising us. We definitely won't have to worry about business in the future."

It seemed there were benefits to helping the police after all.

Lang Xiao wasn't as excited as he was. If she had known beforehand that Qingyao would run off, she would have preferred to forgo the ten thousand.