Chapter 46

Since Hu Yuanfei intended to carry out some simple renovations on the house, they did not move immediately. Their current lease would only expire at the end of next month, and moving out now without getting the rent refunded made renting a new place right away rather impractical.

However, Lang Xiao felt that occasionally having things happen outside of plan was not necessarily a bad thing, especially since they were not quite as strapped for cash as before.

Constantly obsessing over making money and driving oneself into a corner was unhealthy.

The entire renovation project was placed in Hu Yuanfei's hands, while Lang Xiao completely stepped back, neither interfering nor asking questions, waiting simply until it was finished to inspect the results.

After the eighth day of the lunar new year, the two resumed work, and their orders gradually increased, mostly consisting of catching mice. Having built a good reputation before the new year, their customer base was now expanding from the surrounding area to the edges of the city, and even people from nearby suburban villages began hiring them.

Hu Yuanfei spent his days busy at the new house, so Lang Xiao had him watch the child at night while she took Qingli out to handle work, occasionally accompanied by Qinglai as well.

Whenever she crossed paths with Qinglai, Lang Xiao would bring him back two newborn, tender mouse pups as a dietary supplement.

Hu Yuanfei always ate every last bite and expressed his wish to take a turn next time, feeling uneasy about constantly not working while Lang Xiao still split the earnings with him fifty-fifty.

Yet every time he tried to transfer the money back, Lang Xiao rejected it.

"You've worked hard taking care of Qingyao at home. From now on, regardless of whether both of us go on a job or not, we split the earnings equally."

Hu Yuanfei opened his mouth as if to say something, but in the end, he remained silent, silently moving his resting spot for the night from the balcony to Qingyao's side.

Since babysitting counted as work, he would do a proper job of it.

Time quickly passed to the Lantern Festival. During this period, nothing particularly out of the ordinary happened—no wealthy tycoon customers, and no supernatural events came knocking at their door. However, on the morning of the festival, Yan Kai called to inform them that the household registration documents for Qingli and Qinglai were ready and they could come pick up their residence booklets.

With two new members added, the great demons' household registers had to be updated to new ones as well.

The group made a trip to the police station. When Qingli and Qinglai saw the page printed with their own names, they were overjoyed and held the booklet in their arms all day long, crouching over it to stare at it every now and then, wondering where would be the safest place to hide it. In truth, they wished they could carry it with them every single day. That way, whenever they encountered other stray little demons in the future, they could flash their household register and let them see that they, too, were legitimate, registered monsters who could walk proudly and openly in the mortal world.

Lang Xiao encouraged them, "Once you are able to take human form, you can get ID cards and bank cards too."

Qinglai began to yearn intensely for the day he could take human form. Previously, he had never been in a hurry about transformation. For one thing, a demon taking human form naturally required a considerable amount of time, and for another, he lacked any strong desire to do so. Even during his difficult days as a stray, when he was starving and rummaging through garbage heaps, he had never thought that he must become a human just to eat a good meal.

Yet at this moment, he wished with all his heart that his cultivation level could be a bit higher.

He leaned close to Qingli's head and asked her, "When do you think I can take human form? Can I do it tomorrow?"

Qingli used her paw to push his overly close head away. "No, not tomorrow."

"How about the day after tomorrow?"

"Not the day after tomorrow either."

"Then when can I?"

Qingli could not answer this question, so Qinglai turned to Hu Yuanfei instead, gazing at him with watery eyes in anticipation of an answer.

Qinglai had never undergone systematic cultivation, relying entirely on instinct for the first thirty or forty years of his life, and only learning how to wield demonic energy after meeting Qingli. His understanding of cultivation was extremely superficial, and he did not even know the specific process of transformation, naively believing that with a little effort, he would achieve it soon.

Hu Yuanfei scratched the back of his neck. His own transformation had happened naturally; once his cultivation reached a certain stage, the shift occurred, taking him a little over a hundred years in total.

In truth, Qinglai actually possessed quite impressive innate talent. To have reached this stage without any formal cultivation might also be related to the things that old Daoist priest had fed him.

"You... it might happen soon, or it might take a long time."

This was practically no answer at all. Qinglai dropped his head in disappointment, resting his chin on his paws, with the household register pinned right beneath them.

Hu Yuanfei rolled his eyes thoughtfully. "Actually, there is a shortcut if you want to transform faster."

As soon as those words left his mouth, Lang Xiao's gaze swept over with stern severity.

Hu Yuanfei hurriedly shut his mouth, but Qinglai had already caught the words. He darted eagerly in front of Hu Yuanfei, his eyes sparkling. "What method?"

Feeling the weight of Lang Xiao's stare, Hu Yuanfei shrank his neck back. Knowing that he needed Lang Xiao's permission, Qinglai raised his front paws and bowed repeatedly before her, looking both pitiful and adorable. Lang Xiao had no choice but to wave a hand dismissively.

With permission granted, Hu Yuanfei immediately said with excitement, "It's very simple: seeking a bestowal." Pausing briefly, he quickly explained, "But this method also has a very high chance of failure. Once it fails, your cultivation might be completely destroyed, making it extremely difficult to ever progress in cultivation again."

It was safe to say the punishment was exceptionally harsh.

Foxes and weasels seeking bestowal from humans were relatively common, and folktales were filled with such legends. However, no one had ever heard of a dog seeking a bestowal from a person.

Hearing that his cultivation could be completely ruined, Qinglai understood immediately that this path was out of the question. No matter how impatient he was, he could not take such a massive risk.

He slumped back down listlessly.

Lang Xiao slapped the fox over the head. "Don't dabble in crooked paths."

Seeking a bestowal meant taking a shortcut by borrowing human fortune—relying on human destiny. Anything borrowed had to be repaid eventually, and even if one gained temporary benefits, the future was by no means guaranteed to be good.

Hu Yuanfei clutched his head in defense. "I cultivated honestly and transformed on my own accord; I never took any crooked paths. I was just passing on experience to Qinglai, pointing out that such a method exists. For our fox clan, it is actually a legitimate method of cultivation, and one of our ancestors attained human form through a bestowal."

"And what happened to that ancestor of yours later?" Lang Xiao asked.

Hu Yuanfei blinked his eyes. "Well, he died; a farmer killed him. I heard about it from a fellow clansman. That ancestor possessed the art of skin-disguise and loved to cultivate by borrowing human fortune, never once failing. Once, he set his sights on a farmer brimming with vital energy, so he slipped into the skin of a young bride, sat waiting by desolate roadside graves in the middle of the night for the farmer to pass by, and claimed to be visiting relatives from another village with a sprained ankle, asking the farmer to carry him back to the village. Little did he expect that the farmer carried him all night, tying him to his back with a trouser belt to keep him from getting down, straight until daybreak when he carried him to the Temple of Lord Guan, tied him to the divine statue, and chopped his head off with a single axe-stroke, then drank his blood dry. Later, some clansmen wanted to go exact revenge, but the farmer saw right through them and killed them too. After that, many clansmen hid deep in the mountains and dared not come down until the farmer had died of old age before they finally returned."

Qingli and Qinglai, hearing this story for the very first time, listened in wide-eyed astonishment and trembling awe.

Lang Xiao praised, "That farmer could be considered a man of formidable willpower."

Some fearless human beings, armed with righteous spirit and unyielding bravery, were impervious to ghosts and demons. Even accomplished cultivating demons could not easily harm such individuals.

Hu Yuanfei sighed, "It's a pity that farmer had already died by the time I gained spiritual awareness, so I never got to see what he looked like."

Lang Xiao raised her chin and glared at him. "You should be thankful you didn't." Otherwise, this fox would have ended up as dried fox skin.

She turned to comfort the two little demons. "Don't you worry. If you cultivate properly, there is hope of becoming human in two or three years. If you encounter a stroke of good fortune, you might even achieve your wish within a year."

The timeline she gave was quite concrete, and Qinglai, who had been frightened by Hu Yuanfei's story, felt much happier. Two or three years was nothing; he could wait.

That day was the Lantern Festival. Instead of eating sweet rice dumplings, the family had previously bought semi-finished lion's head meatballs. Since they were round anyway, boiling them in soup would serve just as well as dumplings.

The City God Temple in Xinghuan City was holding a lantern festival, and the family set out after dinner to join the bustling crowd. However, they had not anticipated that the temple grounds would be so overwhelmingly crowded, with the streets packed almost airtight.

Lang Xiao carried Qingyao in one arm while Qingli squatted on her shoulder, and Qinglai nestled in Hu Yuanfei's arms. The five of them squeezed into the thick of the crowd and managed with great difficulty to purchase a single lantern. All around them echoed a chaotic jumble of voices, hawking cries, and music, while colorful fireworks burst continuously overhead. Most areas of Xinghuan City banned fireworks, permitting them only in designated approved locations, which was one of the reasons why this area was so packed.

For the two great demons, such a chaotic din was truly too noisy, but perhaps the festive atmosphere brought a sense of joy, as they found themselves able to tolerate it after all.

Qingyao shook the lantern in her hand, her gaze constantly captivated by the various colors and sounds. Her eyes could hardly take it all in, spinning her head from left to right like a little top without a single moment of rest.

Suddenly, her attention was caught by someone. As Lang Xiao carried her past, Qingyao stretched out her arm, waving her lantern toward that person and letting out soft baby noises.

Lang Xiao followed her gaze and spotted someone standing in the open space between two stalls. The figure wore armor resembling that of an ancient imperial guard, stood exceptionally tall, and had a sword sheathed at the waist. Their face was pale and solemn, with their head emitting a faint, glowing light.

This person's gaze scanned the passing crowd alertly from side to side. When Qingyao waved her lantern over, he turned his head to glance back and promptly locked eyes with the child.

Qingyao flashed him a smile, feeling deeply curious about his glowing head.

The stranger was somewhat surprised that Qingyao could see him, but he quickly noticed the person carrying the child and the individual beside her.

These creatures turned out to be demons!

Standing his ground, the man nervously and defensively pressed a hand against the hilt of his sword at his waist, the glow atop his head growing brighter than before, as if he were ready to vanish into a beam of light at any moment.

"I am a patrol guard under the command of the City God. With the festival bringing many mortals today, I ask that you several cause no trouble, or else Lord City God will certainly show no mercy!"

Hu Yuanfei stretched his neck to peer toward the City God Temple ahead. So there really was a City God presiding over this temple after all.

Lang Xiao nodded to him. "We are merely strolling around and will cause no trouble. Thank you for your hard work, Officer."

"Thank you for your understanding."

After a brief exchange of greetings, the ghost guard resumed his post and continued carrying out his duties.

Qingyao rolled her eyes, reached out, and touched the guard's armor, finding the surface icy cold before quickly pulling her hand back.

Not fun to touch.

When passing the temple entrance, the four demons merely glanced inside and did not step in. The two little demons dared not enter such a place, while the two great demons had no desire to go inside either.

They had no particular friendship with the City God, and since the City God was busy at this hour, they saw no reason to disturb him.

Hu Yuanfei muttered softly, "How come we never saw the City God come out before? Isn't he in charge of this region? Or does he only manage ghosts and not demons?" In the era they came from previously, City Gods governed both demons and ghosts alike.

Lang Xiao glanced at the less-than-thriving incense of the City God Temple and said in a low voice, "It's probably due to a lack of faith. With fewer people coming to worship, the City God's hands are tied. Look, even the City God only comes out to manage affairs at a time like this; the rest of the time, he's probably resting and recuperating."