I am Guhuoniao, not an umbrella demon, please do not disturb me.

The young girl is willing to follow Bai Qingyu, what can he say?

"The girl should take her away as soon as possible. The child is young and may encounter monsters if she is out alone."

"Farewell." Bai Qingyu turned around, took Yuzhanjin's small hand, and left without saying another word.

She had a strange feeling about this scholar, and since she couldn't quite put her finger on it, she decided to stay away from him for now.

Before she had taken more than a few steps, the scholar's voice came from behind her again, "My name is Xu Yuanqing. May I ask your name, young lady?"

As soon as she finished speaking, Bai Qingyu picked up Yuzhanjin and vanished from the scholar's sight in a flash. This attitude made the scholar wonder if he had said something wrong; the girl seemed to dislike him.

Bai Qingyu left the scene. The scholar remained silent, pulling a feather fan from somewhere and gently patting it, his brow furrowed as if deep in thought. Soon, an old general clad in golden armor appeared beside him.

"Why don't you just order us to capture this witch?"

The old general had white hair and beard but was still quite imposing. He was nearly two meters tall with bulging muscles and carried two giant axes as big as doors on his back.

Xu Yuanqing lightly tapped his feather fan and strode towards the nearby county town.

"Because this demoness is too powerful, none of us are her match."

Upon hearing this, the old general in golden armor quickly followed, "Should we ask the immortals of Tianyang Palace for help? We can't just watch this demoness take the goddess away. His Majesty has ordered us to bring the goddess back at all costs."

"I know, I will explain this to His Majesty. The matter of the nation's destiny and the dragon vein does not necessarily require a goddess."

Xu Yuanqing's figure was ethereal and elusive, and every step he took gave people a sense of mystery and enigma.

His pensive expression vanished, he did some calculations with his fingers, and a faint smile appeared on his face. "General, you can take your men back now. The matter below cannot be resolved by force. Rather than staying here, you should go back and deliver a message to His Majesty."

"This...then if we leave, who will protect you, sir?"

"I can manage on my own, don't worry about me. You can leave in peace and wait for my good news in the capital."

Xu Yuanqing's expression was calm and confident, and the light wave of his feather fan revealed his spirited demeanor.

The old general still looked worried. Others might not know, but he did. Don't be fooled by this man's extraordinary abilities and ability to predict everything. Even His Majesty said he was a master strategist. In reality, he was just an ordinary person. If he encountered any demons or monsters, the consequences would be unimaginable.

"General, please leave with peace of mind. I am going to Tongzhou, where that witch is also located."

"Tongzhou is surrounded by mountains on three sides, and the demons of Nanshan are all under the rule of the Lord of Nanshan. This Lord of Nanshan is not a cruel demon and will restrain his subordinates. There will be no trouble on this trip to Tongzhou."

“My master is old, but he still owes His Majesty a debt of gratitude. I have already helped him repay two of the remaining three debts, and this last debt will be the final repayment.”

"I'm still waiting to go back and take care of my master in his old age and see him off in his final days. How could I put myself in danger? General, please rest assured and leave!"

"Alright, then take care, sir." Only after saying this did the old general agree to leave.

As soon as he left, Xu Yuanqing's calm and composed expression vanished, replaced by a worried look. All those nice words he'd spoken—that the Lord of Nanshan was not a cruel demon, that this journey would bring no harm—were nothing but lies to deceive the old general.

If the Lord of Nanshan wasn't a brutal demon, would he have led the demons there to slaughter the Mingjiao sect?

The reason I advised him to leave was simply to protect himself.

If the old general continues to follow him, it will only expose him. If he is exposed this time, not only him, but everyone who came with him will die at the hands of that witch.

"Everything in the world can be repaid, but kindness is the hardest to repay."

Before even entering the city, Xu Yuanqing took a detour and headed towards Tongzhou.

The chances of success on this trip are less than 40%.

But he had to go.

Once he repays this last debt of gratitude, he can finally lay down his burdens, return to farming, and care for his master in his old age until his death.

Distance yourself from worldly causes and effects, and wholeheartedly seek the Tao.

"Defying fate is indeed not that simple."

A century ago, the fortunes of the Great Ling Dynasty began to decline year by year. The previous Grand Preceptor used many methods to barely keep the nation's fortunes afloat. However, in the last ten years, the nation's fortunes have begun to weaken again, and there have been far more natural and man-made disasters in the country.

Drought, floods, locust plagues, and epidemics have occurred almost in succession.

Xu Yuanqing didn't have any good solutions until he noticed the changes in Xizhou a year ago when he was making deductions.

As he deduced further, he became convinced that a goddess would be born a year later.

This woman is the reincarnation of the goddess of Xizhou, and the only lifeline for the Great Ling Dynasty.

Everything was going smoothly. The development of Xizhou was not entirely as expected, but the overall development was exactly as he had predicted. The Fate Cult was indeed eliminated, and the Goddess was indeed liberated and successfully reincarnated.

The last step is to find the goddess and bring her back to the capital.

But the problem arose at this last step.

Xu Yuanqing hadn't expected Bai Qingyu to come.

The moment he saw Bai Qingyu, his heart sank to the bottom.

He knew exactly who Bai Qingyu was, which was why he felt the hope was slim.

Snatching the child from Bai Qingyu is impossible, let alone just a few of them. Even if all the elite forces of the Great Ling Dynasty were brought here, it wouldn't work. Going to Tianyang Palace would be even less effective.

This was originally an attempt to defy fate and prolong the destiny of the Great Ling Dynasty; if Tianyang Palace knew about it, they probably wouldn't care.

Even if there is only a slight possibility that Tianyang Palace will decide to intervene, they will definitely refuse after seeing that the so-called demoness is Bai Qingyu.

However, at this point, Xu Yuanqing felt that things were normal.

How could such a heaven-defying act of changing one's fate be smooth sailing? Everything had gone too smoothly before, and even the destruction of Xishan seemed to have been preordained, happening exactly at that particular moment.

After the goddess descended to earth, he successfully calculated her location. Upon arriving at the spot, he saw the goddess just a few steps away.

While making plans in his mind, Xu Yuanqing disguised himself as he traveled.

Bai Qingyu has already seen my face, so I have to disguise myself.

Before long, a handsome scholar with a melancholy expression appeared. At first glance, he didn't seem particularly handsome, but the more you looked at him, the more charming he became. He had no trace of vulgarity, was gentle and refined, and had a touch of melancholy that suggested he was aloof from the world.

With that kind of looks, she'd be snapped up by all sorts of young ladies, and they'd all be secretly engaged.

Fortunately, there is always a way out. Heaven has shown mercy and left a glimmer of hope.

With another sigh, Xu Yuanqing, carrying his book box, gazed into the distance in the direction of Tongzhou.

While the goddess Miketsuhime can indeed elevate the nation's fortunes once again, this does not mean she is the only option.

This is undoubtedly good news.

The bad news is that another person who can improve the nation's fortune is also intricately connected with Bai Qingyu.

To put it bluntly, Xu Yuanqing felt that this person was most likely one of Bai Qingyu's children.

Of course, if that's too difficult, there's a third option...

That is, the Divine Phoenix Bai Qingyu herself...

·

Bai Qingyu was unaware that someone wanted to take her child away. At this moment, she was slowly flying in the sky, protecting Yuzhanjin in her arms.

She held Miketsu in her arms, and Miketsu held the little fox spirit in her arms.

"Are you really my aunt?"

"Of course, otherwise how would I know your name?"

"Oh, I see. Auntie, where is my mother?" Miketsu asked, tilting her little head.

"Your mother went to a very, very far place. Before she left, she told me to adopt you and live with me from now on." Bai Qingyu revealed that extremely gentle smile again.

When she brought Xiaoyao back, she had this smile. Upon seeing this smile, Xiaoyao, who was initially wary, immediately threw herself into her arms and sweetly called out "Mother."

"Okay, Auntie."

Mikoto nodded.

Bai Qingyu's smile was indeed warm, and Yuzhanjin already had a good impression of Bai Qingyu. She had forgotten many things, but some things were engraved in her soul.

Only now was Bai Qingyu finally able to take a good look at this little girl.

She had just been born, but the clothes she wore were exactly the same as the ones she had seen in the sphere, only much smaller in scale.

Her long, white hair was tied up with a gold hair accessory, and her eyes were pure gold. She was just as cute as Xiao Yao was back then, making people want to hug her and rub her gently.

On Miketsu's head, Bai Qingyu saw a stalk of rice, and was somewhat puzzled as to what kind of talent it was.

To be honest, Bai Qingyu always felt that this girl couldn't be described with the word "demon" at all.

She had seen many humanoid yokai, such as Shuten-dōji and Ibaraki-dōji, but both of them retained some of the characteristics of yokai and were quite different from humans. Miketsuhime was different; she was somewhat similar to Ara, and she did not have any yokai characteristics at all.

Not only that, this child doesn't even have any demonic power.

This girl couldn't possibly be called a demon, but for a moment Bai Qingyu really didn't know what race she belonged to.

One thing she had always thought was that Miketsu had been reincarnated, but no matter how she looked at it, it didn't seem like it. To call it reincarnation was more like a "reboot," resetting her state to zero and starting from scratch. This was fundamentally different from what she thought reincarnation was.

"Mizuki, your aunt will take you home later. You will see several older sisters like you. Don't be afraid, they are all family."

"Yes, I'm not afraid."

Miketsu has a soft, sweet voice and a gentle personality.

Bai Qingyu could tell that this little guy was exactly the same as her in terms of personality.

She used to be gentle, even a little too gentle, and was easily swayed by the people of Xizhou.

In Bai Qingyu's view, this was not a bad thing. Gentleness is certainly good, but it would be even better if she could be a little more assertive in her gentleness, so that her gentleness would not become a tool for others to manipulate her.

We should learn from Ara in this regard. When Miketsu grows up, letting her spend some time with Ara might improve things.

Back home, Bai Qingyu put down Yuzhanjin, took her little hand, and walked into the courtyard.

Going out and bringing back a child—if this happened to Bai Qingyu, it wouldn't be surprising to most people, even if they weren't used to it.

"Her name is Miketsu, and she will be your little sister from now on."

Everyone put down what they were doing and gathered around to welcome the new little girl.

While Xiao Yao and Yu Zhuan Jin were chatting, Bai Qingyu came to the side of the white snake Bai Ling'er.

"How's your little green snake?"

"It's all over now. She's really smart. I'll give her some demonic energy every day. Maybe she'll be able to take human form in a few years."

Bai Ling'er was overjoyed. If the little green snake could transform into human form, then she would have a younger sister, a sister from the same clan.

"There's no rush for her to transform into human form. Let's take it one step at a time and see how talented she is. If there's an opportunity, I can help her too." Bai Qingyu took the little green snake and tapped her little head.