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

Zhen tugged at Zhen Tian's sleeve, "Sister Zhen Tian, ​​was Auntie like this before?"

"Hmm...she does like children, but she rarely does. Perhaps this child is someone she really likes." After thinking for a moment, this was the only answer Zhentian could give.

Bai Qingyu doesn't just adopt any child she sees. Her criteria for adopting children are both high and low; in reality, it all comes down to her heart.

It is said that human nature is inherently good at birth, but some children are born bad. Coupled with the surrounding environment and the incorrect teaching of their parents, they eventually become complete brats. Bai Qingyu dislikes such children very much.

No matter how much you teach someone who is malicious at heart, they will never be taught well.

In Bai Qingyu's eyes, Shuten-dōji was a very good kid. Apart from being a bit of a simpleton, he was fine in every other way. He was not a bad demon in essence, nor was he a brat.

"Shinten, Zhen, I'm going. Let's go check out the new house first."

"Zhen, go and say goodbye to the old man first."

Entering the house, Bai Qingyu tidied up Xiaodie quickly, tying her not-so-long hair into two small braids. She casually tapped the book box, and the little snake poked its head out. Bai Qingyu patted her head, slung the book box over her shoulder, and pulled Xiaodie out.

Shuten stood outside, pouting, seemingly lost in thought, probably feeling it was a bit embarrassing to call Bai Qingyu "Auntie".

He's the man destined to become the Demon King, how could he just call any female demon "aunt"!

"What are you still standing there for? I'm leaving."

Bai Qingyu, holding the little girl's hand, turned around and called out to Shuten, then, without waiting for Shuten to follow, strode outside.

Xiaodie turned around curiously and cautiously glanced at Shuten.

As soon as they left the fishing village, a little demon came running towards them; it was a carp spirit.

"Lord Bai, please come with me. The boss has prepared a house for you. Let me take you there."

The carp spirit was a young girl who looked quite young, but in reality, she had been cultivating for far longer than Bai Qingyu. It took her a full forty years just to awaken her intelligence.

Behind the fishing village is a forest, and a little further away you can see a mountain.

While the overall environment couldn't compare to the forests of the Ten Thousand Mountains, it had its own unique charm. If it weren't for the need to be far from the fishing village, Bai Qingyu would have loved to build the cottage by the sea. Every day, she could hear the waves crashing, and open the window to see the azure ocean.

After walking for a short while, Bai Qingyu saw a wooden house and courtyard built by the stream. The wooden house was quite beautiful, much more so than the house she had built in the valley. Not only was there a courtyard, but a forest path had also been built through it.

One road leads to the beach on the other side of the fishing village, and the other road leads to the other side, but I don't know where it leads.

"Please thank your eldest son for me. I'm very satisfied with this place."

"Yes, Lord Bai."

Upon entering the courtyard, one finds it paved with stone slabs, with a pavilion and two swings. Inside, the house is furnished with virtually any type of wooden furniture, except for bedding, making it a "move-in ready" place.

The carp spirit didn't stay any longer. After giving Bai Qingyu a brief introduction to the courtyard, it bid farewell and left.

Bai Qingyu put the book box down, and the little white snake crawled out of the box and sunbathed in the yard.

Deliberately ignoring the accomplice Shuten, Bai Qingyu arranged rooms for Zhentian, Zhen, and Xiaodie. She had brought enough bedding, which she stuffed into her storage ring. After finishing all this, Bai Qingyu still ignored Shuten and pulled Zhentian into the kitchen to make breakfast.

As for why they were pulling Zhentian along, the main reason was that there was no firewood here, and fire-breathing was Zhentian's innate skill, which allowed him to control the size of the fire at will.

With Zhen Tian acting as a tool bird, Bai Qingyu took out bottles, jars, and ingredients from her storage ring and started cooking. A rich aroma wafted from the kitchen. Shuten, who was still pouting in the yard, determined not to leave until he had learned some skills, couldn't help but twitch his nose. The rich aroma of the food was irresistible, constantly wafting into his nostrils.

Having grown up in a temple since childhood, and having only stayed outside for a few years, the best food he could eat during the time he spent in Black Mountain following the Black Wolf Demon was grilled fish. However, even grilled fish wasn't that delicious. These monsters didn't know anything about food and drink; they were content as long as they could eat.

Having never known how delicious food could be in his entire life, Shuten-dōji's stomach started rumbling and his mouth started watering as soon as he smelled the rich aroma of the food.

Inside the kitchen, Bai Qingyu glanced outside, her smile deepening.

He prepared a plate of braised pork early in the morning. When he brought the dish out, Shuten's mouth was watering even more, and Bai Qingyu could clearly see his throat bobbing.

"Call out 'Auntie' again, and come eat with us."

"aunt!"

If you were somewhat reluctant to call Bai Qingyu "Auntie" before, this time it sounds much more pleasant.

For breakfast, Bai Qingyu preferred something light, so in addition to a plate of braised pork, she also prepared some porridge and vegetables. She called everyone over to start eating together. When Jiu Tun entered, he saw that it was all girls. Normally, he definitely wouldn't have stayed. He wouldn't want to feel uncomfortable eating a meal.

But this meal was different.

Bai Qingyu asked Xiaodie to sit next to her, leaving a seat for Shuten-dōji.

This kid's personality is so unruly; we need to find a way to make him behave. Bai Qingyu was also just having fun; she was going to stay here for a few months, so she figured she'd find something interesting to do.

During breakfast, no one spoke. Although Shuten found a seat, he still felt uneasy and didn't eat. It wasn't until Xiaodie, Zhentian, and Zhen finished eating and left their seats that he looked up.

"You can stay and eat at your leisure. Remember to wash the dishes for me later." Bai Qingyu stood up with a smile, stacked the empty bowls and chopsticks together, and walked out of the house.

In the courtyard, Zhen Tian noticed Bai Qingyu coming out and whispered, "What happened to that child?"

"Just teasing him to keep him in line, otherwise he'll want to challenge me whenever he sees me, which would be incredibly annoying," Bai Qingyu said with a smile. She took out the fabric she had given Xiaodie to help her earlier, moved a small table over, and prepared the tools.

Playing around is fine, but we can't neglect our responsibilities.

As usual, Bai Qingyu began to read a book while teaching Xiaodie how to make clothes. Zhen Tian felt bored, so he sat down next to Bai Qingyu and took out a piece of wood to carve something.

Zhen didn't go out either, and she was too lazy to go back to the small fishing village not far away. She sat on the swing, swinging back and forth, staring at the little snake. The little snake couldn't help but look up at Zhen several times. Feeling uncomfortable being stared at, it simply swam to Bai Qingyu's feet and lay down.

Before she could transform into human form, her main food was snakes.

So the way she stared at the little snake made it feel as if it were being watched by a natural enemy, making it very uncomfortable.

After a while, Bai Qingyu finally heard a noise behind her. Shuten, whose mouth and face were covered in grease from eating, came out carrying a bowl, chopsticks, and plate. Judging from the plate, which looked like it had been washed, Shuten was very satisfied with the braised pork.

As soon as he stepped outside, he noticed Bai Qingyu's gaze, and Shuten blushed. "What should we do with these bowls and chopsticks?"

"There's water in the tank, go and wash yourself."

"Oh."

A while later, Jiu Tun came out, having washed the dishes and chopsticks very clean, and even washed the pot as well.

Bai Qingyu propped her cheek up with one hand and said without looking up, "Come sit down."

Shuten subconsciously wanted to say something tough, but no one knew what he was thinking. Although his face was still arrogant, he obediently sat down on the bench that had been prepared next to Bai Qingyu.

"You enjoyed the meal, didn't you? I have a few questions I'd like to ask you."

He closed the medical book, and Bai Qingyu revealed the dagger beneath the surface.

This meal wasn't for Jiu Tun to eat for free; there was something she wanted to understand.

"You killed people, and not just one, am I right?"

Shuten's pupils contracted, and as soon as he turned his head, he saw Bai Qingyu's indifferent eyes.

Her face no longer held that smiling expression, nor that smug grin; it was now only cold indifference.

Not knowing Bai Qingyu, one might assume she was just naturally playful. Seeing her suddenly become serious, Shuten lowered his head and remained silent.

“You are burdened by karmic obstacles, and this has been going on for a long time. Don’t you often feel agitated and think crazy things?”

"Yes, I have killed humans." Shuten-dōji finally spoke after a long silence.

"How many were killed?"

Sixteen people.

"Would you mind telling me the reason? If you don't want to, that's fine too. I won't force you."

"reason......"

Bai Qingyu thought that Shuten was a good kid, and that's why she wanted to find out what had happened to Shuten, why he had karmic burdens, and why he killed those dozen or so people.

When adopting children, Bai Qingyu would always inquire about their past. For example, Zhen Tian, ​​Zhen, and Xiao Die. Unlike Shuten-dōji, they didn't have any karmic burdens, so it wasn't too late to talk about their backgrounds after everyone had gotten to know each other.

Shuten-dōji's situation is different; he has accumulated a lot of karmic burdens at such a young age, so it's best to understand this beforehand.

Of course, it's fine if Shuten-dōji doesn't want to talk about it. He's just meddling in other people's business, so why force him to say it?

Shuten sat down next to Bai Qingyu, his arrogance vanished, and slowly began to recount his past.

According to the rule that every demon in the demon register has a tragic childhood, Shuten-dōji is no exception.

In his own words, he did not know how he was born. He only knew that he woke up by a river and that from the day he became conscious, he knew that his name was Shuten-dōji. He had nothing else, and even his basic understanding of the world was extremely shallow.

Whether it was good luck or bad luck, after he gradually became familiar with the world, he was discovered by a monk who forcibly took him back to the temple.

Because he was young and knew nothing, Shuten-dōji became a page in the temple.

Why insist on having him come? Because this temple has serious problems.

Besides Shuten-dōji, there were many other boys and girls. In addition to cleaning, their daily tasks included entertaining guests. Shuten-dōji was handsome from a young age, and many guests were interested in him. Shuten-dōji was disgusted by doing such things and always resisted. The monks in the temple often punished him by locking him in a cage and starving and freezing him.

Upon hearing this, Bai Qingyu couldn't help but frown. How could there still be disgusting copper-making people in this world?

But thinking about it, it makes sense. What era hasn't had people like this? It's just unbelievable that a temple could do something like this.

The story of Shuten-dōji doesn't end here.

They resisted and resisted for five years. In that year, the whole country suffered a severe drought.

With no visitors, the monks also ran out of food.

They knew that Shuten-dōji possessed extraordinary strength at such a young age, so they sent him out to find food for them.

Out of gratitude for being adopted, Shuten-dōji agreed.

Unfortunately, due to the drought, there were no vegetarian dishes for the monks to eat, so Shuten could only catch some fish and occasionally hunt some rabbits.

Since monks don't eat meat, no one had any choice but to eat it anyway. And Shuten-dōji was still young, so the amount of meat he could catch was getting smaller and smaller.

Seeing that the monks were starving, Shuten-dōji decided to hunt under the cover of night without rest.

When he returned one day, he found that the monks in the temple had round bellies and oily mouths.

He was quite happy at the time, happy that everyone was able to eat their fill.

But then he noticed a detail.

His page, a nine-year-old girl, had also disappeared.

It wasn't until the third page disappeared and Shuten-dōji saw a finger bone in the backyard that he finally understood everything.

In a daze, the drought passed, and the heavens sent rain.

The monks shifted all the blame for their crimes onto Shuten-dōji.

That night, during a heavy rain, Shuten-dōji killed all the monks in the temple.

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