Chapter 6

In the Cloud-Touching Cave, the Jade Faced Princess sighed in distress, too worried to even touch her favorite roasted chicken.  

The Bull Demon King alone had already exhausted her, and now three mysterious great demons had appeared—ones who were nothing but wandering souls. What was she to do?  

“Princess, should we go out and take a look?” The fox maidservant Xiao Hong fidgeted nervously. “I just saw that snake transform into human form. What do they want with the young prince?”  

“Fu Li is still young. He’s never even left Thunderclap Mountain—how could he understand the unpredictable hearts of demons?” The Jade Faced Princess sighed, picking up the untouched roasted chicken beside her to bring to her little brother. “Stay here and keep watch. I’ll go see what’s happening.”  

Xiao Hong trembled as she agreed. She had been thoroughly frightened these past few days and truly didn’t dare step outside.  

Fu Li was currently explaining the plight of the demon race to the “uncultured” Senior Lu Lu when the aroma of roasted chicken caught his attention. His eyes lit up, and without another word, he immediately hopped down from the rock. “Senior, wait a moment. Let me come back, and we’ll continue.”  

Roasted chicken, roasted chicken, roasted chicken—his stomach was growling. Only after filling his belly would he have the energy to chat with the senior.  

The Jade Faced Princess lured her silly brother aside with the roasted chicken, warily eyeing the unfamiliar demons. Only after confirming that Shi Qilin couldn’t see them did she whisper, “Fu Li, when will those seniors of yours be leaving?”  

The little fox cub held the roasted chicken, glancing at Senior Lu Lu, who was blocked by the rock, then back at his anxious sister. After a moment’s hesitation, he decided to be honest. “Sis… they probably won’t be leaving anytime soon.”  

The Jade Faced Princess paled. “What?”  

“Don’t panic, let me explain!” Fu Li hurriedly tried to calm her down. Once she had steadied herself, he lowered his voice. “Sis, I know their sudden appearance is strange, but they want to stay on Thunderclap Mountain to recuperate. Even if we object, it won’t make a difference. It’s better to get along with them.”  

He knew it sounded humiliating, but the reality was that without their father, Thunderclap Mountain was nothing more than a piece of fat meat for the taking. If it wasn’t the Bull Demon King, it’d be the Pig Demon King or the Sheep Demon King. As long as Thunderclap Mountain lacked a demon strong enough to command respect, they would never have peace.  

Though the origins of those three seniors were unclear and they didn’t seem particularly reliable, he could sense they meant no harm.  

In other words, they probably didn’t even care about Thunderclap Mountain’s meager territory.  

And people kept calling him stupid—he didn’t think he was stupid at all! He could tell good demons from bad ones.  

He didn’t know what kind of paradise the Northern Kuru Continent was, nor how powerful the three seniors had been in their prime. But based on his own experience, they were likely even stronger than their father had been.  

No matter what, having them stay on Thunderclap Mountain was more beneficial than harmful.  

Most importantly, even if they didn’t want them to stay, would the seniors even listen?  

Their opinions didn’t matter, so they might as well adjust their mindset and accept reality. Living in fear was one way to spend the day; living carefree was another. Since things had already come to this, and they lacked the strength to uphold their family’s legacy on their own, taking an unconventional path wasn’t shameful.  

The more the Jade Faced Princess listened, the more distressed she became. It was all her fault for being so weak. If she had been as strong as their father, her little brother wouldn’t have to suffer like this.

The delicate and beautiful princess was on the verge of tears. If tears could drown demons, the Bull Demon King would have perished on the spot during his first visit to Thunderclap Mountain to cause trouble. “Maybe we should just find a powerful demon to be our son-in-law.”

“No! Absolutely not!” The little fox cub clenched his fists, reiterating for what felt like the hundredth time, “Sis, sons-in-law are unreliable. Since we’re dealing with unreliable types anyway, I choose the three ghostly seniors. Compared to living demons, ghosts feel much more reassuring.”

Jade Faced Princess froze, the handkerchief she was using to wipe her tears instantly soaked through. “Ghosts feel reassuring?”

Her poor little brother—had he developed some kind of psychological trauma toward living demons? How did this happen?

Fu Li was terrified of her tears and swiftly pulled out a stack of handkerchiefs as backup. “Sis, sis, sis, don’t cry yet. If you really don’t like it, I can discuss it with the seniors again. Worst case, we can ask them to recuperate on another mountain.”

“No need. If they’re happy staying here, let them be. It’s best not to provoke them.” Jade Faced Princess wiped her tears and reassured him instead, worried that his temper might flare up and put him in danger. “Fu Li, you need to be careful. Even if they seem harmless, you can’t let your guard down. And you can’t act like a naive cub, thinking every demon you meet is a good one.”

“Never harbor ill intent, but never drop your guard either. Don’t worry, sis, I get it.” The fox cub patted his chest in assurance, nudging Jade Faced Princess to go rest. Then he turned around, picked up a plate of roast chicken, and scampered off cheerfully—clearly paying lip service while doing whatever he pleased.

Jade Faced Princess sighed softly and could only return to brainstorming solutions.

The siblings’ commotion didn’t escape Shi Qilin’s notice. The gap in their cultivation was simply too vast, and the two little foxes hadn’t even thought to set up a barrier before whispering. It really wasn’t his fault for having sharp ears.

Fu Li hopped onto a large rock, tearing off a drumstick to share with Senior Lu Lu before suddenly remembering that spotted deer were herbivores. And even if great demons weren’t picky about their diet, ghosts couldn’t eat anything anyway. “Sorry, Senior. I’m not trying to tease you—it’s just that you can’t eat this right now. Hahaha!”

Shi Qilin: “…”

The fox cub laughed until his eyes were mere slits, reveling in the joy of having an entire chicken to himself—a pleasure only those who experienced it would understand. “Senior, if you really want to try it, I’ll look into ways to ‘burn’ a roast chicken for you later. We raise a lot of pheasants in the back mountain—tender, fragrant, crispy, and melt-in-your-mouth delicious. Guaranteed to leave you craving more. Oh, and don’t tell Senior Shan Ji. I don’t want him to see and feel sad.”

The pheasants raised in the back mountain were ordinary wild fowl without awakened spiritual intelligence, perfect for roasting, braising, smoking, or hot pot. Thunderclap Mountain’s poultry industry had thrived for over a century, with production hitting new peaks every year. Foxes from across the Four Seas and Eight Desolations adored their chickens.

Besides, foxes loving chicken was just nature. He couldn’t stop eating it just because Senior Shan Ji was around.

Yuan Feng returned from his fight in high spirits and, overhearing the cub’s words, asked curiously, “What shouldn’t you tell me? What’s there to be sad about?”

Fu Li: !!!

Why was he so sneaky?

Oh, right. They *were* ghosts.

The fox cub looked up with an innocent smile, his big ears twitching nervously—a dead giveaway of his guilt. “Nothing, Senior. You must’ve misheard.”

“A lying little cub isn’t a good cub.” Yuan Feng raised an eyebrow upon hearing this, noticing how Shi Qilin was standing nearby with a carefree smile, clearly indicating whatever these two had been discussing earlier must have been about him.

Shi Qilin nodded toward Zu Long not far away, then turned and pointed at the roasted chicken in the little fox cub’s hands. “It smells quite good. Would you like to take a whiff?”

Yuan Feng: ???

Only letting them smell but not eat—what kind of logic was that?

“It’s not that we won’t let you eat, but that we can’t eat right now.” Shi Qilin smiled patiently. Even without Yuan Feng speaking, he could guess what the other was thinking. “The fox cub said he’d figure out a way to burn offerings for us. Don’t rush—once the little one finds out how to do it, we’ll get to taste it.”

Fu Li: …

He had just been joking earlier.

The fox cub glanced at the large chicken leg in his hand, then at Yuan Feng, whose eyes were practically screaming “I want to eat,” and his little face scrunched up in conflict. “Senior Shan Ji, this is roasted chicken.”

Cannibalism—isn’t that a bit too cruel?

“Who told you I was a pheasant?” Yuan Feng paused, then turned to glare fiercely at Zu Long before patiently explaining to the little fox cub, “I’m not a pheasant. I’m a phoenix.”

Fu Li nodded like a chick pecking at rice, responding earnestly, “Yes, yes, Senior is a phoenix—the great Yuan Feng who once ruled the Prehistoric Era. But phoenixes and pheasants are both birds. Isn’t it a bit… um… inappropriate for you to eat roasted chicken?”

Well, demons who’ve gained sentience and ordinary animals probably don’t count as the same. His koi fish friend loved eating fish, so if Senior Shan Ji liked eating chicken, maybe it wasn’t that strange.

Yuan Feng frowned, first glancing at Zu Long and Shi Qilin beside him, then scrutinizing the silly little fox cub from head to toe, unsure of the current situation. “You know who I am?”

He had just gone for a stroll in the sky—how had his identity been exposed the moment he returned?

Fu Li gave him a deeply conflicted look, swallowed the chicken in his mouth, and began reciting with dramatic flair, “I also know the two with you are Senior Zu Long and Senior Shi Qilin. The three of you survived great calamities and must have great fortune ahead. To still be drifting around after all these years—truly impressive!”

Yuan Feng: …

Right, still the same little fool.

He had thought even if Zu Long and Shi Qilin were foolish, they wouldn’t expose their identities in front of a little fox cub. They hadn’t even figured out why they’d awakened—if they went around boasting about being former rulers of the Prehistoric Era, they’d be courting true annihilation.

Pheasant it is, then. Since he couldn’t reclaim his body right now, he might as well humor the little fox cub.

Yuan Feng pinched the cub’s fluffy ears and declared with mock seriousness, “Pheasants have meat in their diet. Pheasants themselves are also meat. Therefore, pheasants can eat meat—meaning pheasants can eat roasted chicken. Do you think I’m right?”

Fu Li twitched his lips, silently turned around, and sped up, devouring the roasted chicken on his plate in a few bites. Then he turned back with a smile. “Don’t worry, Senior. I’ll go find out how to make offerings to spirits right away. I’ll make sure you all get to taste just how delicious Thunderclap Mountain’s specialty pheasant is.”

He’d already finished eating—could they stop staring at the empty plate now?

Yuan Feng was quite amused teasing the little cub. After playing to her heart’s content, she lazily leaned against a rock to bask in the sun. “I heard there’s a Rocky Mountain near Thunderclap Mountain, and beneath it lies the Azure Wave Pool, where an old dragon known as the Ten Thousand Saints Dragon King resides. Little fox cub, do you know of this?”

“I do, I do!” Fu Li was very familiar with the local demons. Though he’d never left Thunderclap Mountain, he had watched *Journey to the West*—that classic drama dominating every summer and winter break. Who didn’t have a childhood where they ignored the beautiful ladies just to watch the Monkey King?

The little fox cub, full of energy after his meal, eagerly shared gossip with the three elders, his eyes sparkling. “The old dragon of Azure Wave Pool has a feud with the West Sea Dragon Palace. His daughter, the Ten Thousand Saints Princess, was originally betrothed to the Third Crown Prince of the West Sea. But now, the son-in-law of Azure Wave Pool isn’t the prince—it’s a powerful demon called the Nine-Headed Bug.”

The Third Crown Prince of the West Sea, White Dragon, was also an unlucky fellow. He had no idea his newlywed wife was secretly involved with another demon, let alone that the two would be bold enough to openly flirt on his wedding night—and in his bridal chamber at that! Who could tolerate such a thing?

White Dragon, his blood boiling with rage, burned a treasure bestowed by the Jade Emperor in a fit of anger, only to land himself in deep trouble.

Logically, a father should side with his own child. Take his fox father as an example—whenever he fought with the carp spirit in the river, his father never took the carp’s side. No matter why he fought, the little fox cub could never be at fault.

He was just an adorable little fox—what ill intentions could he possibly have?

But the West Sea Dragon King wasn’t like his fox father. When it mattered, he was utterly unreliable.

Who knew what that old Dragon King was thinking? In the TV series, he seemed so mild-tempered when tricked by the Monkey King, yet when it came to his own son, he was shockingly cold and ruthless.

Not only did he not side with his own child, but he also reported his son’s burning of the treasure to the Heavenly Court. If not for Guanyin Bodhisattva’s intervention, White Dragon would have been executed by the Jade Emperor.

Poor White Dragon—probably still suffering at Eagle Grief Stream to this day.

Zu Long: Expressionless.jpg

He knew the dragon clan had it rough, but he never imagined it could be this bad.

This was beyond endurance!

Fu Li was quite the storyteller, vividly recounting the dramatic love triangle between White Dragon, the Ten Thousand Saints Princess, and the Nine-Headed Bug with all its ups and downs. He even took the opportunity to throw shade at the Bull Demon King. “The Bull Demon King is friends with the Ten Thousand Saints Dragon King. Birds of a feather flock together—clearly, they’re both no good.”

A faint smile curled Yuan Feng’s lips. Well, she could tell just how much he despised that old bull.

Meanwhile, the Bull Demon King, who had just been subtly roasted by the little fox cub, trudged away from Thunderclap Mountain covered in dust. Dismissing his ox-headed minions, he sighed deeply at the clear blue sky.

Emerald Cloud Mountain was off-limits, and Thunderclap Mountain wouldn’t let him in. He, the mighty Bull Demon King—handsome and capable—how had he fallen to such a state?

Ah well. Might as well go drink with the Wan Sheng Old Dragon. At least it was a place to stay.

Author’s Note:  

Fox Cub: I strongly recommend all fathers in the world learn from my fox father!  

Fox Father: My child speaks the truth!