Mo Fan looked at the boy in front of him with anticipation.
His reasons for saving the boy were twofold: first, out of sympathy for a human child, unwilling to let him be eaten by that fox demon; second, and more importantly, he wanted to know if the boy could read and teach him to do so.
Of course, for Mo Fan, the second reason was the main one.
He hadn’t considered asking the fox demon for help, as it was unlikely to yield results. Every demon he knew, without exception, was illiterate.
He didn’t expect those lazy, gluttonous demons to have the patience to learn to read.
However, the boy’s response left Mo Fan quite disappointed.
“I can’t read. My family’s poor, we couldn’t afford a tutor.”
The boy lowered his head, subconsciously twisting the hem of his clothes, and said no more.
Mo Fan sighed lightly, thinking to himself, “What am I doing? Pinning my hopes on a kid and causing myself trouble!”
“Well then, since you’re free now, off you go!”
Mo Fan waved his hand, signalling that the boy could leave.
The boy trembled at his words, then looked up at Mo Fan, his eyes reddening. “Big Brother, I… I’m scared. Can you…”
“Don’t even think about it!”
Mo Fan cut the boy off and turned to walk away.
What a joke! A grand demon like him had already done enough by saving the kid. And now the boy wanted him to escort him back?
You’re scared? You think I’m not?
That’s human territory!
Mo Fan hadn’t gone far when the boy’s crying reached his ears. Feeling irritated, he thought, “Mo Fan, Mo Fan, don’t play the good guy. Let him cry if he wants to, it’s better than losing his life.
Besides, you’ve already saved him once. You don’t owe this kid anything!”
“Yeah, damn it, I’ve already saved him once. If he dies in these mountains, wouldn’t that be a waste?”
Mo Fan’s thoughts were conflicted. He knew full well that, with the boy’s abilities, he wouldn’t make it out of the Demon Spirit Mountain Range before being devoured by wolves, tigers, or leopards.
“What a hassle!”
Mo Fan turned back, walked to the boy, and looked at him crying with a stern face. “Stop crying, you’ll attract wild beasts!”
“Big Brother…”
The boy, sitting on the ground crying, froze and stared at Mo Fan, clearly not expecting this seemingly fierce bald brother to return.
He had been genuinely terrified.
“Why… why did you come back?” the boy asked, stunned.
“If I didn’t, you’d be eaten by beasts. So I thought about it and decided to see this through, send you, little Buddha, back home. That way, I’ll feel better too!”
Mo Fan shrugged, then crouched down and said to the boy, “Climb onto my back!”
“Oh…”
The boy nodded, came around to Mo Fan’s back, and climbed onto his slightly broad shoulders.
Carrying the boy, Mo Fan gave a wry smile. “I don’t know if I owed you in a past life. A grand demon like me… cough, cough…”
“Big Brother, what’s wrong?”
“Nothing, just cursing myself for biting off more than I can chew.”
With a dark expression, Mo Fan carried the boy and walked off, soon crossing the ravine and heading east.
On the way, Mo Fan suddenly asked, “What’s your name?”
“Bao’er.”
“…”
“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing, it’s a decent name. Where’s your home?”
“Yunling Village.”
“You were grabbed by a demon and brought to these deep mountains. How come you’re not scared?”
“Because Big Brother’s protecting me, Bao’er’s not afraid!”
“…”
“Big Brother, what’s your name?”
“I’m Lai Bao. Aren’t you afraid of demons?”
“I am!”
“If I were a demon, would you be scared?” Mo Fan asked, genuinely curious about this question.
“Not scared!”
“Why not?”
“Because Big Brother saved me. Even if you’re a demon, you’re a good one. Besides, you’re clearly human, so how could you be a demon?”
Hearing Bao’er’s words, Mo Fan fell silent, a familiar figure flashing in his eyes, causing him to stop.
“Big Brother, why’d you stop?” Bao’er asked curiously.
Clinging to Mo Fan’s back, he couldn’t see ahead and had no idea that, not far away, a youth in green robes with a white fox on his shoulder was quietly watching Mo Fan.
“What a coincidence, we meet again!”
Seeing the youth remain silent, Mo Fan gave an awkward greeting. “I’m Lai Bao, what’s your name?”
“Yan Mo.”
The youth spoke, then glanced at the boy peeking from behind Mo Fan, frowning slightly. “It’s not a coincidence. I’ve been waiting for you.”
“Are you here to kill me?” Mo Fan’s tone grew grim.
“I wasn’t planning to, but if you’ve done evil, I’ll have to.”
Yan Mo shrugged, then suddenly asked, “I sensed the aura of that black fox demon on you. So you’ve met her?”
Black fox demon?
Mo Fan instinctively thought of the beautiful woman he’d killed earlier, indeed a black fox demon.
“She’s already dead by my hand!”
“You wouldn’t avenge a demon, would you?”
Mo Fan stared at Yan Mo intently, noting the shock on his face.
“She’s dead?”
Yan Mo was surprised, then turned to the white fox on his shoulder. “Is that true?”
“It should be. I sense a trace of fox clan soul aura on him, and my divination about the black fox demon has stopped. It’s likely true,” the white fox replied.
Seeing the white fox speak human words, Mo Fan’s eyes flashed with surprise. He hadn’t expected this fox to be a demon too, and seemingly quite close to this human cultivator called Yan Mo.
Interesting, a demon hanging out with a human cultivator!
But why didn’t I sense her demonic aura?
Mo Fan was puzzled, but Yan Mo suddenly said, “I didn’t expect you to kill that fox demon. You’ve got some skill. Put the child down, and I won’t trouble you further.”
Hearing this, Mo Fan relaxed. As he set Bao’er down, the boy stepped in front of him, spreading his arms protectively and shouting at Yan Mo, “Bad guy, I won’t let you hurt Big Brother!”
At this, both Mo Fan and Yan Mo were stunned.
“Do you know what he is?”
Yan Mo frowned slightly, whispering, “He’s a demon!”
“I don’t care! Big Brother saved me. Stop talking nonsense, you bad guy!” Bao’er shouted angrily at Yan Mo.
Mo Fan, who had been about to leave, paused. Instead of taking the chance to slip away, he suddenly laughed.
He realised that, even as a demon, doing a good deed felt pretty nice. At least he was enjoying this moment.
“You killed the black fox demon to save this child?”
Yan Mo looked at Mo Fan again, a hint of curiosity in his eyes.
“You could say that,” Mo Fan didn’t deny it.
Yan Mo’s expression turned odd, and he suddenly smiled. “You’re a strange demon, killing another demon to save a human.”
“You’re a strange human, hanging out with a demon!” Mo Fan shot back, looking at Yan Mo just as oddly.
“To me, Yunshang isn’t a demon!”
Yan Mo frowned slightly, then looked at Bao’er again. “Want me to take you home?”
“No way! You’re a bad guy. Big Brother will take me home!”
Bao’er couldn’t understand the exchange between Yan Mo and Mo Fan but kept glaring at him indignantly, prompting the white fox on Yan Mo’s shoulder to giggle.
“Bad guy, and you say you’re not a demon!” Bao’er huffed, glaring at Yan Mo and the white fox.
“…”
Yan Mo was speechless, and the white fox’s laughter stopped abruptly. It muttered angrily, “Little brat!”
“So, can I go?”
Seeing their expressions, Mo Fan knew they likely wouldn’t attack him.
“Of course. You’re an interesting… friend. I hope we…”
Yan Mo began with a smile, but his expression shifted mid-sentence. With a wave of his hand, a yellow talisman with intricate runes glowing faintly red appeared.
“Looks like the academy’s sticky plasters are back,” the white fox whispered.
“No matter.”
Yan Mo waved dismissively, the talisman vanishing. He turned to Mo Fan. “Brother Lai Bao, I’ve got business to attend to, so I’ll go first. I hope you’ll safely escort this child back to the Southern Border. Yan Mo thanks you!”
Yan Mo bowed to Mo Fan, smiling. “Interesting friends like Brother Lai Bao are rare. If we meet again, we must share a drink!”
With that, Yan Mo summoned a wooden sword, leaped onto it, and flew off, vanishing in an instant, leaving Bao’er gasping in awe.
