A Sudden Change of Heart

“Bai Yu, you son of a b*tch! I told you to take care of the kids, and this is how you do it?!” Jade Mastiff had planned to tear that group of bastards to shreds, but he was finally persuaded to stand down.

Dan Fusheng had pulled him back, terrified that the conflict would start again. The fox-demon had no choice but to stop his rampage.

Dan Fusheng, that kid…

That kid…

Jade Mastiff slammed the desk with force. “I’m telling you, if this happens again, I’m not letting it go!”

Bai Yu could only soothe him. “This time it was our mistake. We will strictly demand that the official staff not disturb Dan Fusheng’s group. You know the authorities won’t take this opportunity to harm him; it would not benefit anyone if things got out of hand. The incident will be handled seriously and transparently this time!”

Outside the office, Ji Wujiu, who was helping watch the children, was holding all three kids. His height was a result of his specialized cultivation; standing at over three meters tall, he looked incredibly awkward cradling three toddlers.

Jade Mastiff had entrusted the three children to Ji Wujiu because the giant was powerful and principled. During the Millennium of Chaos, he had not sided with any faction, focusing solely on his own cultivation.

“They say you are still pure?” Ying Wangyou was the first to recover from her crying fit. “How old are you?”

“Around two thousand years old, I’m not entirely sure.” Ji Wujiu did not count his own age, as he spent most of his life in deep seclusion.

Ying Wangyou’s eyes widened. “How can someone over two thousand years old still be considered pure?”

“My entire cultivation was given to me by my Master before his death, so I gained great power at a young age,” Ji Wujiu explained patiently. He glanced at Dan Fusheng, then added, “I stayed by the Demon Lord’s side for a while back then. It could be considered… kidnapping?”

Hearing this, both Ying Wangyou and Chen Gui immediately stepped in front of Dan Fusheng defensively. The little boy shrunk back, scared again. ‘Was this giant an enemy?’

“You found my cultivation method interesting, so you kept me by your side for a while. After my character stabilized, you released me, which actually solved a major hurdle for me.” Ji Wujiu had only been by Dan Fusheng’s side for less than ten years, but those years were particularly memorable in his long life.

“So, my Junior Brother is your benefactor!” Ying Wangyou’s mood immediately lightened.

“It’s hard to say.” Ji Wujiu shook his head. “Back then, he made me cook, do laundry, and serve tea. He even made me mend his clothes. Dan Fusheng clearly had the power to do it himself, but he chose to make me do it instead.”

Ying Wangyou: “…”

Fortunately, Ji Wujiu was sincere. “Later, I realized he was barely surviving himself. He had no plan to keep me for long, and our relationship wasn’t great, so I left without hesitation.”

He feared the children might not understand, so he explained in simpler terms: “Just like how humans will not get too attached to wild animals destined to return to nature. There was no explanation from the Demon Lord, and he even hit me with deadly force once, so I can’t be sure of his true intentions.”

Speaking of this, Ji Wujiu had more doubts. He was a true cultivator who had lived from the heyday of the old Yu Kingdom to the present, and he had seen Ying Wangyou in her prime.

Ying Wangyou was still arrogant and easily angered; she hadn’t changed much. Chen Gui had also not changed much—his posture was still straight, and his expression was serious. What surprised Ji Wujiu the most was Dan Fusheng.

Why did he become like this? It shouldn’t be. This child was clever, but he was too good at reading the room. To put it nicely, he was considerate; to put it bluntly, he was cowardly. He was not a “pure” child; he always thought too much. This overthinking was not good for early cultivation; it was easy to go astray. How had Dan Fusheng become so fragile?

Jade Mastiff was also thinking about this. After arguing with Bai Yu, he stormed out of the office and scooped up the three children.

When Dan Fusheng saw him, his eyes lit up. The fox paused, then couldn’t help but nuzzle Dan Fusheng’s cheek. He didn’t think about how Dan Fusheng had started his cultivation. Unlike Ji Wujiu, Jade Mastiff had raised Dan Fusheng from a young age. Dan Fusheng had not let him get involved in that complicated conflict, so their relationship was closer and purer.

Jade Mastiff didn’t know Dan Fusheng’s adult self well; he had once held his breath to achieve great things just to meet him as an equal. Later, after experiencing too much, he gave up. He had tried to get more attention from Dan Fusheng, hoping to heal his own inner chaos and emptiness. He thought their relationship would remain on the surface, with a comfortable distance where they would both be at ease. It was hard to guess. He knew the adult Dan Fusheng could be a gentle leader, but he could also pet someone’s head one moment and kill them the next.

But why was this once-cold “leader” now a sensitive, fragile child?

Jade Mastiff was deeply distressed. He brought the three children back to the small courtyard, placing them in the nest he had built with cushions and snacks, and then he used his tail and body to encircle them. He licked and nuzzled Dan Fusheng’s face, over and over.

What kind of hardship had this soft, gentle child been through to become such a shameless and relentless little turtle in his adult life?

The Jade Mastiff of the past had only known a powerful Demon Lord; he had never seen Dan Fusheng yield to anyone. He couldn’t accept Dan Fusheng appearing so helpless! He felt that his sudden, overwhelming “paternal affection” was completely Dan Fusheng’s fault. The once super-powerful “father figure” had suddenly become a sensitive child; how could he let go? Moreover, he now had a real chance to protect him.

Jade Mastiff cleaned Dan Fusheng’s face with his tongue, then pushed his large head into the boy’s embrace.

Recently, the other dogs at the Qianyu Sect had been looking at Jade Mastiff with strange expressions. They didn’t know his gender, as his important parts had been hidden by magic to avoid scaring the children. But the local dogs could sense his anxiety; whenever the children were not by his side, he would start pacing obsessively. One mother dog was even considering whether to improve her relationship with the big white fox so they could take care of the puppies and the children together.

Jade Mastiff didn’t know he had become a potential ally of the stray dogs; he was still licking Dan Fusheng’s face in worry. “What should I do? You’re too easy to bully like this.”

“I’m sorry, I’m too weak,” Dan Fusheng whispered, already developing a habit of blaming himself.

Fortunately, the sister and brother around him were normal.

“You have no problem! You’re only five! Being weak at five is normal,” Ying Wangyou huffed. She felt her power returning; she was strong, she could protect her younger brothers.

Chen Gui nodded. “You should not apologize. Those who should apologize are them; they started it.”

Ying Wangyou rubbed her younger brother’s face, hoping he would cheer up. Chen Gui, however, did not dare to pat Dan Fusheng’s face, feeling it was impolite.

Looking at the slightly blushing Chen Gui, Jade Mastiff decided to be good to this True Monarch Yaoling in the future; his advice was simple but effective. He wanted to lick Dan Fusheng again, but Ying Wangyou stopped him. “Your brother’s face is covered in fox fur! You’re going to turn his face into a fur cake!”

Jade Mastiff didn’t mind, encircling the three children even tighter with his body. What would these three do without him?! They couldn’t live without him—especially Dan Fusheng!

But Jade Mastiff was a mature great demon, and he couldn’t always be by their side. The school he founded in the city was always calling him back with problems. He hesitated for a long time, afraid that after he left, something terrible would happen to the kids.

And it turned out his concern was justified.

He had temporarily left the three children in the care of Bai Yu and Ji Wujiu. Ji Wujiu was determined to be a responsible babysitter; he had even researched modern child-rearing concepts. But when he arrived at the courtyard, he saw a large dog lying in the snack nest instead.

It was a large black-and-tan dog, and there was a group of small puppies and the three children huddled in its arms.

Ji Wujiu: “…”

The giant was at a loss.

The three children in the mother dog’s arms had adapted well, hugging the puppies and sleeping soundly. Dan Fusheng’s group were, after all, still children. When the stray dog had first entered, they were a bit confused, but after seeing so many small puppies crying for warmth, they forgot their doubts.

The three children had started taking care of the chubby puppies on their own. The small dogs had just learned to run, and they were jumping around them. The three children were happy, running with the puppies, and when they got tired, they would hug them and sleep—one kid and two puppies each.

When Bai Yu entered the courtyard, he was also stunned. He recognized this dog; he had seen it wandering the Qianyu Sect mountains before.

Ji Wujiu carefully took a photo with his phone. His physique was too large, and the phone in his hand looked particularly small; his fingers were much thicker than ordinary people’s, making it easy to mis-type on the screen.

Jade Mastiff, who received the picture, was immediately enraged: [This is how you help me raise the children?! You let a stray dog raise them?! Do you not even want to hold them?!]

At this time, Ji Wujiu’s message finally finished sending: [Did your wife come to help?]

Jade Mastiff: [???]

Jade Mastiff: [Your wife is more like it!!! Can’t you tell that this dog has no cultivation?!]

After a while, Ji Wujiu replied to his first message: [It’s not mine, I just arrived.] Then he went quiet again.

Jade Mastiff was going crazy: [Can’t you use voice messages?! Ah?!]

Ji Wujiu, who had typed five incorrect characters, was stunned, then carefully deleted them. During the deletion, he accidentally touched the keyboard multiple times, and had to re-delete.

Finally, the mother dog couldn’t stand the giant hovering over her nest anymore and started barking fiercely at Ji Wujiu.

Half a minute later, Jade Mastiff received Ji Wujiu’s voice message.

“Your Senior Sister might not be very happy,” Ji Wujiu’s tone was sincere, and the voice message was accompanied by furious dog barking, which proved his point.

Jade Mastiff: “…”

He felt his blood pressure rising.

Ji Wujiu’s second voice message came: “Do you have any suggestions? The dog won’t let us get close to the kids now.”

Jade Mastiff didn’t even know that dog!!! Where did she even come from?!