A Smile Wipes Away Old Grudges

"Oh, right, Father, I just used that Demon-Slaying Divine Blade on Spirit Fox County Princess."

Walking towards Clear Creek Village, with an attitude of asking questions when she didn't understand, Zhou Hongxia looked at Zhou Changqing and asked, reflecting on what had just happened, "I saw that the Spirit Fox County Princess didn't resist either—"

But somehow, my Demon-Slaying Divine Blade shattered—and the Spirit Fox County Princess seemed quite surprised by it. "I've seen my father before, and it's not like I haven't slain fallen gods who were harming the region—"

Unlike evil gods who harm others without being officially recognized, so-called fallen gods refer to those Orthodox God who were once officially recognized and appointed.

Later, for some reason, it degenerated into a kind of evil god that harms people.

The most common process of such a deity's downfall is that, in order to satisfy the needs of its followers, it begins to harm others. Furthermore, because it indiscriminately consumes all offerings, coupled with being haunted by resentment, the offerings corrupt its heart and cloud its spirit.

Unlike the City God, who is the guardian deity of a city, most village gods do not have the ability to withstand the test of time for hundreds of years.

However, this means becoming a fallen god.

Before being stripped of their official titles and privileges, these fallen gods still possessed the protection of the Dynastic Karmic Luck.

As a member of the Bing Three Supernatural Pursuit Bureau, Zhou Changqing held the official rank of Principal Sixth Rank and had naturally done many things, including killing low-level fallen gods.

Zhou Hongxia didn't have any ulterior motives; she was simply curious about the reason behind it.

"Because your official rank is lower than that of the Spirit Fox County Princess." Zhou Changqing naturally did not hide this and explained to Zhou Hongxia in a low voice, "Although our Supernatural Pursuit Bureau's Imperial Qi World-Pacifying Canon is extremely effective against ordinary evil spirits and demons, it can be said to be a single technique that can overcome all other methods."

However, for deities who also possess the Dynastic Karmic Luck, those of lower rank than us are naturally not a concern. As you said, those I have killed in the past are mostly insignificant fallen gods who don't even reach the ninth rank, so they are naturally easy to deal with—"

After all, deities who are officially ranked by the imperial court are unlikely to become fallen gods.

Moreover, to be honest, the imperial court's attitude towards deities was generally quite awkward.

For influential deities, the ranks are fifth, fourth, and third grade.

It's not that they could just grant any title arbitrarily, but if a local official of the fourth or fifth rank reported it, it would almost always be approved.

However, they are often unwilling to even grant the lower-ranking deities a ninth-grade title.

After all, even a fourth-rank prefect like Liu Zhengyuan only had the ability to appoint officials, but not the power to determine their rank.

Once the grade is determined, funds must be properly allocated for repairs and maintenance.

Therefore, even for deities of the ninth or eighth rank, although it wouldn't alarm the heavens, it still had to be reported to the Ministry of Personnel for approval.

But if you've managed to get the Ministry of Personnel to determine your rank, how could you possibly only be seeking an eighth or ninth-rank official position?

Therefore, the distribution of the official positions of deities throughout history was actually quite uneven.

There are many gods of the fifth rank and above, and some of them are between the fifth and seventh ranks. On the contrary, gods below the seventh rank are extremely rare.

However, explaining such a matter is rather complicated. So Zhou Changqing only briefly mentioned it before continuing, "But if the opponent's rank is the same as ours, then the power of this Imperial Qi World-Pacifying Canon will be greatly reduced—"

"If their rank is higher than ours, our use of the Imperial Qi World-Pacifying Canon would be like throwing an egg against a rock. They wouldn't even need to move; we'd be shattered first. Although Spirit Fox County Princess only received her title as a third-rank county princess from us today, she had previously received a title from the prefect of this place—"

"Although she has no specific rank, the status of the Spirit Fox County Princess is Dynastic Karmic Luck. She's like the sons of noble families in the capital. While she holds no official position or rank, she's still not someone a minor official or clerk can afford to offend."

"I see!"

Hearing Zhou Changqing's words, Zhou Hongxia nodded, sighed, and said, "If only I hadn't always been focused on eliminating demons and protecting the righteous path—if only I had learned more about this from Father—this time, we wouldn't have caused such a huge disaster!"

After all, anyone who knew the intricacies of the matter would understand that Zhou Hongxia Yin Yunze was no ordinary fox demon.

Seeing his once boisterous daughter suddenly become sensible, Zhou Changqing felt gratified but also a little heartbroken.

Good parents generally have this mindset towards their children: they want them to be able to stand on their own two feet, but they also feel sorry for the hardships they will face in the future.

However, Zhou Changqing also knew one thing: his little red sparrow was getting closer to being able to fly on its own.

"Oh----why, why, I just can't put it on, oh----"

Just as he was thinking this, Zhou Changqing suddenly heard a little girl's stammering voice coming from the ditch by the roadside.

The three exchanged a glance and quietly walked over.

But then I saw a white blob fighting with a red and white shirt.

Looking at the red and white shrine maiden's outfit before him, the little leopard Yao Qi was so angry he wanted to tear it to shreds.

I've never noticed how troublesome it is when I've seen humans wear this skin before!

If it weren't for the fact that being human requires wearing this skin, and that it was ultimately a gift from the Primordial Lady of the Azure Heavens...

The little leopard Yao Qi was furious, but it dared not harm the leopard in the slightest.

Just as they were holding their breath and secretly competing, the little leopard demon suddenly felt the light around him dim.

Then, the little leopard demon heard a somewhat familiar voice that made her freeze.

"Hey, do you need any help?"

Before the little leopard demon could even feel the benefits of being forced into Transformation, it discovered that its reactions seemed to have become much slower.

In the past, given the little leopard demon's vigilance, it would never have been forced to get this close before it noticed.

She instinctively turned around and saw three faces that sent shivers down her spine.

"Ah!"

With a shout, the little leopard demon quickly got up to run away. But even as it was running, the little leopard demon didn't forget the clothes.

However, since it had just Transformation, and had spent most of its time arguing with its clothes, it was still in its early stages.

The little leopard demon was completely unfamiliar with the human body. It lost its footing and rolled several times, clutching its clothes.

The pebbles scratched her delicate skin, and the pain caused the little leopard demon to finally let her tears flow freely.

Although she didn't know why the three weren't punished by Yin Yunze, the little leopard demon subconsciously felt that she was doomed.

"Mother, Your Majesty! Help, save me!"

Without much thought, the little leopard demon howled again.

Upon hearing this, Zhou Changqing's face darkened, and he quickly shouted, "You little demon, stop yelling! We mean you no harm!"

However, this sound came a little too late.

As a beam of light appeared, the fox-eared, nine-tailed girl with white hair and green eyes reappeared in front of the little leopard demon.

He glanced at the whimpering leopard demon, then looked at the three very familiar-looking people in front of him.

Yin Yunze sighed helplessly and said softly, "No, I mean, how much time has it been? ---- Seriously, if you want to vent your anger, can't you find someone else, someone else monster to bully?"

Yin Yunze didn't expect that she would see the three people and the leopard again so soon.

However, upon closer reflection, Yin Yunze hadn't thought much about it at the time and instinctively kicked the little leopard demon towards Clear Creek Village.

Zhou Changqing and his two companions were also heading to Clear Creek Village.

The collision between the three people and the leopard, while somewhat coincidental, could also be considered somewhat inevitable.

"Your Highness! We haven't done anything!"

Seeing that Yin Yunze had misunderstood, Zhou Changqing quickly gave a serious explanation.

"Your Highness, please understand!"

Upon hearing this, Zhou Hongxia immediately replied, "We just saw her by the roadside and asked if she needed any help."

For some reason, she suddenly screamed and ran away, but lost her balance and tumbled several times. Then, she sat on the ground, crying and calling out, "Your Highness, sir—"

Zhao Yuanlang, on the other hand, stood quietly to the side, trying his best to minimize his presence.

Hearing Zhou Changqing and Zhou Hongxia say this, Yin Yunze realized that the situation might indeed be true.

After all, Yin Yunze didn't think that these three people would actually dare to ignore her words after what happened before.

His gaze shifted to the little leopard demon, and Yin Yunze said softly, "So, is that what they said?"

"This—well, it seems, yes, it is—"

Faced with Yin Yunze's question, the little leopard demon naturally dared not lie.

Upon careful reflection, the little leopard demon realized with trepidation that she had indeed overreacted.

Suddenly, the little leopard demon was overcome with grief.

If there were real danger to their lives, that would be fine, but since nothing is wrong now, they've summoned this powerful figure, Yin Yunze.

To mortals, Yin Yunze, the Primordial Lady of the Azure Heavens, is known for his kindness and approachability, and is universally praised.

But to demons, Yin Yunze was a great demon god who slaughtered countless beast heads.

Even now, many monsters die every day at the hands of Yin Yunze's subordinates, the Spirit-Attending Immortal Fox fight against those who dare to defy him!

"Your Majesty, no, please don't kill us all—"

Clutching its head, the little leopard demon let out a mournful cry and curled up into a ball on its clothes, too afraid to move.

Of course, this was a complete misunderstanding on the part of the little leopard demon.

Yin Yunze had no prejudice against monsters.

Naturally, he wouldn't harbor murderous intent because of her misunderstanding.

"Alright, stop playing the victim. The way you're talking makes it sound like I enjoy indiscriminately killing innocent people."

Upon hearing that Yin Yunze wouldn't kill him, the little leopard demon was overjoyed and praised Yin Yunze.

"Your Majesty, naturally, you are kind and benevolent—"

Glancing at the little leopard demon's pale body, Yin Yunze looked away and said softly, "Why aren't you dressed yet?"

Upon hearing Yin Yunze's question, the little leopard demon whispered, "Little, little demon, this is my first day as a human, no, I don't know how to dress—"

"Let me help you!"

Hearing what the little leopard demon said, Zhou Hongxia volunteered to step forward in order to show off in front of Yin Yunze.

At the same time, Zhou Hongxia also reminded Zhou Changqing and Zhao Yuanlang, "Father, senior brother, turn your heads away first."

Although he looks only eight years old, everyone present knows that this little leopard demon is probably several decades old.

Yin Yunze turned his head away to avoid suspicion.

With Zhou Hongxia's help, the little leopard demon quickly got dressed.

"Thank you, thank you."

Looking at Zhou Hongxia, the little leopard demon was overwhelmed with mixed feelings.

Some time ago, the little leopard demon almost died at Zhou Hongxia's hands, but now it has received her help.

"You're welcome." She casually ruffled the little leopard demon's hair, then curiously tugged at her leopard ear. Hearing a muffled groan from the little leopard demon, Zhou Hongxia said softly, "Just don't blame me for what I did earlier—"

"You, you stabbed me, that, that sword, it hurt so much—"

Looking at Zhou Hongxia, the little leopard demon whispered, "No, but since Your Majesty healed me, it doesn't hurt as much anymore."

Seeing the man and the leopard reconcile, Yin Yunze felt like he was being superfluous.

However, looking at the little leopard demon dressed in a children's red and white shrine maiden outfit, Yin Yunze felt that they were destined to meet, so he asked, "Little demon Gai, what's your name?"

"Ah?" Hearing Yin Yunze ask him, the little leopard demon hurriedly said, "This little demon doesn't have a formal name, just a nickname, I'm afraid, afraid of sullying Your Highness's honor—"

Yin Yunze thought this was normal.

After all, few of these minor demons would think of giving themselves a nice-sounding name.

Those little demons with this kind of brains can usually become household deities.

"Since that's the case."

Looking at the little leopard demon, Yin Yunze had a sudden idea and teased, "How about this, I'll give you a name? From now on, you'll be called Shen Gongbao!"

Upon hearing this name, Zhou Changqing and the other two all showed unusual expressions.

He thought to himself that the County Princess of Qingping had a really bad sense of humor, turning someone into a little girl and then naming her Gongbao (Gongbao).

The little leopard demon, however, disregarded gender and hurriedly kowtowed, saying, "Thank you so much, Your Majesty! I... I will be Shen Gongbao from now on!"

"Okay." Nodding, Yin Yunze added, "In that case, you should come to Clear Creek Village with these people too!"

Once you arrive at Clear Creek Village, go find the Incense-Sharing Immortal Lady and ask her to arrange accommodation for you. From now on, you will work under the Incense-Sharing Immortal Lady!

"Thank you, Your Majesty!"

Upon hearing this, Shen Gongbao was overjoyed.

If bestowing a name on her doesn't prove anything, then this statement clearly indicates that Yin Yunze has officially taken her under his wing!

Furthermore, anyone personally recruited by the Goddess Primordial Lady of the Azure Heavens would at least start as a minor leader upon arriving in Clear Creek Village.

For Shen Gongbao, this was truly a meteoric rise to power. He kowtowed repeatedly, saying, "Your subordinate will do his utmost!"

"Um.

After nodding slightly, Yin Yunze's Avatar vanished from the spot.

After touching his head to the ground for a while as a sign of respect, Shen Gongbao finally stood up.

At this moment, as his gaze fell upon Zhou Hongxia, Shen Gongbao felt a surge of gratitude.

Although Zhou Hongxia stabbed him, without that stab, Shen Gongbao would not have been able to be seen by Primordial Lady of the Azure Heavens.

Therefore, Zhou Hongxia was also a benefactor who brought Shen Gongbao.

The first time they met, Primordial Lady of the Azure Heavens sealed their identities and they took Transformation.

The second time we met, he even got a permanent position.

For those who practice spiritual cultivation, they have a very strong belief in such metaphysical matters.

Therefore, Shen Gongbao is no longer angry at Zhou Hongxia's sword strike; instead, he feels a sense of closeness to her.

Noticing Shen Gongbao's change in attitude, Zhou Hongxia's eyes flickered slightly. She then extended her hand and said gently, "Sister Gongbao, would you like to come with us to Clear Creek Village to pay our respects to Lady Yuanjun?"

Male leopard, younger sister----

What a novel way to address someone, especially since they're actually several generations older than you, right?

Upon hearing the name Zhou Hongxia, both Zhou Changqing and Zhao Yuanlang's expressions changed.

"----Um!"

After a moment's thought, Shen Gongbao smiled and extended his hand in response to Zhou Hongxia's gesture of goodwill.

Thus, the group of three became three people and a leopard.