Shu Yi was seriously injured; the one who injured him was none other than Ji Yao.

Despite Ji Yao's objections, Shu Yi and Shen Zhizhou secretly recommended suitable jobs to the monsters in need. During the day, Shu Yi taught the monsters human common sense and terms in the company's conference room, and at night she had to prepare lesson plans for the next day's learning. She was so busy that she was dizzy and recently she started living upstairs in the company building.

After finally finishing writing the lesson plan, Shuyi stretched back, twisted her muscles from side to side to relax, turned her neck and elbows, and then got up to get water.

"Is anyone there... Please, please help me, it's so dark here..."

Shuyi followed the sound downstairs, her steps slow and deliberate. From the dark warehouse, faint, intermittent cries for help could be heard. The clock hands were pointing to twelve o'clock, and the hourly chime sounded particularly jarring in the empty, deserted setting. Shuyi also sensed a hint of danger.

Shuyi pricked up her ears to find the source of the sound, then got up and cautiously approached, finally walking into a sealed cardboard box.

Shuyi squatted down, sniffed, and after sensing a trace of magic and the aura of its kind, tilted its head and pondered.

Shen Zhizhou had captured the demon without Shen Zhizhou even knowing it.

"I'm locked inside, it's so dark... Please open the box." The voice inside changed to a woman's tone, sounding pitiful.

Shuyi asked curiously, "How do you want me to help you?"

The voice from inside the box suddenly became urgent, tempting Shuyi: "Sister, just open the box. If you open the box, I'll grant you any wish..."

"Why were you locked up inside?" Shu Yi tapped the box, her brows furrowed with curiosity. She didn't want Shen Zhizhou to misunderstand the demon race at this crucial juncture.

Sobbing came from inside the box. She said she had only made some minor mistakes and was locked up here. She begged the outsiders to be lenient and let her out. She was willing to give them gold and silver as a reward.

Seeing that Shu Yi outside remained silent, the contents of the box continued to tempt him: "Money, status, beautiful women, I can give you anything you want... Go out and walk north through an alley, then walk a few hundred meters further to find the third tree from the right on the far right of Yuhua Alley. There's a lot of gold buried there. Just one look and you'll know I'm telling the truth. I can give you even more, as long as you..."

“I am a demon too.” Shuyi refused directly and bluntly.

"You're a demon? I don't sense any demonic aura at all. No, you fucking let me out!" The monster in the box suddenly switched to its original male voice and stopped being coy, kicking the box and trying to force him out.

Shuyi could roughly guess from the demon's expression that it had committed a crime and been sealed away. She frowned slightly, somewhat displeased. Ji Yao had always opposed contact between humans and demons, and now that a demon was causing trouble outside, it would only damage the reputation of other good demons. Thinking of this, Shuyi immediately chanted a spell to reinforce the seal with another layer.

"Damn it, you actually reinforced the seal! You bitch, I'll kill you the moment I get out!"

In an instant, demonic energy filled the air, and the box shook and thrashed, trying to break through the seal. Shu Yi lightly formed a spell seal, his eyes gleaming with golden light, and he continuously poured his magic power into the seal to reinforce the pressure.

"Damn it, you and Ji Yao are both lackeys of humans! Helping humans harm demons! You..." The thing inside the box shouted angrily, kicking and struggling to break through the barrier, but to no avail.

With only the last spell seal remaining, the demon inside the box was trapped in the deep sea, unable to bewitch anyone anymore. At that moment, a strong wind swept in, concealing deadly wind blades. Shu Yi threw out the jade ring on her right ear to defend herself.

Looking up at Ji Yao, who stood in the doorway with cold, murderous eyes, Shu Yi knew she had been misunderstood and hurriedly explained, "Sister Ji, it was the box that was making noise. I happened to come down and saw him bewitching people, so I wanted to reinforce the seal..."

Ji Yao didn't spare a single glance for the monster in the box, but the monster inside immediately shut up and stopped its fire the moment it heard Ji Yao's voice, afraid of being implicated.

The crisp sound of high heels clicking on the floor struck Shu Yi's heart like a deadly note. As Ji Yao approached and parted her lips slightly, Shu Yi thought Ji Yao understood her intentions. Just as she was about to speak, she saw Ji Yao's five fingers turn into claws, and her right hand transformed into a beast-like shape, aiming straight for Shu Yi's throat.

Before Shu Yi could react, Ji Yao's sharp, blade-like nails slashed through his skin, and bright red blood flowed down his neck. Shu Yi touched the wound and couldn't help but hiss in pain.

This time, Ji Yao was truly intent on killing. Poison was injected into her fingertip, causing the wound to fester rapidly. Shu Yi struggled to stay upright.

"A venom unique to our kind was injected into my fingertip. At first, the wound simply wouldn't heal and would fester. Slowly, the venom would seep into the blood and internal organs until the body completely melted... I didn't want to kill you. In fact, I kind of like you. You're warm, cheerful, lively, and energetic. Since you came, Xiaozhou has been noticeably happier..."

Ji Yao approached the injured Shu Yi step by step, while Shu Yi could only stagger backward, holding the jade ring across her chest to protect herself, listening to Ji Yao talk about how much she cared about Shen Zhizhou.

"But unfortunately, you won't listen to advice, child. I've already told you not to let humans or demons come into contact with each other. Humans have their own paths to walk, and demons have their own ways to cultivate. Forcing them to merge... will only lead to this." Ji Yao stopped three steps away from Shu Yi, looking at him with pity, as if he were an ant struggling desperately on the roadside but unable to escape its fate. She said mercifully, "Do you have any last words?"

"I think..." Before she could finish speaking, Shu Yi pointed behind Ji Yao and shouted, "Shen Zhizhou!"

Upon hearing the name Shen Zhizhou, Ji Yao relaxed her guard and habitually turned around to look. Taking this opportunity, Shu Yi threw out the jade ring, which transformed into her true form.

A gigantic beast, its fur radiating golden light, was watching Ji Yao warily, blood gushing from a wound on its neck.

Shuyi bared its teeth and charged at Ji Yao. Ji Yao also transformed into her true form, and the two demons clashed. Because Ji Yao was Shen Zhizhou's relative, Shuyi did not injure Ji Yao's vital points. It was restrained in the fight, and several new bone-piercing scars were added to Shuyi's body.

Ji Yao inhaled, and a huge fireball condensed in her mouth, which she then hurled at Shu Yi. Shu Yi dodged, and the fireball touched the sealed box. Seeing the fireball burn the seal away, the two demons realized something was wrong and immediately tried to re-apply the seal.

Ji Yao touched the seal first, but was bounced back by the seal's self-protective spell. She fell to the ground, rolled a few times, and spat out a mouthful of blood.

The monster inside the box kept chuckling. Shu Yi endured the pain and crawled to the box to try to reseal it with a blood-removing spell. But as soon as he drew a stroke, his hand started trembling uncontrollably, and his vision blurred and dimmed.

When the fireball burned away more than half of the seal, the monster inside the box finally broke through the seal and struck Shuyi in the chest with a palm. Shuyi spat out a mouthful of blood and lay on the ground, his blurred vision unfocused as he watched the shadowy monster laugh and flee the warehouse.

Just as Ji Yao was holding on, trying to deliver the final fatal blow to Shu Yi, Shen Zhizhou finally arrived.

As Ji Yao raised her right claw to finish off Shu Yi, Shen Zhizhou's mind went blank. He couldn't care less about anything else and directly used his body to ram Ji Yao's fatal blow.

Ji Yao's expression changed drastically when she saw Shen Zhizhou rushing towards her. She tried to withdraw her magic power, but she was a step too late. Her demonic power pierced through Shen Zhizhou's shoulder, and Shen Zhizhou fell to the ground, rolling around while hugging Shu Yi.

Looking at Shuyi, whom he was holding tightly in his arms, he disregarded his own injuries and first carefully checked the wound on Shuyi's neck. Then, he looked up and asked Ji Yao for the antidote with a cold look in his eyes.

Ji Yao was somewhat incredulous, a hint of tears welling up in her eyes, her voice trembling slightly: "Are you blaming me for hurting her, Xiao Zhou?"

Shen Zhizhou pursed his lips, looking at Shuyi in his arms. He knew that the poison was taking effect and he couldn't wait any longer, so he insisted again, "Sister Ji, give me the antidote!"

Ji Yao seemed unable to believe that the child she had raised since childhood would speak to her so coldly now, all for the sake of an unrelated demon... She shouldn't have agreed to let Shen Zhizhou bring this menace by her side in the first place!

Taking a deep breath, Ji Yao turned to the side, raised her hand to wipe away the tears on her cheeks, and turned around with the same elegant posture as before: "No, otherwise you can kill me too. You know... once the cursed monster dies, the spell will be lifted."

Shen Zhizhou gritted his teeth, unable to understand why Ji Yao would do this. Ji Yao had always been the one who loved and cared for him the most when he was a child. Why would she steal the talisman behind his back and hide a dangerous monster in the company?

"I'm doing this for your own good!" Ji Yao understood the lack of understanding in Shen Zhizhou's eyes, which made her feel even more heartbroken.

I'm doing this for your own good. I hope you can stay safe and avoid excessive contact with demons. I hope you can do whatever you want without restraint. I hope you... will always be by my side as a child.

But Ji Yao didn't say any of this. The words that came to her lips were just a faint "Never mind." As if all her energy had been drained, Ji Yao took out the antidote from her bosom, threw it to Shen Zhizhou, and left quickly. But as she stepped out the door, she couldn't help but look back at Shen Zhizhou one last time before striding away without looking back.

Shen Zhizhou carefully helped Shu Yi up and meticulously fed her the antidote. Although the bleeding from the wound had stopped after the antidote was given, it still needed to be treated properly.

Gently brushing aside Shuyi's slightly dry hair due to excessive blood loss, and looking at the pale face sleeping soundly in his arms, Shen Zhizhou let out a long sigh, picked her up, and took her to the hospital in Sheyang.

Sheyang rubbed his eyes and yawned, wanting to scold Shen Zhizhou for disturbing his sleep, but when he saw Shuyi covered in blood, his eyes widened. "What happened? Did you get injured on a mission?"

Shen Zhizhou shook his head, only urging She Yang to quickly bandage the wound. While treating the wound, She Yang observed the wound and Shen Zhizhou's expression, and roughly guessed what had happened.

After settling Shuyi in and giving her an injection to soothe her sleep, Sheyang removed her mask and disposable gloves, threw the medical waste into the trash can, and quietly sat down next to Shen Zhizhou, who was hanging her head.

"Did you have a fight with Sister Ji? If there's something wrong, talk it out. She raised you since you were little, so she's like a second mother to you. There's no need to make a scene like this," She Yang patted Shen Zhizhou and comforted him.

Seeing Shen Zhizhou's dejected state, like an ostrich, She Yang couldn't help but ask, "Do you really have to help those monsters? I didn't say anything when you opened this hospital to take care of those homeless and incurable monsters, but now you want to introduce them to jobs so they can truly integrate into human society... To be honest, I also think you're being ridiculous."

Shen Zhizhou finally looked up, clutching his hair, and said weakly, "Actually, I also have selfish reasons. I don't want to be a monster removal master anymore. I'm really tired... but I can't think of any other way to reduce or eliminate harmful monsters."

Shen Zhizhou simply felt that if he could give a chance to a monster who wanted to live a serious life, perhaps one day these strange tales would cease to exist, and he... could also do what he wanted to do.