11 Juhua

When morning broke, the girl finally peeled her big wide eyes open. Without the dirt clumping in her hair, her coloring was a lot more striking. Her locks were a shiny golden color and her eyes like sparkling violet jewels. There was no mistaking her non-human ancestry.

She jumped back at the sight of the two men that hovered over her.

"Ah, don't be afraid," Zhang Wang gave her a gentle smile. But the girl was still tense and coiled like a spring. "Oh I know. You must be very hungry." He pulled the last steam bun out from his robes and handed it over.

The girl was cautious, slow and tentative in her movements. Those big dazzling gem-like eyes gazed up at him fearfully. But her growling stomach was loud as well and she could not deny the food that was being offered to her.

"Don't worry, big brother isn't going to hurt you. I'll protect you from this big baddie here!" Zhang Wang winked and nudged at Yu Yanlin who was standing quietly in vigilance.

Yu Yanlin frowned at the words but didn't have a retort.

The girl gave a small nod and took a little bite out of the stale steamed bun. But she ate it as though it was the most delicious thing in the world, nibbling on it like a content little chipmunk.

"Don't eat it too quickly or else you'll choke and get a stomachache," he told the little girl who was probably starving. She was extremely thin and weighed as much as a piece of paper when he carried her.

"My name is Zhang Wang, and this handsome big brother here is called…" Shit, he couldn't just use Yu Yanlin's real name. Zhang Wang made something up on the spot, "Bai Hu."

Yu Yanlin gave Zhang Wang a look to say that he wasn't impressed by his naming sense.

Zhang Wang rolled his eyes, it was the best he could come up with on the spot! Not his fault they hadn't talked about it earlier. It was too late now. Zhang Wang turned his attention back to the shy little demon girl, "What's your name?"

She opened her little mouth still full of food, "Mmm. Dongxi." (note: this literally means 'thing')

Zhang Wang immediately frowned. That couldn't be right. "Ah…what did your mother call you?"

"...Xiao Dongxi."

A throb of pity tickled his head. Zhang Wang's frown only pulled down further, "That…isn't very nice. Maybe…we should give you a new name."

The little girl said nothing for a moment, her eyes fixed on her bare feet that had been cleaned earlier by Zhang Wang's power. "Where's Mommy?"

Yu Yanlin answered bluntly but with a soft voice, "Your mother isn't here anymore."

"Oh." She didn't react right away but Zhang Wang could see the darkness of anxiety and depression that clouded her cute little face. He reached out to hold her small hands in his. They were rough with a bunch of cuts and scrapes and not like a child's soft hands.

"Big brother will take good care of you, okay? Until we find you a new, better home that will give you lots of love and help you grow big and strong, what do you think about that?"

The vacant look her young eyes were giving him told him that she was already jaded at her tender young age and did not believe in hope so easily. It was heartbreaking. But he kept his sunny optimistic smile, "Let's give you a new name, mark a new start?"

The girl was hesitant but eventually she gave a little nod.

Yu Yanlin gave Zhang Wang a look, not quite trusting the cultivator's naming sense.

Zhang Wang's smile did not falter when he turned to the demon king and asked, "Do you have any good ideas?"

"...How about Juhua? A bright and pretty name for a bright and pretty girl."

It was a simple name but it wasn't crass.

"Ju…hua…" The girl tried.

Zhang Wang gave an encouraging smile and nodded, "Yup! You are now Juhua. If someone asks you for your surname you can just use Zhang!"

Ah, wouldn't that make him her adoptive father? Zhang Wang decided not to think too much about the details.

When Juhua nodded he decided that she was very cute and scooped her up in his arms. "We have a long way to travel and you'll have to come with us, is that okay?"

Juhua clung to his robes and nodded obediently, "Okay."

And thus there was another person added on Zhang Wang's journey.

Zhang Wang expected that having a child along their side would slow down their traveling speed, but in fact, they did not slow that much.

Juhua was a hardy child and never complained. The Immortal of a Thousand Blossoms tried to remind her that it was okay to tell him if she was hungry or in pain but the girl frustratingly only ever told him that she was okay.

Zhang Wang wondered if he had to gain her trust more. But Yu Yanlin told him that she was a half-demon and that her constitution was a lot tougher than a normal child's.

He was skeptical but with nothing else to work with, Zhang Wang had no choice but to simply continue trying and keep an eye out for his two new traveling companions.

It only took a day's time to arrive at the base of Mount Hannu. Again, they avoided the village and set up a shelter in the woods to avoid any unnecessary drama. But Zhang Wang really needed to buy some supplies. So that evening, he left his two new companions at the makeshift shack and went on a little trip to the town at the base of the mountain.

They would be making the trip up early the next day and Zhang Wang needed to make some preparations before heading up into Beast Master Wei's abode. There was a pretty famous town that sat at the base of the mountain where merchants and traders often frequented. They, like Beast Master Wei specialized in handling spiritual beasts and sold many items specifically for such a practice.

The town was hardly as bustling as what Zhang Wang remembered. The streets looked a little desolate. But there were still the odd travelers and merchants that set up shop. Ah, wartime was so depressing, and things only ever got worse over time instead of better.

The first thing he searched for was some illusion talismans that both Yu Yanlin and little Juhua could use. He came upon a small stall and found the talismans he was searching for. But the grade was seriously poor. "Don't you have anything better, mister?" Zhang Wang gave the shopkeeper a pleading look.

The gruff old man only gave him a dismissive scoff, "Go look around and see if anyone's selling anything better. Everything's scarce around here nowadays. Resources. Craftsmen. Buyers. You take it or you leave it."

"Ah…" Zhang Wang laughed awkwardly and decided that he had little choice but to enter a long banter for appropriate pricing over a few shitty talismans.

But through this entire annoying process he noticed an interesting set of items that were laid out on the merchant's table.

He waited until after he handed over the money to pay for the talismans before asking.

"What's that?"

The merchant gave him a smile that was all teeth, "Have you ever thought of 'taming' a demon fucker? It can be real good fun if you do it right."