Nick face changed to distress immediately and he hurriedly put on his cloak. He looked like he wanted to hide his face in any way possible.
It was too late , the man voice already brought other villagers. From different areas of the forest , they all started coming.
Taohua have never seen other people. He rarely left home because of how fidgety Nick was, so he confined himself to napping or following Nick sometimes to lakes and forests.
But he didn't like the look on their face , Some of them were scowling, some of them eyes were blazing with fire as they grabbed sticks and stones, some of them hid behind trees but stay still to watch the show.
And they were all looking at Nick behind him.
Taohua slowly moved in front of Nick and blocked him with his body, the playful look was gone and his soft brows were furrowed in tension.
The old man pointed at Nick "You half monster , didn't we tell you to leave the village?! What are you doing here ?!"
"Do you want to curse us with your bad luck and destroy the village again ?"
"No wonder the demons have been attacking again, it's because you didn't leave!!!"
Nick used his cloak to cover his face tighter and tighter , it was the first time Bei Shang have seen Nick so vulnerable outside, he was always the type to kill the people who annoyed him or walk away if he isn't in the mood of killing.
Watching him been so berated made him feel so distressed, he even had the instinct to cover Nick in his arms and hide him from the world.
Taohua must have felt the same instinct too , without thinking, he just grabbed Nick and hugged him to his chest.
He glared at the villagers " You are all mean!!"
His voice was soft and airy , so it didn't make much impact, it only looked like a young mistress trying to act tough.
There are no beings in the entire realms that does not like a pretty face. They will always have a measure of partiality towards them even if all things are pointing them to be evil.
Not to talk of mortals who don't see celestial beauty every day.
A woman felt her maternal instincts stroked with a light feather.
"Young girl , I can see you're not from this place" Seeing the harsh glare the child gave her , she can't help but sigh "This man you're protecting is a monster , he will help you then when you're grateful enough, he would try to eat you "
A man nod his head in agreement "He was living in our village as a child, then the girls in the village started getting sick. Later on we realized that it was he was eating their souls!!!"
"We are merciful so we just sent him out of the village and told him not to come back" the woman looked at him " He will just hurt you "
There was a thick silence. Taohua looked at the man lying still in his arms.
"Is it true ?"
Nick didn't respond, he only tighten his hold on Taohua, even if Taohua want to leave, he won't let go.
"Talk to me , Hong Jin"
Nick swallowed audibly " Don't go with them , I will explain everything when we get home"
He didn't deny the accusations and he didn't admit it either. To others including Taohua, it would be like he's buying for time, only Bei Shang know that Nick's black hearted nature was rearing it's head again.
That sonovabitch was testing Taohua loyalty.
When he was in the demon realm , Nick would give him little tests like this in order to know his breaking points. The great demon general was insecure so he had to continually know his significance in his loved ones heart.
Little tests like asking Mitch who he loves the most , telling Bei Shang that if one day he and nayima was going to die , who would he pick ? Or telling Kate that between her court and him , who is more important to her.
Even now, Nick was in the cursp of danger but he still couldn't help buy into his insecurities.
Taohua stared at him for a long while before turning to letting go of him. Before Nick would panic , Taohua grabbed his hand and then looked at the villagers.
"I trust him "
Nick eyes focused on Taohua , the entire world seemed to disappear and his eyes gradually turned red. Behind the cloak , his teeth came out and his tails were itching to appear.
It took him all his effort not to snatch Taohua and run from the place.
Fortunately No one noticed, they were all focused on the young mistress who is gambling with her life.
"Little child , he really isn't to be trusted…"
"He saved my life so I trust him " Taohua turned to leave " I only trust those worthy to be trusted "
Before they could try to convince him, Nick already carried him, then flew further into the forest.
The woman shook her head " I feel so sorry for her parents…"
💕💕💕💕
There were no words between them until they got to the wood cottage. Once he stepped a foot into the house, Taohua struggled out of Nick's arms then he looked at him.
"Did you eat those women?"
Nick quietly sat down on the ground and started to pull off his shoes , when he saw that Taohua still isn't sitting down, he smiled helplessly.
"Your legs must have been sore …"
"Why aren't you answering my questions?"
"I will answer them …"
"When will you answer them ?"
"Can't you give me a little time? It's a long story and I am not ready to say anything…" Seeing Taohua turn to go outside, a hint of panic clouded Nick face " Taohua where are you going? It's late…"
Seeing that he wasn't responding and he had already crossed the boundary of the outside, Nick grabbed his hand.
"Taohua please wait …"
Taohua shook his arm , his face was dark and brimming" Let go of me !!!"
Bei Shang really felt helpless, within a day, the two of them have managed to get into a total of 3 fights , one didn't like to talk much and enjoy following the other around, the other got irritated easily and would want to leave the house at a slight provocation.
What next? Nick would grab Taohua and start kissing his face ?
The next moment, Nick grabbed Taohua and pulled him in. He locked his arms around him , not allowing Taohua to move an inch.
"Listen to me for once will you?!!!"
"You think hugging me will let me forget what we are fighting about?! I won't forget!!! My shifu plays this trick on me every single time!!!"
"You shouldn't be allowing just anyone to hug you like this !!!"
Taohua yanked himself out of Nick's iron hold then grab Nick by the collar , his eyes were red. "What?! You will say I am not manly enough again?!"
"…." Bei Shang suddenly have the urge to hide somewhere and vomit at the actions of two immature children.
Thinking about it now, while the argument between he and Nick in the demon realm are very passionate and often hurtful, these two fought about how manly they are and why the other was not in on the other secret.
He let out a chuckle, his heart growing warm.
People often thought of demi Taohua in the legends as a cold indifferent being, but who would have known that that demi god will get into a fight with his savior for petty reasons.
Would this demi god willingly hurt his savior just because of divinity?
The two argued back and forth like this for a while before Nick reluctantly agreed to tell him everything after dinner.
Immediately after dinner , Taohua sat down outside and tapped on the tree to pass time while Nick washes the dishes. Once he was done , he sat down beside Nick, his eyes round with curiosity.
Nick seeing the face couldn't help but sigh; a while later, he let out a soft laugh and started the story.
"I was born…"