Yan Tuo was mildly startled by the goldfinch’s flawless standard Mandarin, but he soon brushed it off. Perhaps this breed could mimic speech just like parrots or mynah birds.
That word “master,” though, inexplicably brought to mind the hanfu-clad boy he’d encountered yesterday.
A full day had passed, and yet the young man’s image remained sharply etched in his memory. He wondered if the boy’s runaway parents had come back for him—and where on earth he’d gone now.
Lost in these thoughts for just that brief moment, Yan Tuo barely noticed the little white fluffball on the wall flap its wings and alight on his shoulder. It chirped imperiously from its perch: “Eat.”
He pulled out another noodle strand and offered it up, watching as the bird crunched away with gusto. Yan Tuo then dumped the rest of the bag at the foot of the wall and addressed the adorable creature. “There you go—all yours. Eat at your leisure. If you show up here tomorrow, I’ll bring more.” With that, he turned to leave.
The little fellow didn’t so much as glance at the pile of noodles. Instead, it settled comfortably on his right shoulder with an air of utter entitlement.
Had it decided to latch onto him?
Yan Tuo let out a low chuckle. Very well—he’d see how long it stuck around.
He could never have imagined that “how long” would amount to half a month in the blink of an eye.
The white fluffball became his constant companion, swiftly learning to call his name. That crisp cry of “Yan Tuo” was enough to banish all his prior notions about lacking time for a pet.
He bought a birdcage and built a cozy nest. Toys and special bird feed piled up before he knew it. In a burst of enthusiasm, he even named the fluffball Tangyuan.
The little creature was frighteningly clever. Its vocabulary was limited, but it seemed to understand nearly every word spoken to it. On good days, it followed commands with meticulous precision, sparking in Yan Tuo an impulse to train it as a vigilant guard bird.
Bai Yiyi was equally thrilled with the past half month—above all, with the success of his own clever strategy.
No one could resist him in his true form, after all. He’d successfully warmed up to Yan Tuo. Over the last couple of days, even calling out “master” elicited a perfectly natural response. Now it was time to reveal the truth and seal the contract.
That evening, after Yan Tuo finished washing up and climbed into bed, Tangyuan fluttered in and landed beside the pillow. The bird’s beady eyes rolled about as it fixed its gaze on him.
Grinning, he teased it. “You want to sleep on the pillow too? Fine by me—but stay still. I wouldn’t want to roll over and squash you in my sleep.”
The bird’s voice rang out clear as a bell. “I won’t get squashed. I’ll just change form.”
Yan Tuo was still marveling at Tangyuan’s suddenly advanced speech when his pupils abruptly contracted. Right there on the bed, a person had appeared.
It was a strikingly handsome young man. His long hair cascaded nearly to his knees, draping over his body to modestly veil the essentials—like a shimmering sheet of lustrous black satin that made his porcelain-pale skin seem to glow.
Bai Yiyi struck a seductive side-lying pose before realizing he was completely naked. Ah, shape-shifting still needed work. He started to reach into his storage space for some clothes but paused. They were both men, and it was bedtime anyway. What was the harm?
He patted the mattress beside him and called out to the man standing by the bed. “Master, come to bed. You won’t crush me now.”
Yan Tuo remained frozen for what felt like an eternity. He rubbed his eyes, pinched the bridge of his nose.
When he looked again, the young man was still there on the bed, propped on one side with a playful smile.
Had he encountered a ghost? Been placed under a spell? He’d just witnessed a tiny goldfinch transform into a human right on his bed!
And it was none other than the hanfu boy he’d met half a month ago on the street.
Once he’d calmed down, Yan Tuo had no choice but to confront the truth, no matter how unwilling. This was some otherworldly event utterly beyond his control—a full-blown supernatural phenomenon.
“You… a demon? Or a ghost?”
Bai Yiyi pushed himself up halfway, adopting a more formal air. “A demon, naturally. Bai Yiyi, sparrow demon of Shifang Kongxing Mountain, at your service, Master~.”
Yan Tuo frowned in confusion. “Why do you keep calling me ‘Master’?”
Bai Yiyi launched into his pitch without missing a beat. “Because I want to form a master-servant contract with you. We demons need an anchor for our hearts—without one, heart demons can seize us and derail our path to power. Once we sign, you’ll be my master and I’ll be your little demon. I’ll stick by you for this lifetime, obey your every word, lend a hand whenever you need it, and protect you. Sound like a sweet deal?”
It sounded too good to be true, and Yan Tuo wasn’t one to believe in free rides. “What’s the catch for me? How does this contract even get signed and take effect?”
Bai Yiyi’s form shimmered as he sidled right up to Yan Tuo.
He realized his height was a tad short for this, so he floated up until they were face-to-face, peering intently into the man’s eyes.
“The ritual is dead simple—you just agree. The price? Our life forces will intertwine, so you won’t be entirely human anymore. Half-human, half-demon, maybe. It could draw the envy of plenty of enemies. Scared yet?”
Now that was intriguing, like a forbidden door creaking open to the unknown. Fear had never been in Yan Tuo’s vocabulary. He had just one lingering question. “Why me?”
Bai Yiyi answered without hesitation. “I’ve seen over twenty thousand humans since coming down from the mountain. You’re the only one who’s ever caught my eye. You’re my fated one—fate, you know? I just picked the most appealing guy in the bunch.”
Appealing? Yan Tuo studied the face mere inches away. Yes… very appealing.
He had never dreamed he’d face a choice like this. In truth, he could barely register his own thoughts anymore. All he knew was the sound of his own deep voice replying simply, “Okay.”
Bai Yiyi’s face lit up in a radiant smile, as if the young man himself were glowing.
He gently closed his eyes and leaned forward until their foreheads touched.
In that instant, time and space swirled. A torrent of images flooded Yan Tuo’s mind, playing out like a film on fast-forward—Bai Yiyi’s entire life from the moment he’d descended the mountain to his present transformation, laid bare.
At the same time, Bai Yiyi roamed freely through Yan Tuo’s sea of consciousness. The contract took hold. Their minds linked, every secret shared.
Some unknowable time later, Yan Tuo came back to himself and chuckled. “So you’re already five hundred years old. How is it you still act like such a kid?”
Bai Yiyi was over the moon, clinging to Yan Tuo like a fledgling to its favorite branch, arms looped around the man’s neck. “Five hundred is basically childhood for demons! I finally have a master! Let’s get some rest, Master.”
Yan Tuo gently disentangled himself from the octopus-like embrace, his tone a touch awkward. “Mm. But put some clothes on first.”
Huh? Why? Bai Yiyi blinked in confusion. “It’s bedtime. Why bother with clothes? I always sleep naked.”
Yan Tuo was at a loss for words. “Before? You were just a little white fluffball covered in feathers. Naked or not—what difference did it make? Things are different now that you’re human. You can’t just expose yourself like that. It’s rude… and dangerous.”
Rude made sense, but dangerous? Bai Yiyi tilted his head. “You’re not just anyone—you’re my master!”
Yan Tuo was running out of patience, his expression stern. “Precisely because I’m your master, you have to listen to me.”
Fine.
From that day forward, the sparrow demon Bai Yiyi—with his master in tow—settled into J City for good, blissfully content and with no desire to leave.
He decided this trip to the human world had been more than worth it. Smartphones and the internet alone would keep him entertained for decades, maybe centuries.
One day, he idly clicked on a video link. The title was irresistible: “18 Ultra High-Difficulty Techniques for Little Demons to Deeply Connect with Their Masters.”
What kind of moves warranted “ultra high difficulty”? Brimming with curiosity, Bai Yiyi watched the whole thing. It opened up a whole new world for him.
Wow—so this was how masters and servants were supposed to interact? Utterly intimate. The little demon on the bottom kept crying out in ecstasy, while the master on top wore an expression of pure bliss.
No way was he letting other masters have all the fun. His own deserved the same treatment.
That evening, Bai Yiyi pulled out his phone, cued up the video, and showed it to Yan Tuo. “Look at this—how other masters pamper their little demons. I want that too.”
Yan Tuo stared at him for a long moment, then replied with the same simple word he’d used for the contract: “Okay.”
And he followed through.
…
Ten years flew by in an instant.
At forty, Yan Tuo looked much the same as he had when they first met. But through their subtle bond, Bai Yiyi could keenly sense the steady ebb of his life force.
He’d assumed that finding a master down the mountain meant a few decades of companionship before reclaiming his freedom for a long, leisurely demon life. Now, though, he found he couldn’t bear to part with the man before him.
He spent an entire day mulling it over, savoring every memory from their time together, until he reached his final decision.
That night marked the tenth anniversary of their contract.
Bai Yiyi prepared a lavish spread and uncorked a bottle of red wine for a romantic candlelit dinner.
Yan Tuo took a sip and immediately knew this wine was like nothing he’d tasted before. It didn’t flow like liquid—it blazed like fire down his throat, igniting his body in a fierce burst. The world seemed to shift before his eyes.
Something was wrong. He felt suddenly restored to the vigor of his youth: hearing sharper, vision clearer, energy surging. But why had his beloved’s aura across the table grown faintly weaker?
Ten years as partners had attuned him perfectly. He knew at once. “What did you give me to drink?”
Bai Yiyi rose and approached, dropping to one knee to rest his head in Yan Tuo’s lap. “A few decades is far too short. I’m feeling greedy these days—I want so much longer.”
Yan Tuo prompted him. “So…”
“So I’m giving you my most precious gift. We demons normally live ten thousand years. I’ll share half with you—five thousand each. Deal?”
Yan Tuo understood. With a sigh, he drew his beloved into his arms. “You split your demon core in two, with one half now inside my belly?”
He truly hadn’t expected his lover to be so foolishly resolute. For the sake of an ordinary man like him—one who hadn’t even lived a full century—Bai Yiyi had willingly sacrificed half his life.
After a long moment, Yan Tuo asked in a quiet voice, “Am I still considered human now?”
Bai Yiyi replied with a playful lilt. “Of course not. Even during the contract, you were already half-human, half-demon. Now the last vestige of your human essence has been squeezed away entirely. You’re pure demon through and through.”
“That’s for the best, then,” Yan Tuo said. “No more lingering in the mortal world. I’ll return to Kongxing Mountain with you. We’ll cultivate together with all our hearts, striving to reach Great Demon as soon as we can. Five thousand years won’t be enough—I want a hundred thousand with you, a million years. No… I want your forever.”
The light in Bai Yiyi’s eyes gleamed like a starry sky. The corners of his mouth curved faintly as he murmured a single word.
“Good.”
~~~
