Heilong-kou (Black Dragon-Mouth/Pass)
Heilong-cheng (Black Dragon-City)
Censorate (Supervisory Court)
Yuling City (Jade City)
Jingui Town (Golden Turtle Town)
Xuanwu City (Black tortoise City)
…
It wasn't long before a messenger from the palace arrived with instructions: the Shadow Demon Tribe was to head to the hot springs.
The Shadow Demons exchanged puzzled glances—Hot springs? Why? Aren't we supposed to be working?
The city was quieter than usual that day. Most traveling merchants hadn't opened up their stalls.
Word had spread that Black Dragon City was holding some kind of team-building event. Since guests were allowed in shifts, most shops would be closing early after their turn.
The merchants were quite curious—what was team-building, exactly? But Black Dragon City had no intention of inviting outsiders.
Gousheng and his entire family had signed up. They were among the first to register. The team-building event would last two days, with three-time slots per day for hot spring access. His family was in the first group.
Rumor had it that the palace had its private hot spring—so by this logic, they were technically soaking in the same kind of spring water as Her Majesty. Close enough!
Yin Jixue arrived about half an hour late, accompanied by her kitten and Yan Ye. The delay was due to handling Yan Ye's school registration.
He had initially resisted going to school, but Yin Jixue talked him down sternly:
"Every child in Black Dragon City has to be educated. I have no use for a subordinate who can't even read."
Her words shook Yan Ye to his core. Afraid she might abandon him, he obediently followed her to complete the enrollment procedures.
Meanwhile, the city's patrol units had already set up security around the hot spring site.
If the Demon King were here, he could've instantly erected a magical barrier to keep out demonic beasts. But in his absence, they could only resort to the old-fashioned method—human walls. That is, soldiers, forming a literal wall by standing guard, not building an actual one.
When Yin Jixue arrived outside the city, she found the hot springs arranged like stepped terraces, almost like tiered fields. The springs were scattered across a wide area, with pools of various sizes. Larger ones could fit thirty to fifty demonfolk, while smaller ones could hold around ten.
The kids splashed around in the smaller pools, while the adults soaked in the larger ones.
After a gentle reminder from the event staff, everyone exercised a bit of modesty, covering up their more private parts. Those who wanted to properly bathe went into the inner pools.
Looking at the greyish water, Yin Jixue realized just how necessary this event had been. It turned out most of the demon folk hadn't been bathing at all.
From now on, she'd have to make regular hygiene announcements in the city to keep everyone aware.
That said, there was another benefit to this event.
Plenty of young demonfolk were flirting—one meaningful glance away from breaking the tension. With spring in the air and everyone warm, fed, and clean, they were naturally starting to look for love.
Work creates opportunities for connection.
A low-ranking wild demonfolk named Lina, who played the role of Xiao Lian in the last event, was now receiving attention from city-born suitors.
Yin Jixue decided it was time to establish a Marriage Registry Office to start officially recording the city's first wave of newlyweds since reconstruction.
[New Quest: Establish a formal marriage registration office.]
[Reward: 5 ancient demon folk wine recipes + ingredients x5]
[Item Description: A beloved ancient brew of the demonfolk, lost for 2000 years. The finest of its kind—one sip to restore the body, two to cure chronic illness, three to raise the dead.]
She wasn't surprised by the sudden quest. But she was very tempted by the reward.
…
In the hot springs, Gousheng paddled around happily. He couldn't even find the heat source, but the water was warm and energizing—and it didn't get cold over time. It was amazing!
Lian Ze frowned as he corrected him, "This is what the teacher talked about in class—the principle behind hot springs. You weren't paying attention."
Gousheng scratched his head. "That was a lesson for our class. How do you know it?"
He was notorious for daydreaming in class and only cramming before exams.
From the pool next door, Lian Rui chimed in: "Because Ze's curious and hardworking. I tutor him after class, and he remembers everything right away."
Lian Rui and Lian Ze, a sister-brother duo who lived in the palace, were more mature than their peers. They knew they represented Her Majesty, and worked hard to make her proud—always aiming to be the top students.
Since enrolling, Lian Rui has always been top of her class in academics and performance. The only subject she struggled with was hunting.
One of Her Majesty's top maids had reassured her: Hunting scores didn't matter much. The class was just to give them basic self-defense skills.
In the future, she and her brother would serve the Queen. After graduation, they were expected to work in the Censorate—they wouldn't be sent into the dangerous forest alone.
Even so, the siblings never slacked off. Though not as outstanding in hunting as Xiao Ye or Pa Rou Rou, they were still among the top.
Gousheng was left thoroughly deflated by Lian Ze's comments. Not only was Lian Rui, the class rep, consistently first in class—but now even preschooler Lian Ze was ahead of him.
He sulked in the hot spring, all joy gone.
Meanwhile, the pools for young adults were starting to bubble with pink-tinted tension.
Yin Jixue gave a public commendation to Tiesheng, encouraging everyone to become the next model citizen like him.
Tiesheng kept a calm expression but was secretly on cloud nine. He swore to work even harder and never disappoint Her Majesty's trust.
After getting such high praise, several single demon folk began to eye him with interest. Tiesheng blushed and grinned like an idiot.
Watching all the couples pairing off around her, Yin Jixue felt a tiny pang in her heart.
She had a boyfriend too, but they'd been stuck in a long-distance relationship. Just one more month, she told herself. Once the road was finished, they could finally reunite.
Tengshe and Gou Chen had both finished scouting two routes, and construction could begin soon.
Back in the city, she visited the Censorate. The staff moved fast—by that evening, a temporary Marriage Registry Office had been set up on the first floor.
Already-married demonfolk could re-register their marriages, while unmarried ones could legally tie the knot. The policy allowed only monogamous relationships and also supported divorce proceedings.
When the first wave of team-building participants heard about this new registry, curious couples who had hit it off made their way to register.
When they received their marriage certificates, those young lovers felt something indescribable.
It was a wonderful, magical feeling. Seeing their names written next to each other on the same document, they now shared a bond of life and death.
At the registry, the clerk would ask:
"Do you vow to remain together, in sickness and in health, in poverty or in wealth, for the rest of your lives?"
They would answer in unison: "We do!"
With that first curious couple leading the way, the office processed thirty couples re-registering their marriages over three days. Fifteen new couples tied the knot—including two pairs made up of city and wild demonfolk.
But one surprising case stood out—a divorce request filed by a female demon.
It was Heisha, a blacksmith working in the steel factory.
She had been the breadwinner in her household for years. Now that life was better, she wanted the freedom to pursue her future as an independent demon.
Though her husband was heartbroken, he respected her decision and signed the papers.
Unexpectedly, Heisha continued living in the employee dorms near the steel factory and left their house to her ex-husband.
Yin Jixue couldn't help but sigh.
Some couples can weather hardship but not prosperity. No one was at fault—Heisha had risen to become a pillar of the steel factory, while her husband remained a quiet, withdrawn miner. They had simply grown apart.
The divorce case gave Yin Jixue much to ponder.
She and the Demon King didn't have this kind of problem. They shared interests and constantly learned from each other. The King was immensely powerful—his presence gave her peace of mind to pursue her infrastructure dreams. And he, in turn, needed her.
Maybe she was just overthinking before bed, but the next morning, Yin Jixue had trouble getting up. Her head was foggy and she felt weak—early signs of a cold.
But there was good news too—her boyfriend had returned.
Yin Jixue couldn't quite believe it at first. She thought Ruoshui was lying to cheer up a sick woman.
After all, why wouldn't the Demon King come to see her first thing, instead of sending a maid with a message?
But no—he had come back. He'd just brought along a massive group of demon folk who needed resettling.
He'd wanted to just leave them be. But they stuck to him like glue, and he had no choice but to bring in someone to help sort them out.