After transmigrating into the body of the Jade Rat Spirit, I became Nezha's adopted sister.

Bai Yeying choked for a moment, the peach stuck in her throat, and she coughed until her face turned red.

Nezha frowned in disgust, flicked his finger, and sent a breath into her throat, allowing her to catch her breath.

"Cough... I... I didn't do that." Bai Yeying wanted to explain, but she couldn't find the words. Could she say that it was the original owner's doing and had nothing to do with her? Who would believe that!

"Alright, I've already reported your little troubles to the Jade Emperor on your behalf." Nezha interrupted her stammering, his tone calm, yet dropping a bombshell.

Bai Yeying's heart leaped into her throat: "Your Majesty, what do you say?"

Nezha glanced at her and slowly took a bite of the peach in his hand: "Stealing the precious candles before the Buddha is disrespectful; descending to the mortal realm as a demon and disturbing the region; forcibly abducting the pilgrims and hindering the eastward spread of Buddhism are even more serious crimes."

With each sentence she spoke, Bai Yeying's face grew paler, until finally she was almost deathly pale.

"According to the Heavenly Rules," Nezha paused, looking at her as she was about to faint from fright, before slowly continuing, "at best, one's cultivation will be reduced, reverting to one's original form, and never to be reincarnated; at worst... one's soul will be scattered and one's true spirit will be annihilated."

Bai Yeying's legs went weak, and she almost sat down on the ground, the peach in her hand rolling to the ground as well.

So, I couldn't escape it after all?

Just when she was in despair, Nezha's voice rang out again: "However, considering that your attitude in admitting your guilt after being captured was acceptable, and that you did not truly harm Tang Sanzang, and that... cough, someone else spoke up for you. The Jade Emperor has shown mercy and allows you to atone for your sins."

A dramatic turn of events! Bai Yeying suddenly looked up, hope rekindling in her eyes: "Make amends? How?"

"Stay in Heaven and be a little fairy maid who sweeps and cleans the courtyard, and we'll see how you perform." Nezha put down the peach, clapped his hands, and said, "When you've accumulated enough merit, then we'll discuss anything else."

A fairy maidservant? Sweeping and cleaning the courtyard?

Bai Yeying was taken aback; the punishment didn't seem particularly severe.

It's much better than having your cultivation level reduced and your soul scattered!

"I'm willing! I'll definitely work hard and never slack off." She hurriedly declared, afraid that Nezha would change his mind.

"Hmm." Nezha stood up. "Yunlou Palace has no shortage of maids to sweep and clean. You will follow me for now and do some chores such as serving tea and water and tidying up weapons. If you dare to cause trouble again..." His phoenix eyes narrowed slightly, and a cold aura flashed.

"No, no! Absolutely not!" Bai Yeying shook her head vigorously.

"Starting tomorrow, at the beginning of Chen Shi (7:30 AM), go to the front hall to await instructions."

After Nezha finished speaking, he turned and walked away. But when he reached the door, he stopped and, without turning back, said, "Pick up the peaches on the ground, wash them clean, and eat them. Don't waste them."

As the palace doors closed, Bai Yeying was still in a daze, as if she had escaped death.

After a long while, she bent down, picked up the peach that was a little dusty, walked to the window, and began to eat it in small bites, enjoying the sunset.

The peaches were very sweet, and I also felt my cultivation level relax a bit.

....................

The next day, Bai Yeying got up early, tidied herself up, and arrived at the front hall of Yunlou Palace on time.

Nezha was already there. He wasn't wearing armor today, only a neat dark red outfit embroidered with silver flame patterns, his long hair tied up high, and he was polishing his fire-tipped spear.

Hearing footsteps, he didn't even look up: "Bring the Universe Ring and the Hun Tian Ling from that shelf over there."

"Yes!" Bai Yeying quickly responded and followed his gaze. She saw a row of weapon racks standing against the wall on the side of the hall, displaying a dazzling array of magical treasures, their brilliance shimmering in the light.

The Universe Ring and the Hun Tian Ling were in the most conspicuous position.

She took down two magical treasures, held them up, and walked up to Nezha.

Nezha took it, checked it casually, then put the Qiankun Ring back on his wrist and put the Hun Tian Ling back into his sleeve.

"Go to the backyard and move two of the stone locks from the edge of the drill ground to the east wall," he continued to instruct.

Bai Yeying: "...Huh?"

"What, can't move it?" Nezha finally looked up at her, raising an eyebrow slightly. "If you can't move it, use your demonic power, or reveal your true form and use your tail to curl it up. It's up to you, but I want to see the stone lock against the east wall."

Bai Yeying was speechless. She could only resign herself to her fate and start moving things: "Fine!"

Arriving at the training ground in the backyard, Bai Yeying felt a headache coming on when she saw the two enormous figures.

With great effort, she finally managed to move the two stone locks to the base of the east wall.

She wiped her sweat as she returned to the front hall, where she saw Nezha sitting in the main seat drinking tea. After hearing her report, he simply grunted in response.

"This afternoon, sort out the weapon illustrations on the first floor of the library, arranging them by dynasty and type."

Bai Yeying: "Yes."

The library of Yunlou Palace was much larger than she had imagined. One floor was piled high with all kinds of books, and the jade slips and weapon manuals were even more diverse, ranging from ancient divine weapons to mortal wonders, all in a chaotic mess.

This is clearly another meticulous and demanding task.

Bai Yeying resignedly rolled up her sleeves and began to tidy up.

She discovered that many of the charts not only contained images but also textual annotations and even some cultivation insights.

This is a good opportunity to learn about the world and acquire knowledge of cultivation.

She organized and read through her memorization as she went, and she seemed to enjoy it.

It wasn't until dusk that she managed to finish tidying up only a small part of it.

Rubbing her eyes, she walked out of the library, only to find Nezha leaning against a pillar outside the door, holding a piece of paper in her hand from the questions and thoughts she had jotted down while tidying up that afternoon.

"Your handwriting is quite neat." Nezha handed the paper back to her. "Continue tomorrow. Go have your meal first."

And so began Bai Yeying's days of atonement at Yunlou Palace.

The daily work was varied and unpredictable, sometimes involving moving heavy objects and cleaning the palace, and other times organizing documents and classifying books.

Sometimes he tended to a few exotic flowers and plants in the palace garden, which were obviously planted casually by Nezha and then left unattended.

Occasionally, they also have to help wipe and maintain those renowned magical artifacts.

Nezha seemed to be very good at finding all sorts of training tasks for her, never giving specific instructions, but just leaving her with the tasks and requirements, letting her figure out how to complete them on her own.

Bai Yeying gradually figured out some tricks of the trade and was often able to solve problems in a unique way.

She discovered that although Nezha was never one to mince words and had a rather bad temper, he was not a harsh person.

When she encountered a problem, she would ask him for help. Although he would first make sarcastic remarks about her being stupid or saying that she didn't even know how to do this, he would always give her key hints or demonstrate it directly.

...................

As the days went by, Bai Yeying gradually got used to the Heavenly Court's schedule and also gained a better understanding of Yunlou Palace and Nezha.

This Third Prince was indeed as unruly as the legends said. He didn't seem to have much popularity in the Heavenly Court, or perhaps he was too lazy to cultivate relationships. However, he was incredibly powerful and had made many military achievements. Even the Jade Emperor relied heavily on him, and ordinary celestial officials dared not provoke him easily.

His attitude toward Li Jing also confirmed the rumors.

Once, when Li Jing came to Yunlou Palace on official business, Nezha kept a cold face and spoke in a businesslike tone, not even offering him a cup of tea.

Li Jing seemed to have gotten used to it, leaving in a hurry after finishing his business, and the father and son were as distant as strangers.

Bai Yeying served tea from the side, not daring to utter a sound.