The beast Bai Ze, Xu Lin, once again awoke after centuries of sleep. Being last awake at the tail end of the Ming dynasty, the modern day was a-- shock. Many things have changed: the scenery, the people, the technology, the values.

Of course, one thing manages to unfailingly remain the same: that damn Taotie is still around to piss him off.

But Xu Lin has his duties to humanity, and do it he must. And if the remnants of the old Exorcism Department requires him to work with that Taotie Zhang Shenyuan for their vision of the future... Well, nobody could tell him to play nice.
______

Short story, 2 chapters, chapter 2 is for smut (you're welcome).
Persistent but not romantic Taotie gong x Cold and sharp-tongued, yearning for someone else Bai Ze shou
Strong overtones of unrequited love! Please read content warnings at the top of the chapters.