In the north of Xianyang County, two hundred miles away, is the majestic Huqi Mountain. Looking up from the foot of the mountain, one can only see rugged rocks piercing the sky, steep and precipitous. However, on the entire high mountain, there isn't a single blade of grass or tree, extremely desolate. On the left side of the mountain range, from deep within the mountain, spring water emerges from underground and converges to form a river called "Shengshui", flowing northeast, with tributaries gradually increasing along the way, the river gradually expanding, until three hundred miles away, it empties into another large river, "Fen River". Since ancient times, it has been passed down that this river produces a kind of dark-colored precious jade, only no one has ever seen it.

  One of the three major factions of the Demon Sect, the "Ghost King Sect" main hall, was built in the hard and thick rocky mountain belly of this high mountain, and few people knew about it. Under the leadership of Gui Li, Xiao Bai and Da Wu Shi's group went through 15 days of trekking and finally arrived here.

  Because the Grandmaster's body was really too weak, they had no choice but to walk. The three of them, along with Little Gray, walked together. Along the way, Gui Li even hired a carriage for the Grandmaster to ride in.

  The long and arduous journey had left all three of them with a tired and dusty appearance, but on the bodies of Da Wu Shi and Gui Li, there were two completely different looks.

  The severe injury of Gui Li gradually healed day by day, probably because he was young!

  Looking at the great witch doctor, his complexion was getting uglier and uglier. Compared to when he left Nanjiang Qili Village 15 days ago, he looked even more haggard. His face was as pale as dead ash, and since entering the mountain path, there were no carriages to ride in. Although Gui Li and Xiao Bai supported him, he still panted after walking a few steps, his physical strength extremely poor. Gui Li's heart was anxious, sometimes she couldn't help but feel afraid: if they hadn't even reached Fox Ridge Mountain yet, what if this lifesaving great witch doctor died halfway? She would truly regret it for the rest of her life.

  Fortunately, at noon today, under the warm sunshine, the three of them finally saw the bald top of Fox Hill.

  He halted his footsteps, although they had not yet reached the Fox Hill Mountain. Gu Lian let out a sigh of relief and turned to face the Great Shaman, saying: "Senior, that desolate mountain ahead is our destination. From here on, if we continue walking for another stretch, by tonight or slightly later, we should be able to reach the foot of the mountain."

  The great wizard let out a long sigh, raised his eyes to gaze at the mountain range, smiled slightly with a hint of fatigue, and said: "Don't worry! Young man, I won't die before seeing that sleeping friend of yours."

  The demon's expression changed slightly, and he immediately showed a hint of apology, saying in a low voice: "Senior, I didn't mean to..."

  The old wizard's eyes returned, patted his shoulder and smiled: "I didn't mean anything else, if I were you, I'd be even more anxious."

  The demon's face was stern, but he smiled and said: "Senior, we've been walking for a long time too. Let's take a break here first, we still have to hurry on the road later!"

  The great witch seemed to be really tired, nodded, and under the support of Gui Li, found a relatively flat stone beside the mountain path and sat down.

  "Squeak! Squeak!" The little gray creature that had been perched on Gui Li's shoulder called out twice, then jumped down and landed on the ground. Along the way, it was actually Little Gray who seemed to have the most energy, without a hint of fatigue.

  At this moment, the monkey looked around and saw that there were sparse woods on both sides of the road. After calling out twice, it darted in and disappeared from view in an instant.

  The demon looked in the direction that Xiao Hui had gone, but didn't think much of it and turned back to find a stone to sit on and rest. On the road until today, the severe injury he suffered at Qi Li Dang was heavy, but did not hurt his tendons or bones, gradually getting better, only the wound on his right shoulder still throbbed with pain. He gently stroked the wound on his right shoulder with his hand, and a figure of Yan Feng from Fen Xiang Gu flashed before his eyes, and he coldly snorted in his heart.

  Just a moment later, behind Li Xuan's back, there was another slender figure, dressed in white like snow...

  Gui Li shook his head, feeling a little dazed. Just as he was lost in thought, Xiao Bai's voice suddenly sounded beside him: "Why is Fox Qishan so desolate? I've been looking for half a day and haven't even seen a single blade of grass or tree?"

  The demon's brow furrowed, saying: "It has been this way since I arrived here."

  Xiao Bai stood beside him, silent for a moment, shaking his head and saying: "When I left here years ago, Fox Qi Mountain was lush and green with luxuriant vegetation, completely different from now."

  "The demon shook his head and said: 'Then I don't know.'"

  Xiaobai sighed and turned around without saying anything else.

  Gui Li looked at Xiao Bai with a glance, knowing that she had been resting and living here with the Fox Demon clan thousands of years ago, and had an unusual feeling towards Huqi Mountain. However, he didn't know what to say either, and in his current mood, he didn't want to talk much.

  As soon as he thought of Bi Yao being in that mountain range, and perhaps by this time tomorrow she would be reborn. As soon as he thought of this, Gui Lian couldn't help but feel his whole body burning with excitement, and he couldn't think of anything else.

  The three of them rested for a while, waiting for the great wizard to recover some strength. Then Gui Li led the two of them forward again, saying he was leading the way, but in fact it was just the great wizard alone.

  Xiaobai walked alone in front, her face calm and silent, not saying a word. However, she seemed to be gradually familiarizing herself with the roads around her. At first, when they encountered several forks in the road, she would ask Guiying or wait for Guiying to take the right path before following.

  Later on, it seemed that the memories of the past had begun to awaken in Xiaobai's heart. Naturally, she became the leader and led the people behind her as they walked along the mountain road leading to Huqi Mountain.

  The little monkey Xiao Hui returned from the woods at some unknown time, with several wild fruits in his hand that he didn't know where they came from, and gnawed on them.

  Behind Xiao Hui's back, a large wine bag was still hanging, which was exactly stolen from the Miao people in southern Xinjiang. Originally there were two wine bags, but on this road, they drank intermittently, and the monkey's capacity for liquor had also increased. In 15 days, he actually finished drinking a big bag of strong liquor, and didn't get drunk again.

  On the road, Xiaobai saw that the monkey was always dragging a wine bag and swaying back and forth, which was really troublesome. So he sewed a strap on the wine bag with a cloth strip and let Xiaohui carry it on his body. This time, Xiaohui was even more happy and ran around everywhere with the wine bag on his back.

  Three people and a monkey walked on in silence, each lost in their own thoughts, accompanied only by the sound of the monkey eating wild fruit.

  As the sun gradually set in the west, the sky also slowly darkened. Just at the moment when dusk was about to arrive, they finally reached the foot of Fox Hill Mountain.

  Almost at the same time, both Dabuwu and Xiaobai's bodies shook. Dabuwu seemed to have sensed something and looked at Xiaobai who was standing beside him, saying in a low voice: "You felt it too?"

  Xiao Bai's slender eyebrows furrowed, and with her thousand-year-old spirit fox cultivation, this spiritual power and sensation were naturally extraordinary, extremely acute. Almost as soon as she arrived at the foot of Huqi Mountain, she suddenly felt that within this high mountain, beneath its seemingly ordinary desolation, a thick, fierce killing aura was faintly emanating.

  The ferocity of this killing aura was so intense that even she, with her high level of cultivation, couldn't help but feel a sense of apprehension in her heart. And after carefully sensing it, she surprisingly discovered that amidst the aura, there were two other strands of depressed and dispirited spiritual energy, which, although unwilling, could only resign themselves to their fate and submit to the killing aura.

  There must be some earth-shaking secret hidden in this mountain!

  Xiao Bai slowly regained his composure, and with a glance at the Great Shaman, he couldn't help but think that this seemingly frail old man actually possessed such sharp senses. It seemed that the Southern Border's shamanic arts indeed had their unique aspects.

  She nodded slowly and lowered her voice, saying: "What a heavy killing aura!"

  The great wizard fell silent for a moment, nodded, and the two of them looked at Gui Li together, but saw that Gui Li's face also had an unusual expression.

  In his sleeve, the Blood Devouring Bead on the Black Soul Devourer suddenly lit up, and a crimson glow flowed unceasingly, even the sleeve could not block it.

  The demon slowly took out the soul-eating bead, holding it in front of him. The light from the blood-drinking pearl at the tip of the magic wand was unusually bright, with layer upon layer of crimson light slowly spreading out. The fine blood vessels on the surface of the pearl became clearer and more visible one by one. Along his wrist, the blood-drinking pearl sent wave after wave of cool and slightly exciting breath throughout his body.

  The ghost's eyes gleamed with a fierce light, and he raised his head to gaze up at the high mountain in front of him, a strange glow flashing across his eyes.

  That is an omen of Blood Bead's extreme craving for fresh blood!

  To him, this was all too familiar.

  The Demon King himself stood at the entrance of the Demon King Sect's main hall, waiting outside a hidden dark door behind a giant boulder. It wasn't hard to imagine how much importance he attached to the Great Witch that Ji Li had brought back.

  After the three of them appeared before him, Gui Wang and Gui Jie nodded casually, as if they had exchanged greetings. They quickly walked up to Da Wu Shi's front, took a brief glance at Da Wu Shi from head to toe, and a hint of surprise flashed across their faces. "Master," he said, "your body..."

  The great wizard smiled faintly and said, "An old man on the verge of death, his fate is already sealed. Today he came here just to try his best. As for success or failure, it's up to heaven's will."

  The Demon King bowed deeply and said in a low voice, "Master is a transcendent being from the mortal world, I won't speak trivialities. The journey is arduous and tonight's sky is already late, please Master rest at this mountain cave for one night, and we'll ask for your guidance again tomorrow."

  The great wizard nodded, and indeed, he looked very tired too.

  The Demon King waved his hand, and someone had already run over to support the Great Shaman into the cave. The crowd parted to make way, and after a moment, the Great Shaman's figure disappeared into the depths of the mountain.

  The Demon King slowly turned around, and at this moment, the people standing in front of him, apart from Gui Li, also included a strange and charming woman behind him. As for the little monkey Xiao Hui, it opened its three eyes wide and looked around at the crowd in front.

  The King of Ghosts' gaze paused on Xiao Hui for a moment, then glanced at the little white figure behind Gui Lie, and finally returned to the young man in front of him.

  "Are you injured?" The Demon King asked slowly.

  The ghost nodded silently, merely nodding his head.

  The scene suddenly fell silent, with the two men standing face to face, the atmosphere somewhat strange. For ten years, the Ghost King had been teaching Gui Jie with all his heart, but between the two of them, there seemed to be an invisible deep gully that could not be seen.

  Behind the King of Ghosts stood Qinglong, Youji and many other disciples.

  The ghost's fierce gaze swept slowly, and many faces he recognized, because among them were many who had been destroyed by the magic sect's small faction, and these forces had been incorporated into the Ghost King Sect. At this moment, the original Lianxuetang system's old men such as Daxia etc., also stood in the crowd.

  Only that wild dog Taoist was not among them, and it is unknown whether he was still wandering the world with that fortune-telling Zhou Yixian and his grandson.

  The power of Gui Wang Zong seems to be growing stronger and stronger.

  The mountain wind blows by, and someone's clothes are unknowingly blown up, making a rustling sound. Deep in the belly of the mountain, there seems to be a black shadow, faintly swaying back and forth.

  Kui Lie withdrew his gaze, although he couldn't see clearly, but he knew who that person in the dark was - Mr. Gui!

  This mysterious figure seems to be forever hidden in darkness, lurking behind the Ghost King.

  "Is this girl your friend? You brought her back?" The Demon King asked calmly, his face showing no unusual expression.

  The ghost hesitated for a moment and said: "She says she's an old friend of yours and wants to come back to see you."

  The Demon King was taken aback, and this answer was beyond his expectations. He couldn't help but take a few more glances at Xiaobai, but he couldn't recall when he had met such a woman before. He asked in surprise: "Miss, have we met before?"

  Xiaobai took a step forward, let out a sigh, and then smiled: "Is Xiaochi doing well? Is she still like before, often getting lost in thought, staring at a flower with a silly expression?"

  The Demon King's body shook violently, and a rare look of astonishment appeared on his face. It wasn't just him; even the people behind him, including Qing Long and You Ji, who had been following him for a long time, changed color, with incredulous expressions floating on their faces.

  The Demon King stared at Xiao Bai, and after a long while, said: "What exactly are you, how did you know about Little...Little Chi?"

  Xiaobai's gaze drifted over the crowd, looking up at the distant view. In the twilight, the shadow of Fox Horn Mountain was desolate and towering, with an especially bleak landscape.

  Time slips away quietly between fingers...

  "Do you still remember," she said faintly, "the origin of this mountain's name?"

  The Demon King's eyes lit up, his gaze piercing, but the astonishment on his face was even heavier, and he exclaimed: "You are Bai..."

  "I am the White Fox!"

  A mountain wind blew a low hum, rolling up the light dust on the ground and flying silently into the distance.

  In a quiet stone room, the furnishings were very simple, with only a table, chairs, and bed, which was the bedroom of the Ghost King Sect's sect master.

  The only thing that caught the eye was a purple sandalwood desk leaning against the stone wall, on which three thick stacks of books were neatly placed. On the desktop, there was a white jade pen holder, holding a small wolf hair brush, and next to it, an inkstone with ink still wet. A short distance away, there was also a Qinghua pen washer, bright and transparent, containing half a basin of clear water.

  All of these gave him an elegant and refined demeanor, without a single thread or hair that resembled the image of the leader of a demonic sect in people's imagination.

  The Demon King and Xiao Bai were now standing inside this house, with no one else present besides them.

  On the stone wall on the other side of the room, a meticulous golden painting was hung. In the painting, a beautiful woman was carefully admiring a blooming flower, with a pair of butterflies fluttering around its edges. However, the woman in the painting looked so intently focused that her entire spirit was concentrated on the flower, without paying the slightest attention to the appearance of the butterflies beside it.

  The brushwork in this painting is exquisite, and the meticulous slow depiction unique to Gongbi painting style has been fully demonstrated by the painter. The woman in the painting seems to have come alive, and her infatuated expression with flowers is almost palpable.

  Xiao Bai gazed silently at the woman in the painting, and after a long while, he let out a low sigh and said: "Your artistic skills are truly remarkable. You've painted Xiao Chi so vividly that seeing this painting is just like seeing her in person."

  The Ghost King standing behind Xiao Bai's back, his gaze was also looking at this painting, and a gentle affection that had never been revealed in front of outsiders appeared in his eyes. He shook his head silently, and after a moment, he said in a low voice: "I can only regret not being able to save her!"

  Xiaobai's gaze didn't leave the painting, and he said in a low voice: "I never knew that the person Jieyi had been trying to save all along was actually your and Xiaochi's daughter."

  The Demon King smiled wistfully and said, "When Little Fool left, I couldn't catch up to see her one last time. All these years, every time I think of this matter, my heart feels like it's being cut by a knife. Now she hasn't left anything behind, only Bi Yao... but she actually also..."

  "She didn't misjudge you, choosing you was her good fortune. I think that before she died, she must not have had any regrets either."

  The Demon King was silent.

  Xiaobai took a step forward, stretched out her slender fingers, and gently stroked the delicate and beautiful face of the woman in the painting. Her eyes gradually welled up with a faint, shimmering light, filled with a hint of sadness and compassion.

  The little monkey let out a strange cry and jumped onto the bed. Back in the bedroom of Huqi Mountain's ghostly Li, it seemed to have no sense of unfamiliarity at all, jumping up and down on the bed several times, then suddenly remembering something, stretched out its hand from behind to move over the wine bag, opened the stopper, and took a big swig of strong liquor.

  After a pause, the monkey let out a long sigh and closed his eyes with an expression of happiness and satisfaction.

  The ghost stood in front of the bed, looking at the monkey with this expression, speechless, slowly shaking his head, sighing, turning around and walking to the door, opening it and going out, immediately closing the door behind him.

  The path is deep and stretches forward. He walks slowly in the tunnel of the mountain, and everyone who sees him along the way bows their heads in respect. But his face is indifferent, his eyes fixed on the front, as if there is a place calling him.

  As he walked past the corner and down the corridor, the figure of the Ghost King Sect's disciple gradually disappeared from view. When he arrived in front of that familiar icy stone chamber, all he saw was a shadowy figure that seemed like a ghost, silent and still.

  You Ji's black veil on her face moved slightly as she turned around and looked at Gui Li.

  His fierce gaze swept past her black veil and landed on the stone gate behind her. The next moment, he walked over without any hesitation, pushed open the stone gate and went in.

  The stone gate slowly closed behind him, and Yu Ji's figure stood still, solitary at the entrance.

  In the stone chamber, on the icy stone pedestal, amidst the rising wisps of white misty vapor, that beautiful woman was lying there serenely, her mouth corners seeming to still hold a faint hint of a smile.

  The demon leaned against the stone gate, and suddenly his coldness and strength seemed to relax a bit, slowly loosening and peeling away. What was left was only a desolate figure that slowly walked up and sat down beside her.

  "I'm back, Biyao..."

  A wisp of smoke drifted up from the icy stone pedestal, making Bi Yao's body seem as if it had an unreal quality to it. Her face was so beautiful, her smile so warm, did she also know that this man had returned?

  "You're saved, Biyao." His voice was low and slightly trembling, "Ten years, a whole ten years."

  "I've actually let you lie like this for ten years, I'm really useless, you must be blaming me, right... No, no, you won't blame me. You'll just smile at me, that's all, right?"

  There was no answer, only a faint wisp of smoke that slowly gathered and dispersed before his eyes.

  "I will definitely save you, Biyao, you will definitely wake up." He said in a low voice, "We will be together, Biyao, for all eternity, we will always be together!"

  Low and mournful speech accompanied by a faint mist, slowly dispersed, floated in this stone chamber, then lightly dissipated, leaving no trace.

  Note 1: Shan Hai Jing, Mountain Scripture, Volume 3, Northern Mountains: Huqi Mountain is two hundred miles north of Xunyang Mountain. It is called Huqi Mountain, with no grass or trees, but plenty of cyan jade. The Sheng River originates from here and flows northeast to join the Fen River, which contains a lot of dark jade.