The southern frontier of Xinjiang is vastly different from the Central Plains in terms of customs, but over the years, despite being located in a remote area, it has still maintained exchanges with the Central Plains. The unique products such as furs and minerals produced in the southern region of Xinjiang have always had an excellent reputation in the Central Plains, attracting many merchants from the Central Plains to come and trade.

  After a long time, inns that originally did not exist in the southern border also appeared in the most bustling towns under the influence of Zhongtu merchants.

  Gui Li and Xiao Bai are currently staying in a tavern called "Tianshui Inn".

  Entering the inn, it is clear that the table and chair settings have been influenced by Central Plains culture. However, the boss and his partners are all local Zhuang people. The Zhuang people in southern Xinjiang have the largest population and relatively richer lives, and they have been most deeply influenced by Central Plains culture. Unlike other ethnic groups that still mainly rely on hunting for a living, the Zhuang people have gradually begun to engage in farming and commerce.

  Although the Zhuang people are known for their bravery, they are relatively peaceful and lack the ferocity of other ethnic groups, which is why they are not as powerful as the Miao people despite having a larger population.

  Gui Li and Xiao Bai sat down, and a partner came to receive them. At this time, the sky was gradually darkening, but there were not many guests in the inn. This partner looked at their appearance and clothing, and they were also from the Zhuang ethnic group in southern Xinjiang, but it seemed that they had been working here for some time, and they spoke quite fluently.

  "Two gentlemen, what would you like to eat? Our store also has clean rooms, the price is very reasonable, famous far and near."

  The ghost nodded and said: "Leave two clean rooms for us, we'll stay overnight."

  The fellow smiled and nodded, then said: "Two guests, you haven't eaten yet, right? Do you want to order some dishes?"

  The ghost's stomach wasn't hungry, but after looking at Xiaobai, he decided to have something to eat and said, "Hmmm, bring us two bowls of rice and a few more..."

  "Huh!" The little white sitting beside him suddenly spoke up, with a smile on his face, saying: "Do you have 'Tu Men Huang Que' here?"

  Gui Li was taken aback, and he looked at Xiao Bai. The shopkeeper also stared, and couldn't help but take another look at Xiao Bai, saying: "Miss, you haven't been to our Nanjiang before, have you? This signature dish, we naturally have it."

  The little white face smiled more intensely, eyes sparkling as if recalling something, and slowly said: "Ah, right, there's also 'Three Segments of Snake Intestine', 'Roasted Bear Tail', 'Roasted Autumn Leaves', 'Five Small Insects'..."

  Black-hearted fruit

  Her eyes sparkled as she spoke, thinking aloud, starting slowly at first, one dish name after another, but later on, the faster she spoke, the more bizarre the dish names became, utterly unbelievable and certainly not from this world.

  The ghost was shocked, and the store's apprentice not only had a smile on his face that turned into an awkward expression with a big mouth that couldn't be closed, but even the store owner who was counting money in the distance couldn't help but walk over.

  Xiaobai finally stopped to catch his breath after rattling off nearly thirty dish names, then turned to the boss and the waiter with a smile: "Do you have these dishes here?"

  The boss and his partner looked at each other, after a while the boss dryly laughed and said: "Miss, you really are knowledgeable, the many dish names you just mentioned are all famous dishes from southern Xinjiang, only some of the ingredients are not easy to find. Our store can only make two of them, Black Heart Fruit and Roasted Bear Tail, besides the Earth Buried Yellow Sparrow. Extremely sorry."

  A hint of regret flashed across Xiao Bai's face, but he immediately smiled and said, "Then let's cook these three dishes first!"

  The boss and the partner hastily responded and went busy. Xiaobai's eyes turned around, but she saw Gui Li staring at herself, smiled sweetly, and said: "It's been hundreds of years, I don't know how, suddenly I especially want to taste these flavors from back then. Have you ever been here? Have you ever eaten these dishes?"

  Gui Li shook his head, in the past when he came to Nanjiang, his mind was preoccupied with finding the Black Witch tribe to save Biyao, how could he have cared about these mundane desires? Generally, they just roughed it out in the wilderness. This time, if not for the special circumstances, wanting to avoid the pursuing soldiers scattered all over Fengxiang Valley, and adding that Xiaobai was after all a woman (although a thousand-year-old demon...), it wouldn't be good to sleep under the stars every night on the mountain ridges, so they entered the town.

  He fell silent for a moment, then suddenly spoke up and asked: "I can probably guess what the 'Tu Men Huang Que' is, but what's the 'Black Heart Fruit'?"

  Xiao Bai smiled and said, "This is a special fruit from the southern border, with an emerald green exterior and tender white flesh, but the core of the meat is black. When fried in oil, it tastes extremely delicious."

  The ghost frowned and said, "What's this 'roasted bear tail' again? Is it the tail of a black bear? I've heard of bear paws and bear gallbladders before, but never that bear tails can be used as an ingredient."

  Xiao Bai smiled and said, "This bear is not that bear. In the southern border, there is a special animal called 'long-tailed bear'. Its head is much smaller than the black bears and white bears we are familiar with, but its meat is fresh and delicious, far surpassing theirs. Especially the long tail is the most precious part, in the local area of the southern border, it is very famous."

  The ghost was silent, Xiao Bai looked at him and suddenly said: "It's strange, you don't seem to care about anything usually, but when it comes to this dish, you seem to have some interest?"

  Gui Li was taken aback, and for a long time he didn't speak. He grew up on the top of Qingyun Mountain's Dazhu Peak since childhood, and soon began to cook in the kitchen. As for cooking skills, he indeed had some talent and interest. If he were in an ordinary family, he might have become a chef, and could probably make a small name for himself. But now...

  The demon let out a soft sigh, and suddenly his interest was gone, he didn't want to say anything else. Xiaobai looked at him with interest, her eyes shining softly, but it was unclear what she was thinking in her heart.

  Only Xiao Hui was still so restless, looking around, making low cries from time to time, as if expecting something.

  The night is deep and the people are quiet, the bustling Tianshui Village also gradually calmed down at nightfall.

  The Tian Shui Inn has two floors, the second floor is where the guest rooms are. Gui Li observes carefully and finds that tonight there are only two people staying here, himself and Xiao Bai. It seems that although this place is bustling, during this chaotic time in the world, not many merchants from the Central Plains have come to the Southern Borderlands. And as for the local ethnic groups of the Southern Borderlands, they generally don't stay in inns.

  Xiao Bai's room was right next to Gui Li's, separated by a wooden board wall that didn't have much soundproofing effect. Faintly audible from the other side of the wall were soft laughter and chirping noises. Monkey Xiao Hui had gone over again to play with Xiao Bai, although every night when it was time for bed, Xiao Hui would still run back to be with Gui Li. But Xiao Bai didn't know how he'd managed it - somehow he seemed particularly close to Xiao Hui now, and the little monkey liked to stick by this thousand-year-old fox demon whenever it had nothing better to do.

  Guilei lay in the room for a while, it had been a long time since he last stayed in an inn, and he was somewhat unaccustomed to it. Unconsciously, a long time had passed, and it was already late at night, but he still didn't feel sleepy, his heart felt somewhat stifled, so he got up, slowly walked to the window, pushed it open, and looked out.

  Unlike daytime, at this moment in the southern border's night sky, dark clouds are slowly dispersing. Although the cloud layer remains, a sliver of moonlight is quietly revealed through the gaps.

  The moonlight was clear and bright, like frost and snow, gently sprinkling down and falling on his body.

  The world is hushed in quiet sleep, all living things are still. The fields and forests are empty of human sound. Only from some unknown street corner comes the faint hum of insects, a mournful and piercing cry.

  Darkness envelops the earth.

  Gazing out of the window, thousands of mountains and rivers stretch far away, the night sky is deep and profound.

  Under the desolate and lonely night sky of southern Xinjiang, memories suddenly flooded my mind.

  When was it that the child from a remote village sank into the rolling waves of the red dust, drifting with the tide. Occasionally looking back, it turned out that there was no one by his side.

  Life is really lonely...

  The man under the moonlight, lowering his head in silence.

  "Hiss!"

  A distant sound pierced through the air and slowly drifted over.

  The ghostly figure raised its head, furrowing its brow slightly. In the distance, a faint streak of light appeared on the horizon, like a shooting star crossing the night sky, traversing the heavens and passing over the upper air of Tian Shui Village before falling towards the west.

  And behind it, there were three more rays of light, chasing after it relentlessly.

  The demon's eyes were as sharp as ever, and he could naturally see at a glance that the four rays of light were people practicing Taoism flying in the air. The four rays of light chased each other in the night sky, with the three rays of light behind always chasing after the front one but unable to catch up, while the escaping person was also unable to shake off the pursuit.

  After a moment, the first ray of light seemed to have made a decision and fell from the sky, looking in that direction, it was in the southwest direction of Tian Shui Village.

  Then, the three rays of light that were tracking also fell down.

  The demon's eyes narrowed for a moment, feeling that tonight his heart was not at peace, and he did not want to stand alone here again. He waved his right hand, and without making a sound, he transformed into a green light, flying towards the place where the four lights had fallen.

  After his figure became smaller and smaller, "creak" a sound, the window of the room next to Guilian was also pushed open. Xiaobai hugged Xiaohui, looking in the direction where Guilian flew away, and after a while, Guilian's figure disappeared into the darkness.

  Xiao Bai's face was calm and serene, with no expression on his pale complexion, but there was a strange glint in his eyes.

  The ghostly chariot sped silently along the road, and soon discovered that the place where those few rays of light fell was the location of the old Tian Shui stronghold, a mountain top that had been abandoned for many years.

  Just as he had just entered the mountain village, a low, muffled cry came from the front, followed by an angry voice mixed with another familiar laugh.

  The demon's brow furrowed immediately.

  This laughter was so gentle and charming that it had a subtle power to infatuate people's hearts, which was exactly Jin Bao'er's voice.

  The ghost hesitated for a moment, hid his body in the dark corner, and slowly moved forward.

  The originally quiet and deserted streets were now littered with rubble and broken tiles, a desolate scene.

  The sky cleared up a bit more at this time, the clouds gradually dispersed, and the moonlight gradually brightened, illuminating the abandoned mountain stronghold with a few degrees of brightness.

  Jin Ping'er still wore her eternal smile on her face, standing in the middle of the street with a gentle smile, facing a young man who was staring at her with anger. This person, however, was also someone familiar to Gui Lie - Li Xun, an outstanding disciple of Fenxiang Valley.

  Behind him on the street, there was a disciple of Huo Xiang Gu who had fallen to the ground. It seemed that he was the one who was injured by Jin Ping Er earlier. From his left chest down, his clothes were torn apart with a very deep and large wound, and he was moaning weakly.

  However, the fierce gaze only swept across these three people and landed on the last person after a moment.

  In the desolate night, on a deserted street, behind Jin Ping'er, there was an abandoned small building with a woman in white clothes, carrying a long sword, standing on the roof, facing the wind, her clothes fluttering gently.

  A woman of absolute beauty with skin as white as snow, even appearing somewhat pale under the bright moonlight.

  Is this night color and moonlight so beautiful and bright because of her?

  Lu Xueqi!

  In those familiar bright eyes, whose shadow is reflected?

  The ghost was startled and stayed still.

  In the darkness, he quietly gazed at the woman who seemed to be out of this world, and the entire worldly wind and frost, ten years of time, seemed to have never tainted her in the slightest. So when people look at her, the first glance is always her figure under the moonlight, like a cold and elegant fairy.

  "Sorceress!" Li's handsome face was filled with anger.

  He and Lu Xueqi blocked Jin Ping'er from front and back, but just now when they landed, this demonic girl of the Demon Sect suddenly launched a surprise attack, first confusing his fellow disciple Huo Xianggu with the "Heart-Confusing Technique", and then injuring him with the Purple Mang Blade. If Li Xun hadn't intervened, this fellow disciple would have probably lost his life.

  However, Li Kun was more concerned about something else at this moment, apart from his junior brother's injury: "What have you done with my sister Yan Hong? Hand her over quickly!"

  Jin Ping'er smiled slightly, but her eyes suddenly darted towards the dark place behind Li Xun, where Gui Li was hiding, and said: "You also said that she is your junior sister, not my junior sister, how would I know?"

  "Damn it!" Li Xuan's expression was furious, obviously very concerned about this junior sister. He angrily said: "If not for Master Shang's keen eyes and perception, we would still be deceived by you, this demon woman. You deliberately killed my fellow disciple, Huo Xiang, and this debt will definitely be paid back to you. If you know what's good for you, hand over Yan Hong junior sister immediately!"

  "Oh dear! I'm so scared!" Jin Biao'er patted her chest with her hand, but her face was full of smiles, without a hint of fear. Instead, she looked even more gentle and soft, and said in a gentle voice: "You're all from the Orthodox School, how can you bully me, a weak woman, like this?"

  A cold snort came from behind, and it was Lu Xueqi who made the sound.

  Li Xun gazed at the beautiful figure standing in a high place, his face sank, and he said to Jin Ping'er: "You demon girl, if you don't come to your senses, I won't be polite..."

  Just as the word "le" was about to leave her lips, Jinpinger suddenly smiled slyly and a purple awn burst out from under her right sleeve.

  Li Xun was instantly on high alert, this demoness was cunning and her treasure, the Purple Thorn Blade, was unmatched in sharpness. The fact that his junior brother, who had been affected by her Heart Confusion Technique, could withstand her attack for so long despite being under her control showed just how high her cultivation level was.

  Li Xuan was proud of his origin and had a high level of cultivation. Although he was on guard, he didn't show the slightest fear.

  Moreover, there was also a stunning beauty watching from afar with an icy gaze. He had been infatuated with Lu Xueqi since their first meeting ten years ago and absolutely could not lose face in front of this beauty.

  He was about to focus on the enemy, but unexpectedly, the cunning Jin Ping'er was just a feint. Suddenly, his body paused, transformed into a purple awn, and launched a surprise attack on Lu Xueqi behind him.

  In the blink of an eye, the purple mang was approaching, Lu Xueqi's face was as pale as frost. With a "ting" sound, the sharp sword aura burst out, and the blue light shot out in all directions. The Tianjue divine sword suddenly appeared in its scabbard, held horizontally in front of her chest. Li Xun watched from behind, feeling an inexplicable sense of urgency in his heart, and chased after her with his sword.

  Just as Jinpinger's purple awn blade was about to touch Tianyue, she suddenly retreated with the momentum, retreating quickly like lightning, and happened to retreat from under Li Xun's body. Li Xun was shocked and couldn't stop his body from chasing after her for a moment, while Lu Xueqi was about to chase after her, but was blocked by Li Xun, so she had to press down her figure.

  Two people looked at the same time, only to see that the direction where Jinping'er flew was exactly where Li Xun was standing earlier. There was also a disciple of Fengxiang Valley who was injured and fell to the ground, in a state of shock and confusion. Li Xun was shocked and lost his color, earlier he had been eager to show off in front of Lu Xueqi, but forgot that his junior brother behind him had no ability to resist at this moment, now he regretted it extremely, shouting loudly, his body like lightning, and chasing back with all his might.

  Lu Xueqi also followed behind him, chasing after Jin Bao'er.

  In the blink of an eye, Jin Ping'er had already arrived beside the disciple of Huixiang Valley. Suddenly, she lifted her foot and kicked him, sending his body flying backward. Li Xun hastily caught him, but as soon as he touched him, it was blood, and in an instant, his clothes were stained red.

  Jin Bier's kick had already ended the young monk's life.

  Li Kun's eyes seemed to be spitting out fire, but in this brief moment of hesitation, Lu Xueqi had already passed by his side and chased after Jin Ping'er. And at this moment, Jin Ping'er's figure had just flashed past that dark corner.

  In a low voice, at that moment, Jin Bao'er's voice came quietly and urgently: "Help me block that woman."

  In the darkness, that person snorted in disdain, his contempt clear, and shifted his body, clearly unwilling to get involved.

  Just then, in a flash of lightning, Jin Bao'er suddenly spoke out three words loudly and clearly: "Qī Lǐ Dòng!"

  These three words, like lightning, struck down the ghostly figure that was about to fly up, and saw Jin Ping'er's eyes and face filled with a mysterious smile, instantly sweeping past his side.

  But a moment later, Lu Xueqi's white figure followed closely behind, right in front of her eyes.

  Who knows, whose figure flashed through his mind at that moment?

  The green light rose, and Lu Xueqi's face, which had been cold as ice, suddenly changed, with a few parts of doubt, a few parts of confusion, a few parts of joy, and a few parts of anger!

  *gulp*...

  Tianyue and Xixue, blue and red light, shining together in the night, drifting far away.

  Li Xun brushed past Lu Xueqi and chased after Jin Ping'er, after all, Jin Ping'er was the more important target, especially since she had killed that fellow disciple who had come with them. However, as he flew through the air, he quietly turned his head back to gaze at the desolate street below where a man and woman stood silently facing each other, and in the depths of his eyes, a fiery spark flashed, burning fiercely.

  In the distance, the sound of Jin Bao'er's laughter echoed, her voice soft and playful with a hint of teasing. Gui Li heard it in his ears, silent and unresponsive.

  The moonlight is like water, sprinkled on this desolate mountain top, quiet streets.

  A woman in front of me, wearing white clothes like snow, holding a long sword, shining like autumn water.

  In the bright eyes, who is deeply gazing at me?

  Note 1: Qīlǐ Dòng, the largest settlement of Miao people in history, named after its vastness of seven li. When it was developed is unknown, destroyed by government troops during the Yuan and Ming dynasties. Legend has it that this place is easy to defend but hard to attack, with only one narrow path connecting to the outside world, once the spiritual pillar of the Miao people's world.

  The exact address is now difficult to verify, but after consulting the data, it seems that in 1983, Guangxi Heyang (Heyang?) discovered a "Daping Township", with extremely similar surrounding terrain, and led by the Miao people. Nearby mountains have "Quanshendong" (Dog God Cave), which has a giant stone statue of the dog god worshipped by the Miao people. It is suspected that this should be the place.

  Note: Dog God, a legend of the Miao people. One night, government soldiers made a surprise attack, and all the Miao people were asleep. Suddenly, a stone dog on the mountain top let out a loud bark, startling the tribe members, who then joined forces to resist the enemy, saving the entire tribe. From then on, they worshipped the Dog God, with incense burning every year without interruption.