It was late at night. Liuli had her eyes closed for a long time but couldn't fall asleep. She opened them and stared intently at one spot, but her eyes were unfocused. Her mind kept replaying what had happened in the demonic array. She unconsciously murmured, "I wonder how the little monk is doing..."

It turns out that I already missed him after only a short time apart.

Li Molin was still awake, leaning against a big tree, deep in thought. He vaguely heard Liuli's words, but he didn't hear them clearly, so he frowned and asked, "What did you say, Liuli?"

"It's nothing." Liuli was lying with her back to Li Molin. She answered casually and remained silent.

Li Molin shook his head, no longer thinking about the war in the Central Plains, and closed his eyes to go to sleep.

"Whoosh..."

The Gobi Desert was very cold at night, especially when the wind blew, bringing a chill. Fortunately, the three people and three demons in the forest all had spiritual power to protect their bodies, so they did not feel too cold.

Liuli thought for a while, then shook her head and whispered, "I don't want to think about it anymore, I'm going to sleep!" She raised her head and looked around. She saw that Langyuan and Yuke had each chosen a red willow tree and were sleeping with their backs against the trunk. Ji Jue was a little further away, lying comfortably on the ground with his limbs outstretched, emitting a series of increasingly loud snores.

Liuli then turned her gaze to Li Molin, who was closest to her. Li Molin had his eyes closed and was breathing steadily; it was unclear whether he was asleep or not. Her eyes narrowed slightly, a wicked smile playing on her lips. Her mischievous gaze swept over Li Molin, and she muttered to herself, "Hmph, you bastard, just you wait!"

She thought Li Molin was asleep, so she spoke a little louder than usual.

Li Molin vaguely heard what she said. He frowned, opened his eyes, and saw Liuli's cunning gaze wandering over him. He felt a chill run down his spine.

He looked down at himself; he had changed into clean clothes and there was nothing wrong with him.

He looked up, frowned, and asked in a low voice, "Liuli, what kind of trick are you up to now?"

"Huh, you're not asleep?" Liuli was taken aback. She turned her head back to lie down and chuckled in a muffled voice, "I'm not telling you!"

Li Molin paused for a moment, then shook his head and chuckled.

After a while, Liuli suddenly turned her head and looked over, and said with a wicked smile, "Fine, Li Molin, since you went to the demon array to save me, I'll remind you... You'd better keep a close eye on your Binding God Rope from now on, because one day I'm going to steal it from you! Hmph, I'll teach you to tie me up all the time!"

So that's what you were planning. Li Molin's eyes crinkled into a smile as he looked down and chuckled, "Alright, I'll wait for you to come and steal it."

Liuli turned her head, shifted her body, yawned widely, and said lazily, "You bastard, just you wait!"

Li Molin's smile grew even gentler, the flickering firelight illuminating his face and making his originally cold features appear exceptionally soft.

--

In the autumn of the sixth year of Chongde, on the fifth day of the seventh month, Li Molin and the three demons, including Liuli, left the Gobi Desert and went straight to Queqiao Town outside Fanzhou on the northwestern border of the Central Plains.

On the northwestern edge of the Central Plains lies a mountain range stretching for over a thousand miles. These mountains are nameless, extremely high, and steep. From afar, their peaks are covered in snow, with fluffy white clouds floating around them, making the mountain peaks appear to pierce the clouds.

At the foot of the southern side of the mountains lies a small town called Queqiao Town. Queqiao Town has about 180 households and is an extremely remote town, hundreds of miles away from the nearest city.

The town is inhabited by simple and honest people who are hospitable and warm-hearted. There are no thieves or burglars in the town, and no one locks their doors at night or picks up lost items on the road.

Originally, this place was on the edge of the Central Plains, a remote area with no inhabitants. Thousands of years ago, a few families fled from war and settled here, which gradually developed into this small town.

Long ago, the people of this town lived a life isolated from the outside world. The men went up the mountains to hunt, while the women stayed in town to care for the children. They were self-sufficient and lived a relatively peaceful life. It wasn't until hundreds of years ago that outsiders set foot here and discovered a lake hidden in the mountains surrounding the town that the town gradually came to life.

The lake, named Heavenly Lake by its first discoverers, is nestled halfway up a high mountain among the surrounding peaks. Shaped like a crescent moon, it stretches approximately ten li (about 5 kilometers) from north to south and seven li (about 3.5 kilometers) from east to west. Its location and appearance bear a striking resemblance to the legendary river where the seven fairies descended to bathe, and thus its fame gradually spread. A small town was also named Magpie Bridge Town, and the seventh day of the seventh lunar month is the liveliest time in Magpie Bridge Town each year.

Li Molin and Liu Li arrived outside Queqiao Town. They saw endless, rolling mountains stretching into the distance, with exquisite wooden houses nestled at their foot. Around these houses were fields where various crops were thriving. Behind each house, cattle, sheep, chickens, ducks, and other livestock were kept, their calls mingling with the laughter and chatter of the villagers in the alleyways, creating an atmosphere of peace and simplicity.

"This place is really nice," Liuli said sincerely. "It would be great to live here permanently."

"Meow." Ahua in Liuli's arms responded and nodded in deep agreement.

As they talked, the three people and three demons slowly walked towards the town, strolling along a path that led directly from the farmland to the town.

Just then, a boy in the field saw them and greeted them, "Are you here to celebrate the Qixi Festival?"

Li Molin stopped and nodded in response, "Yes."

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