Chapter Twelve
The mountains surrounding Qiling County are called Yonglian, which were quite famous in the time. Literati and poets thought the continuous Yonglian Mountains were beautiful, and many talented people wrote sentimental poems to praise them.
However, if those talented scholars were asked to enter the heart of Yonglian Mountain before nightfall, I'm afraid very few would respond.
The forests on Yonglian Mountain are so dense that it's hard to see the light of day once you enter. In addition, the roars of wild animals from afar add to the eeriness of Yonglian Mountain.
Even though Baozhu was a fox demon, she got goosebumps after walking in the mountains for a quarter of an hour.
As the sun was setting, the temperature in the mountains dropped, and walking under the tall trees felt both eerie and damp.
Miss Fox Spirit hurried along for a while, then looked up and suddenly saw an animal sleeping soundly under a large tree in the distance.
Baozhu exclaimed in surprise.
Who would sleep so carelessly under a tree? Tigers used to roam the Yonglian Mountains.
As she got closer, she could see it clearly.
It turned out to be just an ordinary big yellow dog, the kind that every household in the countryside keeps in their yard.
When the big yellow dog heard Baozhu approaching, it straightened up and wagged its tail contentedly twice, as if to show its affection to Baozhu.
Baozhu stopped, looking suspicious.
The fox and the dog stared at each other in bewilderment.
The big yellow dog tilted its head and sized up Baozhu for a while. Seeing that she didn't react, it stood up, stretched, and wagged its tail as it walked towards Baozhu.
Something unusual must be going on. Baozhu glanced around, snorted coldly, and stepped forward to lock the big yellow dog in a chokehold, firmly controlling it.
"Who's causing trouble? Come out now!"
Baozhu shouted loudly.
The forest was quiet, as if Baozhu was just overthinking things.
Baozhu, already annoyed, ran out of patience and lifted the big yellow dog high above her head, as if to throw it down.
"stop!"
A dog demon boy suddenly leaped out of the forest, crying out in terror, "Put down my mother!"
Beside him were two tiny, immature puppies, no bigger than two palms, short, chubby, and round, who lowered their bodies with a rather imposing air and barked loudly at Baozhu.
The dog demon and the puppies watched nervously as the big yellow dog appeared in Baozhu's hand.
The big yellow dog tucked its tail between its legs and trembled.
Baozhu tucked the big yellow dog under her arm, raised her chin, and said, "You think I'll just let you go? You dog, what are you doing in the mountains with your mother instead of doing anything good?"
The dog demon boy had a square face, with eyebrows condensed into two circles and round eyes, resembling four circles drawn inside a square, which was quite comical.
He scratched his head and answered dumbly, "Robbery..."
"You're robbing people, what role does your mother play?"
"When others saw my mother, they all found it interesting and lowered their guard..."
Baozhu said expressionlessly, "Haha, how interesting."
"I won't rob you anymore. We're all demons, so we're practically brothers. Could you please give me back my mother? She's old," the dog demon boy pleaded softly.
A tiny dog demon, with his aging mother and young brother, has somehow learned how to rob people. Sooner or later, he'll be taken away by the Celestial Master.
Ahead of them was that lecherous spider demon, who had probably already stripped Li Zhi of his clothes.
Thinking of these stupid compatriots, Baozhu felt a surge of anger in her heart that she couldn't suppress.
"Tell me, did you see a scholar go that way?"
The dog demon nodded: "I saw him. He's quite good-looking and runs fast. He didn't even glance at my mother. He was already gone when my brothers and I came out."
Upon hearing this, Baozhu's anger subsided slightly.
She held the big yellow dog in her left arm and pointed to the mountain path with her right hand, saying, "We've run into a tough nut to crack. If you want your mother back, go to that dilapidated temple ahead and get that spider demon out of there. Beat her up and throw her far away. At least make sure she doesn't show up in the temple tonight."
The dog demon was horrified: "That spider demon is my neighbor, how could I do such a thing?"
Baozhu didn't say a word, but lifted the big yellow dog high.
Seeing this, the dog demon and his brothers cried out in distress. The dog demon's round eyes turned red, and he said with tears streaming down his face, "I'll do it, just don't hurt my mother."
"Go quickly! And don't hurt that scholar."
The dog demon agreed, pouting, and led his brothers forward, looking back every step of the way.
The big yellow dog in Baozhu's arms couldn't help but whimper softly as it watched its son's back.
Seeing how pitiful the big yellow dog was, Baozhu thought of Wang Lanzhen and her heart softened. She patted her and comforted her, saying, "Your son will be fine. At most, he'll be sucked dry by the spider demon once, but he'll be fine in a few days."
The big yellow dog frowned and drooped its tail, it was unclear whether it understood or not.
By this time it was almost completely dark. Baozhu followed the dog demon to a dilapidated mountain god temple on the mountain.
Through the dilapidated door of the mountain god temple, you can see that someone inside has already lit a fire.
The dog demon saw it too, hesitated for a moment, and then started barking loudly outside.
The person inside the temple remained motionless, and the spider demon did not appear.
Seeing this, the dog demon's two brothers also started yelling.
After the three dogs howled like ghosts for a while, a dark figure finally emerged from the temple, gritting his teeth and saying, "What are you doing, you dog! Don't ruin my plans!"
The dog demon said guiltily, "I'm sorry."
Then he went up and slammed the dark figure into a daze, before dragging it into the deep mountains.
The spider demon's plan is not yet complete!
Baozhu watched from afar, tidied herself up for a while with satisfaction, and then strolled leisurely toward the dilapidated temple with the big yellow dog in her arms.
This dilapidated temple is often used by travelers seeking lodging, and it has everything one could need.
After Li Zhi came in, he cleaned up the ground before it got completely dark, then picked up some firewood from the woods and lit a bonfire before nightfall.
As long as there is fire, the wild animals in the mountains will be much more docile.
The flames burned, reflecting in Li Zhi's eyes as a patch of orange-red.
Behind him, the clay sculpture of the mountain god that was originally enshrined in the temple had long since collapsed, and the firelight cast his figure onto the lotus platform, as if Li Zhi were the god in the temple.
Li Zhi remained motionless, staring blankly at the leaping flames before him, seemingly preoccupied with something on his mind.
As darkness fell, Yonglian Mountain became even more eerie and terrifying in the night.
Deep in the mountains, wild beasts roared, and behind Li Zhi, in the collapsed clay sculpture of the mountain god, a dark shadow flowed slowly to the ground like water.
Little by little, the dark figure silently approached Li Zhi.
Just as the shadow was about to touch Li Zhi's shadow, he suddenly got up and searched for something in the box.
The shadowy figure paused, no longer daring to move, and remained in place, quietly observing.
Li Zhi found what he was looking for and sat back down.
Just as the shadowy figure was about to move again, a dog suddenly barked outside.
Li Zhi looked up at the outside of the temple, but still did not move.
There was no movement inside the temple, but the dogs outside were barking louder and louder, as if something urgent had happened.
The dark figure shuddered, bypassed the area illuminated by the firelight, and flowed out of the temple.
It never came back.
Li Zhi stood there like a clay sculpture, staring straight ahead without blinking.
First came the sound of fallen leaves crunching underfoot, then, in the pitch-black night, a woman appeared, carrying a large yellow dog in her arms, walking towards the temple.
Li Zhi's lips slowly curled up.
He watched as Baozhu appeared before him, looking travel-worn. After recognizing his face, she raised a hand, covered her mouth, and exclaimed in exaggerated surprise, "Young Master Li! What a coincidence! I was also on my way to Xiandu Prefecture, and I was thinking we might run into each other on the way. I never expected to actually meet you!"
"What a coincidence." Li Zhi stood up, smiling with delight. "When Xuezhong suddenly urged me to apply for a recommendation and left the letter, I thought I would never see Miss again."
It was true that we would never see each other again.
Baozhu smiled insincerely and looked Li Zhi up and down. Seeing that he was dressed neatly, she breathed a sigh of relief, and her expression became more sincere.
Li Zhi smiled and looked at the big yellow dog she was holding, asking in surprise, "What's this?"
“I saw it outside and it seemed to be limping, so I thought I’d bring it in to take a look,” Baozhu said, putting the big yellow dog down and patting its right front paw.
The big yellow dog immediately limped toward the fire.
Baozhu, carrying a small bundle, followed behind the big yellow dog, and walked awkwardly to Li Zhi's side. She looked around, unsure whether she should sit down next to Li Zhi.
Li Zhi held a roll of straw mat in his hand, spread it on the ground, and gestured for Baozhu to sit down.
The two sat together on an old straw mat in the dilapidated temple, staring blankly at the fire, each lost in their own thoughts.
For some reason, perhaps because we were deep in the mountains and there was no one else around, the atmosphere suddenly became awkward compared to when we were in Fuxia Village.
Li Zhi, this scholar, was well-read but physically strong. After trekking through the mountains for so long, there was not a trace of sweat on his clothes, only a faint scent of grass.
It's really tempting.
Baozhu turned slightly to the side and inadvertently inhaled the scent of the person next to her.
In a flash, countless memories related to this aura burst forth in her mind.
Rainy night in a deserted garden, on the bed, in the garden.
Boating on the lake, in a small boat, under the starry sky.
His neck, his fingers clasped, his lips and teeth mingling.
And when he wasn't around, she would glance down and find that her clothes were also soaked with this scent, as if Li Zhi were always embracing her.
The firelight danced on Baozhu's face, mirroring her current state of mind.
The two people who were so familiar with each other back then now sat side by side in polite silence, unsure of what to say.
Baozhu couldn't contain herself any longer. She moved to the side, called over the big yellow dog, and absentmindedly examined its paws.
"It's late, Miss, please rest." Li Zhi said softly, his eyes deep.
“It’s not good to leave the young master to keep watch alone at night,” Baozhu said with her back to him.
"It's alright, you can trust me."
Baozhu couldn't help but turn around and glance at Li Zhi. He was looking at Baozhu, half of his face was in shadow, while the other half illuminated by the firelight had the same gentle light as always.
Every time he looked at Baozhu with that gaze, Baozhu couldn't refuse any of his subsequent requests.
This is also the case now.
Baozhu was exhausted. She leaned against the big yellow dog and drifted off to sleep.
This time, she dreamed of Pagoda Mountain.
The small mountain, which was not originally very tall, transformed into a gigantic monster in her dream. The monster opened its mouth and swallowed the immobile pearl whole.
Baozhu woke up with a start, panting heavily.
It's not surprising that a little demon like her died mysteriously, just like in her previous life. Baozhu didn't know why she died either. She only knew that she had been reborn, and now that she knew, she would stay away from Pagoda Mountain. Perhaps then she could escape her predetermined death.
It took Baozhu a lot of effort to calm herself down.
It was already slightly dawn. Li Zhi was not in the temple; only the big yellow dog remained by Baozhu's side.
Baozhu patted the big yellow dog's head and breathed a sigh of relief. Just as she was about to get up to look for Li Zhi, she saw that Li Zhi had already tidied up and returned from outside with water.
"Did you sleep well last night?" Li Zhi handed the water pouch to Baozhu.
"It's alright." Baozhu was a little annoyed that she had really made the mortal Li Zhi keep watch over her all night.
Using the water Li Zhi brought back, Baozhu cleaned herself up a bit, and the two of them set off towards the rising sun.
After saying goodbye to the big yellow dog and exchanging a glance with the bruised and battered dog demon hiding in the mountains, Baozhu and Li Zhi set off northward. After traveling for a whole day, they finally crossed a mountain and left the boundary of Yonglian Mountain, where they saw the Immortal Crossing Prefecture standing on the plain in the distance.
This is an extremely prosperous city, with a shimmering lake outside the city.
The two gazed into the distance in silence for a while before continuing their walk down the mountain.
However, after taking only a few steps, Li Zhi, who was walking in front of Baozhu, suddenly stopped.
He reached out to stop Baozhu, who was confused, and hesitated, saying, "Don't look."
But Baozhu had already seen the thing under his arm.
It was a corpse.
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