Traveling westward from the heart of the Central Plains, from bustling, crowded cities to sparsely populated, desolate areas, one gradually arrives at a boundless Gobi Desert.
The Gobi Desert is almost entirely covered by coarse sand and gravel. There are often low hills made of relatively soft rocks, which have been eroded by wind over the years, leaving behind all sorts of strange shapes and caves of all sizes.
The Gobi Desert has a harsh climate with little to no rain, extreme temperature differences between day and night, and frequent strong winds that whip up sand and stones that sting the face.
The Gobi Desert is arid and receives little rain. The ground is full of sand and gravel, making it impossible for ordinary trees to survive. Only the red willow, with its red stem, grows tenaciously here. Patches of red willow forests are like red carpets, adding a touch of color to the barren and impoverished land.
In the western part of the Gobi Desert lies a vast stone forest, covering nearly a thousand acres of land. The stones, of varying heights, are layered upon each other and stretch as far as the eye can see. The giant rocks that make up the stone forest are roughly round, shaped like stone pillars. The tallest is over a hundred feet tall, while the shortest is forty or fifty feet tall. The thickest rocks require seven or eight people to encircle, while the thinnest rocks require one or two people to encircle.
The tops of these megaliths are all carved into completely different demon figures. Each demon has a fierce face, holds various weapons, and glares angrily, looking quite ferocious.
The statue of the demon god Chi You was carved on the top of the thickest and tallest boulder in the very center, surrounded by these demons. The statue had a bull's head, two wings on its back, a bronze head and an iron forehead, and three heads and six arms.
The demon statue in the stone forest has been in place for some time, but strangely, despite the long period of wind erosion, there is not a trace of blemishes on the statue. The carving marks are round and smooth, faintly reflecting a soft light.
A faint black mist always shrouded the stone forest. The strong wind blew but could not disperse the black mist, only stirring up gusts of cold wind in the stone forest.
After arriving in the Gobi Desert, Liu Li, Li Molin, and the others went straight to this stone forest. In front of the stone statue of the demon god Chi You, Li Molin, Yu Ke, Ji Jue, and the other two bowed and worshipped with respectful expressions.
Liuli looked at the scene in the stone forest with curiosity. It was midday in the middle of summer. The sun shone brightly on the Gobi Desert, casting endless light and heat, but it did not reach the stone forest at all. Instead, the black mist in the stone forest touched the exposed skin on her arms and calves, making her skin feel cold and causing a layer of small goosebumps to appear.
Although Liuli didn't feel particularly cold, she still crossed her arms and muttered unhappily, "What a gloomy place."
Ahua perched on Liuli's shoulder. She looked up at the demon statue atop the stone pillar, and the ferocious expression on the statue's face made her tremble. She quickly looked away, slid down into Liuli's arms, tucked her head in, and let out a muffled "meow."
Liuli chuckled and glanced down at Ahua, teasingly saying, "Timid Ahua."
Despite saying that, her expression softened instantly. She hugged Ahua with one hand and gently stroked Ahua's head with the other.
Wolf Yuan indifferently withdrew his gaze from Liuli and Ahua, glanced at the respectful Li Molin and the other two, then looked up at the Chi You statue above him and began to examine it carefully.
Suddenly, the black mist in the stone forest surged, and a loud rumbling sound came from the outside. At Li Molin's signal, Yu Ke took to the air and looked out for a while. After a short while, he landed and whispered, "It's people from both the Buddhist and Taoist sects. But the outermost ring of demonic stone statues automatically created a demonic wall to keep them out."
“Alright.” Li Molin nodded and said, “Our Demon Clan’s sacred land will naturally not be defiled by those so-called righteous people.”
The young people from both the Buddhist and Taoist sects arrived at the Gobi Desert one after another, but they were all blocked outside the outermost black wall of the Stone Forest and could not enter. On the contrary, the demons who arrived later passed through the wall without any hindrance and rushed into the Stone Forest.
The outermost ring of stone pillars in the stone forest is roughly circular, each pillar emitting a black light. These black lights connect to form a black wall.
No matter how the Buddhist and Taoist youths attacked the outermost black wall, the wall remained unmoved. After a moment, a few of the smarter youths soared into the sky, trying to rush into the stone forest from the air. However, to their dismay, the tops of all the stone pillars in the stone forest also emitted black light, connecting to form a wall that enveloped the entire stone forest.
More and more demons arrived in the stone forest. Under Li Molin's orders, everyone began to disperse and search around the stone forest. Even Liuli, carrying Ahua, joined Li Molin in the search.
Liuli and Li Molin strolled leisurely through the stone forest, while Ahua remained huddled in Liuli's arms, too afraid to show her face.
As Liuli looked up at the demon god statue above her, she casually asked, "Li Molin, don't you demons always live in the North? How come you have a place like this here?"
While carefully searching for traces of treasures in the surrounding area, Li Molin replied, "This stone forest was set up by our clan's great god Chi You and several elders ten thousand years ago. It is a sacred place of our clan and also an ancient demonic array. However, it is a pity that only the great god Chi You can manipulate this array, or ten or more demons at the level of demon lords can manipulate it together. Otherwise, this array would be very useful."
"Oh." Liuli nodded in understanding, and said in surprise, "So this stone forest is actually a formation."
Li Molin looked up at the ceiling and said, "Look up there, isn't there a wall of light?"
Looking up, Liuli saw a faint black light curtain in the sky, more than a hundred feet high. The light curtain was indistinctly transparent, yet it seemed real. Light flowed back and forth within it, making it look dazzling.
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