This must be what Master meant by "fellow travelers"—friends who share the same ideals and support each other.
The four children were chatting happily when Huo Yusen came downstairs and saw three strangers in the living room. His brows immediately furrowed.
"Brother Xiao Jiu!" Qi Qi waved happily. "These are my good friends, Ting Ting, Xiao Pang, and Dou Dou."
Huo Yusen walked over and stood next to Qiqi, scrutinizing the three children.
Tingting felt a little nervous under his gaze and asked softly, "Qiqi, is this your brother? He looks so serious..."
"This is my little brother, Huo Yusen." Qiqi pulled Huo Yusen to sit down. "Little brother is amazing! He's already learning middle school material at five and a half years old!"
The chubby boy's eyes widened. "Really? I was five and a half years old and I was still learning pinyin!"
DouDou was interested in the book in Huo Yusen's hand. "Are you reading the 'Zhouyi Cantongqi'? I've read this book before, but I don't understand many parts of it."
Huo Yusen glanced at him, "What don't you understand?"
DouDou pointed to a passage in the book, "Here, 'Heaven and Earth are the gateway to the Book of Changes'..."
The two little boys immediately huddled together and started discussing, from the Book of Changes to battle formations, and then to astrology, finding themselves getting along very well.
Tingting and Xiaopang were completely confused, so they simply dragged Qiqi to play in the garden.
"Qiqi, your little brother Jiu is so smart," Tingting whispered.
Qiqi nodded proudly, "Brother Xiao Jiu is the smartest!"
"Will you two stay together forever?" Little Fatty asked.
Qiqi thought for a moment, "Yes, Qiqi and Brother Xiaojiu are family, of course we will always be together."
In the garden, three children chased and played, their laughter ringing out.
Meanwhile, in the living room, Huo Yusen and Dou Dou's discussion had escalated to the relationship between quantum physics and metaphysics.
"So I think that the so-called 'spiritual energy' is actually a form of energy that has not yet been scientifically proven." Dou Dou pushed up her glasses. "If we can use scientific methods to study metaphysics, we might be able to make a major breakthrough."
Huo Yusen nodded in agreement, a rare occurrence. "That makes sense. I'm already trying to build a mathematical model for spiritual energy fluctuations."
The two gifted children smiled at each other, clearly appreciating each other's talents.
In the evening, the three children were going home.
"Qiqi, take good care of yourself and get well soon. We'll play together again when you're fully recovered!" Tingting waved goodbye reluctantly.
"Okay! Qiqi will take you to the amusement park then!" Qiqi promised.
After seeing her friends off, Qiqi returned to the living room and found that Huo Yusen was still video chatting with Doudou.
The two exchanged contact information and decided to work on the topic together.
"Little Brother Jiu has made friends!" Qiqi said happily.
Huo Yusen turned off the tablet, his ears slightly red. "It was just an academic exchange."
“That’s friends too.” Qiqi climbed onto the sofa and sat down next to him. “Brother Xiao Jiu used to be all alone, but now he has friends. Qiqi is so happy.”
Huo Yusen looked into his sister's bright eyes and his heart softened.
He knew that Qiqi was always worried that he was too withdrawn.
He wasn't actually withdrawn; he just felt that people his age were too immature and he was too lazy to communicate with them.
But Dou Dou is different. That child's intelligence and knowledge are no less than his, and he is someone he can communicate with on an equal footing.
"Well, I'd say we're friends," Huo Yusen admitted frankly, a rare occurrence for him.
Qiqi smiled so hard her eyes curved into crescent moons.
At this moment, Huo Yuwei returned from outside, looking somewhat solemn.
"Brother, what's wrong?" Huo Yusen keenly sensed that something was amiss.
Huo Yuwei glanced at Qiqi, hesitated for a moment, and then decided to speak up.
"Special forces have discovered a stronghold of the Netherworld Cult in the southwest. Recently, many children have suddenly disappeared in that area."
Qiqi's little face immediately turned serious. "How many children are there?"
“According to preliminary statistics, there are at least twenty,” Huo Yuwei said in a deep voice. “Moreover, according to intelligence, the person in charge of that stronghold may be the old man who escaped from the underground research lab.”
Qiqi clenched her little fists. "Where is he?"
“Miao territory, deep in the Hundred Thousand Mountains,” Huo Yuwei said. “Daoist Qingyangzi has already led his men there. But the terrain there is complex, filled with miasma, and there is also interference from Miao Gu magic, making the journey very difficult.”
"Qiqi is going!" Qiqi stood up. "That wicked old man hurt Big Brother and Sister Lin Wei, Qiqi is going to catch him!"
"No." Huo Yuwei and Huo Yusen said in unison.
Huo Yuwei squatted down and looked Qiqi in the eye. "Qiqi, your injuries haven't fully healed yet. Besides, Miao territory is a thousand miles away from the capital; it's too dangerous."
"But……"
"No buts." Huo Yuwei was unusually stern with Qiqi. "You must obey this time. Daoist Qingyangzi has brought the elite of the Xuanmen, they will definitely be able to handle it. All you need to do is recover well and draw the Nine Profound Demon Sealing Talisman."
Qiqi pouted, her eyes reddening.
She always remembered the grudge that the big bad guy had made her older brother and sister Lin Wei cough up blood.
Moreover, Miao territory is hardly a safe place, and she was a little worried about Grandpa Qingyangzi and the people from the special department.
Huo Yuwei's heart softened, and he lowered his voice, "Qiqi, I know you're worried about those children. But if you go now, you won't be able to help, and you might even become a burden. How about we help everyone when you're fully recovered and stronger?"
Qiqi sniffed and nodded vigorously, "Okay, sure! Qiqi will get better soon and become super strong! Then I can protect everyone!"
Huo Yuwei patted her head. "Okay, I'll wait for that day."
In the dead of night, Qiqi lay in bed, but couldn't fall asleep no matter what she did.
He kept thinking about the children who had been kidnapped, and about Qingyangzi and the others.
She quietly got up and took out the Soul-Gathering Banner from under her pillow.
Inside the banner, the souls of the thirty-two children were being nurtured, becoming much more solid than when they were first rescued.
“Don’t be afraid, kids,” Qiqi whispered. “Qiqi will definitely find your bodies and send you home.”
She thought for a moment, then took out yellow paper and cinnabar from the drawer.
She cannot use spiritual power to draw talismans, but she can practice the strokes of the runes.
Under the moonlight, a three-and-a-half-year-old girl sat cross-legged on the bed, diligently practicing the runes of the Nine Profound Demon-Sealing Talisman, stroke by stroke.
In the night sky outside the window, seven stars grew brighter and brighter, forming a faint line.
The day of the blood moon is approaching.
But an even bigger storm is brewing.
What Qiqi didn't know was that at this moment, deep in the mountains of Miao territory, the black-robed old man who had escaped was standing in front of a huge altar, gazing up at the same starry sky.
Dozens of unconscious children were placed around the altar.
The old man's eyes flashed with a crazed light, "The seven stars are aligned, the blood moon hangs in the sky... This time, no one can stop my lord from descending!"
Behind him, a dense crowd of men in black robes knelt on the ground, shouting in unison:
Welcome, my Lord! May the underworld endure forever!
The night wind howled, carrying an ominous aura, sweeping through the mountains and forests.
There are ten days left until the alignment of the seven stars.
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