My Demon Friends-Chapter 620 - 592: Sealed Land

Zhou Li had just taken off his shoes, and now he had to put them on again.

The Little Trash Cat was excitedly fighting with him for the shoelaces, biting them tightly and pulling to one side.

"Lord Dumpling, is it fun?"

"HRUMPH HRUMPH..."

One could vaguely make out the intonation of the words "it's fun," but the clever Lord Dumpling still didn't let go, knowing that this was how the crow's meat had been stolen by the fox.

Not wanting to pull too hard, Zhou Li gently tugged at the shoelace, but when persuasion failed, he resorted to his trump card—

"How about letting Lord Dumpling sleep next to Brother Nan again tonight?"

"Okay!" the Little Trash Cat immediately chirped, opening her mouth.

After she spoke, she lowered her head and realized that the shoelace had been released and pulled away by Zhou Li. She quickly tried to grab it with her paw, but it was too late. She sat down unhappily, admitting that Zhou Li had won this round again.

After tying his shoelaces, the disheartened Zhou Li picked her up and said to his roommates, "I've got something to do and need to go out. I won't be back tonight."

"OOH..."

"It's not what you're thinking."

"How do you know what we're thinking?"

"..."

Zhou Li didn't bother finishing the conversation and stepped out.

Chang Xiaoxiang still tried to convince him to leave Lord Dumpling in the dormitory, but he ignored it. He knew Lord Dumpling wouldn't condescend to stay with them—other than him, she only accepted pretty and rich young ladies.

"Lord Dumpling, when you stay with Brother Nan, how does he play with you?"

"Brother Lan fights with Lord Dumpling using an excavator!"

"...And that was enough to capture your heart?"

"It's really fun!"

"Then next time I'll borrow Brother Nan's little excavator and fight with Lord Dumpling too, okay?"

"MEOW... Brother Lan is very strong!"

Is she serious with that hesitant tone?

Zhou Li chose to remain silent.

The early morning flight and obscure destination meant the small plane was probably less than a third full. After disembarking, the airport felt even emptier, especially with the light rain falling tonight in Tengchong.

Zhou Li waited at the entrance of this small airport for a while, watching private cars come to pick up passengers, until a white Volkswagen pulled up beside him. The passenger window rolled down, and Mr. Jiang waved at him.

The driver was Yin Le.

After getting into the car, Zhou Li noticed several bags of clothes in the back seat as well as a small bag of medicine. He wasn't as serious about the upcoming event as Yin Le and Mr. Jiang were, even joking, "So the boss is driving himself now?"

"What kind of boss am I?" Yin Le replied.

"These clothes are..."

"For Uncle Liu."

"Uncle Liu? Oh, I see," Zhou Li nodded before asking, "Why is he only arriving now?"

"It's a long story..."

Yin Le drove back to the parking lot and checked the time. Mr. Shi might still take a while to arrive, so he started telling Zhou Li about this Uncle Liu.

The Liu family had fallen into decline a long time ago, and in the most thorough way possible. By Uncle Liu's generation, they were just plain farmers.

Uncle Liu had worked away from home and with great difficulty found a wife, with whom he could have led a peaceful life. Unfortunately, his wife was sickly and died within a few years, leaving him without children or siblings, all alone. One could say that Uncle Liu was the only direct descendant left. If the Demon King's Tomb had manifested its signs of anomaly a few decades later, it would have been very difficult for the collateral branches of the Liu family to recall the ancestral teachings.

As for now, he wasn't exactly poor. Living alone, he didn't need much money, and he'd saved a bit over half his lifetime. Because he was accustomed to being frugal and had never flown before, Uncle Liu unthinkingly chose to travel by train and bus.

But then, before he even reached the next county, his phone and wallet were stolen.

According to Yin Le, Uncle Liu had walked all the way to their location. He had arrived at a nearby town the previous day, but it had taken him more than a day to find the Taoist temple.

It was raining again tonight, and he was drenched to the bone.

A pitiable person, indeed.

Yet Zhou Li was deeply moved by his story.

Such a man, who still remembered his ancestral teachings, was willing to spend a thousand yuan to travel for several days by train and bus in search of a place he had never been to before. What was he searching for? Was it just for peace of mind?

Zhou Li couldn't help but think of Mr. Jiang's earlier words.

Mr. Jiang had originally been a skeptic, but he said he would still pass the words down to his descendants.

「Past two in the morning.」

Mr. Shi had also arrived, and Yin Le drove back to the Taoist temple.

Three bell chimes rang out.

When they returned to the Taoist temple, a pile of firewood was lit in the side hall to provide warmth on this rainy night. The flickering flames caused the faces of the Deity statues to appear intermittently lit and shadowed, their shadows swaying.

Three people sat around the campfire: two young people, and a dark, thin middle-aged man in his forties or fifties.

"Why aren't you guys asleep?" asked Yin Le.

"Can't sleep," said Lou Qingqing.

"Uncle Liu, you should go to bed. We can talk more tomorrow. You've been tired these past two days."

"I won't sleep either..."

Uncle Liu's accent was very heavy.

Yin Le handed the newly purchased clothes and cold and fever medicine to him, then introduced the newcomers before saying, "I've borrowed a Magic Artifact that conceals one's presence, which will probably arrive tomorrow. We'll set off after the Magic Artifact arrives, so everyone should go to sleep. Only with a good rest tonight can we head to the location tomorrow... Has the elder of the observatory regained consciousness?"

"He woke up a while ago and is still awake. He told us the location after everyone had arrived," Lou Qingqing said. "So, what should we do now?"

"Is he still awake now?"

"He is."

"When was 'a while ago'?"

"About... an hour ago?" Lou Qingqing looked at the non-mainstream young man. "About that time, right?"

"That's about right."

"I'll go take a look!"

Yin Le's expression turned solemn.

Zhou Li followed closely behind him to the elder's room and indeed saw the elder of the observatory awake.

The elder's condition was slightly better than when he had awakened a few days earlier. At least he was not groaning in pain anymore, and his breathing had become even. With his eyes open, he calmly watched the people gradually gathering around him without making a sound.

Yin Le opened his mouth but didn't speak for a while. Finally, he said, "Elder, it's late."

The elder just blinked.

「Near dawn.」

He passed away quietly.

Those standing by his side included only Master Xuanqing, whom he had adopted at a young age, and the three young juniors: Yin Le, Lou Qingqing, and Shen Zhengfu.

The younger people were easily moved, and their eyes unconsciously turned red.

For them, the elder was not merely a severely ill old man they had met a few days ago; he was also a predecessor who, like their ancestors, had kept his promises all his life. This shared mission fostered an extraordinary sense of belonging. They respected him as they respected the elders in their own families, even though they barely knew one another.

It was a profound feeling.

Overall, the passing of the elder still disrupted their plans. They decided to spend a day preparing for his funeral.

The elder was a traditional Taoist and was to be buried. He had already purchased his coffin, chosen his gravesite, and prepared the burial site on the back of the small mountain where Changping Lookout was located. Many Taoists from Changping Lookout were buried there, including his master.

A Taoist ritual was also to be performed, which Master Xuanqing would handle simply.

Keeping it simple was his last wish.

However, it couldn't be too complex anyway.

The elder had no children or relatives, and Master Xuanqing was his only remaining disciple. There would be far fewer scriptures to recite, as a significant portion of Taoist rituals involves scriptures closely related to the deceased's descendants. Ordinary families holding rites would have additional ceremonies, either to pray for blessings for the deceased or for their descendants. For a Taoist, most of these were unnecessary.

Moreover, the elder and his disciple were the only ones guarding the temple, with no neighbors or local acquaintances. This was likely what they meant by a 'humble Taoist'; he had lived a simple life, and his passing was equally simple.

「Brother Nan arrived that afternoon.」

Firstly, he came to pay his respects to the elder. After all, they had shared a bond, and Brother Nan had initially accepted the hospitality of the elder and Master Xuanqing, something he valued deeply.

Secondly, he came to offer help. With Master Xuanqing occupied reciting scriptures, various chores needed doing. Lunch had been haphazardly arranged by Uncle Liu and Zhou Li. Besides cooking, they also needed to go to a nearby village to hire a team of pallbearers.

Thirdly, he came to keep Master Xuanqing company.

Brother Nan was a man of principle.

「On the morning of the 10th.」

The tomb was sealed.

A layer of earth thus separated two worlds, taking a person from this world forever.

Brother Nan put his arm around Master Xuanqing's shoulders, uttering a few words of comfort. Seeing her tears wouldn't stop, he didn't say more, only telling Zhou Li, who was beside him, "I'll stay with her for a few days. Once you've finished your business, come back here to find me. It's fine if you don't come back; I rode my motorcycle here and can't give you a ride anyway. Just let me know."

"I'll come back to find you."

"Good."

Zhou Li left with Yin Le and the others.

Yin Le activated the Magic Artifact that shielded them from Demon detection, leading them through several changes of vehicles and flights, separating and reconvening, all to eliminate the minuscule probability of being tracked by Demons.

Upon reaching their destination, Yin Le said to Zhou Li, "Unexpected, right? It's actually inside Yulong Snow Mountain."

Zhou Li nodded, thinking it quite a coincidence. "Last year, Brother Nan and I traveled around here. We went from Chunming to Deqin, passing through Lijiang, but we never visited Yulong Snow Mountain."

Actually, he had suspected that the Demon King's Sealed Land wouldn't be in just any remote corner. Otherwise, never mind whether Changping Lookout could pass down such an unknown place name, even if they had, future generations might not be able to find it. By then, the place might not even be called by its original name. Large mountains or great lakes were possibilities; mountains, being more enduring, seemed more likely.

Of course, he had also wondered if the six keys, once gathered, might come with a navigation feature.

It turned out he wasn't wrong.

The six keys, when combined, did indeed have a navigation function: when within a certain distance of the Array, they could point towards the entrance.

However, it wouldn't work if they were too far away.

Having connections made a difference. Yin Le led them into the scenic area and quickly veered off the main road. They first took a small path, and then the path disappeared. They trod across the grass and walked into the forest at the foot of the snow mountain.

Following the guidance, they advanced.

Yin Le turned his head again, scanning all around to ensure no Demon was lurking, then said to Zhou Li, "I don't know how damaged the Array inside is, but humans can enter without issues. Demons cannot enter; doing so will trigger an attack."

"Huai Xu didn't follow me."

"Yes, that's what I mean. If any Demons show up later, help me hold them off."

"I'll do my best."