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  Incense Valley

  The majestic Shanhe Hall was quiet at this moment, except for Li Xuan and a group of elite disciples who had entered the mysterious Ten Thousand Great Mountain. At this time, most of the Fengxiang Valley disciples were either on duty patrolling in the valley or staying in their own rooms to practice their skills, rarely coming to the main hall of Fengxiang Valley. This was also the coldest time in Shanhe Hall except for late at night.

  At this moment, however, there were two figures standing at the gate of Shanhe Temple, silently gazing out towards the distant southern horizon.

  In the distant sky, in the depths of the mysterious and treacherous Ten Thousand Great Mountains range, a gigantic pillar of fire is rising to the heavens, carrying with it surging crimson magma and dense black-gray clouds, amidst which countless rock fragments are being sent high into the air by an enormous force, then bursting forth like a fountain, splashing in all directions.

  Although far away, it seems that the huge roar that shook the sky and earth can still be felt, and even under their feet, the ground is slightly trembling. Thousands of miles away are so, what kind of unimaginable scene will it be in the depths of the mountains where the explosion occurred?

  No one knows, at least, the two people standing in Shanhe Temple at this moment don't know.

  Yun Yi Lan's face looked very calm, for a long time, he didn't say a word, just silently staring at the huge flame pillar that had been erupting for a while but showed no signs of weakening. The person standing behind him was his junior brother Shangguan Ce, who was also gazing at the huge flame pillar at this moment, but his face looked much more complicated, and the expression on his face seemed to be changing unpredictably.

  Goodbye.

  In the silence, darkness crept in quietly, and the sky gradually darkened. Several disciples passed by here, but soon discovered that the atmosphere was not quite right, and quickly retreated. Later, as the last ray of twilight also gradually disappeared, even looking up at a distance, the strange image on the distant horizon slowly became blurred and unclear.

  In the distance, in a corner of the Valley of Incense, a low hum of insects could be heard, sometimes near and sometimes far, calling out for something unknown, but only serving to highlight the vast and icy coldness within the Mountain River Temple.

  Yun Yiluan's body in the shadows moved slightly, then slowly turned around.

  Shangguan Ce silently looked at him, Yun Yilans gaze met his in mid-air for a moment, then suddenly, somehow, turned away, slowly turning around and walking towards the Shanhe Temple. Shangguan Ce secretly sighed in his heart, took one last look at the direction of the southern horizon, and also turned to walk inside.

  The low footsteps echoed in the quiet mountain temple, yet sounded so loud!

  Heavy footsteps, I wonder whose heart they are treading on?

  Yun Yiluan slowly sat down in the seat in the middle of the main hall, the sky had darkened, but there were no lights lit here. It was not that the disciples of Fengxiang Valley were lazy, it was just that this night seemed to be different from others, and they all knew better than to come.

  Yun Yi Lan sat in the darkness, his face looking somewhat blurry. After a while, he suddenly said: "I didn't expect that there would actually be someone in this world who could destroy the Town Demon Ancient Cave and kill that demon?"

  Shangguan Ce sat down under Yun Yiluan, although he was Yun Yiluan's junior brother, but looking at his face, it seemed that he was much older than Yun Yiluan. At this moment, his voice seemed more normal than Yun Yiluan's, and he said calmly: "In the past, when Qingyunmen Daoxuan could recreate the Beast God, now someone can think of a way to kill the Beast Demon, it's not too surprising."

  Yun Yi Lan fell silent for a long time, not speaking, but after a while, he suddenly seemed to smile bitterly, shook his head and said: "Man's calculations are ultimately inferior to heaven's calculations, the heart and blood of a hundred years, all abandoned like this."

  Shangguan Ce sank into thought for a moment, seemingly weighing his words carefully before speaking slowly: "Perhaps... there are other methods on the 'Incense and Jade Register'..."

  Yun Yi Lan let out a cold hum, and Shangguan Ce immediately stopped talking, the atmosphere becoming slightly awkward. However, Yun Yi Lan's mood was clearly very bad at this moment, and she didn't have any intention of easing the tension, silently sitting there without making a sound.

  On Shangguan Ce's old face, the wrinkles seemed to be deeper in the dark shadows. His eyes flickered with complex light, but it was unknown what he was thinking about. After a while, Yun Yiluan suddenly called out and said: "Shangguan Shi Di."

  "What?"

  Yun Yi Lan said faintly, "Others may not understand, but the secret of Huo Xiang Gu is only clear to you and me. Why did our ancestors choose to establish our sect in this remote place of Nan Jiang's Huo Xiang Gu back then? You should know, shouldn't you?"

  Shangguan Ce sighed, his tone carrying a hint of vicissitude, saying: "It's because our ancestor discovered the ancient Nanzhong Wuzhi tribe's relic 'Xuanhuo Altar' in this land and found the mysterious and powerful secret of witchcraft within."

  Yun Yi Lan nodded slowly and said, "That's right. It was because of this that the Huo Xiang Gu sect took root in the remote south and opened its doors to establish a school, continuing to this day. The mysterious witchcraft of the ancient Wu tribe, combined with the true teachings passed down by our ancestors, have given us the status and prestige we enjoy today."

  At this point, Yun Yiluan's voice suddenly took on a hint of desolation, saying: "However, over the past few hundred years, even though our ancestors exhausted their efforts, but in the ancient witchcraft of the Nanjiang tribe, the most powerful force 'Tianhuo', we still only grasped its surface." His expression gradually became angry, coldly saying

  "On the day I succeeded to the position of Valley Master, I made a solemn oath in front of my ancestors that I would definitely uncover the secret of the Wu tribe's Heavenly Fire and make our Fragrance Valley lineage dominate the world. However, I never thought that not only did we fail to achieve this, but also the only key to exploring the power of 'Heavenly Fire', the Wu tribe's Eight Trigrams Mysterious Fire Formation diagram, was destroyed. What's more, even the most important Mysterious Fire Mirror has been lost!"

  In the darkness, Shangguan Ce's body suddenly shook slightly.

  "Bang!" A crisp sound came from Yun Yiluan's side, and in his anger, he forcefully twisted the armrest of the chair, actually twisting it off. The hall fell silent for a moment.

  After a while, Yun Yiluan suddenly let out a long sigh and slowly stood up, his tone was bleak, saying: "In the predicament of that day, I accidentally learned from an ancient book in Nanzang that besides the Xuanhuo Altar, there is still a formation chart left in the Town Demon Ancient Cave, so I had the idea of ??colluding with Hu to get rid of his skin and today's events. Unfortunately... Alas."

  He let out a long sigh, his face showing an indescribable fatigue.

  In the desolate and quiet mountains, outside the Shanhe Temple, except for the low hum of insects, there was no other sound. The disciples of Fengxiang Valley had all fallen asleep quietly. Who would have known that on such a night, two old men sat silently in the Shanhe Temple?

  Yun Yi Lan seems to be in a very unsettled mood today, her usual calm and carefree demeanor nowhere to be found. Her emotions are on full display, and she appears anxious and flustered. She paces back and forth several times before finally letting out a deep sigh and shaking her head with a bitter smile. Without saying anything, she quietly walks towards the inner chamber.

  Shangguan Ce sat still on the ground, watching as Yun Yiluan's figure was about to disappear into the dark back hall of Shanhe Temple. But Shangguan Ce suddenly had a flash of inspiration in his eyes, as if hesitating and wavering, finally made a decision and stood up.

  "Big Brother!"

  Yun Yiluan's body paused for a moment, turned around and said lightly: "What's wrong?"

  Shangguan Ce said slowly, as if every word was carefully considered: "After careful consideration, this matter may still have hope."

  Yun Yi Lan raised an eyebrow and said, "What did you say?"

  It seems that Shangguan Ce felt a bit dry in his mouth, and he slowly said: "Nowadays, the two places where the Eight Trigrams of the Xuanhuo Formation Diagram are known to exist, the Xuanhuo Altar and the Town Demon Ancient Cave, have both been damaged. If we want to continue studying the mystery of 'Tianhuo' from this formation diagram, I'm afraid it's a bleak prospect."

  Yun Yi Lan hummed and said, "Not bad, so what do you say?"

  Shangguan Ce fell silent for a moment before saying, "I was thinking that the formation diagram is an inanimate object. Since this path doesn't work, perhaps we can start from the person."

  Yun Yi Lan was slightly impatient, saying: "What person, would still know..." Suddenly, his eyes lit up, and his expression turned serious. After a moment of contemplation, he slowly said: "You're saying that after the collapse of the 'Demon-Suppressing Ancient Cave', there were actually survivors from the Southern Barbarian Tribe?"

  Shangguan Ce took a deep breath, as if there was a heavy burden weighing on his heart, but after a moment, he said: "I'm not entirely sure now, but based on my speculation, after everything in the Demon-Subduing Cave turned to dust and smoke, among those non-human, non-demon survivors of the witch tribe, there might be one person who is unlikely to be willing to perish along with them."

  He slowly raised his head, and his tone was somewhat bitter as he said: "If I'm not mistaken, this person may survive, if so, then this person will be the one who knows the most about the ancient witch tribe's mysterious magic in today's world. We may gain something from him, but it's also uncertain."

  Yun Yi Lan was silent for a moment, but his expression gradually became more relaxed and focused. After a while, he suddenly nodded and said: "Not bad, my junior brother, you indeed have insight. Although the hope is not great, it's better than despairing. Since that's the case, I'll trouble you to take a trip to the Ten Thousand Great Mountains to investigate this matter and also see how Zong Er and others are doing. He encountered great changes on his way there, which was unpredictable and difficult for him."

  Shangguan Ce silently let out a breath in his heart, stood up and nodded: "Yes."

  Yun Yi Lan glanced at him, and suddenly a smile appeared on his face. "Younger brother," he said, "earlier I was in a bad mood, perhaps my tone of voice was not quite right, don't take it to heart."

  Shangguan Ce shook his head and said, "Brother, what are you talking about? It's impossible."

  Yun Yi Lan smiled and nodded, then turned around and walked into the back hall of Shanhe Temple, disappearing into the shadows. The vast Shanhe Temple was left with only one lonely figure, standing silently.

  Darkness crept up quietly and swallowed his figure.

  ※※※

  Southern Xinjiang, the Great Mountains of Ten Thousand

  The earth-shaking roar that shook the earth, the volcanic thunder that made the ground tremble, finally subsided after three days and nights of frantic eruption. The apocalyptic scene of fire rain filling the sky also stopped at some point, leaving only scars of scorching on countless mountain peaks, rivers, and land. Looking afar, it seemed as if numerous fires were still burning on this troubled land.

  However, the dark clouds in the sky eventually dispersed slowly, casting down warm and gentle light again, shining on this land.

  Although standing far away, the air still lingers with a hint of sulfurous smell, but at this time, from the gentle breeze blowing from the distant horizon, there is already a fresh scent.

  Everything will eventually come to an end.

  Everything seems about to start all over again...

  The sun and moon revolve, shuttling back and forth without stopping; the Dipper turns and the stars shift, who can see through all the ups and downs of human life?

  The stars are sparse and the moon is rising early.

  The night wind blows gently, and the trees rustle in waves.

  A quiet night, quietly descended upon this place.

  A low and gentle hum, like a baby in a dream, she subconsciously stretched out her hand to grab something.

  That's the warmth of her skin, a sense of stability, just by her side, solid and never leaving. The corners of her mouth seemed to have gained some comfort in a dream, with a faint smile.

  In the night, under starlight, a gentle breeze blows quietly by.

  Her hair was a bit disheveled, with several strands of black hair gently swaying in the night breeze, falling on her jade-like cheeks. She slightly furrowed her brow, with an innocent and childlike expression, that kind of beauty in the midst of disorder, as if it had slowly seeped into the depths of her soul.

  The demon gazed silently at the sleeping face, she was by his side, as if never so close. She slept quietly, breathing in the fresh air of the southern border night, the wind blew, her chest rose and fell slowly, her mouth corners smiled slightly.

  He suddenly raised his head, and that bright moon had already moved to the middle of the sky, emitting soft and warm light, illuminating the world.

  The moonlight was like water, sprinkled on their bodies.

  Clothes as white as snow, person like jade!

  ※※※

  This is a cliff on the top of a mountain in the Ten Thousand Great Mountains, protruding about one zhang from the mountain peak. Because it is relatively far from Jiaohei Mountain where the Town Demon Ancient Cave is located, the massive volcanic eruption triggered by the collapse of the Town Demon Ancient Cave had little impact on this place. Only some flames and fragmented rocks mixed with a small amount of lava fell during the fire rain, igniting several fires, but they were all quickly extinguished.

  On the high cliff, one can still see the remnants of that crazy scene, but only countless ashes are left.

  On that day, the two people in a desperate situation were rescued by the mysterious object Xuanhuo Mirror with the Xuanhuo Ling screen. Due to extreme exhaustion, both of them soon fainted. When Gui Li woke up again, he found himself and Lu Xueqi on this cliff.

  After the hustle and bustle, it's such a quiet and cool night.

  Suddenly, a soft sigh came from beside him. He turned his head to look and saw that the beautiful woman who had been sleeping, after a faint smile, slowly opened her eyes.

  Those clear, gentle eyes reflecting his figure...

  Suddenly, as if time and space had stood still, a certain place deep within his soul burst forth quietly!

  Then, after a deep gaze, she smiled slightly, as if still with a hint of shyness.

  That smile is like a lily flower in the dark of night, pure and beautiful!

  Time has passed, yet it feels like a brief moment, and the passage of time has lost its meaning. Who cares?

  Guilei also smiled, smiling warmly, and that smile seemed like the one from that young man back then.

  She stretched out her hand, wanting to hold his hand and never let go, but found that the two hands had been holding together all along, never apart. A faint flush flashed across her face, and slowly, she sat up.

  Her clothes quietly slipped down, and Gui Li's jacket was covering her body. She glanced at Gui Li, but said nothing, only the faint smile at the corner of her mouth seemed to thicken.

  The night wind blows gently, as if a gentle hand sweeps across the body. In the distance, the forest on the mountain peak rustles with waves of trees, echoing softly in the darkness.

  Lu Xueqi glanced around, not far from them, on the edge of the cliff, Lu Xueqi's Tianyue divine sword was inserted upside down in the rock, its blade as calm as autumn water, standing still in the night wind. Next to Tianyue, the eerie Soul Devourer lay quietly on the ground.

  Two treasures, at this moment, seem to be so quiet, who knows what kind of past they have? The faint blue light on the Soul Devourer flickers, and it blends with the pale blue light of the Tian Jue, creating a harmonious contrast. This pair of treasures, which had been entangled in a thousand years of grudges, now seems to have a hint of fusion and complementarity.

  Suddenly, a low growl came from behind, and the two turned their heads to see a huge shadow flash by in the depths of the forest. To their surprise, it was Taotie, the ferocious beast that had followed the Beast God before. It seemed to be somewhat restless, but soon a familiar "squeak squeak" sound came up, as if comforting it. After a moment, Taotie quieted down and made no more noise.

  The two of them turned their heads around and exchanged a glance, Gui Li's expression revealed a hint of hesitation as he said: "That is the Gluttony, I came here precisely for it. Tomorrow, I should probably..."

  He suddenly stopped talking because at this moment, a white and soft palm gently covered his mouth.

  He fell silent instantly, his body seemingly trembling slightly.

  The night wind blew gently, lifting her hair. Her eyes, in this night color, seemed a little dazed.

  But the smile at the corner of his mouth never faded.

  Lu Xueqi just smiled, gazing deeply at him, the man who had haunted her dreams countless times. After a long while, she spoke softly and quietly: "Don't worry about tomorrow, okay?"

  The moonlight is like ice and snow, falling into the world of men.

  The ghost gazed at her intently, gazing at her otherworldly beauty and gentle smile, gazing at the persistence and faint sorrow behind that smile. The night wind was still blowing, her hair fluttered on her shoulders, lightly floating, with a hint of subtle fragrance drifting in the air.

  Her figure at this moment is so slender, yet that kind of beauty seems to have been untouched by countless vicissitudes in the world.

  Never mind tomorrow

  Is it okay?

  ※※※

  Bright moon, dense stars.

  The night color is vast and obscure.

  He quietly grasped her hand, holding it in his palm.

  Under the endless sky, who will care about the tiny happiness in this world?

  A slender figure, as if lightly trembling in the night wind, a faintly throbbing sentiment, as if wandering in the long river of years for thousands of years.

  Is there someone smiling and gazing into the distance above the horizon?

  Is it joy? Is it sorrow?

  Never mind, what tomorrow will be like, let's see about it tomorrow, why bother?

  Embracing in one's arms!

  Take you

  Gently embracing, in my arms...