Don't mess with that Miao boy, he's sickly and perverted.

—What will you do?

This seems to be the first time anyone has cared about his fate.

Wu Li nonchalantly lifted his eyelids. The truth would eventually come out; his Gu technique was improving day by day, and the High Priest would find out sooner or later.

Unfortunately, the high priest had no other recourse but to inflict physical pain upon him.

It's because he can't die.

Wu Li, unfazed, said, "What can we do? At most, we'll lock him in the Gu Cave, torture him for a few days, and then release him."

He paused, then added casually, "Maybe this time it will take a little longer."

Chai Xiaomi frowned. The image of the frail boy nailed to the stone wall flashed through her mind, bloodstained and mangled. How could he have glossed over these experiences with such a calm tone?

"Then why can't you just run away and never come back?"

"Have you ever flown a kite?" Wu Li was silent for a moment, then raised his hand and tapped his chest: "A Crimson Blood Silkworm queen lives here. She can summon me back at any time if she wants. The string is in her hand, and I am just a kite, unable to control my own body."

His voice was very faint, as if he were talking about someone else's business.

"Then..." Chai Xiaomi bit her lip, "I'll be with you, wherever you go, I'll be with you."

This time, Wu Li stopped in his tracks.

He turned around, his dark, deep eyes meeting her firm yet slightly uneasy gaze.

The dappled sunlight in the woods fell on his face, flickering and fading.

"Aren't you a coward?" He looked at her, a very faint, almost imperceptible smile playing on his lips. "Chai Xiaomi, if you come into the Gu Cave with me, you'll be eaten, won't you? Aren't you afraid?"

"I wasn't eaten last time, was I?" Chai Xiaomi still remembered the dense swarms of bats that circled around her but didn't approach. "You'll protect me, right?"

Wu Li retorted dismissively, as if he'd heard a joke, "Why do you think I'd protect you?"

"Because—" Chai Xiaomi crossed her arms and answered confidently, "I am the person who likes you the most in this world."

"If I disappear, where will you find someone who likes you this much again?"

She took a half-step forward, her voice soft:

"Ah Li".

The affectionate address startled Wu Li slightly.

The first rays of sunlight in the morning filtered through the gaps in the trees, covering the girl's face like a thin veil. Earlier, when he had grabbed her chin, his fingertips had poked into her cheek, leaving two faint red marks on her fair skin.

As if possessed, he reached out and gently poked the red mark on her cheek with his fingertips. It was soft and thin, like a newly blossoming petal.

"I won't save you." He withdrew his hand, his tone indifferent. "I don't like you anyway."

"Besides, the Gu worms don't like to eat stupid people; they have brains."

The cuffs suddenly moved.

A small, dark red snake head peeked out, its eerie green vertical pupils staring intently at Chai Xiaomi.

Wu Li lowered his eyes and tapped the snake's head with his fingertip: "Red Dragon, do you like eating idiots?"

The red dragon flicked its tongue and glanced around. The girl looked delicate and tender, and it really wanted to eat her, but its master had warned it long ago.

So it reluctantly shook its head, giving Chai Xiaomi a "you figure it out yourself" look, before quickly shrunk back into its sleeve.

Chai Xiaomi: "..."

She wasn't seeing things, was she? This snake could actually roll its eyes?

As expected! Like master, like favorite!

She shouldn't have expected him to say anything nice.

"Oh! Fine, I won't save you then!" she replied irritably, quickened her pace, walked past him, and went ahead, leaving him with only her puffed-up back of her head.

Seeing the girl's suddenly quickened pace and her disgruntled back, a fleeting, almost imperceptible, ripple crossed Wu Li's eyes.

He started walking again, following her at a distance that wasn't too close.

The mountains and forests were silent, and the road ahead was unknown.

*

The four men and three horses headed towards Liangzhou Yazhou.

Chai Xiaomi couldn't ride a horse, but as usual, she rode with Wu Li. The two large bags tied to the horse's back swayed and bounced with the horse's hooves.

Jiang Zhiyu tugged at the reins and kindly reminded him, "You can put your luggage in your Qiankun bag; it'll be more convenient."

Upon hearing this, Chai Xiaomi's eyes lit up; she had almost forgotten the purpose of this treasure!

Wu Li glanced at Jiang Zhiyu indifferently: "That bag is filled with too much demonic energy. Putting it in will make you smell foul. My wife is very clean and can't stand the smell."

"I was being inconsiderate." Jiang Zhiyu smiled awkwardly. His Qiankun bag did indeed often contain demon cores, so the smells were inevitably mixed.

He suddenly remembered that there was still a broken banana spirit core in his bag. Since he had already given it away, it wouldn't be right to ask for it back. Oh well, it's broken anyway, so there's no harm in leaving it.

Chai Xiaomi was not used to riding horses for long periods of time, and having just recovered from a high fever, she squinted and leaned against Wu Li's chest.

Being half-asleep and half-awake is a feeling even worse than motion sickness.

The clatter of hooves lulls me into a dream...

*

After the incident involving Qi Lao, the guests from various ethnic groups who had come to witness the ceremony all took their leave and departed.

The village was in chaos. The bride had disappeared, the magic stone had been stolen, and the elders were in a panic. They sent out a large number of people to search the mountains and streams, and had no time to entertain the guests.

Little Fatty was mingling among the departing crowd, tidying his somewhat disheveled clothes, when he suddenly felt something furry brush past his feet.

Looking down, I saw a cat that was pure white.

Little Fatty was overjoyed and quickly followed the white cat to a secluded spot in the southwest corner of the village.

As soon as he was out of the crowd, he immediately knelt down and kowtowed respectfully to the white cat, his voice urgent:

"Master Ji! You've finally arrived! The young master sent you a talisman to warn you when he encountered the great demon a few nights ago. Why are you only arriving today? The young master has run away again and ordered me to stay here and wait for you."

The white cat sat on the stone steps, its whiskers twitching, and huffed and puffed out a human voice from its throat: "That brat, ran off with that girl Song again?!"

"That's right." The chubby boy kowtowed again, looking aggrieved. "Young Master knew you would come after him once you received the news, so he left me here all alone. I have nowhere to go, Master Ji, please save me."

This time, the young master secretly came to Ribai to steal the bride, and no one in the palace knew about it except him. If he were to return to Lingyu Prefecture like this, he would probably not be able to escape the lord's punishment.

Fortunately, Ji Fangshi was gentle and kind, and he could speak well to his lord.

"Hey, hey, stop hitting me, stop hitting me," the white cat raised its front paw and waved it, sighing, "My life is too short to withstand this kind of hitting! This isn't your fault, it's that kid who's too lawless."

It twitched its ears, and its glassy eyes darted around: "Do you know where he went with that girl Song?"

Little Fatty thought carefully, and suddenly his eyes lit up: "When I was packing the young master's luggage, I seemed to hear him mention Youquan Town."

The white cat's pupils contracted slightly.

Youquan Town.

The name seemed to make its snow-white fur stand on end.

It remained silent for a moment before slowly speaking, its voice carrying a deep meaning: "He certainly knows how to pick a place."

Little Fatty looked up in confusion, only to see the white cat nimbly leap onto the wall, glancing back at him: "Go back now, I'll definitely drag that brat back!"