My Demon Friends-Chapter 546 - 525 Don’t Forget

They originally wanted to go for lamb skewers, but it was too late, so they casually picked a beef noodle shop, planning to have lamb skewers later that evening.

They ordered two bowls of noodles.

Huai Xu's beef noodles cost eight yuan per bowl. Zhou Li had Jiangshui noodles for only six yuan. His bowl was quite small and purely vegetarian, with a refreshing and slightly sour taste. It was very appetite-stimulating and would certainly be fantastic to eat in the summer.

The lamb skewers were two yuan each, sold in sets of ten, and they ordered twenty skewers.

Marinated eggs were only one yuan each—incredibly cheap. The cheapest Zhou Li had eaten were in Yi Province with Caiyun, costing one yuan and fifty cents; generally, they cost two yuan each. So Huai Xu, figuring that anyone who passed up such a bargain was a fool, directly ordered ten eggs.

The side dishes were also very inexpensive because they were really tiny portions. They casually grabbed two plates, one with pickled cucumbers and the other with small green vegetables.

The total was sixty-eight.

By this calculation, yesterday's set meal was indeed a bit pricey.

「Half-past two.」

The two had already driven out of Lanzhou City and were en route to a scenic area called Yellow River Stone Forest.

Because Zhou Li had changed his approach—since Huai Xu used to deal with demons all the time, why not just go straight to places where demons liked to settle? Most demons prefer to live in scenic areas far from human habitation. Even the Evil God, despite his intellectual challenges, had taken the highest and best vantage point in the entire Yin Yang Temple. The problem was, being unfamiliar with the area, how could Zhou Li find those scenic spots?

He opened a travel app...

And so, they set off.

The road wasn't very busy, mainly with trucks. Some sections had snow and black ice. Huai Xu was a good driver, the car handled well with its strong four-wheel drive, and they traveled steadily.

The human presence gradually thinned out.

The last few dozen kilometers leading to the scenic area were scenic highways, almost devoid of residents. Rolling hillside curves lined both sides, with grass growing by the roadside. According to online comments, these roadsides were usually planted with flowers in bright purples and reds, a beautiful sight, but Zhou Li and Huai Xu had come at the wrong time.

While driving, Huai Xu craned his neck to look at both sides of the road and asked Zhou Li, "Places like this, where no one lives, should look pretty much the same as before, right?"

"Not necessarily. Two thousand years is a long time. The world changes; there might be differences."

"Oh."

"Does it look familiar to you?"

"It does," Huai Xu nodded. "Places like this all look similar. They all look familiar to me." 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

"..."

Zhou Li initially felt pleased by the first part of Huai Xu's answer, but he calmed down after the second. Looking at Huai Xu, who was still peering eagerly at the hills to their left, he couldn't help pursing his lips. "Don't you watch the road when you drive?"

"No need," Huai Xu replied. "I can drive with my eyes closed." As if to demonstrate, he actually closed his eyes. "Don't believe me? Watch."

"Open your eyes!"

"I can even drive without using my hands."

Under Zhou Li's watchful gaze, the old monster actually let go of the steering wheel.

A curve was coming up right ahead.

The steering wheel turned on its own.

They smoothly took the turn.

Huai Xu opened his eyes, put his hands back on the steering wheel, and glanced sideways at Zhou Li. "See? Now you know."

Zhou Li: …

「Yellow River Stone Forest.」

What was supposed to be a two-hour journey took them only an hour and a half.

Unlike most scenic areas, the entrance to the Yellow River Stone Forest is up in the mountains, while the main area is a small village down below, next to the Yellow River on a flat piece of land. Overlooking it from above, it appears to be a secluded paradise.

After buying tickets, they had to go down.

A winding, steep road led down the mountain, or they could opt for a sightseeing bus.

The stone forest was to the left of the village.

Tall stone pillars and rock formations, packed tightly together like a forest of bamboo shoots, emanated a sense of mystery. Upon seeing them, Zhou Li immediately wondered what lay hidden within these stone formations.

But then another peculiarity of the scenic area emerged. After buying a ticket, entering, and descending the hill, they found themselves at the bottom of the stone forest, which wasn't actually a convenient spot for viewing the formations. The best vantage point was outside the scenic area, along a plank road leading up the mountain. It wasn't far, required no ticket, and offered a spectacular view of the stone forest and the village below.

Thanks to Huai Xu, Zhou Li avoided this pitfall.

They climbed the plank road outside the scenic area, quickly reaching the highest point to look out at the view.

The weather was still great, sunny and breezy.

Zhou Li unzipped his down jacket and took out his phone to snap a photo before turning to Huai Xu, "Did you find anything?"

"There are demons living here." Huai Xu sniffed. "I've already smelled the scent of demons, not just one. But I'm not familiar with them. Maybe I didn't know them before, or maybe we weren't close and didn't interact much."

"And this place?"

"It's quite beautiful. I've probably never been here before."

"I see."

Huai Xu's main area of activity in the past was primarily further towards Qingjiang, at least into the Hexi Corridor.

But it wasn't a wasted trip; the scenery was still nice.

Zhou Li felt he should buy a drone; flying one here would yield beautiful photos. Maybe he could tempt his Little Cousin to buy one, and then he could borrow it.

"Let's enjoy the breeze for a bit before we head back. It's quite comfortable."

"Do you want to take any photos? I can take one for you."

"No need."

"Then you take one for me."

"..."

Huai Xu had already handed his phone to Zhou Li. "To prove I was here. How long can this photo be kept?"

"If it's a digital photo, theoretically, as long as it's properly saved, it can be preserved indefinitely."

"That's good."

"Strike a pose then."

"Oh!"

Zhou Li focused on the screen, his gaze shifting beyond it to Huai Xu. A question suddenly surfaced in his mind: when Huai Xu next fell into slumber and awoke, having lost his memories and these identity templates, would he still recognize the figure in this photo as himself?

"What's wrong?" Huai Xu asked, tilting his head.

"Nothing," Zhou Li promptly pressed the shutter. "How about we ask a passerby to take a photo of us together?"

"Didn't you say you didn't want to take photos?"

"I suddenly feel like taking one."

"That's fine, too."

"Does Lord Dumpling want to be in it?"

"MEOW!"

"Okay."

On the way back, Zhou Li drove.

Huai Xu sat in the passenger seat, happily looking at the photos they had just taken. He said to Zhou Li, "You shouldn't have taken a photo with me. You look perfectly fine on your own, but standing next to me, you look pretty ugly."

Zhou Li couldn't help but laugh, but he said nothing.

Bored and with nothing else to do, Huai Xu flipped through the photos repeatedly until he tired of them. Then, he turned to Zhou Li. "These more expensive cars really are different, huh? Much more fun to drive, faster, and they don't drift in the curves. When should we buy one..."

"Let's talk about that later."

"What are you thinking?" Huai Xu suddenly asked, blinking. "Right now."

"Nothing."

"I can tell from your expression you're deep in thought."

"I'm not telling you."

"Then just focus on driving!"

"Okay."

Zhou Li faced forward, still contemplating. Digital photos could also be damaged or lost. Loss was the main concern; damage could potentially be managed. But how could he ensure Huai Xu wouldn't lose it?