What's wrong with a snake that just wants to cultivate and transform?

Xu Nian watched intently over his shoulder without blinking, “Or perhaps you’d like to turn around and see who has arrived?”

Qi Shaochen raised an eyebrow at her, clearly disbelieving her words, “Trying to buy time at this moment?”

He had clashed with this snake demon several times and knew all too well her deceitful nature and shamelessness. He sneered inwardly, finding it ludicrous that this snake demon, even on the brink of death, dared to make a move, thinking she could take the chance to hide within a divine artifact’s space? Not on his watch. He had set up a spirit-sealing formation around her while she was undergoing the thunder tribulation.

He refused to believe in any trickery. Turning his head to check wouldn’t give Xu Nian the opportunity to turn the tables, would it?

As Qi Shaochen turned around with a smirk, his expression of disdain and mockery froze on his face in an instant, shifting rapidly to one of extreme flattery.

He quickly disabled the spirit-sealing formation and, taking out a healing sacred medicine from his storage bag, began to pour it over Xu Nian as if it cost him nothing.

The sacred medicine, truly a remarkable substance, combined with Xu Nian’s transformation and body tempering, showed extraordinary effects. The charred flesh from the lightning strikes began to fall away, and the open wounds healed visibly fast. New, tender flesh grew, and fresh green scales slowly emerged from the pink new flesh…

This spurred Xu Nian to consider robbing him once again. After all, her supply of talismans was running low, and Qi Shaochen, having returned to the sect after so long, must have accumulated quite a few valuable items.

Oblivious to her wicked plans, Qi Shaochen was infuriated by the sudden turn of events. His face contorted with anger and frustration, his lips twitching at the thought of wanting to kill her but being utterly unable to.

Xu Nian watched, shaking her head and clicking her tongue, “Senior Brother Qi, why put yourself through this?”

Qi Shaochen gritted his teeth in a low voice, squeezing out words through clenched teeth audible only to him and Xu Nian, “Just you wait.”

However, as soon as his threatening words were uttered, his attitude did a complete one-eighty. He approached Ji Yuebai, who had just dismounted from her flying sword, with a sycophantic greeting, “Shishu, you’ve arrived. I was just about to report to you that your spirit pet was undergoing tribulation.”

Ji Yuebai’s gaze fell on the empty bottle of healing medicine in his hand, “Thank you for your efforts.”

Qi Shaochen bowed slightly, “It’s all part of a disciple’s duty, Shishu, you needn’t thank me.”

As he spoke, he attempted to pick up Xu Nian from the ground to present her to Ji Yuebai, but she gestured for him to stop.

Qi Shaochen watched in disbelief as Ji Yuebai, who was always proud and indifferent, crouched down beside Xu Nian. He saw her disregard her pristine white Daoist robe becoming soiled with mud, and those precious hands, usually reserved for wielding swords to slay demons, now gently cradled the dirty snake demon as if she were a treasured possession, being extremely careful not to hurt her.

The way Ji Yuebai treated this snake demon like a precious gem shocked Qi Shaochen. He never imagined that this filthy, despicable creature would hold such significance in Ji Yuebai’s heart.

Especially when Xu Nian, still not fully recovered, rubbed against Ji Yuebai’s white robe like a spoiled child, her voice weak and whimpering, “Wuwuwu, Yuebai, it hurts all over. Why did you come so late?”

“Wuwwuu? Yuebai?”

She was calling Ji Yuebai by her first name, and so intimately. Xu Nian was a demon beast; how dare she?

What was even more outrageous was that the usually cold Ji Yuebai softened her voice and said, “Sorry, I came late.”

Qi Shaochen felt as if he’d been struck by lightning. He knew the snake demon was favored, but he had never imagined to this extent. Even when Ji Yuebai had dueled with Pang Shishu on the Life and Death Stage over this snake demon, he had thought it was more about maintaining the dignity of their leader, a stance against challenges. Now, it seemed very likely that it was all for the sake of this snake demon.

At this thought, Qi Shaochen felt utterly devastated. The snake demon had just survived the ninth-rank tribulation of a demon beast. If previously their cultivation levels were like a hill to a mound, with him having a thirty percent chance in a battle, now that she had passed her tribulation and once her realm stabilized, the difference would be like that between heaven and earth. He wouldn’t stand a chance even with nine lives, especially since human cultivators can usually only outmatch a higher-ranked demon beast by setting traps, and that mainly works on the less cunning ones.

The snake demon before him was sly and crafty through and through, and Qi Shaochen, as much as he hated to admit it, had already been outsmarted by this cunning creature when it was at a lower level. Now that it had advanced, it could be hundreds of times more troublesome.

Not to mention how Ji Shishu protected her like the apple of her eye. Qi Shaochen couldn’t fathom what sorcery Xu Nian had used to bewitch Ji Yuebai to this extent.

As Qi Shaochen was frantically brainstorming, he heard Xu Nian speak again in a tender, coquettish voice that could melt anyone’s heart with its blend of sultriness and youthful innocence. Such a contradictory nature was irresistibly alluring.

But as Qi Shaochen was its enemy, such passive skills were immune to him. The reason was simple: he had seen all its brutal aspects, its vile, shameless, and cunning sides. If he still found this voice pleasant, that would be truly strange.

Qi Shaochen was incredibly anxious, fearing that Xu Nian, the cunning snake demon, might falsely accuse him first. However, he hadn’t actually done anything to harm her yet, and she had no real cause to complain about him. Moreover, he had poured all the expensive sacred medicine he bought before his mission over her, and Ji Yuebai had witnessed it herself. He was confident that she wouldn’t punish him based solely on the snake demon’s words.

“Wuwuwu… Yuebai, when I was undergoing the tribulation, Liu Liu and Yi Yi rushed to shield me from the lightning. They got shattered. Can they be fixed?” Xu Nian whimpered.

Ji Yuebai, with unexpected tenderness, stroked the snake demon’s head, “Their mission is to protect you. However, as long as their control cores are intact, they can be repaired.”

“Really? Then I’ll look for the control cores. I didn’t pay attention to where they fell… um, seems like they are a bit far…”

Liu Liu and Yi Yi, were they the puppet dolls that shielded the snake demon from the tribulation?

Qi Shaochen was struggling to keep his composure.

The core of a high-level puppet was its control core, which, if sold on the black market, could fetch tens of thousands of spirit stones. The thunder tribulation had shattered the puppets, and luckily, one of the control cores landed right in front of him. At that moment, he was thrilled, and while another doll was struck by lightning, he paid attention to where the hub fell so he could pick it up later.

He had thought he could make a small fortune, but now…

A wise man adapts to circumstances. Knowing he couldn’t hide the truth, Qi Shaochen, with a sense of loss, took out the two small control cores from his storage bag, “Shishu, is this what you’re looking for? I saw them get struck by lightning and scattered, so I thought to collect them to return to your spirit pet…”

Watching the last bit of benefit slipping away from him, Qi Shaochen felt as if he couldn’t even breathe properly.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Xu Nian looking at him with a slightly amused expression, seemingly taking pleasure in his misery. It felt worse than being killed.

The only slight relief for him was when Ji Shishu’s gaze briefly passed over him with a hint of approval: “I heard you wish to enter the Elite Hall. I will mention this to Elder Gao.”

Qi Shaochen was pleasantly surprised. The Elite Hall, as the name implies, was where Tian Yuan Sect nurtured its elite disciples, even more exclusive than the inner sect. Once admitted, both the monthly allowance of spirit stones and access to cultivation resources would increase significantly, a place all inner sect disciples aspired to.

After striving so hard for so long, he hadn’t expected to achieve his goal so easily. He felt almost light-headed, as if in a dream.

However, the look from the snake demon put him on guard, worried that it might speak out and ruin his good fortune.

However, Qi Shaochen waited until Ji Yuebai left with Xu Nian, and the snake demon only threatened him with her gaze, not saying anything to expose him. She just stuck out her pink tongue and made a throat-slitting gesture with her tail.

Was she threatening him to keep quiet?

Late at night, while Qi Shaochen was tossing and turning in his cave dwelling, puzzling over the snake demon’s actions during the day, he suddenly saw a flash of cold light. A huge green snake, with its mouth wide open revealing its venomous fangs, hung from the beam above his bed.

It was the same snake demon from earlier in the day.

This snake demon was already at the ninth rank, and it moved through his protective barriers as if they didn’t exist. She couldn’t possibly have held back during the day only to assassinate him under the cover of night, could she? No wonder she had been silent before; she had been biding her time for this moment.

Qi Shaochen, terrified, huddled in a corner clutching his blanket, “You must know this is Tian Yuan Sect. If you, a demon beast, kill me, a disciple of the inner sect, neither the Sect Master nor the Supreme Elders will let you off, and even Ji Shishu won’t be able to protect you.”

Xu Nian, of course, knew this, but she contemptuously flicked her tail across his pale face, hissing, “What a pity, then.”

Before Qi Shaochen could relax, he saw a cunning flash in the snake demon’s eyes, filling him with foreboding.

The snake demon ominously said, “You think I can’t deal with you now and won’t be able to in the future? I’ve placed a restriction on you. Unless you stay in Tian Yuan Sect forever, the moment you step outside, I’ll crush you into pulp and throw you into a cesspit.”

Qi Shaochen shuddered, “Aren’t you afraid I’ll report you to the sect, potentially ruining Ji Shishu’s future?”

The snake demon’s eyes grew more ferocious, “If I render your throat mute with my poison, sever your limbs’ tendons, and send my snake familiars to eat away your spiritual roots and bones, turning you into a complete invalid, do you think the Sect Master and Elders of Tian Yuan Sect will protect a worthless person like you over Ji Shishu, who has an immeasurable future? Or will they just silence you to protect her?”

Hearing this, Qi Shaochen felt a chill run down his spine. The snake demon’s insight into human nature was terrifying.

Then, the snake demon added darkly, “After all, you’re a promising candidate for the Elite Hall. Don’t ruin your future.”

Such manipulative tactics – a mix of kindness and threat – were like those of a devil from hell.

Qi Shaochen was genuinely terrified of the snake demon, swallowing nervously, “So, what do you want me to do?”

Seeing him so compliant, Xu Nian nodded in satisfaction, “Do as I say and make a soul-binding oath…”

Consequently, Qi Shaochen, left with no choice, raised his hand and made a reluctant oath, “I, Qi Shaochen, hereby make a soul-binding oath. From this day forward, I will serve the snake demon Xu Nian as my master, obey all her commands, and refrain from revealing any information about her that could harm her interests. I also vow not to disclose anything about her possessing a divine artifact. If I violate any part of this oath, I, Qi Shaochen, shall die on the spot.”

After he recited the oath without missing a word,

Xu Nian, satisfied, smoothly took his storage bag and emptied its contents. As she expected, it contained many valuable items. She selectively picked what she wanted, storing them in her own storage bag, and disdainfully kicked the remaining items aside.

Qi Shaochen, watching her use the storage bag she had previously taken from him, was furious but dared not express his anger.

After looting, Xu Nian mockingly flicked his face, “Now, bark like a dog for me to hear.”

Qi Shaochen was furious, but the moment a rebellious thought rose in his mind, he suddenly felt as if his heart was being sliced with a knife, he couldn’t breathe, and his vision darkened as if he were about to meet the great Sanqing ancestors. He quickly uttered a “Woof.”

With his compliance, the shadow of death that loomed over him receded like a receding tide.

Xu Nian was evidently pleased, “Good, now kneel and bark a few more times.”

Tears of immense regret flowed from Qi Shaochen’s heart. If he had known this snake demon was so vicious, he would never have longed for that cursed divine artifact. But since there’s no cure for regret, he could only kneel and, in a tone dripping with false cheer and eagerness to please, he barked out:

“Woof, woof-woof-woof.”

“Woof-woof-woof-woof-woof.”