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

Xue Ling was successfully tricked into coming in after hearing Mu Yanyu say it was just about helping to unwrap gifts.

She was somewhat puzzled: “What’s so difficult about that?”

Hearing this, Mu Yanyu, with a mischievous smile, pushed the gift towards her, saying in a pleasant tone, “Don’t underestimate these gifts. They are all heartfelt tokens from the disciples at the door to Ah Nian.”

At this, Xue Ling’s eyes widened slightly. These people had been secretly cozying up to Xu Nian behind her back. Could it be that they had fallen for her just like she had? She sneakily glanced at Xu Nian, leaning against the door frame, her cheeks flushing slightly.

Indeed, Xu Nian, although a demon beast, was a high-level one with a human form, and so beautifully formed at that. Who wouldn’t like her?

No, she had to find out what these fellow disciples were planning. She couldn’t let them outdo her.

Xue Ling’s fingers landed on the nearest wooden box, her face a picture of seriousness.

So focused was she that she didn’t notice the two people beside her quietly stepping back a bit.

The next second, Xue Ling let out a sharp scream, her fingers trembling, causing the entire box to fall to the ground.

It was filled with a tightly packed mass of colorful three-eyed venomous spiders, all alive. As the box fell from Xue Ling’s hands, the spiders seemed ready to burst out of it.

This made Mu Yanyu and Xu Nian’s scalps tingle, but Xu Nian, quick to react, flung a teacup lid, snapping the free-falling box shut with a clatter as it hit the ground.

Mu Yanyu, hand on her chest, let out a long breath, “That scared me to death. Which mischievous disciple thought of sending you this?”

Xu Nian also wiped the nonexistent sweat from her forehead, “I suspect they’re not truly repaying a favor but decided to prank me.”

Meanwhile, Xue Ling was so frightened that her face turned pale, her large almond eyes brimming with tears. Although she was at the initial stage of Foundation Building, she had never left Tian Yuan Sect since birth and had never encountered such ugly and poisonous demons.

Seeing her like this, Mu Yanyu felt somewhat guilty about what they had done. But, holding to the principle of ‘better her than me,’ she would still trick Xue Ling into opening a mystery box if given another chance.

Xu Nian approached Xue Ling, smoothing her hair, and coughed lightly, “Sorry, we shouldn’t have tricked you into opening this.”

Mu Yanyu nodded in agreement, “They’re all gifts by our fellow disciples; we never thought they’d be dangerous.”

‘At most… they were just a bit scary.’

Xu Nian had thought that Xue Ling would burst into tears or, like yesterday, just leave.

But unexpectedly, Xue Ling fiercely wiped away the tears at the corner of her eyes with her sleeve and said against her will, “No, it’s not scary at all. I can help you open more. I… I’m not afraid at all.”

Saying this, she picked up another box, her fingers trembling as she unwrapped it.

Mu Yanyu was stunned. She exchanged a glance with Xu Nian: Where did you find such an honest girl?

Xu Nian spread her hands innocently.

Seeing the other’s sincerity, both human and snake felt a bit embarrassed to keep pushing the responsibility onto each other, so they sat down cross-legged on the carpet and resigned themselves to opening the rest.

Fortunately, after the “baptism” of the three-eyed venomous spiders, the psychological endurance of the three had significantly increased, as had their ability to respond to emergencies.

In a way, wasn’t this a form of cultivation too?

Their efforts paid off, and Mu Yanyu finally opened a normal mystery box, containing a bunch of swift wind talismans and feather fall talismans, likely gifts from a lower-ranked disciple.

Xue Ling, on the other hand, opened a green jade ring of unknown purpose.

Mu Yanyu, with a sharp eye, immediately said, “Xu Nian, this ring looks very similar to the one you’re wearing on your finger.”

Following her gaze, Xue Ling nodded in agreement.

Hearing this, Xu Nian took off the ring she was wearing and compared it closely with the one Xue Ling had opened. She found that although the style and material were almost identical, the patterns engraved inside were slightly different – the other was an inverse pattern.

Xu Nian pondered, wondering if these two were a pair.

The one she wore was given to her by Ji Yuebai a few days ago. It could conceal her aura, or more precisely, mask the aura of a demon beast, disguising her as a human cultivator.

What then, was the purpose of this identical ring with the inverted pattern? She took the ring with the reversed pattern and tried it on, feeling for any changes.

It seemed like nothing was different.

Xue Ling then said, “Your aura has changed.”

Xu Nian, puzzled, asked, “How so?”

Mu Yanyu, with her relatively low cultivation level, also looked curiously at Xue Ling.

Although Xue Ling was only at the initial stage of Foundation Building, she had seen her fair share of artifacts. She explained, “The ring you were originally wearing must have been to conceal the aura of a demonic cultivator. Once taken off, one can feel that the flow of spiritual energy around you is different from that of a human cultivator.”

“After putting on this new ring, the aura of the demonic cultivator became even stronger.”

Hearing this, Xu Nian quickly took it off and put her original ring back on. Joking aside, wearing the wrong ring was no laughing matter.

Mu Yanyu then picked up the ring Xu Nian had discarded and tentatively tried it on her finger.

In that instant, Xu Nian distinctly felt a drastic change in the aura around Mu Yanyu. Although she couldn’t pinpoint exactly what had changed, she instinctively felt that Mu Yanyu was of her kind, a fellow demonic cultivator.

However, Mu Yanyu, wearing the ring, didn’t feel anything out of the ordinary. Instead, she curiously looked at Xu Nian and Xue Ling: “How do I look to you now? Is there anything wrong with my aura?”

Xue Ling unconsciously leaned back, frowning as she described, “It’s like a distinct beastly aura, with bared fangs and claws, the sensation one experiences when facing a demon beast.”

Xu Nian understood this point. Back when she was training in Xiao Cang Mountain, both White Tiger and Mighty Eagle had this characteristic. To be more specific, it was the innate pressure of a demon beast. Although such an aura could be consciously concealed, it was impossible to hide it completely without a trace. The beastly nature, especially in demon beasts, was much harder to suppress than in humans.

She looked at Xue Ling and then pointed at herself, “Since the aura of a demon beast makes you uncomfortable, why do you still approach me?”

Xue Ling blinked, “I feel you’re different from other demon beasts. You don’t have any of that uncomfortable aura. Instead, you seem genuine and natural.” She added, “Besides, you’re good-looking.”

Mu Yanyu took off the ring from her hand and handed it back to Xu Nian, her gaze inadvertently falling on Xue Ling’s face, thinking to herself that although the girl was pleasing to the eye, she was quite naive. How could it be that when she wore the ring, it revealed a demon beast aura, but when Xu Nian, a demon beast, wore it, it was seen as genuine and natural?

“So, you like her because she’s good-looking… Oh my.”

Isn’t that just judging by appearances?

With this in mind, she gave Xue Ling a provocative glance, then affectionately draped her arm around Xu Nian’s shoulders, feigning curiosity as she asked, “Isn’t this ring quite useless then? A demon beast wearing it is still a demon beast, and a human cultivator wearing it will be mistaken for a demon beast. What’s the use?”

Xue Ling’s gaze fell on her fingers as they played with Xu Nian’s hair, defiantly responding, “Though unassuming in appearance, this ring is actually a rare treasure. I’ve heard that many relics and treasures left by powerful beings of the past are located on the territories of demonic cultivators.”

“If used cleverly, this ring could potentially allow access to these territories to retrieve the treasures left by predecessors.”

Hearing this, Mu Yanyu’s eyes lit up. She turned to Xu Nian, “That’s great, why don’t we join hands in the future and explore the demonic cultivators’ territories for treasures? It could be a great way to make a fortune.”

As Xue Ling spoke, Xu Nian was momentarily tempted, but she quickly dismissed the idea. Shaking her head, she explained, “Demon beasts have a strong sense of territory. Even if you’re the same species, trespassing in their territory could lead to attacks and expulsion.”

Mu Yanyu looked a bit disappointed: “Okay then.”

Xu Nian casually put the ring into her storage bag, then gave the swift wind talismans and feather fall talismans to Mu Yanyu for her help. She also gathered the pile of ‘surprise’ ingredients into another storage bag, planning to find a secluded place to deal with them after disembarking the flying boat.

She had originally planned to invite Xue Ling and Mu Yanyu for a spiritual cuisine meal, but after experiencing the surprise ingredients, neither of them had the appetite. They soon made their excuses to leave.

Days flew by, and under the drifting clouds, the final destination of this journey, Fanyin Pavilion, gradually came into view.

The moist sea breeze greeted them, and flocks of white seagulls swept across the deck of the flying boat. The islands shrouded in an aura of immortality were where Fanyin Pavilion resided.

Unlike Tian Yuan Sect, Fanyin Pavilion consisted of a central main island surrounded by subsidiary islands. The islands were interconnected by intricately constructed pure white sky bridges, the method of their construction unknown. The buildings on the islands were mostly pure white, almost saintly in appearance.

As soon as the flying boat landed on the island, high-ranking disciples of Fanyin Pavilion were there to receive them, handle accommodations, assign servants to the participating disciples, and so on.

It even gave Xu Nian the illusion that she was traveling with a tour group.

However, although the buildings of the Fanyin Pavilion were pure white and as sacred as a church, the disciples’ clothing was a riot of colors.

Unlike Tian Yuan Sect, most disciples of Fanyin Pavilion were sound cultivators, and the sect had a majority of female disciples. Located on an island with eternal spring, the dress code for the disciples was less rigid and formal.

For example, the high slits on the sides of their skirts, or the attractively bare shoulders, and the deliberate waist cut-outs, among other subtle designs, all contributed to their allure.

All these highlighted the confidence and beauty of the female cultivators of the Fanyin Pavilion.

Such a magnificent sight not only captivated the disciples who had just disembarked from the flying boat, but it also dazzled Xu Nian. She walked along, continually turning her head back to look, and even when a beautiful female cultivator noticed Xu Nian looking at her, instead of getting annoyed, she playfully winked at her with a smile.

This caused Xu Nian to be distracted, and inadvertently, she bumped into the stiff back of Ji Yuebai who was standing right in front of her.

Ji Yuebai turned around, her icy gaze sweeping over Xu Nian’s face.

Xu Nian raised her finger to touch her nose, apologizing, “Sorry, I was too focused in looking around just now.”