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

Seeing Ji Yuebai’s expression turn somewhat upset, Xu Nian quickly grabbed her fingers, “But no matter what, I will always be by your side.”

She didn’t dare to look into Ji Yuebai’s eyes, just firmly holding her fingers to express her feelings.

After a moment, a barely audible sigh was heard.

Ji Yuebai simply responded, “Hmm.”

It really was as Xu Nian had guessed.

A wave of sadness welled up in Xu Nian’s heart. She instinctively hugged Ji Yuebai’s waist, burying her face in her arms, and that was all she allowed herself.

In the following days, although she and Ji Yuebai shared the same bed, their relationship resembled that of an old married couple; Xu Nian temporarily lost any worldly desires.

However, their everyday interactions became far more harmonious than before.

As long as Xu Nian didn’t harbor any inappropriate thoughts towards Ji Yuebai, whether she wanted to cuddle or play with her like a human-sized doll, Ji Yuebai let her do as she pleased without any sign of annoyance.

However, Xu Nian’s heart felt increasingly empty.

She wasn’t sure if it was her mating season or the close physical contact with Ji Yuebai, but Xu Nian increasingly felt the desire to take their relationship further.

Xu Nian lay on the couch, furiously writing her plans in a notebook with a charcoal pencil.

The maid Qing Ye reported from outside the door, “Lady Spirit Snake, the clan leader wishes to see you.”

Xu Nian, who had no memory of this clan leader, felt a bit like an imposter about to meet a parent. She hastily put her notebook into her storage bag: “Now?”

Qingye nodded, “I’ll take you there.”

Xu Nian wanted to ask Ji Yuebai to accompany her, but since Ji Yuebai was practicing swordsmanship, she didn’t want to disturb her for such a small matter and thus followed Qing Ye.

The clan leader’s territory was at the deepest part of the valley, backed by mountains and facing a lake – a place of great Feng Shui.

Qing Ye escorted Xu Nian only to the door, stopping there, “Lady Spirit Snake, the clan leader awaits you inside.”

With no other choice Xu Nian braced herself and pushed open the chilling, icy door, stepping inside.

But as soon as her left foot crossed the threshold, she was hit by an overwhelming pressure, like a fifteenth-rank demon beast at the peak of the transformation stage, far surpassing Xu Nian’s own level. This pressure made her kneel on the ground.

Sensing the malice from within, Xu Nian didn’t even try to resist. She surrendered completely, lying prostrate on the ground, playing dead.

The beast, initially intending to intimidate her, was taken aback by her lack of resistance and quickly withdrew its pressure.

Surprisingly, Xu Nian’s response was perfectly appropriate for the situation.

The clan leader’s intention had been to put her in her place, to remind her not to get too arrogant just because she was a Spirit Snake. Had she resisted, she might have been seriously injured.

The clan Elder Qing Lu couldn’t stay silent any longer, “I’ve always said there’s no need for such formality. We barely managed to find a Spirit Snake, and you nearly scared her away.”

As the clan leader, Qing Huang didn’t expect this Spirit Snake, who had survived many years in the cultivation world and was a rare kin-slayer among demon races, to be so weak. A mere application of pressure had her on the ground, cursing his luck silently.

He then took a box from his storage bag and handed it to a subordinate to give to Xu Nian.

Lying on the ground, Xu Nian was helped up by a snake tail and handed the box, “This is a gift from the clan leader. It’s very beneficial for the advancement of our Qingxuan King Snake clan.”

Xu Nian stood up and thanked them, then looked up at the beast seated in the seat of honor.

These two demon beasts were unlike the other Qingxuan King Snakes she had encountered here, who had human bodies but snake tails. These two appeared completely human in form, despite exuding the aura of demonic cultivators.

The one in the main seat, who had unleashed that oppressive force on her, was the clan leader of the Qingxuan King Snakes, Qing Huang. Beside him sat the equally formidable clan Elder, Qing Lu, who seemed more amiable compared to the stern-faced Qing Huang.

“Come, sit by me, Spirit Snake. Don’t be so formal,” the kinder Qing Lu invited.

Realizing the huge gap in their levels, Xu Nian didn’t dare to disobey and sat next to Elder Qing Lu.

“How many years have you spent in the cultivation world?” Qing Lu inquired.

Thinking back on the original host’s memories, Xu Nian replied, “Sixty-two years.”

“Time flies,” Qing Lu mused. “It’s been a hundred years since that great war.”

Xu Nian didn’t understand and just nodded along.

“You must have had a tough time as a lone snake in the cultivation world, haven’t you?” Qing Lu probed.

Xu Nian blinked, “After transforming, it’s been fine. I eat well, sleep well, not many worries actually.”

Qing Lu visibly choked on her response.

Realizing she might have misspoken, Xu Nian quickly added, “But returning here felt like coming home, finding a warm shelter.”

Qing Lu’s expression softened somewhat, “For the past hundred years, our demon race has been oppressed by those despicable human cultivators. Our Qingxuan King Snake clan, which should have dominated half of the cultivation world, was forced into this tiny corner of the Eastern Sea Secret Realm, all because they stole our opportunity a century ago.”

Opportunity? What opportunity?

Xu Nian was completely confused, as if she was hearing a fantasy tale.

Qing Lu smiled mysteriously, “And you, you are our new opportunity for the Qingxuan King Snake clan.”

This smile sent chills down Xu Nian’s spine, a sense of foreboding filling her heart. But before she could react or escape, given her lack of strength, Qing Lu grabbed her wrist and pinned it to the table. A chill swept across her wrist followed by a sharp pain, and fresh red blood began to flow out.

Elder Qing Lu took an empty cup, filling it with almost half a bowl of Xu Nian’s blood. He then gestured a snake-tailed attendant and presented the cup filled with Xu Nian’s blood, “Drink it.”

The attendant approached, repeatedly thanking and excitedly downing the contents. The surrounding attendants cast envious and jealous glances.

Xu Nian, covering her wound, watched in shock as the attendant who drank her blood began to howl in pain, collapsing to the ground. Astonishingly, his snake tail disappeared, his skin shedding to reveal complete human legs, and at the same time, his spiritual energy became purer and his cultivation visibly improved significantly.

A chill crept through Xu Nian’s heart.

She now understood her role as the so-called ‘Spirit Snake’. The rest of the partially transformed Qingxuan King Snakes eyed her with almost glowing greed.

Xu Nian understood her role within the Qingxuan King Snake clan could be simply translated as: a walking supplement, a movable ginseng, a continuous upgrade package…

Elder Qing Lu, noticing her fear, reassured her, “Spirit Snake, don’t worry, we will certainly protect you well.”

Seeing Elder Qing Lu’s performance, Clan Leader Qing Huang expressed impatience, “You’re always so long-winded.”

He then turned his forceful gaze to Xu Nian, “Stay in the clan as the Spirit Snake, serve the Qingxuan King Snakes, and we can help you advance to the fourteenth-rank. Should you consider resisting, don’t hold us accountable for taking strict measures. As a mere ninth-rank, escaping from us is impossible. Being tied up and bled won’t be pleasant.”

Elder Qing Lu smiled, “Of course, the Spirit Snake’s state affects the quality of her blood. Unless necessary, we’d rather not resort to that.”

Xu Nian had little choice but to accept her fate, “I am willing to serve the rise of the Qingxuan King Snakes.”

Elder Qing Lu was pleased, “Good child, very sensible.”

Clan Leader Qing Huang scoffed, “Heh, hypocrite.”

After being drained of three large bowls of blood, Xu Nian was allowed to leave. She had lost at least 1500 milliliters of blood. Although her original snake form was large, snakes generally have very little blood. This draining left her greatly weakened.

Transformed back into her human form, her once rosy cheeks were now pale. Her steps were unsteady as if walking on cotton, almost drained dry by the two ruthless Elders.

Unable to fight or flee, Xu Nian bit her lip in resignation.

Under someone else’s roof, one must bow their head. She consoled herself, considering it an involuntary blood donation.

Leaning against a tree, she made her way back but caught sight of Ji Yuebai in the distance. Instinctively, she crouched down in the bushes, not wanting her to see her in this disheveled state.

The wound on her wrist had healed due to the medicinal ointment, leaving only a faint scar.

She took out some rouge from her storage bag and carefully applied it to her cheeks and lips, making sure she looked naturally healthy before slowly standing up.

Ji Yuebai seemed to have noticed her already, standing under an unknown flowering tree, as if waiting for her to come out.

Xu Nian felt warmth in her heart and mustered her spirits, running towards her, “Yuebai, I missed you.”

Perhaps she was too eager, or maybe she relaxed too much as she approached Ji Yuebai, but she stumbled over a stone and uncontrollably lunged forward.

Ji Yuebai opened her arms, and Xu Nian’s soft body collided into her embrace.

The long sword fell to the ground, landing in the middle of petals and dirt.

White petals fluttered down around them. Xu Nian looked up, meeting Ji Yuebai’s eyes filled with love.

Such a perfect moment seemed wasted without a kiss.

Xu Nian instinctively thought so.

She was about to lean in for a kiss when she suddenly remembered the rouge on her lips and stopped abruptly.

But Ji Yuebai, without hesitation, pressed her lips to Xu Nian’s.

Her cool, gentle lips touched Xu Nian’s softly, as if cherishing a precious treasure, lightly covering them with a tender caress. Xu Nian slowly wrapped her arms around Ji Yuebai’s neck, passionately returning the kiss.

At this moment, Xu Nian cast aside all thoughts of her responsibilities as the Spirit Snake. All she wanted was to heal in the tenderness of love.

However, given her current physical condition, it was a struggle for her. After a short while, she weakly leaned into the other’s neck, panting: “Wuu, I’m a bit tired.”

Ji Yuebai gently stroked her hair, “What happened?”

Xu Nian shook her head, concealing the truth, “Nothing much. I was just called by the clan leader. He was instructing me on the cultivation methods for Spirit Snakes. I’m not quite used to it yet. I should be fine after a while.”

She glanced at Ji Yuebai from the corner of her eye, fearful of revealing any inconsistency in her story.

Before she could discern anything, her body was suddenly lifted into the air, carried in Ji Yuebai’s arms.

Xu Nian wrapped her arms around Ji Yuebai’s neck in surprise, “Yuebai?”

Ji Yuebai simply said, “If you’re tired, I’ll take you back.”

Xu Nian’s face warmed, and she hugged Ji Yuebai tighter, “Mhm.”

She suddenly felt that continuing their relationship this way was quite pleasant.