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

This Spirit Snake has now become the clan head, yet still plunders the treasures of her own clan members, utterly shameless.

Xu Nian, selective in her looting, gathered all the items with spiritual energy into her storage bag. Observing her summoned little green snakes strip the battlefield clean, she glanced at the corpse of the former clan head, Qing Huang, lying closest to her.

She had almost forgotten earlier that at the low-level auction in the Fanyin Pavilion, the demon cores of eighth or ninth rank demonic beasts fetched prices of two to three hundred thousand spirit stones. Qing Huang was a sixteenth-level Qingxuan King Snake – imagine how many spirit stones his core could sell for! She planned to have Mu Yanyu handle the sale. With such a windfall, she could secure her financial needs for the rest of her life, even after ascending.

Controlling a little green snake nearest to the former clan head Qing Huang, Xu Nian had it extract his demon core. She was about to pocket it when she noticed Elder Qing Lu watching her.

The Supreme Kunlun Qing Yan had warned her during their pact that her power was insufficient to sustain its form for more than a quarter of an hour. In such a short time, she couldn’t possibly deal with the hidden Elders of the Qingxuan King Snake clan, so their plan was to first secure her position as clan head and then plot further. This must not be discovered by Elder Qing Lu.

In front of Elder Qing Lu, Xu Nian turned and presented the shimmering demon core to Qing Yan.

As Qing Yan was now only a soul, its current body was merely reconstructed through Xu Nian’s summoning skill. A sixteenth-level demon core was of no use to it. It saw through Xu Nian’s intentions and said, “Such trinkets are of no use to me. I bestow it upon you as a plaything.”

Elder Qing Lu gasped inwardly. A sixteenth-stage demon core was dismissed as a ‘trifle’ and casually given to Xu Nian. Just how terrifyingly powerful had Qing Yan become? He had originally thought of conspiring with the council of Elders to ambush Qing Yan, but now he changed his mind.

Xu Nian pocketed the demon core, still eyeing the scales of the fourteenth-satge King Snakes slain by Qing Yan. Yet, if she now commanded the little snakes to strip their hides and harvest their bones, there might be mutiny. Better to refrain and avoid trouble.

She restrained herself several times, walking out of the king snakes’ encirclement as if nothing had happened. As the quarter-hour was almost over and her spiritual power was waning, she had to act fast.

Qing Yan, threateningly looking at Qing Lu, warned, “If a single thing happens to my offering, I will take your snake life.”

Elder Qing Lu dared not object, nodding even faster than a drum: “Rest assured, my lord.”

The moment Qing Yan’s massive form soared into the sky, the oppressive aura dissipated. As it vanished into the clouds, Elder Qing Lu finally breathed a sigh of relief and collapsed on the ground, exhausted.

Xu Nian didn’t bother with him and walked back to her dwelling. Her spiritual power was severely drained, and she relied on sheer willpower to avoid exposing her weakness. Fortunately, Qing Lu, heavily injured and mentally shattered, hadn’t noticed anything unusual about her.

Her Wumu bracelet flickered with a dim light, signaling Qing Yan’s return.

“Hurry, hurry, hurry, I exhausted myself just now, give me some blood to drink.”

The Wumu bracelet that Qing Yan resided in was originally a tablet, but it didn’t want to stay in the storage bag, and Xu Nian didn’t fancy carrying a tablet around all the time. After some negotiation, the tablet was whittled down into a convenient and portable bracelet.

Qing Yan’s spirit itself couldn’t directly absorb Xu Nian’s blood. It needed the Wumu bracelet as a medium to absorb her blood and then nourish its soul. The amount of blood required to nourish the Wumu bracelet for Qing Yan was trivial compared to what Elder Qing Lu demanded. Xu Nian only needed to assist a single spirit, whereas Elder Qing Lu wanted to exploit her as a workhorse for the entire clan.

But the agreement between Qing Yan and Xu Nian wasn’t just about providing blood for nourishment. Though they shared a common enemy – the Qingxuan King Snake clan – this alone wasn’t enough for Qing Yan to risk its fragile soul to help Xu Nian. It required a physical body that would allow it to re-enter the path of ascension to the higher realm.

Hence, Qing Yan set the condition: If Xu Nian died, her body would belong to it; if Xu Nian ascended, she must find a suitable body for Qing Yan within a hundred years of ascending, or else her body would still be used by Qing Yan.

After considering, Xu Nian felt the condition was fair, much better than the unequal treaty with Elder Qing Lu. If she died, her body would be useless anyway, so giving it to Qing Yan could be considered a good deed. And if she ascended, finding a body for Qing Yan wouldn’t be a big deal.

Besides, who could predict the future? According to the voice in her mind when she awoke, her body was destined for Ji Yuebai to enact righteous vengeance. Busy as it was, her corpse would be perfect for Qing Yan.

All things considered, it was a win-win deal for Xu Nian. She also understood why Qing Yan, despite its immense power, was reduced to a mere soul by the Qingxuan King Snake clan.

Despite its proud nature, the child was actually quite honest.

Upon hearing Qing Yan’s request, Xu Nian calmly opened Elder Qing Lu’s storage bag to search. Indeed, she found rows of porcelain bottles filled with her blood, secretly reserved by Qing Lu for his future breakthrough to the sixteenth stage. She hadn’t expected to reclaim these bottles before he even began using them.

Xu Nian counted about fifty to sixty bottles, each holding about fifty milliliters. It was sheer greed. She opened a bottle and poured it over the Wumu bracelet, watching the dark red blood quickly absorb into the wood, darkening its color further.

Qing Yan complained, “How long have you stored this blood? It feels a bit stale.”

Xu Nian replied without changing her expression, “I have a condition that causes blood stagnation, so it’s normal for my blood to be like this. Be grateful that you have something to use at all.”

Qing Yan, having hidden in the tablet for hundreds of years, was wary of Xu Nian abandoning it after crossing the bridge. It muttered, “Fine, as long as it’s usable. I’ve expended a lot of soul energy and need to rest for a while. Just don’t let those cunning Elders kill you.”

Xu Nian reassured, “Don’t worry.”

Although the agreement stated that Xu Nian’s body would belong to Qing Yan after her death, that was only if no one else claimed it. So, even in death, it had to ensure Xu Nian’s body ended up in a safe place. After all, her body in the Qingxuan King Snake clan was like a coveted piece of meat everyone wanted a bite of. Without Xu Nian’s spiritual power, Qing Yan couldn’t confront those Elders, let alone take her body from them.

The official ceremony for the transfer of the clan head’s authority was scheduled for ten days later. Since Xu Nian wasn’t well-versed in the affairs of the Qingxuan King Snake clan, she left the preparations to Elder Qing Lu, content with holding the title and position.

During this time, the sisters Qing Cheng and Qing Jin visited Xu Nian. Learning that she was now the clan head of the Qingxuan King Snake clan, they were visibly frightened. Qing Cheng, more cautious, inquired whether their agreement still stood, pointing out that Xu Nian was now the head of the most powerful demonic beast clan in the Eastern Sea secret realm and might not see the need to leave.

Xu Nian reassured them and promised to honor the agreement, telling them she would contact them in due time. After all, she still planned to live a life of seclusion with Ji Yuebai.

But Xu Nian couldn’t avoid the bitter and hard-to-swallow pills produced by Qing Zhi. Even as the clan head, Qing Zhi remained nonchalant in her presence. “So this is the respect due after three days’ absence? Xu Nian, you really are something else. Given our good relationship, why don’t you ask the administration to increase my salary?”

Xu Nian, thoroughly disgusted, retorted, “I’ve become the clan head, and your medicine is still as awful as ever. Where do you get the nerve to ask for a raise? Keep dreaming.”

As she spoke, Xu Nian leaned against Ji Yuebai, burying her head in her embrace, whining softly, “Yuebai, do I really have to take the medicine? I’m perfectly healthy. Why do I need to take those terrible pills?”

Her active mind even speculated whether this was a conspiracy between Ji Yuebai and Qing Zhi, akin to the saying “Dear, time for your medicine,” considering she was bound by the script of a righteous killing of her wife.

Ji Yuebai just stroked her hair, speaking softly to comfort her, “Be good, just a little longer and then we won’t take it anymore, okay?”

Obediently, Xu Nian leaned against Ji Yuebai, her lips pouting slightly, “Then Yuebai has to feed me.”

Ji Yuebai naturally wouldn’t refuse such a small request. After taking a small porcelain bottle from Qing Zhi and performing the poison-testing ritual, she confirmed it was safe and brought a pill to Xu Nian’s lips.

Xu Nian gently held Ji Yuebai’s wrist, looking up at her with a hint of playfulness, “When I said ‘feed me,’ I didn’t mean like this.”

She took the pill from Ji Yuebai’s hand and lightly placed it on her soft, pink lips.

The cool, herb-flavored pill brushed against her lips, and the soft touch of her fingers unavoidably sparked a ripple in Ji Yuebai’s charming black eyes, filled with a seductive allure.

Realizing Xu Nian’s deliberate flirtation, Ji Yuebai felt a sudden heat surge within her. She fixed her gaze on Xu Nian, accepting the pill from her fingers into her mouth.

The gesture was almost as if she wanted to devour Xu Nian whole.

Xu Nian wrapped her arms around Ji Yuebai’s neck, invitingly tilting her head up for a kiss.

Unbeknownst to them, Qing Zhi had quietly slipped out of the room, discreetly closing the door behind him, leaving only Xu Nian and Ji Yuebai in the serene space.

Ji Yuebai lowered her head and captured Xu Nian’s soft lips. As their lips and tongues intertwined, the pill was transferred into Xu Nian’s mouth.

Just as Ji Yuebai’s cool, thin lips intended to withdraw, Xu Nian’s arms around her neck tightened, holding her in place.

Xu Nian kissed Ji Yuebai greedily and unrestrainedly. After the excessive tension and stimulation, emotional comfort was what she needed most, and at this moment, Ji Yuebai was her best medicine.

Ji Yuebai’s emotions seemed to be stirred by Xu Nian’s actions, her breathing no longer as steady as before. Her fingers tangled in Xu Nian’s hair, deepening their kiss.

Kissed into a daze, Xu Nian gradually shifted from being proactive to passive. By the time they parted, Xu Nian had melted into Ji Yuebai’s embrace.

She buried her face in Ji Yuebai’s neck, softly justifying her actions, “Now, you know how bitter that medicine is.”

But in her ear, Ji Yuebai’s voice was slightly hoarse, “But to me, it tastes sweet.”