The Six Desires Demon Lord of Nine Cold Mountain

"Snake Yaoguai... if it really is Snake Yaoguai demon, this is truly troublesome."

"Especially if they are Snake Yaoguai from the Dark Prison... I've heard they have several Demon Lord among them."

Meng Qingjun pondered this, and couldn't help but feel a headache coming on.

Aside from the testimonies of the two Yaomo, Daybreak and Heavenhowl, many of the other Yaomo guests also felt that it was the work of a "Snake Yaoguai," or that they themselves had seen Snake Yaoguai.

The traces found within his own Cave Dwelling and those collected by other Yaomo guests later on all vaguely corroborated the theory of a "Snake Yaoguai."

But...

If Meng Qingjun were to speak for himself, he would actually be unwilling to believe deep down that it really was Snake Yaoguai.

Because those Snake Yaoguai were just too troublesome!

He initially thought it was just some ignorant Yaomo passing by who was envious of the large number of gifts he received at his birthday banquet, so it secretly took the opportunity to plunder his Cave Dwelling.

All I need to do is find them and cooperate with this group of guests to retrieve the stolen items from my Cave Dwelling and, incidentally, kill the other side to vent my anger.

But if it's Snake Yaoguai demon...

Meng Qingjun was somewhat unsure whether she could truly fight these Snake Yaoguai demons to the bitter end.

After all, even when her mother was still alive, she was quite wary of the Snake Yaoguai in the Dark Prison.

In particular, these Snake Yaoguai love to stick together and are very protective of their own. Even if they can kill the Snake Yaoguai that attacked their Cave Dwelling, they still have to be wary of making enemies of the entire Snake Yaoguai Clans and avoiding the situation of facing their clan's continuous retaliation.

"If it's Snake Yaoguai demon... it's best not to kill it; we should leave it with a chance of survival."

"However, I am ultimately in the right. If it's just a matter of teaching them a lesson and getting my things back, that should be acceptable."

"But... quite a few of our guests were killed or injured today. If a conflict really breaks out with those Snake Yaoguai, will I be able to suppress them?"

Meng Qingjun pondered, gently tapping the table.

And just as he was pondering and making plans...

Thump!

A muffled thud came from outside the Ten Thousand Flowers Cave Dwelling.

Meng Qingjun frowned slightly and looked up at the entrance of the Cave Dwelling: "What's that commotion?"

The guarding demon was quite perceptive; he almost immediately rushed in from outside the Cave Dwelling, knelt down, and reported to Meng Qingjun, "Your Majesty—a figure has crashed down outside! Judging from its aura, it seems to be a very powerful being, but it raised a lot of dust when it landed, so we couldn't see its exact form!"

"But Your Majesty... this is definitely something we cannot handle!"

Upon hearing Xiao Yao's report, Meng Qingjun nodded slightly. "Understood."

He appeared calm on the surface, but couldn't help but ponder in his heart.

"Could it be those Snake Yaoguai coming to our door?"

After thinking for a moment, Meng Qingjun got up and quickly walked towards the door.

He could also vaguely sense that what had crashed into the entrance of his Cave Dwelling was... a Yaomo with a similar aura and strength to himself.

Regardless of whether the visitor is friend or foe, since a master has arrived at the entrance of his Cave Dwelling, he must go out and see for himself.

As Meng Qingjun stepped out of the Cave Dwelling, she saw the dust settle at the Cave Dwelling —a huge dent had been smashed into the hard ground—the expert seemed to have fallen from mid-air and crashed into the ground.

The trees not far from the Cave Dwelling entrance were also knocked over, probably because the visitor had knocked them down as he fell there.

At the edge of the deep pit, a blood-covered figure staggered to its feet.

Meng Qingjun was immediately alarmed.

"Uncle—it's you!"

Meng Qingjun rushed forward and supported Lin Yu, who was covered in blood and had a strong aura but was actually very weak.

Lin Yu, supported by Meng Qingjun, placed one hand on Meng Qingjun's robe, leaving half a palm print of blood on Meng Qingjun's snow-white robe.

"Snake Yaoguai... it's Snake Yaoguai! I've caught up with them... they're Snake Yaoguai from the Dark Prison! Cough cough... cough!"

Lin Yu spoke weakly, his face pale. Halfway through his sentence, he vomited some foul blood mixed with fragments of internal organs, and his eyes and the area around them were covered with bluish-purple blood vessels.

The fur on his forehead, the fox ears, and the fox tail behind him was dull and drooping listlessly.

Meng Qingjun gritted her teeth and said, "It really is those Snake Yaoguai... Damn it! How dare they do such a thing to you, Uncle!"

"Uncle, come back to the Cave Dwelling with me—I'll heal your wounds and remove the poison!"

Lin Yu shook his head desperately. "No, no... it's too late, you have to run— the Snake Yaoguai from Dark Prison is the Demon Lord this time!"

He gripped Meng Qingjun's hand tightly, took a deep breath as if gathering his last strength. "The raid on your Cave Dwelling was just a ruse, a way to lure you out... But they didn't expect my appearance, didn't expect our recognition, so they mistook me for you."

"They're after you... Those Snake Yaoguai covet the inheritance your mother left behind, the power of the 'Six Desires Demon Lord,' and the Authority over 'Desire' —so you must leave quickly."

"Three Demon Lord have arrived from the Dark Prison!"

Meng Qingjun turned and grasped Lin Yu's wrist, paused for a moment, then said, "Alright, Uncle, let's go first... We don't need the Cave Dwelling anymore! I'll take you to my friend's place... We'll have plenty of time!"

He tried to help Lin Yu up, but after tugging at him, Lin Yu didn't budge.

"No... I told you it's too late," Lin Yu said, his voice even weaker, "I'm... too deeply poisoned."

As soon as she finished speaking, Meng Qingjun sensed that Lin Yu's Life Force was rapidly draining away, his body was gradually filled with the aura of death, and his soul was constantly collapsing and dissipating, his Three Hun and Seven Po scattered like crushed withered leaves.

"No, no, no... Uncle," Meng Qingjun quickly supported Lin Yu, placing her palm on his chest and continuously channeling her pure True Essence into him, "There must be a way. The Snake Yaoguai's poison isn't incurable. We must have a way. I know there are physicians among the Human Race who can cure this poison. I..."

"A Qing."

Lin Yu gently interrupted the incoherent Meng Qingjun, then perked up and looked at him.

His gaze was gentle as he carefully examined Meng Qingjun, as if trying to etch her features into his eyes.

Meng Qingjun felt a pang of sadness as she felt the other person's gaze.

He disregarded the many servants and guests around him, and tears rolled down his cheeks.

"Uncle, we just recognized each other today. I thought I had no relatives left... I thought I had relatives again."

Lin Yu whispered, "I also thought I had no relatives left in the world... So, A Qing, you have to live."

"Your Bloodline... the Bloodline you inherited from your mother, the Bloodline of the Six Desires Demon Lord, must be passed down."

"This Bloodline is the real key—so promise me, take your mother's inheritance and leave this place."

As Lin Yu spoke, golden light suddenly surged from his body, so much so that it dyed half the sky gold.

Then...

All the golden light entered Meng Qingjun's body, and Meng Qingjun felt a tremor in her soul, then cried out in surprise.

"This is... the power left behind by my mother?!"

"This is the origin of Desire!"

Meng Qingjun was somewhat taken aback as she felt an unprecedented abundance of power within her body, a power that resonated perfectly with her own.

In that instant, he felt as if he were only one step away from becoming the "Demon Lord".

No...

Not only can he reach the "Demon Lord" Divine Rank at any time, but he can also continue to grow stronger after crossing the Divine Rank!

At the same time, he could also feel that the power of this "Desire" seemed to have awakened his Bloodline —he could almost hear some teachings from the depths of his Bloodline, instructing him on how to use this power.

However, Meng Qingjun had no time to rejoice in his increased power, nor did he stop to quietly listen to the teachings that came from the depths of his Bloodline, as if they were instinctive.

Because he immediately remembered what Lin Yu had said earlier.

This "Desire Origin" had always been kept by his uncle.

But now, it's inside my body...

This means...

Meng Qingjun quickly looked up at Lin Yu, whose soul had almost completely shattered and whose life force was almost gone.

Lin Yu also looked at Meng Qingjun and smiled silently—but rather than a smile, it was more like he was using his last bit of strength to pull up the corners of his mouth.

Lin Yu's eyes were almost unfocused. He slowly raised his hand and gently patted Meng Qingjun's cheek. "Leave here, live on, A Qing... live on."

"You don't have to seek revenge, but you must survive."

"Don't die... you have to live..."

His voice grew fainter and fainter until it finally dissipated gently into the air, like a piece of ice melting in water.

As Meng Qingjun felt the body fall, her mind went blank, and all the sounds around her faded away.

He slowly lowered Lin Yu's body, then picked him up horizontally, turning his head back somewhat blankly.

A little demon nearby spoke up, "Your Majesty, Your Majesty... what should we do now?"

Meng Qingjun didn't know either.

But he blurted out two words without thinking.

"Go home."

"I want to... take my uncle home."

As he was speaking, just as he was about to take a step...

Behind me came the sound of trees crashing down.

Meng Qingjun turned around and saw the Scarlet snake crushing the trees and charging menacingly toward her Cave Dwelling.

Atop the snake's head, a beautiful woman in a red dress cast her gaze upon him.

Her gaze fell upon her own embrace, and she frowned.

"Dead?"

"Fine... if he's dead, he's dead. -- Hey you over there, hand over that corpse you're holding."

"He's our 'spoils'... You should know the rules, right? Whoever kills him is responsible."

Meng Qingjun looked up at the other person, then slowly bent down and put Lin Yu down from her arms.

"Uncle... I'm sorry."

I know I should run away.

But... I can't do it.

As he spoke, he straightened up, and a faint golden light appeared on his hands.

Meng Qingjun looked at the woman in the red dress atop the giant snake.

"I am the Six Desires Demon Lord Nine Cold Mountain... Snake Yaoguai, state your name!"

"Then, come and die!"