Hai Bodong Frightened Out of His Wits

This aura, this oppressive feeling...

Hai Bodong had once been a Dou Emperor. His perception of auras far surpassed that of ordinary people.

He could sense that such a powerful aura was absolutely not something a Dou Emperor could release.

The ferocity on his face froze instantly, replaced by overwhelming terror. "A Dou Zong... This young man is actually a Dou Zong?!"

Hai Bodong was terrified and bewildered. He simply could not understand why a Dou Zong-level expert had appeared in a tiny place like Stone Desert City.

Shi Kang ignored his shock and walked toward him step by step.

Every step landed like a heavy hammer against Hai Bodong's heart, adding another measure of panic.

Hai Bodong had no idea what awaited him next.

Not until Shi Kang stopped before him, looking down at Hai Bodong, who had been forced to the ground by his aura, did he see that Shi Kang held half a fragmentary map in his hand.

"You should have the other half of the fragmentary map, shouldn't you?" Shi Kang's voice carried not the slightest ripple, yet it exuded an unquestionable pressure. "Hand it over, and I'll spare your life."

Hai Bodong's strength was now only at the Dou Ling level.

Against a Dou Zong, he knew full well that if the other man wanted to kill him, it would be scarcely harder than crushing an ant.

Terrified out of his wits, Hai Bodong struggled to raise a hand and tremblingly pointed beneath the counter. "Don't... don't kill me. I'll give it to you. The other half of the fragmentary map is there..."

Shi Long, who had been hiding in the shadows, suddenly appeared. He stepped forward, felt around beneath the counter for a moment, then took out another, slightly smaller half of the fragmentary map and presented it to Shi Kang with both hands.

Hai Bodong was utterly numb. There was another one? And this person's aura seemed even stronger than Shi Kang's...

Shi Kang took the half-map and fitted it together with the half in his hand. The patterns along the edges matched perfectly.

Shi Kang nodded in satisfaction. This old man Hai Bodong was sensible enough.

He withdrew his pressure and turned to leave.

Hai Bodong lay sprawled on the ground, gulping down air. Cold sweat had soaked through the clothes on his back.

Losing the fragmentary map hurt, of course, but compared to keeping his life, what did such a loss amount to?

He let out a breath as though he had survived a great catastrophe and muttered, "That was too close... I can't stay in this place..."

After leaving the map shop, Shi Kang grabbed another passerby and had him lead the way to the Desert Iron Mercenary Group.

Outside the mercenary group's headquarters, two broad-shouldered, muscular men stood guard at the entrance.

When they saw Shi Kang approaching, one of them was just about to bark, "This is the Desert Iron Mercenary Group. Unauthorized—"

Before he could finish, the two men were sent flying by an invisible force. They crashed heavily to the ground and fainted without even letting out a groan.

Shi Kang had already shown mercy. Otherwise, with their strength as Dou Zhes, they would have become two corpses by now.

The disturbance quickly alerted those inside the group.

Xiao Li, the vice commander of the Desert Iron Mercenary Group, hurried out. He was merely a Dou Master. Though he could not discern Shi Kang's true strength, the powerful pressure emanating from him made his heart pound wildly—this kind of might far exceeded even that of his father, Xiao Zhan.

Xiao Li hurried forward and cupped his hands in salute. "I am Xiao Li, vice commander of the Desert Iron Mercenary Group. My subordinates were disrespectful. I beg Your Excellency's forgiveness."

Xiao Li? Shi Kang paused slightly. The name sounded familiar. He seemed to be Xiao Yan's second brother.

Xiao Li asked, "May I know what brings Your Excellency here?"

"Do you have a little girl named Qing Lin in your group?" Shi Kang went straight to the point.

Shi Kang had little feeling even for Xiao Yan, much less Xiao Yan's second brother.

"Qing Lin?" Xiao Li was startled for a moment, then nodded. "There is indeed such a person, but... why is Your Excellency looking for her?"

"Lead the way." Shi Kang did not answer Xiao Li. His tone remained calm, yet it carried an unmistakable implication that refusal was not an option.

"Yes, my lord." Xiao Li did not dare ask further and quickly led him toward the rear courtyard.

In the rear courtyard, a little girl dressed in green was crouching beside a basin, washing clothes.

She wore pale green garments. Her figure was petite, yet already showed delicate curves, though her features still carried the innocence of youth.

Her small oval face was as exquisite as a porcelain doll's, and her eyes were timid, like those of a frightened rabbit, inspiring pity at a glance.

Most striking of all was the arm exposed by her rolled-up sleeve—a small patch of her fair skin was covered in dense green snake scales.

That was right. This little girl was Qing Lin.

Near the Tagor Desert, human women were occasionally violated by Snake People. Snake People and humans were normally unable to produce offspring, but there were always exceptions—on rare occasions, violated women became pregnant and gave birth. However, most such human-Snake People hybrid children did not live past the age of two. Qing Lin was an exception.

People despised someone like her as a mongrel, while Snake People regarded her as an aberration. Since childhood, she had been discriminated against and insulted by children her own age.

Shi Kang knew that little girls like Qing Lin, who had suffered endless bullying, were the easiest to win over. As long as he treated her a little better, she would follow him with unwavering devotion...

She was like someone living in darkness. As long as a single beam of light appeared, she would surely treasure it...

She was a pitiful little thing bullied by everyone. Even after being taken in by the Desert Iron Mercenary Group, her life had not improved. All the dirty and exhausting work was assigned to her, and being bullied was an everyday occurrence.

Just like now, the pile of dirty clothes before her was nearly half her height.

Others might have found that patch of snake scales strange, but when Shi Kang saw it, he inexplicably found it possessed a peculiar beauty—something like the wild feeling he got when looking at Medusa's Snake Tail.

It was not that he had any strange fetish. Qing Lin was already naturally beautiful, and that patch of snake scales instead became a distinctive adornment.

"Vice Commander Xiao Li!" Qing Lin noticed the movement and hurriedly stood up. She lowered her head deeply, nervously twisting the corner of her clothes with her small hands.

She had not finished washing the clothes yet, and she was somewhat afraid of being reprimanded.

Qing Lin's timid, head-lowered appearance made people unable to resist feeling sorry for her.

"Qing Lin, this lord is looking for you," Xiao Li said.

Only then did Qing Lin dare raise her head and look timidly at Shi Kang. With just one glance, she was drawn in by his handsome appearance and extraordinary bearing, but intense inferiority immediately overwhelmed her. She quickly lowered her head again—his luxurious clothes and distinguished aura placed him worlds apart from a "mongrel" like her.

"Are you Qing Lin?"

"Yes... my lord." Qing Lin's voice was as soft as a mosquito's buzz, and she lowered her head even further.

Yet in the instant she raised her head, Shi Kang clearly saw her eyes—within those jade-green irises, three tiny green dots were hidden deep in her pupils.

This was the Triple Jade-Green Snake Flower Pupils, a strange innate eye technique found only in the descendants of human-Snake People hybrids.

Once mastered, its wielder could induce illusions and disrupt the minds of others. More terrifyingly, it was the nemesis of all snake-type Monster Beasts—with just a glance, there was a chance to form a one-sided, forced connection with snake-type Monster Beasts, making them submit obediently, while gradually drawing their Dou Qi to accelerate the wielder's cultivation.

With such talent, if carefully nurtured, her future achievements would be immeasurable.

And Qing Lin, who possessed the Triple Jade-Green Snake Flower Pupils, was undoubtedly a future Dou Sheng in the making.

Shi Kang thought, She can even help me control the Nine Nether Nether Python Clan...