The Clingy Queen Medusa

Ye Xiu was just about to turn back toward the Temple when his footsteps suddenly faltered.

Ye Xiu turned his head to look at the desert not far away.

Over there lay a stretch of sand dunes, looking quite peaceful under the moonlight, with nothing to be seen.

If he hadn't been on guard, he truly wouldn't have noticed anything.

Ye Xiu narrowed his eyes and spoke up:

"Stop hiding, come on out."

There was no movement.

Only the rustling sound of the wind blowing across the desert remained.

Ye Xiu spoke again: "Xiao Yan, do you really need me to invite you out?"

After another few seconds, the sand over there suddenly shifted.

Then, a golden-yellow blanket arched up from the sand, and a rather disheveled person crawled out from underneath, covered head to toe in sand.

It was none other than Xiao Yan.

He patted the sand off his body and walked toward Ye Xiu, a sheepish smile on his face.

"Senior Ye, well... what a coincidence, you're here too?"

Ye Xiu looked at him without saying a word.

Xiao Yan felt a chill run down his spine under that gaze, and he stood there, not daring to move.

After a long while, Ye Xiu feigned confusion and asked: "Why are you here?"

Xiao Yan opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but thought better of it and swallowed his words.

Ye Xiu continued: "Could it be that you also came for the Green Lotus Core Flame?"

Upon hearing this, Xiao Yan shook his head like a rattle.

"No, no, no! Senior, please don't misunderstand, I'm really not here to snatch the Heavenly Flame! I was just... just passing by, really, purely passing by!"

Seeing him like that, Ye Xiu couldn't help but chuckle inwardly.

"Passing by? You passed by from Wutan City all the way to the Tagor Desert? That's quite a long detour."

Xiao Yan's face twisted in misery.

What could he say? Should he tell him he had a teacher named Yao Lao, who told him there was a Heavenly Flame here and suggested he come see if he could pick up a bargain? Now that the Heavenly Flame had clearly been refined by Ye Xiu, wouldn't saying that be courting death?

"Senior, I really didn't mean to..." Xiao Yan had no choice but to bite the bullet and say, "I just heard some commotion over here and came to see what was happening. Don't worry, I'll leave immediately, I won't disturb you at all!"

Ye Xiu looked at him and then waved his hand.

"Alright, you can go."

Xiao Yan was stunned, not expecting Ye Xiu to let him off so easily.

He quickly cupped his hands: "Many thanks, Senior! Please continue with your business, I'll be off!"

Having said that, he turned and ran, as if afraid Ye Xiu might change his mind.

Ye Xiu watched that figure disappear into the night and shook his head.

As the saying goes, the first boat to reach the water claims the prize, while the one behind loses its momentum and waves its oars in vain; the resources of the Dou Qi Continent are limited, and those with the ability shall obtain them. He couldn't be blamed for this.

Ye Xiu turned and flew toward the Temple.

Deep within the Temple, Medusa's massive snake body was still coiled in the center of the magma pool, the Green Lotus Core Flame on her body having dimmed significantly, no longer as violent as before. Her body had completely transformed into a giant python form, her purple scales shimmering under the firelight.

Ye Xiu landed on the edge of the magma pool, sat cross-legged, and just watched her.

It seemed the evolution had reached its final stage; what followed was a test of patience, and there was no need for him to intervene.

Time passed bit by bit.

He didn't know how long it had been, but the flames on Medusa's body began to retract, shrinking into her body little by little. Those purple scales began to emit a seven-colored glow.

Then, a beam of light grew brighter and brighter, until it was finally blinding.

Ye Xiu narrowed his eyes, staring at that mass of light.

The light slowly faded.

What was revealed was no longer that giant purple python.

But a person.

A woman of flawless, peerless beauty.

Even Ye Xiu felt a surge of heat rising in his lower abdomen.

Medusa sat coiled in the center of the magma pool; the long snake tail that had been her lower body was gone, replaced by a pair of fair, slender, jade-like legs. Her skin was so white it glowed, like a freshly peeled egg. A thin, seven-colored halo draped over her body, appearing and disappearing intermittently.

She kept her eyes closed, her hair loose, and the cold, sharp look from before was gone from her face, replaced instead by a sense of gentleness.

Ye Xiu swallowed hard.

Damn, this woman is truly beautiful after her evolution.

No.

He didn't have time to worry about that right now.

Ye Xiu stared at Medusa, his brows slowly knitting together.

Logically speaking, now that the evolution had succeeded, she should have woken up. But she still had her eyes closed, and the aura around her was somewhat unstable.

Ye Xiu thought for a moment and roughly understood why.

It must be that the soul of the Seven-Colored Heaven-Swallowing Python was too tenacious.

In the original story, after Medusa evolved, the soul of the Seven-Colored Heaven-Swallowing Python would separate and become a small snake. But now, due to the effect of the Soul-Melting Pill, that small snake couldn't emerge, and the two souls were fusing directly within her body.

But this would take time.

After a while, Medusa suddenly opened her eyes.

Ye Xiu's heart stirred, and he stood up, preparing to speak.

But before the words could leave his mouth, he froze.

Medusa's eyes were looking at him, but that gaze... it was wrong.

Ye Xiu had seen Medusa many times. This woman's gaze when looking at people was usually cold, dangerous, or filled with scrutiny. But she had never looked at him like this before.

This gaze now, how should he put it...

It was clear, filled with a bit of curiosity, and even a little naive, like a child seeing a new world for the first time.

Ye Xiu tentatively spoke up: "Medusa?"

The woman tilted her head, looked at him, and didn't speak.

Ye Xiu's heart skipped a beat.

This damn thing wasn't Medusa.

It was the Seven-Colored Heaven-Swallowing Python!

The Soul-Melting Pill had fused the two souls together, but since the fusion wasn't complete yet, was the soul of the Seven-Colored Heaven-Swallowing Python currently in control?

Just as Ye Xiu was thinking this, the woman suddenly moved.

She stood up from the magma pool and walked toward Ye Xiu step by step.

Ye Xiu subconsciously took a step back.

But she moved faster, reaching him in a few strides, and then lunged forward, wrapping her arms around him.

Ye Xiu was completely stunned.

The woman held him, buried her face in his shoulder, and then stuck out her tongue to lick his face.

Ye Xiu: "..."

What was going on?

He hurriedly pushed her away a little and stared at her.

Pushed away by him, the woman showed a hint of grievance on her face, her eyes watery, looking like an abandoned little animal.

Ye Xiu took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down.

He closed his eyes and sensed Medusa's soul.

The soul contract was still there, but...

It seemed the faint connection had become even stronger?

No.

Ye Xiu sensed it carefully and discovered that the other end of this contract didn't seem to be just Medusa alone. That aura was a bit mixed, but once blended together, it felt even closer to him.

He opened his eyes, looked at the woman in front of him, and a thought suddenly popped into his head.

When he signed the contract back then, he had primarily signed it with Medusa's soul. But Medusa's soul and the soul of the Seven-Colored Heaven-Swallowing Python were already bound together, and the soul of the Seven-Colored Heaven-Swallowing Python was more primitive and pure.

Could it be...

That the side effects of the soul contract had been amplified several times over by the Seven-Colored Heaven-Swallowing Python?

Otherwise, how could this happen?

Medusa was cold and peerlessly beautiful, carrying an air of superiority when she looked at people. The one in front of him had eyes as clear as a college student from his past life; one look and you could tell she had no ulterior motives.

Just as Ye Xiu was thinking this, the woman lunged at him again.

This time she hugged him even tighter, even rubbing her face against his neck.

Ye Xiu sighed.

He reached out and patted her head.

"Alright, alright, stop rubbing."

The woman raised her head, looked at him, and then grinned with a sweet smile.

Ye Xiu looked at her face—Medusa's face—paired with such a naive, sweet expression, and for a moment, he didn't know what to say.