The Clingy "Medusa" Queen

Ye Xiu was about to turn and head back to the Temple when he suddenly paused.

He turned his head and looked toward the desert in the distance.

There was nothing but a stretch of dunes. Under the moonlight, it looked quiet and deserted.

If he hadn't been on his guard, he might not have noticed anything.

Ye Xiu narrowed his eyes and called out,

"Stop hiding and come out."

There was no response.

Only the rustling of wind-blown sand filled the desert.

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

A few seconds later, the sand over there suddenly shifted.

Then a golden-yellow blanket of sand bulged upward, and a disheveled figure crawled out from underneath, covered from head to toe in sand.

It was Xiao Yan.

He brushed the sand off himself and walked toward Ye Xiu with an awkward smile.

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

Ye Xiu looked at him without saying a word.

Under Ye Xiu's gaze, Xiao Yan felt a chill run down his spine. He stood there, not daring to move.

After a long while, Ye Xiu asked, pretending to be puzzled, "What are you doing here?"

Xiao Yan opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but changed his mind and swallowed his words.

Ye Xiu continued, "Could it be that you came here for the Green Lotus Core Flame too?"

At that, Xiao Yan shook his head like a rattle drum.

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

Seeing him like that, Ye Xiu couldn't help chuckling to himself.

"Passing through? You happened to pass from Wutan City all the way to the Tagor Desert? That's quite a detour."

Xiao Yan's face fell.

What could he say? That his teacher was Yao Lao, and that he'd heard there was a Heavenly Flame here and come to see if he could get lucky? The flame had clearly already been refined by Ye Xiu. Saying that now would be asking for trouble.

"Senior, I really didn't mean to..." Xiao Yan could only steel himself and explain. "I just heard there was some commotion here and came to take a look. Don't worry, I'll leave right away. I won't disturb you!"

Ye Xiu looked at him, then waved a hand.

"Fine. Go."

Xiao Yan froze, not expecting Ye Xiu to let him leave so easily.

He hurriedly clasped his fists. "Thank you, Senior! Please carry on. I'll be off!"

Then he turned and ran, as if afraid Ye Xiu might change his mind.

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

As the saying went, the first boat to claim the waters had already reached the mark, while the one behind, having lost its chance, could only row in vain. The resources of the Dou Qi Continent were limited; the capable claimed them. It wasn't his fault.

Ye Xiu turned and flew toward the Temple.

Deep inside the Temple, Medusa's enormous serpentine body was still coiled at the center of the magma pool. The Green Lotus Core Flame around her had weakened considerably and was no longer as violent as before. Her body had fully transformed into a giant serpent, its purple scales glinting in the firelight.

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

It looked like her evolution had reached its final stage. What remained was simply a slow process, and there was no need for him to intervene.

Time passed, bit by bit.

After an unknown amount of time, the flames around Medusa began to withdraw, little by little, sinking back into her body. Her purple scales started to glow with seven colors,

Then a radiance steadily grew brighter, until it was almost blinding.

Ye Xiu narrowed his eyes and stared at the glowing mass.

The light slowly dimmed.

What appeared was no longer the giant purple serpent.

It was a person.

A flawless, breathtaking woman.

Even Ye Xiu felt heat surge through his lower abdomen.

No.

He couldn't afford to get distracted by that now.

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

By rights, she should have woken up once her evolution succeeded. But her eyes were still closed, and her aura was unstable.

Ye Xiu thought it over and gradually understood.

The Seven-Colored Heaven-Swallowing Python's soul must have been exceptionally tenacious.

In the original story, after Medusa evolved, the Seven-Colored Heaven-Swallowing Python's soul would separate and become a little snake. But with the Soul-Melting Pill's effects, that little snake couldn't emerge, and the two souls were fusing directly inside her.

But that would take time.

A little while later, Medusa suddenly opened her eyes.

Ye Xiu's heart stirred. He stood up, ready to speak.

But before he could get a word out, he froze.

Medusa was looking at him, but that gaze... wasn't right.

Ye Xiu had seen Medusa many times. She usually looked at people coldly, dangerously, or with scrutiny. But she had never looked at him like this.

How should he put it...

Her gaze was clear, filled with curiosity and a touch of innocence, like a child seeing the world for the first time.

Ye Xiu tentatively called out, "Medusa?"

The woman tilted her head and looked at him without saying a word.

Ye Xiu's heart gave a jolt.

This damn well wasn't Medusa.

It was the Seven-Colored Heaven-Swallowing Python!

The Soul-Melting Pill had fused the two souls, but the process wasn't complete yet. So the Seven-Colored Heaven-Swallowing Python's soul was in control?

As Ye Xiu was thinking this over, the woman suddenly moved.

She rose from the magma pool and walked toward him, one step at a time.

Ye Xiu instinctively took a step back.

But she moved faster. In just a few steps, she was right in front of him, then threw herself at him and wrapped him in a tight embrace.

Ye Xiu was completely dumbfounded.

The woman held him, burying her face against his shoulder. Then she stuck out her tongue and licked his face.

Ye Xiu: "..."

What was going on?

He quickly pushed her back a little and stared at her.

When she was pushed away, the woman looked a little aggrieved. Her eyes glistened, like a small animal that had been abandoned.

Ye Xiu took a deep breath and composed himself.

He closed his eyes and sensed Medusa's soul.

The Soul Contract was still there, but...

The faint connection seemed to have grown stronger?

No.

Ye Xiu examined it carefully and realized that the other end of the contract seemed to involve more than Medusa alone. The aura was somewhat mixed, but once it blended together, it felt even closer to him.

He opened his eyes and looked at the woman before him. An idea suddenly came to mind.

When he'd signed the contract, he had mainly bonded with Medusa's soul. But Medusa's soul had always been linked to the Seven-Colored Heaven-Swallowing Python's, and the python's soul was more primal, more pure.

Could it be...

The Soul Contract's side effect had been magnified several times in the Seven-Colored Heaven-Swallowing Python?

Otherwise, how could this be happening?

Medusa was coldly beautiful, and whenever she looked at someone, she had an air of superiority. This woman, though, had a gaze as clear as that of a college student from his previous life. She clearly didn't have much guile.

As Ye Xiu was thinking, the woman threw herself at him again.

This time, she held him even tighter and rubbed her face against his neck.

Ye Xiu sighed.

He reached out and patted her on the head.

"Alright, alright. Stop rubbing against me."

The woman raised her head and looked at him, then beamed sweetly.

Looking at Medusa's face paired with that silly, sweet expression, Ye Xiu didn't know what to say.