Snake Woman and Meng Yiran

Chapter 23

"The wings are pale red, its body is nearly seven meters long, and its cultivation is roughly sixteen hundred years. It's indeed just right!"

Tang San's eyes glowed with a faint purple light as he looked toward the restless woods in the distance.

"Good! Gu Yi, get your ass down here! Didn't you say you could defeat a Soul Elder with a domain? Leave this Phoenix-tail Crested Serpent to you!"

Zhao Wuji raised his head and roared toward the sky.

Hearing this, Gu Yi grabbed Zhu Zhuqing and flashed away, instantly returning to the ground.

"Fine. Dealing with a little snake like this won't be a problem." Gu Yi nodded.

The Phoenix-tail Crested Serpent was considered a relatively weak Soul Beast. Even with a thousand years of cultivation, its combat strength would not be very high. Its only notable trait was that it ran somewhat faster.

It was precisely because he had accounted for this that Gu Yi agreed so readily.

"It's here!"

Tang San suddenly cried out to the group.

Then, at the edge of the clearing where they were resting, a massive snake head burst from the woods. It was incredibly fast. By the time Gu Yi and the others spotted it, it was already preparing to circle around them.

But no matter how fast it was, Gu Yi's gaze had already locked onto it. Without the slightest hesitation, he activated the Endless Bone Domain!

In an instant, both Gu Yi and the Phoenix-tail Crested Serpent vanished.

"Alright, stay sharp just in case. Until that brat Gu comes out, no one is allowed to let their guard down. Don't let this prey that's already in our hands get away!"

Zhao Wuji looked at everyone and cautioned them.

"Understood!"

Within the Endless Bone Domain, the Phoenix-tail Crested Serpent was utterly bewildered. It stared blankly at everything around it, finding it all incomparably unfamiliar.

Naturally timid, it wanted to flee, but for the moment, it had no idea how.

"Sigh... Let me think. How can I restrain you without killing you?"

"This really is a bit troublesome."

Gu Yi sat upon his throne, staring coldly at the Phoenix-tail Crested Serpent as he fell into thought.

Because Xiao Wu was present, Gu Yi did not want to make things too bloody. After all, they were both Soul Beasts. It would inevitably affect her somewhat.

Otherwise, Gu Yi truly wanted to go down there and tear off both of its fleshy wings to see how fast it could still run.

But before Gu Yi could think any further, the Phoenix-tail Crested Serpent at his side could no longer hold itself back. It curled its entire body into a spring-like shape.

The next second, it shot upward with explosive force, its body turning into a crimson streak as it charged toward Gu Yi on the throne.

Though the Phoenix-tail Crested Serpent was timid, it had not sensed the kind of terrifying aura from Gu Yi that would make its heart tremble. In order to escape this place sooner, it chose to attack!

Gu Yi paid it no mind, as though he had not seen it at all.

Then suddenly, a brilliant idea surfaced in his mind.

"I've got it! How about I turn you into a skewer?" Gu Yi suggested to the Phoenix-tail Crested Serpent in front of him with a smile.

Less than a meter in front of Gu Yi, the Phoenix-tail Crested Serpent's body had been pinned by dozens of bone spikes that had suddenly thrust upward.

Nearly its entire body was trapped between those enormous bone spikes. Even if it exhausted every last bit of strength in its head crest, it could not advance even an inch.

It was terrified. It wanted to run, but it was helpless.

"Hmm... Though I'm not entirely satisfied, this should be the best way, right?" Gu Yi said indifferently as he looked at it.

If Xiao Wu had not been present, those bone spikes would have pierced directly into the Phoenix-tail Crested Serpent's body and turned it into a real skewer.

"Alright, now only the final step remains."

As he spoke, Gu Yi snapped his fingers, and a massive Bone Dragon appeared behind him.

The Bone Dragon raised a foreclaw and slowly approached the Phoenix-tail Crested Serpent's head beneath its terrified gaze, then... flicked it on the forehead.

In order not to kill it, Gu Yi had put in quite a bit of effort. Fortunately, the Bone Dragon was strong enough, and the impact of a single forehead flick was sufficient to knock it unconscious.

Once everything was settled, Gu Yi directly dismissed the domain.

The next moment, he and the Phoenix-tail Crested Serpent reappeared before everyone.

"Good lad, well done. When we get back to the academy, I'll reward you with a Practical Combat Lesson." Zhao Wuji praised him happily.

Then, ignoring Gu Yi's speechless expression, he turned and handed Oscar a short sword.

"Go on. Stab it through the flesh crest, and this soul ring will be yours."

Oscar took the short sword and nodded excitedly. He hurried over to the Phoenix-tail Crested Serpent, raised the short sword in his hand, and was about to drive it down!

"Stop!"

A harsh, hoarse shout suddenly rang out.

Immediately afterward, an old and a young figure rushed out from the direction where the Phoenix-tail Crested Serpent had come from, appearing before the group.

They were both women. The older one's face was covered in wrinkles, her hair gray-white, and a sharp gleam shone from her eyes. She held a three-meter-long snake-headed cane, and six soul rings circled her body.

The younger one had a slender waist and short hair, dressed in a fitted outfit. She was well-developed and strikingly beautiful. She too held a Serpent Cane, with two century-level soul rings circling her body.

"Hmm? What do you want?" Zhao Wuji watched the approaching pair vigilantly and asked in a deep voice.

His vigilance was merely to prevent any accidents. Zhao Wuji did not think much of someone with only six soul rings, but upon seeing the Serpent Cane in her hand, he could not help but think of someone.

At that moment, the old woman also noticed Zhao Wuji's seven soul rings. She was quite startled. This was only the outer region of the Star Dou Great Forest—how had they encountered a Soul Saint?

At the same time, she understood that she likely would not be able to gain any advantage against him.

"Cough!" The old woman coughed, forcing a gentle smile as she said, "Respected Soul Saint, you cannot give this Phoenix-tail Crested Serpent to that child."

"Why?" Zhao Wuji asked again, signaling Oscar to wait and not act rashly.

"Because we discovered this Soul Beast first. Otherwise, why would we have chased it all the way here?" the old woman explained patiently.

Facing a Soul Saint like Zhao Wuji, she did not dare make any rash moves.

After hearing her words, Oscar could no longer hold himself back. "How can you prove that you found it first? When we hunted it, who knows where you two were?"

He had finally gotten a soul ring within his grasp. If it all came to nothing, Oscar would cry himself to death.

"Hehe, young man, don't be so hasty. There are wounds on the snake's belly caused by my Serpent Cane, and beneath its fleshy wings as well. Had I not been careless for a moment, it could never have escaped all the way here."

At those words, Zhao Wuji frowned. He grabbed the Phoenix-tail Crested Serpent and examined its underside. It was indeed just as she had said.

But so what? If she thought she could take this Soul Beast from his hands with a few words, she was sorely mistaken.

Zhao Wuji gave a cold smile. "May I ask for your name, Senior?"

The old woman smiled. "This old woman is Chao Tianxiang, known as the Snake Woman. This is my granddaughter, Meng Yiran. My husband is Meng Shu, known as the Dragon Duke. He is also within this Soul Beast Forest at the moment."

"We came to find a soul ring for my granddaughter. The Phoenix-tail Crested Serpent in your hands is a high-level snake-type Soul Beast and happens to suit her perfectly, so..."

"If the two of us cannot come to an agreement, how about waiting for my husband to arrive and discuss it with you?"

Zhao Wuji's expression changed upon hearing that. Every word from this old woman was a blatant threat!

What kind of person was the Dragon Duke? When Zhao Wuji had first heard their names, the man had already been a Soul Saint-level powerhouse. Even if someone said he was now a Soul Douluo, Zhao Wuji would believe it.

If that man truly came, things would become difficult!

But just then, Gu Yi stepped forward and said with a smile:

"I have an idea!"