Controlling Queen Medusa, His Heart of 'Just Keep Lying Low' Grew Ever Firmer

To the east of the city stood an island.

The island was surrounded by a lake, with no bridges or roads leading to it.

The entire island was shrouded in a thin mist. An extremely cold chill spread from within, and even the ground was coated in a layer of white frost.

At this moment.

At the center of the island.

Queen Medusa stood beside a pool that radiated cold.

She quietly watched a cluster of green flames within the pool, sometimes transforming into tiny green snakes and sometimes condensing into the shape of a lotus.

The water in this pool was the Ice Spirit Cold Spring, one of the most frigid substances in the world.

Yet before a Heavenly Flame, it could only barely suppress the heat it emitted.

Queen Medusa slowly clenched her delicate hand, and a rare trace of hesitation flashed across her enchanting face.

Beasts were born with an innate fear of fire.

Especially Heavenly Flames born of heaven and earth.

"That black-robed man today possessed unfathomable strength."

"According to him, more human experts will covet the Heavenly Flame in the near future."

"To protect the Snake People Race, I must evolve as soon as possible and break through to the Dou Zong realm."

Queen Medusa slowly let out a breath, and the hesitation on her face turned into determination.

Staring at the Heavenly Flame within the cold spring, she slowly undid the clasps of her brocade robe. A flawless jade-like body, as though Nuwa had displayed all her skill in creating it, was laid bare.

Queen Medusa raised her head toward the direction of the temple and casually tugged off the purple ribbon binding her dark hair. Her silky hair immediately cascaded down to her waist like a waterfall.

"If I evolve successfully, every human who comes to trouble the Snake People Race will remain in the desert forever."

Her icy words were three parts colder than the frozen spring.

After Queen Medusa spoke, a hazy glow suddenly appeared around her.

The glow grew larger and larger until it formed a massive vortex of energy above the island.

Then came a hiss. The glow abruptly dispersed, revealing a purple serpent more than a dozen zhang long, its alluring body winding through the air.

Facing the Heavenly Flame within the cold spring.

The purple serpent fearlessly rammed straight into it.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Spring water splashed everywhere.

The Heavenly Flame churned violently.

Queen Medusa's agonized hissing rang out, making one's scalp go numb.

How terrifying was the temperature of a Heavenly Flame?

The purple serpent struggled and rolled within the green flames.

Its originally vibrant purple scales were scorched black at a visible rate.

The scales were even roasted until they fell away in pieces, exposing fresh red flesh beneath.

The moment its skin split and flesh tore open, it was immediately charred by the Heavenly Flame, leaving behind one horrifying wound after another.

Its flesh rapidly diminished.

The purple serpent's body continued to shrink, and its aura became extremely feeble.

When Ji Changqing rushed over, this was the tragic scene he saw.

Seeing Queen Medusa being burned stiff within the Green Lotus Core Flame, he could not help but suck in a cold breath.

"This woman is ruthless!"

There was no time to marvel at it. If he did not act now, his pet really would die.

Ji Changqing immediately swept out his hand. Billowing pale-red flames surged toward the green Heavenly Flame, carrying an annihilating temperature that was both frigid and scorching, along with the characteristic of transforming into countless beasts.

His Heavenly Flame was a fusion of the Bone Spirit Cold Flame and the Myriad Beast Spirit Flame.

In terms of destructive power, it could rank among the top ten of the Heavenly Flame Ranking.

In truth, when the two Heavenly Flames had fused, Ji Changqing had worried that they might reject each other.

Yet under the enhancement of the Great Five Elements Derivation Heaven Art, the two Heavenly Flames had fused perfectly.

As expected of a supreme cultivation art rewarded by the system.

Before the pale-red fused Heavenly Flame, the Green Lotus Core Flame had no room to resist.

A few seconds later, it was forced into a corner of the pool, trembling and not daring to move.

Queen Medusa's charred body fell to the ground with a bang.

Yet she did not move at all, as though she were dead.

Ji Changqing hurried over.

After sensing her condition, he let out a breath of relief.

"Thankfully, she's not dead yet."

"This evolution is rather interesting. Her body is clearly damaged beyond recognition."

"Yet it contains vitality like that after a thunderstorm. Hmm, if things followed the normal plot, Queen Medusa would have evolved successfully."

"Perhaps my appearance made her a little too anxious during her evolution..."

Thinking of this, Ji Changqing felt somewhat embarrassed.

He held out his palm, and vast wood- and water-attributed energy poured over Queen Medusa's charred body like a flood.

Slowly.

Fresh red flesh began to grow.

The charred scales regained their luster.

However, they were no longer purely purple. On closer inspection, faint seven-colored radiance flowed across them.

Ji Changqing pried open the snake's mouth and stuffed in a fifth-grade Qi Replenishing Pill.

Very soon, an aura that had one foot in the Dou Zong realm spread out.

Hiss—

Queen Medusa suddenly opened her eyes.

The moment she realized that the black-robed man was beside her, she instantly returned to human form and retreated dozens of meters away.

Then, Queen Medusa gathered overwhelming pale-colored Dou Qi energy in her delicate hand and savagely blasted it toward Ji Changqing.

"I saved you, after all."

Ji Changqing said helplessly.

Facing Queen Medusa's furious strike, he swung his arm wide and sent out a palm strike.

No matter how strong his opponent was, Ji Changqing would never underestimate them.

That was one of his principles.

Boom!

A thunderous boom rang out.

The small island shook three times.

Queen Medusa spat out a mouthful of blood and was sent flying back, her peerless face filled with shock.

Too strong!

This black-robed man was far too strong!

She knew her current condition.

Half a step into the Dou Zong realm, with her bloodline half-evolved.

In this state, even an ordinary low-star Dou Zong would not have been able to defeat her so easily.

Yet before this mysterious black-robed man, she had no room to fight back at all.

Queen Medusa clenched her pearly teeth. The trace of blood at the corner of her lips, paired with her pale face, made her seem less aggressive and added a hint of pitiful fragility.

But fragility did not belong on Medusa's face.

Her pale-purple eyes stared fiercely at Ji Changqing.

Then she let out another hiss and charged at him again with ferocious force.

She was utterly disregarding her own life.

She did not run.

Because behind her was the Snake People Race.

"Ah..."

Ji Changqing sighed faintly.

"This is the consequence of being weak."

"Before becoming truly strong, keeping a low profile and avoiding trouble is the only true path."

His Heart of 'Just Keep Lying Low' grew ever firmer.

Ji Changqing raised his eyes and met Queen Medusa's gaze.

His black pupils suddenly changed, and three emerald-green petals bloomed within them.

The three petals imprinted themselves in Queen Medusa's eyes like brands.

"Urgh..."

Queen Medusa halted.

She pressed a delicate hand to her forehead, feeling as though the world were spinning around her.

What alarmed Medusa most was that when she looked at the black-robed man before her, who was clearly her mortal enemy, she could not summon even the slightest killing intent in her heart.

"Damn it, what exactly did you do to me?!"