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(For reasons I can't disclose, this chapter uses some homophonic characters. Tian Bing apologizes, QAQ.)
Kang City Airport.
"The sun is so hot."
Mu Nujiao wore a short-sleeved shirt, her fair, lotus-root-like arms seeming to reflect a fluorescent glow beneath the sunlight. Not long after leaving the airport, fine beads of sweat appeared on her forehead, and she could not help waving a hand to fan herself.
Seeing this, the handsome and gentle man beside her lightly waved his hand. The light refracted outward, and a cool shadow enveloped her.
Mu Nujiao smiled brightly and hugged Mu Ningwei's arm to her chest, lifting her head with sparkling eyes.
"Thank you, Brother Ningwei."
"I just couldn't bear to let Nu Jiao get too hot."
Mu Ningwei dotingly brushed the tip of Mu Nujiao's delicate nose with his index finger.
"Hehe~"
Mu Nujiao grinned foolishly.
On the road not far away, a tall beauty stood beside a sleek silver sedan, her arms folded beneath her ample chest. She adjusted the sunglasses beneath her baseball cap and remarked when she saw them.
"You two siblings are really close."
Mu Nujiao waved. "Sister Leng Qing!"
"Leng Qing."
Mu Ningwei studied her.
Leng Qing wore a cool midriff-baring top and figure-hugging pants, paired with a baseball cap, sunglasses, and a ponytail. She was undeniably a striking, stylish beauty, cool to the extreme, drawing frequent attention from both men and women nearby.
"Get in."
Leng Qing pulled open the car door and swung her long legs into the driver's seat.
After Mu Ningwei and Mu Nujiao got in.
Leng Qing started the car, took off her sunglasses, and curled her red lips into a gentle smile.
"Thank you for being willing to help."
Mu Ningwei asked, "What's the situation now? I noticed every boarding passenger had to be examined by doctors. Has the Plague Ice gotten that serious?"
A trace of gravity flashed through Leng Qing's beautiful eyes as she explained.
A few days ago, Plague Ice suddenly broke out near White Town in Kang City and spread rapidly.
By the time the Magic Association took it seriously, Plague Ice had already appeared throughout more than half of Kang City.
"The Ice People have already been isolated, but this Plague Ice spread too quickly. Many people were infected for no apparent reason, and the Magic Association has not even found the source of the ice."
"The medical research teams gathered in Kang City cannot develop an antidote in such a short time. They said they must find the Pollution Source before their research can make progress."
Mu Nujiao was startled. "The Plague Ice is this serious?"
Leng Qing nodded. "Yes. Kang City has already entered a state of partial alert."
Mu Nujiao asked in confusion, "But what does that have to do with Brother Ningwei? Brother Ningwei may have the Blessing Element, but shouldn't they be asking Poison Element or Healing Element mages for this sort of thing?"
Mu Ningwei said, "I've seen plenty of difficult and complicated illnesses at Parthenon. I may have a way to detoxify it. Besides, Leng Qing didn't ask me here to treat the ice."
Leng Qing explained, "The Tang Family is an old aristocratic family of Kang City. For generations, they have guarded a Monarch-level Totem Beast, the Totem Black Snake. The Totem Black Snake's aura protects Kang City from demonic beast attacks, and this has continued for several centuries."
Mu Nujiao was stunned. "There's actually a Monarch-level demonic beast inside Kang City?"
"I thought the Tang Family was merely an ordinary aristocratic family. I never expected them to have such a trump card—a Monarch-level guardian beast!"
Leng Qing said, "I need Mu Ningwei to help the Totem Black Snake."
Mu Nujiao was bewildered. "Help a Monarch? Has it run into trouble?"
"That's right. Every so often, the Totem Black Snake enters a shedding period. Its strength is greatly reduced during that time. It is currently in its shedding period."
"However, Plague Ice has erupted in Kang City, and Zhu Meng, the Strategic Hidden Danger Councilor of the Imperial Palace, has arrived. He believes the Totem Black Snake is the source of Kang City's Plague Ice."
Mu Ningwei nodded. "I've heard of Zhu Meng. He advocates the Theory of Demonic Beast Harm and the Theory of Demonic Beast Hidden Dangers. Since the Totem Black Snake is a snake-type Monarch, poison is inevitably associated with it. It's only natural for Zhu Meng to suspect it."
Mu Nujiao understood. "So Sister Leng Qing wants Brother Ningwei to help the Totem Black Snake survive its shedding period under Councilor Zhu Meng's threat."
Leng Qing said, "That's right. Once the Totem Black Snake gets through its shedding period, it won't need to fear Zhu Meng."
"I have a close friend named Tang Yue. She is the niece of Tang Zhong, the current Chief Judge, and an important member of the Tang Family. She lost her parents when she was young and grew up under the Totem Black Snake's protection, treating it as family."
"Tang Yue is one of my few friends. With the Totem Black Snake in trouble, she asked for my help. I thought that if things developed to the worst possible point, it would not be safe for me to face Zhu Meng alone, so I thought of you two."
Mu Nujiao asked expectantly, "Are we going to see Tang Yue now, then visit the Totem Black Snake? I've never seen a Monarch before."
Leng Qing smiled. "The Totem Black Snake is very sensitive during its shedding period. A High-level Mage approaching it would agitate it. Mu Ningwei and I cannot get close. If you want to visit it, I can ask Tang Yue to arrange it for you."
Mu Ningwei chuckled. "She's already a High-level Mage."
Leng Qing looked surprised and glanced at the little beauty in the rearview mirror.
Mu Nujiao was somewhat disappointed and shot Mu Ningwei a glare. "What a shame."
Mu Ningwei pinched her cheek, finding it amusing. "What's so unfortunate about that? Are you sure you've never seen a Monarch?"
Mu Nujiao blinked.
It seemed... Marquis Feiyi was a Monarch.
She was simply humanoid and had never displayed any threat. Mu Nujiao had subconsciously regarded her as a powerful mage and had not reacted at first.
Just as Mu Ningwei was about to tease his silly little girlfriend, he suddenly sensed a powerful life aura approaching. He immediately pulled the Dark Cross from inside his clothes and stared ahead with a grave expression.
"Stop!"
Leng Qing instinctively slowed down and tapped the brakes.
"Brother Ningwei, what—ah!!!"
"Mu Ningwei, what happened—huh?"
The two women's questions caught in their throats as they stared ahead in shock.
Thick fog suddenly appeared on the street. Dense, pitch-black scales filled the sky, and an incomparably enormous black-scaled creature that blocked their entire view appeared in midair.
It flew low through the clouds and mist, its deep eyes like ghostly lanterns fixed upon them.
Mu Ningwei knew it was looking at him.
"The Mystic Totem Snake? Why is it here!?"
Leng Qing's expression changed drastically.
Mu Nujiao swallowed. "That's the Totem Black Snake!"
"My god, that's terrifying! If it falls, would we all be crushed to death?"
Mu Ningwei met the Totem Black Snake's gaze for half a second and sensed a hint of hostility, causing him to frown slightly.
"Trouble."
The Totem Black Snake's perception had strengthened during its shedding period. Perhaps it had discovered something unusual about him, regarded him as a threat, and appeared to warn him.
Although the Mystic Totem Snake had restraint and floated in the air rather than descending into the bustling city to crush crowds of ant-like humans beneath it.
The panic caused by the appearance of such a horrifyingly enormous snake demon was already enough to claim many lives!
Listening to the screams around him.
Mu Ningwei immediately transformed into a shadow and darted through the air, appearing before the Mystic Totem Snake. Dense darkness gathered in his hands as he slammed them downward.
Night Ruling · Shadow Realm!
Heavy darkness erupted beneath Mu Ningwei, swiftly devouring the daylight, concealing the massive Mystic Totem Snake, and spreading over several bustling streets, dragging everything around them into blackness.
This was the shadow domain under Mu Ningwei's control!
At that moment, everyone lost their vision.
They grew even more terrified. Drivers frantically floored their accelerators, people in buildings jumped from windows to flee, and panicked crowds ran blindly.
Expressionless, Mu Ningwei condensed the shadows into solid form and bound everyone in place.
If anyone still died of fright because of a weak heart, then they could blame the Mystic Totem Snake.
Mu Ningwei frowned at the Totem Black Snake.
The Totem Black Snake closed its eyes and locked onto Mu Ningwei with its Mental Power.
Neither man nor snake made any rash move.
Thank you to "Travel 18," "(two traditional characters I don't recognize)," "Lonely Without Beginning," "Clear and Turbid," "Lan Feng 556," and "Zhang (smiley face)" for the monthly votes!
Love~ oh.
Let me explain: yesterday's second chapter included some spicy content, and it got held up in review. That was Tian Bing's failure to manage things properly. Sorry.
But the content was probably still pretty good, hehe.
Before you continue