I refuse...
Her words were clear and her tone blunt. Hua Yue's voice echoed through Ryūchi Cave, lingering for a long time.
The green-haired woman's smile grew increasingly strained. Unable to help herself, she tried to reason with him again.
"Why are you in such a hurry? Just rest here for a while, and I'll immediately ask the White Snake Sage to send you back. You won't have to go through all the trouble of searching..."
"Even if you turned into a woman, at my age I can't do anything anyway. Though I really admire Xu Xian, I'd like to find out what it's like to sleep with a snake."
"But we'll have to wait at least six years. Besides..."
In an instant, cold sweat soaked his back and forehead. A pair of exquisite, intricate eyes, twisted together from blood and darkness, carried an immense, ominous, and distorted presence. They were like the eyes of a god.
"I don't think you can bring that old woman here. Isn't she the highest-ranking being in Ryūchi Cave?"
"Though I don't know what you're getting at, if there's nothing here but snakes, then it's time to raise hell for the first time in ages. Let's go."
Black chakra gathered visibly over his entire body. His black cloak billowed in a wind of its own, and an aura of ill omen and destruction surged to its peak.
"Majestic Attire: Susanoo!"
In the pale blue inner world, the Black Nine-Tails opened his eyes. Excitement, long absent, glimmered in his blood-red eyes.
"Ha ha ha ha! Are we finally going to raise hell again, brat?"
"Let's go, Kurama!"
Clad in Tengu Armor, the fearsome Nine-Tails stood tall, its body pitch-black beneath pure white armor. It casually flicked its nine tails, whipping up countless gusts of wind.
"You... you brat, what are you? What is this terrifying chakra? What kind of power can rival ours when we use Senjutsu?"
At that moment, terror engulfed the green-haired woman. Sensing an unprecedented threat to her life, she boldly revealed her true form.
A thousand-meter-long giant serpent, with sharp fangs, a forked tongue, and green hair, finally showed her true appearance. The golden crown and jewel atop her head gleamed brilliantly.
"Such powerful chakra. Even without the enhancement of Senjutsu, this chakra is beyond what ordinary people could wield with ease. I am Tagorihime, one of those who test candidates seeking to enter Ryūchi Cave. Will you resort to force?"
"Even if you're a female snake, I can't forgive you for using genjutsu on me. Rather than taking whatever test this is, it'll be quicker to make my own path. So..."
His cold, emotionless eyes looked down at the thousand-meter-long snake before him. Pure white armor, muscles, and veins were intertwined with the Black Nine-Tails. His bizarre, intricate Mangekyō Sharingan swept over his surroundings as he remained impassive.
In the blink of an eye, a solid Famous Sword formed in the Nine-Tails' hand. It shot from its sheath, slicing through the mist.
The smoke of war, which should have scattered with the wind during the Sengoku era, seemed to rise once more, striking fear into the one who had started the battle.
With one slash, dust billowed as Tagorihime was sent flying several kilometers. The blood-red eyes raised the blade once more.
"What are you doing, Tagorihime? He's just a human brat! You—"
"What is that? A fox? A human? How did that human brat who smelled so good turn into something like this? What terrifying power..."
The next second, a thousand-meter-long blue serpent and a brown serpent charged forward together, only to be sent flying several kilometers by the nine tails.
"Are you the same kind as that Tagorihime? State your names. Maybe you'll suffer a little less for it."
"What an arrogant brat. What should we do, Ichikishimahime?"
"Just as I thought. Shouldn't we teach this brat a lesson and make him obediently undergo Ryūchi Cave's Sage trial, Tagitsuhime?"
The three serpents vanished, blending into the air and dense mist. The smiles at the corners of their mouths grew more pronounced. The long-awaited warm-up had Hua Yue's blood racing.
After who knew how long, the aftershocks of the battle gradually died away. Dressed in black, Hua Yue stretched his limbs, feeling refreshed. The three priestesses responsible for Ryūchi Cave's Senjutsu assessment were disheveled and covered in dust.
"Phew, raising hell really does feel great. You lot, get up and show me the way."
"A monster... Is he a monster? He could sense us even while we were invisible, and he could make us, while using Senjutsu..."
Tagorihime trembled all over, completely forgetting that she was the thousand-meter-long female snake. Beside her, the most petite of the three, Ichikishimahime, with her blue hair and blue eyes, huddled even further behind the other two.
"So scary, such a scary human! That guy's a monster, right? He's definitely a monster!"
"Heh. A monster, am I?"
His exquisite, intricate eyes glanced their way. The natural fragrance of plants and trees, together with his every movement, exuded a charm that quietly left the three female snakes, transformed into human form, dazed and infatuated.
"Please, could you take me to the depths of Ryūchi Cave?"
His soft-spoken request left the three female snakes utterly enchanted, their hearts pounding.
"What's that wonderful smell? What is this feeling? This pounding heart... Is this love?"
"Ahhh! Could it be that I'm in heat? I feel..."
"That scent, that alluring scent, that captivating charm—I can't hold back! Would you mind having a girlfriend a little older than you? A mere thousand-year age gap is no problem if there's love!"
After calming their feverish hearts, Hua Yue took a deep breath and glanced at the Fox Charm entry beneath Nine-Tails Jinchuriki. A deep sense of dread washed over him.
Fox Charm's effect was just as the phrase "fox spirit" implied: pure charm enhanced by pheromones. Judging by what he'd seen, it seemed to affect creatures other than humans as well.
Well, it was a fox spirit, after all. Affecting other species wasn't all that surprising. Fox spirits, whether male or female, could charm members of the opposite sex, and perhaps even the same sex.
But why had signing in on the Black Nine-Tails given him a trait like Fox Charm? Could it be related to what was hidden inside the Black Nine-Tails' belly?
His thoughts were interrupted. The three female snakes looked at Hua Yue with burning eyes and pointed to the temple ahead.
"Sweetheart, this is the White Snake Sage's home. Be very careful. If you can't withstand Natural Energy and become a perfect sage, the White Snake Sage will swallow you whole."
Tagorihime looked reluctant to part with him. Ichikishimahime clicked her tongue, hurried forward, and gazed at him with hearts in her eyes.
"No! I won't let my darling become food for the White Snake Sage. You should have a child with me first!"
"What's gotten into all of you? If anyone's having a child with him, it should be me. Isn't that right, husband...?"
Tagitsuhime's words made Tagorihime and Ichikishimahime glare at each other. Just as the three female snakes were about to start fighting, the temple appeared through the dense mist.
"Come in. As I expected, you're an interesting boy. The secrets you're hiding don't seem to be limited to your Sharingan!"
Before you continue