Twin-Winged White Crystal Snake (Part 1)

Crackle! Pop!

In a small valley shrouded in mist, a small fire roasted fragrant bird meat, its faint aroma drawing other little animals over.

By now, the entire little valley only had some low-grade little Magical Beasts left.

Xiao Yi Xian happily ate the meat. Although the Seven-Colored Poison Lines on her lower abdomen had risen slightly, it did not diminish her joy at breaking through to Dou Shi.

After all, Xiao Yan had not even reached his coming-of-age ceremony yet. His cultivation was surely still hovering around Dou Qi.

Achoo!

Far away in Wutan City, Xiao Yan sneezed and could not help complaining, "Someone must be cursing this handsome guy!"

"You call yourself handsome?"

Yao Chen could not help mocking the narcissistic Xiao Yan from the side. Back when he had been the continent's most handsome man, he had not been this narcissistic.

The whip wielded by Yao Chen's soul power grew faster and heavier, making Xiao Yan howl in pain.

Xiao Ling'er noticed nothing at all. Her eyes remained fixed on the roasting meat. Even with food in both her mouth and hands, her gaze still kept drifting toward the meat still on the fire.

Seeing the little animals gathering around them, Xiao Yi Xian shared some food with them as well.

After eating and drinking her fill, Xiao Yi Xian stood in an open space. You Su in her hand gleamed beneath the sun.

With a lift of her sword, Xiao Yi Xian began practicing the basic sword forms. Or perhaps it would be more accurate to call it a sword dance.

The Dou Zun who had left behind this inheritance cherished his sword as dearly as his life. At the core of his inheritance was the need to treat one's sword like family.

Some had even developed sword dances in order to better coordinate with their swords. It had no offensive use whatsoever.

Though it was supposedly meant to improve coordination with the sword, this sword dance had actually been created by that Dou Zun to perform for a woman.

It was purely to show off. In the memories, that figure danced with his sword to the accompaniment of a woman playing the flute, looking like an exiled immortal.

When Xiao Yi Xian had first received this part of the inheritance, she had even thought that with a little wine, he would have been Li Bai.

Xiao Yi Xian danced with the sword in her hand, her Dou Qi blending with the rhythm of the sword dance.

Xiao Ling'er stared blankly from where she stood, watching that purple figure dance through the flower grove.

You Su emitted a faint purple radiance. Sword Qi swirled around Xiao Yi Xian, while her long purple hair drifted chaotically through the air.

As she danced with the sword, Xiao Yi Xian could even sense the sword's happiness. It was already a sword with a trace of spirituality; if this continued, its spirituality might one day reach great completion.

Whoosh!

Xiao Yi Xian put away You Su. It was still early, and this place was rather close to the center of the Monster Mountain Range. If Yun Yun arrived, there would definitely be a huge disturbance, and Xiao Yi Xian would surely sense it.

Before Yun Yun arrived, she might even be able to advance another step. Reaching Da Dou Shi was not impossible.

Xiao Yi Xian did not feel that the Poisonous Gas was about to erupt. It might still need some time. She had a feeling that the Poisonous Gas would erupt once more when she reached Da Dou Shi.

During this time, while exploring around the little valley, she had discovered a cold pool atop a mountain to the southwest. That cold pool was filled with cold poison. If she cultivated there, she was certain she could break through to Da Dou Shi by the time Yun Yun arrived.

However, when she thought of that cold pool, she remembered that it was guarded by a Fifth-tier Magical Beast, the Twin-Winged White Crystal Snake—a giant snake entirely crystal white, with huge white wings growing from its back.

With her current cultivation, she definitely could not beat it head-on. Poison would probably not be very useful either. It was a Magical Beast with both cold and poison attributes; its poison was certainly stronger than hers.

Do not ask why. One was a Dou Shi, the other a Dou Wang. No matter how powerful the poison of the Calamity Poison Body was, it could not deal with a poison-using Magical Beast four major realms above her.

After considering it over and over, she still decided to go for it. The timid starved while the bold feasted!

Magical Beasts at the Dou Wang realm could already speak, and their intelligence was even greater than that of some not-so-bright humans, let alone snakes.

Since ancient times, snake spirits had been exceedingly sinister and cunning, comparable to foxes with peerless strategies.

Thinking of snakes suddenly made her think of Zi Yan. If she could lure Zi Yan over, then she would not need to take this risk. After luring Qing Lin away, she would have to find a way to lure Zi Yan away as well.

Xiao Yi Xian had Xiao Ling'er return to the mark, then headed toward the cold pool beneath Xiao Lan's reluctant gaze.

She had already instructed Xiao Lan to carry her token. When Liu Yan arrived, he would naturally bring him to the cold pool.

There was only one way to seize that treasured place from the jaws of the Twin-Winged White Crystal Snake, and perhaps she might even gain a follower through this method.

After all, there was a saying: "The longer one lives, the more one cherishes life!"

"Better to live miserably than die well..."

In the face of certain death, it would absolutely not fight to the death. The difference between a Magical Beast with intelligence and one without was immense.

Magical Beasts without intelligence would attack whether they could win or not, unless the gap was especially great...

Magical Beasts with intelligence knew to avoid disaster and seek fortune. If they could not win, they either fled or surrendered...

And although Xiao Ling'er only had the cultivation of a Dou Zhe, she could transmit Dou Qi to Xiao Yi Xian through the mark. This would better ensure Xiao Yi Xian's endurance and prevent an awkward situation where her Dou Qi ran out.

After an unknown amount of time, Xiao Yi Xian, dressed in purple and wearing a battered bronze mask, approached the Twin-Winged White Crystal Snake's territory!

Roar!

The Twin-Winged White Crystal Snake sensed an unfamiliar presence entering its territory. A trace of ferocity flashed through its eyes, and with a spread of its wings, it arrived at the edge.

At that moment, Xiao Yi Xian stood quietly atop You Su, waiting for her prey to take the bait. Her entire aura was restrained, making her seem like an ordinary person.

Beyond the distant horizon, a black shadow rushed over at astonishing speed. Its enormous body seemed to blot out the sky, several times larger than Xiao Yi Xian.

Those white wings in particular stretched over two meters long, making Xiao Yi Xian secretly exclaim in amazement. As expected of a Fifth-tier Dou Wang Magical Beast.

When the Twin-Winged White Crystal Snake arrived and saw a human standing a meter inside its territory, it found the situation strange. Its vertical pupils fixed tightly on Xiao Yi Xian.

A dense pressure radiated from its body, the pressure unique to a Fifth-tier Magical Beast, bearing down heavily upon her. Yet the human before it seemed not to feel it at all.

In its perception, the human before it was female, yet she had no aura of cultivation whatsoever. She was completely and utterly an ordinary person.

But how could an ordinary person stand atop a sword?

How could she have reached the depths of the Monster Mountain Range?

A few thousand miles farther west lay the territory of the Amethyst Winged Lion King. Without a certain level of strength, no one could reach this place.

No matter how the Twin-Winged White Crystal Snake thought about it, it could never have known that Xiao Yi Xian had taken a route with few Magical Beasts to get here.

"May I ask what Your Excellency has come here for?" the Twin-Winged White Crystal Snake asked Xiao Yi Xian with some trepidation.

For it to be unable to sense her cultivation aura, she was either a complete and utter mortal or someone even stronger than it.

Though it was somewhat afraid of the human before it, this was its territory. The human had neither ventured deeper inside nor left, so she was clearly waiting for it.

Through her battered mask, Xiao Yi Xian looked at the enormous Twin-Winged White Crystal Snake before her. It had not immediately attacked but was instead testing her. As expected of a Magical Beast with intelligence.