Stone Desert City.
It was a city built by humans, its walls constructed from exceptionally sturdy obsidian. Their remarkable strength had withstood several sieges by the Snake-People Tribe.
Only with covert support from the Jia Ma Empire's Imperial Family had Stone Desert City finally reached a certain unspoken balance with the Snake-People Tribe.
From that point onward, the mercenaries living in Stone Desert City had gradually grown in number.
Mercenary groups of all sizes were scattered throughout the city.
As it happened, Xiao Yan's two elder brothers had also established their own mercenary group in Stone Desert City, making them a force of no small strength.
Of course, that was a story for later.
As one of the few major cities in the Tagor Desert, it saw no shortage of mercenaries coming and going each day.
Even though it was deep into the night, the city still seethed with voices. At the gates, many mercenaries who licked blood from the edges of blades came and went with their upper bodies bare.
The hot, dry climate meant these already ill-tempered mercenaries would come to blows at the slightest disagreement.
At that moment, a soft, slender figure exuding a faintly seductive air appeared as though out of thin air. She hovered silently high above, the deep-purple Dou Qi Wings behind her beating slowly.
Her face revealed her to be none other than Queen Medusa, who had left Temple City!
Yet none of the mercenaries in Stone Desert City noticed this peerless beauty's sudden arrival.
Even Sha Luo, the leader of the Sand Mercenary Group and the strongest man in Stone Desert City, failed to sense the slightest trace of Queen Medusa's presence. The strength of a Peak Dou Emperor was no empty boast.
"If my earlier senses were correct, that strange, scorching fluctuation came from this place."
Hovering high in the sky, Queen Medusa swept her cold, beautiful gaze across Stone Desert City before fixing it on a spot outside the city.
Then her eyes slowly narrowed, and her red lips parted slightly. Her tongue slipped out, lightly tracing a damp line across those bewitchingly alluring lips.
Rumble...
Just then, a faint, barely perceptible surge of turbulent energy seemed to rise from beneath that spot.
"Hmm? This aura... it seems filled with an intensely scorching fury. Among all things beneath heaven, something capable of possessing such an aura..."
Sensing the faint aura rising from underground, Queen Medusa's eyes flashed. A spark of insight crossed her mind, and she murmured to herself.
"Just as I thought! It is that thing! Rumor has it that the Tagor Desert nurtures something terrifying enough to unleash power that could destroy heaven and earth. I thought it was nothing but idle talk, but to think it truly exists!"
To detect the faint aura Queen Medusa had sensed, one would need strength at her level.
Or possess exceptionally powerful spiritual perception.
Otherwise, it would be impossible to notice such a faint aura. Queen Medusa herself had only happened to sense its eruption through a fortunate coincidence.
Even the Great Elder had failed to notice that fleeting eruption.
It had to be said that this was a fortunate opportunity for Queen Medusa.
Had Su Tian been there, he would surely have recognized the thing Queen Medusa spoke of at once: the heavenly flame Xiao Yan had searched so desperately for!
The green lotus core flame!
With that, the purpose of Queen Medusa's journey became clear.
She refused to obey the Great Elder's arrangements and marry Su Tian, sacrificing her own happiness. At the same time, she wanted to prove that she could lead the Snake-People Tribe to new heights through her own strength.
Thus, Queen Medusa had decided to devour the green lotus core flame!
She was not seeking her own death, but greater power.
According to ancient books, once Queen Medusa's strength reached the Peak Dou Emperor realm, she could undergo a wondrous evolution if she encountered the right opportunity.
Upon successfully completing that evolution, Queen Medusa would not only be able to freely assume human form, but her strength would also rise naturally to the Dou Zong realm, like water flowing into a channel once it was ready.
However, the chances of this evolution succeeding were quite low.
More importantly, the essential requirement for this evolution was that rarest of treasures-a heavenly flame!
That was why Queen Medusa had come here in search of the green lotus core flame. She intended to use the power of a heavenly flame to undergo this wondrous evolution.
If she succeeded, Queen Medusa would break through the shackles of the Peak Dou Emperor realm and enter the Dou Zong realm!
Then she would have enough authority to openly reject the Great Elder's arrangements and control her own destiny.
As for Su Tian, once Queen Medusa successfully completed her evolution and broke through to the Dou Zong realm, she would take his life at the first opportunity.
For some reason, Queen Medusa, who had previously felt little toward Su Tian, now experienced intense disgust whenever she thought of him.
Perhaps it was because of the marriage, or perhaps because Su Tian was human.
But none of that mattered to Queen Medusa anymore. Her most pressing task was to find the heavenly flame, then make proper preparations for her evolution as quickly as possible.
"Phew..."
Even someone as powerful as Queen Medusa struggled to contain her excitement at that moment. She let out a long breath, only then calming the turmoil in her heart a little.
At that moment, it was no longer merely a heavenly flame.
It would determine whether Queen Medusa could take control of her own life, turn her destiny around, and lead the Snake-People Tribe toward a new future.
"Even if I cannot complete the evolution, I would sooner die than marry that despicable human!"
An icy look surfaced on Queen Medusa's bewitching face. Her words carried fierce conviction, along with the resolve to stake her life on a chance of survival.
In Queen Medusa's eyes, Su Tian must have found some way to threaten the Great Elder, hoping to marry her.
She could think of no other possibility.
Of course, if Su Tian knew what Queen Medusa was thinking, he would probably cry out that he had been wronged, wanting to weep but finding no tears.
If anything, Su Tian felt it was the Great Elder who was threatening and coaxing him, forcing him to marry Queen Medusa.
At that moment, Queen Medusa's thoughts were clear.
If she successfully evolved and broke through to the Dou Zong realm, Su Tian would be the first person she killed. If her evolution failed, she would be reduced to nothing beneath the heavenly flame's heaven-and-earth-destroying power.
Even in death, Queen Medusa refused to leave Su Tian the slightest trace of herself.
Whoosh...
Without another moment's hesitation, Queen Medusa gave her deep-purple Dou Qi Wings a fierce beat. Her figure instantly became an illusory gust of fragrant wind, hurtling straight toward that spot on the ground.
Strangely, before Queen Medusa's body even touched the ground, the surrounding sand and soil were crushed into nothing by an invisible force.
Hiss, hiss, hiss...
In the blink of an eye, purple light shimmered around Queen Medusa. After a dazzling flare, she revealed her true form, transforming into an enormous python.
Once she shifted from human form into her true body, the soil barring her way seemed even more fragile.
Sss, sss, sss...
At the slightest touch, it vanished into nothing, as though it had never existed. As Queen Medusa continued forward, she left an enormous passage underground.
Once Queen Medusa's entire body had entered the earth, the huge hole in the ground returned to its original state in an instant.
Even if someone passed by at that moment, they might not have noticed anything unusual.
Still less could they have imagined that Queen Medusa, whose fearsome reputation spread throughout the Tagor Desert, was beneath that very ground, searching for traces of the green lotus core flame right under everyone's noses.
Rumble...
After descending deep underground, Queen Medusa's expression suddenly changed, and a bright gleam flashed in her eyes.
She sensed the scorching, violent aura rushing toward her, especially the heaven-and-earth-destroying might mingled within it.
At that moment, Queen Medusa was almost certain that a heavenly flame lay hidden beneath this stretch of earth.
If her guess was correct, that heavenly flame was very likely the green lotus core flame.
After all, the fact that Queen Medusa had made this decision meant she had already prepared thoroughly and held a certain degree of confidence.
Otherwise, would all her efforts not have been in vain?
This was Queen Medusa's last hope, after all.
"That aura belonging to a heavenly flame is drawing closer within my senses..."
Queen Medusa flicked her enormous forked tongue. A thoughtful look crossed her huge, lantern-like eyes as she silently considered the matter.
As Queen Medusa sped onward, the heavenly flame's aura drew closer and closer within her perception.
Even with her strength as a Peak Dou Emperor, she could already feel scorching heat striking her face. She had no choice but to circulate her Dou Qi and form a protective layer around her body.
Only then did the burning sensation brought by that scorching aura ease considerably.
After all, to make someone as powerful as Queen Medusa feel a burning sensation, only a Dou Zong expert could likely manage it apart from a heavenly flame, a creation forged by heaven and earth.
But clearly, no Dou Zong expert could be hiding underground.
Rumble...
Queen Medusa's thoughts raced, but her enormous body did not slow in the slightest as she swiftly tore through layer after layer of soil.
After an unknown length of time, a muffled boom suddenly sounded, and a dazzling crimson glow appeared before Queen Medusa's eyes.
Queen Medusa stopped, her enormous, lantern-like eyes looking ahead.
An immense lake of magma now lay before Queen Medusa. The thick magma radiated scorching heat, and even the air seemed filled with a burning sensation.
Queen Medusa drew a deep breath of the scorched air, her beautiful eyes growing brighter.
"This scent... there should be no mistake!"
A dazzling purple light flashed, and Queen Medusa's soft, alluring figure emerged.
"But the heavenly flame does not seem to be here. It seems... to be farther ahead!"
Queen Medusa closed her eyes slightly and probed with her senses, but found no trace of the heavenly flame in this lake of magma. Her delicate brows drew together.
When Queen Medusa carefully sensed her surroundings again, her eyes flashed. Her red lips parted, and she murmured softly.
Bang!
With that, Queen Medusa's shoulders trembled slightly, and her Dou Qi Wings sprang out. Her figure immediately darted toward the opening ahead.
Only as Queen Medusa's figure gradually disappeared did an enormous creature slowly raise its heads from the lake of magma.
It was none other than the Two-Headed Fire Spirit Snake that had barred Xiao Yan's way!
Yet this Two-Headed Fire Spirit Snake, which would later dare to attack Xiao Yan, did not dare make the slightest sound in Queen Medusa's presence.
Whether in personal strength or the oppressive power of her bloodline, Queen Medusa was far beyond anything this Two-Headed Fire Spirit Snake could match.
Screech, screech...
Watching the direction in which Queen Medusa had disappeared, the Two-Headed Fire Spirit Snake opened its enormous, blood-red maws and let out a low hiss.
Although the Two-Headed Fire Spirit Snake was anxious, it still did not dare rush out to stop Queen Medusa.
It had sensed the threat of death emanating from her.
Rumble...
Its intense unease made the Two-Headed Fire Spirit Snake roll its enormous body through the lake of magma, producing one low rumble after another.
At such depths, the soil had long since been baked into rocky walls by the magma's heat, and the magma battered them continuously.
Queen Medusa, however, had no interest in the commotion erupting from that lake of magma.
As she ventured deeper underground, the heavenly flame's aura grew denser and stronger, bringing an unmistakable look of excitement to her beautiful face.
Rumble...
When Queen Medusa broke through yet another barrier, a different sight suddenly unfolded before her.
In the center of the underground cavern stood a towering stone platform.
At the center of that stone platform sat a dais formed from a green lotus, but Queen Medusa's gaze was fixed firmly on a shape above it.
A strangely shaped flame, seemingly filled with endless allure, hovered in midair and slowly revolved.
This green lotus was none other than the green lotus core flame Queen Medusa had searched so desperately for!
"At last, I have found you..."
Before you continue