Snake Saliva Ice

Player: Su Changsheng

Yao art: Concealment Rune, beginner 1/100

The Concealment Rune had indeed reached the beginner stage. Things would be easier from here-he just had to grind away at it every day.

After studying the Shedding Rune for a while longer and eating something along the way, Su Changsheng reached the day's survival settlement.

Although no danger had arisen that day, he had learned new knowledge and a new yao art, gaining the ability to temporarily keep himself fed. His haul of survival points was substantial: a full seven points.

Rather than spend them immediately, he planned to save them to improve his cultivation technique later.

In the Yao World, heaven and earth might be vast, but strength stood above them both. Without real strength to back him up, everything else was an illusion.

"Time to practice breathing!"

Su Changsheng exhaled deeply and began a long six-hour session of breathing practice.

Outside, the snow fell ever harder through the pitch-black night.

The savage world grew colder still.

Who knew how many more yao would die that night?

Over the next few days, Su Changsheng never stepped outside his stone house, devoting himself to making Concealment Runes.

He did not distract himself by making Shedding Runes. It was not yet time for that; keeping himself fed was the most pressing concern.

He made runes by day and practiced the Green Snake Breathing Technique for six hours after midnight, occasionally filling his belly with dried meat and cold water. Though poor, his days were immensely fulfilling.

Only those who quieted their hearts could glimpse the Great Dao.

Danger occasionally struck during this period. Wraith Beasts attacked at night, and quite a few of his half-demon neighbors had already met with sudden calamity.

Su Changsheng encountered one such attack himself. Luckily, with a Concealment Rune in hand, he narrowly escaped disaster inside his house.

From beginning to end that night, he never saw what the attacking Wraith Beast actually was. All he felt was boundless strangeness and evil, chaos and madness flooding into his house, terrifying him so badly that Su Changsheng's heart almost stopped.

This deepened his understanding of the world's dangers considerably.

Returning to Su Changsheng's progress, his limited aptitude meant that despite diligently practicing his breathing technique every day, he had gained only ten experience points.

The Concealment Rune was another matter. Drawing and crafting it every day had nearly filled its experience bar over these past few days. It was about to advance from beginner to Skilled Level.

His success rate at making Concealment Runes had stabilized at one in ten. Once the yao art advanced, that rate might rise further.

And so another day arrived. Eight days had passed since Su Changsheng successfully made his first Concealment Rune.

He now had five Concealment Runes saved up.

He opened his attribute list.

Player: Su Changsheng

Race: Green Snake Half-Demon

Realm: First-Level Half-Demon 44/100

Cultivation technique: Green Snake Breathing, proficient 12/500

Yao art: Concealment Rune, beginner 95/100

Innate talent: Snake Saliva Ice, beginner 20/100

Survival points: 105

He had accumulated a full 105 survival points. Aside from the twenty-five awarded for surviving the Wraith Beast attack, most had come from successfully making Concealment Runes.

Rune crafting had become a little addictive for Su Changsheng.

Today, however, he had to put his cultivation plans on hold: he was nearly out of food.

The ten jin of beast meat originally stored for winter had been almost entirely consumed in just eight days. Even with strict rationing, the little that remained would last only another three to five days.

There was no helping it. Both crafting runes and practicing the breathing technique consumed enormous amounts of energy. On top of that, it was winter, and Su Changsheng needed to eat twice as much to keep himself active rather than slip into a snake's hibernation.

A mere ten jin of beast meat-and not even fresh flesh at that-could not withstand such consumption.

Should I trade runes for food at the yao market?

No. I'm only a First-Level Half-Demon. I can't protect the runes.

No sooner had the thought arisen than Su Changsheng rejected it.

Trading runes for flesh was unsafe at his current stage. At the very least, he needed to wait until he advanced to a Second-Level Half-Demon at the end of the month and could intimidate those harboring ill intentions.

Of course, Second-Level Half-Demon would suffice. Only yao below that level would covet such trifles.

In that case, what should he do?

After turning it over in his mind, Su Changsheng finally set his sights on his innate talent.

Snake Saliva Ice!

Every resident of the Black Mountain Demon Stockade had to submit a portion of materials produced through their innate talent each month.

The Black Tiger Yao, for instance, possessed the Tiger's Ghostly Servant talent and had to submit one changgui spirit every month.

Fox yao had to provide a bottle of hallucinogenic fox aura at the required concentration, and so on.

Most low-level snake yao like Su Changsheng had to submit a portion of snake saliva ice.

Condensing these talent materials consumed virtually the entire lives of the Yao Stronghold's lowest-ranking yao. It was the heaviest mountain pressing down on their backs.

Every month, yao who failed to meet their material-production quota were either killed on the spot or expelled from the Yao Stronghold, cast into the wilderness to become Wild Yao.

But if my talent advances, I can produce more snake saliva ice in a short time. Three to five days should be enough, and I might even have some left over.

And trading it won't pose much risk.

Su Changsheng considered this inwardly.

Materials produced through a yao's innate talent were entirely different from talismans. Even if taken outside to trade, they generally would not attract covetous eyes.

There were three reasons for this.

First, the Black Mountain Stronghold prohibited private trading and circulation of talent materials. Anyone capable of producing more than their fixed monthly quota could exchange the excess directly with the stockade for supplies.

This suppressed the value of talent materials to a certain extent, reducing the danger involved.

Second, talent materials were merely basic materials, unlike Concealment Runes, which any yao could use. This further reduced the risks of trading them.

Lastly, talent materials carried a strong trace of their maker's Demon Power. If a deer yao took materials made by a snake yao to exchange for supplies at the Black Mountain Demon Stockade, wouldn't that be asking for death?

Thus, compared to runes, making snake saliva ice to trade for flesh was safer for Su Changsheng at this stage.

And he had just enough survival points!

Still, I'd better hand any extra snake saliva ice to the Black Tiger Yao. As a subordinate of a Great Yao, collecting talent materials is his bread and butter. He'll skim his share, but in life, taking a loss is often a blessing.

Su Changsheng saw things clearly. In this savage land, where danger lurked on every side, he could never overlook his immediate superior.

Whatever he did, he had to account for the uncertainty the Black Tiger Yao introduced.

He began planning carefully, reviewing the Black Tiger Yao's temperament and strength, the conditions for survival in the Yao Stronghold, and everything else. Only after repeatedly confirming that this would not bring mortal danger upon him did he invest his survival points in his Snake Saliva Ice talent.

The next instant-

A surge of cold welled up from deep within his bloodline and coursed through his whole body. Dense ice crystals appeared across his snake scales.

More cold rose from his long snake tail, cutting through every barrier like a warrior storming five passes and slaying six generals. When all the cold in his body gathered in his throat, his Demon Power suddenly began to boil.

Whoosh!

A blast of intense cold mixed with Demon Power erupted from his mouth, condensing almost instantly into a walnut-sized lump of solid ice.

Whoa!

What a huge mouthful of icy phlegm!

Advancing his talent really did pack a punch.