Treasury Secrets, the Snake-Woman's Enigmatic Shadow

The celebrations at the Xiao Clan residence had yet to die down, but Xiao Yan was already standing before the ruins of the Jia Lie Family estate, clutching the heavy brass key. Yesterday's fierce battle had left shocking scars here. A faint smell of blood and scorching from clashing Dou Qi still hung among the broken walls and ruins. The remnants of the Jia Lie Family's forces had long since scattered like birds and beasts, leaving the estate that had once symbolized supremacy over Wutan City an empty shell.

[Ding! "Jia Lie Family Treasury Key" detected. Side quest "Explore the Treasury" triggered!]

[Quest requirement: Find and open the Jia Lie Family treasury and obtain the secrets hidden within.]

[Quest rewards: 2,000 points, one random Profound Tier Dou Technique, and 10% repair progress for the "Storage Ring Fragment".]

"Where could the treasury be?" Xiao Yan ran his fingers over the intricate patterns on the key and scanned the depths of the estate. The Jia Lie Family had built up its holdings over hundreds of years; its treasury was bound to be well hidden. He circulated his Dou Qi, pushing his perception to its limit as he carefully searched for energy fluctuations beneath the ground.

A moment later, he stopped beside an inconspicuous ornamental rockery in the estate's rear garden. The Dou Qi fluctuations in the ground here were faint but unusually stable-clearly, it had been reinforced using a special method.

"This is it." Dou Qi gathered at Xiao Yan's fingertips. With a light flick of his iron ruler, the rockery moved aside with a rumble, revealing a bluestone slab covered in runes. He inserted the key into the slot and turned it clockwise. With a soft click, the slab slowly sank, exposing a deep stone staircase.

The passage was filled with a musty smell, sealed away for years. Luminous pearls embedded in the walls on either side gave off a faint glow, illuminating the winding path ahead. Xiao Yan tightened his grip on his iron ruler and carefully descended. The Dou Qi of a Two-Star Great Dou Master formed a faint halo over his body as he kept watch for traps.

[System notification: Low-level formation traps detected in the passage. Caution is advised.]

Xiao Yan's gaze sharpened. Sure enough, he spotted several barely visible runes on the floor not far ahead. He tapped his toes lightly and used Wind Walking Step, moving as nimbly as a wildcat across the trapped area while keeping his Dou Qi fluctuations precisely outside the runes' detection range.

He made it through without mishap, despite a few scares. At the end stood a heavy iron door, likewise engraved with patterns matching the key. He inserted the key again, and the door slowly swung open. A smell of metal, medicinal herbs, and a strange fishy odor rushed at him.

The treasury was not large, a little over a hundred square meters. Gold coins and assorted ores were piled into small mountains in the center, while wooden chests were stacked neatly in the corners, presumably containing rare medicinal herbs and Dou Technique scrolls. But what drew the eye most was a figure curled up at the very back of the treasury-a woman, or rather, a creature that was half human and half snake.

She had a human woman's upper body, skin as white as porcelain, and long dark green hair hanging loosely about her shoulders. A diamond-shaped green scale marked her forehead. Below the waist, however, was a snake's tail covered in fine green scales. It wound across the floor for a full three meters. She seemed to have just been awakened. Slowly, she raised her head, her slit pupils fixing on Xiao Yan in cold scrutiny.

"Human..." The woman's voice was a little hoarse, yet strangely seductive. "Did you break the seal?"

Xiao Yan's heart tightened. This is... a Snake-Person? And her presence is strong. She's at least a Three-Star Da Dou Shi! Why would a Snake-Person be hidden in the Jia Lie Family treasury?

[Ding! Encountered a powerful Snake-Person (Three-Star Da Dou Shi). Hidden quest "Snake-People Secrets" triggered!]

[Quest requirement: Defeat or subdue the Snake-Person and ascertain why she was imprisoned.]

[Quest rewards: 3,000 points, Snake-People Tribe favorability +30, and one "Green-Scaled Snake Gallbladder" (increases resistance to poison-type Dou Qi).]

"Who are you? Why were you locked up here?" Xiao Yan did not attack rashly. He held his iron ruler across his body and stayed on guard.

The Snake-Person woman sneered, lightly tapping her tail against the floor. "Who am I? Don't you humans like to call us 'freaks'? As for why I was locked up..." Hatred flashed in her eyes. "Those greedy Jia Lie Family bastards wanted to use my snake gallbladder to refine medicine, so they set a trap and captured me. They were afraid I'd break free, so they used the restrictions on this treasury to suppress my power."

Understanding dawned on Xiao Yan. Jia Lie Ao had indeed practiced poison-type Dou Techniques; presumably, he had set his sights on this Snake-Person woman. Xiao Yan studied her. Though her presence was cold, what seemed to lie deep in her eyes was unwillingness to submit, not pure evil.

"I can let you out, but you have to promise not to hurt the innocent," Xiao Yan said slowly.

The Snake-Person woman froze for a moment, apparently not expecting to hear that. She looked Xiao Yan up and down, surprise flashing in her slit pupils. "Human, aren't you afraid of me?"

"Would being afraid help?" Xiao Yan raised an eyebrow. "Besides, you've been imprisoned here, so you must hate the Jia Lie Family to the bone. That makes us indirect 'allies,' in a way."

"Allies?" The Snake-Person woman scoffed. "Can a human's words be trusted?" She moved, whipping her tail fiercely against a nearby stone pillar. With a boom, the pillar cracked! She released the full might of a Three-Star Da Dou Shi. "If you want to let me out, let's see if you have the ability!"

Before the words had left her mouth, she lunged at him like a green blur. Several green poison needles shot from her fingertips, carrying a sickly sweet odor as they flew straight at Xiao Yan's face.

"So we have to fight after all." Xiao Yan had been prepared. He unleashed Wind Walking Step and slid several meters to the side, narrowly dodging the needles. They landed on the floor, where wisps of white smoke rose from them. Clearly, they were extremely poisonous.

"You're not slow." Surprise flickered in the Snake-Person woman's eyes. Her tail swept out again, whistling through the air toward Xiao Yan's legs.

Xiao Yan advanced instead of retreating. Dark red flames flared on his iron ruler. "Flame Splitting Wave Ruler: Flowing Fire!" Scarlet ruler-shadows flowed toward her tail like a lively stream of fire, coiling around it.

"Clang!" The ruler-shadows struck the snake scales with the ring of metal on metal. The Snake-Person woman felt a scorching force travel up her tail, making her frown slightly. "A Heavenly Flame?"

"Not quite, just a little flame technique." Xiao Yan used the force of the impact to leap back and open the distance. This Snake-Person's defenses far surpassed those of an ordinary Three-Star Da Dou Shi. He would likely gain nothing by meeting her head-on.

But the Snake-Person woman's fighting spirit had been roused. Her long dark green hair stirred without wind, and a strange hiss escaped her lips. The moisture in the surrounding air seemed to answer her, turning into countless tiny water arrows that shot at Xiao Yan in a dense barrage.

"Poison again?" Xiao Yan's eyes went cold. He circulated his Dou Qi, and an illusory image of the Green Lotus Core Flame blazed over his body, forming a barrier of fire. The water arrows struck it and instantly evaporated, leaving only faint poisonous fumes.

"Fire Attribute Dou Qi does counter my poison." The Snake-Person woman licked her lips, her fighting spirit burning even brighter. "But do you think that's enough?"

She suddenly opened her mouth and spat out a dense cloud of green mist that spread across more than half the treasury in an instant. Faint images of venomous snakes darted through it, and the presence it gave off made even Xiao Yan dizzy.

[System notification: Powerful poison mist encountered. Hold your breath immediately and circulate Dou Qi to resist it!]

Xiao Yan did not dare delay. He immediately held his breath and pushed the Burning Heaven Art to its limit. The flame barrier burned ever hotter as he tried to burn away the green mist. But the poison mist was unusually stubborn, managing to persist even within the flames.

"An opening!" Seizing the moment while Xiao Yan was occupied by the green mist, the Snake-Person woman ghosted around behind him and lashed out viciously with her tail like a steel whip!

Xiao Yan sensed the vicious gust behind him, but it was too late to dodge. He could only spin around and block with his iron ruler.

"Bang!"

A tremendous force struck him. Pain shot through his arms, and he was sent flying backward into the small pile of gold coins. Coins scattered across the floor with a clatter. He grunted, blood seeping from the corner of his mouth-that blow had injured him badly.

"Human, you're too weak." The Snake-Person woman slowly closed in, a hint of contempt in her slit pupils. "Now, do you still think you can let me out?"

Xiao Yan wiped the blood from his mouth, but his fighting spirit blazed even brighter. "A Three-Star Da Dou Shi does have reason to be arrogant. But do you think that's all I can do?"

He took a deep breath and quietly gripped a Qi Recovery Pill in his left hand-a spare pill he had exchanged points for. At the same time, he quickly recalled the essentials of the advanced version of the Flame Splitting Wave Ruler.

"Flame Splitting Wave Ruler: Flame Surge!"

This time, Xiao Yan held nothing back. The Dou Qi inside him erupted in full, and the flames on his iron ruler surged, turning into a raging scarlet wave. It engulfed the Snake-Person woman and burned away the pervasive green mist in an instant! The advanced Dou Technique's power was extraordinary indeed. The tearing force contained in the flames made the Snake-Person woman's expression change slightly.

"A paltry trick!" she shouted angrily. She slammed her tail against the floor, making the entire treasury tremble. Cracks opened in the ground, and several water snakes formed from moisture emerged to grapple with the wave of flames.

Water and fire collided, filling the air with steam. Xiao Yan seized the moment when the steam obscured their vision to swallow the Qi Recovery Pill, and his Dou Qi rapidly recovered. At the same time, he quietly circled behind the Snake-Person woman to one side. The flames on his iron ruler converged into a single point-a sign that their power had been compressed to its limit!

"Now!"

With a roar, Xiao Yan pushed Explosive Step to its limit and burst from the steam like a bolt of scarlet lightning. His iron ruler tore through the air with a piercing shriek, stabbing straight toward the Snake-Person woman's heart from behind!

The Snake-Person woman sensed the danger behind her, and her pupils contracted sharply. It was too late to turn and defend herself, so she could only twist her tail violently, forcing her body half an inch aside.

"Puchi!"

The iron ruler still pierced her shoulder. Scorching flame Dou Qi surged into her, drawing a cry of pain as blood gushed out.

"You!" Both shocked and furious, the Snake-Person woman spun around and struck at Xiao Yan's chest with her palm. Xiao Yan had been prepared. He used the force to leap back and open the distance. Looking at the flames burning on her shoulder, he panted, "Now, can we have a proper talk?"

The Snake-Person woman clutched her bleeding shoulder and looked at Xiao Yan with a complicated expression. She could tell that he had held back with that last strike. Otherwise, he would have pierced her heart, not her shoulder. Moreover, this human's tenacity far exceeded her expectations. Though his cultivation was a level lower, he had managed to contend with her using his strange flames and exquisite Dou Techniques, even wounding her.

The green mist and water snakes gradually dissipated, and calm returned to the treasury. Only their heavy breathing remained.

"What exactly do you want?" The Snake-Person woman's voice softened somewhat, tinged with fatigue.

"To let you out." Xiao Yan put away his iron ruler, his tone sincere. "But I need to know whether the Jia Lie Family had any other plots involving the Snake-People Tribe besides imprisoning you."

The Snake-Person woman fell silent for a moment, seemingly weighing her options. Only after a long while did she speak. "The Jia Lie Family was in league with our Snake-People Tribe's mortal enemies-the Black Snake Tribe. They used my snake gallbladder as bait in exchange for the Black Snake Tribe's secret poison arts manual. As for anything else... I was imprisoned for three years. I don't know much."

Three years? Xiao Yan's heart stirred. It seemed Jia Lie Ao's ambitions had begun to swell long ago.

[Ding! Hidden quest "Snake-People Secrets" is 50% complete. Partial information obtained.]

"I can take you out, but you have to promise me you won't hurt the ordinary people of Wutan City," Xiao Yan stressed again.

Seeing the seriousness in Xiao Yan's eyes, the Snake-Person woman suddenly chuckled, her smile carrying a touch of allure. "I didn't expect there to be a human like you. Fine, I promise. But..." She changed tack. "In return for letting me out, I can tell you something. An Azure Nether Stone is hidden deep in the Jia Lie Family treasury. It has remarkable effects for humans cultivating water-type or poison-type Dou Qi. Perhaps it can also neutralize and refine your flames."

Xiao Yan's heart stirred, and he looked toward an inconspicuous iron chest in a corner of the treasury. He walked over and opened it. Sure enough, inside lay a fist-sized stone, green and dark throughout, giving off a cool presence.

[Ding! Obtained special ore "Azure Nether Stone". It can be used to refine Dou Qi and improve the finesse of flame Dou Techniques.]

"Thank you." Xiao Yan put the Azure Nether Stone into his Storage Ring.

The Snake-Person woman looked at him and suddenly said, "My name is Qing Lin. Remember it. Perhaps we'll meet again." As she spoke, she went to the stone wall on the other side of the treasury and lightly tapped an inconspicuous spot with her tail. The wall slowly slid aside, revealing a secret passage leading outside the city. "I secretly left this escape route when I was captured and brought here. Until we meet again, human boy."

With that, she moved her tail and slithered into the secret passage, quickly disappearing into the darkness.

[Ding! Hidden quest "Snake-People Secrets" complete!]

[Rewards distributed: 3,000 points, Snake-People Tribe favorability +30, and "Green-Scaled Snake Gallbladder" (automatically stored in system space).]

[Ding! Side quest "Explore the Treasury" complete!]

[Rewards distributed: 2,000 points, Profound Tier Mid Grade Dou Technique "Poison Shadow Enigmatic Step", and 10% repair progress for the "Storage Ring Fragment" (current total progress: 40%).]

Xiao Yan gazed thoughtfully at the entrance to the secret passage. Snake-People, the Black Snake Tribe... It seemed the waters of Wutan City ran deeper than he had imagined.

He looked away and began taking inventory of the treasury. There were several hundred thousand gold coins, as well as plenty of rare ores and medicinal herbs. Among them were even two hundred-year-old Blood Coagulation Grass plants, just right for refining healing pills. He also found several Dou Technique scrolls. Though most were Yellow Tier High Grade, one Profound Tier Low Grade technique, Mysterious Ice Thorn, was fairly practical.

[System notification: A large quantity of materials exchangeable for points detected. Exchange nonessential materials for points?]

"Exchange them." Xiao Yan did not hesitate. Apart from the medicinal herbs, ores, and a few useful Dou Techniques, the remaining gold coins and assorted items were all converted into points by the system.

[Ding! Exchange complete. Obtained 5,800 points! Current total: 6,780 (previous balance) + 3,000 + 2,000 + 5,800 = 17,580 points!]

Looking at the points panel, Xiao Yan nodded in satisfaction. This trip to the Jia Lie Family estate had yielded far more than he had expected. Not only had he taken revenge and increased his strength, he had also gained plenty of resources and even triggered a hidden quest involving the Snake-People.

Just as he was preparing to leave, the system suddenly displayed a notification:

[Ding! A powerful energy fluctuation detected in the distance, rapidly approaching Wutan City. Suspected presence of a Dou Wang-level expert!]

A Dou Wang?!

Xiao Yan's heart shook. A Dou Wang-level expert was someone on the same level as Yun Shan, the Misty Cloud Sect Master. Why would one suddenly appear near Wutan City?

[System notification: The energy fluctuation bears the mark of the Misty Cloud Sect. Its target appears to be in the direction of the Xiao Clan!]

The Misty Cloud Sect? What are they here for? Could it be because I killed Jia Lie Ao, and the Jia Lie Family was in league with the Misty Cloud Sect?

Xiao Yan did not dare delay. He immediately put his things away, swiftly left the Jia Lie Family estate through the secret passage Qing Lin had left behind, and raced toward the Xiao Clan.

He had a feeling that the skies over Wutan City were about to change again. And this time, his opponent would be a behemoth far beyond the Jia Lie Family-the Misty Cloud Sect!