The Aloof and Beautiful White Snake Demon

The old man sighed softly. "Since the beginning of the recent ancient era, Greater Yang has withdrawn from the world, and the Greater Yang lineage has long since been broken.

"Cultivators who occasionally claim to cultivate Greater Yang are usually only using spiritual objects from heterodox paths as a pretext to enter the Dao, or taking clever shortcuts. Without receiving the true teachings, they are naturally rare."

The old man then paused and spoke about some of the Dao lineages within the Nine Qis.

"Among the Nine Qis alone, each has its own strengths.

"For divination and deduction, [Shamanic Qi] is naturally supreme. For slaughter and warfare, [Martial Qi] is the strongest.

"For a clear mind and few desires, [Pure Qi] is naturally the most marvelous. For escaping through space and teleporting, [Wind Qi] is naturally the best..."

The old man seemed to have been a storyteller or something of the sort in the past, and his talks on the Dao were quite entertaining.

Moreover, he explained things in exceedingly simple terms, as if speaking to children of two or three. He seemed to be making profound matters easy to understand so that all the Demon Cultivators below could follow.

Wentesi sat in a corner, listening with rapt interest.

Crow Lord rarely heard explanations of Dao lineages either, and he was equally enthralled.

Shu San was even more absorbed, his eyes shining. Presumably, he had never had a chance to attend before, or the admission fee had been too expensive.

They listened for six whole hours.

The old man spoke of basic common knowledge and the outlines of Dao lineages in the cultivation world. His topics were broad but fundamental, filling the gaps in Wentesi's knowledge of the Dao lineages of this world.

Only when darkness fell did the old man finally stop lecturing and dismiss the class.

The demons rose. Aside from a few cleverer fox and dog demons who paid their respects, the rest all took off like a puff of smoke.

After all, in these demons' eyes, their dealings with the old man were a straightforward exchange of payment for goods, the fairest kind of transaction.

After they left the school, Shu San came up to them.

"Young masters of the Feather Race, it's getting late. I know a cliffside inn with very cheap rates. Would you like me to take you there?"

Wentesi nodded in agreement.

The cave abodes were in the mountainside behind the market. They were all small, roughly furnished caves hewn out by hand, but the price was indeed quite low.

Crow Lord took out two more red Earth Virtue stones to pay. His face had visibly darkened, and the expense pained him greatly.

Wentesi and Crow Lord were about to enter the cave when Shu San stopped, cupped his rat paws, and smiled at them.

"Young masters, it doesn't look like you have all that many spiritual objects on you.

"Here in the market, food, clothing, lodging, and travel all cost spiritual objects. I wonder if you two would be interested in taking a job to earn some? I could help introduce you."

Wentesi raised an eyebrow. "What kind of job?"

"Well..." Shu San kept them in suspense, cupping his paws and smiling.

"I'll come find you both first thing tomorrow and explain in detail. In any case, it isn't dangerous, and the pay is generous."

As soon as he finished, he slipped into a nearby crack in the stone with a soft puff. His enormous rat head ducked in, and in two or three movements he was gone.

The cave abode was fairly simple, containing only a stone table and a stone platform.

Crow Lord was somewhat gloomy.

He was a wild cultivator from the mountains to begin with, accustomed to dining in the wind and sleeping in the dew.

Any tree or rock would do for a night's rest.

Today they had bought books, attended a lecture, and paid for lodging. Spiritual objects had flowed away like water, and the expense had long since pained him.

But he had acknowledged Wentesi as his big brother and did not dare complain much.

Wentesi noticed his little brother's mood but did not mention it.

He quietly made plans in his heart.

Looks like I need to bring some spiritual objects over from my main body. But spiritual seeds tainted with the presence of the Hairy Head Sun are too conspicuous. I'll have to find something else.

Come to think of it, I still haven't used the [Wind Qi] cultivation tax this golden eagle handed over. It's been stored in the Golden Land all this time.

I could try cultivating some spiritual seeds and producing some [Wind Qi] spiritual objects.

The Wind Qi cultivated by the golden eagle was ordinary enough. Unlike the overly conspicuous presence of the Hairy Head Sun, it would be relatively safe to bring here and trade for supplies.

Of course, Wentesi would also bring some ordinary spiritual objects from the Western fantasy world to trade, such as the three-flower honey produced in his territory.

He had already tested and verified it last time.

Wentesi then focused his thoughts, withdrawing his Divine Sense from the golden eagle's body. It passed through the barrier between the two worlds and returned to his main body in the dragon's nest in the Western fantasy world.

Gilded crimson dragon eyes slowly opened within the dragon's nest in the Western fantasy world.

My main body really is more comfortable, this body full of strength.

Wentesi felt extremely comfortable with his Divine Sense back in his main body and could not help sighing.

First, I'll try out the new Technique I just obtained and see if I can divine the whereabouts of those Greater Yin cultivators looking for me in the cultivation world.

Following the contents of Yarrow-Stalk and Shell Divination and Six-Line Verification, Wentesi began trying to perform divination on his own dragon scales.

Hairy Head Sun Law Power flowed across the scales on Wentesi's little dragon claw.

In only a short while, divination patterns had been engraved on two scales on the claw.

There was a faint hint of pain, though it was not obvious.

Wentesi looked down at the scales on the tip of his claw and gained a general understanding.

No wonder the tortoise's book had been stuck in his hands, unsold. The scales of ordinary armored Demon Cultivators could never withstand the engraving of these divination patterns.

Even Wentesi's dragon scales, with both resistances maxed out, could barely bear being engraved. One could imagine how it would be for other Demon Cultivators.

Yarrow-Stalk and Shell Divination and Six-Line Verification had two main functions.

The first was divination and deduction.

Above, it could divine the workings of heaven and the tides of fortune; below, it could determine good and ill in the human world. From the sun and moon, fair weather and rain, waxing and waning, to the rise, fall, and succession of dynasties, all could be put to the hexagrams.

However, the chance of a reading coming true varied with the scale and importance of the matter being divined, as well as the depth of the heavenly secrets involved.

The second was counter-divination and concealment.

For anyone who possessed the Technique, the more widely the divination patterns covered their scales or armor, the harder they were for others to divine, spy upon, or locate.

If one could engrave every scale on their body, perhaps they could vanish completely from the world and become immune to all prying.

These were exactly what Wentesi needed. In traveling between two worlds, what he feared most were high-level cultivators and Legendary mages who could divine things or use foresight and the like.

With these methods of concealment and divination, he would be much safer.

Wentesi now had two divination scales and wanted to try them out first.

The first question concerned the [Greater Yin] cultivators tracking Wentesi: when would they be able to find his trail?

Hairy Head Sun Law Power flowed over the scales. After alternating between light and dark several times, they finally showed a sign of minor good fortune.

"Minor good fortune?"

Wentesi spoke to himself, a thoughtful look flashing through his dragon eyes.

According to Yarrow-Stalk and Shell Divination and Six-Line Verification, minor good fortune meant freedom from disaster and misfortune, no trouble for the time being, and even a little good luck.

Those Greater Yin cultivators presumably would not find his trail in the near future, so there was no danger for now.

"That's good, then. Minor good fortune..."

To test its accuracy, Wentesi did not rest that night.

He tried divining the next day's weather at the dragon's nest, then the movements of the Devil Creatures in his territory, and so on.

They were all minor matters of heavenly secrets, and some readings were right while others were wrong.

The rate at which they came true was roughly seventy percent.

Afterward, he repeatedly divined the possibility of the Greater Yin cultivators finding him, but the reading remained steadily at minor good fortune, without the slightest change.

The night passed uneventfully.

The next day, with a thought, Wentesi sent his Divine Sense through the barrier between the two worlds again and into the golden eagle at Green Snake Market.

Wentesi opened his eyes and stood up.

Hearing the movement, Crow Lord, who was still dozing, immediately woke and shook out his feathers.

At that moment, a faint scrabbling against stone came from the cave entrance, followed by Shu San's voice.

"Young masters of the Feather Race, are you awake? I, Shu San, have come as promised."

Wentesi answered and went out with Crow Lord.

Shu San rubbed his paws together again and smiled attentively.

"Young masters, what have you decided? The pay for this job is generous, and there's absolutely no danger."

"Lead the way."

Wentesi was brief and to the point. The previous day, he had divined in the dragon's nest that the job carried no risk and even bore a sign of minor good fortune.

Crow Lord said nothing and offered no objection. He had spent most of his savings, so earning some back would be good.

Shu San immediately led the way.

He avoided the market's main street, choosing secluded alleys instead. After turn upon turn, they went deeper into an ever more remote area.

After walking for about half an hour, Shu San stopped beneath a cave in a cliff face and lowered his voice.

"This is the place. The employer is inside."

Wentesi did not take another step. His main body performed a divination in the Western fantasy world.

Great fortune!

It was actually great fortune!

Wentesi could not help raising an eyebrow. It seemed his luck was good this time.

A single reading might still be mistaken.

Wentesi divined three more times.

The results were minor good fortune, great fortune, and great fortune.

He could go in!

Wentesi entered the cave with Crow Lord.

The cave was darker than outside, lit only by faintly glowing fluorite embedded in the walls.

A faint fishy scent hung in the air, mingled with traces of a snake's presence and an inexplicable delicate fragrance.

A graceful figure sat on a stone platform deep within the cave.

Was that a human?

No, a demon.

Or rather, a half-demon.

She was a half-snake demon in the form of a woman, dressed in plain white robes and skirts, with skin fairer than snow and black hair cascading like a waterfall.

Her face was breathtakingly beautiful, aloof and flawless, and her figure was slender and graceful.

Fine, close-set silver-white scales covered both sides of her cheeks, as well as her wrists and ankles.

Her presence was intensely cold, and her cultivation appeared to be at the Middle Stage of Qi Ingestion. It was unclear which Dao lineage she belonged to.

Hearing footsteps like those of chicken claws, she swept her pale tea-gold slit pupils over the eagle and crow, then fixed them on Shu San. Her voice rang clear as an icy spring.

"Are these the two members of the Feather Race with clean backgrounds you mentioned?"