Watching her friend leave, Xiao Xiaoxiao’s eyes revealed a faint reluctance.
“Don’t want to let go?” Ming Di asked with a half-smile.
Xiao Xiaoxiao instinctively shrank her neck and said, “I just remembered I have something else to do…”
With that, she tried to slip away.
“Get back here!” Ming Di flicked a dark green light from his fingertips, and Xiao Xiaoxiao’s leg, now out of her control, twisted slightly, forcing her to walk toward him.
When she got close, Ming Di took her hand and said with a “beaming smile,” “I didn’t realize I had so many flaws. Come, help me correct them!”
“N-no… You are the wise and mighty King of the Underworld! Even if you’re wrong, you’re right!” Xiao Xiaoxiao quickly put on a flattering smile, sparing no effort to butter him up.
Discussing the flaws of the Underworld’s most powerful boss? She wasn’t looking for creative ways to die!
In the gray vortex, space seemed distorted.
Yun Qingxue felt dizzy for a moment. When she opened her eyes and looked around, the gloomy sky of the Underworld was no longer in sight. Instead, she saw lush green mountains, clear waters, and a bright blue sky.
The scenery was beautiful, but Yun Qingxue realized that the place they emerged from Ming Di’s portal was not where they had first arrived in the Yunhuang Illusion.
“Master, what should we do next?” Daise, seeing the completely unfamiliar surroundings, came to ask.
“We’ve been through so much without proper rest. The area seems safe for now—let’s take a break and recover our energy,” Yun Qingxue said, surveying the surroundings.
“Yes,” Daise nodded, then worriedly added, “But A-Dai still hasn’t woken up. I don’t know why. And look, Master, even after all this time, his belly is still swollen. It seems he hasn’t fully absorbed the Black Python’s inner cores he swallowed.”
“Let me see.” Yun Qingxue reached out and took the unconscious A-Dai from Daise. His tiny belly was still bulging, and his originally translucent lavender color had changed, now displaying a more vibrant, multicolored hue.
Yun Qingxue recalled hearing that the more colorful a snake, the more potent its venom. If that were true, A-Dai’s current dazzling appearance would undoubtedly make him the undisputed king of venomous snakes!
She examined A-Dai up and down several times. The little guy seemed to be in a deep sleep, but his steady breathing suggested he wasn’t in any immediate danger.
Perhaps A-Dai had swallowed too many Black Python inner cores and needed time to refine them, which was why he remained unconscious.
“Let’s rest here for now,” Yun Qingxue instructed, placing A-Dai on a clean, sunlit patch of ground before sitting cross-legged herself to meditate and recover.
Daise set down the glass orb she had been holding and also sat down to rest.
The orb’s pitch-black eyes scanned the group before it tilted its head toward the sun and spat out a pearl the size of an adult’s thumb. The pearl floated mid-air, bobbing up and down toward the sunlight.
A gentle breeze rustled the dense tree canopy, shielding them from the harsh sun…
After a long while, Yun Qingxue slowly opened her eyes to see the glass orb, now resembling a fluffy white ball, scampering over and affectionately nuzzling her with its tiny head.
Then, to her astonishment, its pointed fox-like mouth opened and spoke human words!
“Master, have you rested well?”
Yun Qingxue was stunned. Staring at the adorable white fluffball before her, she asked incredulously, “Liuli… you can speak now?”
Liuli nodded vigorously. “After consuming the Black Python’s inner cores, my cultivation improved greatly, so I can speak now… Though, at my current level, I still can’t take human form.”
“That’s alright. Take your time,” Yun Qingxue said, unable to resist ruffling Liuli’s fluffy head.
“Pfft! Cough! Thud!”
A strange noise suddenly erupted. Yun Qingxue’s sharp eyes darted toward the sound, and her expression instantly changed.
The noise wasn’t from any external threat—it came from A-Dai, who had been lying peacefully in the sunlight.
A-Dai’s once-lavender body had completely transformed into a kaleidoscope of colors—red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet. He lay on the ground, mouth gaping wide, clearly in agony.
His body arched violently before slamming back down.
“A-Dai!” Yun Qingxue cried out, rushing over with Liuli and Daise to check on him.
“Cough! Thud!” A-Dai’s mouth kept opening and closing as his body convulsed uncontrollably.
“Master, what do we do?” Daise, terrified by A-Dai’s state, burst into tears, helplessly turning to Yun Qingxue.
“A-Dai! A-Dai!” Yun Qingxue’s mind was in turmoil. This sudden crisis left her at a loss.
“Could the Black Python’s inner cores be poisonous?” she wondered aloud. “But Liuli ate them too! If A-Dai was poisoned, Liuli should’ve been affected as well. Even if Liuli ate fewer, there should’ve been some reaction.”
“Liuli, do you feel unwell at all?” Yun Qingxue asked.
“Not at all!” Liuli blinked its round eyes.
“Think carefully—are you sure you feel nothing wrong?” Yun Qingxue pressed urgently.
Liuli closed its eyes briefly before reopening them, still looking perfectly fine. It shook its head. “Master, I feel completely fine.”
“Then tell me, how many inner cores did you eat?”
“Eight!” Liuli answered promptly.
“And A-Dai? Do you remember how many he ate?”
“About twelve or thirteen,” Liuli replied, tilting its head.
“Thud! Cough! Cough!” A-Dai’s tiny body continued to twitch violently. Daise sobbed, “Master, you must find a way to save him!”
“Stop crying! Tears won’t help now!” Yun Qingxue’s mind raced. She wasn’t a healer—how could she possibly save A-Dai?
“A-Dai…” She stared desperately at the writhing snake, then steeled herself. “At this point, we’ll have to try anything!”
With that, a pale blue glow emanated from her fingertips, enveloping A-Dai’s convulsing form and lifting him into the air.
Yun Qingxue channeled a steady stream of spiritual energy into A-Dai. Perhaps fate wasn’t ready to claim him yet—slowly, her magic took effect, and A-Dai’s thrashing subsided.
But before she could rejoice at his calm, Yun Qingxue noticed something even more terrifying.
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