140: Outstanding talent

"Old Ancestor, do you want the little snake or not?"

Zhou Leren arrived, full of excitement, his voice preceding him.

As his words fell, Huan Bi, who was beside him, instinctively felt that something was amiss, but couldn't pinpoint what it was.

"Hmm?"

Hearing this, Mo Xuan and Zhou Liyue stopped their conversation and looked towards the direction below the peak.

"Oh? Le Ren is back."

Zhou Liyue chuckled softly.

Mo Xuan nodded.

In just a moment, Zhou Leren appeared before Mo Xuan and Zhou Liyue, bringing Huan Bi with him.

"Old Ancestor, Third Aunt."

Zhou Leren quickly stopped and bowed to the man and the snake.

Beside him, when Huan Bi saw Mo Xuan, the sense of pressure from her Bloodline grew stronger. Her body shrunk behind Zhou Leren, and her snake eyes showed clear panic.

"It's over, it's over. A Golden Core Stage demon king..."

"And a snake demon..."

"I heard some types of snake demons often hunt other snakes for food, hiss~"

"Could this kid be planning that?"

"Then am I not just delivering myself?"

"I'm so stupid, truly..."

Huan Bi wailed inwardly, muttering incessantly, her body shrinking even further, coiling into a flat disc.

"Right, there's also the contract..."

Huan Bi suddenly remembered something.

"But it only seems to mention that no one from the Zhou Family can harm her, and of course, she cannot harm anyone from the Zhou Family..."

"Does this demon king count as a member of the Zhou Family?"

"Hmm, probably not..."

After all, this is a snake, not a person.

"Then am I still destined to become this black snake's meal, and bring my Clan along with me?"

Huan Bi's eyes were unfocused, her expression blank.

"Hmm."

Mo Xuan watched Zhou Leren for a long time, making Zhou Leren feel uneasy.

Zhou Liyue, beside him, nodded and covered her mouth, chuckling softly. Seeing the Green-Eyed Azure-Striped Snake behind him and recalling Zhou Leren's mention of a surprise, how could she not know what Zhou Leren was up to?

Zhou Liyue's eyes were strange. She dared not look at Mo Xuan, only staring at Zhou Leren, and then glancing a few times at Huan Bi, who was cowering behind Zhou Leren.

She thought to herself: You're a bold one, kid.

"What did you mean by what you just said?"

Mo Xuan's eyes were deep, showing no emotion, his voice low, yet his tone was incredibly gentle, inspiring a sense of trust in anyone or any snake who heard it.

Zhou Leren felt uneasy. Although Mo Xuan's tone was gentle, based on his understanding of his Old Ancestor, his Old Ancestor was an extremely cunning snake, whose words and thoughts sometimes completely diverged.

But the arrow was on the string, and he had to shoot it.

"Cough~"

"Old Ancestor, I noticed you haven't had a companion for so many years."

"So, when I was stationed in Tianshui City, I happened to meet Fellow Daoist Huan Bi. Fellow Daoist Huan Bi is gentle, virtuous, and has an excellent temperament. After hearing of the Old Ancestor's prestige, she admired you immensely."

"So I took the liberty of bringing Fellow Daoist Huan Bi back, so that Fellow Daoist Huan Bi could personally witness your heroic demeanor, Old Ancestor."

"Cough~ Fellow Daoist Huan Bi, isn't that right?"

After speaking, Zhou Leren coughed lightly and quietly asked Huan Bi, who was behind him, almost retracting her head into her belly.

"Ah! Don't eat me, I'm not tasty at all. I'm just a small snake, my cultivation is too low, eating me won't increase your cultivation. And I'm often injured, my meat isn't tender at all, not tasty, not tasty..."

Huan Bi was startled by Zhou Leren's sudden call and immediately started babbling nonsense.

Mo Xuan listened quietly, silently watching Zhou Leren.

Zhou Leren's face was awkward, not daring to meet Mo Xuan's gaze.

"Fellow Daoist Huan Bi, Fellow Daoist Huan Bi, wake up quickly! He's not going to eat you. My Old Ancestor is very reasonable. You haven't done anything, there's no need to be so afraid..."

Zhou Leren transmitted his Divine Sense, his voice echoing in Huan Bi's mind.

"Huh, he's not going to eat me?"

Huan Bi's spirit lifted. Realizing what was happening, a sense of escaping a disaster arose within her. She secretly raised her snake head, which had been tucked under her belly, and nodded repeatedly.

She hadn't fully recovered, but as long as she wasn't going to be eaten, everything was fine.

To think, she, Huan Bi, the Snake King of the Green-Eyed Azure-Striped Snake Clan, from birth to Foundation Establishment, had seen all sorts of trials and tribulations. This was merely a Golden Core Stage demon king, nothing to speak of. She, Huan Bi, would surely become a true demon king in the future.

Since the danger of being eaten was gone, she naturally had to display the demeanor befitting a king of the Green-Eyed Azure-Striped Snake Clan.

Thus, after continuously encouraging herself, Huan Bi slowly raised her head, and her demeanor gained a hint of majesty.

As her snake head rose, her snake eyes just met Mo Xuan's calm gaze, and her heart suddenly jolted. Her Bloodline began to tremble again, and her snake head involuntarily retracted.

"This kingship isn't worth having!"

Huan Bi immediately cast aside her previous thoughts.

"So that's how it is."

Mo Xuan nodded as if suddenly enlightened.

"Good, good, good. You are truly thoughtful. It wasn't in vain that I, your Old Ancestor, have taken care of you."

Zhou Leren's heart filled with joy. There was hope!

"Come forward."

Mo Xuan finished speaking, then added another sentence.

Zhou Leren was puzzled, but still slowly walked forward.

Zhou Liyue's eyes were filled with pity, watching Zhou Leren's actions with sympathy.

"Hmph!"

Before he had taken two steps, Mo Xuan let out a cold snort, and his mind stirred.

"Wind Bind!"

A fierce wind suddenly rose, transforming into invisible chains that tightly bound the unprepared Zhou Leren.

"Ah!"

"Old Ancestor, I was wrong!"

Zhou Leren's joy turned to sorrow. Bound by the wind chains, unable to move, his body involuntarily floated into the air.

"Now you know you're wrong? Too late!"

Mo Xuan was unmoved, his thoughts shifting.

"Horned Hammer!"

In the sky, countless water droplets precipitated, coalescing into a giant hammer of water.

Zhou Leren looked up at the hammer, which was half the size of Feiyue Peak Summit, his face filled with terror.

"Old Ancestor, if you don't like Fellow Daoist Huan Bi, I'll find another one for you. With such a huge hammer, if you strike me down with one blow, I'll truly lose my life."

Zhou Leren shrieked.

"Bang!"

The giant hammer fell, continuously shrinking, until it was the size of a fist, and struck Zhou Leren's forehead.

Seeing the deadly giant hammer shrink so much, Zhou Leren breathed a sigh of relief, thinking to himself, 'As expected, the Old Ancestor still cares about me.'

But before Zhou Leren could finish his thought, the fist-sized water hammer struck his forehead.

A pang of pain shot through him, and then, something seemed to be protruding from his forehead.

After a moment, Zhou Leren sensed that a massive bump had appeared on his forehead.

Below, Huan Bi shivered, Zhou Liyue covered her mouth and chuckled softly, and Mo Xuan stared at it.

"It's asymmetrical."

Then, the water hammer shifted direction slightly and struck the other side of Zhou Leren's forehead.

Zhou Leren wanted to cry but had no tears, watching helplessly as another bump rose on his forehead.

"Good. My Zhou Family's Qilin Son should naturally be a person with outstanding talent. This appearance now truly suits his status."

Mo Xuan praised softly, his craftsmanship still so good. These two bumps were symmetrical and aesthetically pleasing.

After finishing, Mo Xuan looked at Huan Bi, who was cowering and trembling like a flattened disc.

"What do you mean by this?"

Seeing the little snake's demeanor, Mo Xuan naturally knew it must have all been Zhou Leren's mischievous idea. But since she had come to the Zhou Family, she still needed to be disciplined.

"Little snake, little snake will definitely not harbor any foolish delusions..."

Huan Bi finally understood Zhou Leren's previous words, feeling immense grief and indignation in her heart. Was she, Huan Bi, such a casual snake?

She recalled that back in the Clan, the snakes who pursued her could circle Green Snake Lake once.

However, after secretly observing Mo Xuan's figure...

"So strong, so big, so robust..."