13: The origin of the dragon bone: a thousand years of cultivation!
A tremendous sense of crisis rose in the Five Qi Snake’s heart.
The inexplicably appearing eyes before it made it tremble with fear.
Indifference, cruelty, and ferocity couldn't even describe them; they were a pair of eyes devoid of any emotional fluctuation.
It was as if looking at a dead object.
It shuddered violently as if electrocuted, its eyes filled with disbelief and horror.
Who is this!?
Isn't Taihang Mountains the territory of that cunning gray wolf?
Where did this big guy come from?
One by one, doubts surfaced in the Five Qi Snake’s mind.
Doubts aside, the Five Qi Snake was not stupid.
It knew the only way to survive now.
"Great Immortal, this humble one is a Protector under Ink Cloud King of the Profound Yin Mountain territory. I did not know this place was your Dao field and intruded rashly. I beg your forgiveness!"
The Five Qi Snake prostrated itself, completely disregarding its Face.
"Honestly answer a few questions for me," a cold voice emerged from the forest.
The Five Qi Snake rejoiced upon hearing this, immediately feeling that its chance of survival was great.
The other party didn't attack directly, indicating that they weren't some cruel and tyrannical being.
"Great Immortal, please ask, I will not conceal anything in the slightest."
Now, survival was paramount; it no longer cared about secrets.
"Where did Ink Cloud King’s flood dragon bone come from?"
The Five Qi Snake said, "Great Immortal, you may not know, but though it's called flood dragon bone, it's actually from a python demon that failed its transformation into a flood dragon and failed its Undergoing Tribulation. All its essence condensed together, leaving behind this so-called flood dragon bone; it's not a true flood dragon skeleton."
This was probably Ink Cloud King’s biggest secret.
As Ink Cloud King’s loyal follower, the Five Qi Snake sold him out without hesitation.
Xu Qing asked a few more questions regarding Ink Cloud King and the three snake demons' methods and strength.
The results were similar to what Liu Mei had said.
"Not bad."
Praise came from the forest, "This King will grant you a great Opportunity; come forward."
Opportunity?
The Five Qi Snake was somewhat puzzled but still crawled forward.
Just as it stared intently into the darkness of the dense forest.
A gaping maw suddenly opened, and a bloody color instantly covered the Five Qi Snake’s vision.
"Crunch!"
With a crisp sound, blood splattered everywhere.
The Five Qi Snake didn't even have time to react before its head was bitten into smithereens!
Dark light glowed in the golden vertical pupils.
Soul Seizing!
A phantom small snake emerged from the Five Qi Snake’s corpse.
The Five Qi Snake’s soul was bewildered, its eyes dull, seemingly scared witless.
The souls of ordinary creatures are all like this, existing in a state of haze.
Only those with profound Cultivation Level and accomplished cultivation have souls similar to their main body's thoughts.
However, this did not affect Xu Qing.
Who knew if what the Five Qi Snake said was true or false; he still needed to search its soul to verify.
A moment later.
Xu Qing confirmed that what the Five Qi Snake said was true.
Looking at the transparent soul floating before him.
"I will send you to the Pure Land of Rebirth."
Under the light words, the Five Qi Snake’s soul completely dissipated.
Xu Qing looked in the direction of Profound Yin Mountain, dragging the Five Qi Snake’s bloody corpse back to Taihang Mountains.
After he left, rustling sounds echoed through the jungle.
Some sentient beings with Cultivation Level cautiously came to the river, and after confirming that the master of this mountain forest had left, they began to scramble for the scattered bits of flesh on the ground.
The flesh and blood of a snake demon with several hundred years of Cultivation Level were of great help to these small creatures.
The energy contained within could help them advance their cultivation.
When Xu Qing returned to Taihang Mountains.
Liu Mei was tending to the snake egg and was startled when she saw the bloody corpse.
Recognizing it as the Five Qi Snake, she immediately became worried.
"Did they come so quickly?"
"No matter," Xu Qing tore the corpse apart, refined the essence blood, and soaked the snake egg in it.
Now, he was more concerned about when his descendants would hatch.
The pale green snake egg began to tremble, and the essence blood in the pool slowly decreased.
Liu Mei looked at the calm Xu Qing and inexplicably also calmed down.
Ever since she witnessed the howling winds, lightning, and thunder last night, she had immense confidence in Xu Qing.
Such great power could never be displayed by an ordinary being!
"Your 2700th offspring has been born, with a medium Physique. You have gained one year of Cultivation Level."
The System notification sounded.
Now, the frequency of the notifications was starting to decrease.
After a period of intense activity, only a few Female Snakes had yet to give birth.
Xu Qing’s sense of urgency grew stronger and stronger.
After several attempts, Liu Mei was probably pregnant.
But with just her, it was too few.
Xu Qing stared intently at the System panel, waiting for his Cultivation Level to increase a little more before taking action... At the peak of Taihang Mountains.
Xu Qing coiled on the mountaintop, his emerald green body like a wall of steel, spanning the mountain.
The System panel appeared before his eyes.
[Name: Xu Qing]
[Identity: Lord of Taihang Mountains]
[Bloodline: 260/1000]
[Body Length: 48.5 meters]
[Cultivation Level: 973 years]
[Number of Descendants: 3010]
[Earthly Fiend Techniques: Wind Borrowing, Light Generation, Soul Seizing, Spitting Flame, Guiding]
[Spells: Five Thunders Incantation, Spirit Eyes, Divine Movement Technique]
Xu Qing’s gaze focused on his Cultivation Level.
973 years!
Only 27 years of Cultivation Level remained to Breakthrough a thousand years of Cultivation Level!
The System notification sounded in his ear.
His Cultivation Level was slowly increasing.
The notification quickly ended, and it was over an hour before it sounded again.
The harvest was nearing its end.
His previous diligent efforts allowed Xu Qing to grow from an ordinary snake to a snake demon with nearly a thousand years of Cultivation Level in just a few months.
Three hours later.
Xu Qing’s Cultivation Level exceeded 980 years.
Five hours later.
His Cultivation Level reached 992 years.
Time passed little by little.
Dawn broke, and a ray of sunlight shone on the peak of Taihang Mountains.
Xu Qing, who had been waiting for a long time, finally heard the familiar notification again.
"Your 3092nd offspring has been born, with a medium Physique. You have gained one year of Cultivation Level."
On the panel, Xu Qing’s Cultivation Level reached 993 years.
He faintly felt his body changing.
“...”
"Your 3100th offspring has been born, with a superior Physique. You have gained three years of Cultivation Level."
Along with the final notification.
Xu Qing’s Cultivation Level just reached exactly one thousand years!
Almost at the same moment.
"Boom!"
A dull explosion suddenly resounded within Xu Qing’s body and above the sky!