Serpent Ancestor

”This...”

Mu Hou’s gaze froze for a moment, a barely noticeable glint in his eyes, then he smiled and said, ”Of course.”

”Wang Qin, take this senior to the back mountain, to the third-tier A-class Cave Dwelling. Here’s the token.”

”Make sure this senior is satisfied, no matter the request. Otherwise, I’ll hold you accountable!”

Mu Hou handed over a token, the latter half of his sentence was a stern whisper.

Wang Qin wiped her tears, took the token, and quickly bowed, ”Yes!”

Under Wang Qin’s guidance, Xu Hei left the Immortal Pavilion and headed towards the back mountain.

She took out a handkerchief, wiped away the tear stains from the corners of her eyes, and once again put on a professional smile.

”Your name is Wang Qin?” Xu Hei asked.

”Yes, I was originally called Wang Xiaoya, but the teacher changed it for me.”Wang Qin answered instinctively, not realizing she had said something she shouldn’t have.

”Why did you stop those two earlier?” Xu Hei asked again.

”Because they’re bad people!” Wang Qin replied.

”Bad people?” Xu Hei was taken aback.

Xu Hei knew those two were after him with ill intentions, but how did Wang Qin determine that? How did she conclude they were ”bad people”?

Moreover, when Mu Hou asked her to explain earlier, she said nothing, yet when he asked, she answered?

”To be honest, senior, like my brother, although my aptitude is poor, we both have the ability to see through people. I can tell who’s good and who’s bad. For example, senior, you are a good person.” Wang Qin said earnestly.

Hearing this, Xu Hei was stunned.

Wang Qin looked at him quietly, her small nose, fluttering eyes, short hair tied behind her, eyes bright as stars, scrutinizing Xu Hei, and nodded again, ”Yes, you are a good person.”

”I’m a good person...” Xu Hei fell silent.

What kind of good person was he?

Countless innocents had died by his hand. If judged by human moral standards, he was far from being a good person.

”How do you judge good from bad, can you tell me?” Xu Hei smiled.

”Sure!” Wang Qin nodded vigorously.

”No matter who it is, everyone has an aura. If the aura is light, it means they’re a good person. If it’s dark, then they’re a bad person...”

”However, seeing auras is very exhausting, so I usually don’t use this ability. Using it too much makes me dizzy...”

Wang Qin explained in detail how to see auras, almost without reservation, telling Xu Hei everything.

”Also, only my brother knows about this. My brother said if I see someone with a white aura, I can trust them completely.”

”Besides my father and brother, only you, senior, have a white aura.”

Wang Qin explained tirelessly.

After listening, Xu Hei fell into silence.

Undoubtedly, this was another area he was completely ignorant of. He had never heard of such an ability. But Xu Hei wasn’t one to dwell on things he couldn’t understand, so he chose not to think about it.

Along the way, Xu Hei talked about other things, from his hometown to the sea, from the Chu Kingdom to the Qin Kingdom.

Wang Qin answered everything patiently, not just out of her duty as a maid, but because she was happy to have met a good person.

Gradually, Wang Qin forgot the pain on her face and showed a genuine smile.

She had been too repressed. Since coming to the Immortal Pavilion, she had been constantly tense and anxious, afraid of saying the wrong word and being punished. Only now, seeing someone with a white aura, did she dare to open her heart and share her thoughts.

She even boldly criticized Manager Mu, saying he was obviously not a good person, disrespectful in his old age.

Xu Hei chuckled and asked, ”What do you know about the local forces on Star Island?”

”I don’t know much about the local forces, just some gossip I’ve heard from other maids...” Wang Qin said.

These maids knew the most about gossip, and once they started, they wouldn’t stop.

Among them, she mentioned the Melodic Sect, which consisted entirely of female disciples and prohibited contact with men, thus fostering a strong culture of sisterhood.

Two female elders even became Dao companions, and there was a third-party female cultivator involved, making it all very dramatic.

Xu Hei listened, secretly clicking his tongue, unsure of how to comment, and could only shake his head with a wry smile.

In the midst of their lively conversation, time passed quickly.

Unknowingly, they stopped in front of a Cave Dwelling in the back mountain.

From within the Cave Dwelling, Xu Hei sensed faint spiritual power fluctuations, different from anything he had encountered before.

This kind of spiritual power fluctuation, Xu Hei had only seen in one material—Star Meteorite Iron!

”The power of the stars.”

The Cave Dwellings on Star Island were so expensive precisely because there was a small amount of star power underground. If one could absorb it, the benefits would be immeasurable.

Of course, sensing it was one thing, absorbing it was another.

”Senior, this is the third-tier A-class Cave Dwelling. Here’s your Cave Dwelling token. I’m maid Wang Qin, remember to give a good review!”

Wang Qin handed over the token, her smile as bright as a flower.

Xu Hei took the token, refined it, and his mind instantly connected with the Cave Dwelling’s formation.

”Thank you for guiding me, this is for you.”

Xu Hei tossed over a watermelon.

”Watermelon?” Wang Qin was dumbfounded.

She had seen people rewarded with spirit stones, but never with a watermelon.

In fact, this watermelon was picked by Xu Hei at the entrance of Snake Village. After being nourished by spiritual qi, it had gained the effects of a spirit medicine.

Giving Wang Qin spirit stones, she might not be able to absorb them and would likely have to hand them over. Giving her a watermelon, she could actually eat it and improve her physique.

Wang Qin touched the watermelon, looking at it for a long time, feeling a sense of familiarity, as if she had seen it somewhere before.

Her nose tingled, and her eyes turned red.

She thought of a summer many years ago when her father picked watermelons and shared them with her, her brother, and her mother. The family ate the watermelon together, filled with joy.

Now, those people were no longer around.

Wang Qin stood there in a daze, closed her eyes, and tears fell like rain.

...

Xu Hei sighed, entered the Cave Dwelling, reinforced a layer of shielding formation, then put away the bystander, and his true form appeared, immediately forming a snake formation.

Xu Hei took out a Qingyuan Pill, took a deep breath, and swallowed it.

”Boom!!”

A thunderous roar erupted within him, and the deep purple Golden Core was rapidly turning black, becoming more rounded in shape.

A slight cracking sound came from its surface. Initially, the sound was small, and there weren’t many cracks, but as time passed, the cracks grew larger, as if a bigger, fuller Golden Core was about to emerge.

”Mid-stage Core Formation, this is it!”

Xu Hei held his breath, took out ten barrels of heavy oil, and placed them nearby, ready to consume at any moment.

...

East Sea, Penglai Sea.

Hai Meng lay within a large ice sculpture, eyes closed, looking peaceful, surrounded by a group of Sea Serpent Clan members, quietly watching her.

Hai Teng stood at the forefront, his face showing no emotion, only calmly asking, ”Can she still live?”

Elder Jin beside him just shook his head, ”Her injuries are too severe. Once thawed, she will surely die. If kept frozen, she can live for a few more years.”

”But living like this is no different from being dead.”

”Whether to thaw her for a sea burial or let her continue living, as her family, the decision is yours.”

Elder Jin quietly looked at Hai Teng.

A sea burial was a unique funeral for marine creatures, where the body was cast into the sea to be naturally decomposed by the ocean, never shying away from others consuming their remains.

They were born of the sea and returned to the sea; that was their destiny.

Hai Teng closed his eyes, his chest heaving violently. After a long time, he opened his eyes and said, ”My sister, of course, will have a sea burial.”

”But before that, I have something to do.”

After speaking, Hai Teng turned and left, swimming into the distance.

Elder Jin watched him, and the other sea serpents also looked over, eyes filled with shock.

Could he be...

”Hai Teng, you must think carefully, the Sea Commerce Guild has already contacted us, we will not intervene!” Elder Jin said sternly.

Hai Teng did not look back, drifting further away, and just as he was about to disappear, a cold voice echoed in all directions.

”Whether you intervene or not is your business, what does it have to do with me, Hai Teng?”