"...The spiritual energy is stable, the princess will wake up soon!"

Shen Zhiyi regained consciousness amidst a chorus of whispers.

She opened her eyes and turned her head to see her most trusted confidant—Ian.

He was a snow rabbit beastman with long, drooping ears, wearing gold-rimmed glasses, and exuding a scholarly air.

"Princess, how are you?"

Ian, wearing a lab coat, walked over and said gently.

"It's nothing." Shen Zhiyi shook her head.

With the help of two maids, he sat up, leaned against the headboard, and waved his hand, saying, "All of you, step back."

The maids responded and came out.

In the blink of an eye, only the master and servant remained in the laboratory.

"How long have I been asleep?" Shen Zhiyi rubbed her throbbing temples. "What's going on outside?"

“Seven days.” Ian pushed up his glasses, his gaze behind the lenses gentle and wise, but his expression was solemn.

"Princess, the situation is not optimistic."

"The ritual failed. You did not form a contract with the noble Ice Phoenix as planned, but instead bound yourself to a black snake that had been banished."

"The royal family has lost face and is extremely disappointed in you."

"The Senate has decided to follow the Queen's advice and groom the second princess as her successor."

"Heh." Shen Zhiyi sneered, "The failure of the ceremony is probably also related to my stepmother."

Ian glanced at the tightly closed door.

After confirming that no one was outside, a light screen was brought up, displaying some complex data.

"The princess guessed correctly."

"The altar has been tampered with."

"If it weren't for your SSS-level healing power, which forced you to form a contract with the black snake at the last moment and used the contract to share most of the energy impact, you would probably be dead by now."

Ian switched the screen to show her another set of data.

“However, what’s interesting is that you, the serpent keeper… seem to be no ordinary person.”

Shen Zhiyi looked up, somewhat surprised, at the gene sequence displayed on the screen.

"This is... an ancient bloodline?!"

“That’s right,” Ian whispered. “I secretly took a blood sample from him, and after in-depth analysis, I discovered that it’s a destructive bloodline recorded in forbidden ancient books.”

"Once awakened, its power will be enough to overthrow the entire empire."

He looked at Shen Zhiyi with concern, "Princess, he is too dangerous, you must not get close to him."

Shen Zhiyi narrowed her eyes.

Danger?

No.

This is her only chance to turn things around.

"Who else knows about this?" Shen Zhiyi looked up at him.

“For now, it’s just me.” Ian turned off the screen and said cautiously, “The analysis data has been encrypted by me, and no one will be able to see it.”

"Destroy the data immediately," Shen Zhiyi said calmly.

Ian's long ears twitched.

He was puzzled for only a moment before exclaiming in surprise, "Does the princess intend to use him to awaken her ancient bloodline and seize power?!"

“Why not?” A determined light flashed in Shen Zhiyi’s eyes.

"If we can really get the help of this bloodline, even if they have a powerful army, they won't be able to restrain me."

Changing the successor?

Oh.

They killed her, and now they want her to willingly leave the table?

Absolutely impossible.

“But this is too difficult!” Ian said worriedly, looking at her still pale face. “This power is too dangerous. To control it, one must have a strong healing ability to balance and stabilize its energy.”

“In addition, you must gain the absolute trust of Samus—that is, your Ophiuchus.”

Shen Zhiyi felt that this was not a difficult task.

She possesses top-tier healing abilities.

And Samus is already her contracted beast husband.

Her healing power was like the sweetest fruit to him, possessing a fatal attraction.

At the same time, it also has the strongest therapeutic effect.

If we make good use of this opportunity and gain his loyalty, there shouldn't be any problems.

Ian seemed to know what she was thinking and hesitated before saying, "Princess, you may not know this... Samus probably hates you very much right now."

"Hate me?" Shen Zhiyi looked up in shock. "Why?"

Ian paused for a moment, his long ears drooping slightly, and said, "In order to restore the dignity of the royal family, the Queen threw him into the dungeon while you were unconscious."

“Not only did they mistreat him and strip him of his scales, but they also told him that it was you who gave the order.”

He looked up. "He hates you to the core right now."

Shen Zhiyi's heart sank suddenly.

"Take me to the dungeon!"

...

The Royal Dungeon.

The air was dark and damp, with very little light.

The sound of water dripping could be heard on the cold stone wall.

Shen Zhiyi walked down the steps.

I saw a man kneeling on the ground with his hands tied to chains.

He kept his head down, his long, dark hair stuck to his face with blood, making it impossible to see his features.

His bare chest bore shocking scars.

However, the most unsightly thing was the black snake tail that dragged on the ground.

Blood and gore.

Most of the black scales were peeled off, revealing the tender red flesh underneath.

Some wounds are so deep that the bone is visible.

Samus was on the verge of death when he heard footsteps and looked up.

His hair was disheveled, his face was covered in bloodstains and dirt, but his pure gold vertical pupils suddenly locked onto her.

There was not a trace of fear or pleading within.

Only a hatred that had almost solidified into substance and was laced with poison.

Shen Zhiyi's heart skipped a beat.

"What are you doing here?" Samus's voice was hoarse, his eyes fixed on her. "Isn't torturing me enough? Now you want to personally humiliate me?"

"Or perhaps..."

A mocking smile curled at the corner of his lips. "Has the Princess had enough of her torment games and now wants to take my life herself?"

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!