Chapter 106 Serpent Clan 2: Puppet
This courtyard is said to be the residence of the Snake King Shengqing. Compared to the magnificent Golden Snake Palace, the scenery here is quite serene and elegant.
After the maid left, the entire courtyard was deserted. Xu Xing wandered around aimlessly, trying to see if there was anything left behind by Sheng Qing.
After using his spiritual device to let his relatives and friends in the Jade Cloud Sect know he was safe, Xu Xing stopped paying attention to the news on the spiritual network. On the contrary, Jinlong had completely fallen in love with browsing forums and had become a "net addict dragon".
"How did you do that? I've seen a lot of people complaining that the Spirit Network can only be used within the Jade Cloud Sect now, and it can't be used outside of Jade Cloud."
Jinlong asked curiously, "But how come I can still see messages on the forum?"
“Your inspirations have all been specially adjusted by me, so of course they are different from others.”
She was no longer in Yuxiao, so of course she couldn't continue to maintain the spirit network. The only reason she could keep it running internally was because she had left a spirit array on Xuanjian Peak that was enough to operate for several years.
Xu Xing's words were vague, and Jinlong only asked casually, seemingly not caring. It then continued to refresh the post with great interest and even took the initiative to answer some cultivation-related questions.
"I said, you can just browse by yourself, is it really necessary to read it all out to me?"
Jinlong snorted, "You won't talk to me, but I can't even entertain myself?"
Xu Xing sighed helplessly, "Then I asked you where your senior brother was taken, but you won't tell me."
"Just wait patiently. Two of those male concubines are from the fox clan. They know these things best and will surely give you a wonderful husband."
The golden dragon was quite unruly. Knowing that his senior brother was not in danger, Xu Xing ignored it and carefully looked around the entire courtyard. Unfortunately, there were almost no signs of life here.
"Is there a demon clan secretly monitoring me?" Xu Xing wanted to leave a spiritual energy mark here so that he could be teleported here in the future, but he was worried that Yu Jingzi would find out.
Jinlong is quite reliable in this regard: "Not for now, this courtyard is very clean."
It's even too clean.
"Your Highness, please have your meal."
As dusk fell, a dozen or so maids filed in, and a table was laden with delicacies.
Xu Xing couldn't help but swallow. Because of her demonic nature, she wasn't easily hungry in the demon realm, and her spiritual energy was abundant. But since delicious food was right in front of her, how could she not eat it?
The maids knelt beside her, carefully serving her food. Xu Xing didn't even need to lift a finger; with just a glance, they knew exactly which dish she wanted. It was incredibly thoughtful.
Two people served her food, and two others explained the ingredients and taste of the dishes.
Xu Xing felt uncomfortable and quickly snatched the chopsticks from a maid's hand, saying, "No need for that, I can do it myself."
"Um, I don't like being watched while I'm eating. Could you please leave now?"
Xu Xing wasn't sure if the maids would obey her orders, but she saw them leave as instructed.
These maids were all veiled, and the only thing visible was their eyes, which all had a slightly stiff smile. They looked exactly alike.
It wasn't until they left that Xu Xing noticed that most of them were about the same height and build, and even their stiff walking postures were almost identical.
Xu Xing felt increasingly uneasy as she looked at the food, and even felt a chill run down her spine. She put down her chopsticks and suddenly lost her appetite.
"Your Highness, the Snow Crystal Fruit presented by the Southern Border has a sweet and refreshing taste. Why not give it a try?"
When the last maid stood up, she placed a plate of spiritual fruit in front of Xu Xing.
Snow crystal fruit?
Xu Xing's expression shifted. "Since it's a specialty of the Southern Territory, why don't you stay and tell me about it?"
The other maids didn't stop and quickly retreated outside.
"you……"
Yunxi suddenly lifted her veil, "Your Highness, it's me!"
Xu Xing had a lot of questions to ask, "What exactly happened? Where did the Snake King go?"
"Wang has disappeared, and we don't know where she is, but we can be sure that she is safe and sound."
Yunxi slowly told Xu Xing everything she knew.
According to her, the Demon King Yu Jingzi was a king who was extremely beloved by the demon race. He had the bloodline of the ancient divine serpent Xiang Liu, was powerful, and was the undisputed number one in the demon realm, as well as the demon who had come closest to becoming an immortal in tens of millions of years.
However, decades ago, he failed to transcend his tribulation and perished, leaving the demon race leaderless and causing years of turmoil.
No one expected that the demon king, who seemed to have been completely annihilated, would actually return...
Upon hearing that Yu Jingzi had orchestrated Sheng Qing's ascension to the Snake King's throne, Xu Xing was astonished. "Then why did he say that Sheng Qing's mother... usurped the throne?"
“We initially suspected he had been possessed, but it’s impossible for a cultivator to take over the body of a Tribulation Transcending stage expert. The only explanation is that he fell into the demonic path because of his failed tribulation…”
"Your Highness, do you still remember the demon general named Yuan Li from the time we explored the Ruins Secret Realm?"
Xu Xing had some recollection of how she had almost been tricked by Yuan Li back then.
"Two years ago, the Demon Lord Qiong Cang was assassinated. Yuan Li is now one of the four new Demon Lords. With the help of a Demon General named Hao, she is able to rival the other three Demon Lords who have dominated the Demon Realm for many years."
Yunxi's expression was serious. "I saw Yuan Li by the Demon King's side half a year ago."
Xu Xing understood what she meant. "Do you think Yu Jingzi might have made a deal with the Demon Realm?"
After going around in circles, they still ended up in the Demon Realm. Back then, the Tiger Clan colluded with Qiong Cang. If Yu Jingzi were also...
“Your Highness, Yu Jingzi brought you back to the Serpent Clan, most likely to lure the King out. Rest assured, I have some loyal Serpent Guards under my command, and we will be able to rescue you soon.”
Xu Xing sensed a hint of resignation in Yunxi's expression. She frowned and asked, "Yunxi, where's Yunlan? Did something happen to him?"
Yunxi clearly hadn't expected her to mention Yunlan. After a moment of silence, she spoke in a low voice, "He's still at the burial ground. It's inconvenient for him to come back now, lest the other snake clans become suspicious."
Is it that it's inconvenient for them to come back, or that they can't come back at all?
Xu Xing grasped Yunxi's hand. "Since you call me 'Your Highness,' then listen to me. I have my own plans. There's no rush to leave the Golden Serpent Palace now. You should protect yourself and wait for my news."
"This thing is called a 'spirit device'. It can be used to send messages. You can keep it and contact me anytime."
Yu Jingzi seems to be the same as before, but there's no guarantee he won't suddenly cause trouble. It's too dangerous for Your Highness to stay here!
"Your Highness, but..."
"If you don't obey my orders, then you don't need to call me 'Your Highness' anymore."
Xu Xing, unusually firm, said, "How many trustworthy snake clan members do you have that you can mobilize? Send me a report on their situation later."
Yunxi gazed at Xu Xing, momentarily dazed, and even saw a faint shadow of the king in those exceptionally firm golden eyes. After a moment's hesitation, she finally gritted her teeth and nodded, "Yes, Your subordinate obeys."
Before leaving, Yunxi told Xu Xing that most of these maids were puppets that Shengqing had previously created. "Except for a few who were the king's former personal maids, the rest are all mindless puppets. Your Highness can use them as magical artifacts without worry."
“You have the blood of a king flowing in your veins; they will never betray you.”
So it turns out that Sheng Qing is actually a high-level weapon refiner?
Xu Xing summoned a maid and began to examine the puppet with curiosity, but she couldn't possibly mistake this exquisitely crafted puppet, which was indistinguishable from a real person, for the magical artifacts she had made.
Something feels off...
Xu Xing settled down in the Golden Serpent Palace. Yu Jingzi seemed to have forgotten her existence. With no one to disturb her, she was happy to be free and spent a lot of time continuing to study spatial artifacts.
Shen Du, who had been taken away by his male concubines, finally returned on the third night.
"Senior brother, are you alright?"
Xu Xing pulled his hand over and only felt relieved after confirming that he didn't have any strange buffs.
Shen Du grabbed Xu Xing's hand as she was about to pull it back, looking down at her, "And you? Are you feeling unwell?"
He still remembered Xu Xing's discomfort when she first arrived in the demon realm and came into contact with demon spirits. Although she seemed fine now, Shen Du would never forget the feeling of spiritual energy probing into her body as if being swallowed up.
"What could possibly happen to me? The maids feed me well every day, I don't have to do anything, I'm practically a parasite."
Xu Xing suddenly remembered Jinlong saying that the male fox spirits knew a lot, and her gaze immediately shifted. "Um, Senior Brother, these past few days..."
Shen Du said calmly, "The person who took me away that day was a senior sword cultivator. He just wanted to learn swordsmanship from me on a whim, so he made up an excuse."
Xu Xing pursed his lips, "Oh, oh, I see..."
Chen Du suddenly leaned closer, his warm breath brushing against her ear, his slightly cool lips moving from her ear to the corner of her mouth. "Is Your Highness disappointed?"
I have a feeling that my senior brother is hiding something from me. Could it be that he really learned some weird stuff from the fox demon?
Xu Xing's eyes flickered, his heart pounded like a drum, and he involuntarily took two steps back.
Shen Du followed closely behind until there was no gap between them. He inserted his five fingers into Xu Xing's fingers and said in a lower voice, "Your Highness, rest assured, I will definitely fulfill my duties as a 'male concubine'."
Forced to tilt his head back, Xu Xing struggled to breathe and instinctively clung tightly to his senior brother's firm back.
After a long while, Shen Du stepped back slightly. He gently stroked her loose hair, then suddenly lifted Xu Xing up in his arms and carried her to the bed.
After tucking Xu Xing in, Chen Du sat on the edge of the bed, looking at her gently, his voice still a little hoarse, "Go to sleep."
"..."
Huh? Xu Xing blinked slowly twice, seemingly not having reacted yet. The blush on her face hadn't faded, her slightly parted lips were unusually red, and she looked completely dazed.
Overwhelmed with indescribable emotions, Shen Du couldn't help but lean down and gently kiss her lips again. Then, he raised his hand and extinguished the glowing spirit pearl in the room. "I will protect you."
Xu Xing then realized that her senior brother really had no intention of doing anything more; on the contrary, she herself was somewhat...
She couldn't tell whether she felt disappointed or shy, so she silently pulled the blanket up to cover half her face.
Xu Xing originally thought that with her senior brother so close to her, she wouldn't be able to fall asleep quickly, but to her surprise, she fell asleep soon after lying down.
In the darkness, Shen Du silently watched her for a long time before finally raising his hand to gently touch her face, his palm shimmering with a faint spiritual light.
Xu Xing was never on guard against him and soon fell into a deeper sleep.
Shen Du slowly channeled his spiritual energy into Xu Xing's body. Sure enough, his spiritual energy was instantly absorbed as soon as it entered her body, but the absorbed spiritual energy did not nourish her body.
Xu Xing felt as if there was a bottomless pit inside her body that could never be filled, but she was only at the Foundation Establishment stage. If this continued, she would never be able to form a Golden Core.
After becoming Fu Shuang's disciple, Shen Du asked her about Xu Xing's strange constitution. At that time, her master only said that she would find a way to solve it, but now her master has disappeared and Xu Xing has been brought to the Golden Snake Palace.
Shen Du knew that his master treated Xu Xing very well, and he didn't want to doubt his master, but he also knew that she had been hiding something from him about Xu Xing...
What's this kid up to?
The golden dragon hidden in Xu Xing's left arm was finally unsheathed. It stared warily at Chen Du, the entire dragon poised to strike.
Although it really wanted the two of them to start cultivating together as soon as possible, if this sword cultivator dared to make a move without Xu Xing's knowledge, it would definitely not let him go!
After a long silence, Chen Du finally spoke, "Senior, may I show myself?"
Who is he calling?
Jinlong was puzzled, but then he heard him pause and say, "If I am not mistaken, you should be a dragon."
"..."
After a long silence, a massive golden dragon phantom suddenly appeared behind Xu Xing. Even its incomplete divine soul revealed how majestic it had been in life.
Its voice was authoritative and deep, "How did you know I was there?"
Xu Xing shouldn't have told him that.
Although Xu Xing was devoted to Shen Du, he never revealed anything about her mysterious alchemy and artifact techniques, which were clearly not of this world, or the secrets of her body.
This is also what Jinlong likes the most.
Love is certainly possible, but it would be incredibly foolish to reveal everything about yourself for the sake of so-called feelings.
"Senior followed her when she left the Abyss of Eclipse, right?" Shen Du did not answer Jinlong's question. His gaze was indifferent, but his words surprised Jinlong.
"This junior has no intention of inquiring about her relationship with the dragon clan, but there is one question I would like to ask you to answer."
Shen Du stared straight at the golden dragon phantom, "Why can't she absorb spiritual energy and convert it for her own use?"
"What can you do even if you know the reason?"
"To the best of one's ability."
Even if you lose everything you've worked so hard to achieve?
"yes."
Jinlong fell silent, his extremely oppressive gaze slowly scrutinizing Chen Du twice before suddenly looking out into the distance beyond the barrier. "Actually, you already have the answer."
Outside the window, in the small courtyard, a maid with somewhat stiff movements was carrying several pieces of clothing as she passed by.
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Author's Note: Thank you to mututu14, 差生文具多, 44201549, 再睡一回, KS, 小莹子, 晚日寒鸦, 幸福喵, and 蓝翎之泪 for the nutrient solution! [heart]
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