The Serpent Queen stared at Yi Tianxing standing before her, a strange light flashing in her eyes. She couldn't tell whether his words were hypocritical lies or if he truly intended to endure three of her attacks. She knew all too well—letting her attack three times freely—few of equal strength could survive such a trial. It was either serious injury or death.
Her gaze upon Yi Tianxing held a tinge of complexity.
After all, he was her first man.
"You want to die? Then I'll oblige. If you can withstand three of my attacks without dying, all grudges between us will be wiped clean. From then on, we owe each other nothing." The Serpent Queen's eyes gleamed with icy coldness as she spoke resolutely.
"Very well!"
Yi Tianxing nodded in agreement without hesitation.
"City Lord Yi, please reconsider."
Cai Yong frowned slightly and urged him again.
"Indeed, your identity is no longer your own. Your safety now concerns the fate of millions. You must not act impulsively. The Serpent Queen's power is dreadful. To endure three of her strikes head-on—even the strongest would suffer grave injuries."
Lin Hai also changed expression and shouted in warning.
"Thank you all for your concern. But this is my decision. Some matters must be confronted. Rest assured—if she wants to kill me, it won't be so easy."
Yi Tianxing replied with a calm smile.
"You wish for death? Then don't blame me for being ruthless. Take my first move: Ten Thousand Serpents Devour the Body!!"
The Serpent Queen showed no hesitation. She reached up and plucked a hairpin from her dark hair. The hairpin shimmered briefly before rapidly enlarging into a vivid serpent staff—its coiled form lifelike and menacing. Holding the staff, the queen's aura became even more regal and domineering.
"Heavenly Serpent Staff!!"
As soon as Yi Tianxing saw it, the Wordless Heavenly Tome within him instinctively transmitted a message:
Heavenly Serpent Staff: A sacred relic passed down by the Nuwa Clan, forged from the Five-Colored Stones and imbued with the spiritual power of the Nuwa bloodline. Throughout the ages, Nuwa descendants poured their essence into it before death. It is a weapon of unfathomable power, usable only by those of Nuwa's bloodline.
The message appeared naturally in Yi Tianxing's mind, leaving him momentarily stunned.
"If the Heavenly Serpent Staff is in her hands… could she possess the bloodline of the Nuwa Clan?"
After all, Nuwa was described in legends as having a human head and a serpent's body—a deity of creation. It was said that the Nuwa Clan was real, descendants of Nuwa's divine blood.
This connection made the resemblance between the Nuwa Clan and the Serpentfolk even more striking. However, being similar didn't mean the two were the same. There were distinct boundaries that could not be casually crossed.
Just then, as the Serpent Queen brandished the Heavenly Serpent Staff, her flowing black hair transformed in a terrifying display—each strand becoming a grotesque, multicolored venomous snake, writhing and hissing as they shot outward.
In mere moments, thousands of venomous snakes filled the air, a terrifying ocean of fangs and scales.
This grotesque sight was spine-chilling.
These snakes seemed to flicker between real and illusory. The instant they appeared, they surged toward Yi Tianxing like a venomous tide.
Life Aperture – Serpent Hair!!
Each strand of hair became a deadly serpent, capable of massive destruction—each essentially a part of her. Even if killed, they could instantly reform. Endless, inexhaustible, and some even imbued with her will. As her power grew, so would their lethality.
Hiss!!
A crimson eyeless serpent suddenly leapt up and sank its fangs toward Yi Tianxing's arm. Its blood-red fangs gleamed with lethal poison.
Pfftt!!
A horrifying scene followed.
The serpent struck his arm squarely—but in that instant, his skin shimmered with gray dragon-scale patterns. The flesh dented slightly, then rebounded, and with a sickening crack, the serpent's fangs snapped off.
Pfft! Pfft! Pfft!
More snakes struck from all directions—arms, neck, legs—swarming him in moments. Thousands of bites per second.
Yet none pierced his defenses. Instead, their fangs shattered on impact.
"Trying to bite me to death? These snakes straddle the line between reality and illusion. Some even tried to phase into my flesh. Too bad—for I can close all my pores at will. My Dragon-Scale Life Aperture makes my skin tougher than steel. Add my refined body, and these snakes can't scratch me. As for those trying to get inside, my Innate Star Core formed through Yin-Yang Life Apertures channels true essence throughout my body. They'll be crushed by the flow. My raging blood energy is pure yang—it repels all evil."
Yi Tianxing stood motionless, unshaken, like a mountain amidst a storm.
The venomous serpents struck with everything they had but failed to leave a mark.
Boom!!
A moment later, he was entirely buried beneath a mountain of serpents. It would drive any ophidiophobe mad.
But with a thunderous pulse of his blood energy, he blasted them all away in a wave of crimson force.
Swish swish swish!!
The serpents were hurled into the air, where they reverted to strands of dark, silky hair, fluttering back to the Serpent Queen's head like birds returning to a nest.
"Unbelievable. Ten Thousand Serpents Devour the Body couldn't even scratch him. His physical defense is monstrous. Some say that true Body Refiners can shatter divine weapons with their fists. Is he one of them?"
"Those snakes couldn't even break his skin. I saw some turn intangible and try to enter his body—but were dispersed by his blood. It's true—body cultivators have blood energy that crushes all evil."
"He's definitely not at the first tier of body cultivation. He must've reached the White Cauldron Realm."
"I heard that every time a body refiner ascends, they awaken a divine bodily power. Could it be true?"
The academy students gasped in shock.
The sight was overwhelming.
"Truly thick-skinned."
The Serpent Queen's gaze turned colder, a snort escaping her lips.
"You've endured the first strike. Now take the second."
Yi Tianxing smiled calmly. "Attacks like these can't touch me."
"You chose death. Now witness—Medusa's Eye!"
The queen's eyes grew colder still. Suddenly, dazzling seven-colored light radiated from her gaze. Wherever she looked, a terrifying transformation unfolded.
Crack!!Crash!!
The very earth beneath her turned from soft soil to solid stone in the blink of an eye. Towering trees nearby froze and solidified into lifelike stone sculptures, their vitality extinguished.
Petrification.
A fearsome transformation—everything in her gaze turned to stone. The stone domain spread rapidly, reaching Yi Tianxing in a flash.
Life Aperture – Medusa's Eye!!
Anything caught in her sight would turn to stone, losing all life. Only those with formidable resistance could survive. Otherwise, instant death.
"This is the legendary Medusa's Eye."
"I saw a student once glance at the queen and instantly turn to stone. His statue still stands in the academy. Sir Cai inspected it himself—the moment of petrification, all life vanished."
"Look! City Lord Yi is turning to stone!"
"Quick, call him back! Within the academy lies Sage Power, which protects against the Medusa's Eye. If he comes inside, he'll be safe!"
Students panicked.
From his feet upward, Yi Tianxing's body had begun to petrify, a grayish-white stone texture spreading rapidly across him.
The force of the Medusa's Eye was just too terrifying.
In the blink of an eye, Yi Tianxing turned entirely into stone—a lifelike sculpture, even his facial expression preserved.
Just like all the others before him.
Turned to stone.
Seemingly dead.