My Enemy Became My Cultivation Companion-Chapter 99 - 82: Offering Oneself in Marriage?

[Dayu married the child of the Tushan Clan, calling her Nuwa, and their union bore Xia Qi. After Tushan Nuwa’s death, Nuwa’s intestines transformed into a snake.]

The azure-headed Ba Snake slithered through the underground palace, its massive head bearing a blade wound that had already dried. Even Chen Yi, armed with the golden Shariputra, had failed to inflict fundamental damage on it despite his powerful Wind-Cleaving Rain-Slaying Strike.

Its appearance made Zhou Yitang’s brows knit faintly.

Chen Yi understood Zhou Yitang’s concern—it was her worry that her identity as a ghost servant might lead the Tushan Clan to locate her.

Zhou Yitang seemed to hesitate.

This beast, formed from the intestines of the Tushan Clan’s deceased, appeared to be drawing ever nearer to the burial chamber.

"Is Master Zhou hesitating, wondering whether she can incapacitate it within the time it takes to drink a cup of tea?"

Chen Yi spoke slowly.

If they delayed too long, the Tushan Clan would undoubtedly discover Zhou Yitang’s location.

After all, in this underground palace, the Sword Armor of Yin Sword Mountain was the only one capable of contending with it.

Zhou Yitang cast an unexpected glance at Chen Yi and slightly nodded,

"You’re correct."

"I have a proposal."

Chen Yi said as he retrieved the golden Shariputra from his robes:

"I, along with Yin Immortal, will distract the Ba Snake. You strike at its seven-inch weakness."

Upon hearing this, Yin Weiyin frowned slightly. Chen Yi shot her a glance, but she neither accepted nor rejected the plan.

Zhou Yitang lowered her gaze, seemingly lost in thought.

After a long pause, she replied:

"Alright."

Chen Yi nodded, then turned to Yin Weiyin and said:

"Do you have any Golden Light Body Protection Talismans? If so, take them out immediately. If not, bite your finger and sketch a few."

The white-robed female crown pulled talismans from her robes upon hearing this and nodded,

"I do."

Though Chen Yi’s tone was hardly polite, the resolute Yin Weiyin showed no sign of displeasure.

"Let’s go then."

Chen Yi said calmly, leaving her with one last instruction before heading out:

"Master Zhou, proceed when the time is right."

Zhou Yitang didn’t offer any further words, merely nodded.

Chen Yi stepped out of the burial chamber, traversing the corridor with Yin Weiyin’s Golden Light Body Protection Talisman in hand, and faced the enormous Ba Snake.

At the sight of Chen Yi, the Ba Snake raised its massive head. Its emerald-green scales rippled while its forked tongue flicked, hissing ominously.

In ancient times, snakes were revered as gods.

The colossal Ba Snake was indeed worshipped by the Xia people as a mountain deity.

Moreover, this serpent originated from Tushan, the remains of Dayu’s wife and Xia Qi’s mother. In primordial ages, Xia Qi himself slew his mother and abandoned her corpse in the wilderness, giving rise to this very Ba Snake.

During sacrificial rituals, men and women alike were chosen by the dozens to be fed to the Ba Snake. The ancient glyph for "god" specifically resembled a coiled serpent.

Its enormous pupils glared at Chen Yi, filled with rage over the affront of being harmed by offerings once meant to revere it!

The gargantuan head lunged forward, baring venomous fangs to strike at Chen Yi.

The underground palace almost seemed to tremble in response to its sheer force.

The white-robed Yin Weiyin clasped her hands and began chanting incantations before pointing sharply into the void and exclaiming:

"Immobilize!"

The immobilization spell took hold, and Ba Snake’s movements visibly slowed,

Chen Yi seized the talisman. When the serpent’s head lunged toward him, he caught the moment of immobilization and slammed the Golden Light Body Protection Talisman onto its head.

A burst of golden light flared, scorching the serpent’s massive head and emitting a thick bloody mist.

In pain, the Ba Snake tilted its head slightly. Chen Yi deftly sidestepped, slashing the blade across its mouth.

Then, targeting the snake’s earlier wound, he unleashed a Wind-Cleaving Rain-Slaying Strike.

The previously scabbed over flesh erupted instantly, spraying serpent blood across the surroundings. The ground hissed as corrosive white vapors rose from it, yet Chen Yi shielded by the golden Shariputra’s Buddha Light, remained unharmed.

The Ba Snake roared in agony, its forked tongue writhing madly as if in frenzy.

It reared its head once more to attack.

At that moment, its attention entirely locked onto Chen Yi, its vulnerable seven-inch weakness lay utterly exposed.

From afar, a blade descended.

Surging Sword Qi arrived in an instant.

The Ba Snake’s pupils widened, a mixture of anger, astonishment, and despair reflected within them.

And then the unimaginable occurred—the mountainous serpent head was cleanly severed, collapsing like a fallen boulder before Chen Yi, its impact causing the underground palace to tremble slightly with a swirl of dust and flying debris.

Chen Yi raised his hand to shield himself from the swirling dirt.

And saw her standing behind the fallen serpent—a solitary figure. Her lotus-shaped crown framed a waterfall of flowing black hair, untouched by the splattering blood.

The only imperfection—a missing arm.

Chen Yi exhaled several deep breaths, then glanced back at the Ba Snake, finding something slowly emerging from the severed head.

It was a piece of turtle shell, floating amidst the serpent’s blood yet miraculously unstained.

Gazing at the turtle shell, Chen Yi betrayed little concern, while Yin Weiyin, as if guided by unknown instinct, stepped forward to retrieve it first.

Under the protection of the Golden Light Body Protection Talisman, Yin Weiyin collected the turtle shell without injury. She examined it closely, her eyes alight with intrigue.

"What is that?"

Chen Yi asked.

"Likely the Goddess’ inheritance."

Before Yin Weiyin could elaborate, Zhou Yitang interjected:

"The ancient Xia people revered snakes as gods. Those who served the gods were known as Goddesses."

Chen Yi nodded faintly, realizing that it was indeed the Goddess’ inheritance. No wonder Yin Weiyin seemed so captivated by the turtle shell.

Turning his attention back to Zhou Yitang, he recalled something and requested,

"Could I trouble Master Zhou with a favor?"

"What is it?"

"Divine the safety of two individuals."

Chen Yi deliberately avoided asking Yin Weiyin to divine their safety; he simply didn’t trust someone who had attempted to kill him multiple times.

What’s more, Yin Weiyin may not even possess the necessary ability within the confines of the underground palace.

"Names," the Sword Armor stated directly.

"Yin Tingxue, courtesy name Yintai. Min Ning, courtesy name Yue Chi."

As soon as he finished speaking, Chen Yi saw Zhou Yitang close her eyes, form a hand seal with her sole hand, and begin treading the Eight Diagrams Steps. Shortly after, she stopped.

"Don’t worry. They’re safe and sound."

Zhou Yitang opened her eyes and said.

Upon hearing those words, Chen Yi finally exhaled a sigh of relief.

With his worries eased, he glanced at her familiar face, unable to resist teasing,

"This time, I’ve saved Master Zhou. I wonder how you plan to repay your debt of gratitude?"

Zhou Yitang raised her eyebrows slightly and responded with a cold glare,

"What do you want?"

"For saving your life, why not... offer yourself in marriage?"

Chen Yi joked instinctively.

He had always been like this, in this life and his last—a habit of teasing his usually terse master.

Even if it meant a good beating—no matter.

"Why?"

Somewhat surprised, Zhou Yitang unexpectedly asked him back.

"Uh..."

Caught off guard, Chen Yi hesitated before fumbling,

"Love at first sight, do you believe in it?"

Zhou Yitang seemed momentarily startled and remained silent for a while before laughing coldly.

"Such nonsense."

She brushed past Chen Yi, her ethereal voice sounding like a gust of wind:

"Infatuation is idle nonsense."

Chen Yi turned to watch her silhouette vanish down the underground corridor.

"I couldn’t hold back and ended up... teasing her,"

Chen Yi shook his head and chuckled bitterly, slightly regretting his words,

"I took her tolerance for granted."

Reflecting on his actions, he realized he had likely left a poor impression yet again.

......

In one of the distant corridors where Chen Yi’s presence could no longer be felt, fɾēewebnσveℓ.com

Zhou Yitang turned her head slightly and spoke:

"Come out, Princess of Xiang."

With those words, the shadow of the corridor revealed a small head adorned with a disheveled bun, peeking out cautiously, glancing around in preparation to retreat if needed.

After confirming that Chen Yi was absent, Yin Tingxue finally stepped out.

No one would have suspected that the Yin Tingxue, whom Chen Yi had been desperately seeking, had been hiding in the corner of the burial chamber all along.

She wore a Concealment Talisman drawn by Zhou Yitang, having watched their theatrical performance from start to finish.

"Did I perform well?"

The Sword Armor asked.

"Not bad. He probably couldn’t tell,"

Yin Tingxue nodded, scrutinizing Zhou Yitang’s condition and noticing her irregular breath. She tentatively asked:

"Did you... intentionally get hurt, and purposely owe him a debt of gratitude?"

The ninth-ranked Sword Armor master, proficient in both Taoist and Martial Dual Cultivation, would hardly have fallen so easily to the Tushan Clan. Yin Tingxue simply couldn’t buy it.

Zhou Yitang didn’t respond.

A true hunter often adopts the guise of prey.

Yin Tingxue, feeling a pang of pity for the one-armed woman, attempted to persuade her:

"Why go to such lengths? You need to sever ties with someone like him to ascend successfully. If you could achieve it, it might be a wondrous occasion atop the mountains. But if you fail, the cost could be enormous—even your life—and it’s just not worth it..."

Before she could finish, the one-armed woman answered:

"To him, no price is too high."