Chapter 98: He has almost gone half-mad and half-insane

Dodging the plague mist of the Ninth Layer, Qiongqi darted left and right, stepping onto the threshold of the Eighth Layer.

The Eighth Layer.

This was precisely the place guarded by the Snake Girl.

"Snake Girl, Snake Girl, I've come to play with you."

"Where is that human you locked up recently? Let me see!"

Like a black dog, Qiongqi frolicked with all four hooves, bounding into the prison of the Eighth Layer.

The moment he stepped into the Eighth Layer, he was sensed by the guardian here—

—that is to say, the Snake Girl.

She suddenly hung down from a crossbeam, a pair of emerald-green eyes appearing before Qiongqi, filled with the chill unique to serpents.

She flicked her forked tongue with a hissing sound.

"Qiongqi... what do you want to see?"

Qiongqi stopped in his tracks and licked a hoof, "That human named Yu Chunlan has some good things on her."

"If you can get the treasures off her sooner, you all can atone for your sins sooner and shed the position of guardian sooner."

The Snake Girl, whose true name is Hui.

Which is to say, the Juvenile Stage of a dragon.

It is said, "A mountain stream dragon becomes a flood dragon in five hundred years, a flood dragon becomes a dragon in a thousand years, a dragon becomes a horned dragon in five hundred years, and a thousand years later, a winged dragon."

But no one has ever seen a true Hui.

—There are many kinds of dragons, but in this world, the winged dragon is a Fierce Beast, and there is only one.

Countless people flock to it.

But no one ever knew that the winged dragon in its Juvenile Stage, the mountain stream dragon, had long since fallen into the hands of Lu Ren.

A mountain stream dragon can freely choose its gender during its Juvenile Stage, only fixing it once it becomes a winged dragon.

As she is now, she is a Snake Girl.

"Is it that thing called the Spirit Spring Space?" A cold glint flashed in the Snake Girl's eyes.

"She is unwilling to hand it over."

Qiongqi immediately began to laugh.

He laughed with particular cunning.

"Whether she is willing or not is not for a mere human to decide."

"If you cannot do it alone, surely you can do it with the help of the other guardians?"

That was true.

But...

The Snake Girl frowned, her eyes flashing with ferocity, "Are you questioning my ability?"

"Of course not." Qiongqi snorted coldly, "I just want to do things for Master faster, and you all..."

"It is precisely because you are all so competitive and headstrong that you are locked here by Master!"

That was well said.

The Snake Girl fell into silence.

Her gaze flickered between calm and ferocity, eventually returning to peace, but the words she hissed out carried a chilling ruthlessness.

"Then I will trust you once."

"If you dare to deceive me, I will make you food for the Eighth Layer!"

Qiongqi flicked his tail, not caring in the slightest.

A mere Hui.

Although her strength is great, he might have been afraid in his Growth Stage, but in his adult stage, he has long been fearless.

However, as fellow contracted beasts of the Master, they cannot harm each other, which is a headache for the beast.

Before going to find the guardians of the other layers, Qiongqi first took a look at Yu Chunlan's condition.

Yu Chunlan had only just been dragged down, her entire body limp and withered in a corner of the cell.

The prison of the Ninth Layer looked no different from an ordinary cell, with only a long, narrow corridor.

The surrounding bars were made of stone.

From within the stone bars, one could clearly see what the corridor was like.

But the Eighth Layer exuded the dwelling habits unique to serpents.

One cave after another was nested together, layer upon layer, with stalactites from millions of years ago hanging from above, dripping spirit liquid with a pitter-patter. There were no doors here.

The only door was under the supervision of the guardian, and furthermore, in the hands of the guardian.

If one does not find a way to defeat the guardian, it is impossible to escape from the Eighth Layer.

Yu Chunlan could only lick her own wounds in solitude.

Her eyes were filled with tears, and a massive panic invaded her consciousness.

It was impossible.

Ever since she arrived here, spiritual energy seemed like an unattainable object, instantly leaving her, and her connection to the space became faint and non-existent; she could not enter the space, and she could not escape.

She slumped down in near despair.

Yet she saw someone nearby stumble over, falling to her side, and like a dog, lick the stone liquid dripping into a small pit beside her hand.

Yu Chunlan felt both disgust and confusion.

She suppressed the revulsion in her heart and asked, "What are you doing..."

The person clearly heard her antipathy and disgust, but simply looked up at her calmly, stuck out their tongue, and licked the liquid in the pit clean, not leaving a single drop.

After licking it clean, he sat down on the ground with a lingering sense of satisfaction, revealing a mocking smile.

"You think it's pathetic too, don't you?"

"But in less than two days, you will become just like us."

"Here, there is no food, no water, and even less light; it is impossible to tell the time, impossible to know when the sun sets or the moon rises, and with Qi sealed away, we can only linger on like mortals."

"I advise you, if you want to survive, try your best to find if there are any hidden pits."

Yu Chunlan took another look at the stone cave that had been licked so clean it was almost reflective, and she forcibly suppressed the nausea churning in her stomach.

How many years had it been since she last ate anything?

To make her abandon her self-respect and lick the liquid off the ground like a dog was no different than a slap to her face.

Yu Chunlan was unwilling to speak at all, simply turning her head to the side.

That person glanced at her casually, having no intention to persuade her further, and was just about to sway to his feet and leave when he heard Yu Chunlan ask him a question.

"You... have you never thought about joining forces to escape!?"

"Escape?"

The man turned his head instantly, a more mocking smile on his face, even laughing out loud.

"What kind of dream talk is that?"

"Don't tell me you think Lu Ren would actually let us out?"

"Don't be stupid; if you have that thought, you might as well commit suicide and wait to be reborn; it would be faster."

His expression was almost numb, with a trace of regret, but even more deep despair.

"I shouldn't have offended him..."

"I shouldn't have..."

Yu Chunlan could not get another word out of him.

She only felt a chill run down her spine.

This cultivator, whose cultivation level she did not know, was almost half-mad, muttering to himself as he swayed away step by step.

His clothes were tattered and foul-smelling, and he was agitated and frantic; Yu Chunlan did not even dare to call him back.

A chill washed over her heart, and just then, she suddenly saw a black dog with shiny fur flash before her eyes.

Yu Chunlan's expression changed instantly, and she became vigilant.

"Qiongqi!!"

Qiongqi had come specifically to find her; seeing that he had finally found her, he was unhurried, circling her and sniffing.

He looked at Yu Chunlan curiously, "Tell me, just how much charm do you have?"

"What?"

Yu Chunlan did not expect him to ask such a thing suddenly.

She was visibly stunned.

What charm...

But she heard Qiongqi say: "My master has been cultivating his nature and nourishing his life for many years, and hasn't used the Heavenly Prison for a full twenty or thirty years; tell me, how much charm do the treasures on you have?"

"It really makes me curious."

(End of chapter)