"You two, use your Dou Qi to block out the scent here—otherwise you'll end up like her," Xiao Jietian instructed Qing Lin and Han Yue, casually pointing at She Yuyan as he spoke.
She Yuyan, hearing herself singled out, pointed at her own chest in confusion, face full of bewilderment as if silently asking, *Are you talking about me?*
Han Yue and Qing Lin immediately circulated their Dou Qi to isolate the faint aphrodisiac fragrance drifting through the tomb. Only then did they fully understand what Xiao Jietian meant earlier.
No wonder those strange thoughts had suddenly surfaced in their minds.
Both women's cheeks flushed slightly. They exchanged a quick glance and instantly realized the other had experienced the exact same fleeting impulses.
She Yuyan finally reacted as well.
She had been so consumed by indignation earlier that she completely forgot about the tomb's peculiar atmosphere. No wonder her mind had wandered into such absurd territory.
She hurriedly used her own Dou Qi to seal away the scent and forcefully shoved those embarrassing thoughts aside.
She had actually, for a brief moment, felt a surge of infatuation—wanting to "eat tender grass." And her reasoning had been even more ridiculous:
*Find someone close to my son's age so that my son and his stepfather won't have too large an age gap… they'll have things to talk about… there won't be such a big generation divide…*
If Xiao Jietian ever learned the true contents of her thoughts, he would refuse without hesitation:
"Sorry, Madam. I do enjoy the 'married woman' vibe, but I'm not a Cao thief who covets other people's wives."
Speaking of someone who perfectly embodied the "married woman" aura while still retaining devastating charm—Xiao Jietian's mind drifted to one particular woman who truly deserved that title.
He quickly cut off the stray thought.
Turning to Qing Lin beside him, he spoke gently:
"Qing'er, go over there and do exactly as I told you before."
Qing Lin felt a flicker of nervousness rise in her chest.
"Okay, Young Master… leave it to me. I won't disappoint you."
"No need to be nervous. Just relax. For you, this is very simple. With me here, you don't have to worry about anything."
Xiao Jietian ruffled her emerald-green hair with absolute confidence.
Hearing those words, Qing Lin instantly felt strength flood back into her body.
Yes—with her Young Master here, Qing Lin feared nothing.
"Little Sister Qing Lin, you can do it!" Han Yue cheered softly from the side.
She Yuyan, watching their exchange, grew more and more confused.
Shouldn't Xiao Jietian be the one retrieving the item?
Why was it this seemingly innocent-looking girl—with an exceptionally gifted figure—who was stepping forward?
She kept scrutinizing Qing Lin. The vague sense of unease that had appeared long ago now grew increasingly intense, as though something disastrous was about to happen.
Qing Lin slowly walked toward the enormous mummified corpse of the Nine-Headed Heavenly Serpent and stopped right in front of it.
She took a deep breath, gazed up at the nine massive, ferocious snake heads, and slowly activated her **Triple Jade-Green Snake Flower Pupils**.
Emerald-green radiance burst from her eyes, instantly enveloping the dried corpse.
She Yuyan, even though Qing Lin had her back turned, clearly saw the emerald-green light erupting outward.
In that instant, a long-sealed memory awakened violently in her mind.
"This… this is… the Triple Jade-Green Snake Flower Pupils?!"
She Yuyan was absolutely certain.
The girl before her possessed the very eyes that the Heavenly Serpent Mansion had searched for across centuries.
"Oh no!!"
She finally understood exactly what Xiao Jietian and his group had come for—and panic surged through her.
This was one of the most crucial keys to whether the Heavenly Serpent Mansion could ever make a powerful return to the Central Plains in the future.
She hurriedly tried to rush forward to interrupt the process.
But just as her body moved—
A powerful hand pressed down on her shoulder.
Her forward momentum was instantly frozen. She couldn't budge an inch.
"Mansion Master, I advise you not to act rashly. You already agreed we could take one item."
Hearing Xiao Jietian's calm words, She Yuyan almost exploded with rage.
*Yes, I agreed—but I didn't know there was someone with the Triple Jade-Green Snake Flower Pupils among you! Otherwise, you could kill me and I still wouldn't have agreed!*
She tried to unleash her aura in resistance.
But before she could even begin, an unfamiliar yet overwhelmingly powerful presence erupted behind her, instantly suppressing her Dou Zong aura back into her body.
"Dou… Dou Zun!!"
She felt the unmistakable aura of a Dou Zun.
She hadn't expected a Dou Zun to be hidden in the shadows.
Looking again, she saw that the soul of the Nine-Headed Heavenly Serpent was already being drawn out.
She Yuyan knew it was too late. There was no stopping it now.
Her body went limp. She collapsed to the ground as though all her bones had been removed.
Forget the hidden Dou Zun—even Xiao Jietian alone was someone she could never defeat.
Moreover, once the residual soul was fully drawn out, there were only two possible outcomes:
Success: the Nine-Headed Heavenly Serpent's soul would be taken by the Triple Jade-Green Snake Flower Pupils.
Failure: the remnant soul would simply dissipate.
Right now, she no longer had the energy to worry about the serpent's soul.
What she feared most was whether the other party would kill her to silence any witnesses.
She was completely confined—a fish on the chopping block.
She sighed deeply. Her face became complex and lifeless. She could only sit on the cold stone floor, silently awaiting her fate.
Xiao Jietian glanced at the Heavenly Serpent Mansion Master—now restrained by Dou Qi and visibly distraught—then ignored her completely.
His full attention returned to Qing Lin, who was in the middle of drawing out the soul. He watched closely, ready to intervene at the slightest sign of trouble.
As time passed, the emerald-green light from Qing Lin's eyes continued to envelop the soul of the Nine-Headed Heavenly Serpent.
At this point, the soul had no true consciousness—only faint residual instincts automatically resisting.
"Roar!"
The nine snake heads of the soul continuously struggled, mouths open in silent roars toward Qing Lin, but only weak, faint growls escaped.
Finally, the entire soul was completely covered by the emerald-green radiance.
The light began to shrink, dragging the soul along with it.
In the end, the light pulled the Nine-Headed Heavenly Serpent's soul directly into the internal space of Qing Lin's Triple Jade-Green Snake Flower Pupils.
Inside that space, on the central head of the nine-headed serpent, a flower-like mark slowly formed—the unmistakable imprint of the Triple Jade-Green Snake Flower Pupils.
White Fang, who resided in that same internal space, stared at the suddenly appearing soul of the Nine-Headed Heavenly Serpent.
A terrifying bloodline suppression crashed down on it.
The entire snake was forced flat against the ground, unable to move.
It was so frightened it nearly wet itself and shouted coarsely:
"What the heck is this?! An Ancient Heavenly Serpent clan member that's already gone extinct—and it's even a Nine-Headed Heavenly Serpent, a king among them?!"
Qing Lin sensed the disturbance inside and immediately used her pupil technique to isolate the Ancient Heavenly Serpent's soul from White Fang.
Once the oppressive aura disappeared, White Fang finally let out a long breath of relief.
It had almost been scared to death just now.
Next time, it absolutely had to remind its master:
*If something this terrifying is going to be brought in again, please warn me in advance—otherwise this snake will really be frightened to death!*
"It seems I really did follow the right master. As expected of my White Fang's master—and also the Honored One. Truly amazing."
White Fang pretended to be casual as it praised extravagantly in the space, not forgetting to include Xiao Jietian in the compliment.
It had long since learned from experience:
Whenever it praised and deliberately included Xiao Jietian in the praise, it could usually go out for a walk and enjoy some fresh air.
The moment Qing Lin finished absorbing the soul, a lifelike tattoo of the Nine-Headed Heavenly Serpent slowly appeared on the skin of her back.
However, no one present could see it—Qing Lin was still fully clothed.
After the absorption was complete, Qing Lin's body went limp. She slowly began to fall backward.
Han Yue immediately moved to catch her.
But unexpectedly, a figure was even faster.
In an instant, he appeared beside Qing Lin and gently caught her falling body.