"Friends of the Serpentine Clan, my Nie family of Jiyang has never held any grievance against the Myriad Serpent Immortal's Nest. For you to suddenly launch such a massive assault today, what is the reason?" Nie Shen Gong’s mind raced, and then he let out a great shout. The sound wave vibrated out over Jiyang City, clear and distinct to everyone, inside and out.

His voice was like thunder, yet the countless snakes surrounding the city showed no reaction whatsoever. The Celestial Spirit experts and Cave Spirit masters of the Serpentine Clan remained unmoved, as if they had heard nothing. However, the dark cloud shrouding Jiyang City thinned slightly, and citizens, both Spirit Masters and common folk alike, all tilted their heads back to look up.

"The Great Elder! The Great Elder is there!"

"With the Great Elder present, there shouldn't be too much danger, right?"

"Didn't you hear? The attackers are from the Serpentine Clan! That's one of the Five Great Spirit Clans—incredibly powerful. The Great Elder alone might not be able to hold them off?"

"..."

Murmurs occasionally rose within the city.

The might Nie Shen Gong had displayed several years prior was still fresh in everyone's minds. Seeing his figure hovering above Jiyang City now gave the common people some measure of reassurance. However, the Spirit Masters did not share this sentiment; hearing that the Serpentine Clan was besieging Jiyang City only made them more apprehensive.

The common folk might not be fully aware, but the Spirit Masters had all heard whispers: the Five Great Spirit Clans of the Celestial Spirit Continent were mysterious beyond measure, and the Serpentine Clan was the most ruthless among them. Over thousands of years, numerous factions had perished for offending them, nearly all utterly annihilated.

Now, for some unknown reason, the Serpentine Clan had set its sights on Jiyang City, certainly targeting the Nie family. How could the Spirit Masters originating from the Nie family within the city survive?

At a height of a thousand meters, Nie Shen Gong frowned slightly when the Serpentine Clan outside the city offered no response: "I still request that friends of the Serpentine Clan step forth and speak!"

"Hiss! Hiss!"

Outside Jiyang City, apart from the hissing of the snake horde, there was still not a single voice.

Disregard!

This was naked, blatant dismissal!

Nie Shen Gong, after being afflicted by the 'Yin Ruins Blood Toxin,' had been living in seclusion in Jiyang City, cultivating his spirit. His temper had long been smoothed away, but the Serpentine Clan's ignoring him still stirred a flicker of anger deep within his immortal heart. Yet, the moment he considered the besieged Jiyang City, that anger entirely dissipated.

If it were only himself, Nie Shen Gong would not hesitate to fight the Serpentine Clan with all his strength. But behind him stood an entire family, his descendants who viewed him as their guardian deity. At this moment of life and death crisis, no matter how great his dissatisfaction, he could only endure it—such was the reality that the Nie family was not as powerful as their foe.

With a silent sigh, Nie Shen Gong floated on the wind, alighting upon the eastern city tower of Jiyang City.

By this time, many figures had gathered on the parapet, mostly Nie family disciples, along with a handful of visiting Spirit Masters who happened to be staying in Jiyang City.

"Is that the Great Elder? I think I've seen him somewhere before!"

"Isn't there a small apothecary shop west of the Four Seas Tower? He's the owner! I never thought he was the Great Elder; I even bought herbs from him."

"He's actually the Great Elder of the Nie family? Disaster! I actually kicked him a few days ago!"

"..."

Upon clearly seeing Nie Shen Gong's true face, even under the threat of the snake horde, the crowd on the battlements could not suppress their shock.

Waving off the Patriarch Nie Qingsong and the Ninth Elder Nie Xingdong, who were preparing to step forward in salute, Nie Shen Gong’s figure flashed, his robes billowing as he stepped into the void, instantly covering a hundred meters. Opposite him stood a robed elder, thin as a bamboo pole, and a gigantic snake with emerald green scales and blood-red eyes.

Suspended less than a meter above the ground, Nie Shen Gong said in a deep voice, "Two friends of the Serpentine Clan, since you surround Jiyang City, why do you remain silent?"

The black-robed elder slightly raised his eyelids, finally opening his narrow eyes into two thin slits: "This old man dislikes looking up to speak with people!" With these words, the black-robed elder immediately closed his eyes again, his body utterly still, like an ancient, unmoving wooden carving.

"Hmm?"

Nie Shen Gong frowned tighter, finally drawing in a sharp breath and descending toward the ground teeming with snake shadows.

An invisible force gently pushed away the two flower snakes, each as thick as a child's fist directly below him, creating just enough space for him to land. But the moment his feet touched the ground, those two flower snakes snapped open their mouths and lunged at him with sharp hisses. Yet, before they could even brush against Nie Shen Gong's body, they were flung back over ten meters.

Like a single stone causing a massive ripple, Nie Shen Gong's reflexive action seemed to have stirred a nest of vipers. Dozens of venomous snakes, large and small, sprang up simultaneously, lunging to bite him.

"Bang! Bang! Bang..."

Nie Shen Gong maintained restraint, not intending to kill the venomous snakes. However, after being repelled by spiritual energy, the snake shadows rushed forward again without fear, one wave after another, like moths to a flame. In mere seconds, Nie Shen Gong had endured hundreds of attacks.

"What is the meaning of this?" Before Nie Shen Gong's words had even finished falling, one snake collapsed onto the ground, motionless. Spirit beasts of the serpent type could withstand the recoil of spiritual energy, but ordinary snakes, unable to absorb the world's spiritual elements, could not; they perished after only two or three impacts.

"You dare kill my snake servants? Do you realize you are provoking my Serpentine Clan!" The black-robed elder suddenly snapped his eyes open and laughed sharply. The emerald green giant snake beside him also opened its cavernous maw towards Nie Shen Gong, its long tongue flicking erratically, a few venomous fangs in its mouth gleaming with a cold, chilling light.

"Provoking?"

Nie Shen Gong laughed in sheer fury. The first two snakes attacking could perhaps be excused as being disturbed, but the continuous, frenzied assault by the rest must have been secretly manipulated by them. Yet this man dared to twist the blame, accusing him of provoking the Serpentine Clan. It was true what they said about the serpentine folk being insidious and cunning—it was well-deserved fame.

"If you want to pin a crime, you can always find a pretext! It seems your Serpentine Clan is determined not to let my Jiyang Nie family survive, no matter what!" Nie Shen Gong finally understood: the supposed killing of snake servants was merely an excuse for the Serpentine Clan. Even if he hadn't stepped down, they would have found another pretext.

"You finally understand."

The black-robed elder chuckled sinisterly.

Since matters had reached this point, further talk was useless. If the Serpentine Clan had made up its mind, even if the entire Nie family knelt and begged for mercy, it would be futile. Nie Shen Gong finally ceased holding back. His body shook, and the dozens of venomous snakes rushing toward him instantly exploded into fine mist, scattering. He sneered, "Gentlemen, though my Jiyang Nie family is weak, we are not so easily extinguished. If you choose to strike, this old man will surely make you pay the price."

"With just you, a weakling who only recently broke through to Celestial Spirit?"

The black-robed elder let out a contemptuous 'Chih,' his eyes revealing undisguised disdain. Then, his tone suddenly soared, instantly sweeping across the entirety of Jiyang City: "All Nie family Spirit Masters within Jiyang City, come out and face death! My Serpentine Clan will spare Jiyang City a path of survival. Otherwise, the Nie family, down to the last dog and chicken, will perish!"