My mind was a tangled mess of irrelevant thoughts, but the white-clad girl paid me no mind whatsoever. She simply retrieved several red, cocoon-like objects from her waist and fed them, one by one, to the Green Snake Jian.

Seeing a small thing wriggling inside the red cocoon, I asked her, "What are these things?" The girl replied in a low voice, "Relax, I won't harm him. If I wanted him dead, all I'd have to do is neglect him, and this fatty would explode within a minute." * and I exchanged a look.

Although the red cocoons seemed sinister, we didn't press the matter. After the white-clad girl let the Green Snake Jian swallow five of the red cocoons, she extended a jade finger, signaling the snake to slowly crawl into Da Xiong's mouth, which was wide open from the pain.

I watched Da Xiong. Despite enduring immense agony, he truly lived up to his reputation as a tough man; now, only his chest was heaving violently, yet he wasn't screaming.

The Green Snake Jian expertly threaded its way down Da Xiong’s esophagus, and we watched his Adam's apple bob—presumably, the snake was now moving down into his abdomen. At this point, the white-clad girl wiped the sweat from her brow and said, "That's done.

The ghost territory in his stomach is still embryonic, just starting to form spikes. The Green Snake Jian will suppress it; at worst, he’ll end up with a stomach perforation." Sure enough, moments after Da Xiong swallowed the snake, his breathing evened out almost immediately.

The green spikes protruding on his stomach began to recede gradually, eventually drawing back inside. "Aiya...

that nearly killed your Lord Xiong..." Da Xiong let out a long breath, finally able to speak a complete sentence. I wiped away the tears stinging my eyes and, along with *, helped Da Xiong sit up, asking how he felt.

Da Xiong wiped the sweat from his forehead with the back of his meaty hand and then managed to stand up. "I told you, I'm fine!" "Don't!

Don't stand up!" the white-clad girl urgently called out. Da Xiong blinked wide-eyed and asked, "What's wrong?" The girl stamped her foot and declared, "You damned fatso, the Green Snake Jian can only crawl out when you're lying down!

If you stand up, the snake will only be able to exit through your... your backdoor." Hearing this, Da Xiong's face turned green.

The thought of a snake crawling out of his butt—how agonizing must that be? However, by this point, Da Xiong was already clutching his backside, his legs spread wide, whimpering, "Gotta go...

gotta go..." Seeing him about to bolt to a corner to relieve himself, the white-clad girl yanked his collar and snapped, "You are not going! Do you want my little snake to crawl out of your XX?

I’d rather kill you!" Da Xiong was sweating with panic. "Then what should I do?

Do you think I want to push that thing out?" The girl didn't answer, instead taking out a silver bell from her waist and shaking it gently. The Ku Long King, which had been dozing behind her, instantly opened its eyes.

It opened its massive maw, wrapped around Da Xiong's lower abdomen, and squeezed hard. Everything churning inside Da Xiong surged upward, and he vomited out a mouthful of foul, black matter with a loud waugh.

* and I quickly scrambled back, covering our noses at the sight. Da Xiong kept retching violently: what started black turned green, and then from green to yellow.

* and I instinctively backed away further, preferring to be as far from the scene as possible. After what seemed like an eternity of vomiting, the Green Snake finally crawled slowly out of his mouth.

Having expelled everything, Da Xiong let out a sigh of relief. He looked at the puddle of filth he had just spewed and cursed, "This thing is still alive!" I detest seeing anything that disgusting; otherwise, I would have certainly thrown up too.

With a smack, Da Xiong brought his foot down and crushed the mess. Then he let out a long, drawn-out sigh.

"Much better now. Hey, *, Xiao Chuan, come look!

I stepped on this thing." I replied from the side, "You go look all you want; I'm not watching!" Da Xiong sighed with mock disappointment. "This is your Lord Xiong's first delivery.

You two supposed uncles won't even take a peek? My poor child." Seeing that he had the presence of mind to joke, I realized he was likely out of danger.

I relaxed slightly and turned to the white-clad girl standing nearby, asking, "If I'm not mistaken, you are Nie Qilan, correct? If not, how did you know the fatty's surname was Wang?" The girl was frowning, using a handkerchief to clean the grime off her little snake.

Hearing my question, she turned, looked at me, and sighed. "You can think that, but it’s not entirely accurate.

It's hardly a secret, but I cannot tell you everything now. You will naturally find out later." Everything she said felt like nothing at all, so I shook my head in resignation.

"Fine. But regardless, you saved the lives of two of my comrades; I am truly grateful." "The final moment is approaching.

This underground ruin, sealed for a thousand years, holds immense destructive power. I believe you must go now to stop Nie Haiyun," the girl said, gazing toward the dim, hazy distance.

"The Qiming Pearl you carry, and the blood flowing in your veins, are the keys to preventing disaster. You must utilize these two things well.

Go now; it is time to face destiny." I frowned slightly and asked, "You're not coming with us?" The girl shook her head, looking back in the direction we came from. "I have my own mission: to eliminate the prime culprit who murdered countless people of Wei Guo and avenge them." I followed her gaze and saw the gigantic Crab God rapidly closing in on our position; clearly, the Ku Long King had not managed to defeat it earlier.

Seeing the hatred blazing in the girl's eyes as she stared at the Crab God, I didn't press further. I turned back to Da Xiong and said, "Fatty, the injury you just sustained was serious.

You stay here and rest; * and I will go stop Grandpa." Da Xiong, still squatting and examining the 'first delivery' he had crushed, immediately turned his head when he heard me. "Hey!

How can an event like this happen without your Lord Xiong? Take me along!" * cursed, "You stay out of this, kid.

If you go up while injured, you’ll only cause trouble." Da Xiong's neck flushed red, unwilling to concede. He blustered, "I told you I'm fine!

If you don't believe me, watch me take a drink of water—can you see any leaks from my belly?" Saying that, he unhooked his waterskin, took two gulps, and slapped his stomach. Indeed, no water leaked out.

I looked at the grotesque stretch marks that had appeared where his stomach had sunken in and said, "Alright, it's cold here. Put your shirt on first!" Da Xiong responded with an "Mm-hmm," buttoned his shirt, pulled on his slightly tight leather jacket, and trotted happily to catch up.

At that moment, the white-clad girl also climbed onto the back of the Ku Long King. She lightly shook her bell, and over a dozen straw figures emerged from somewhere unknown, following her as they charged toward the distant Crab God.

Da Xiong glanced back and muttered, "We’re just going to let this young lady fight that crab alone? That’s inhumane." I frowned and told him, "We’ll go finish the most important task and come back to help her." With that, * and I shoved and pushed Da Xiong forward, urging him to run.