Chapter Seven: The Number One Fiend Adds Two More Hours

Although this unfortunate little snake was quite pitiful, sympathy was a luxury reserved only for those whose basic survival was assured. Feng Xue, who was merely counting down the days until death, clearly had no right to such feelings.

His concern was mainly about the common tropes found in immortal hero novels—about the dangers of improper nourishment causing spiritual emptiness or lingering resentments. Otherwise, this little snake, with a remaining lifespan of eight hundred years, would have long since become snake soup!

As for the snake’s uncooperativeness, it didn’t really matter. Feng Xue had brought it along precisely with the hope that it might serve as a powerful medicinal ingredient. Perhaps someday, he might learn how to properly prepare and consume monsters.

Perhaps sensing Feng Xue’s intentions, the little white snake—a cold-blooded creature—suddenly felt chilled all over. It dared not speak further and retreated into silence.

Seeing this, Feng Xue did not dwell on the little snake’s mood but continued piloting the drone down the mountain.

As the saying goes, ascending a mountain is easy, but descending is difficult. Though the mountain was not steep, Feng Xue, a feeble modern man, had to stop frequently. It wasn’t until dusk that he finally reached a relatively flat area at the foothills.

“I crossed over around three or four in the morning and wandered the mountain for a few hours. Now it’s dusk... Are the day and night cycles reversed between these two worlds?” Feng Xue estimated the time in his mind and switched his phone to a twelve-hour format. Looking at “7 a.m.,” he resumed manual control of the drone.

Judging by the light, the drone—lacking night vision—would soon become useless. If he still failed to find anything, he would have no choice but to camp in the wilderness, completely in the dark, until dawn.

As luck would have it, the drone unexpectedly discovered a dilapidated temple not far away.

“Not bad luck. Although it looks abandoned, at least it can provide shelter from wind and rain.”

Feng Xue approached the ruined temple. The little white snake coiled around his finger paused, as if wanting to say something, but ultimately stayed silent.

Though she was a snake aspiring to transcendence, she was no holy serpent.

If the man had not treated her so cruelly—constantly mutating her form and binding her with a taboo to silence—she might have been compelled by karmic ties to save him.

But this human so abused her; he could not have been a good person. It would be better if he simply died rather than continue to threaten her with that binding.

As for herself...

Feeling her stiffened body, the little white snake was indifferent. Her cultivation did not require blood sacrifices. Becoming a ring and left abandoned in this desolate mountain might even serve as a form of spiritual discipline.

At least, from her perspective now, if she had not been tempted by the ease of human transformation, she would never have encountered such a mentally unstable fellow. Two or three hundred years of arduous cultivation would be preferable to entangling fate with such a person.

...

Feng Xue was clearly unaware of the snake’s complex thoughts. He simply tossed a bug-repellent incense cake into the temple. Once the pungent smoke settled, he stepped inside.

He had never been an experienced outdoorsman in his previous life, and his camping skills in this life were rudimentary at best. But aided by modern technology and a longevity limit, it was not too dangerous.

After a casual search, he found some dry firewood, built a somewhat crude fire, sprayed insect repellent, and plugged the drone into a power bank. Only then did he relax, munching on biscuits and staring into space.

Actually, because he had just awakened before crossing over, Feng Xue was not sleepy at all. His insistence on finding a place to rest was more due to the fatigue from hiking half a day and the inconvenience of traveling at night.

Even so, he refrained from wasting precious battery power on entertainment, half-closing his eyes, relying on his sleeping bag and the warmth of the fire to wait for dawn.

...

“Knock knock knock... knock knock knock...”

After an unknown length of time, a soft tapping roused Feng Xue. Though he tried to awaken quickly, untrained as he was, a haze of sleepiness lingered. Groggily, he opened the door and saw two young women standing outside, their expressions laced with flirtation. One covered her mouth coyly, her voice dripping with sweetness—

“Master, you’re quite domineering. Even though you’re only borrowing lodging, you silently took the best room for yourself.”

Feng Xue found something off about their words but couldn’t quite pinpoint what. He wasn’t the type to immediately yield to beautiful women, and with lingering drowsiness, he had no desire to argue.

“What do you want then?” he asked.

“How about sharing this room with my sister?” one said.

Hearing the clipped accent of the beauty, Feng Xue rolled his eyes and frowned.

“This room isn’t big, there’s not even space to sleep on the floor... You should find somewhere else.”

Unexpectedly, the beauty seized on his words, puffed out her chest, and squeezed inside.

“What’s so difficult about that? This bed’s big enough for three. Surely you wouldn’t bully the two of us sisters...”

...

As the last sliver of moonlight faded quietly and dawn began to break, the little white snake on Feng Xue’s finger immediately ceased her cultivation. For one who cultivated the Taiyin lunar essence, the morning glow was far too scorching. Even a slight inhalation would cause burning pain all over.

In the past, she would never have been so greedy. But last night’s cultivation had gone exceptionally smoothly, the spiritual surge surpassing all previous experiences, leaving her momentarily unable to control herself.

“Was last night’s success due to the binding? But according to my seniors, the binding doesn’t boost aptitude this much... Or did I inadvertently absorb some essence dispersed by this human? That can’t be—my Taiyin energy is pure, with no trace of yang essence!”

Muttering to herself, she calmed her breath, then grew slightly surprised.

“He’s not yet cold... Seems like he has ample essence. What a pity! Those two evil spirits haven’t had a supply of yang energy for a long time. If they’re completely drained, they won’t let go easily.”

Just as the snake lamented the prospect of having to cling to a corpse for cultivation, she suddenly sensed two sinister energies. Moments later, the body trembled—Feng Xue had awakened.

He stretched vigorously and, to the snake’s astonishment, stood up looking completely refreshed.

“No way,” she thought, bewildered by his robust spirit. Could she have misjudged him? Was he actually a master immune to all evil?

While pondering this, Feng Xue suddenly turned his head and waved toward a dark corner.

“You two are quite skilled. If I have time, I’ll come back to support your business!”

“???” The little white snake was utterly confused. Business? Skills? What was going on? When did these two evil spirits change professions?

Faintly, she even heard a string of curses—so foul that even she, an animal, couldn’t bear to listen!

But Feng Xue seemed oblivious, walking with an aloof stride to the corner, unbuckling his belt to attend to personal needs. Immediately, the two evil spirits cursed even more fiercely.

The little white snake hesitated, then watched as he picked up his luggage, attached some strange blocks to the outside of his backpack, and strode out of the ruined temple.