Chapter 40: Is this Ji Yan's husband?

This place... was the lair of the Snake Empress, Ji Yan.

The entire cavern was cast in gloom, and even where light persisted, it was exceedingly faint—as if the space were wrapped in the embrace of an abyss.

In a place of such impenetrable darkness, an ordinary woman would likely lack the courage to enter. But Ming Xi was different. She had grown up in such surroundings in her previous life, and for this kind of den, she felt a strange, inexplicable sense of familiarity.

Yet, accompanying this familiarity was something more profound: a suffocating sense of oppression.

As she ventured deeper into the lair, Ming Xi lightened her footsteps, keeping a vigilant watch on her surroundings. Glancing at the scattered, fragmented bones littering the floor, her expression inevitably tightened. A tremor of dread spread through her heart. Nevertheless, she did not hesitate further; taking a deep breath, she pressed onward.

Until a brilliant green glow caught her eye.

At the center of a stone pillar in the deepest part of the cave, an object resembling a crystal orb emitted a radiant emerald light. The intense green glare was blinding in the darkness of the cavern.

This was it... the Origin Core?!

Staring at the emerald bead, which was encircled by dancing sparks of lightning, Ming Xi’s heart leaped with joy.

Ming Xi’s glass-like eyes remained fixed on the Origin Core, her lips curling into a slight smile. It was as if her very soul had been ensnared; she failed to notice the anomaly around her, nor did she perceive a long, serpentine body slowly coiling toward her.

Just as she was fully engrossed in contemplating how to retrieve the lightning-shrouded core, she heard a faint, sibilant sound behind her. Was it just her imagination?

Ming Xi started in alarm. She had not forgotten the lesson of the Spirit-Devouring Beast; she was hypersensitive to the threat of an ambush from behind.

Her expression instantly tensed. She snapped her head around, only to see a long, lithe figure staring fixedly at her. Before she could react, the figure ruthlessly swept up a massive boulder and hurled it toward her with violent force.

Ming Xi’s pupils dilated as she dodged with lightning speed. The boulder slammed into a stone pillar within the cavern with a thunderous boom, shattering the rock instantly and showering the area with sparks.

Only then did Ming Xi look up to see a colossal python hissing as it glared at her.

*What the hell?* What was going on? Why was there another one in the cave?

This fiery-red giant python was at least fifty meters long and two meters wide. The moment it reared up, Ming Xi felt herself shrink into total insignificance.

A python this large! And a fiery-red one at that!

Damn it all! She finally understood why Ji Yan had left without a single worry—she had someone guarding the house!

If one looked closely, the fiery-red python was actually quite beautiful. Its crimson eyes were like gemstones, alluring to the point of suffocation, yet its expression was as cold as millennial ice, devoid of the slightest warmth.

The giant python’s red eyes reflected Ming Xi’s petite frame. She stood her ground, momentarily stunned, as the creature watched her, flicking its tongue as if it were about to swallow her whole in the next instant.

"Um... may I ask who you are to Ji Yan?" Ming Xi stammered, frozen in place. "You... you aren't her husband, are you?"

Damn it! If that were the case, this was too much to bear. Was the legendary Snake King actually a pair? A husband and wife who lived and died together?

That was enough! Was this world trying to drive her to her grave? These two snake demons were flaunting their love so brazenly—had they considered the feelings of a fox demon like her, who had been widowed before even being married?

The giant python did not answer. Instead, it lunged the next second, slamming its massive head against a stone pillar and sending another boulder hurtling toward her.

Ming Xi dodged again. "Hey, Ji Yan’s husband! I... I’m just passing through! I’m just a bystander! Do you really have to be this ruthless?"

Tsk! She had been far too careless. She never expected Ji Yan to have a husband!

What could she do? She was simply no match for this creature.

What was she to do?