“So this is the Serpent Pillar.” Su Mo gazed up at the towering column, which stood over ten meters tall, and let out a murmur of awe.
He glanced at the World Core in his hand—it was almost identical to the serpent head perched atop the pillar.
Just as he was about to climb the pillar and place the Core into the serpent’s mouth, the walnut—one of the four tokens he had received upon leaving the hospital—suddenly flew out of his jade hairpin, radiating a brilliant light.
Huh? Is Qingyi in trouble?
Before he could even process the thought, the light vanished, and the walnut dropped back into his palm.
And now it’s gone again?
A wave of unease washed over Su Mo, and an inexplicable restlessness stirred in his chest.
He remembered that the eyeball had appeared on its own last time because Ye Qingyi was injured, and it had acted to heal her. So this time—
Su Mo held the walnut up for a closer look and noticed a layer of grayish mist clinging to its surface—something he had never seen before.
Oh no. Qingyi must be in serious trouble!
Kasher, standing behind him, was about to ask what was going on, but the moment he caught the grim expression on Su Mo’s face, he wisely shut his mouth. He simply stood guard in silence, not making a single sound.
At that moment, the serpent head atop the pillar suddenly shifted. From its lifeless eyes, a beam of black light shot straight toward the walnut in Su Mo’s hand. The walnut instantly turned pitch-black, tore itself from his grasp, and flew toward the serpent head.
“Come back!” Su Mo yelled in desperation, but it was no use.
Seeing this, Kasher pulled a rocket-propelled grenade launcher out of nowhere and deftly loaded a round. “Use it?”
Su Mo froze for a split second, then snatched the launcher, aimed it at the serpent head, and bellowed, “You think I won’t blow you to pieces?”
Kasher pulled out another launcher and aimed it alongside him.
The threat fell on deaf ears. Su Mo didn’t hesitate—he fired a round straight at the serpent head, with Kasher following right behind.
But in the next instant, the pressure around them skyrocketed, far heavier than it had been the night before. The shells were crushed mid-air by the sheer force. Kasher couldn’t take it anymore; he dropped to one knee.
Su Mo gritted his teeth and looked up through the crushing weight. Those serpent eyes seemed to have come alive, staring back at him like the abyss itself.
Suddenly, a searing pain erupted from the depths of his soul—as if something had wrapped around him, squeezed him, constricted him.
“Ahhh—” An uncontrollable roar tore from his throat. His eyes rapidly filled with blood as he felt his very soul being ripped from his body.
Kasher watched, utterly baffled. I mean, it hurts, sure, but… not that bad, right?
Of course he didn’t understand.
The pain grew sharper, clearer. Waves of suffocation and despair crashed over him all at once, making him want to just end it all.
His vision blurred—white, then black. Faint sounds of water echoed in his ears. His chest felt pinned beneath a boulder, unable to rise or fall. His entire body turned ice-cold, devoid of warmth.
The agony began to fade.
“Su Mo… it hurts so much…” A fragmented voice came at him from all directions, piecing itself together into a single sentence—and it was his own voice.
No. That’s not right. That’s… that’s Qingyi!
The voice was feminine, but from the way she addressed him, it could only be her.
“Qingyi, is that you?” He called out frantically. His voice wavered—sometimes male, sometimes female, sometimes a strange, discordant mix of both.
No answer.
“Wuwuwu… it hurts so bad…” Ye Qingyi’s voice grew choked with sobs. Su Mo’s panic deepened. Fighting through the pain, he struggled violently—and suddenly, the world flashed before his eyes. He found himself locked inside a cage. Outside it lay Ye Qingyi, drenched in blood, barely clinging to life.
It hit him immediately: I’m in soul form right now. And so is Qingyi. Just like when Shuang’er entered my Sea of Spirit back then.
He forced himself to stay calm. Panic wouldn’t solve anything.
The fact that they were both in soul form and had ended up together meant this was most likely the Sea of Spirit—and more specifically, Ye Qingyi’s, which meant he was inside his own body.
He tried calling out: “Qingyi? Can you hear me? Qingyi!”
Ye Qingyi’s soul floated adrift in the chaos, unconscious, her expression twisted in pain.
Su Mo steeled himself. If this is my own body, then there’s no way I can’t break through this cage!
“Break for me!” He threw his full weight against the bars. But the cage didn’t even shudder—instead, he was sent flying backward from the recoil.
In his soul state, none of his techniques worked. There was no concept of physical strength either. What seemed like a physical collision was actually a clash of soul power.
He thought about using his Heavenly Demon Eye for a spiritual attack—but the Eye was essentially a technique. Without spiritual energy, it was useless.
Then he felt it—a familiar presence. He turned and saw a wisp of black Yin Fire. But this flame was wild, almost sentient, darting erratically around the cage.
He tried to establish a connection with it, but it was like a rebellious child—completely uncooperative.
“Su Mo.” The Yin Fire suddenly morphed into the shape of a small serpent and spoke in a human voice.
Su Mo froze. “Why do you have consciousness of your own?”
“You can thank me for being able to come here. What do you think?” The serpent’s voice was eerily sinister, sending chills down his spine.
“Are you… the Teng Snake?” Su Mo ventured.
“Not entirely stupid. But you’re not completely right either. I’m just a fragment of the Teng Snake’s divine sense, trapped inside this seal.”
Su Mo pointed at the cage. “This thing?”
“Correct.” The Teng Snake lifted its head with an air of arrogance, offering only two words before falling silent.
Seeing that even it couldn’t help him break out, Su Mo pushed everything else aside and stared anxiously at Ye Qingyi outside the cage. “Senior Teng Snake, do you know what happened?”
“I do,” it said slowly.
Su Mo took a deep breath. “Please, tell me.”
The Teng Snake let out a cold laugh. “And why should I?”
“Because I might be able to help you escape this place.”
“Pfft—” It sneered. “You can’t even get yourself out of that cage, and you dare make promises to me?”
Su Mo answered gravely, “This is my body. Since you’re sealed here, it must have something to do with me. Whether I can set you free right now or not, I’m the only one who can help you!”
The Teng Snake fell silent.
“She ran into a remnant divine sense of Yamata-no-Orochi. Its cultivation is only at the Demigod level, but its strength is still formidable. Maybe it sensed the trace of the Teng Snake within her body, and that stirred its appetite—after all, we’re kin. A great supplement, you see.”
“So it…”
“Exactly. It’s trying to devour her—the one she is now.” The Teng Snake glanced at Ye Qingyi outside the cage.
Su Mo suddenly said, “Senior Teng Snake, please teach me how to counter it.”
“I’m just an incomplete fragment of divine sense. What countermeasures could I possibly have?” The Teng Snake turned away.
Su Mo pressed on firmly, “You were able to pull my soul back here—that means you must have a way. And you need me to act. Am I right, Senior Teng Snake?”
“Alright, fine. Since you guessed correctly, I suppose I have no choice but to tell you.” The Teng Snake slithered to the edge of the cage and said, “Use your spiritual power—that is, the body you’re in right now—to establish a connection with the cage.”
Su Mo did as instructed.
“Then use your will to break the cage apart. Once you shatter it, I can get out. And once I’m out, you can borrow my power to defeat Yamata-no-Orochi.”
“Deal!” Su Mo followed its directions, focusing his will on destroying the cage. Almost instinctively, his hands grabbed the bars—and with a gentle push, they actually bent open.
“Yes, yes, that’s it!” The Teng Snake was ecstatic. It shot out like a wisp of smoke and burst into manic laughter. “Hahahaha! Finally free!”
A subtle shift flickered across Su Mo’s expression, but he hid it well—too deep for the Teng Snake to notice.
“Senior Teng Snake, please lend me your power now.”
“No problem!” The Teng Snake snapped its fingers, and Su Mo’s consciousness instantly sank.
Thump! Thump! Thump! Thump…
The heartbeat grew stronger, more distinct.
After a long moment, the cold returned—only to be quickly replaced by warmth.
In the lightless abyss, a pair of eyes slowly opened.
