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**
Deep beneath the Nine Serene Spring.
Mo Yu slowly lowered his gaze, his foot landing on the lakebed. His eyes narrowed slightly before his palm suddenly grabbed at the depths below.
"Crash!"
As his palm struck down, the sandy ground below was instantly imprinted with his handprint. Amidst the shifting sediment, an enormous iron chain, nearly a hundred feet long, was suddenly revealed before his eyes.
Seeing the massive chain, Mo Yu's mind quickly formulated a plan. With a grasp from afar, the chain was gradually pulled out.
As the chain was drawn, the ground trembled violently. Three more colossal chains rose from the muddy depths, each linked to the surrounding mountain structures. A single pull wasn't enough to budge them in the slightest.
Mo Yu paid no heed to where the chains were anchored. His gaze remained fixed on the center of the four chains, where a massive clump of pitch-black sludge lay.
His eyes slightly sharpened as he waved his hand, dispersing the sludge with a burst of force. As the filth scattered, a figure hidden within was revealed—
A person, shriveled and emaciated like a skeleton!
"Save me! Save me! Free me, and I shall make the entire Nine Serene Deep Ground Python Clan swear allegiance to you!"
At that moment, the skeletal figure's sunken eyes suddenly snapped open. His gaze, tinged with madness, locked onto Mo Yu as he let out a hoarse, ghostly wail that echoed eerily through the depths of the Yellow Spring, chilling to the bone.
Mo Yu watched the wretched figure struggle futilely against the chains, a knowing smile creeping onto his lips before he feigned ignorance. "Who are you? Why are you imprisoned here?"
"I am Yao Ming, the former patriarch of the Nine Serene Deep Ground Python Clan."
Panting heavily, the skeletal figure finally spoke. His voice was unbearably hoarse, akin to sandpaper scraping against glass.
"Save me! As long as you free me from this place, I will grant you whatever you desire!" Yao Ming's eyes flickered with a desperate plea as he fixed his gaze upon Mo Yu.
As if worried that his offer wasn't enticing enough, Yao Ming continued, "I am the elder brother of Yao Xiaotian, the current patriarch of the Nine Serene Deep Ground Python Clan.
Originally, I was the rightful successor to the clan. Many of the elders favored me as well. However, that wretched bastard Yao Xiaotian plotted against me! He first poisoned me, crippling my strength, then struck me down and sealed me here in the depths of the Nine Serene Spring.
He even ensured that I wouldn't die easily... Haha, what a wonderful younger brother I have, wouldn't you agree?"
By the end of his speech, Yao Ming burst into hoarse, bitter laughter, filled with sorrow and wrath.
Mo Yu nodded slightly. Yao Ming's words aligned with the information he recalled.
"Sir, I possess the Nine Serene Profound Scepter, the symbol of our clan's patriarch. Only with it can one truly claim the title.
If you help me escape and eliminate Yao Xiaotian, I will rightfully reclaim my position as patriarch. The other elders would not dare to oppose me. At that time, the Nine Serene Deep Ground Python Clan will become your allies!" Yao Ming hurriedly added.
"Oh? Then what is your current strength? And what about Yao Xiaotian's?" Mo Yu stroked his chin thoughtfully.
"When I was sealed, I was merely a mid-tier One-Star Ban Sheng. However, after centuries of enduring the Yellow Spring's tempering, I suffered immense torment, yet my strength has also grown—I am now at the Two-Star Dou Sheng level," Yao Ming explained, pausing before continuing.
"As for Yao Xiaotian, when I first reached Ban Sheng, he was only at the peak of the Dou Zun realm. Given his talent, after all these years, he has likely reached around One-Star Dou Sheng. However, he has a trusted confidant—the First Elder of our clan.
I suspect that old bastard has also reached the peak of One-Star Dou Sheng. Back then, he assisted Yao Xiaotian in gravely injuring me and sealing me here."
"Two One-Star Dou Shengs?" Mo Yu nodded slightly. Although the Nine Serene Deep Ground Python Clan ranked lowest among the three great magical beast clans, their strength was still formidable.
"I can free you," Mo Yu said, his gaze settling on Yao Ming. "But I don't trust you."
After all, Yao Ming was once a patriach, holding immense power. If left unchecked, he could easily turn against him the moment he regained his freedom.
Stories of betrayal, of ungrateful wolves and the farmer's snake, were common across the Dou Qi Continent.
Hearing Mo Yu's words, Yao Ming opened his mouth, but no words came out. Indeed, he had no way of making Mo Yu trust him at their first meeting.
"However, freeing you isn't impossible. In fact, I can even help you reclaim your position as patriarch—but only on one condition."
Mo Yu's eyes glowed as he stared intently at Yao Ming. "You must willingly open your soul and allow me to place a Soul Imprint upon it. If you lie to me, I can detonate the seal at any time, ensuring that even as a Dou Sheng, you suffer grave injuries and never progress in strength again."
At these words, Yao Ming's expression shifted slightly. This would mean placing his very life in another's hands.
"This is the only way I can trust you. If you refuse, I will leave immediately," Mo Yu said indifferently.
Yao Ming gritted his teeth, his gaze flickering with hesitation. He despised the idea of being controlled by another, but the centuries of torment he had endured filled him with unrelenting hatred.
At last, he clenched his teeth and growled, "Fine! Do it! I can no longer hold back my desire to tear that bastard to pieces!"
"Good." Seeing Yao Ming agree, Mo Yu smiled faintly.
A Dou Sheng-level servant—this was an incredible boon! More so, Yao Ming was the former patriarch of the Nine Serene Deep Ground Python Clan, making this even more valuable.
"Huff..."
Taking a deep breath, Yao Ming's forehead gleamed with light as an intangible soul power surged forth, condensing into a massive black serpent before him.
Seeing Yao Ming voluntarily summon his soul, Mo Yu smirked. With a mere thought, a wisp of soul energy, crackling with black lightning, swiftly entered the black serpent's forehead.
As the soul imprint embedded itself, the serpent trembled violently before dissipating, returning into Yao Ming's brow.
At that moment, a strange black lotus bloomed upon Yao Ming's forehead.
Simultaneously, Mo Yu could now clearly sense Yao Ming's soul fluctuations, as if the latter were under his complete control.
"Yao Ming greets Master."
A brief daze flickered through Yao Ming's eyes, but soon, the confusion faded. When he looked at Mo Yu again, his gaze held only absolute reverence.
It was clear—Yao Ming had been fully branded with the Black Lotus Soul Imprint!
"Mm. How do I free you? Do I just destroy these four chains?" Mo Yu asked, now smiling as he looked at his newly acquired Dou Sheng servant.
The Black Lotus Soul Thunder was just one step away from reaching its peak form, and its power was now incomparable to before—it was utterly terrifying.
Although the process had been aided by Yao Ming being deceived and cooperating with Mo Yu, the strength of the Black Lotus Soul Thunder was undeniable.
After all, this was the servant of a Dou Sheng!
"No need. What's truly restraining me isn't these chains, but the Yellow Spring Yin Rock at the ends of the chains. It continuously releases a chilling force that drains the Dou Qi in my body, keeping me in a state of extreme weakness.
At the connection point between the chains and the mountain, there is a hidden mechanism. If Master can destroy it, although these chains are made of special materials, they won't be able to hold me anymore." Hearing this, Yao Ming shook his head and explained.
"Oh?"
Mo Yu raised his eyebrows slightly, then moved in a flash to the end of a chain. Sure enough, he saw the chain deeply embedded into a pitch-black mountain.
"So, this is the Yellow Spring Yin Rock?"
Staring at the dark mountain, Mo Yu clenched his fist. Vast Dou Qi erupted from his body before he fiercely struck the mountain.
Boom!
The next moment, Mo Yu instantly sensed a strange fluctuation emerging from the mountain, and then—shockingly—the massive chains shattered entirely.
"Thank you, Master!"
Finally freed, Yao Ming looked up with overwhelming joy in his eyes.
Meanwhile, as Mo Yu broke the seal for Yao Ming, the grand palace within the Serene Snake network was bustling with activity. Numerous leaders from the serpent clans had gathered, and laughter filled the hall.
Seated on the throne of the great hall was a man dressed in black—Yao Xiaotian, the current patriarch of the Nine Serene Deep Ground Python Clan.
"Hm?"
Suddenly, Yao Xiaotian's slightly closed eyes snapped open, a look of shock flashing across them.
"The seal… has broken?"
"Patriarch, what's wrong?" Below him, an elder with a blood-red venomous snake coiled around his shoulder frowned slightly.
"The seal suppressing Yao Ming… has suddenly shattered."
Yao Xiaotian abruptly stood up, his expression dark as he whispered to the elder.
"What?! Impossible!" The elder's expression changed dramatically. Then, suppressing his reaction, he covertly glanced at the elders and tribal leaders in the hall before transmitting a message in a low voice, "Go immediately! If Yao Ming escapes, we're doomed. I'll hold things down here and join you as soon as possible."
"Don't worry, he won't get the chance to rise again."
Yao Xiaotian sneered coldly, and in the next moment, his figure vanished from the throne.
—
Clang!
At the bottom of the Nine Serene Spring, Mo Yu had already broken the final chain.
"Thank you, Master." Yao Ming, still extremely weak, expressed his gratitude.
Then, as if recalling something, Yao Ming's eyes filled with hatred.
"Yao Xiaotian! You never expected me to get out, did you?! I'll twist your head off and use it to brew wine!"
The Black Lotus Soul Imprint could enslave a person, but it didn't change their nature. Yao Ming's hatred for Yao Xiaotian remained intact, so Mo Yu wasn't surprised by his reaction.
"As the former patriarch of the Nine Serene Deep Ground Python Clan, you can reclaim your position once you eliminate Yao Xiaotian. In the future, don't call me 'Master' in public—it will weaken your authority."
Mo Yu gazed at Yao Ming and continued, "Once you regain control, lead the Nine Serene Deep Ground Python Clan into Yuan Manor. I'll establish a Ground Python Hall, and you'll be its Hall Master. Just call me 'Lord of Yuan Manor' from then on."
"Yes, Master." Yao Ming respectfully nodded.
"Take these pills and recover some Dou Qi first. We can't linger here for too long—let's leave the Nine Serene Spring immediately. Once you regain your strength, go find Yao Xiaotian." Mo Yu tossed a few bottles of healing pills to Yao Ming.
"Alright!" Yao Ming nodded and swallowed an entire bottle of pills in one go.
"Let's go!"
Now that Yao Ming was completely freed, Mo Yu flicked his sleeves, and the two shot upward like water arrows, speeding toward the surface.
Having spent considerable time in the Nine Serene Spring, Mo Yu's Dou Qi had been significantly depleted. To be cautious, as he ascended, he quickly retrieved a few pills and swallowed them.
On their way back, Yao Ming personally led the way as the former patriarch of the Nine Serene Deep Ground Python Clan, making their return much smoother and significantly faster.
In less than ten minutes, Mo Yu spotted a distant light and finally exhaled in relief. With a flick of his sleeve, he accelerated.
"We're almost out!"
As they neared the lake's surface, Mo Yu smiled slightly before his body surged with power. Grabbing Yao Ming, he burst through the water and landed on the lake's surface.
Boom!
Just as Mo Yu steadied himself, a terrifying roar echoed from above. Powerful shockwaves swept over, causing his expression to stiffen slightly. He waved his right hand, unleashing a lightning whip to disperse the residual force.
Such a fierce battle could only mean that two Dou Shengs were clashing.
"You finally made it out."
At that moment, three figures swiftly approached. It was Cai Lin and the other two women.
Seeing them, Mo Yu gave a slight nod but didn't speak. Instead, he slowly raised his head. In midair, a figure in black robes floated, staring down at him with venomous eyes.
"That guy suddenly showed up and started fighting Zi Huo. If Zi Huo weren't strong, our situation would have been dire," Cai Lin said in a serious tone.
Hearing this, Mo Yu nodded. He had already guessed the person's identity.
In the sky, the black-robed man's gaze turned extremely sinister as he looked at Mo Yu and the skeletal-looking Yao Ming. A cruel smile appeared on his face.
"You little bastard! You dare ruin this king's plans?! I don't care who you are—today, you will die in the Yellow Spring!
As for these three beauties… this king will gladly take them off your hands. Consider it the price for your reckless actions!"
-------------------------------------------------------
For exclusive access to 500+ advanced chapters and more, visit my Ko-fi page and support the journey:
ko-fi.com/laoyao95
Laoyao with L yeahh..thanks for the support.
or Support me at patreon for 500+ advanced chapters :
patreon.com/YaoIk