Very quickly, the news that Mi Lu and HuLü Yan had entered the Pit of Ten Thousand Serpents spread throughout the area.

Not long ago, the three men who had been asked for directions were the same three who had been caught gossiping by Ming Sui. When they heard that Mi Lu and HuLü Yan had already entered the Pit of Ten Thousand Serpents, their faces turned pale.

After a long stunned silence, the man on the left elbowed the man standing in the middle and said, “Hei Sha, that young master was dressed in luxurious clothes, likely the son of a wealthy family. You tricked him into the Pit of Ten Thousand Serpents with just a few words. What if his family comes looking for you later?”

“Get lost,” Hei Sha cursed irritably. “Which eye of yours saw me trick him? It was that brat who asked me where Ming Sui was, and I told him Ming Sui was in the Pit of Ten Thousand Serpents. What’s wrong with answering truthfully?”

Bai Yuan shook with laughter, clearly enjoying Hei Sha’s predicament. “Yeah, you’re absolutely right.”

Then he added, “But if that young master really is from a wealthy family, let’s see if you can still act so righteous when they come after you.”

As he spoke, Qing Wu, who had been standing on Hei Sha’s right, suddenly looked worried. He furrowed his brow and asked Bai Yuan, “Does that person really have connections?”

“Who knows?” Bai Yuan shrugged, his expression sobering. “But judging by his attire, he doesn’t seem like an ordinary person. You know Jiu Yao County is full of hidden experts. There are plenty of influential people who keep a low profile. For all we know, that young master might really come from a powerful background.”

Hearing this, Qing Wu’s brow furrowed even more.

Even Hei Sha, who had been confident a moment ago, was now less certain. He exchanged awkward glances with Qing Wu, scratched his head, and muttered, “It can’t be that much of a coincidence, right?”

Despite his words, the atmosphere between the three men became noticeably tense.

By evening, when everyone heading into the Pit of Ten Thousand Serpents had left, the crowd gathered around its edge gradually dispersed.

To traverse the Pit of Ten Thousand Serpents without detours, it would take about two days—if one was a Golden Core stage cultivator and if it were spring or summer, when the snow had melted.

But with the forest now covered in heavy snow, making the journey even more treacherous, it would likely take three to four days to make it out safely.

The onlookers had no intention of standing around in the cold for days. After watching everyone enter, they simply planned to wait on the other side of the pit. In the end, who managed to pass through the pit and who came out first would be clear for all to see.

As such, after watching the excitement of the first day, Hei Sha, Bai Yuan, and Qing Wu went straight to the temporary pavilion that Wan Ji had set up on the other side of the pit.

On the fifth level of the pavilion, after passing through a brightly lit hall, they saw a beautiful woman lying on a spacious couch, big enough to hold four or five people. She was dressed in a thin, black gauze.

The woman lay on her side, her snow-white hand supporting her head. Long strands of black hair cascaded down her shoulder. Even in such a casual posture, she exuded a seductive charm, her curvy waist drawing particular attention.

At the sight of her, Hei Sha and the others couldn’t tear their eyes away.

Noticing their arrival, Wan Ji lazily opened her beautiful fox-like eyes and glanced at them, her gaze barely there. “What is it?”

Wan Ji had a naturally husky voice, which, far from diminishing her beauty, added to her allure and sensuality, becoming one of her trademarks.

Hearing her voice, Hei Sha and the others felt their hearts pounding in their chests.

After some hesitant pushing among themselves, Hei Sha finally spoke up. “Lady Wan Ji, Ming Sui from the Medical Hall and Qi Heng from the Spirit Pill Sect have entered the Pit of Ten Thousand Serpents.”

“Oh,” Wan Ji said indifferently, “Let them go.”

Hei Sha added, “There are also about ten Foundation Establishment cultivators, two of whom are from the righteous sects, training near Kunlun Mountain.”

“What?” Wan Ji asked in surprise. “Is that true?”

“Absolutely!”

Wan Ji sat up, her black gauze slipping to reveal part of her chest. Narrowing her fox-like eyes, she stared at Hei Sha for a moment before letting out a light laugh. “How interesting.”

Seeing this, Hei Sha was immediately enchanted. He chuckled. “Lady Wan Ji’s fame is widespread. Everyone wants a glimpse of your beauty, even if it means risking their lives to enter the Pit of Ten Thousand Serpents. Not just the righteous sect disciples—I even ran into two young ones today, neither older than twenty. One is in the middle stages of Qi Refinement, and the other hasn’t even begun cultivating. Yet, to keep up with the others, they plunged into the pit without hesitation.”

“Not even started cultivating?” Wan Ji remarked, “That’s just an ordinary person, then.”

Hei Sha nodded, “Exactly, an ordinary person.”

Wan Ji clicked her tongue. “An ordinary person daring to enter the Pit of Ten Thousand Serpents? They’re tired of living, aren’t they?”

Hei Sha quickly flattered her, “Everyone entering the pit is hoping for a stroke of luck. If they can pass through it, even at the cost of their life, it’s worth the gamble.”

Wan Ji chuckled and lay back down, closing her eyes once more. The corners of her mouth curled up in a disdainful smile. “Relying on luck? Foolish.”

Even if someone truly was chosen by the heavens, so what?

Even if someone truly made it through the Pit of Ten Thousand Serpents by luck, so what?

Even if someone was the first to appear before her, so what?

If Wan Ji didn’t want someone, who could force her to accept them?

Did they really think they could be her man without knowing their own worth?

•

Inside the Pit of Ten Thousand Serpents, Mi Lu and HuLü Yan were moving with ease.

After claiming Ming De Yi’s storage ring as his own, HuLü Yan used spiritual energy to forcibly open it. Inside were ten years’ worth of heavenly treasures and high-level magical artifacts Ming De Yi had accumulated. Randomly grabbing a few from the ring was enough to ensure their safe passage for quite a while.

HuLü Yan showed no signs of being frugal. As they walked, he used one artifact after another and discarded them just as casually, as if he were throwing away ordinary stones rather than rare and highly sought-after magical items.

At first, Mi Lu felt a twinge of pain watching this, but after glancing a few more times at the storage ring, which was still packed full of treasures, he eventually became numb to it.

They had also taken several embroidered pouches from Wei Sheng and his companions. Aside from the defensive artifacts they had used to deal with the Red Fire Wolf and the Eight-Eyed Chicken, most of the items inside hadn’t been touched.

Even the silver ingot Mi Lu had given away earlier was just a small piece of the mountain of gold and silver stored in Wei Sheng’s pouch.

In a sense, they were both rather wealthy now.

Along the way, they encountered several of Wan Ji’s other admirers, but these people viewed everyone else as enemies, drawing their swords at the first sight of each other, determined to fight to the death.

While those people were busy fighting, Mi Lu pulled HuLü Yan into hiding.

He kept searching for Ming Sui, but seeing no sign of him and unable to ask those around him for directions, he continued moving forward.

Though the Pit of Ten Thousand Serpents was a treacherous place, it was also full of rare and strange creatures.

As night began to fall on their first day in the pit, HuLü Yan caught a creature that resembled a rabbit, though it was much larger—Mi Lu had to use both hands to hold it. Its fur was dark gray, and its eyes were so red they seemed almost purple.

Seeing the large rabbit struggling in HuLü Yan’s arms, Mi Lu felt a bit uneasy.

But HuLü Yan didn’t hesitate for a second. With just a few swift movements, he skinned the rabbit.

Mi Lu: “…”

Ignoring the strong scent of blood, HuLü Yan took a dagger from Mi Lu’s pouch, sliced open the rabbit’s belly, and skillfully removed a golden bead from inside. Without a second glance, he tossed the bead to Mi Lu.

Mi Lu caught the bead and took a closer look, his eyes widening in shock. He nearly dropped it.

It was a demon beast’s Golden Core!

It was clearly a newly formed Golden Core, not yet grown to full size.

But it was still a Golden Core!

So, that large rabbit was actually a Golden Core stage demon beast? And HuLü Yan had just casually killed a Golden Core stage demon beast?

Mi Lu was so shocked his mind went blank.

It took him a long time to snap out of it, and when he did, he slowly put the demon beast’s Golden Core into his storage pouch.

A fully grown demon beast’s Golden Core could be exchanged for a hundred high-level spirit stones. And one high-level spirit stone could be traded for a hundred ingots of silver. For an ordinary cultivator, obtaining a demon beast’s Golden Core was like striking it rich.

Even this newly formed core was worth half a fortune.

Yet HuLü Yan hadn’t even bothered to look at it before tossing it to him.

Mi Lu suddenly realized that HuLü Yan seemed to have no concept of wealth or property. Perhaps it was related to his past, but Mi Lu knew nothing about HuLü Yan’s history.

All he knew was that HuLü Yan had been abandoned as a child and wasn’t found by the HuLü family until he was thirteen. As for what had happened in those thirteen years, no one cared.

And it wasn’t clear if he was overthinking it, but Mi Lu had a feeling that HuLü Yan had some connection with the Medical Hall, though he clearly remembered that HuLü Yan had only come into contact with them after being sacrificed.

Could HuLü Yan have known the people from the Medical Hall before that?

While Mi Lu was lost in thought, HuLü Yan had already finished preparing the large rabbit.

HuLü Yan asked him, “Where’s your stove?”

Mi Lu suddenly remembered that he had bought a self-igniting stove.

So that’s why HuLü Yan had caught the rabbit.

Mi Lu took the stove, along with some pots and pans, out of his storage pouch. Unfortunately, his experience with cooking was zero, and he only vaguely remembered the right amount of seasonings to use.

After fumbling around for a while, he finally managed to roast the rabbit.

He cut off a small piece and put it in his mouth.

It wasn’t bad.

He cut another small piece and handed it to HuLü Yan.

HuLü Yan took it without a word, chewed without expression, and finally swallowed without any reaction.

Mi Lu looked at him nervously. “How is it?”

HuLü Yan, still expressionless, said, “Edible.”

Mi Lu: “…”

He was much cuter when he didn’t talk.

Oh no.

How had he already started missing the days when HuLü Yan couldn’t speak?

As night deepened, Mi Lu and HuLü Yan finished off the rabbit, and Mi Lu quickly put the stove and utensils back into his storage pouch.

Although the light from the stove wasn’t very bright, it could still attract unwanted attention.

The jungle at night was often more dangerous than during the day.

Mi Lu curled up in his blanket, drowsily watching HuLü Yan’s silhouette, which was fading into the darkness.

There were still many things he wanted to ask—

For example, why was HuLü Yan looking for Ming Sui?

Or, did HuLü Yan have any past connections with the people from the Medical Hall?

And, how powerful was HuLü Yan’s cultivation, really?

But he knew asking was pointless. HuLü Yan was still keeping his guard up and wouldn’t answer any of his questions.

As he closed his eyes, he still couldn’t sense HuLü Yan’s cultivation. He wasn’t sure if his own level was just too low, or if HuLü Yan simply had no cultivation at all.

As Mi Lu’s thoughts began to drift, he suddenly heard HuLü Yan get up.

He quickly opened his eyes. “HuLü Yan?”

HuLü Yan moved swiftly, leaving the blanket and slipping behind a tree. In a low voice, he said, “Someone’s coming.”

Mi Lu couldn’t sense anything, but he didn’t dare be careless. He slipped out of his blanket and quietly hid behind HuLü Yan.

Soon, the sound of footsteps crunching through the snow reached them.

Someone was coming.

And it wasn’t just one person.

Mi Lu tried to suppress his presence as much as possible, nervously staring in the direction of the sound.

Then, unexpectedly, the footsteps stopped.

Mi Lu froze, wondering if the two people had noticed them.

The Pit of Ten Thousand Serpents was different from the outside world. Outside, those with higher cultivation could easily sense those with lower cultivation. But inside the pit, there were many external factors that interfered. If they stayed still, it wouldn’t be easy for someone with higher cultivation to detect their presence.

Just as Mi Lu was hesitating whether to make a run for it, another sound came from the direction of the footsteps.

But it wasn’t the sound of footsteps.

It was—

“Ah…” A seductive male voice, a mix of pleasure and pain, laced with heavy breathing. “Not here…”

Mi Lu: “…”

Before his brain could even process what was happening, his body instinctively raised his hand and covered HuLü Yan’s ears.