Chapter 17: Gathering of Serpents

"It's been over half a month—where on earth have those two gone?" In the Serpent Den, Ma Buti turned to Ma Buting, his voice thick with suspicion.

A few days prior, the two had followed Wan Guxiao into the Serpent Den, intending to use him to hunt down Lu Sheng and unearth the secrets of Blackstone Island. At first, they had spotted Lu Sheng’s trail and memorized his aura, but once Lu Sheng concealed himself using a special liquid, they lost all trace of him.

That in itself wasn’t too troubling. Ma Buti had marked Wan Guxiao with a distinctive scent, so if Wan Guxiao tried to capture Lu Sheng, they could close in immediately. Because of this, they had been biding their time, searching the den meticulously.

What they hadn't expected was that Wan Guxiao not only refrained from capturing Lu Sheng, but instead stirred up the serpents and insects, creating chaos and hampering their every move. Frustrated, the brothers considered attacking Wan Guxiao, but he slipped away from every attempt.

After more than ten days of this, they found, to their dismay, that the scent marker on Wan Guxiao had vanished. Having already lost Lu Sheng, losing Wan Guxiao as well would make their presence in the Serpent Den meaningless.

"Could it be that Wan Guxiao caught Lu Sheng long ago and has been playing hide and seek with us, using the chaos to transfer Lu Sheng elsewhere?" Ma Buti speculated, his suspicion fueled by Wan Guxiao’s strange behavior.

"It's possible, but unlikely," Ma Buting replied. He, too, had considered the possibility, but on reflection found it improbable. "Lu Sheng is no weakling. He hid in the stone cave for over a month. Wan Guxiao would have a hard time capturing him. Some of the dead snakes we found along the way—weren’t they killed by him?"

As they moved through the den, they had encountered many snakes and insects under Wan Guxiao’s control. To avoid surprises, they killed any they saw. In the process, they discovered several serpents with their gallbladders removed, bearing traces of Lu Sheng’s aura. It was clear these were his handiwork.

"Too bad the lad stopped killing snakes lately. Otherwise, we’d have tracked him down by now," Ma Buti sighed. The cramped, stifling den was the last place he wished to be—he had waited outside for over a month before finally entering.

"There's no point dwelling on it. We should focus on what to do next," Ma Buting counseled. He, too, disliked this place, but with their connection to Wan Guxiao severed, leaving now would mean losing all sense of what was happening inside.

"What else can we do but—" Ma Buti began, but stopped short when his elder brother signaled him with a gesture.

He was about to ask when a sudden chorus of hissing and slithering sounds reached his ears, startling him. "What’s going on? How is Wan Guxiao controlling so many snakes?" Over the past days, he and Ma Buting had fought countless times with the creatures under Wan Guxiao's command. He was familiar with the sounds of their movement, but this swarm seemed unusually large.

"It doesn’t sound like his doing," Ma Buting replied, shaking his head. With his sharpened hearing, he listened intently and his expression grew grave. "It seems all the serpents in the den are on the move, gathering in one place."

"Where?" Ma Buti asked.

"Below the den—somewhere with water," Ma Buting answered, hearing the splash of snakes entering water.

"There’s water beneath the den? Isn’t there supposed to be lava?" Ma Buti exclaimed. Blackstone Island was formed from volcanic eruptions, hence the abundance of obsidian. He had assumed the mountain’s core held only molten rock, not water.

"It's definitely water—a sizable pool, by the sound of it," Ma Buting confirmed, still listening.

"Why would the snakes gather there? Could there be some hidden secret in that pool?" Ma Buti mused. Suddenly, an idea occurred to him and he brightened. "Even if there’s no secret, with all the snakes converging, Wan Guxiao and Lu Sheng are likely to go there—we might finally catch their trail!"

"It's possible. Let’s go have a look," Ma Buting agreed, and together they set off in the direction of the gathering serpents. As Grandmasters, they were more than a match for second-tier beasts and could shield themselves with their martial energy. No matter how many ordinary serpents filled the den, as long as their energy held, they had little to fear.

This, after all, was why they dared to pursue the massing snakes without hesitation.

---

"Ah, a spirit herb is ripening—that's why the serpents are gathering!" Elsewhere in the den, Wan Guxiao, his body reeking of strange scents, also sensed the movement. With his life-bound gu controlling the serpents, he quickly discerned the cause and was overjoyed.

"Haha! I suspected there was a secret behind the repeated appearance of demon pythons on this island. So, the Lu family of Blackstone Island are the herb guardians!"

With the island's secret confirmed, Wan Guxiao knew the Lu family must understand the spirit herb better than anyone, but he no longer cared. The Ma brothers were the real threat.

"Ma Buting and Ma Buti are both Grandmasters. Though Ma Buting is still recovering from his wounds, his strength is comparable to mine. If they split up, one could hold me off while the other seizes the herb."

"So, the key this time lies with you." Stroking the blue serpent in his hand, Wan Guxiao muttered to himself. Thanks to his relentless efforts in refining gu these past days, the snake had finally advanced to a second-tier beast and could now pose a real threat to Grandmasters.

This was his greatest trump card.

---

"Eighty years... it has finally matured?" Deep within the den, sensing the disturbance, Lu Sheng sighed, his eyes glimmering in the darkness.

He had long known the Lu family’s secret from the inscription on the obsidian dagger’s cloth wrapping. His original plan had been to leave the Serpent Den and sneak back in from another entrance to retrieve the herb quietly when it matured. Now, however, he was out of time.

"For it to ripen now—what terrible timing!" He thought of his current level, merely a Master, and the covetous eyes of Wan Guxiao and the Ma brothers. He could only sigh and steel himself.

"So be it. I’ll fight for it. Let’s hope the formation my great-grandfather left behind still works!"

He had no personal need for the herb, but for the sake of the Lu family, who had guarded it for eighty years, he resolved to make a stand and not let it fall into enemy hands.