Chapter 468: If It’s Not Working, I Have Some Medicine
Han Lie used his knowledge of the royal palace to escape outside its walls.
But just as he hid in the woods, he was discovered by Sunxuan.
Han Lie hid behind a large tree, sensing the powerful aura behind him. An instinctual fear of the strong made his body tremble uncontrollably.
A massive snake’s head slowly materialized behind him. The hand Han Lie had placed on the tree instantly went rigid.
He whipped his head around and suddenly met Sunxuan’s crimson, reptilian eyes. Terrified, he spun around, shifting into his snake form to flee in the other direction.
However, the cyan-colored snake was quickly forced out of the darkness.
Moonlight spilled down, illuminating three massive snake bodies. Compared to Sunxuan and Sunxiao, Han Lie’s serpentine form was noticeably smaller. The other two’s beast forms were like two mountains, bearing down on him with oppressive weight.
Han Lie wanted to retreat, but there was no escape route behind him.
"You can’t kill me! I’m a witch doctor of Beast King City, and the Beast King’s most favored beast-husband! If I die, the Beast King will never let you go!"
The crimson reptilian eyes narrowed. Sunxiao’s massive body slowly rose, and just as Han Lie tried to say more, he suddenly opened his cavernous mouth and lunged.
Han Lie tried to dodge, but the moment he moved, he was intercepted by Sunxuan. Sunxiao seized the cyan snake’s body in a single bite and swallowed it whole.
Sunxuan turned his serpentine body to face Sunxiao, seemingly displeased. "You’re just like when you were little, always swallowing everything whole."
Sunxiao’s reptilian eyes shifted. He changed back into his human form and, ignoring Sunxuan, turned to leave.
Seeing this, Sunxuan also shifted into his human form and followed behind him.
"Sunxiao, I’m your father!"
Sunxiao’s steps faltered for a moment, but he didn’t stop.
Seeing that his son was ignoring him, Sunxuan resignedly hurried to catch up.
"Do you have any cubs? Our line of Titanoboas has always had difficulty producing heirs. It was only because I, your father, was so capable back then that we had you. You..."
Sunxiao froze, casting an indifferent glance at him with his reptilian eyes.
Sunxuan interpreted the look to mean he had struck a nerve.
Sunxuan sighed. "I have some medicine. You should try it. At least you’ll have a cub of your own."
Sunxiao stopped abruptly, a coldness rising in his features.
"What if you do have one? It’s not like you cared whether he lived or died."
Sunxuan frowned. "Back then, I was trapped by a curse and hunted by those vicious beasts. I fell to the bottom of a cliff with you, but those beasts had no intention of letting us go. I had no choice. I had to use the last bit of my beast soul energy to lure them away..."
"But afterward, the curse still consumed me. I almost died. Fortunately, the Holy Priest happened to pass by and saved me. By the time I woke up again, a long time had passed."
"After I recovered, I wanted to go back and find you, but I couldn’t find any trace of you."
Sunxuan clenched his fists. "Sunxiao, I know it couldn’t have been easy for you to grow up. No matter the reason, you have every right to resent me. Now, seeing that the curse in your body has disappeared and that you’ve even bonded with a female... I have no more regrets."
The cool moonlight dappled Sunxiao’s indifferent profile. He no longer had a very deep impression of being abandoned back then.
The dark times when he, as a child, had struggled countless times between life and death—all of that had been cast aside after meeting Qiao Xixi.
So, upon seeing Sunxuan again, his initial shock and resentment had also dissipated.
"I know. You’re so long-winded."
The cold words made the light in Sunxuan’s eyes dim bit by bit, but he quickly chased after him again.
"So, should I go back and get the medicine for you? You’re handsome, and the female Qiao Xixi is beautiful. Any cub you two have would definitely be beautiful too."
Sunxiao thought of the little face that looked almost identical to his own, and the coldness in his expression melted away.
"Qiao Lie... is good-looking."
Sunxuan was about to say more, but when he heard this, he stopped dead in his tracks, his eyes widening in astonishment.
"What? Qiao Lie? Who’s Qiao Lie?"
Sunxiao had already walked away.
Sunxuan quickened his pace to chase after him. "Sunxiao, explain yourself! Is Qiao Lie your cub?!"
Sunxiao returned to Feather Palace and went to the rear courtyard to wash up. After rinsing off the scent of blood, he returned to the front courtyard and pushed open the door of the stone house.
The moment he entered, he saw Qiao Xixi sitting up in bed, her eyes heavy with sleep.
Sunxiao’s body, chilled by the night air, was instantly enveloped by her warmth.
"You’re back."
Qiao Xixi started to get out of bed but was scooped up into Sunxiao’s arms. Feeling the chill of his body, she instinctively flinched, but she could no longer smell any blood on him.
"How did it go? Did you catch Han Lie?"
"Mhm. He’s dead."
Qiao Xixi blinked. "Letting him die just like that... he got off easy."
Sunxiao held her as he placed her back on the bed. "It’s late. Let’s sleep."
Qiao Xixi had been so tired she’d already fallen asleep, but she had been worried about Sunxiao, so she hadn’t slept deeply. Now that he was back, she could finally relax. After he lay down, she snuggled into his embrace.
Just as she was drifting off, Qiao Xixi felt his cool, gentle kiss land on the corner of her lips, filled with contentment and joy.
When Qiao Xixi woke up, the sun was already high in the sky, and Sunxiao was long gone.
As she finished dressing and left the house, she saw Xijing closing the courtyard gate and walking back.
"Xijing, were you out so early in the morning?"
Xijing walked over to her and tucked a stray strand of her hair behind her ear before speaking. "Jin Ling and the Beast King have left the royal palace."
"What are they leaving the palace for?"
Xijing said, "The Holy Priest is going to completely release the beast soul that was used to suppress the monsters. Once the beast soul is released, the remaining monsters will follow the dark energy to its source. Then, they can follow the monsters to find out who stole the power of the Dark Crystal."
"Won’t it be risky?"
"Don’t worry. With the Ten Beast Guards, plus the Holy Priest and the Beast King, nothing will go wrong."
"Okay."
As Yun Ji’s beast soul energy was completely released, the monsters that had been suppressed underground surged out. Unlike before, however, their numbers were far, far smaller.
Yun Ji and the others watched the monsters crawl out, but they didn’t move to kill them, instead allowing them to clamber away.
"Follow them."
This time, the monsters showed no intention of attacking the beastmen. They were like starved prisoners, desperate to find the source that would replenish their energy and sate their hunger.
Meanwhile, in an inconspicuous stone house in Beast King City, a large hand was clamped ruthlessly on Kunlin’s head. A stream of dark power was being continuously drawn from Kunlin’s body into that large hand.
Only when the very last wisp of dark power had been drained did the hand slowly release its grip.
The figure hidden in the shadows slowly stepped out from the darkness.
Jin Wei stared at the power he had absorbed into his hand, a sinister smirk touching his eyes.