Upon hearing this, Leng Shuang glanced over with a cold, surprised look. She watched as the Purple Gold Snake shrank at a speed visible to the naked eye, becoming a mere centimeter long and levitating in the air.

"You knew I would come?" After her initial surprise, Leng Shuang moved with elegant grace to face the Snake Spirit. She said with contempt, "Don't tell me you knew all along I was using you."

Tu Xiao'an glanced at the Snake Flood Dragon, which hadn't risen as he had, and replied coldly, "The great and mighty Demon Management Bureau can instantly detect a Snake Spirit like me the moment I arrive in Wencheng, yet you can't find one hiding out in a village? That's a bit hard to swallow, wouldn't you say?"

'Wencheng is a massive city, and even I couldn't hide from them. Yet this Leng Shuang had the audacity to claim they couldn't find the Snake Spirit causing all this chaos? Does that even make sense?'

'And on top of that, they needed help from a Snake Spirit like me? It was completely illogical. Doesn't the Demon Management Bureau care about its reputation? Are they really that incompetent?'

The only explanation was that this woman had an ulterior motive.

Clad in white, Leng Shuang was a figure of peerless beauty. "It seems you aren't such a stupid Snake Spirit after all. Why don't you tell me, then? Why would I do this?"

"That's simple. You must have realized the creature causing all this chaos wasn't some mere Snake Spirit, but a Rank Three Snake Flood Dragon. That's why you wanted to take it all for yourself. You want its Lifebound Golden Core."

'Tu Xiao'an had heard Dr. Snake mention before that Human Martial Cultivators often used Awakened Creatures for Alchemy to rapidly increase their strength.'

An Awakened creature like a Rank Three Snake Flood Dragon was a transcendent being. Any part of its body was an incredible tonic for humans.

Furthermore, having achieved the Rank Three Dao, it contained a Lifebound Golden Core—a fatal temptation for any living creature.

Devouring a Grade Three Lifebound Golden Core would cause one's strength to skyrocket.

Leng Shuang must have deliberately not reported the Rank Three Snake Flood Dragon's rampage to the Demon Management Bureau, choosing to cleverly conceal the truth instead.

She planned to deal with the Snake Flood Dragon herself, completely in secret, and then hoard the spoils.

But a Rank Three Snake Flood Dragon was incredibly powerful; there was no way she could have handled it on her own.

So, she needed to find a powerful assistant. But within the Demon Management Bureau, anyone she partnered with would demand a fifty-fifty split, and there would always be a risk of her secret being exposed.

Finding a newcomer Snake Spirit like Tu Xiao'an, however, was the perfect solution.

She had a complete read on his background, he was powerful, and he could help her locate the Snake Flood Dragon. Then, if all went according to plan, once the Flood Dragon was dealt with, she could kill the snake to tie up loose ends.

One snake, one Flood Dragon—both would become her prey, turned into Spirit Medicine for her Cultivation.

Leng Shuang had planned her little scheme perfectly.

And as it turned out, her plan had unfolded even more smoothly than she'd imagined. The Snake Spirit she recruited had nearly finished off the Rank Three Snake Flood Dragon all by himself.

He was terrifyingly strong.

But that was even better. Now, everything seemed absolutely perfect.

More perfect than she could have ever expected.

Having been exposed by Tu Xiao'an, Leng Shuang remained utterly unfazed. Her voice was as cold as frost itself. "In light of the great service you've performed for me, I'll give you one chance. Sign a Blood Contract, acknowledge me as your master, and I won't kill you."

"Hahaha..." Tu Xiao'an burst out laughing. "You want me to acknowledge you as my master? Do you really think you're worthy?"

'In the entire world, who was worthy of making him—a Snake King blessed by the System—acknowledge them as master?'

Ambition flared in Leng Shuang's eyes. "Once I have this Rank Three Snake Flood Dragon's Lifebound Golden Core, I won't be settling for some mere team leader position in the Demon Management Bureau. Even becoming the Director will be well within my reach!"

Tu Xiao'an was startled. 'This woman's ambition is huge. I've never actually seen what she's truly capable of.'

'Insight.'

"Ding... Leng Shuang, Leader of Team Two, Demon Management Bureau. Level 29 Martial Cultivator. An exceptionally talented Awakener who wields Elemental Frost Power."

'Holy hell...'

'A woman this young is already Level 29?'

It was true what they say: ambition and strength were directly proportional.

'She wants the Rank Three Snake Flood Dragon's Lifebound Golden Core... Is she trying to break through and become one of the Rank Three Creatures?'

'If she succeeds, her power will surge, and the status of a mere team leader will be far beneath her.'

'This is the first time I've ever seen a woman with such immense ambition.' Tu Xiao'an was beginning to realize just how deep the waters ran in the city. The woman before him was stunning, probably the most beautiful and elegant woman he had ever seen.

But her scheming nature was utterly chilling.

She had been scheming against him since before they'd even met, manipulating him until he ended up in this godforsaken village.

A woman like that, no matter how beautiful, could never be described as "lovely."

Suddenly...

"Ding... The Snake King's majesty shall not be trampled. Mission: Devour the Human Awakened and break through your self-imposed restraints. Success: You may absorb the target's Ice Frost Power. Failure: Lose ten Levels."

'What!'

'The System triggered a mission?'

Tu Xiao'an was stunned. 'The System wants me to devour this woman?'

Ever since the beginning of his new life as a snake, Tu Xiao'an had never once eaten a person. Although his body was that of a snake, his soul was still human.

He wasn't like a Vampire Snake, which would devour anything—including human flesh and blood—to increase its strength.

'Break through my self-imposed restraints?'

'Does the System think I'm not a proper snake? That I'm too hesitant?'

A snake should be fierce, ruthless, and decisive. It could lie in ambush for days and nights just for a single meal.

When it strikes, it does so without hesitation, its bite instantly fatal.

But Tu Xiao'an, despite being a snake capable of devouring any creature, had never dared to consume a human being.

He couldn't overcome that mental barrier because he himself had once been human.

This woman had not only schemed against him but now intended to kill him. Her actions had ignited a genuine killing intent within Tu Xiao'an.

Even so, he still couldn't bring himself to transform into a giant snake and swallow her whole.

He couldn't be like that Hu Snake, who had so cruelly devoured Jia Liu out of revenge.

For Tu Xiao'an, eating a person was like pulling the trigger to kill someone for the very first time. He couldn't do it. He couldn't overcome the psychological barrier.

But once that line was crossed, once that barrier was broken, it would become trivial.

The System wanted him to understand that he was a snake now—a Snake King who had already ascended his throne.

If he wanted to attain the Dao, he had to be ruthless and decisive. He had to devour any enemy that stood in his way, regardless of who or what they were.

Besides...

It wasn't as if he had a choice. This mission came with a penalty for failure. If he didn't devour this woman, he would be punished with the loss of ten Levels.

He was currently Level 26; he would be knocked straight down to Level 16.

The penalty was too severe. It would be like having his Martial Arts crippled.

Devouring a person—especially one as peerlessly beautiful as her—was an incredibly difficult thing for Tu Xiao'an to contemplate.

"If you refuse to acknowledge me as your master, then I'll have no choice but to dispose of you along with this Snake Flood Dragon."

Her voice was crisp and melodious, yet it was laced with cold, ruthless killing intent. In her original plan, she had never intended to let this Snake Spirit survive.

As Tu Xiao'an struggled with his indecision, her voice cut through his thoughts, carrying not a trace of emotion.

Tu Xiao'an's eyes snapped open, his Snake Pupils glinting with an unusual light. In that instant, something within him awakened.

This was a world where the strong devoured the weak.

If he didn't kill others, they would kill him—without hesitation, without mercy.

Killing them, devouring them... what was the difference? There was no difference.

Mercy toward his enemies was cruelty to himself.

Then let the Devouring begin. It was time to become a true serpent.