This just goes to show you can't trust rumors, especially one Tu Xiao'an had overheard from a young couple having a secret affair.

The choice between left and right, laid out before Tu Xiao'an, was proving to be a real dilemma.

It was as if one path led to life, and the other to death.

A correct choice would bring a reward; a wrong one would send him to his grave.

Tu Xiao'an was caught in a dilemma. He hadn't come all the way down into this underwater grotto in the middle of the night just to leave empty-handed. That would be a huge waste.

Merely devouring a few Fish Demon Giant Snakes was hardly enough to satisfy Tu Xiao'an's appetite.

Most importantly, the Fish Demon Giant Snakes had vanished the moment he revealed his snake form. 'Seriously? Is that how it's going to be?'

'What a waste of my human form. Another "outfit" down the drain.'

'I'll go left.' Tu Xiao'an felt he had a certain affinity with the left. Why? Because he had obtained the Snake King's Left Eye.

The reason wasn't exactly solid, but whatever.

His mind made up, Tu Xiao'an began to drag his colossal snake body toward the left passage. But before he could even move, the desolate sound of a flute drifted out, faint and haunting.

It was as if it were reminding him that he had chosen the wrong direction.

'The flute is coming from the right.'

Tu Xiao'an's gaze sharpened as he looked toward the right passage. The sound of the flute grew stronger and stronger, crashing down like a waterfall.

Subtly, it seemed to be calling out, 'Come in... come in...'

Finding the invitation too gracious to refuse, Tu Xiao'an twisted his serpentine body and swam toward the right passage.

'Besides, the flute was what I came for in the first place.'

It was a little eerie, but Tu Xiao'an had nothing to fear.

'So what if it's a lion's den?'

Upon swimming inside, he found the waters ahead filled with twinkling specks of light. Something was emitting a faint glow, creating a magnificent, dreamlike scene.

As Tu Xiao'an swam closer, he was surprised to see they were jellyfish.

Countless jellyfish drifted through the water like a host of floating lanterns, bathing the area in a beautiful glow. They were crystalline and translucent, with umbrella-shaped bodies twenty to thirty centimeters long. Their forms were milky white and soft as silk, trailing countless tentacles as they swam with a serene and carefree grace.

It was a truly beautiful sight. Their colors constantly shifted as they glowed in the water. Some shimmered with a faint, pale green or blue-violet light, while others were surrounded by a rainbow-like halo. As they drifted through the water, each one became a dazzling, colorful orb.

Tu Xiao'an watched, mesmerized. A thought suddenly struck him: how could these jellyfish possibly survive in such a perilous grotto?

Watching them swim so freely, it seemed they were living quite the good life.

However, as far as Tu Xiao'an knew, these small aquatic creatures had extremely short lifespans, likely only a few months.

When Tu Xiao'an, in his colossal Giant Snake form, swam past, the scattered jellyfish showed no fear. On the contrary, they wiggled their tentacles as if celebrating the arrival of a delicious meal.

Their tentacles were relatively short, but despite their length, they were covered in venomous stingers. Each tentacle was like a Poison Sword, and each jellyfish was like a warrior wielding a sharp blade, ever ready to strike its enemies.

BZZT BZZT BZZT...

The swarm of jellyfish moved, attaching themselves all over Tu Xiao'an's Snake Scales. It seemed they truly saw him as a meal.

The sight left Tu Xiao'an a bit speechless. They were such beautiful little creatures; he didn't have the heart to kill them.

'They're too weak. There's no need to kill them.'

'But why are they swarming me like this?'

'With only a few months to live, are they already tired of life?'

He felt a scraping sensation on his Snake Scales. 'These jellyfish are asking for it.'

Tu Xiao'an smirked. His Snake Scales were nigh-indestructible. Did these jellyfish really think they could break through?

From the distant depths, the flute's song remained faint and desolate. Tu Xiao'an suddenly gave his serpentine body a violent shake. The water churned, and the glowing jellyfish went out like extinguished lamps, plummeting one by one through the water.

'Sigh... what was the point?'

'Was that supposed to be a trial?'

'You should've just stuck to being beautiful. Why get into the killing business?'

Tu Xiao'an swam swiftly toward the depths ahead. The flute's call rose and fell in waves. In a daze, he thought he heard a woman's voice calling out: "I... want... out... I... want... to... see... the... sun... again..."

'Was that real? Or just an illusion?'

Tu Xiao'an frowned. The ethereal voice made no sound; it was more like a faint, barely-there ripple entering his mind. He couldn't be certain he'd heard anything at all.

He swam on. With a sudden flex of his serpentine body, he shot forward, covering a huge distance in an instant.

Ten minutes or so later, Tu Xiao'an saw them—hundreds of Fish Demon Giant Snakes. Each one was over ten meters long, a ferocious and terrifying sight.

'So this is where all the Fish Demon Giant Snakes were hiding.'

This was also the source of the flute's song.

Upon seeing the thirty-meter Purple Gold Snake up ahead, the hundreds of Fish Demon Giant Snakes were struck with fear. In a single, panicked herd, they charged in his direction.

Tu Xiao'an didn't move. He paid the hundreds of Fish Demon Giant Snakes no mind, knowing full well the water monsters weren't trying to attack him. They were just trying to escape, to get as far away from him as possible.

They were fierce and terrifying, but they were also intelligent, possessing a degree of sapience. They wouldn't throw their lives away for nothing.

In his human form, Tu Xiao'an would have been ferociously attacked by these Fish Demon Giant Snakes, prevented from swimming a single meter further. But the sight of a thirty-meter Purple Gold Snake sent them into a trembling panic.

They were preoccupied with their escape, and Tu Xiao'an didn't bother to chase or devour them. His attention was completely captivated by the scene up ahead.

There seemed to be a Barrier there—a pocket of vacuum within the water, shimmering with ripples that cordoned it off from everything else.

It didn't obstruct his vision, however.

What did Tu Xiao'an see? Inside the Barrier, within a cave, a pink skeleton was dancing gracefully as the melodious sound of the flute flowed from it.

So this was the source of the flute music.

The cave was filled with strange, haphazardly strewn rocks. Amidst them, a single pink skeleton played its flute and danced. The scene was bizarre enough to shatter a person's entire worldview.

'An Ancient Array? A Barrier?'

'Suppression? A living skeleton?'

Tu Xiao'an felt an urge to scream. This was no ordinary skeleton.

Its frame was crystalline and brilliant, absolutely dazzling. At a glance, every single bone looked as if it were carved from the finest Jade, yet there were no tool marks upon them. They seemed entirely natural.

"You've finally arrived..."

The flute music stopped. A hollow, feminine voice emanated from the pink skeleton.

Tu Xiao'an's mind went blank. What a surreal, ghostly scene.

'What in the hell is this thing being suppressed inside the Barrier?'

'It's just a skeleton, but it's still alive.'

A dense, ancient aura washed over him. 'Has it been trapped in this Barrier for too long?'

'So long that all its flesh has rotted away, leaving only bone?'

"What in the world are you?"

The voice that came from the Purple Gold Snake's mouth was Tu Xiao'an's.

In all of Tu Xiao'an's experience so far, he only knew of humans, Demons, and Awakened Creatures.

'Does this pink skeleton before my eyes belong to some kind of ghost category?'

'Holy shit...'

Even finding a slumbering Dragon inside wouldn't have surprised Tu Xiao'an this much.