After wandering around the countless palaces and pavilions of Hua Mountain for several days, the white serpent finally grasped the general situation.
Pure Yang Palace, said to have been founded by an immortal of great power, was the revered guardian sect of the Great Tang Empire. With profound heritage, countless experts, and numerous ascended immortals, it was the undisputed number one sect in the world.
It was roughly divided into five branches:
Jade Void (玉虚), led by Sect Master Li Xiangyan.
Gold Void (金虚), under Gu Cangyu.
Spirit Void (灵虚), led by Jiang Li.
Purple Void (紫虚), under Qi Yun.
And finally, Clear Void (清虚), Yu Rong’s branch.
Each branch occupied its own peak, and the serpent currently resided in Clear Void Palace.
Almost everyone in the world dreamed of joining Pure Yang as a child—to cultivate immortality and seek the Dao. However, due to innate limitations, only one in ten thousand could enter the mountain. Those who made it were all extraordinary talents, the kind whose spiritual potential couldn’t be suppressed even by a coffin lid.
As the foremost righteous sect, Pure Yang Palace was deeply respected by the world. Its disciples upheld justice, virtue, and righteousness. Whenever evil cultivators or demons wreaked havoc, Pure Yang disciples would descend the mountain to eliminate them. Most importantly, Pure Yang’s members focused solely on cultivation and had little interest in mortal affairs—which was why the imperial court revered them as the Guardian Sect of the Nation.
A sect devoted to transcending the mortal world while actively suppressing evil? To rulers, this was a godsend.
The white serpent felt it had latched onto a thick, sturdy thigh—one covered in reliable leg hair. This was the Guardian Sect of the Nation! Who would dare cause trouble here? It was practically the perfect place to laze around and wait for immortality. Of course, it still needed to butter up its masters to avoid being kicked down the mountain.
Thus, Yang Mu and Xu Ling soon noticed that the previously lazy white serpent had become unusually diligent…
Not a single rat or stinkbug could be found in the forests around the palace. The serpent’s mere presence sent rodents fleeing in terror. Though its duty was only to guard the hall, it took the initiative to clean up the surrounding environment.
The Clear Void Palace, belonging to Yu Rong’s branch, housed only three people—plus one snake.
Officially, it had been brought back as a gate guard, but in reality, it was just a decorative pet. Since it didn’t need to stand watch all day, the serpent began pondering how to accelerate its cultivation.
An immortal mountain was full of opportunities—like the rich scent of spiritual pills wafting over from Spirit Void Palace.
The Spirit Void branch specialized in alchemy, medicine, and talisman-making. Its disciples were master healers and pill-refiners. One might assume they were weak in combat, but that would be a mistake—alchemy required a solid foundation, and their vast network of friends (thanks to their medical skills) ensured they were well-equipped and wealthy.
The serpent had its eyes on their riches. These disciples were rolling in resources, and even their trash could be treasures—like high-level players in a game discarding items that were junk to them but priceless to low-level newcomers.
In front of Spirit Void Hall stood a massive gourd-shaped alchemy furnace on a lotus stone pedestal. The furnace was covered in intricate formations and adorned with eight bronze bells—though the serpent couldn’t fathom their purpose. After staring blankly for a while, it slithered past the hall toward the backyard.
News of Yu Shishu bringing back a white serpent had spread across Hua Mountain. At first, everyone thought it was some rare mystical beast—only to be disappointed by its ordinariness.
There was no need to stop it. At most, it would scavenge for discarded pill residues—hardly worth fussing over.
And that was exactly what the serpent was here for: failed pills and medicinal dregs.
Here, the serpent’s voracious appetite and digestive prowess came into play. Snakes could swallow prey much larger than their heads, and this white serpent could digest bones, fur, and even scales. Its digestion could take days or even weeks—proof of its terrifying metabolic abilities.
Slithering to the alchemy workshop, it ignored the curious onlookers and coiled up in its usual spot, waiting patiently.
Both pill-refining and medicine-making often resulted in failures. The waste products were unusable—some even toxic—and were usually collected, recorded, and discarded. Now, they had a new purpose: snake food.
An elder disciple in charge of waste disposal glanced at the latest batch of failed pills, noted them down with a brush, and set them aside.
The serpent opened its mouth and inhaled the dozen or so defective pills from the porcelain plate, swallowing them whole before lazily settling back into its coil.
The disciple smiled approvingly. At least this snake is useful—saves me the trouble of disposal.
To humans, these waste pills were useless or poisonous, but to the serpent, they were nutritious supplements. Toxicity was relative—and its keen sense of smell could distinguish what was safe to eat.
After nearly a month of scavenging at Spirit Void Palace, the serpent’s cultivation had skyrocketed.
Two female cultivators walked in, holding two low-quality pills to tease the serpent.
“Here you go, Bai Yu Jun~”
Internally rolling its eyes, the serpent obediently slithered forward and swallowed the pills. Low-quality for humans still meant high-grade supplements for it. After all, if it could get proper pills, why settle for dregs?
“Its scales are so pretty~”
The two women gushed over its shimmering scales, but the serpent ignored them. Just because they fed it didn’t mean it owed them attention—not that they’d hold a grudge against a beast anyway. Visit NovelPing for the full chapter.
After consuming two more batches of waste pills and a box of medicinal residues, it finally slithered away.
Thanks to these “supplements,” its cultivation had progressed rapidly. It felt energized and revitalized.
If it encountered the gray wolf demon now, it wouldn’t need venom or water ambushes—it could crush the wolf bare-handed.
Returning to Clear Void Palace, it ignored the two children still practicing their swordplay and coiled up on an ancient pine by the cliff, motionless as it digested the medicinal energy.
Unexpectedly, this digestion took an entire day.
The next morning, the serpent awoke feeling tight and constrained—it was time to shed its skin.
Xu Ling, who had been practicing her swordplay, noticed something odd about the serpent coiled around the pine tree. She stopped and approached—only to gasp in shock.
“Shifu! Shifu! Something’s wrong!”
The girl screamed and ran to the backyard. Yang Mu, confused, also glanced at the serpent and sensed something amiss.
Yu Rong, meditating on a cushion, had no choice but to open her eyes.
“Shifu! Bai Yu Jun is dying!”
“Hm?”
In a flash, Yu Rong appeared beside the cliffside pine with Xu Ling.
“Look! Bai Yu Jun’s scales are dull, and even its eyes have turned white!” Xu Ling pointed, her voice trembling.
Yu Rong raised a hand to calm her, then carefully examined the serpent.
Her knowledge told her one thing: The serpent’s vitality wasn’t fading—it was stronger than ever.
What on earth happened while I was meditating?