After death, Kenda's corpse immediately swelled, restoring the colossal serpent form measuring tens of thousands of meters in length.
A wisp of ethereal true-soul flickered into view, as if drawn by the attraction of the Astral Plane, yearning to become an eternal floating island.
"You think you can leave?"
Lei Lin sneered, his terrifying power sealing the surroundings. Dark crimson chains lashed out and bound the true-soul directly, pulling it into the black crystal ball held in Lei Lin's hand.
"The soul of a fifth-rank powerhouse — the most essential material for a fifth-rank beast soul!" Lei Lin murmured, storing the crystal ball away. Immediately, a massive torrent of blood was drawn from the serpent's body, coalescing into glistening crimson crystals that fell into his grasp.
"The materials for the Dream Imprint — all collected!"
Lei Lin approached the enormous corpse of the Devil White Phosphorus Serpent. With most of the blood drawn out, the entire body looked somewhat shrunken, though it was still vast as a mountain.
"Collect!" A spatial fluctuation flashed, and the massive serpent corpse vanished without a trace. This was the body of a fifth-rank giant serpent — even without its blood, it held tremendous value.
"And now, it's your turn!"
Lei Lin swept his gaze across the area. The White Devil nobles, who moments ago had watched Lei Lin slaughter their clan leader with ease while their own bodies were poisoned by the Drunken Serpent Blossoms, had fallen into utter despair.
"Your bloodline power is far too impure — truly disappointing!"
Lei Lin's hands seized outward repeatedly, and crimson-red blades of light materialized, beheading the remaining giant White Phosphorus Serpents that lay weakened on the ground. He harvested their materials, sparing only
A massive grey sacrificial wizard circle was also laid out by Lei Lin, collecting the remaining materials he did not want.
"Chirp chirp!"
A spectral silhouette of a massive grey bird materialized, and streams of grey flame directly absorbed the offerings.
"You have done well! You not only slew an avatar of the Mother of Ten Thousand Serpents, but also sacrificed a great many of her bloodline descendants — I am very pleased!"
A torrent of Chaos Force descended. Had Lei Lin been willing, he could have elevated his Sacrificer rank to the fifth tier at any moment, but he had absolutely no desire to do so.
After all, beyond the fourth tier, one would need to constantly inscribe the Supreme One's marks upon one's body — something Lei Lin found completely unacceptable.
Therefore, he chose to gather all of the Chaos Force and crystallize it for storage.
After that, Lei Lin charged into the opponent's mansion once more, pillaging every treasure and document he could find before departing with satisfaction.
……
"Is it over? So that powerhouse was actually a follower of the Foul Bird! His Sacrificer rank must have been fifth tier or above…"
Long after Lei Lin had gone, Belinda finally struggled to her feet, gazing out over the ruins of the White River Shoal valley.
Only a handful of half-bloods still survived, and thanks to her earlier traps and the Drunken Snake Flowers, they had not a shred of power left — utterly helpless.
When they saw Belinda's gaze fall upon them, their faces immediately filled with pleading looks.
"Heh… the clan!"
Belinda shook her head. Though her revenge was complete, something still felt missing.
Feeling hollow and dispirited, she turned to leave — only to spot two unexpected figures at the valley's entrance.
"What are you two doing here? This is reckless!"
"Sister!"
"Big Brother Nick and I were so worried about you! Sister… sniff…" Sophia's eyes reddened on the spot, and while Belinda soothed her, she also shot Lei Lin a furious glare.
"Heh heh…" Watching the two sisters embrace, Lei Lin simply chuckled and rubbed the bridge of his nose.
By now, of course, he had already quietly recalled the Shadow Puppet. With his strength, keeping a handful of fourth-tier and fifth-tier powerhouses in the dark was child's play — let alone pulling a few tricks in front of a little girl.
"So? Is everything taken care of?"
"Everything's taken care of!" Belinda cast one last look at the devastated White River Shoal valley, then patted Sophia on the head. "Let's go. We never need to come back here again…"
"Mm! Let's go!" Sophia agreed eagerly, her face lit up with excitement. It seemed her memories of this place were not pleasant ones either.
……
Across the undulating grasslands, enormous serpent trails cut through the earth at irregular intervals, alongside massive shed skins and scales.
The full moon hanging in the sky radiated a ring of violet light, lending the scene an air of deep unease.
An orange-yellow campfire flickered in one corner of the grasslands, casting a warm glow. Beside it stood several simple tents.
"There are a large number of blood descendants of the Mother of Serpents left on the Plain of Ten Thousand Serpents. There are also many hybrid giant serpents. We need to be careful and stay as far away from the serpent trails as possible…"
Belinda gave Linley a long, meaningful look. "Also, don't act rashly, because the bloodlines of these giant serpents can all ultimately be traced back to various major families…"
Among the blood descendants of the Mother of Ten Thousand Serpents, even within the Devil White Phosphorus Serpent clan, there were many subdivisions into different families. The most elite were, of course, the several dozen pure-blooded great families, whose members were almost all pure-blooded White Devils.
Belinda's family, on the other hand, was merely a remote branch with rather impure blood. In the entire clan, only her father was a pure-blood powerhouse, and his lifelong wish was to elevate the family's bloodline to a pure-blooded status. He had not hesitated to commit numerous atrocities in pursuit of this goal, leaving deep scars on Belinda's childhood.
Of course, all of that was in the past now. And what Belinda was saying now carried an unmistakable hint of warning.
"I understand!" Linley smiled warmly and handed over the roasted meat he had already cooked. Hot oil sizzled on its surface, sending up wisps of steam.
"Thank you…" Belinda reached out to take it, then passed the food to Sophia. Watching her carefully tear off small pieces and place them in her mouth, Belinda's eyes curved into crescent moons, and a soft light passed over her face.
"Did you notice something?"
In his heart, Linley had a different thought. "Fair enough! Even though I brought Sophia along as an alibi, the timing of my two appearances was far too coincidental. Anyone would be suspicious — though, of course, it would only be suspicion…"
Belinda was certainly no fool, and at most she could guess that Linley was a hidden practitioner concealing his true strength due to his devotion to the Filth Bird. She would never connect him to that wanted
"Moreover, every time I acted, it could be argued it was for her own good. Even if she discovered something, she wouldn't reveal it…"
Linley was confident about this. From their earlier interactions, he had already seen Belinda's character — her dependence on those of her own kind bordered on pathological.
This time in particular, entrusting her sister to him showed that she already considered him one of her own, completely and utterly.
Under such circumstances, the chances of Belinda betraying Linley were slim. Besides, she didn't know his true identity.
"Still, it wouldn't hurt to add an extra layer of insurance!" Linley stroked his chin. After all, the Stardust Insects he had planted on her had never been recalled.
Whether on the Plain of Ten Thousand Serpents or later at the
For Linley, who was pressed for time, that was simply unacceptable.
"You two go ahead and eat. I'm going to rest for a bit!" He finished his food in a few quick bites, then bid a graceful farewell to Belinda and her sister before ducking into his tent.
On the surface, he appeared to be simply leaning back against a soft blanket and resting with his eyes closed, but in reality he was communicating with the Chip the entire time.
"Chip! Have all the materials collected this time been fully organized?"
Lei Lin was naturally referring to what he had seized from Belinda's clan. After cutting down their patriarch, he had stormed into the manor and conducted a thorough plunder — treasures and resources were important enough, but all manner of books had been an absolute priority as well.
All of these materials had ultimately been handed over to the Chip for unified processing.
If Belinda knew that the thief who had stripped her entire family bare was now brazenly leafing through her clan's treasured collection, who could say what expression she would wear.
After all, she had only harbored vague suspicions before, and had even subconsciously resisted that line of thinking.
[Ding! Collection and organization complete. Total: 34 paper documents! 13 beast-hide documents! 142 Spiritual Power-stored contents! All digitized!]
The Chip reported faithfully.
[Classification complete: Power system-related: 16. Geography and culture-related: 24. Material catalog-related: 9. The remainder consists of miscellaneous categories such as genealogies...]
With the Chip's capabilities, it could naturally scan and classify these materials in short order, ultimately forming a complete library for Lei Lin to browse at will.
"Good! Pull up the content for fifth-level Beast Soul Masters! Especially the formation arrays for sealing Beast Souls!"
Lei Lin ordered.
[Related materials prepared. Transferring to the host's memory area!]
Alongside the Chip's voice, Lei Lin felt an additional portion of content materialize in his memory — information about higher-level Beast Soul Master cultivation. It settled in so naturally and familiarly that it felt as though he had painstakingly memorized it himself.
"The cultivation of a fifth-level Beast Soul Master — the most critical factor is still the foundation of one's True Spirit. One must completely crush the residual consciousness dwelling within a fifth-level Beast Soul. Moreover, the fifth-level Soul Seal Formation demands far greater precision when it comes to using Beast Souls for nourishment and amplification..."
Lei Lin carefully digested the distinctions between a fifth-level Beast Soul Master and the ranks below. Knowledge of fifth-level and above power was strictly classified information even in the Purgatory World. Back in Iyas Harbor, Lei Lin had only managed to collect materials covering Beast Soul Masters up to the fourth level — anything beyond that was strictly prohibited contraband.
But Belinda's clan was, after all, the White Devil Clan. It possessed a long history and had once fielded a fifth-level powerhouse, so the relevant content proved quite detailed.
"The theoretical knowledge is in hand, and the Beast Souls are at my disposal. All that remains is the practical application..."
PS: Asking for monthly tickets! I've always offered a bonus chapter for every 100 monthly tickets on Qidian. Please show your support, fellow readers — much appreciated!