84: Chapter 84 Has the Green Snake Really Become an Empress?
Xu Qing, who was in a good mood, returned to his Snake Cave.
He coiled himself into a snake cake.
But looking at the dim cave, he thought for a moment.
He was now an Auspicious Beast; his cave couldn't be so dim anymore.
It needed to be a bit brighter.
It couldn't be like the mountain peak from before.
The heaven and earth spiritual seed in his chest glowed with green light, and one by one, emerald-green seeds shimmering with spiritual light flew out.
The seeds landed throughout the cave, taking root in the hard stone floor.
Then, they sprouted branches and leaves, growing rapidly along the stone walls.
In the blink of an eye, the entire cave became full of life.
Xu Qing then took out several white-glowing jade beads and tossed them in all directions of the Snake Cave.
Branches quickly caught the jade beads and Entwined around them, becoming like light bulbs.
Now, the dim cave was much brighter.
It truly had the auspicious feel of a place where an Auspicious Beast would reside.
Anyone who saw it wouldn't think it was the dwelling of a giant green snake demon, but rather the habitat of an Auspicious Beast.
"This Goddess..."
"Holy crap, it's really contagious!"
"This Snake, This Snake!"
"This Snake is indeed inclined toward being an Auspicious Beast, a great green snake with a benevolent heart!"
After praising himself inwardly, Xu Qing focused and began to Cultivate.
The seventeenth day of the Twelfth Lunar Month.
The Green Snake Goddess, who had only been in secluded cultivation for a week, was woken up.
"Can't This Snake just hibernate in peace!"
Xu Qing flicked his tail and swam out of the cave.
Being a River God wasn't easy.
The news of the Green Snake Goddess Temple's efficacy had already spread throughout the surrounding villages.
Thus, besides the Mortals who often came to pray for blessings, people would also come to pray for protection whenever they encountered evil spirits.
Xu Qing of course couldn't turn a blind eye to the prayers of his believers.
After all, since he was maintaining the persona of an Auspicious Beast, he naturally had to perform the deeds of an Auspicious Beast.
Connecting with the statue, Xu Qing saw the person who had come to pray.
The green light was dense; it seemed this was a loyal believer.
Xu Qing also caught a glimpse of Xu Linger nearby, and she actually had a hint of green Qi on her.
"Hehe, saying one thing but doing another. Junior Sister Sword, don't you also believe in me?"
Xu Qing only took a casual glance and had no intention of exposing his Junior Sister.
He focused his attention on the praying believer before him.
There was a bit of evil Qi on the believer; it seemed the claim of encountering an evil spirit was true.
However, this evil spirit didn't seem to be from the river.
It was on land.
Thus, he couldn't investigate evil spirits in distant river regions while remaining inside the River God Temple.
He had to go out and manifest himself.
Xu Qing listened carefully to the location described by the believer; it was a village to the south.
He flew out of the River God Temple and sped toward the south.
Looking down from above, the earth was a blanket of white.
The village was also covered by unthawed snow, making it easy to miss.
Sensing carefully, he found the traces of the evil spirit.
The evil spirit had only about a hundred years of Dao Cultivation and was hiding in a well in the village.
Xu Qing easily eliminated the evil spirit, but more than half of the villagers had already been killed or injured.
"You can't blame me for this; I'm only in charge of the West River."
Xu Qing muttered to himself and flew back to the River God Temple.
This evil spirit also supplemented the last bit of Dao Cultivation he needed; he could now Breakthrough to two hundred and fifty years of Dao Cultivation and reach Peak Foundation Establishment.
Killing evil spirits was truly satisfying, and no one came to condemn him for it.
If it were his previous life, there might have been an Evil Spirit Protection Association or evil spirit enthusiasts coming forward to condemn him.
Back at the River God Temple, Xu Qing didn't Breakthrough immediately.
"I'll celebrate the New Year first, then enter seclusion for the Breakthrough."
Xu Qing was about to celebrate his first New Year since arriving in this world.
He naturally couldn't let it pass while he was in seclusion; the first New Year needed a sense of ceremony.
After the New Year, the green snake would be one year old.
Surely someone would say, "This is a damn one-year-old?!"
But by Xu Qing's careful calculation, he was only ten months old.
He was still just a child.
On New Year's Eve, Silly Snake also ended its hibernation, and its aura finally reached Foundation Establishment Middle Stage.
Unfortunately, it didn't shed its skin.
This ruined Xu Qing's hopeful plans; he was still counting on plucking another Three-Colored Venomous Snake skin for Artifact Refining.
"Sss sss sss!"
On its first day out of seclusion, Silly Snake found Xu Qing with its eyes glowing.
It originally wanted to continue hibernating, but since it was the last day of the year...
The Frogs it had saved, plus interest, would allow it to eat its fill this year.
"Little venomous snake, This Goddess..."
"Toxic, toxic!"
The Three-Colored Venomous Snake thought he was talking about her and shrank back in fear.
It indeed was venomous, but hadn't the green snake already become immune to its venom?
"Ahem, it's This Snake, This Snake!"
"This Snake will calculate this carefully with you."
"In total, you..."
Xu Qing calculated carefully with the Three-Colored Venomous Snake; the more they calculated, the more Silly Snake broke into a cold sweat.
Finally, it was calculated.
The venomous snake actually owed Xu Qing a hundred Frogs.
This, this, this!
It, the dignified Three-Colored Venomous Snake, was now deeply in debt to the green snake.
How could this be?
Wouldn't it have to work for a long time to pay off the debt in the future?
It had just reached the Breakthrough to Foundation Establishment Middle Stage, yet it ended up owing the green snake so many Frogs!
"This Snake is no devil."
"Today is also the New Year, so I'll give you a hundred Frogs as a red envelope."
"It just happens to cancel out the debt."
Silly Snake felt that the green snake's character was truly excellent.
If the green snake owed it so many Frogs, it certainly wouldn't let it go like this.
Thinking of this, it rubbed against Xu Qing's scales, full of flattery.
As long as the debt wasn't pursued, it was fine; the venomous snake feared debt the most.
"Time to prepare for the New Year."
Xu Qing poked his head out of the River God Temple.
Sure enough, the offerings brought to the River God Temple for the New Year were also various kinds of fish.
Among them was a very large fish that was almost starting to have Dao Cultivation.
But he, Xu Qing, really didn't like eating fish.
Although the people here lived difficult lives, they still prepared fireworks and firecrackers for the New Year.
Just as Xu Qing was thinking it was about time for the turn of the New Year...
"Crack-pop-bang!"
It was the New Year.
Feeling something in his heart, Xu Qing patted Silly Snake's head and took out a pile of Frogs.
They had all been laced with spirit opening pills.
The medicine couldn't stop; Silly Snake would eventually become as smart as him.
"Silly Snake, keep your red envelope safe."
Having said that, he ducked back into his Snake Cave without looking back.
The New Year had passed.
It was time to Breakthrough.
After the Spring Festival, the Green Snake Goddess Temple was crowded with worshippers early in the morning.
They all wanted to catch a bit of the Green Snake Goddess's Divine Qi in the new year.
It wasn't just villagers from around the Green Snake Goddess; there were also people who had traveled from far away to pay their respects.
Thick incense Power Of Will surged toward the giant green snake statue.
The scale on top of the statue's head became more and more lifelike.
The green snake statue also began to look as if a giant green snake were truly coiled upon it.
The Green Snake Ring on the statue's tail also shared in a good amount of the incense Power Of Will.
Its aura seemed to grow a bit stronger because of it.
One month later.
The Second Day of the Second Lunar Month.
Beneath the River God Temple, the coiled green snake trembled slightly, followed by a sound like a plate shattering.
"Sss sss sss!"
The green snake raised its head and let out a hiss.
"I've finally made the Breakthrough!"
"And it seems I can barely manage a Transformation?"
"Hmm..."
"Only a half-Transformation?"
Xu Qing turned his head to look at his large tail, feeling a bit uneasy.
Normal demon cultivators can undergo Transformation at the Golden Core stage.
He had transformed his upper body at Peak Foundation Establishment; surely he wouldn't be stuck with a human body and a snake tail forever.
"And..."
Xu Qing exerted his Demonic Power, forming a water mirror in front of him.
Looking at the reflection within...
"Have I really become a Goddess?"