After a long moment of struggle, the stinger in the White Demon King’s hand strangely vanished. Across from him, the ranks of assembled snakes breathed a sigh of relief.

Elder Snake turned his head and gave a slight bow in that distant direction.

"White Demon King, you can’t let that Snake Spirit live. If you do, the consequences will be endless."

Just as the White Demon King was about to give up, another strange voice sounded in his ear.

’Gray Demon King?’ The moment he heard the voice, he instantly recognized the speaker, much to his surprise. This was the Gray Demon King, one of the five Great Deep Mountain Demon Kings of the Yaoling Mountain Range, same as himself. The Gray Demon King ruled his own territory; his true form was a rat, and he was the Supreme Monarch of the Rat Lineage.

In the very next instant, the White Demon King understood why the Gray Demon King had appeared and said such a thing.

The Rat Lineage and the Snake Race had always been irreconcilably opposed. They were hereditary enemies, as incompatible as fire and water.

Whether in the ordinary food chain or as cultivating Demons, snakes and rats just couldn’t stand each other. Whenever they met, it was a fight to the death.

Without a doubt, that Snake Spirit was astonishingly talented and had limitless potential. His successful ascension would qualitatively change the situation in the Yaoling Mountain Range. The Rat Lineage, in particular, was unwilling to watch the Snake Race grow stronger.

Back during Demon King Liu’s golden age, the Snake Race was the number one race in the Yaoling Mountain Range, utterly unrivaled. This made life miserable for the Rat Lineage under the Gray Demon King’s command. They were like rats crossing the street that everyone wanted to beat, afraid to show their faces in public.

Later, Demon King Liu failed his Ascension to Rank Four, and his fate has been unknown ever since. The Snake Race had no choice but to keep a low profile, which finally allowed the Gray Demon King’s Rat Lineage to live more comfortably.

Now, this Snake Spirit had even survived a fatal Celestial Tribulation and possessed powerful abilities. He was far too dangerous to the Rat Lineage. How could the Gray Demon King possibly sit still?

A glint of hope appeared in the White Demon King’s eyes. "I’m being watched, and I’m out in the open, making it difficult to act. You’re in the shadows. Only you can strike a fatal blow and end this in one move."

No matter what, if that Snake Spirit survived and successfully completed his ascension, it would not be a good thing for either him or the Gray Demon King.

If they missed this golden opportunity today, killing him in the future would be a thousand times harder.

In an instant, the two Great Demon Kings reached a consensus.

"Alright. You coordinate with me," came the Gray Demon King’s confident voice.

...

Seeing the White Demon King’s defeated posture, Tu Xiao’an let out a huge sigh of relief. ’Looks like my life is saved again.’

’This tribulation has been full of twists and turns.’

’Who helped me?’

’It seemed like someone sent a voice transmission to the White Demon King from a great distance.’

Tu Xiao’an had a vague feeling that someone had always been standing behind him, helping him. It had been the same way when he faced that old monster from the Demon Bureau.

’Who in the world is that person?’

’Just how much Energy do "they" have, to make even the White Demon King give up on killing me?’

Tu Xiao’an had seen the determination in the White Demon King’s eyes. ’Damn it, it’s like I really did dig up his ancestral graves. He won’t rest until one of us is dead.’

For even *him* to give up now... it had to be said that this person helping him from the shadows had immense influence and very forceful methods.

’Fifteen minutes. All I need is fifteen minutes.’

Tu Xiao’an cast aside all distracting thoughts and focused wholeheartedly on shedding his skin, paying close attention to the changes in his body. He was already nine-tenths of the way through, with only a small portion of old skin left.

Soon, his, Tu Xiao’an’s, fate would be in his own hands.

Although the White Demon King looked like he wouldn’t attack again for now, he didn’t leave either. Instead, he watched on with cold eyes.

Just then, a brutal and monstrous Evil Qi surged forth. It was the Chaotic Beast, Huangquan, returning. It lunged at the White Demon King with ferocious malevolence, as if trying to settle the score.

When Elder Snake and the other snakes saw this terrifyingly powerful composite monster, they all felt a sense of relief.

No one was threatening their king’s ascension anymore.

But just as everyone thought the dust was about to settle, a massive, strange phantom appeared above the light of the great sun.

It was a colossal phantom of a rat’s head, exceptionally Spiritual and Fierce. It contained a world-destroying power. The moment it appeared, space twisted and roiled like a tide, and the power shrieked.

As soon as the rat head phantom materialized, it opened its vicious, massive maw with the force of a thunderbolt and, with lightning speed, lunged to devour the light surrounding Tu Xiao’an.

In an instant, the entire space fell silent. The sky itself seemed on the verge of collapse.

Tu Xiao’an, who was focused on shedding his skin, was instantly dumbfounded. The phantom seemed to represent the Abyssal Hell itself. In the blink of an eye, his vision went black, and the chilling sensation of death enveloped his entire body.

’Not good, this is a sneak attack from the Demon King Level!’

’Fucking hell, a Demon King Level expert resorting to a sneak attack?’ Then, Tu Xiao’an’s world went dark.

In that single moment, the countless Demons watching the valley were all shaken. That massive rat head phantom seemed to be announcing the doom of the Snake Spirit who was on the verge of ascension.

"Master! Master!"

The nearby Bull Demon King and Tree Spirit were horrified. They too were enveloped by the power of this world-destroying phantom, their lives hanging by a thread.

"Master!"

The moment Chaotic Beast, Huangquan, sensed the phantom’s power, it abandoned the White Demon King and shot back to protect him. But it was too late.

"Monster, you can’t save your master! He’s about to die! Haha..."

Far, far away, the beautiful eyes of the woman in white went wide. She watched as the rat head phantom swallowed the great sun-like light in one gulp. Immediately after, the entire phantom exploded with world-shaking force, as if the entire valley had been pulverized.

The explosion was no different from the sky collapsing. A world-destroying power spread out and swept through the valley. In the face of this power, it seemed that nothing could continue to exist.

Chaotic Beast, Huangquan, had just flown above the towering tree when it was struck by a Heaven-Shocking Power. It was instantly sent flying backward. As it flew, its tall, imposing body instantly disintegrated, revealing the forms of the three Super level Creatures.

The towering tree was also swept away. Its lush green leaves were stripped bare in an instant, its branches snapped, and the Bull Demon King in its canopy screamed as he was blasted away.

At the same time, the nearby snakes were ravaged by this world-destroying power and were instantly reduced to pulp.

Just like that, without any warning, the entire valley was engulfed in a storm of destruction and was being brutally ravaged.

The White Demon King, however, had long been prepared. The Demon Qi around his body solidified into a Light Shield, protecting him from the powerful, destructive force.

"Haha... Gray Demon King, you really used all the strength you were born with. How ruthless. But it was a pleasure working with you. In a while, this King will be getting married. You absolutely must attend."

A voice from the shadows replied, "Of course. I will definitely pay a visit and offer my congratulations."

The destructive intensity of this storm was so great it was as if an atomic bomb had been dropped in the middle of the valley. Even the surrounding mountain peaks vanished into thin air.

The two Monkey Kings, watching from a safe distance far away, were also caught in the significant aftershock and sent flying.

A long, long time passed...!

Amidst the ruins of Monkey Mountain, the snake that had been shedding its skin within the great sun-like light was nowhere to be seen. Under such terrifying power, a molting snake certainly couldn’t have fought back. It could only wait for death.

In that instant of the explosion, it was believed that not even a speck of the snake remained.

A storm of dust and debris filled the entire valley, obscuring all vision.

WHOOSH...

While the valley was still in a state of turmoil and chaos, a woman in white suddenly materialized. With a wave of her slender, jade-like hand, the dust storm instantly dispersed, revealing clear air.

"Where are you? Where are you?!"

The moment the woman in white appeared, she began to search frantically for something. Her tragic cries echoed through the valley, her beautiful eyes filled with the panic of a frightened little bird.

She couldn’t find anything, couldn’t sense anything. For dozens of kilometers in every direction, not a single trace of the Snake Race’s aura could be detected.

She slowly rose into the air, ascending high above the valley. Her beautiful eyes darted left and right, her mind completely dazed. The incomparably magnificent snake from her memory was nowhere to be seen.

Her beauty could topple nations. Her eyes were bright, her teeth pearly white. Those eyes, which could bewitch all living things, were now filled with sorrow and despair. Her waist-length hair was tied back casually with a white ribbon, and her white gauze robes fluttered in the wind as crystalline teardrops scattered from her eyes.

"I’m sorry. I should have been by your side to protect you. I shouldn’t have hesitated."

’How could this happen? How could this happen?’ Although she was thousands of li away, she possessed powerful abilities that would have allowed her to appear instantly at any moment.

Everything was originally under control, but...!

It was truly a case of "man proposes, Heaven disposes." The situation had changed too quickly, catching her completely off guard.

She was so filled with regret she wanted to smash her head against a wall.

"I’m sorry. It’s my fault. Didn’t you want to know who I am? Come out now, and I’ll tell you everything."

"Xiao’an, you can’t die! How could you die? I’ve waited five hundred years for you!"

The white-clothed woman hovered in the air, her whole body trembling. Suppressed, painful sobs seemed to be drawn, thread by thread, from the very depths of her soul.

Suddenly, she curled up in mid-air, hugging her knees, and began to cry, utterly heartbroken. Her long eyelashes were laden with tears, making her look as pure and beautiful as a lotus emerging from water. The teardrops seemed to linger on her fair skin, reluctant to fall.

But once they did, they fell like a waterfall.

She cried like a child lost as night falls—crying for herself, for the loved one who had suddenly vanished, for her future, for her bewilderment, for everything.

After a few minutes, her crying turned to choked sobs. She stubbornly bit her lip, trying with all her might to stop the tears. Then, a mournful killing intent, carrying a sky-high rage, burned in her tear-filled eyes.

"White Demon King!" she suddenly roared, her voice as cold as frost. An unstoppable Killing Intent spread out, blanketing the heavens and the earth.

In the distance, the White Demon King, who had returned to his dapper, smiling appearance, was startled. He hurriedly said, "This has nothing to do with this King! I wasn’t the one who killed him!"

The woman in white remembered the phantom of the rat’s head and let out a long howl to the sky. "Gray Demon King, you dead rat! I, Luo Ziyun, will do nothing else in my next life! I will dedicate it to slaughtering your entire Rat Lineage! I will make it so that not a single rat can be found in this world again!"

Her voice, like a mournful wail, carried a sky-high killing intent as she uttered her vow. The temperature in the entire valley plummeted.

A chill ran down the White Demon King’s spine. He silently rejoiced. ’Good thing I wasn’t the one who attacked, or I’d be in deep trouble.’

In some unknown area, a man in gray robes with shifty, rat-like eyes heard the piercing female voice. An inexplicable chill ran through him. He curled his lip. "Crazy woman..."

...