Inside the Cave, only the Luminous Stone seemed unaffected, still emitting a soft glow.
Seeing that the item in his hand had somehow ended up in Zhao Li's, Xiao Yan felt even more like he had stepped on a Landmine.
Hearing Zhao Li's question, he swallowed hard, then scratched his head and chuckled awkwardly, explaining:
"I really wasn't trying to kidnap it. To be honest, I don't know why it followed me."
Seeing Xiao Yan's appearance, Zhao Li shook his head slightly. After all, he was just a Little Guy; no matter how good his Temperament was, it was impossible for him to be completely flawless.
It would have been better if he hadn't explained; the explanation clearly showed he was admitting guilt without being asked. Zhao Li stopped teasing him, shifting his gaze away from him and onto the Nine-Colored Little Snake in his palm instead.
Perhaps it realized its comfortable sleeping spot was gone, its small head swaying left and right. It looked at Zhao Li with sleepy eyes, and as its snake tongue flicked in and out, there was a strange attraction.
Zhao Li was indeed somewhat curious about this Bloodline. He remembered that in the stories, Medusa's initial snake soul should have been a Sixth Tier Magical Beast, the Purple Nether Flame Snake. After successfully evolving, it became the Seven-Colored Sky Swallowing Python, and then obtained an Opportunity to transform into Nine-Colored.
But looking at this Little Snake now, it was already a Nine-Colored Sky Swallowing Python. In terms of Bloodline alone, this evolution could definitely be considered very thorough.
But what made Zhao Li curious was why, after evolving, it seemed like a newborn Soul?
"Hmm, let me think. The Snake People Tribe are neither snakes nor humans. Not long after they are born, a secret technique is used to infuse the Soul of a serpentine Magical Beast into their bodies. As they age and their Strength grows, this serpentine Magical Beast, which acts as a companion Soul, will gradually merge with them until they are indistinguishable."
Memories surged in Zhao Li's mind. Combining the information recorded in the original story with what he knew, he began to speculate:
"This secret technique is truly unique. As long as the conditions are met, it can even allow the entire Snake People Tribe to reach the Dou Emperor or even Dou Sect level. After all, after merging with a serpentine Soul, they can almost reach the height of its Soul body! Moreover, when encountering a strong enemy, they can also summon a True Form similar to the current one, and their Strength will skyrocket."
Thinking of this, Zhao Li couldn't help but be stunned. He always felt that this special secret technique was somewhat familiar. Then, seeing Xiao Yan, he had a sudden realization. Wasn't this secret technique a replica of the Heaven-tier Dou Technique, Ghost Possession?
Not only could they grow with the help of the Soul body, but they could also borrow the Soul body's power. If the Soul body had independent consciousness, then it was essentially a ghost!
Of course, whether it was performing the secret technique or finding a powerful serpentine Magical Beast, it couldn't be done without a certain level of Strength and background. So although the Snake People Tribe had this tradition, they could only barely maintain a Dou Emperor level Legacy.
But even so, being able to create such a secret technique could be considered a small Genius. Even Zhao Li felt that the idea behind this secret technique was very good, after all, the Heaven-tier Dou Technique, Ghost Possession, was no joke.
He praised sincerely:
"Could the person who created this secret technique also be an existence whose Soul body was scattered and only the Soul body remained? But why did it leave behind such a secret technique? Could it be..."
But as he thought, a thought suddenly flashed through Zhao Li's mind, and then a chill went straight from his heart to his Heavenly Spirit.
First of all, an existence that can exist as a Soul body is at least a Fifth Rank Alchemist or a Half-step Dou Sect who has touched the Power of Rules!
If such a person is unwilling to dissipate like this, there isn't much they can do, and taking over a body seems like a good option.
After all, not everyone has a Cultivation Technique like the Flame Mantra that can Refine a body that is completely compatible with their Soul and doesn't damage their Potential.
What made Zhao Li's heart turn cold was because this secret technique was used on the Snake People Tribe shortly after birth. A powerful snake soul, a weak child, after merging, who would be the dominant one?
Moreover, a small child doesn't have any personality habits. Even if the snake soul truly took over the body, no one would discover that the child had changed because what was displayed during their growth might have always been dominated by the snake soul.
For example, this Nine-Colored Sky Swallowing Python in front of him is currently a completely new Soul, but as Time passes, the final fusion will inevitably be dominated by Medusa!
After thinking of this, Zhao Li didn't stop there. He also thought that the Medusa Bloodline needed several years to gestate, and during these years, they also had a Third-grade Secret Technique to nourish it. As an Alchemist who had personally Refined the Heaven Soul Blood Fusion Pill, Zhao Li naturally knew its effects—Heaven Soul, Blood Fusion!
As the name suggests, from the time the fetus is conceived, it can seize the power of heaven to nourish the fetus, Innate soul nourishment. When the infant is born, it can possess a powerful Soul. Whether it is Cultivating any Cultivation Technique or Dou Technique, it will be much easier Innately.
Compared to the Heaven Soul, the blood fusion and blood exchange to change the physique, improve the Bone Structure, and make Cultivation twice as effective with half the effort can only be considered additional functions.
This Pill seems to be specifically for enhancing the Soul. Could it be that a Senior of the Snake People Tribe also discovered the impropriety of that secret technique and created the Third-grade medicinal formula to protect the Junior?
As for why it wasn't directly forbidden, who would give up a secret technique that, if used properly, could create a race full of Dou Spirit and Dou King as long as there were enough Fourth Tier and Fifth Tier snake souls?
"It's terrifying when you think about it. It seems there are also some secrets within the Snake People Tribe. This Soul Secret Technique is one, and those few formulas for nourishing the Medusa Bloodline are the second."
Zhao Li murmured in his heart, his interest piqued. On this Continent, there weren't many things that could interest him, but exploring mysteries and seeking the hidden just happened to be one of them.
Before today, he had never thought in these directions. After all, the stories in the book were likely subject to survivor bias because the perspective followed the Protagonist. But now that he had personally seen the state of this Little Snake, he couldn't help but think a lot. If he didn't verify it, he wouldn't feel at ease.
With this thought, he was already prepared to return to the Snake People Tribe's Royal City Ancestral Land to see if he could find any clues.
"Gulp..."
But at this moment, Xiao Yan, who hadn't heard Zhao Li speak or seen him make any moves, seemed unable to bear the immense pressure. His throat bobbed, and another sound of swallowing saliva echoed in the Cave, pulling Zhao Li's thoughts back. He looked at Xiao Yan.
Seeing Zhao Li's gaze fall on him, Xiao Yan's heart suddenly leaped. Then, gritting his teeth, he decided to just go for it and asked Zhao Li:
"This junior was blinded by greed and couldn't resist the temptation when he saw this Variant Beast... How does Senior plan to deal with me?"
If you make a mistake, you admit it; if you get beaten, you stand straight. Xiao Yan naturally wouldn't be so foolish as to not know what was good for him. Moreover, the feeling of waiting for judgment was too agonizing, like the feeling of scratching off the last number when you see the previous numbers are all the same on a scratch card.
There was also another reason: he couldn't contact Yao Chen anymore. Without Yao Chen to back him up, he could only rely on himself to try and get through this.
Furthermore, he vaguely sensed that Zhao Li didn't seem to care too much about him. You don't hit a person who's smiling. Perhaps if his attitude was better, Zhao Li would just let him go like a fart.
Anyway, he had no other choice but to try his best to show a good attitude. Those without Strength who still act like the world revolves around them often don't live long.
He still had many things to do and knew when to do what.
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