A flicker of a smile played on the Ant Queen's lips. Luo Zhen's reaction was exactly what she'd hoped for.
With a mental command, she took control of his body and began leading him toward the heart of the nest. As they passed the paralyzed Hong Yu, the Queen gave a dismissive flick of her wrist, releasing him from his stupor.
"I'm in a remarkably good mood," she said, her voice a low purr. "So I'll spare your life. Get out of my sight."
Without a backward glance, she swept away, Luo Zhen trailing in her wake like a puppet. Hong Yu watched them go, his mouth opening and closing uselessly. He wanted to shout something—a warning, a farewell—but the words died in his throat.
"Godspeed, Brother Luo," he finally whispered to the empty air before turning and fleeing. "You're on your own now."
Luo Zhen awoke to a feeling of profound comfort. It was a sensation that seeped into his very bones, a deep, pervasive warmth that soothed every ache he'd ever had.
He blinked his eyes open and found himself submerged in a pool so vast and opulent it could have been a small pond in a royal garden. The water was steaming, fragrant with the scent of countless rare herbs and spiritual plants floating on its surface. He was in a medicinal bath, one of untold value.
"Where… am I?" he mumbled, pulling himself to the edge of the pool. He reached out with his mind. System? System, where the hell are you?
I'm here, the System's voice echoed in his thoughts.
What is this place? How did I get here? Luo Zhen demanded as he climbed out, water cascading from his powerful form.
There was a brief pause. This is the personal palace of the Flying Fire Ant Queen.
Luo Zhen froze. "What? You're telling me I'm in the Ant Queen's private chambers? You can't be serious."
I am, the System replied calmly. This is her palace. You've been unconscious for two days.
"That's impossible," Luo Zhen shot back, suspicion hardening his voice. "I gave you control of my body before I passed out. Don't tell me you couldn't beat her."
Fighting her wasn't the objective, the System explained slowly. Instead… I made a deal. And then, it laid out the entire story.
By the time it finished, Luo Zhen was utterly speechless.
"Sleep with her? Let her drain my spiritual essence?!" He could barely process the words. It felt like a sick joke.
Precisely, the System confirmed. Think of the old legends from your past life—the story of the monk Tang Sanzang. Demons and spirits sought to couple with him to absorb his pure life essence and elevate their own power.
It's the same principle. You are a supreme-grade mutated spiritual being. Your essence is a treasure, a key to unimaginable power. The Ant Queen wants to use it to fuel her own breakthrough, to ascend and become a true Demon Emperor.
Besides, the System added, almost as an afterthought, that she is undeniably beautiful. You're hardly getting the short end of the stick.
"You think this is a good thing?" Luo Zhen scoffed, a bitter laugh escaping him. "I'll admit, she's gorgeous. But I'm not some fool who loses his head at the sight of a pretty face! My essence is the source of my own power. If I let her drain it, I'll be nothing but a dried-up husk!"
The Queen has considered this, the System countered. That's why she healed you. It's why you're here, in this medicinal bath. She intends to shower you with cultivation resources to help you grow stronger.
The stronger you are, the more essence you can provide. The System's voice softened into something resembling a sigh. Honestly, this was the best possible outcome. You're alive because you're useful. It's a dangerous arrangement, yes, but if you can survive it, she'll eventually let you go.
"I won't leave my fate in her hands," Luo Zhen snarled, instinctively trying to activate his stealth ability.
But nothing happened. He felt for his demonic power, only to find a void where a raging river should have been.
"What's going on?" he asked, a knot of dread tightening in his stomach. "My power… It's gone."
While you were out, the Queen placed a seal on you, the System explained. It has locked away your demonic energy. She also implanted a Gu poison in your heart. The moment you step outside this palace, it will activate, causing you unimaginable, heart-stopping pain. You are, for all intents and purposes, her prisoner.
The truth of his situation crashed down on him. "She's raising me like a stud horse!" he roared, his voice echoing in the vast chamber.
It's a classic case of might makes right, the System said grimly.
"There have to be elixirs in the store, something to break the seal and cure the poison," Luo Zhen pressed.
There are, the System admitted. But what good would it do? The instant you broke free, she would sense it. She would capture you again, apply a stronger seal, and we'd be right back where we started, only with fewer points to our name.
Just then, the chamber doors swung open. Several imposing, half-humanoid demon generals marched in, each carrying a massive, ornate tray piled high with glowing pills, rare herbs, and glistening crystals.
"By order of Her Majesty," one of them announced, his voice a low growl as they set the trays before Luo Zhen. "These are for you. Consume them as you wish."
Luo Zhen's eyes narrowed. "Why the generosity?"
"Your current cultivation level is… inadequate," the general replied bluntly. "Her Majesty requires you to grow stronger. Quickly."
"She thinks I'm weak?" Luo Zhen hissed, his snake tongue flicking out. "Where is your Queen? I want to see her."
The general let out a dry chuckle. "Her Majesty has stated that you will not be worthy of her presence until you reach the peak of the Sky Profound Realm. Until then, you will remain here and cultivate."
With a final, dismissive glance, the generals turned and left.
Luo Zhen seethed, pacing the chamber in a fury. But as his anger cooled, a grim resignation set in. He was trapped. His most powerful attacks had failed. His energy was sealed. There was no escape.
He let out a long, heavy sigh.
Host, the System interjected, My advice is to accept this for now. Focus on cultivation. Whether you intend to cooperate or eventually escape, you need one thing above all else: strength. The stronger you become, the more control you'll have over your own destiny.
Luo Zhen stopped pacing. The System was right.
His hesitation vanished. He turned to the trays and began to devour everything. In a whirlwind of consumption, he swallowed every last pill and herb. Then he strode to the door and bellowed, "I need more!"
Wave after wave of resources were brought to him, and he consumed them all. With each infusion of power, he felt his experience and energy reserves swell to bursting.
System, he commanded, his mind clear and focused. Convert it all. Level me up. Take me to the late stage of the Sky Profound Realm!
The power surged.
Again! All of it. Push me to the peak!
Energy roared through him, a tempest threatening to tear him apart from the inside. He held on, channeling the storm, his entire being focused on a single point of transformation.
It's time, he thought, a sense of inevitability washing over him. System, I'm forming the Demon Core.
He pushed past the final barrier. The collected Yin energy from his time in the Earth Profound Realm erupted from every cell in his body, colliding with the blazing Yang energy he had just absorbed. A vortex of opposing forces spiraled within him, a storm of creation.
When Yin and Yang unite, the Demon Core is born.
In another wing of the palace, the Ant Queen lounged on her throne, listening to the report of a poison ant general.
"Your Majesty, the demon snake's consumption of resources is… astronomical," the general said, his voice laced with disbelief. "We deliver a fortune in materials, and mere hours later, he's demanding more."
"You're saying he refines them quickly?" the Queen asked, an elegant eyebrow raised.
"'Quickly' doesn't begin to describe it. It's terrifying," the general confessed. "The power in those resources is immense. It would take me months of dedicated meditation to absorb even a fraction of what he consumes in a day. He swallows it all like it's water, and somehow, his body doesn't explode. His aura… It's been climbing at an unbelievable rate. I suspect he'll reach the peak of the Sky Profound Realm any day now."
A brilliant light sparked in the Queen's eyes.
"Excellent," she purred. "This proves he's no common beast. His bloodline is even more powerful than I imagined. This will serve my purposes perfectly. I thought I might have to cultivate him for years, but at this rate… my ascension to Demon Emperor is close at hand."
As if summoned by her words, a new, potent aura exploded from Luo Zhen's chambers, washing over the entire palace.
The Queen's head snapped up, her senses locking onto the energy signature. A wide, predatory smile spread across her face.
"The Demon Core Realm!" she exclaimed, rising from her throne. "He's actually breaking through!"
In a flash of movement, she was gone, streaking toward his chambers.
Back in the pool room, the storm within Luo Zhen coalesced. A fist-sized, perfectly spherical orb of pure power settled in his Dantian—his Demon Core. The instant it formed, a blinding golden light erupted from his body, wrapping him in a thick, pulsating cocoon.
Fifteen minutes passed. The cocoon cracked, then dissolved into motes of light, revealing that Luo Zhen had shed a thick, white layer of old snakeskin.
He emerged, reborn.
He looked down at himself in wonder. He had not only reached the Demon Core Realm but had also undergone a physical transformation. His upper body was now fully human, his features the same as they were on Earth, though his jet-black hair now flowed down to his waist. His arms and chest were corded with powerful muscle. Below the waist, however, his human legs were gone, replaced by the shimmering, golden coils of a massive serpent. He was a naga, a being of two worlds.
He knew that with his next breakthrough, he could achieve a fully human form. But for now, this felt… right.
His self-admiration was cut short as the Ant Queen swept into the room.
"You've done it," she breathed, her eyes drinking in his new form. "You've truly forged a Demon Core and become a Demon General."
Luo Zhen met her gaze, a slight frown on his face. "Leave me. I've just broken through; my foundation is still unstable."
The Queen's smile widened. "Of course, of course. Take all the time you need to stabilize your power," she said, her voice dripping with amusement. "I'm in no hurry." She gave him one last, lingering look before gracefully backing out of the room.
It was a lie, of course. With the System, his cultivation was always perfectly stable. He just needed her gone for what came next: the bloodline awakening. Every breakthrough granted him a chance to dive deeper into his genetic heritage, to unlock a new power.
If he could awaken the right ability, he might just find a way out of this gilded cage.
System, he commanded internally. Initiate the bloodline awakening.
Understood, the System replied. However, you have not yet fully assimilated the Jiuying bloodline. This awakening will draw from that same source.
I'm ready, Luo Zhen replied, bracing himself.
The world around him dissolved. His consciousness was flung into a void, and before him, a creature of impossible scale materialized. The nine-headed hydra, Jiuying, loomed over him, its heads so large they scraped the heavens. Nine pairs of ancient eyes, vast as mountain lakes, slowly blinked open.
An aura of pure, primal ferocity crashed down on him, a pressure so immense it felt like it could pulverize his very soul. Luo Zhen grit his teeth and endured.
He held on for ten seconds.
Then, darkness took him.
When he came to, his head was throbbing. He pushed himself up, rubbing his temples. System, what did I get? What was the new ability?
There was a hint of disappointment in the System's tone. You were unable to endure the full awakening. You have only inherited a fragment of Jiuying's power.
This time, you have acquired the Azurewood Spirit Body.
Luo Zhen focused, pulling up the description.
Azurewood Spirit Body: A wood-elemental constitution. Grants resistance to various elements and toxins, but its primary function is unparalleled regeneration. The more potent the natural life force in the surrounding environment, the faster the user's healing.
"So… it's a healing factor?" Luo Zhen asked, slightly stunned.
Essentially, yes, the System confirmed. Though it provides significant defensive capabilities as well.
A new thought occurred to the System. There is an overlap. Your previous Dark Gold Snake Body and this new Azurewood Spirit Body both provide defense. They can be synthesized into a superior form.
"Do it," Luo Zhen ordered without hesitation. "Fuse them now."
A brilliant, emerald light exploded from his body. For nearly half a minute, he was bathed in its glow. When the light finally faded, he looked down to see that his golden scales had transformed. They were now the color of deep, lustrous jade.
He was no longer a golden naga, but an azure one.
Synthesis complete, the System announced. You have acquired the Azure Jade Spirit Body.
Luo Zhen took a moment to take stock of his new self. He was Luo Zhen, the Thunder Lotus serpent, now at the dawn of the Demon Core Realm. His body, now the Azure Jade Spirit Body, hummed with a potent blend of unyielding defense and startling vitality. His arsenal of abilities—elemental magic, stealth, and a terrifying new spectral fire—was more formidable than ever. He was stronger, more resilient.
And in this beautiful, dangerous prison, he would need every ounce of that new strength.