At that moment, Yun Xiao saw an array of emotions reflected in the girl's eyes—rage, shyness, confusion, and pain—all mingling together.

Yun Xiao himself wasn't as emotionally complex; his gaze was purely one of admiration for beauty, especially since he hadn't anticipated that a woman, seemingly frail in spirit, could be so stunning. None of the tens of thousands of spirited little celestial maidens outside could match her allure.

Of course, there was one aspect of her that Yun Xiao found slightly unsettling.

Instead of legs, she had a serpent's tail.

This tail, adorned with alternating pink and white scales, coiled gracefully upon a bed of ice crystals. Visually, the delicate blend of pink and white on the shimmering icy tail was strikingly beautiful. However, from a mortal's perspective, Yun Xiao found it hard to reconcile the image of a person with that of a serpent's tail.

He was certain she was human, not a demon nor a half-demon. Her serpent tail might have been linked to some unique lineage. Despite the serpentine features, her origins were unmistakably human.

Such a woman, with the body of a human and the tail of a serpent, was indeed a marvel in the path of immortality!

At that moment, she bit her lip, her eyes brimming with tears, appearing exquisitely vulnerable and moving. Even Yun Xiao felt a surge of compassion.

"Save... save me..." It was then she spoke, her voice as soft as a dream, perhaps the most melodious Yun Xiao had ever heard.

"Save you?" Yun Xiao paused, noticing no visible injuries on her.

But upon closer inspection, he discovered an abnormal weakness about her. A strange white mist seemed to be wreaking havoc inside her, swirling throughout her body like a ferocious beast threatening to burst her open.

She held on for a while, her face turning deathly pale as she lay limp on the ice crystals, her pink lips and delicate fingers trembling, her eyes losing their luster.

"Please, save me..." Her voice was tinged with a cry of pain, sounding profoundly distressed as she writhed on the ice crystals. Her fingers naturally moved downward, resting somewhere on her serpent tail...

Perhaps finding the right spot, a blush of pink and white blood finally rushed to her cheeks!

Plumes of white mist rose from between her trembling fingers. Only then did she find some relief. But it was only a slight improvement.

"There, help yourself..."

This scene made Yun Xiao's head buzz with confusion.

Indeed, the world was vast, filled with endless wonders...

He finally understood that this girl with the serpent tail was afflicted by some intense poison. She needed to release this venom, and there was only one way to do so. The effects appeared similar to an aphrodisiac!

Despite her struggles, she had not cured the deadly toxin, only alleviated the agony of impending death.

Yun Xiao watched helplessly as she trembled pitifully on the ice crystals, hysterical and shedding desperate tears.

"Help, please help me... you may be a slave, but you still have hands..." the serpent-tailed girl, nearly soulless, pleaded tearfully.

"Uh..." Yun Xiao was at a loss, his mind a whirl. Scratching his head, he muttered, "Saving a life is more meritorious than creating a seven-tiered pagoda. I'm willing to save you under normal circumstances, but the problem is your lower half. A snake is a bit too much for me."

As his words fell, the pink and white tail on the ice transformed, morphing into flawless, long jade legs. Before him now was a perfect celestial being.

"Slave, come, I'll grant you a lifetime of blessings..."

Her eyes misty, her voice dreamlike.

"Alright."

?ι══????????══ι?

In a daze, Yun Xiao endured a harrowing half-hour. As it turned out, his efforts were effective.

During that half-hour, the swirling white mist finally dissipated.

The venomous beast within her was subdued and dispelled by Yun Xiao, turned to ash and smoke.

The entire process—her relief, the tender murmurs, and each microexpression—was unforgettable.

At last, she lay limp on the ice crystals, eyes closed, lashes quivering as if ascending to paradise, deeply asleep.

Yun Xiao, considerate as ever, found a garment to cover her. And as he cast one last glance, he couldn't help but marvel: she truly was a devastatingly beautiful girl.

After his reflections, Yun Xiao noticed a few droplets of blood on his right hand, and he couldn't help but sink into deep thought.

"Oh, I've really done it now…!" Yun Xiao muttered, covering his face in dismay. "It's alright, it's alright. I was just saving her; she wouldn't blame me," he reassured himself, feeling somewhat comforted by the thought.

"Yao Yao's battle is soon; I can't stay here long." Yun Xiao gathered his things, preparing to leave.

"Hmm?" Just then, as his heart gave a sudden lurch, he glanced back at the ice crystals.

Unbeknownst to him, a radiant Corona had begun to form slowly behind this heavenly female Immortal with snowy hair and pink eyes.

BOOM!

The Corona, majestic as a crown of snow-capped mountains, wielded an awe-inspiring power.

"So, she's in the Fourth Dao Tribulation? It seems that strange white mist did indeed weaken her." Yun Xiao felt relieved. It meant the girl would be able to take care of herself upon waking.

Just as he was thinking this, the Corona shimmered, as if a layer of tribulation clouds had been added.

"The Second Baptism Realm? So young and already so powerful; she'd be considered a prodigy even in the Harmony Divine Palace," Yun Xiao remarked with a slight sense of awe.

But in the next instant, the clouds on her Corona kept multiplying.

"Two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight... Damn!" Yun Xiao's vision blurred. She was in the Eighth Baptism Realm?

That would make her a Stellar River Overlord throughout the entire Samsara Galaxy.

"Shoot, shoot, shoot..." Yun Xiao's mind went blank.

This girl was so powerful; once she truly awoke, and given their shared ordeal, might she not chop him into mincemeat?

"Yun Xiao, run!" Blue Star, equally stunned, urgently cried out.

It too was worried about its bottom line!

"Right!" Yun Xiao started to run, but then a thought struck him, and he stopped in his tracks.

"What are you doing?" Blue Star demanded, eyes wide.

"Just a moment."

Yun Xiao turned back to the girl, retrieving the garment he had just placed over her, and then produced a talisman, enveloping her in its radiant light.

"What's that?" Blue Star asked, nestled against him.

"A Projection Talisman, it can broadcast that kind of thing," Yun Xiao explained.

"Damn, you're trying to tarnish her reputation?!" Blue Star got excited. "That's great, I love this kind of evil plan."

"It's not evil, it's for self-preservation."

With this talisman in hand, if she ever tried to kill him, he'd have some means of retaliation.

Once Yun Xiao had secured the talisman, he quickly made his escape.

As he passed the cave's entrance, he casually pocketed the Calamity Source, muttering, "Saving your life justifies a small service fee, right?"

With those words, he burst through the waterfall and vanished into the distance.

Not long after, the ice crystal cave, the waterfall, the icy river, and the abyss all vanished under a pink light...

A figure with the body of a human and a serpent's tail surged out, causing mountains and rivers to collapse for miles.

"Diva!"

From within the Harmony Divine Palace, numerous reverent cries echoed.

RUMBLE! RUMBLE! RUMBLE!

The massive disturbance even caused the Harmony Divine Palace itself to quake.

"What's going on?"

The celestial maidens whispered among themselves, seeking answers. Soon, the news came back.

"It was that Diva who appeared!" Zhao Mengmeng said with immense reverence.

"Which one?" Lin Wan asked eagerly.

"The youngest one, who's attempting to become a Boundless Immortal. I wonder if she succeeded?" Zhao Mengmeng speculated.

"Silence!" A stern rebuke finally quieted the chaotic crowd, and a solemn atmosphere settled once again.

Zhao Mengmeng and Lin Wan stuck out their tongues and shut their mouths, no longer daring to speak aloud.

"Damn it…"

Feng Yao was puzzled, her heart suddenly echoing with Yun Xiao's voice.

"What are you damning about? I've been calling you for half an hour with no reply," Feng Yao said, exasperated.

"Uhh, I got caught up with a serpent..." the Mortal Dust Devil Seed muttered.

"Serpent? What are you talking about?" Feng Yao asked, confused.

"Uh... never mind, business as usual. I'll wait outside for your good news," Yun Xiao responded.

"Alright, as long as you're not dead. I thought you were gone for a moment there," Feng Yao chuckled.

With that, she felt a bit more at ease herself.

After all, her turn was coming up soon!

"By the way, do you remember the Divine Imperial Son?" Feng Yao asked with a light laugh.

"Of course," Yun Xiao replied.

"I just did some digging. That guy's a fraud. He's not any

Imperial Son

. In the Samsara Galaxy, all the Immortal sects follow a disciple ranking system. Divine Bud Disciples are actually the lowest rank; above them are Stellar Sea Disciples, Taiji Disciples, and Samsara Disciples. If I make it into Harmony Divine Palace this time, I'll become a Divine Bud Disciple," Feng Yao said disdainfully.

"So it turns out, shameless indeed," Yun Xiao agreed.

"Hey, you seem distracted. What were you really up to?" Feng Yao inquired, suspicious.

"Nothing, nothing..."

Outside the Harmony Divine Palace, Yun Xiao gazed at the tumultuous smoke and clouds over the palace, lost in thought.

Not getting a response, Feng Yao huffed, "Forget about you then, it's my time to shine!"