Chapter 59

For the strange snakes who were trapped below the cliff, it was already enough to make them very happy for them to have accidentally met more than two vipers in their very long, endless life.

Originally, the strange snakes’ real intention was for Yin Xiaoxiao and Mo Laoda to remain at the bottom of the lift, but Mo Laoda absolutely refused. Joking! At the bottom of this cliff, his combat strength was, at best, second to last which certainly wasn’t the case outside the cliff! Mo Laoda naturally would not agree to remain with Yin Xiaoxiao at the bottom of the cliff.

The strange snakes all sighed with regret but could only have Yin Xiaoxiao and Mo Laoda remain two more days. This Yin Xiaoxiao actually readily promised.

In the blink of an eye, it was the early morning of the day they were to leave.

“Xiaoxiao, come visit again next time!” Goushe waved its hooked tail towards Yin Xiaoxiao.

Yin Xiaoxiao nodded his head vigorously. “I certainly shall!”

“Ah, by the way, Xiaoxiao. Next time you come, bring jade treasures and so on, alright?” Xionghui abruptly said, all nine heads smiling flatteringly.

“Jade treasures?” Yin Xiaoxiao looked blank. “What do you want them for?”

“Mingshe likes them!”

“Ah? But…”

“But nothing!” Xionghui interrupted Yin Xiaoxiao. “In the beginning, Ji Kang really gave a lot of jade treasure to Mingshe, only Mingshe has already consumed those jade treasures.”

“Co, consumed?” Yin Xiaoxiao’s eyes widened.

Xionghui nodded. “Mingshe’s duty is said to be to guard treasure, but actually the biggest reason is that Mingshe needs to consume treasure in order to grow and improve cultivation. So Mingshe will only stay in a place that has treasure. Ji Kang really did give Mingshe a lot of jade treasure, only it’s been so many millennia that the jade has already been entirely consumed. Also, since we are unable to leave the bottom of this cliff, there’s no way for us to get the jade treasures from the imperial tomb.”

Yin Xiaoxiao: “…”

Yin Xiaoxiao was suddenly struck by an odd thought: When Ji Kang had the strange snakes trapped at the bottom of the cliff, the biggest reason actually to keep Mingshe from stealing what was entrusted to its care .

“Well, as much as I am able and if Ji Kang agrees, I will come back with some.” In any case, Ji Kang had so much of it. But it would also have to pass through his own audit! Precious jade was out of the question! At most he would bring things of gold and silver. “Only, I might not be able to bring much, yeah.”

“Doesn’t matter, doesn’t matter. It takes a long time for Mingshe to digest the treasures consumed. Even a little will be enough for Mingshe to digest for a long time.” As before, Xionghui smiled happily. For the entire time, behind Xionghui’s back, Mingshe didn’t show its face. He didn’t know if this was because of embarrassment or what.

“I heard it said that the animals on the mountain look pretty small, don’t they?” Mabanshe said. “Next time, bring me a live rabbit. Oh, I want to see how small it is, ha. Hey, staying here for so long, I’ve entirely forgotten how large ordinary rabbits should appear to be.”

Yin Xiaoxiao: “…cough cough, this task, just give it to Mo Laoda.”

“I still remember a bit, such as that it wasn’t even enough to get stuck in the gaps between your teeth,” Heiyi had an expression of reminiscence on his face. “At that time it wasn’t very easy to eat until full, and it was also very dangerous.”

“Exactly. I remember when I swallowed an elephant. Even though I wasn’t full, I also wasn’t hungry, so I thought to sleep for a few years to preserve my physical strength. Who would have imagined that, just as I fell asleep, three years had already passed and I woke up hungry, so I was forced to spit up the indigestible bones and continue to look for something to eat.” Bashe continued the discussion. “Speaking of which, I have to say that humans are really cheap. I only ate a few of them and their chief actually dispatched someone to hunt me down and kill me. Humans also ate a lot of snakes but we didn’t go and settle debts with humans!”

Hearing Bashe speak, Xionghui and Mabanshe both nodded their heads vehemently and with great feeling.

Yin Xiaoxiao: “…”

Well, humans were also a part of the strange snakes’ diet just like how humans occasionally ate snake meat and drank wine in which snakes had been infused and what not. There was really no reason to become entangled in this topic.

“Ah, this is a gift for you, Xiaoxiao.” Feiyi used his first foot to place Yan Snake Grass ¹ wrapped in mud in front of Yin Xiaoxiao. “I used magic to preserve it so for a short time, it shouldn’t wilt. When you return home, plant it around your home, then it will be unlikely for a snake to detect your and Mo Laoda’s scent.”

Mo Laoda: “I have no need of this!”

Feiyi tilted his head, looked at Mo Laoda and said with a smile, “You don’t, but Xiaoxiao isn’t as powerful as you. If one day you are not present, only Xiaoxiao is at home and a snake without good intentions appears that is more powerful than Xiaoxiao, won’t Xiaoxiao be in danger? But with the Yan Snake Grass, then it can be assumed that other snakes will not easily find Xiaoxiao.”

Mo Laoda: “…”

Well, when coming across anything concerning Yin Xiaoxiao, Mo Laoda had nothing to say. It wasn’t that Mo Laoda didn’t think that there weren’t snakes that weren’t powerful that wouldn’t come and dare harm the Little Idiot, just that doing so would be to court death!

“Don’t you worry, I will certainly plant this Yan Snake Grass around the home.” Yin Xiaoxiao very carefully used his tail to gather up the yan snake grass.

“Nah, there’s nothing good below this cliff. It’s all grass and flowers. Since Feiyi gave you Yan Snake Grass, then I’ll give you this Huiyan Grass, yeah.” Mingshe placed an already prepared  gift of Huiyan Grass ² in front of Yin Xiaoxiao. “Xiaoxiao, your skin is very nice, you must maintain it well. You must never keep any scars, you know.”

“Yes yes yes yes, I will!”

“Little Hei snake, you also, oh, I remember you also wish to appear beautiful ³ . Surely this Huiyan Grass will also come in useful to you.” Xionghui once again had a happy smiling expression.

On Mo Laoda’s head, veins once again palpitated.

“Eh? Heitan is a great lover of beauty? Why?” Yin Xiaoxiao asked, puzzled.

“The Little Hei snake hasn’t told you?” Xionghui stretched out a head towards Yin Xiaoxiao. “Ten years ago, the Little Hei snake came here to look for Huiyan Grass and ran into me and Mingshe. I remember that, at that time, there were many large and deep scars on the little Hei snake’s body. The Little Hei snake used the Huiyan Grass on his body to remove the scars.”

“Ah? Really?” Yin Xiaoxiao turned his head to look at Mo Laoda. Suddenly, he burst into loud laughter. “Hahahaha, Heitan, you really don’t look like such a snake that sets store by your appearance! Hahahahaha – really didn’t expect it!”

Mo Laoda was ashen. ‘Who is the reason I am like this?! At that time, wasn’t it because you, this Little Idiot, said that scars are ugly that I came to look for the Huiyan Grass?! Now the Little Idiot actually dares to ridicule me!’

Mo Laoda bit the Huiyan Grass before him, half-narrowed his eyes and, in short, didn’t speak. He used his tail to gather Yin Xiaoxiao, roll him into a ball, and drag him away.

“Hey hey! Heitan, what are you doing?! Hurry up and put me down! Hurry!” Yin Xiaoxiao twisted and turned in Mo Laoda’s tail, but unfortunately couldn’t struggle free.

Looking at Mo Laoda dragging Yin Xiaoxiao away, the strange snakes behind them first stared blankly, then immediately roared with laughter. The seven strange snakes’ laughter flooded the bottom of the cliff.

It wasn’t until Yin Xiaoxiao and Mo Laoda could no longer see the strange snakes that Mo Laoda released Yin Xiaoxiao.

“Hey, Heitan, I really don’t know what has you so angry.” Having been freed, Yin Xiaoxiao helplessly shook his head. That was to say he, having a relatively thicker skin compared to that of another snake, could endure Mo Laoda. If switched to another snake, that other snake would already have died from excessive anger due to Mo Laoda’s bad character.

Mo Laoda slanted a glance at Yin Xiaoxiao and said in a deep, gruff voice, “Don’t talk! Start climbing!”

Yin Xiaoxiao looked upwards. Hey, people all say that uphill is easy and downhill is difficult, but he really, really wished that here he was going downhill, not uphill, alright! Several thousand meters uphill, even if he was a snake, was too painful, alright!

Mo Laoda eyed Yin Xiaoxiao, who was gazing uphill with an expression of wanting to cry but lacking tears, feeling very pleased with himself. Hmph hmph, that’s the reason he released the Little Idiot here! Just from seeing the Little Idiot’s laziness at home, he knew that the Little Idiot would surely quite loathe climbing the slope.

“Cough, cough cough, that Heitan.” Yin Xiaoxiao raised a smiling face. “I suddenly feel a little dizzy. Oh no, my tail is also sore. Heitan, could you carry me up?”

Mo Laoda looked ahead with an expressionless face. “Didn’t you make me put you down?”

“That was, that was, I was only joking, ha, haha.” Yin Xiaoxiao used his tail to touch his forehead then slithered to face Mo Laoda and used the tip of his tail to rub Mo Laoda’s body. “Okay?”

Mo Laoda tingled all over. Unconsciously, he answered, “Okay.”

After that, Yin Xiaoxiao was then bundled up in Mo Laoda’s tail, and they set out for the mountain. From inside Mo Laoda’s tail, Yin Xiaoxiao hummed a song. Sure enough, the revered ancestors of Imperial China were really wise and powerful. A honey trap ⁴ , no, a beautiful snake ruse was indeed something useful!

Yin Xiaoxiao and Mo Laoda didn’t hurry to return home. On the road they would slither and stop. Since slithering really was slow, Yin Xiaoxiao and Mo Laoda slithered halfway and were on the road overnight.

By the time Yin Xiaoxiao and Mo Laoda had slithered to the mountain, dusk of the second day had already arisen from below the cliff. The sun still hadn’t completely set. The glow of the setting sun shone off of the bodies of Yin Xiaoxiao and Mo Laoda, and the shadows of the two snakes overlapped, making it appear that the two snakes were as one.

“I see, oh, from here it seems that it will only take half a day to get home. If we leave now, I think we’ll arrive home by midnight,” Mo Laoda said. “Little Idiot, should we leave for home now or look here for somewhere to wait and then leave for home tomorrow morning?”

Yin Xiaoxiao didn’t even need to think. “Go back tomorrow!”

Mo Laoda nodded his head in agreement with what Yin Xiaoxiao said, then he began to look all over for a place to stay. The good news was that Yin Xiaoxiao and Mo Laoda had already eaten yesterday as they made their way up the mountain so now he need not go hunting again. He only needed to find a place where they could spend the night.

“There’s a cave here. It’s quite small but it’s not a problem for two sleeping snakes.”

Yin Xiaoxiao looked at the cave that Mo Laoda had found and agreed.

That night there was no conversation.

Early the next day, the two snakes slept well and awoke.

“Good! Let’s now return home!” Yin Xiaoxiao used his tail to point towards the sky, expressing that now he was full of strength!

“Yes.” Mo Laoda used his tail to touch Yin XIaoxiao’s head with a doting expression.

Just as Yin Xiaoxiao and Mo Laoda were about to set off, a yell interrupted the two snakes.

“Mo Laoda!”

T/N: Thank you, everyone, for your patience as I recovered from being sick. Also, sorry for any confusion caused by the mistranslation of the different grasses in earlier chapters. It’s fixed now. Thank you!

Footnotes

<ol>I originally mistranslated this as yan grass in earlier chapters. It’s been fixed. I originally translated this as Hui Yan grass in chapter 28, then mistranslated it as yan grass in chapter 56. It’s fixed now. 爱美: also means to love beauty 美人計: literally beautiful person ruse; one of the 36 strategies of war in ancient China</ol>