After Ji Zhao had killed Feng Yuan and then killed himself in order to become a hun po, the snake tomb completely lost contact with the outside world and became, from that point on, its own area. If anyone from the outside world wanted to enter the snake tomb, theyâd have to be a distant descendant of a Wu <sup>1</sup> or a Yao <sup>2</sup> .
Vipers didnât pay this much mind. After all, they were completely accustomed to life inside the boundary. Since they couldnât leave, whether the boundary was closed or not had not even the slightest effect on them. While Mo Laoda, on the outside, was expressionless, on the inside, he was very happy. Although the existence of the boundary had no real effect on the other vipers, it did affect Yin Xiaoxiao! Indeed, knowing that Yin Xiaoxiao could run outside the boundary made Mo Laoda feel as though heâd never feel at ease in this lifetime. Only the heavens knew when Yin Xiaoxiao would want to leave and poke around outside for fun! As for Yin Xiaoxiao, he was somewhat depressed. Although he had become a snake, he occasionally missed human food and technology. However, this depression didnât last long; after all, Yin Xiaoxiao wasnât a very melancholy and moody child.
Ji Kang and Ji Zhao cared even less. Although they were trapped for eternity in the old tomb, there could be nothing worse than the misery caused by being unable to see a lover for millennia. Especially now that they had just been reunited, Ji Kang and Ji Zhao were so affectionate that Yin Xiaoxiaoâs teeth ached at the PDA <sup>3</sup> . Not only did Ji Kang and Ji Zhao refuse to see guests but, each time Yin Xiaoxiao went to visit, they didnât even open the door for Yin Xiaoxiao.
As for the most depressed, that was Zhou Feng. After hearing that silver snake called Yin Xiaoxiao say through a deluge of tears â and actually, Zhou Feng was absolutely astonished that a snake could cry, but that wasnât the main issue â the main point was that, although the tale <sup>4</sup> was very moving, Zhou Feng wasnât at all interested in it. Moving, what moving?! Zhou Feng saw, with his own eyes, Ji Zhao decapitating Feng Yuan. Zhou Feng couldnât remain idle and bored, calling on Ji Kang and Ji Zhao! And he absolutely couldnât follow Yin Xiaoxiao. Hadnât he seen that snake called Mo Laoda fiercely glare at him when he <sup>5</sup> approached Yin Xiaoxiao?! Although he couldnât leave this snake tomb, he also didnât want to die early!
Only, congratulations! In the snake tomb there was actually another human! A real human! Not a ghost, not an ancient seductive spirit, it was a clear bonafide human-being! And so, Zhou Fengâs happy life in the snake tomb had finally commenced! Cough, cough, this will be mentioned later.
Ji Zhao and Ji Kang didnât meet with any guests, and also didnât know things had returned to normal. Mo Laoda, with more conscientiousness than Yin Xiaoxiao, brought some gold, silver and a very finely carved jade from the old tomb. Naturally, Yin Xiaoxiao seized that jade, but Mo Laoda had actually taken the jade for Yin Xiaoxiao! However, from that point on, Yin Xiaoxiao slept curled around that jade each night, and Mo Laodaâs expression became very ugly.
The gold and silver was, of course, for Mingshe. Mo Laoda and Yin Xiaoxiao didnât stay at home for long, with Mo Laoda, soon after, carrying Yin Xiaoxiao and the precious metals below the cliff. At that time, Goushe arrived, and Mo Laoda gave a general retelling of what had happened. This time, below the cliff, there was, overall, no need to worry. On the matter of Mo Laodaâs invasion of humans â it had passed.
âFrom this, now Ji Zhao is also in the old tomb?â Mingshe asked with a thoughtful expression, although what those thoughts were was unknown.
Compared to Mingshe, Xionghui cared about a different matter. âThen weâre stuck here forever?â
Mo Laoda and Yin Xiaoxiao didnât answer this question because they didnât know either.
âActually,â Bashe turned to look at Goushe, âitâs very good. Didnât you say that the outside world has changed a lot? If we left, I fear that itâd be difficult to find a suitable place to exist.â
Yin Xiaoxiao thought about the high-rise apartment buildings and densely concentrated population outside, the constant deforestation of the tropical forests, global warming, climate change and the ozone hole, and was abruptly in favor of Basheâs point of view.
Vipers tasked with searching for humans were also dispatched by Mo Laoda. The snakes entrusted with this task had to be a little more careful for fear that the remnants of humans would cause injury to the vipers. After a long time, no other humans appeared and the vipersâ lives returned to normal. Since the boundary had already been sealed off, even if humans entered once again, there was no concern that humans would be able to escape the boundary. Only then did Mo Laoda allow Mo Damo to dismiss his group of vipers, and Mo Damo returned to the Mo clan.
After staying a few days at the cliff, Mo Laoda and Yin Xiaoxiao left. On the mountain, the warning still hadnât been lifted from the young snakes, who had all already returned to their family home and didnât meet up. Each mother and father, or dad and pop, also hadnât left and remained, as before, with their children.
Mo Laoda and Yin Xiaoxiao rushed to Yin Xiaoxiaoâs familyâs home.
Yin Xiaoyi, Hua Xiaoer, Hua Xiaosan, Yin Xiaosi and Hua Xiaowu were all there, as was Yin Dabai and Hua Xiaohua.
Seeing Mo Laoda once more, Yin Dabai and Hua Xiaohuaâs expressions didnât change.
Yin Xiaoxiaoâs injury had already healed, and healed well. Silver scales had already grown back. Although there were some subtle differences, without looking carefully, these couldnât be seen. While they had been traveling, Mo Laoda and told Yin Xiaoxiao that he wanted to admit his past mistakes to Yin Dabai and Hua Xiaohua, but was met with Yin Xiaoxiaoâs firm refusal. Was this a joke? If he really told Father and Papa, Father and Papa would be even less likely to agree to Yin Xiaoxiao and Mo Laoda being together!
âItâs okay to wait until you and I are partners to say anything. In any case, fortunately Iâm fine.â
Mo Laoda was silent. He had no choice but to agree to Yin Xiaoxiaoâs demand.
Yin Dabai and Hua Xiaohua didnât resolutely oppose the matter of Mo Laoda and Yin Xiaoxiao being together, but they also didnât display their insistence on the original agreement: that only after Yin Xiaoxiao grew to adulthood, if Mo Laoda still loved Yin Xiaoxiao, and only if Yin Xiaoxiao didnât refuse, would Yin Dabai and Hua Xiaohua agree to the idea of the two snakes becoming partners.
Mo Laoda and Yin Xiaoxiao were, at the moment, very happy with Yin Dabai and Hua Xiaohuaâs attitude, especially Yin Xiaoxiao. Yin Xiaoxiao loved Mo Laoda. At the same time, he also loved his Father, Papa and five older brothers. Romantic love and familial love couldnât be compared to each other, and Yin Xiaoxiao didnât want to obtain romantic love and lose familial love. Yin Xiaoxiao was quite greedy and wanted it all.
Wasnât it just eighteen years? Yin Xiaoxiao tilted his head and looked at Mo Laoda. Whether it was eighteen years, eighty years, one hundred and eight years, he was sure that the two of them would be together. It was said that romantic love was fickle, but Yin Xiaoxiao was somehow sure in their romantic love, was sure in himself and was even more sure of Mo Laoda.
Yin Dabai and Hua Xiaohua didnât oppose, and the five older brothers also didnât speak. They were still young. Although they were called older brothers, they were only a day older than Yin Xiaoxiao. This one day spent around Yin Xiaoxiaoâs egg really didnât cause them to be more mature than Yin Xiaoxiao. They still hadnât grown to adulthood and so they didnât have the same fear of Mo snakes as adult snakes did. All the negative feelings towards Mo snakes came from what other snakes had said, which was spoken as though what they were saying was the truth with little room for doubt. It wasnât too difficult for them to accept that their beloved younger brother was the partner of a Mo snake, even without mentioning that this Mo snake hadnât done to injure other vipers, and that this Mo snake was Clan Head. When the humans invaded, the words heâd said echoed in the ears of every snake. Without conscious awareness, it seemed as though theyâd started to idolize this snake â you see, this snake is so powerful!
Mo Laoda and Yin Xiaoxiao rested a night at Yin Xiaoxiaoâs familyâs home. Once, halfway through, Mo Laoda and Yin Dabai left together. After returning, Yin Dabaiâs expression was very ugly and, although he constantly glanced at Yin Xiaoxiaoâs body, in the end he didnât say anything. At night, unlike before, Mo Laoda tyrannically monopolized Yin Xiaoxiao. The other five young snakes aggrievedly slept on their own.
At dawn the next day, Mo Laoda and Yin Xiaoxiao left. Originally, Mo Laoda had wanted to return home straightaway. However, at Yin Xiaoxiaoâs suggestion, the two snakes set course to return to the Mo clanâs lands.,
No matter what, Yin Xiaoxiao felt that he should return to see it again.
The lands were the same as when Mo Laoda and Yin XIaoxiao had left the first time, without even the slightest change. Father Mo and Mother Mo, as before, still didnât approve of Mo Laoda and Yin Xiaoxiao being together. Mo Laoda, as before, ignored the opinions of the two snakes. Mo Laoer and Mo Laosan, as before, still didnât understand Mo Laodaâs choice. Mo Laoda, as before, had an ugly expression on his face when looking at the two snakes. Well, it seemed as though nothing really had changed.
No, actually there was a change. Mo Laoer was about to marry another Mo snake.
It was a viper that Mo Laoda and Yin Xiaoxiao knew, Mo Damo.
Father Mo and Mother Mo endorsed their daughter, their second child, becoming partners with Mo Damo. It could be assumed that, since their son was the Clan Head, he was the most powerful snake. So their daughter marrying the second most powerful snake couldnât be better. Mo Laosan was very happy, and Mo Laoer was quite pleased with herself. As for the reason why Mo Damo wanted to form a partnership with Mo Laoer? Probably not even Mo Damo knew.
Yin Xiaoxiao was indifferent. He didnât like Mo Damo. Similarly, he didnât like Mo Laoer who, from the beginning, opposed him being together with Mo Laoda. Mo Laoda harbored some doubt. Mo Laoda knew that Mo Laoer and Mo Damo werenât well acquainted to the point where he couldnât say that the two had ever looked at each other before. Wasnât holding the ceremony too hasty? But Mo Laoda wasnât going to put a damper on their union. One was his younger sister and the other was the young master of the previous head of their Clan who had helped him before, and his questions werenât sufficient grounds for Mo Laoda to open his mouth to ask what was going on between the two.
On Mo Laodaâs return, Mo Dayiâs younger sister, Mo Daer also came to call on Mo Laoda. Unfortunately for her, they didnât exchange even a few words, and Mo Laoda impatiently drove her out. Aside from Yin Xiaoxiao, Mo Laoda didnât seem to possess much patience for other snakes.
Mo Laoda and Yin Xiaoxiao also didnât spend many nights in the Mo clan lands. Yin Xiaoxiao silently asked himself whether or not coming here was a mistake. But these were his parents, after all, and receiving their blessings was only for the best. Mo Laoda stroked Yin Xiaoxiaoâs head with his tail, smiling a little.
On the way back, Yin Xiaoxiao and Mo Laoda saw Zhou Feng and Wang Yanzhen. The two humans werenât used to living in caves, and the two were talking about building a wooden house at the base of the mountain and going to collect materials. There was no deadline and the two humans needed to have something to do so that they wouldnât feel bored. Yin Xiaoxiao watched on with great excitement as they constructed the wooden house, and even came up to offer a few suggestions. Zhou Feng and Wang Yanzhenâs eyes brightened, and they wanted Yin Xiaoxiao to stay with them for a while to give advice. Mo Laoda, face blank, dragged Yin Xiaoxiao away.
The two snakes directly returned home. After this, the cave was a world for the two lovers. Mo Laoda would also bring Yin Xiaoxiao to the bottom of the cliff or to slither about the mountain. The days, just as they had been for several thousand years, were tranquil and beautiful.
In the blink of an eye, seventeen years had passed.
T/N: 08/27/22: I forgot the stuff on the last page of my google docs file. Iâve added it to the chapter, and Iâm going to put it in the next one as well, just in case.
Footnotes
<ol>ć·«: could be a surname, but the character also means witch, wizard of shaman ćŠ: a supernatural entity, analogous to the Greek spirits such as dryads and satyrs è »æȘ: literally greasy and tired; slang referring to lovers whispering sweet nothing to each other referring to the tragic romance between Ji Zhao and Ji Kang Zhou Feng</ol>