Chapter 1255: Split Actions

Xu Yang, of course, would not miss this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

"It's better to obey than to be polite; please lead the way. I apologize, but most of us are severely depleted after the recent battle and need time to recover and completely expel the blood poison from our bodies. Otherwise, we would find it extremely difficult to even move right now."

To everyone's surprise, no sooner had the leader of the Snakefolk female warriors finished speaking than the masked woman in red beside her silently stepped forward. In her palm, a dazzling Nine-Tailed Red Lotus quickly materialized.

How was this extremely rare ancient celestial totem bound to this woman? Even Xu Yang couldn't discern the true reason. All he could say was that the woman was incredibly mysterious, creating an unapproachable distance around her.

Yet, she acted decisively, causing the red lotus totem to rapidly expand in an extremely short time, its aura completely enveloping every Snakefolk warrior present.

In just over ten seconds, the light from the blood-colored red lotus circulated through the body of each Snakefolk warrior, swiftly and completely clearing the toxins within them. Simultaneously, this red lotus light also established a connection with the woman herself and Xu Yang.

Although the woman still hadn't uttered a single word, Xu Yang clearly understood that she was likely using this special method to create a mutual sensing link between them, allowing them to perceive each other's precise location no matter how far apart they might be in the future.

Moreover, this layer of dark-red energy also provided both Xu Yang and the woman with an extremely powerful barrier against poisonous elements.

It's worth noting that the appearance of this ability utterly stunned most of the Snakefolk. They had initially believed that only Xu Yang, who had just unleashed that earth-shattering palm strike, was the true top-tier figure. They never imagined that the mysterious, quiet woman by his side possessed such astonishing and formidable talent.

"Thank you, noble warrior. We have now completely cleared the toxins from our bodies and can set off immediately."

Soon, the Snakefolk warriors began to carve a mysterious and peculiar teleportation array on the ground. The symbols within the array's inscriptions were all completely unfamiliar to Xu Yang.

In no time, a void teleportation gate formed out of thin air, and everyone vanished from that stretch of Gobi desert. When their spiritual energy fluctuations reappeared, the scene before them had already undergone a complete transformation.

Led by the Snakefolk warriors, Xu Yang and the masked envoy returned to the Snakefolk headquarters. The buildings there appeared quite magnificent.

Although it was still located within the Gobi, because they had arrived directly at the outer entrance of the headquarters via a teleportation array, finding the exact location of the Snakefolk headquarters within the vast Gobi would be extremely difficult.

Perhaps this was also an advantage of the Snakefolk warriors using teleportation arrays for travel: it prevented the easy exposure of their headquarters' precise location.

"I say, we've been standing here for half a day. Why aren't we going in yet? Or does your clan's King wish to personally come out and greet me?" Xu Yang couldn't help but ask the red-tailed female warrior accompanying him.

The other party smiled sweetly, "Please wait a moment, esteemed guest. This is an exclusive rule of our Snakefolk; some preparations are required."

After waiting for about half an hour, a dozen Snakefolk maidens emerged from within the headquarters. After a brief negotiation with the red-tailed female warrior leader, the leader directly handed Xu Yang and his companion over to these Snakefolk maidens.

"You, esteemed guest, must accompany these attendants to purify yourself through bathing before you can enter the Snakefolk palace and meet our King."

Xu Yang couldn't help but purse his lips. "I've been to so many places, but I've never seen anywhere with more rules than yours. It's truly speechless."

"I need to bathe and purify myself? Does that mean my companion here also needs to...?"

The female leader smiled and shook her head, "She is a woman; this procedure is not required for her."

"Seriously? Do your Snakefolk discriminate against men like this? So, you're implying I'm dirty?"

The female leader continued to smile and shake her head, "It's not about being dirty, but within our Snakefolk, there has always been a system where women are revered and men are subordinate. However, because you are powerful and our clan's benefactor, and not an internal member of our Snakefolk, you are not bound by such rules. But to meet the King of the Snakefolk, this process of purification and bathing is unavoidable."

Xu Yang, of course, understood the principle of respecting local customs. Seeing that the other party had acknowledged him as not being discriminated against, he decided not to argue further.

He could only nod helplessly. Accompanied by the dozen or so attendants, he arrived at a private spiritual bathing pool. The rich spiritual energy of the water genuinely impressed Xu Yang; it was clear that the Snakefolk were being very considerate to him as an outsider.

What was awkward, however, was that the dozen maidens around him seemed to have no intention of leaving; instead, they intended to personally assist Xu Yang with his bath.

"Uh, cough, cough. I say, please turn around. I can manage by myself."

Seeing that the maidens still seemed insistent, Xu Yang, resigned, gently waved his hand. A powerful Ghost Valley Qimen formation activated around him.

Immediately, he transferred the maidens around him to other spatial locations, causing them to become disoriented in their respective environments and unable to see Xu Yang's body. By the time their normal vision returned, Xu Yang had already finished bathing and changing. He smiled, extended his right hand to them, and said, "Please lead the way."

They, naturally, couldn't defy Xu Yang. With speechless expressions, they led him all the way to the main entrance of the palace. After receiving the King's summons from within, the attendants all stopped outside the door, allowing only Xu Yang to step onto the grand main entrance of the majestic palace.

Upon entering the resplendent Snakefolk palace, Xu Yang discovered that the Snakefolk Queen was seated high on the main throne, enjoying a feast. In the center of the main hall, a dozen maidens were gracefully dancing.

The masked female envoy had been invited as an honored guest to appreciate the dance from one side. However, the girl still seemed out of place, naturally refraining from eating anything and sitting quietly by herself.

After Xu Yang entered the main hall, the singing and dancing immediately ceased. The Queen herself descended from her elevated seat. It had to be admitted that the Snake Queen possessed a truly noble and distinguished appearance.

In terms of looks, she was no less stunning than any top beauty on Yingzhou Continent. More importantly, unlike the other serpent-tailed human-bodied guards, she was fully capable of transforming into the appearance of a true human woman.