Chapter 172: The Snake in the Courtyard
Just when everything seemed to have settled, the sacred Fusang tree suddenly showed signs of a change.

The branches of the sacred Fusang tree were suddenly covered with dark clouds.

These dark clouds are shaped like leaves and are clumped together on the trunk of the Fusang sacred tree.

At this moment, a green dragon shadow appeared from the tree trunk. It had a huge body, glittering scales, and eyes like torches.

After its body was fully revealed, it hovered under the tree, as if confirming something.

Then its eyes were fixed on Gongsun Ce, who was standing not far from the Fusang sacred tree.

The moment the Azure Dragon's phantom saw Gongsun Ce, it was as if it had found its long-lost home. It immediately turned into a stream of light and pounced towards Gongsun Ce.

Gongsun Ce only felt a tremendous force surging into his body, his dantian was suddenly filled, and his realm began to rise.

He gritted his teeth and forced himself to bear the force, but his heart was full of doubts. This scene seemed somewhat familiar.

At this moment, an endless starry sky suddenly appeared in front of Gongsun Ce's eyes.

In this starry sky, a huge blue dragon is hovering, and its body is made up of seven bright stars. These are the legendary Blue Dragon Seven Stars.

Jiao, Kang, Di, Fang, Xin, Wei, and Ji represent wood, metal, earth, sun, moon, fire, and water respectively.

At this moment, the star representing the fire attribute in the Tail of the Canglong Stars suddenly separated from the Seven Stars, turned into a stream of fiery red light, and suddenly merged into Gongsun Ce's body.

Gongsun Ce only felt a surge of hot energy surging in his body, as if it was going to ignite his entire body.

He clenched his teeth, trying to maintain his balance, while feeling the power of the fire element flowing through his body.

As time went by, Gongsun Ce gradually adapted to the power of the fire element.

He found that his affinity with the element of fire suddenly increased, and he could further control flames.

He waved his hand lightly, and a flame jumped at his fingertips, emitting a blazing light.

Gongsun Ce had a feeling that at this moment his affinity for the fire element had equaled his affinity for the wind element.

Even without reciting the dragon scripture, you can easily control part of the fire element.

At this time, Gongsun Ce's realm began to officially improve.

Feiyan and Yueshen stood on Gongsun Ce's left and right to protect him.

The look in Yueshen, the sister-in-law's eyes when she looked at Gongsun Ce had changed greatly.

The emotions revealed in the flickering purple eyes of the Moon Goddess were a bit of admiration and a bit of excitement.

Feiyan noticed the changes in Yueshen and sighed in her heart.

Gongsun Ce's breath surged at this moment, and he could faintly hear the sound of people reciting "No Matter What Sex Is". It turned out that this was the feeling of the ancient sages walking out of their own way.

Gongsun Ce's tightly closed eyes trembled slightly, and the next moment, his state of mind completely broke through the Grandmaster realm, but the Grandmaster's intention had not yet been sublimated.

Middle Grandmaster, late Grandmaster, perfect Grandmaster, the aura on Gongsun Ce’s body that was about to cross the Grandmaster level paused, and then suddenly stopped.

Gongsun Ce opened his eyes and exhaled a breath of foul air. With a wave of his hand, a breeze carrying flames swept across the Yanri Sword and the Tianwen Sword, evaporating and clearing the snake blood and gastric juice on the sword blades.

"Thank you, sister-in-law."

Feiyan couldn't help but pat Gongsun Ce on the shoulder, "I haven't married you yet."

"It's only a matter of time." Gongsun Ce said as he walked towards Yu Ziheng, "I have something to announce. I have taken over the Fusang sacred tree from your Shushan, but I will not continue to massacre the people of your Shushan.

However, if the people of your Shushan clan want to join our Great Qin, especially you, you need to be taught the Shadow Guards' Tengnuo Fighting Technique. "

As Yu Ziheng listened to Gongsun Ce's twists and turns, his mood fluctuated. Finally, he gritted his teeth and accepted the conditions given to him by Gongsun Ce.

"Okay, I agree. But after you have used the Fusang Sacred Tree, please return it to my Shushan."

"Impossible." Gongsun Ce shook his head, "But you can come to my house to admire the sacred Fusang tree."

"it is good!"

For the sake of his people, Yu Ziheng had no choice but to accept this decision that went against his ancestors.

Gongsun Ce clapped his hands, and the commander let go of Yu Ziheng, allowing Yu Ziheng to land safely.

After Yu Ziheng landed, he rang the bronze bell again. The Basah Snake had made quite a noise just now, but he did not expect that the bronze bell would be intact and not even fall over.

"Dang, Dang, Dang..."

The ringing of six bells meant that the alert was lifted. Before the tribe members headed for the Fusang sacred tree, the tribe leader Yu Ziheng had an important announcement to make.

While waiting for his tribesmen to arrive, Yu Ziheng unconsciously glanced at the snake bones of the Basilisk. This glance successfully allowed Yu Ziheng to discover some clues.

The snake bone is ten meters long and winding, like a giant dragon crawling on the ground, exuding a desolate and ancient atmosphere.

Yu Ziheng is proficient in the art of raising snakes and has an extraordinary ability to perceive snakes.

"Gongsun...Taiwei." Yu Ziheng had heard Meng Tian address Gongsun Ce in this way before, so he used the same title to address Gongsun Ce with some uncertainty, "Would you mind letting me take a closer look at the snake bones?"

"It's okay. Just look."

At this time, Gongsun Ce's mind was still immersed in the seven snake beads floating behind him. He was fascinated by the feeling of subtle improvement in his physical strength all the time.

However, Gongsun Ce could also feel that the energy in these seven snake beads was limited, and it was probably impossible to enhance his physical fitness to an alarming level.

However, if Gongsun Ce can completely absorb the energy of the snake bead, the defensive power of his skin may be comparable to that of the scales of the Basilisk. In addition, the defensive power of the dragon scales is not weak. In the future, no one may be able to break through Gongsun Ce's defense.

The only drawback is that Gongsun Ce's internal organs are difficult to temper.

Previously, the wood and fire elements given to Gongsun Ce by the Seven Stars of the Azure Dragon had successfully tempered Gongsun Ce's liver and heart, but how to temper the rest of his spleen, lungs, and kidneys was a big problem.

And the human internal organs are not just the heart, liver, spleen, lungs, and kidneys, but also the appendix...

Yu Ziheng walked to the snake's bones and gently stroked them. He felt a cold and hard touch at his fingertips, as if he could touch the power and majesty of the snake when it was alive.

"This is... the skeleton of a female snake!"

There was a hint of surprise in Yu Ziheng's voice. He carefully observed every detail on the snake's bones and found that the snake's tail was relatively short, which was a unique physiological characteristic of female snakes.

What surprised him even more was that, based on subtle changes in the snake's bones, he judged that this python might have just laid eggs.

"No wonder it wakes up every hundred years and continues to sleep for another hundred years after eating."

Yu Ziheng muttered to himself. He suddenly understood the mystery of the python's habits - it turned out that it consumed a lot of energy and energy to breed this snake egg, so it needed a long period of hibernation to recover its strength.

Even Gongsun Ce, who was experiencing the power of the snake bead, did not give up his vigilance against the illusions around him, and his kamaitachi was always in an active state.

So when Gongsun Ce heard Yu Ziheng's mumbling, and heard that the bassoon might have left snake eggs, he immediately became interested and decided to go and find the bassoon's nest himself.

Gongsun Ce slowly walked towards Yu Ziheng and asked, "How sure are you that the Bashen left behind snake eggs?"

Yu Ziheng pondered for a moment and replied to Gongsun Ce, "I'm about 70% sure."

"it is good!"

Gongsun Ce nodded. He was already curious about the appearance of the snake eggs. However, he couldn't miss the beating of Yu Ziheng.

"Yu Ziheng, persuade your people well. Meng Tian's Golden Fire Cavalry is still looking forward to their first military achievement."

Yu Ziheng nodded. He was familiar with the Qin State's military merit system. If his people did not resist, they would be prisoners. If they resisted, they would be enemy troops and their military merits would be counted.

After he heard that the Golden Fire Cavalry was the first to fight, he became more determined to appease his people and not let them cause trouble, otherwise it would be an unnecessary sacrifice.

After Gongsun Ce finished speaking, he took off into the air and flew in the opposite direction of the path the Bashen had taken.

Gongsun Ce only saw deep drag marks left on the ground.

These drag marks are like gullies, running across the mountains and forests, showing the huge size and powerful strength of the python.

Gongsun Ce followed these traces and quickly crossed the mountains and forests.

Two hours later, the sky had become completely dark.

Gongsun Ce came to a valley and saw a huge cave in front of him. The entrance of the cave was covered with vines and moss, making it extremely hidden.

There were no traces of the python's movement around, and he had an idea that this might be the python's nest.

Gongsun Ce flew into the cave, and a cold and damp breath hit him in the face.

Gongsun Ce raised his hand and a ball of fire floated in front of him to illuminate the interior of the cave.

I saw a huge stone platform deep in the cave, and on the platform was a pure black snake egg.

This snake egg is as big as a bucket, with a faint luster on the surface and contains extremely strong vitality.

Gongsun Ce approached the snake eggs and gently placed his hand on them.

As soon as his palm touched the snake egg, he felt a strong life force swirling in the egg. He closed his eyes and felt the life force with his heart, and the true energy flowed into the egg. With the help of the true energy, he could see the outline and dynamics of the small snake inside the snake egg.

"What a strong vitality!"

Gongsun Ce opened his eyes and nodded with satisfaction.

A different idea came to his mind - to hatch the python egg and raise the little python as a pet.

Once this idea came into his mind, it took root and could not be suppressed.

He can't afford to raise or control an adult python, but it's different for a baby python.

Gongsun Ce waved his hand, and the snake egg floated towards Gongsun Ce. Gongsun Ce hugged the snake egg and felt a chill.

It was still winter, and Gongsun Ce was a little uncomfortable holding such cold snake eggs suddenly.

After Gongsun Ce left the vicinity of the Fusang sacred tree, Yu Ziheng's clansmen walked out of their homes one after another and came to the huge square where the Fusang sacred tree was located.

When Yu Ziheng's tribesmen saw the golden fire cavalry near the Fusang sacred tree, they felt endless sadness and anger in their hearts.

He was saddened by the heavy losses suffered by his tribe members and angry at the betrayal of Yu Ziheng, the tribe leader and commander of the Yu Yuan guards.

Only their tribesmen knew the meaning of the six rings of the bronze bell; outsiders like Meng Tian had no way of knowing it.

But when they saw the snake bones of the Basilisk, the sadness and anger in their hearts turned into fear.

They knew very well how powerful the Bashe was. If it were not for the protection of the Fusang sacred tree, they would all have become the Bashe's meal.

Such a powerful python turned into skeletons in less than a day. How could they not be afraid?
The old, weak, women, children and some men without fighting ability in front of Yu Ziheng were all his clansmen.

Seeing the anger and sadness in their eyes quickly turn into fear, Yu Ziheng sighed.

Yu Ziheng's gaze swept over the tribesmen one by one, and his face was filled with heaviness.

These tribesmen who were once as close to him as brothers now had to surrender to the Qin State with him and become its vassal states.

He knew it was a heavy burden, but he could do nothing about it.

"My fellow tribesmen, we lost."

Yu Ziheng took a deep breath and felt his heart beating violently, which was his unwillingness.

"Our enemies are as powerful as gods. The python that has troubled us for many years has died at the hands of their leader.

Look at the scorched soil and the ground that looks like it was cut by a sharp blade. That was all done by the enemy's leader.

We are powerless to resist. If we resist, all we will get is fearless sacrifice!"

Yu Ziheng's biological son Zichu coughed and said, "Cough cough cough, father, we can't give up the glory left by our ancestors, cough cough cough."

Zichu is not a guard of Yu Yuan, so he can only have a name but not a surname. This is the rule of their Wu clan.

Yu Ziheng slowly closed his eyes, and the battle that happened not long ago emerged in his mind.

At that time, they welcomed the Golden Fire Cavalry led by Meng Tian with full confidence.

They believed that as long as Yu Ziheng was there, they had hope of defeating the enemy.

However, the reality is cruel.

Their resistance seemed so insignificant in the face of the powerful equipment of the Golden Fire Cavalry.

Their people fell one by one, and blood flowed like a river.

The guard Yu Yuan who managed to survive fell into the mouth of the Basashi.

But Yu Ziheng could only watch all this happen, powerless to do anything.

Now, Yu Ziheng stood in front of his clansmen, his heart full of contradictions and struggles.

He knew very well that he should persuade them to surrender and bow to Meng Tian for the survival of his people.

However, Zichu's words were like a heavy hammer hitting Yu Ziheng's heart, causing him, who originally had no intention of resisting, to feel even more angry.

He could not forget those tribesmen who sacrificed their lives to resist foreign enemies. The honor and dignity they forged with their lives were something he could not exchange for at any price.

However, the reality is cruel.

Yu Ziheng knew that if he continued to resist, more of his tribesmen would die in vain.

Their lives are precious, and they still have a future and hope.

He couldn't let them pay with their lives for the dignity and honor of their clan.

Yu Ziheng slowly opened his eyes and his gaze swept across the faces of his tribesmen again.

He took a deep breath and said slowly: "Zi Chu, the Fusang sacred tree has recognized them, and even the sacred bird trusts them. Our resistance is meaningless."

Not only Zichu did not believe Yu Ziheng's words, but the rest of the tribesmen also did not believe them.

At this moment, Feiyan formed seals with her hands and summoned the three-legged golden crow. Her three-legged golden crow flew up to the Fusang sacred tree and began to play with the three-legged golden crow on the Fusang sacred tree.

"Cry!"
After two crisp cries and the appearance of two three-legged golden crows, Yu Ziheng's people could only believe that the three-legged golden crows trusted the invaders and that the Fusang sacred tree recognized the invaders.

So what does their protection mean?
However, what made them even more devastated was yet to come.

The sky gradually darkened, and Gongsun Ce came walking on the moon. When he landed in front of the Fusang sacred tree, the Fusang sacred tree emitted a bright light, as if in sync with Gongsun Ce's breathing.

This became the last straw that broke the camel's back. After all, the three-legged golden crow was a divine bird and could represent the Fusang sacred tree, but it was not the Fusang sacred tree.

However, Gongsun Ce's arrival caused the Fusang sacred tree to shine, which not only proved Yu Ziheng's words, but also proved that the sacred object they had guarded for generations had already tilted towards outsiders.

This feeling is no different from the Saint Seiya in the Sanctuary seeing Athena kneeling down to polish someone's shoes.

It's very humiliating and helpless, but there's nothing I can do.

There are no brave warriors left in Shushan who can fight, and the only one with fighting ability, Yu Ziheng, has lost the will to resist.

Yu Ziheng's people could only accept the fact of surrender and the fact that the Fusang sacred tree was about to leave Shushan.

As the night deepened, the members of the Wu Clan left the square where the Fusang sacred tree was located, leaving only the Golden Fire Cavalry, Yu Ziheng, Gongsun Ce, Nong Yu, Yan Lingji, Fei Yan and the Moon Goddess.

Gongsun Ce returned to the carriage and took out a set of gold and red sacrificial clothes, then walked out of the carriage and handed the sacrificial clothes to the Moon Goddess.

The Moon Goddess was still a little confused when she took over the sacrificial service. "Brother-in-law, are you going to let me do the divine dance? Perform a sacrifice?"

Gongsun Ce nodded, "Yes, I'll ask my sister-in-law to help me."

The Moon Goddess did not agree but did not refuse either, "I wonder what my brother-in-law wants to ask?"

Gongsun Ce hooked his finger at Yan Lingji and said, "Ask his brother about the timing of my trip to Loulan."

Yan Lingji obediently walked to Gongsun Ce and let Gongsun Ce hug her.

When Yan Lingji and her brother were lost, Yan Lingji was still young. She only remembered that she had a younger brother with a birthmark on his body.

As for what her brother looked like, she had no idea at all.

Gongsun Ce's question was somewhat self-deceptive. Whether there was a suitable opportunity or not, Gongsun Ce would go to Loulan.

The Moon Goddess nodded, walked onto the bronze chariot and began to change into her sacrificial clothes, waiting for the moment of dawn, which was the moment for her to dance.

As for the sacrifices, the bones, gallbladder and beads of the basset snake are the best sacrifices.

After waiting for a while, a hint of paleness gradually appeared on the horizon.

At this time, the Moon Goddess, who had changed into her sacrificial clothes, walked out of the bronze chariot and came to the Fusang sacred tree.

The snake bones, gallbladder and beads of the Basang snake lay quietly in front of the Fusang sacred tree as a sacrifice.

The morning mist gradually rose and enveloped the sacred Fusang tree. Its twisted branches and lush leaves seemed to connect heaven and earth, and it was known as a bridge to the realm of the gods.

As the sun rises, a faint red glow appears on the horizon.

The Moon Goddess stood under the Fusang sacred tree, gently closed her eyes, and felt the warmth of the morning sun and the breath of the sacred tree.

Her body began to sway gently to the rhythm of her heart, as if in harmony with the sacred tree, the rising sun, the heaven and earth.

This is the Shushan Divine Dance recorded by the Yin-Yang School. It is a method used by the Shushan witch clan to communicate with heaven and earth with the help of the Fusang sacred tree.

The three leaders of the Sun, Moon and Star sects of the Yin-Yang School are Donghuang Taiyi, Yueshen and Feiyan respectively.

Theoretically, the three of them could be priests who offer sacrifices to the gods.

(End of this chapter)