Beauty Snake - Chapter 83

Chapter 83: Through Those Pupils, She Read Vigilance And Threats, But She Failed To Read That Familiar, Tender Affection And Overflowing Love.

“So, you just… Mmph—” Before she could finish, Ji Yunfei’s face was covered by a hand, her lips slightly pouting as her cheeks were squeezed.

“You child, are you just too tired from work? Why have you started talking nonsense?” Grandma’s eyes were wide, filled with disbelief and worry. She cupped Ji Yunfei’s face, looking her over from left to right, seemingly truly convinced that Ji Yunfei had started hallucinating due to excessive stress.

“Grandma, I’m not talking nonsense…” Ji Yunfei broke free from Grandma’s hands, looking helpless. She sat up straight, trying to make Grandma take her words seriously: “Everything I said is true.”

But as if playing dumb on purpose, Grandma reached out to touch Ji Yunfei’s forehead and then her own, muttering: “This child, she doesn’t have a fever…”

Seeing her like this, Ji Yunfei knew there was no point in asking further. She sighed and stood up: “Just assume I’m confused…” As she spoke, she peeked at Grandma’s reaction out of the corner of her eye. Seeing that the old woman’s expression remained unchanged, she gave up entirely. “I’m a bit tired. Leave the dishes; I’ll wash them tomorrow… You should get some rest too.”

Without waiting for a response, she turned and went back to her room.

Back inside, Ji Yunfei collapsed onto her bed in a spread-eagle position. She grabbed the small stuffed dog she had brought back with her and took a light sniff. A faint scent of narcissus lingered almost imperceptibly at the tip of her nose—the unique scent belonging to Xie Yin.

She hugged the stuffed dog tighter, burying her head in its large belly, greedily inhaling the scent Xie Yin had left behind.

Lately, Ji Yunfei could only gain a vague understanding of Xie Yin’s condition by asking Yin Wan. She only knew that her situation was stable but that she remained in a coma. The “right timing” Yin Wan mentioned for a visit had yet to arrive.

Before returning to the village, she wanted to ask Yin Wan for specific details again, but that girl had vanished faster than anyone, leaving only Secretary Lin to manage the company’s affairs before the New Year.

Unable to contact Yin Wan, Ji Yunfei’s heart began to feel uneasy again. Now, her only hope rested on this trip back to the village. But judging by the current situation, progress seemed unlikely.

She felt that Yin Wan and the others were hiding something. Xie Yin’s condition probably wasn’t as “easy” as they claimed. Perhaps she had to find a way to get to the Snake Den herself.

She missed her too much, and she was far too worried.

However… Ji Yunfei faced a problem. The Snake Den was actually a special space detached from this world. Its entrance was unpredictable—it could appear anywhere, and only those of the snake race could pass the entrance’s audit to enter. While inside the Snake Den, outsiders had no way to locate it. This was why Ji Yunfei had originally chosen to push Xie Yin away and keep her there.

The Snake Den was naturally the best choice for hiding from those lunatics, but for her, it was a major headache because she couldn’t find its location, let alone get in.

The more she thought, the more frustrated she became. What little sleepiness she had vanished completely. She rolled around on the bed clutching the stuffed dog, the storm in her mind never ceasing.

Grandma’s reaction just now clearly showed she was hiding something; she definitely knew something. But why did she play dumb even after Ji Yunfei was honest? She didn’t believe for a second that the legend was just to scare children away from the back mountain at night…

The back mountain at night…?

Like an electric shock through her brain, Ji Yunfei sat bolt upright. An idea began to form.

They don’t want people going to the back mountain at night? She would go anyway; she wasn’t a child.

Ji Yunfei remembered that night when Xie Yin had lured her to the back mountain for a passionate encounter. The legend was likely meant to keep people away…

Her intuition told her that the back mountain might hold what she was looking for.

Since she had already come this far, she would try anything, no matter the risk.

Having made up her mind, Ji Yunfei let out a rare, relieved laugh. She checked the time; it was only a little after 7 PM, still early. She set an alarm for 2 AM and crawled into her warm blankets with the stuffed dog.

She had enough time to catch up on some sleep…

She had work to do in the middle of the night.

Ring, ring— At 2 AM, amidst the dead silence, the phone by Ji Yunfei’s bedside rang on time, breaking the stillness.

Slap— Her morning grumpiness flared up at the interruption of her dream. She slapped the phone peevishly, swiping away the annoying alarm, and turned over to hug the stuffed dog tighter.

After a long moment, the figure on the bed suddenly bolted up, heartlessly tossing the stuffed dog aside to lie there alone.

“I almost slept through it…” Ji Yunfei sighed, putting on a thick coat and getting up.

It had been far too long since she’d had a solid night’s sleep. It was rare to sleep so well that she nearly missed the important task. Fortunately, she realized just before drifting off again…

Ji Yunfei shook her head to cast out the remaining sleepiness, grabbed her mountain essentials, and headed out.

She tiptoed along the wall, striving not to make a single sound. The elderly were easily startled, and any noise might wake Grandma, causing her mountain plan to fail instantly.

Fortunately, nothing unexpected happened. She slipped out of the house smoothly and stepped onto the small path leading to the back mountain.

Everything was pitch black. Every house had its doors and windows tightly shut. Occasionally, the wind produced a scratching sound against the shutters.

It was, honestly, a bit terrifying.

As she moved further back, the scenery within her sight began to grow desolate. The scattered houses vanished, replaced by towering, withered trees and weeds that crackled under her feet.

Gulp— Ji Yunfei’s nerves were pulled taut. She swallowed involuntarily. Even though this wasn’t her first time on the mountain at night, she still felt a sense of dread. After all, the villagers had barely explored the depths of this mountain. Whether there were other dangers lurking inside remained an unknown.

Exploring deeper with a racing heart, Ji Yunfei suddenly felt the surroundings looked somewhat familiar. However, because it was so dark, even with the help of a flashlight, it took some effort to observe.

She swept the flashlight beam around and soon noticed a cave hidden among the high grass.

Even though the surroundings had changed slightly, she was certain this was the same cave Xie Yin had lured her into back then…

Her heart began to race uncontrollably. She bit her lip and finally made up her mind, bending down to crawl into the bottomless cavern.

The familiar scene reappeared. Only a few steps into the cave, Ji Yunfei came face-to-face with a pair of faintly glowing eyes. Then, one pair became two… more and more eyes glowing with an eerie light opened, following her closely.

Flap, flap, flap— The sound of wings was like thunder. Ji Yunfei was once again swarmed by a colony of bats, falling clumsily to the ground.

“Damn it—” Once the bats had cleared, she rubbed her aching backside and struggled to her feet.

They say a person doesn’t fall into the same pit twice, but Ji Yunfei was clearly an exception. She swore to herself that she and bats would be mortal enemies for the rest of her life…

With the minor interlude over, she brushed the dirt off her clothes, picked up the flashlight—which was now flickering unsteadily—and continued exploring.

The narrow passage gradually widened, and a faint light appeared in the darkness ahead. Suppressing her pounding heart, she quickened her pace.

Following the light, a bone-chilling cold wind lashed out at her face, stinging her skin. But she didn’t care about the pain; her only thought was to move forward, and forward again.

Finally, the space opened up, and she visited that familiar large cavern once more. The mushrooms with strange light-blue patterns growing around emitted a faint bioluminescence, lighting up the area.

But Ji Yunfei had no mind for the strange mushrooms. Her gaze was locked onto the ice platform in the center, which was continuously radiating cold air.

Unlike the first time, the ice platform was even more freezing. Despite the distance and her thick coat, Ji Yunfei’s legs trembled from the cold, and the tip of her nose turned red.

But what did that matter? In Ji Yunfei’s eyes, there was only the massive yellow-and-black python coiled there, as motionless as a statue.

“Xie Yin…” The joy of recovery nearly overwhelmed her mind. She whispered Xie Yin’s name as she approached the ice platform. Because the cold was so piercing, she had to hold her hand up in front of her face to block some of the chill, taking difficult, small steps forward.

She deliberately controlled her movements. Thus, even as the distance closed, the giant python coiled on the ice platform remained motionless.

Finally, she stood before the python and saw its condition clearly. One look was enough to make her eyes redden uncontrollably.

Ji Yunfei had seen the python at its best: the yellow-and-black scales always had a faint luster and felt as smooth as silk. One touch was addictive, making it hard to let go.

But now… Ji Yunfei’s throat felt tight, and she couldn’t utter a word.

Those brilliant scales were tattered and incomplete, filled with jagged gaps. They were no longer rounded or lustrous. Ji Yunfei was certain that with just a little pressure, those scales would instantly crumble into powder.

Aside from the scales, the python’s body was covered in wounds of various sizes caused by sharp weapons. Even though they had scabbed over and showed signs of healing, they still made Ji Yunfei’s heart ache.

“Yin-yin…” Ji Yunfei called out softly, her voice trembling and raspy in a way that surprised even herself. She gently reached out, pressing her palm against the python’s body, feeling the slight rise and fall of its breathing.

Hiss— A faint flicking of a tongue sounded from beneath her. The cold sensation under her palm vanished as Ji Yunfei instinctively tightened her hand, grasping nothing but air.

The coiled python had opened its eyes. A pair of pale green snake pupils stared unblinkingly at Ji Yunfei, as if staring at its prey.

Ji Yunfei looked back, trying to see something in those eyes. But through those pupils, she read vigilance and threats, but she failed to read that familiar, tender affection and overflowing love.

The heart that had been filled with joy at their reunion was instantly doused by a bucket of ice water, chilling her to the core.

Is… is this her Xie Yin?

Support