Chapter 19: The Jiama Royal Family and the Yunlan Sect Join Forces

**Jia Ma Imperial Palace**

A tall, pretty-faced, and cold-tempered woman dressed in luxurious brocade robes sat on the throne.

Beneath her cold demeanor, she exuded a dignified temperament, and her entire presence radiated a cool and mature elegance. Her beautiful eyes were filled with a captivating allure.

This was none other than Princess Yao Ye of the Jia Ma Empire, the heir to the empire.

"How's it going? Any news about Jia Lao?"

Yao Ye sat on the throne, appearing calm on the surface. However, beneath her brocade robes, where the ministers kneeling below couldn't see, her hands were clenched with sweat staining her palms. It was clear she was far less composed than she appeared.

Jia Xingtian was her great-grandfather, and she knew that he had been called by Gu He to help seize the strange fire.

Initially, she wasn't too worried, as her great-grandfather's strength had reached the peak of the Dou Huang realm. Even if he were defeated, Yao Ye believed that not even the snake-woman queen, Medusa, could prevent his escape.

But days had passed, and Jia Xingtian still hadn't returned. Seizing the strange fire shouldn't take this long, should it? Anxiety mounting, she quickly sent someone to gather information.

The ministers below, trembling, replied, "Princess, Jia Lao… he was killed by the snake people."

"Boom."

The words struck Yao Ye like a heavy blow. Her eyes filled with sorrow, and it felt as if the entire world had turned bleak.

"You may leave now!"

Sensing the princess's darkening mood, the ministers hurriedly retreated, fearful that her anger might turn on them.

Once alone in the hall, Yao Ye could no longer hold back. She wrapped her arms around her knees, and tears streamed down her face like a torrential downpour.

In this moment, all of her usual dignity vanished, leaving behind only a sorrowful and helpless young girl.

After an indeterminate amount of time, Yao Ye finally raised her head, wiping away her tears. The sadness in her eyes had been replaced by a blazing fury.

"Snake people! I will see you all dead!"

Her words dripped with unending resentment.

Soon, news of the event spread, causing an uproar across the Jia Ma Empire.

**Yunlan Sect**

The Yunlan Sect was quick to receive the news. The sect's chief elder, Yun Leng, rushed to awaken the former sect leader, Yun Shan.

When Yun Shan learned from Yun Leng that his disciple had been killed, it felt as if he had been struck by lightning.

He had raised Yun Yun since she was a child, and in Yun Shan's heart, she was like his own daughter.

Hearing that Yun Yun had been killed by the snake people, Yun Shan was overwhelmed with grief and fury.

Had he not feared a counterattack from the powerful snake people, he would have sought revenge immediately.

After calming himself for a moment, Yun Shan crushed the jade slip that summoned the Soul Palace guardian.

Though he had previously refused the Soul Palace guardian's request, the death of his disciple left him willing to do whatever was necessary to seek vengeance.

After discussion, the Yunlan Sect decided to contact the royal family, proposing a joint attack on the snake people. Yao Ye, now consumed by her vow to wipe out the snake people and avenge her great-grandfather, agreed without hesitation.

Despite the past friction between the Yunlan Sect and the royal family, things were different now. The top leaders of both factions had been killed by the snake people. This common enemy united them, overriding any previous conflicts.

---

Jiang Xing, who had returned to the snake people, was unaware that the Yunlan Sect and the royal family had joined forces to attack them.

Even if he had known, Jiang Xing likely wouldn't have cared.

Ji Feng could easily defeat the Yunlan Sect and the royal family without Lin Shan needing to get involved.

It had been two days since the last time the colorful snake was fed. The companion amethyst source he provided last time had been fully absorbed, so Jiang Xing took out another for the colorful snake to eat.

"The Queen has absorbed so much amethyst source by now; why hasn't she woken up yet?"

Since the colorful little snake had followed him, Jiang Xing had been feeding it a bottle of companion amethyst source every two or three days. The stockpile he brought from home was nearly depleted, but Medusa still showed no signs of awakening.

Jiang Xing found this absurd. In the original novel, Xiao Yan had also fed the companion amethyst source to the colorful little snake, though likely in smaller amounts than what Jiang Xing had provided.

Medusa had awakened soon after Xiao Yan fed the colorful little snake, so why hadn't she woken up now?

In the original novel, Xiao Yan had been unable to absorb the energy of the fire lotus seeds, which were then absorbed by the colorful little snake, prompting her awakening.

But now, even after feeding the colorful little snake the fire lotus seeds directly, Medusa still didn't wake up!

Though Medusa looked quite impressive after evolving into a seven-colored swallowing python, Jiang Xing had no desire to see a snake every day; he preferred Medusa in her human form.

Returning to the snake people's territory, Jiang Xing found himself with little to do. He decided to spend a few days adjusting his condition to its peak before absorbing the strange fire.

He also ordered Ji Feng to go to the Black-Corner Region to seize Han Feng's Sea Heart Flame and to visit all the auctions there, using both threats and inducements to acquire all the maps up for auction.

Jiang Xing hadn't forgotten that the third piece of the Pure Lotus Demon Fire Remnant Map would be auctioned at the Black Seal City Auction in the Black-Corner Region. To be thorough, he instructed Ji Feng to visit every auction in the region.

Ji Feng didn't disappoint. Within two days, he completed the task and brought back the Sea Heart Flame, ranked 15th on the Strange Fire List, along with the incomplete map.

Now, Jiang Xing possessed three strange fires: the Fallen Heart Flame, ranked 14th, the Sea Heart Flame, ranked 15th, and the Bone-Chilling Flame, ranked 11th.

Though the rankings of the Fallen Heart Flame and the Sea Heart Flame were close, with the Fallen Heart Flame ranked higher, Jiang Xing decided to absorb it first.

His reasoning was simple: the Fallen Heart Flame could help with cultivation, making it advantageous to absorb it as soon as possible.

The Fallen Heart Flame, ranked 14th on the Strange Fire List, was a flame born from the heart, capable of tempering qi and refining bones. Known as a "cultivation cheat," it could accelerate cultivation. Once refined, the flame would continuously generate a type of heart fire within the body, burning fighting spirit without requiring control and keeping the practitioner in a perpetual state of cultivation. Hence, its moniker as a "cultivation cheat."

Jiang Xing was very interested in this strange fire that could cultivate automatically.

With his current strength, absorbing the Fallen Heart Flame would not be difficult. The challenge lay in fusing it with the Green Lotus Core Flame.

That was why Jiang Xing took a few days to adjust his condition before proceeding with the absorption.