Chapter 17: The Second Trial - Venom of the Past

I. The Serpent's Invitation

The morning after the Shadow Guard attack, Mei Ling stood barefoot before the second trial door, her toes curling against the ancient carvings of a seven-headed serpent. The stone felt unnaturally warm, as if something inside recognized her venomous bloodline.

Elder Hong's warning echoed:

"The Venomous Serpent doesn't test skill—it feeds on regret."

Xiao Chen gripped her shoulder. "You don't have to—"

Mei Ling bit his hand hard enough to draw blood, then licked the wound with a giggle. "Oh husband, you know I love forbidden doors~"

The moment she crossed the threshold, the world dissolved into emerald mist.

II. The Poisoner's MemoryThe Revelation

Mei Ling found herself in a burning manor—the night her clan, the Jade Miasma Sect, was slaughtered.

Key Details Revealed:

Her father wasn't just a poison master—he was the Vermilion Bird's Royal Toxicologist, tasked with creating Fiend-resistant venoms.

The Emperor personally ordered the massacre when he discovered Mei Ling's blood could control Fiend corruption.

Young Mei Ling had hidden in a corpse pile, swallowing her own venom to play dead.

The Trial's Crux

A spectral version of her dying father appeared, offering a pearl of Absolute Venom:

"Take this, and you'll never be helpless again," he whispered. "But you'll forget this pain... forget why you fight."

Mei Ling's fingers trembled—until Xiao Chen's voice somehow pierced the trial (via their psychic venom link from Ch. 16):

"Mei Ling. Look down."

She saw it then—her child self's hands, already black-veined from venom overdose. She'd chosen power that night too—and it left her unable to cry ever since.

The Choice

With a scream, Mei Ling shattered the pearl, embracing the full memory of her clan's deaths.

Reward:

Bloodline Awakening: Her venom now purifies Fiend corruption (reverse of her original power)

New Ability: "Nostos Venom" - Can temporarily restore lost memories in others

III. The Harem's AftermathXiao Chen's Corruption Flare-Up

The psychic link cost him—black veins spiderwebbed from his demon-arm as the Heavenly Demon taunted:

"SHE RELIVED PAIN TO SPITE ME. YOU'LL FALL FASTER."

Leng Xueyi pressed her frostbrand to his chest, her new Winter's Embrace ability stabilizing him.

Luo Ying's Crisis of Faith

Watching Mei Ling's trial triggered the princess' own repressed memory—the day her father burned her mother alive for "disobedience." Her phoenix screeched, flames cycling between gold and Fiend-black.

Elder Hong's Guidance

The old archivist revealed the Trials' true purpose:

"These are Sovereign-level genome imprinting rituals. Each trial rewrites your bloodline closer to the original Nine Beasts."

IV. The Emperor's GambitPolitical Interlude: The Broken Court

Through the Celestial Tortoise's vision, they witnessed:

Emperor Zhu Yan sacrificing his own crown prince to accelerate the Blood Moon

Shadowmaster Ku's survival—now leading a rogue faction against the Emperor

A mysterious veiled concubine smuggling children out of the capital

The Spy's Arrival

As night fell, a wounded figure stumbled into camp—Consort Lian, the Emperor's ninth wife and Lin Ya's long-lost sister.

Her Revelation:

The Fiend God's vessel isn't the Emperor—it's the Black Tortoise Citadel itself, a living prison for the original Fiend Sovereign.

The Blood Moon will merge all Genomes into a single Fiend hivemind.

V. The Chapter's ClimaxMei Ling's Transformation

Awakening from her trial, Mei Ling's eyes were no longer black-veined—just deep, endless green. She pressed a single drop of her new Nostos Venom to Xiao Chen's lips.

Instantly, he saw:

The Heavenly Demon's true form (a chained prisoner inside his own soul)

A glimpse of the First Sovereign—who looked identical to Xiao Chen

Elder Hong's Ultimatum

"Three trials remain before the Blood Moon. But the next one..." His gaze fell on Luo Ying. "...requires a phoenix to walk into fire."

As the chapter closed, Luo Ying stripped off her royal insignia and stepped toward the Crimson Phoenix's door, her voice steady:

"For my mother. For Mei Ling. For all of us."

Chapter 17 End