Not too far from the forest of the gray spires, there was a little river below a valley. On this river, thousands of snakes were moving with the river. There were snakes that swam on the surface of the lake, snakes that dived and swam like dolphins, and some snakes who didn't want to touch water decided to move along the river.

In the center of these marching snakes, there was a black snake as big as a cow. Its body was so long, its scales were black, and its eyes were yellow. On top of this big snake, there was a bird nest with colorful eggs on it, and a red snake was trying to choose which egg it would eat first.

This snake was Emerald Fang, the snake that had let Liu Xing pass the suspension bridge before he fought the fox and the moss.

Emerald Fang considered the eggs carefully, finally choosing the smallest one. It was pure white and resembled a chicken egg, but the snake knew it was different. With his tail, he grabbed the egg and tossed it into the air, catching it gracefully in his mouth. He savored the taste of the shell before crushing it with his jaw. A burst of yellow, transparent, and red liquid filled his mouth, and a pleasant flavor spread throughout. Though the taste was somewhat bland, it had a unique combination of flavors, like a fetus of two months mixed with tender beef. He enjoyed it.

Emerald Fang noticed there were no other eggs like it, and he was a bit disappointed. However, with so many other eggs to try, his disappointment quickly faded.

He was deciding between a blue egg that looked like a compressed sky and a brown one that resembled mud when a small snake, barely larger than a worm, slithered towards him.

Seeing the little brown snake, Emerald Fang smiled. "It's been a long time, master."

The little worm climbed onto his forehead, its tail sinking into his flesh, then a familiar sound echoed in his skull. "How are you? What should I call you this time?"

Emerald Fang chuckled. "I'm fine, thank you for asking, master. My name is now Emerald Fang. It's a pretty good name, and I think it will stick with me for a long time."

Though the fox who gave him the name was unpleasant and dead, the name itself was so good it resonated in his soul.

"That's good. It's a fitting name."

"Thank you, master. Now, since you contacted me, does that mean there's a change of plan?"

About ten years ago, his master ordered him to roam the world, gather information, kill any cultivator he met, and take as many names as he could. In the past ten years, he had done just that. He offered his services to everyone, from demonic cultivators to righteous ones, from spirit beasts to mortals. Though the ten years were fun, he never forgot his true loyalty.

"No. I just want confirmation about the news of the Purple Moon Sect."

"What do you want to confirm, master?" Emerald Fang asked.

"Is the Purple Moon Sect truly unleashing all their outer disciples to gather treasures? Is this information true?"

"Yes," Emerald Fang replied without hesitation.

This sect was organizing a big event that had attracted the attention of many factions. Although the mission ordered by his master was the most important thing he had to do, his abilities allowed him to gather information more easily than his two brothers, and one of his kin had already sent him details about the event.

"This event is recent, and some of my kin have already met disciples from the Purple Moon Sect who are on the mission to gather treasures. From what I heard, the Purple Moon Sect is now holding a race. Each of the outer disciples needs to get at least one treasure. Failure to do so will result in expulsion from the sect and three disciples who get the most treasure can become inner disciples. It's a big event, and many people are already talking about it."

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One of his kin was actually following a male disciple who was on a mission to get a pill that would speed up the cultivation process but would change the gender of people who consumed it. It was a peculiar pill, as he knew that many humans didn't feel comfortable changing their gender, and that particular disciple was so conflicted about whether to eat it and speed up his cultivation or take it to the sect.

"Is that so? This is troublesome."

Upon hearing that, Emerald Fang's curiosity was piqued. From what he knew, his master's plan was not actually affected by this race. In fact, it was a great opportunity to kill some of the disciples and reduce the Purple Moon Sect's power in the future.

"May I know why this is troublesome?"

"Sure, it's not too hard to understand." His master said lightly. " The Purple Moon Sect is a cautious sect. They would observe things long and hard before making a decision. But, I think this event is not something they considered for long. It's kind of sudden."

"How so?" Emerald Fang asked. While he was in charge of gathering information, the one who needed to digest and conclude information was his master. His master always said that he wasn't a smart man, just a man who could see from different perspectives. But compared to Emerald Fang, a spirit beast who had gained sentience and intelligence, his master was better.

"Do you know the reason for this race?" His master asked.

"Sure. The third son of the patriarch of the Purple Moon sect will soon turn ten and get engaged. For the party that will be held, the outer disciples need to collect all these treasures to become gifts for the big party."

"Indeed, and do you know when this party will be held?"

Emerald Fang thought for a moment but didn't actually know. When he said so, his master said: "I also don't know the exact date, or who this Hao Yun kid will be engaged to. I predict that when this mysterious girl is announced, the world will be in uproar too, and that's another troublesome matter entirely. But let's get back to the date when Hao Yun will hold a birthday and engagement party. While we don't know the exact date, we know that it's less than a year."

"Ah," Emerald Fang nodded. It all made sense. A year wasn't a long time. If the Purple Moon Sect was as cautious as his master said, then this big event would be prepared for a really long time. At least five years, possibly ten years. After all, the Purple Moon Sect was a great sect, and if their big event was shabby, they would lose face.

"Now, the implication. Since they abandoned their cautious approach, that means they are in a hurry. Why are they in a hurry? There are many reasons. They could feel threatened by something, they could see some movements from the other great sects, or they predict that something big will happen. Anything goes."

"Do you have a guess, master?"

"I honestly don't, but I know that the Purple Moon Sect's actions will raise some eyebrows and make the other great sects jittery. They will wonder the same thing as us, and they could do drastic things. I predict that this move from the Purple Moon Sect could lead to more fierce skirmishes between the five great sects, or even a war."

Emerald Fang nodded. He could see where his master's thoughts were pointing. More fierce skirmishes would make the sects more alert, and more alert sects would know about their presence.

"Anyway, there's also a chance that this event doesn't have a deeper meaning, so don't think too much about it. Just roam around the world, kill as many cultivators as you can, and have as many names as you can possibly have. Although, I want to adjust your mission a little. Instead of killing as many cultivators as you can, I want you to start targeting the young and talented disciples like your brothers."

Hearing this, Emerald Fang smiled. He had a new order, and new orders were always fun. "I'll do as you command, master."

"Good, it's nice that all of you are so easy to order around. Sometimes, I feel bad about it."

"You don't need to feel bad about us. Doing your commands is a pleasure for us. You're, after all, our one and only master."

"Thank you." His master said softly, and Emerald Fang could imagine his soft smile. "Anyway, since I got your confirmation, I'll cut this call short. Unless you have anything interesting to say?"

Emerald Fang thought for a moment and indeed, there was something interesting that had happened to him recently.

"Master, recently, I found a cultivator who didn't try to kill me."

"Oh? Really?"

"Yes. It's an interesting experience."