The crowd cheered! "Daethix-Daethix-Daethix!"

The princess smiled and waved at the adoring audience, whose cheers became louder! Then she turned toward the small group of lamias standing behind the guards. "Who wishes to bond this human?" Daethix asked while pointing at Koji.

Two lamias entered the ring. Daethix recognized the younger one as Zelea Sagosia, her adopted sister and the Fourth Princess of Nephosia. The other lamia was Ashisha Phrixelise, who suffered a poor reputation for keeping a male harem without bonding any of them. Additionally, the servants of her household revealed that Ashisha enjoyed deviant sexplay with her harem involving rope, gag, chain, and whip.

Princess Daethix frowned. "Ashisha, you already claimed four men from the Arena. Why do you want this boy when you don't bond him anyway? Isn't that a waste of a talented Bonder?" she asked.

Ashisha stared with open lust at the unconscious teenager. "He's young and willful. I relish the opportunity to break his spirit and add him to my harem," she answered with a wicked smile. Ashisha's snake tongue flickered and wet her full lips.

"What about you, little sister? Why do you want him?" Daethix asked.

"I admire his spirit. He is strong, young and handsome. I wouldn't mind marrying him and making him my Bonder," Zelea blushed, earning catcalls from the seats.

The older sister was surprised by this answer because her childhood friend never expressed interest in a man before. Daethix decided to let Zelea have the deathmatch winner. But how should she satisfy the other lamia? She remembered Koji defying her command to kill another combatant. "There is still another human alive in this ring," the princess noted while pointing at the older man on the ground. "Ashisha, if you agree to let Zelea have the boy, you can take the other one," Princess Daethix proposed.

Ashisha turned her head toward the other fighter. "He's not bad, either," she admitted grudgingly. "Very well. Zelea can have the boy, and I'll take the man," she conceded. "But you two owe me a favor," Ashisha demanded.

Daethix nodded while Zelea bowed deeply. Both were glad to make this horse trade and turn Koji into Zelea's official Bonder. Besides, his talent was undeniable, and both lamias felt that Koji would make an excellent addition to the Royal Family.

Zelea approached the willful human to check his physical condition. Thankfully, her sister didn't drop him as hard as Zelea thought. But he did suffer head trauma. The lamia gently rubbed a healing salve on Koji's head. Then she held him in a princess carry and slithered out of the ring.

"Good luck!" the audience cheered and clapped as she exited the Arena.

Zelea hailed a carriage on the street to take them home. "Please go to Wuu Men Street."

The owner turned around. "Are you certain you wish to go there?" the old man asked with disbelief. Wuu Men Street was in a lawless section of the city and dominated by ruthless gangsters; they especially hate lamias. Why would she go there? Was this lamia courting death?

Zelea smiled at the driver; she knew what he was thinking. "I live there," she explained.

"Oh!" A look of astonishment crossed his face. She must have her reasons to be there. And this was none of his business. The old man bowed to her. "I'm sorry, miss. I will take you there right away!" he promised. He sat in the driver's seat and flicked on the reins; his two horses started pulling the carriage.

As the vehicle moved, Zelea looked at the young man seated next to her. His sleeping, handsome face hid his arrogance and superb fighting skills. If she didn't witness his deathmatch with her eyes, Zelea would not believe this man was a ruthless killer.

However, Zelea couldn't understand why he chose to spare the last combatant's life. If he had obeyed the third princess, then Big Sister Daethix might have chosen to bond with him. Instead, he defied her and made Daethix lose face! The lamia shook her head at his stubbornness.

There was another mystery she noted. With her keen eyes as befitting the daughter of the deceased royal hunter, Zelea noticed that the young fighter changed the trajectory of his fist at the last instant. By dropping his fist, the young man avoided destroying his opponent's Lower Dantian. Zelea hoped Koji would enlighten her on this matter and why he chose to be merciful to his opponent in the arena.

Suddenly, the carriage stopped moving. Soon, the door opened. "We're here, miss," the driver said politely.

Zelea paid the man for the carriage ride. She took her future Bonder in a princess carry again and slithered along Wuu Men Street. The lamia immediately felt eyes on her, but no one sought to intercede and stop her.

Zelea stopped in front of The Wicked Monkey Inn and entered the building.

The innkeeper immediately approached. "Is he staying with you?" the greedy old man asked. He had a chubby face and whiskers on his fat chin; his aura felt wicked to Zelea.

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"Yes, I intend to bond him," the lamia answered honestly.

The innkeeper's eyes widened in surprise. He quickly regained his composure and coughed once into his fist. "Ahem. I see. Should I ask for Old Healer Mazea?" he offered.

Zelea nodded. "Please do." The lamia slowly slithered up the stairs. Once she reached the second floor, she unlocked the door to her guest room and entered with her burden.

The lamia quickly stripped Koji's clothing. Then Zelea shackled his limbs to the bedposts. Zelea stared at his naked body; it looked strong and healthy. From his physique, Zelea could tell that he already possessed some levels in Body Refinement.

Unfortunately, the lamia could not start the Bonder Ritual until the healer arrives. Zelea paced back and forth in the room until she heard a knock on the door. The lamia answered and allowed the healer to enter her room.

Old Healer Mazea was a petite human with a degenerated hip; she ambled with great difficulty. However, her skills as a healer were legendary, and Mazea was considered a distinguished resident of Wuu Men Street. None of the gangsters dared to mess with her. Her sharp eyes swept across Koji from head to toe. She was extremely impressed by him. "You made a fine catch," Mazea chuckled.

Zelea looked down and blushed.

The healer clapped her hands. "Let's begin the ritual," she said softly.

The lamia lit a special incense and placed it in an incense holder on the table. She waited until the room filled with an intense smell of the fragrance of a sea breeze. She climbed the bed, which was specially built to support the weight of a lamia.

Zelea licked Koji's abdomen with her snake tongue. Her saliva possessed a small degree of numbing property. Suddenly, she sank her fang into the belly and broke his Lower Dantian!

The intense agony awoke Koji, and he screamed!

Mazea immediately stuffed a thick piece of bark between his jaws to prevent him from biting his tongue.

Zelea retracted her fangs. She bit her right index finger and blood began to trickle out of the wound. She plunged her finger through the abdomen and into the broken dantian. Lamian blood soon mixed with human blood.

Zelea closed her eyes and sent her Yin Qi directly into his Lower Dantian. She confirmed that Koji's Yang Qi Stone had broken and turned into a fine mist. Her Yin Qi began to mix with the Yang Qi. She transferred as much of her Yin Qi as she dared to; with her finger directly touching his Qi, Zelea saw that his potential Qi Sea was much bigger than hers!

Minutes turned into hours until she finally pulled out her finger. During the ritual, Zelea helped her Bonder circulate the Yin and Yang Qi through his meridian lines and refine the Qi into a new Qi Stone. This stone comprised of both Yin and Yang Qi. She removed her finger only after the Qi Stone had reformed inside Koji's Lower Dantian.

Mazea immediately applied a special salve on Koji's abdomen to help his body heal.

By then, he fell unconscious from the excruciating pain.

The healer reached for his neck and checked his pulse. Mazea was relieved when it felt normal. The old woman turned toward the princess. "Should I check his status?" the healer asked.

Zelea nodded. "Please go ahead."

Mazea reached for her neck and pulled out a red string necklace with a large, white piece of jade stone attached. She pressed the stone on Koji's forehead and sent her Qi through the jade into him.

The foreign Yin Qi triggered a violent reaction from Koji's internal Yang Qi, which immediately expelled Mazea's Qi! Two sets of numbers appeared in the air: "10,000; 5,000."

The two women stared at the figures with fright and astonishment!

Zelea recovered first. "Are those numbers accurate?" she asked quietly.

The healer became angry. "Of course!" Mazea huffed. "How can I tamper with them?" she asked rhetorically and shook her head with disappointment at Zelea's lack of knowledge.

"This boy has 10,000 Power and 5,000 Qi. How is this possible?" the princess pressed her argument. A typical child had 10 units of Power. An adult possessed 100 Power, while a trained soldier held 1,000 Power. Only an expert own 10,000 Power; her Bonder was far too young to reach this lofty status. Also, a similar system applied to Qi. However, most humans possessed either high Power or high Qi, but never both. Her bonder was a true prodigy to be talented in both.

Mazea's eyes narrowed and confirmed Zelea's conclusion. "Your bonder is a prodigy. Congratulations!" The human bowed deeply to Zelea.

The princess shook her head to ward off her rising panic. "This is not good! He angered the Big Sister Daethix in the arena and forced her to raise her hand against him. If the Third Princess finds out his true abilities, she will take him by force!"

The healer considered Zelea's words carefully. The young lamia was not a real member of the Royal Family; the King adopted her out of a sense of obligation after his best friend died on a hunting mission ordered by King Aphraphus. It was the last wish of the Royal Hunter, and the King granted this wish.

However, Daethix required a talented transmigrator to bond. Zelea worried that big sister might send assassins to kill Zelea to break her relationship with this talented boy and then claim him.

Mazea took a deep breath. "There is a way to hide his abilities for a brief period," she said quietly.

Zelea's eyes lit up at the possibility of salvation. "Tell me."

"I can seal his three Dantians and block the flow of his Yin Qi. That should be enough to trick the jade stone into reporting lower numbers," the healer proposed.

"Is the seal permanent?" the lamia asked as she considered the proposal.

Mazea shook her head. "Not unless I reapply the seal periodically."

"How much can you reduce his Power and Qi?"

"By 90%."

Zelea's eyes hardened. She had too many unfulfilled goals in life; she refused to die at the hands of Daethix and her numerous admirers. "Do it," she agreed firmly.

"This is a taboo healing art. Will you promise not to tell anyone?" Mazea asked.

The lamia nodded.

The healer took a deep breath and clapped her hands together. The force of the meeting palms caused the air to vibrate. She started rubbing her hands until they were sufficiently hot. Mazea pressed her hands against the top of the boy's skull. She poured her Yin Qi into his brains and focused on creating a seal to block the flow of Yang Qi entering his Upper Dantian. Then she repeated this process to seal Koji's Middle Dantian, located within his heart, and Lower Dantian within his lower abdomen.

The process took about an hour. By the time Maze finished sealing the three dantians, the healer was both physically and spiritually exhausted. She started to collapse, but Zelea quickly grabbed her body.

The lamia gently set the old woman on the ground with her back leaning on the wall. The boy already occupied the single bed in the room, and he was still unconscious.

Zelea had no place to sleep because the room had only one bed. Thus, she coiled her snake body under her, closed her eyes, and cultivated. Zelea knew that her new Bonder would awaken soon.