Hidden genius: Black belly snake

Burp!

A couple of hours later, a loud belching noise sounded from underneath a tree, where one snake, two wolves, one harpy and one titan ape were sitting together in a group.

Then, out of nowhere, the snake's body revealed a golden sheen and the thin blue coiled figure started twisting and turning, twitching in pain.

Little Plum and Little Blue were already used to Tang Yue's eating habits and the thing that followed it, so they didn't even bat an eyelid and minded their own business.

The golden ape was still under the enslavement spell so it as well simply sat there like a statue.

Only the harpy curiously eyed Tang Yue as if she was seeing something unbelievable and impossible.

She could sense an ancient and powerful aura from the serpentine spirit beast who was currently her Master.

What in the name of heavens… 

The harpy silently watched in a daze as the golden glow soon stopped and Tang Yue's body appeared from within it, fresh and energetic.

She tried to see if something was different about Tang Yue now, but no matter how hard she looked, she couldn't notice anything concrete.

The only thing that she could place her finger on was Tang Yue's brand new skin.

Her old serpentine skin, at least the top layer of it, had shed completely, revealing a glistening fresh one.

But how could something as simple and crude as the shedding of skin invoke such a powerful and archaic aura? The harpy was confused.

Tang Yue noticed the eyes on her, but she didn't care. 

Since she had already brought the harpy here, what was the point of playing hide and seek with her now?

This place was far too dangerous for her to worry about the harpy learning her little secret.

At the end of the day, they have a Master-Beast contract. 

So she wouldn't be able to harm her directly or indirectly without finding some convoluted loophole.

Tang Yue gave the harpy a sideway glance making the bird lower its head immediately. 

She then chuckled and continued inspecting the after effects of the evolution.

Ding. Congratulations. Bloodline Evolution completed.

Ding. Congratulations. 1000 Experience points have been rewarded.

Ding. Congratulations. New Skill obtained.

[Silver Skin] - Passive skill, Physical body is hardened; 10% reduction in damage taken.

Ding. New Skill is compatible with existing skill and existing skill has been upgraded.

[Venomous Silver Skin] - Passive skill, Scales covering the body are laced with venom and are hardened; 10% reduction in damage taken.

Tang Yue gazed at the upgrades and nodded her head contently. This was a good haul!

She had guessed that the silver apes probably had some sort of skill that helped them in hardening their skin, but she didn't think that they would have such a powerful skill!

In reality, a 10% reduction in damage was not much but in cases of prolonged battles such as the one she had just fought a couple of hours ago, this could even be the difference between life and death.

So it was an extremely valuable skill.

"No wonder the monkeys were easily able to put up with my attacks." Tang Yue hissed.

She then activated the skill by mentally willing her body to harden and instantly a silver sheen shrouded Tang Yue's figure.

She raised her hands to look at the silver luster on her skin.

"What the hell?" Tang Yue chuckled. 

She was dazzling with the splendor of a polished gem and it looked quite flamboyant. 

It was totally not her style at all but considering the damage reduction buff it came along with, she didn't mind it too much.

While Tang Yue was busily eying her upgraded features, the harpy next to her had a dumbfounded look on her face.

"This… This…" She blinked her big round eyes unable to believe what was happening in front of her.

The serpentine spirit beast just now hardened her skin exactly like how the silver apes had done.

She might have been locked up in a dark hole for decades but the harpy full well knew that this was not natural.

She had never before heard of any serpentine spirit beast possessing such a body strengthening skill.

Serpentine spirit beasts were well versed in illusion magic and poison magic, but this…?

It was completely unheard of!!!

The harpy's eyes then shifted from the sparkling snake to the small mountain of silver apes corpses.

She had seen Tang Yue chomp down on the ape's meat and bones, then… then…

As the harpy's eyes darted back and forth from the corpses to Tang Yue and then back to the corpses, a frightening possibility arose in her mind.

Did she gain their ability by consuming them???

Her round eyes bulged in surprise as she stared at the snake in front of her fearfully.

She knew that she was looking at a monster!

The harpy shuddered thinking about how her fate had suddenly changed.

Being a cursed thing, she thought that her life was over but now it seemed like it was far from it.

It was clear to her that she has in fact been offered a second chance. 

She had done a lot of things in her life, some good, some bad, and some extremely cruel.

But all of that did not matter now.

This was her chance to start anew with a fresh slate and she was not a fool to let this slip by.

In the beginning, she was indeed a bit apprehensive about being a slave to someone else.

Even though it was a Master-beast contract, it was still not that different from being a slave.

But the harpy had seen how Tang Yue had treated her other pets and even made it her priority to ensure their survival in the midst of battle.

So she could tell that she was kind, at least to her people.

It was her luck that she somehow received this chance to be a subordinate of someone so great and powerful and at the same time kind.

Considering these things, she would really be a fool if she let this chance slip by.

Without hesitating for another second, the harpy immediately flopped onto the ground, kneeling and banging its head on the rough rock.

She was still unable to speak, but what she hadn't revealed to Tang Yue until now was that she was able to communicate mentally with her just like Little Plum.

But now that she had made her decision, the harpy stopped holding back and immediately declared her full loyalty and allegiance.

"Master, please forgive me. Please accept this humble slave as your servant." She kowtowed.

Huh? Tang Yue was slightly taken aback to hear such a sweet melodious voice ringing in her mind all of a sudden.

She was only used to the nasty old man's nasal voice and Little Plum's sweet boyish voice, so it took her a second to register this new entry.

"So you can talk to me after all?" Tang Yue chuckled.

She might have been surprised by this sudden development but she definitely knew the reason behind it.

"Yes, Master. I beg your forgiveness for hiding such a big thing from you."

"I am willing to accept whatever punishment you see fit."

"I only beg that you give me one more chance and I will never let you down again."

Tang Yue gazed at the harpy sternly, listening to her words with patience.

The bird woman in front of her seemed sincere enough but trust was something that needed to be earned.

Today, she might pledge allegiance to her out of greed but what about tomorrow when someone more powerful than her shows up.

Would she then betray her and pledge her allegiance to the other party?

"It's fine. Get up." Tang Yue said. 

"As for the other things, I will let this go just this once, but if you betray me or hide anything from me again, don't blame me for being ruthless." She straight-forwardly laid it out to her.

The harpy immediately brightened up, kowtowing a few more times in gratitude.

"It will never happen, Master. I swear my loyalty to you. I will proudly follow you until the end."

"Hmmm… Alright. Let me then ask you again. How are your injuries?" Tang Yue nodded, eying the harpy from top to bottom.

The half-bird half-human creature was still mostly disfigured, all her feathers and claws plucked out and her limbs damaged.

"Master, my body is currently in a very bad state and my cultivation base is destroyed."

"So I am extremely useless at the moment, but my meridians are still intact and I can grow stronger again."

"So please forgive me for being useless."

Tang Yue sighed at the sight of the poor woman. 

There were probably some potions or pills to aid in her recovery, but unfortunately, she did not have the time to help her right now.

"Don't worry about that. When we return back to Eldoria, I will see if there is something we can do." She assured her.

"And what about your fate magic? I assume you need your cultivation base to do that?"