Hidden genius: Black belly snake

A few days passed and when Tang Yue stepped out of the trials, tired and beaten down, she saw all the snakes gathered around, waiting for her.

"Your highness." Everyone bowed and paid their respects, as soon as they saw her.

Tang Yue panted, taking deep breaths, and muttered in between. "What happened?"

Jin Nuhen, Jin Wei's son stepped forward and answered her. "Your highness. We have tracked and traced all the tunnels leading away from the palace."

"Oh! Already?" Tang Yue raised her brow in surprise.

"Yes, your highness. Please take a look." He handed over to her a bunch of thick and long parchments.

Tang Yue laid them out of the ground and studied them, her emerald eyes keenly going over everything from top to bottom.

Hmmm… Her long forked tongue flickered in and out as she gazed at the elaborate details.

Not just the tunnels, but the snakes seemed to have taken the extra initiative and mapped out the whole island and the entire palace to the best of their abilities.

"This is amazing, but this should have also been very risky. Why did you all push yourself so much?" Tang Yue hissed pensively.

She knew that the dragon was patiently watching and waiting for her, so venturing too much into the island right now was nothing short of a death sentence.

The only safe place was the palace and they were essentially trapped inside it.

Jin Nuhen smiled bitterly. 

He didn't know what to tell Tang Yue. Most of their clan members were still in the chasm so he had to do something about it.

"I understand your worries but if we rush, it would only mean death." Tang Yue warned him again. 

Nevertheless, she took a look at the map which they had risked their lives to prepare.

"Hmmm… So this one leads right to the hills behind the chasm in the lava salamander territory…"

"Our only problem might be…"

"Do you know if the Salamander Emperor beast is alive or dead?"

Jin Nuhen immediately bowed and nodded. "Yes, your highness. The Emperor is alive." 

He knew this well because they had even thought about digging out of the tunnel directly to the chasm but when they were half way through, a tremendous domineering presence froze them in place, making them unable to proceed any further.

Jin Nuhen immediately made the call and they had returned back without moving ahead any further.

"Hmm… That's too bad. Things would have been easier if it had gotten killed by the dragon's rampage, but…" A mysterious glint twinkled in her gorgeous emerald eyes as she added. 

"The timing couldn't be better. I am itching to try some of my new spells. He he. All things considered, we should do just fine."

Tang Yue knew that she needed to act fast and get back without alerting it. 

At the same time, she also needed to buy enough time for the snakes from the chasm to move to the tunnel that had the protective spell.

She devised a quick plan in her mind.

She then hissed and morphed into her serpentine form slithering down to the tunnels. "Come with me."

The snakes slithered down the network of tunnels deep under the palace heading to the eastern part of the island where the chasm is located.

And this time Tang Yue made sure to leave behind all the dragon eggs. 

The beast might still sense her presence but there was nothing she could do about that and if her plan worked, it wouldn't even matter.

The snakes slithered all the way to the edge of the tunnel that leads to the spot right under the volcanic hills.

Tang Yue paused and opened the door that closed the tunnel shut. A thick earthy smell instantly flooded in.

She could now see the continuation of the tunnel that Jin Nuhen and the other snakes had dug out.

Tang Yue nodded in approval and then slithered forward with tongues of flame dancing in the palm of her hand and lighting up the place from inside.

The others followed behind her closely and cautiously, waiting for her instructions.

After a few minutes, Tang Yue continued slithering while the other stopped. When she looked behind, they were all shivering.

"Ok. So this is your limit? Hmm…" She could also sense the presence of the strong Emperor beast up above. 

However, unlike them, she was not shaking. She licked her lips with excitement etched on her face.

"Let's do this. Good luck." Tang Yue gave a thumbs up to the group and muttered a few words under her breath.

Her body instantly was covered by a sharp metallic sheen.

Winking one last time at the snakes, she blasted into the earthen walls, out of the hollowed out extension of the tunnel, making an L shape.

Her plan was to divert the Emperor beast, while the other snakes continued digging all the way to the chasm.

Unlike the other snakes, Tang Yue didn't have to spend a lot of time digging through the earth. 

Her body drilled and sped under the ground as if the earth itself shifted to let her through.

And when she was far enough, she immediately unleashed the full power of her cultivation base and shot through to the surface of the island.

Boom! She hurled a huge bolt of lightning at the hill in the middle, which looked more like a plateau after the last time she had wreaked havoc in this place.

As if responding to her attack, a huge roar reverberated from within and a giant mess of flaming flesh waddled out.

"Hello, Emperor!" Tang Yue grinned.

The lava salamander waved its thick limbs and a dozen of elite high-grade lava salamanders scurried towards her, all shooting out jets of flame from their mouth.

"Sending your minions first huh? Fine by me." Tang Yue licked her lips and summoned her soul sword.

Her movements were extremely lithe and agile. The salamanders only noticed she had done something when a series of sword slices came flying at them.