"Heh heh... we were just joking before! Don't take it to heart! This Nick's business is naturally my responsibility!"
Agnis wore an apologetic smile, which gradually eased
"Come, I'll take you inside to handle the paperwork!"
Agnis put her arm around Belinda's shoulders, held
Seeing her actions, Belinda's face finally bloomed into a smile again, and she no longer resisted the other's gestures so much.
"My apologies, Lord Nick!"
Watching the backs of the three women ahead, Thomas said loudly.
But his mouth formed a different message in lip language: "You parasite living off women!"
At his provocation and insult, Leilin simply shrugged his shoulders, then continued following behind Belinda, leaving Thomas somewhat dumbfounded. It was the first time he had ever encountered such a brazen person.
Leaving the stunned Thomas behind, Leilin followed behind the three ladies with a blank expression, giving off a rather submissive air.
In reality, he had been sneering inwardly all along.
What did honor and face matter when life itself was slipping away?
The Curse Mark of Ten Thousand Snakes was continuously eroding his life force, and he had barely a few years left to live. In such a state, was he supposed to abandon such a convenient way of entering the city and go searching for another?
Such a waste of time — setting aside whether he would even succeed in the end — was practically a joke played with his life!
Compared to that, being thought of as a freeloader who lived off women was hardly any real loss.
"You—" Thomas puffed his cheeks as he followed behind, but couldn't find any way to deal with Leilin's thick skin. Meanwhile, Agnis ahead seemed to notice the exchange, a sharp glint flickering through her eyes.
"Out of the way! You commoners! Don't block the path of us Stewart nobles!"
As if trying to vent all the frustration he had suffered at Leilin's hands, Thomas cracked a nine-section snake-head whip that produced sharp, piercing whistles, using it to intimidate the half-serpent procession ahead.
Whoosh! Watching the half-serpents on both sides part the way in terror and trepidation, Leilin couldn't help but stroke his chin. It seemed the Stewart family to which these siblings belonged had quite the fearsome reputation in the
"You guards, are you blind? Come greet us at once!"
Even those fierce, murderous guards who had been casually slaughtering people moments ago came over at Thomas's shout to help, escorting Belinda and the others to the front of the great gate.
Thomas tilted his chin upward with smug satisfaction, casting a glance at Leilin, his eyes brimming with unconcealed pride.
At this fellow's display, Leilin could only roll his eyes in speechless exasperation.
This sort of character, in the
And so, Thomas's behavior — having grown up in a greenhouse — was perfectly understandable to Leilin. He was nothing more than a spoiled young master coddled by a life of privilege.
Leilin naturally wouldn't stoop to bicker with such a spoiled brat. Right now, his attention had been drawn to the Ten Thousand Snakes statue before the main gate.
"Hmm! Bloodline identification! Soul detection! Although I'm confident I can get past those two, the final identity verification is still a serious problem. After all, I can't directly infiltrate the Holy City's core database to fabricate an identity for myself! And my previous cover story has far too many holes..."
Leilin's expression turned somewhat gloomy. But Thomas clearly took this as a victory of his own.
"You're quite lucky! You should know, very few half-breed serpent folk like you ever manage to live in the Holy City for a full year!"
Thomas mocked with undisguised contempt: "Of course, perhaps you can't even afford the living expenses of the Holy City... But even if you can only stay here for a short while, it should be enough for you to brag about on the Heir Continent. Maybe... you could write this experience into a travel journal. I'm sure plenty of low-grade bloodline races would be fascinated..."
"Thomas! Enough!" Clearly, even Agnis couldn't stomach his behavior any longer.
Of course, Leilin strongly suspected that Agnis only stopped him because she felt Thomas's behavior was disgracing the Stewart family name.
"Come! Belinda! And cute little sister Sophia! These are the Green Cards I specially applied for on your behalf. Once you've completed the bloodline and soul binding, you'll be recognized as freemen by the entire Holy City!"
Agnis smiled as she produced two crystal cards glistening with a verdant green hue from her robes. From the envious gazes of the surrounding half-serpents and even the pure-blooded snakefolk, these were clearly items of extraordinary value.
"Thank you so much, Agnis!" Belinda accepted the crystal cards. After all, once she had the status of a Holy City resident, she could be classified under the Mother of Ten Thousand Snakes' direct faction. The Eye of Judgment would probably not dare to act too rashly — they might even proactively withdraw the wanted warrant.
"Then... what about Brother Nick?" Sophia bit her finger, clearly sensing something was wrong.
"As for this Lord Nick? When you first contacted me, Belinda, you didn't explain clearly, so I wasn't prepared..."
Agnis rubbed her fingers together as if feeling rather embarrassed. "Plus, permanent Green Cards for the Holy City are extremely difficult to obtain, so..."
Seeing that Belinda seemed on the verge of anger again, Agnis quickly waved her hands: "However, although I couldn't get a permanent Green Card, I do have a temporary visa here! It's valid for ten years, which should be more than sufficient for Lord Nick. And in ten years' time, I'm sure we can get his identity verification processed as well!"
"This... Nick..." Belinda looked at Leilin with an apologetic expression, for she had clearly noticed Agnis's deliberate obstruction.
"Lord Nick! A ten-year visa is already quite rare. Just look at these half-serpents who serve us sacred residents — even with a guarantor, their visas must be renewed daily to prevent contamination of our noble Holy City!"
Thomas snorted coldly from the side.
"That's more than enough! Thank you, Miss Agnis!" Leilin merely smiled faintly as he took the other Green Card from Agnis's hand.
For him, ten years was truly long enough.
In the Holy City, where the radiation of the Mother of Ten Thousand Snakes was at its most concentrated, the terror of the Curse Mark of Ten Thousand Snakes grew with each passing day. If Leilin couldn't resolve the bloodline shackles within ten years, he would likely have crumbled into a pile of dry bones by then.
Compared to Belinda and Sophia's permanent residency cards, his card appeared rather duller, but it was still covered with intricate runes and anti-counterfeiting techniques.
"This pattern... even with a sample, replicating it with the Chip wouldn't be simple. And then there's the even more troublesome soul and bloodline binding!"
Leilin's eyes flickered with a subtle gleam.
"Very well! Since all three of you now have your passes, please complete the binding immediately. Replacing a lost Green Card is extremely troublesome, so please keep your cards safe and treat them as you would your own eyes!"
Agnis spoke in an official tone.
"As for the binding ritual, it's quite simple — place a drop of your blood on the card and scan the verification runes with your Spiritual Power!"
Following Agnis's instructions, Belinda was the first to place a drop of blood on the crystal card. The dark crimson blood met the card and was immediately absorbed into it, like a droplet of water vanishing into a sponge.
Then, the entire green crystal card blazed with light in an instant, flowing with luminous colors, and even faintly projected an image of Belinda.
"Waaah... Big sister! Sophia is scared of pain!" At the mention of drawing blood, fear welled up in Sophia's eyes.
Her pitiful, delicate demeanor immediately made Agnis feel like a wolf about to pounce.
"Heehee... Don't be afraid, little sister! Let big sister help you, okay?"
Seeing Agnis in this state, Sophia seemed even more alarmed and simply bit her own finger to complete the binding process, leaving Agnis looking visibly disappointed.
After Leilin had also completed the procedure, the three of them passed through the circular archway one by one under Agnis's guidance — and of course, past the Ten Thousand Snakes statue as well.
*Bzzzt!* The smaller Ten Thousand Snakes statue was crafted with even greater precision, its entire form seemingly composed of a crystalline substance resembling stone. The facial expression in particular was rendered with remarkable lifelikeness, and its two eyes appeared to connect to some unfathomably deep soul.
Belinda and Sophia passed through one by one, causing the statue to emit a gentle green glow.
[Devil White Phosphorus Snake bloodline masking in progress! Beast soul fluctuation overlay activated! Feather of Chaos standing by!]
With the Chip's voice in his mind, Leilin took a deep breath and stepped across the invisible boundary.
*Bzzzt!* The Ten Thousand Snakes statue's pupils emitted their gentle green light as before, and Leilin quietly breathed a sigh of relief.
Then, he was enveloped by a wave of radiant light that rushed toward him.
Once his eyes had adjusted, Leilin took in the sight of this holy city of the Ten Thousand Snake bloodline descendants.
The ground, the walls, and even the sky were all bathed in a faint layer of light, lending the entire city a magnificent, resplendent air.
At the very center, a colossal stone statue was suffused with milky white radiance, like a being made entirely of light, exuding an aura of profound sanctity.
[Ding! Detecting massive radiation fluctuations! Curse Mark of Ten Thousand Snakes intensifying!]
The Chip reported promptly. Meanwhile, Belinda and Sophia beside him had flushed cheeks and expressions of deep bliss. The energy fluctuations around their bodies had even grown subtly stronger — they had clearly received some benefit.