Chapter 288: Meeting The “Primogenitor” [Part 2]
While Cillin was thinking, Wheeze’s ears suddenly stood up before it stared toward a certain direction with wide eyes. At the same time, the robots conversing with Kensa told them that the “primogenitor” had arrived.
The animals who were walking lazily around them suddenly ran away like their lives depended on it.
The half-globe shield withdrew itself after nearly all the surrounding animals were gone. Cillin’s eyes focused when a scented wind hit his nose. It can’t be…
Wheeze jumped up a building and looked toward the distance. Then, it shouted loudly, “Wah! What a snake! It’s seriously huge!!”
A snake?!
White Night’s pupils shrank as he chased after their gaze. Kensa and Hadar took the time to tidy their clothes and stand where they were as obedient darlings.
Cillin could feel tremors from the ground even before he saw the creature. At the distance, rows of tree branches gave way to the sides as something passed between them. It was all he needed to see to know the ridiculous size of the creature moving toward them.
The sounds of tree trunks breaking and tree branches being crushed grew closer and closer. Eventually, the gigantic creature appeared in full view in front of everyone.
The creature had armor-like scales and dark-colored spots. Two lines of protrusion could be seen behind its back. Its huge, triangular head was covered in tough scales, and the horn on top of its head looked like a natural crown. It was a sign that the creature was born to rule.
Cillin felt the surrounding temperature drop drastically after the giant snake showed up. Even the light reflected by its scales was cold.
The snake didn’t crawl up to their location. Although the shield had already been turned off, it looked like it’d rather avoid mechanical places.
Kensa took two steps forward and gave the giant snake a bow upon seeing it. Unlike the salute he showed to the heads of Black Viper, this salute was the kind a junior would give to their senior within the royal family. Not only was Kensa acting way more respectful than he was before, even his voice became tinged with cautiousness.
“Hello!”
Hadar also saluted the snake. It wasn’t a royal salute, but the respect was all there.
However, their response made Cillin and White Night stand out because they didn’t react to the snake at all. They were staring at the giant snake in front of them and wondering: is this the “primogenitor” everyone was talking about?
No wonder Kensa told them not to be too surprised earlier. The “primogenitor” wasn’t a human.
Cillin finally understood why the Mist Bodhisattva Empire treated its alien creatures* better than even GAL. It was because of the existence of this snake.
*not to be confused with alien humanoids
Despite its size, the snake was a viper, not a python. Cillin had no idea how a viper could grow this large, or how it managed to grow a horn on its head, but it was undoubtedly a venomous viper.
The giant snake looked at them and flicked its tongue. Its clearly didn’t care much for them, and its round eyes felt like giant globes of ice hanging above their heads. However, Cillin had a feeling that the snake was feeling very impatient for some reason. If it was a person, then the tongue flick would probably be the equivalent of a person spitting on the ground.
The giant snake turned away and looked at Wheeze, the latter staring at it curiously even now. This was the cat that shouted earlier.
“Who are you?” The giant snake asked.
Cillin saw rows of sharp teeth inside the giant snake’s mouth when it spoke. No doubt about it, this snake was venomous as hell.
Kensa and Hadar’s backs were still bent when they turned sideways to look at the cat and the snake. Then, they saw Wheeze leaping beautifully across the air and landing perfectly above its two giant nostrils.
Everyone: “...”
Where the hell did it find its courage from?
Kensa felt so cold that the sweat behind his back was practically freezing, his hair almost standing on their end. Around them, the robots moved closer toward Kensa and primed themselves for combat. The moment the giant snake showed any signs of going into rampage, they would take the candidates away to a safe place. They absolutely couldn’t allow any harm to come to the candidates—especially Kensa the future emperor of the empire.
After landing on the giant snake’s nostrils, Wheeze met the giant snake’s long, narrow pupils and patted the thick, cold scales beneath its butt. It said, “Hello, my name is Whebeze. You may call me by my nickname, Wheeze.”
Cillin covered his face with his hands. No one gives a shit about your nickname at this time!
Surprisingly, the giant snake didn’t break out in fury. It said, “You’re a bold little guy.”
“Thank you for the praise!” Wheeze answered proudly.
Kensa swore inside his head: It’s definitely not praising you! Why are you acting all proud!?
“Yo, you’re over two hundred years old, aren’t you?” The giant snake asked. This time, there was warmth behind its tone.
Over two hundred years old?
White Night, Kensa and Hadar all turned to look at Cillin. They asked with their eyes: is that pipsqueak really that old?
The corner of his mouth twitching, Cillin gave them an affirmative nod.
“What about you?” Wheeze asked. It couldn’t calculate the snake’s precise age because it was too huge and strange. Its unusual size and shape probably wasn’t natural, which meant that something had caused it to mutate during its formative years.
“Me?” The giant snake flicked its tongue again. “I don’t remember anymore. A thousand years, give or take.”
A thousand years old snake? This was the first time Cillin saw one. It was no wonder that it was called the “primogenitor”.
The snake didn’t mind Wheeze playing around on its nose. It directed its attention back down to the ground and asked, “Are they the new candidates?”
“Yes,” Kensa answered before wiping away his sweat in secret. That was a fright. I should stay away from cats in the future.
The giant snake looked at Cillin, Hadar and White Night before nodding at them. It said, “Come on up. I’ll carry you to the place.”
Kensa also motioned for the trio to climb up to the giant snake’s back. They would be taken to a place where they would learn about the origin and the development history of Black Viper.
This wasn’t the first time Cillin had climbed onto a snake’s back, but this particular snake was way bigger than Bona. Just the mere sight of its scales sent chills down one’s spines.
The giant snake didn’t bother bidding Kensa goodbye. After the trio had climbed onto its back, it turned toward another direction and left.
The giant snake was absolutely the apex predator in a primal environment like this. Any animal in its path either chose to run away or hide themselves from view. Naturally, they had a smooth passage.
The giant snake moved faster when they passed through the forest and entered the flatlands. Soon, they arrived at a mountain range.
There was a large cave on the walls of the mountain range. It was probably the snake’s lair.