Traveling through Naruto with Heroes of Might and Magic.

The psychic legion's enhancements disappeared, and they remained on guard.

The battle stopped instantly.

Qingwu looked at the White Snake Immortal on the throne, said nothing, and simply waited quietly.

The White Snake Immortal stared intently at Qingwu, his gaze complex, filled with anger, resentment, and fear... In the end, it turned into a long sigh, filled with endless frustration.

"Humanity...you have won."

Its voice was extremely dry, "The natural essence of Ryuchi Cave... I can give it to you."

"How much?" Qingwu asked directly.

“One.” The White Snake Immortal squeezed out the two words through gritted teeth.

"One?" Qingwu laughed and shook his head. "White Snake Immortal, are you trying to fob me off like a beggar? The Wet Bone Forest is..."

"Wet Bone Forest is Wet Bone Forest!" the White Serpent Immortal roared, interrupting.

“Natural essence is not easy to condense. Since you obtained it from the Wet Bone Forest, you should know that the three holy lands have only existed for a little over a thousand years, and the amount of natural essence is limited.”

"Giving you too much will damage the natural energy source of the sacred site! One is already the limit! Don't push your luck!"

"Trying to push your luck?" Qingwu's smile vanished, and his eyes darkened.

"White Snake Immortal, do you really think that I mobilized such a large force today, suffered heavy losses, and almost lost my life here, just for a mere essence of nature?"

He raised his hand, pointing to the ravaged battlefield around him, and then to the still massive psychic army behind him:

"If I'm not satisfied, I can keep hitting you!"

As he spoke, Qingwu used his last "trump card," clapping his hands together, and another huge image of the "White Snake Immortal" appeared in the cave.

"!!" The three goddesses.

"!!" White Snake Immortal.

The two mirror images did not make a move, thus avoiding the embarrassing situation of having only 1 HP. The mirror images, possessing 80% of the original's abilities, completely terrified the White Snake Sage.

Its body trembled slightly, clearly suppressing its overwhelming rage.

But it cannot ignore such threats.

Because this threat is so effective, it's something it can't afford to gamble on, and it can't afford to lose.

"...How much do you want?" The White Snake Immortal's voice was almost squeezed out from the depths of his throat.

"Five!" Qingwu held out a hand. "If you get them, I'll leave immediately. Otherwise... we'll see who gives up first today."

"Five!?" Princess Tianxin exclaimed in shock. "This is impossible! Even the countless years of accumulation in Ryuchi Cave..."

"Don't even think about it!" the White Serpent Immortal roared. "A loss of nearly half will surely damage the sacred land's natural energy source!"

The second eldest sister, Princess Kishima, said sternly, "Rather than this, let's fight to the death and see if you can accept the losses."

This "Berserker" has the strongest fighting spirit.

"Shut up!" the White Snake Immortal shouted, stopping her. It didn't want to fight anymore.

Similarly, it knew that the boy in front of it was trying to raise the price on the spot, and there should still be room for negotiation.

Ignoring the enraged Ichikishima-hime, Qingwu calmly stated, "Four!"

"No!" Tsuratsuhime interjected, "The price is too high, while you don't have to pay anything."

This deal was never fair.

The second eldest, Princess Ichikishima, glared resentfully at Aogo. The person... was brought by her.

At this moment, she also came to hate Orochimaru.

Three!

Qingwu narrowed his eyes. "This is my bottom line. If you get it, I can guarantee that what happened today will not be told to anyone!"

These words struck a nerve with the White Snake Immortal.

Once this kid gets out... he'll spread the word that Ryuchi Cave was wreaked havoc by a teenager and suffered heavy losses...

Its old face, and the dignity of Ryuchi-dong, have truly been disgraced.

……

Chapter 234 The New Spirit Contract

The White Snake Immortal's golden vertical pupils seemed to be spitting fire.

But in the end, the flame slowly died down, turning into a bottomless abyss of coldness and exhaustion.

"Okay... three!"

The White Snake Immortal uttered each word almost deliberately: "But you must keep your promise. What happened today must not be revealed to anyone, and you must never set foot in Dragon Land Cave again!"

Qingwu smiled.

He knew the scarcity of natural essences; even if the Slug Immortal had to sacrifice one more essence in the Wet Bone Forest, the forbidden area would still need to be sealed off.

As for "not allowed to enter Ryūji-dōng", that's a joke. Without someone to guide him, he wouldn't have been able to find it anyway.

"Sure," Qingwu readily agreed.

In the future, perhaps I'll find a way to enter the Holy Land independently. If I remember correctly, there is teleportation magic in the game *Heroes of Might and Magic*.

Hehe... then the White Snake Immortal won't have a say in the matter.

The White Serpent Immortal said no more. Its massive body writhed slightly, and the part that connected to the rock wall of the temple behind it emitted a low rumble.

Immediately following, three fist-sized, translucent crystals, completely clear and with what appeared to be slowly flowing white clouds inside,

It slowly separated from the huge green cat's eye stone on its chest and floated into the air.

Is this the natural essence of Ryuchi Cave? Qingwu stared intently at the scene.

It looked different from the ones in the Wet Bone Forest; it wasn't a "light cocoon." But after obtaining the crystal and receiving a system notification, he knew that it was indeed a genuine natural essence.

The effects are also generally the same.

Qingwu put away the [Natural Essence] with satisfaction.

"Now, get out of Ryuchi Cave!"

The White Snake Immortal closed his enormous eyes, as if even looking at Qingwu would make him feel disgusted.

It raised its tail and gently touched the rock wall on one side of the cave.

On the rock wall, a constantly rotating spatial vortex with shimmering edges slowly opened, emitting the aura of the outside world.

Qingwu chuckled, unconcerned about the White Snake Immortal's pained expression.

With a wave of his hand, he recalled the slugs and all the spirit army, leaving only Mumu present just in case.

Then, he glanced at the White Serpent Immortal on the throne, who seemed to have aged considerably in an instant, and the three goddesses beside him with complex expressions. Finally, his gaze swept over the battlefield strewn with corpses.

Without further hesitation, he turned and walked towards the spatial vortex.

"and many more!"

Just then, a slightly hurried voice came from behind.

Qingwu stopped and turned around to look behind her.

The one who called out to him was the head of the three goddesses, the goddess Tianxin, dressed in white and with a calm demeanor.

"what's up?"

Qingwu asked calmly, but he was secretly on guard. If another twist of fate led to a fight, he would probably suffer heavy losses of his troops.

Princess Tashin did not answer him immediately. Instead, she first looked at the White Serpent Sage on the throne, and then at Princess Ichikishima, who was full of anger, and Princess Tsuruzu, who had a complicated expression.

Finally, their gaze returned to Qingwu.

Those vertical pupils didn't hold the undisguised hatred of Princess Ichikishima, nor the cold scrutiny of Princess Takitsu; instead, they held a... indescribable look of inquiry.

“I…” Tianxin Shenji’s lips parted slightly, her voice still carrying that strange ethereal quality, but her tone was exceptionally clear and firm, “I want to sign a spirit communication contract with you.”

"what?!"

"Big sister! Are you crazy?!"

Princess Ichikishima and Princess Takitsu gasped in disbelief almost simultaneously.

Princess Ichikishima stepped forward and excitedly shouted:

"Big sister!! What nonsense are you talking about? This bastard almost destroyed our home and killed so many of our clansmen... You, you, this is absolutely impossible!"

Although Princess Tsurugi didn't speak, her gaze towards Princess Tashin was filled with incomprehension and opposition.

Even the White Serpent Immortal on the throne slowly opened his huge golden vertical pupils, his gaze falling deeply on Princess Tianxin.

However, the White Snake Immortal did not immediately stop him, seemingly deep in thought.

Qingwu was also taken aback; he hadn't expected that Tianxin Shenji would suddenly make this request.

Signing a psychic contract?

It was actually the head of the three goddesses of Ryuchi Cave who took the initiative to propose it? This was somewhat unexpected.

He tried to calm down and analyze the other party's intentions.

Is it a trap?

Not like!

Given the White Snake Immortal's current compromising attitude, there's no need for him to pull such a stunt at the end, especially not in front of him.

That is... there really was some reason that led her to make this decision.

"Why?" Qingwu asked succinctly.

He wouldn't be overjoyed just because the other party offered themselves up; he decided to ask beforehand to find out the details.

Princess Tianxin still did not answer him directly, but looked at the White Snake Immortal and bowed, saying, "Immortal, please allow me to explain!"

The White Snake Immortal was silent for a moment, then his deep voice rang out: "Speak."

"Yes!" Princess Tianxin straightened up, turned to look at Qingwu, and then glanced at the other two princesses: "There are two reasons!"