Sheng Jing Wu was known far and wide as a formidable, ancient demonic cultivator. He was well practised in the devil's path, and already powerful enough to compete with any Nascent Soul early stage cultivator. Even the most highly skilled martial arts practitioners on this continent would consider him a force to be reckoned with.

All that being said, it was probably only a rare display of common sense on his part that when staring into the piercing golden eyes of an unknown, snarling beast twice his size, he found himself rooted to the spot and suddenly very apprehensive as to whether or not he had this situation under control.

Still, a strong impression had to be maintained. He could not show weakness in front of the girl, and if he could manage to intimidate the monster as well, all the better.

"And you are..?" he said, doing his best to control the slight tremble in his voice.

The question successfully antagonized the furious beast, and it let out a deafening roar that blew back the Jiangshi Master's hair and made his eyes water. Li Meirong felt his grip on her loosen, his attention fully occupied by the giant fox. She used to opportunity and staggered towards the beast, still completely dumbfounded by the whole situation but sensing his side was the one she wanted to be on.

In the back of her mind danced memories of made up stories about female protagonists falling into an alternate reality where they were surrounded by a horde of men, all of them fighting to win over a maiden's heart. Mo Cheng seemed to be living his life according to a similar pattern. But where he had managed to surround himself with rather attentive and even submissive girls, she only seemed to attract men who desired to dominate her. None of them were particularly interested in what she actually wanted at all, only seeing her as a conquest to be attained. Two men seeking to add her to their harems, one of them a complete psycho, and now… her very own Snowball. A fox.

"I am her husband!" Snowball's booming voice echoed off the top of the volcano, "How dare you place your filthy paws on my wife?!"

'Well, that's a bit of a stretch.' Thought Li Meirong, after all, she'd only just met the fox earlier that day. Sheng Jing Wu didn't seem to be fully buying the fib either. Perhaps because she wasn't selling it with her reddening cheeks and skeptical expression.

'Come on, Li Meirong. Snowball's trying to help you out of this mess, the least you can do is play along with the story he's made up.' she told herself and moved closer to the massive snarling beast, standing beside him, placing a hesitant hand on one of his forelegs and trying to look like an adoring wife. Chou may have been unconscious for all of this, but his previous warnings about the fox found their way back into her head like a quiet little warning light, and she hoped that this little charade wasn't going to bite her in the ass later.

It was, after all, just a story to get the Jiangshi Master to lose interest in her, wasn't it?

The man's mouth twisted into a sneer as he said, "I see you've been very busy, slut. But to stoop as low as to seduce a common animal? Tsk."

To this she took offense. How dare this demented man judge her or anything she may or may not have done?! Time to drive this thing home. She leaned in closer to Snowball and replied, "Even a common animal would be a better companion than you!"

Bai Qingyue was thrilled yet devastated.

His wife thought he was a common animal… That chipped away another piece of his pride. Still, it was clear now that this man was no rival. She clearly had no feelings for him. This was most fortunate, for it meant that he would not have to kidnap her unwillingly after all.

Li Meirong's sharp retort had enraged the snake man and his now glowing red eyes were focused on her instead of Bai Qingyue. He was gearing up to attack her. Bai Qingyue was quicker, standing up on his hind legs and shoving the man to the ground with his full body weight.

Disoriented by the impact, what flesh Sheng Jing Wu had exposed was scalded by the volcanic rock he lay flattened upon. He hissed, shook his head wildly and refocused his senses, summoning his internal powers, a grey fog engulfing him like a dark cloak, just as the gigantic fox lunged at him.

Bai Qingyue aimed for the man's neck, but his jaws clamped down on nothing but smoke. The bastard had shapeshifted…

Sheng Jing Wu would never have been a match for Bai Qingyue, had he even an ounce of his godly cultivation. Alas, he had only managed to expand his strength with a simple trick and his physical force alone was not enough to take the Jiangshi master down.

Li Meirong watched the whole encounter, completely unaware that she possessed the power that Bai Qingyue lacked to tip the scales in this fight.

Before she could do so much as blink, the demented man had rematerialized behind her, grabbed her by the collar and yanked, hurling her straight into the molten lava.