Chapter 133: Chapter 133: The Waterfall Refuge
"Good job." Jax crossed his arms as he looked at the corpses of the beasts. "This will be a good place. From now on, we’ll eat beast meat and gather fruits. Everyone, be careful—anyone under level 70 doesn’t go too far."
He nodded at Manaia. "You were right, this place is pretty dangerous. I can sense several auras nearby... but none strong enough to approach while I’m here."
The survivors began moving, still trembling but with a spark of hope. More than five thousand were still alive, spreading out through the clearing. The weak gathered branches, fruits, and anything they could find nearby, while the warriors and tribal chiefs above level 70 cautiously explored further in search of food.
Jax walked away from the group and headed toward the waterfall. The water crashed down with overwhelming force, glittering under the light, like a natural refuge in the middle of chaos. Something in his instincts told him this wasn’t an ordinary place.
As he approached, he heard it—a roar rumbling from behind the wall of water.
The sound shook the air, and suddenly, a serpent more than a hundred meters long burst out of the waterfall, raising its colossal body to the sky.
Jax calmly leapt back. Behind him, screams erupted.
"No way!" one of the vassals shrieked, face pale. "That’s a Nine-Colored Winged Python! A legend! It was supposed to be extinct! What the hell is it doing here?!"
Another shouted in panic. "Leader, watch out! Its venom is so deadly it can even kill demon kings!"
Chaos spread among the survivors. Several warriors raised their weapons, while others stepped back in fear. But Jax just stood still, watching.
The python roared deafeningly and lunged at him, spreading its iridescent wings that glimmered with every movement. Its presence was crushing, the ground trembling under every coil of its body.
Jax clenched his jaw. He could feel its ferocity—it was a terrifying beast... but at the end of the day, it was still just a snake.
He tried releasing his aura. Just a spark, weak, faint, like a dying ember. Yet it was enough.
The instant the python opened its jaws to devour him, the aura exploded forward.
The python’s head burst like a watermelon, spraying blood and multicolored scales everywhere. Its massive body crashed to the ground with a thunder that shook the entire forest.
Silence.
The vassals and warriors stared, breathless, unable to process what they had just seen.
Jax lowered his hand and muttered calmly:
"Just a snake."
The vassals stared at the python’s corpse with wide eyes. Some trembled, others dropped to their knees.
"The leader killed a mythical beast!"
"He’s invincible!"
"There’s no one like him!"
Their cries of worship spread fast, voices mixing into a chant. Pure devotion. Jax felt it immediately: a stream of energy flowing toward him, the faith of the survivors.
But at the same time, he frowned.
"Is this all...?" he muttered. Yes, it was faith, but weak. A river turned into a mere trickle. Enough to make his body react, but nowhere near enough to fill him.
The emptiness inside him grew obvious again. Since losing the gods’ blessings, he hadn’t had a single ability of his own. Everything he did came from the system. And deep down, he knew it—the celestial who had challenged him had been right.
"Those who depend on the system will never grow..." he repeated in his mind. "Damn it, he was too right."
He clenched his fists, swearing to find a way to recover his strength, but without abandoning the women or the people who had followed him into hell. If he wanted to survive in this world, he had to become something more than just a vessel for the system.
With those thoughts, Jax stepped into the broken waterfall, entering the lair behind the wall of water. The atmosphere was suffocating, the air thick with mana so dense it was hard to breathe.
He walked slowly, alert, expecting another beast to emerge from the shadows. But nothing came.
Deeper and deeper, the cave split into dark tunnels. He explored each path carefully, until the stench of death guided him.
Corpses of lesser beasts piled in corners, bleached bones and dried venom stains covering the rock. Minerals glimmered on the walls, but nothing of real value.
He kept walking until he reached the deepest chamber.
There, pulsing with strange energy, he found it.
An egg.
Small, yet glowing ominously. The energy it released was so intense the cave itself seemed to throb with it, like it had a heartbeat. Each pulse echoed through his bones, filling the air with savage pressure.
Jax stopped, eyes locked on it.
"What the hell are you...?" he whispered, feeling that this wasn’t just an egg.
Jax carried the egg out of the cave. The energy radiating from it was so intense that everyone nearby felt it instantly.
The women gathered around him, curiosity shining in their tired eyes.
"Found this inside," Jax said firmly. "If any of you want to try, you can attempt to tame it."
Silence. Then their thoughts all went to the same place—the image of the colossal nine-colored python. The idea of having such a beast as an ally made their hearts pound.
But one by one, they stepped back. All eyes turned to Manaia. She had been matriarch, Jax’s first woman, the one who had been with him the longest.
"It’s yours, Manaia," Zela said with a nod.
The others agreed without protest.
Manaia smiled, eyes shining with a light she hadn’t shown in a long time. She carefully took the egg, cradling it like a treasure.
"It’s alive..." she whispered, pressing her forehead against its warm surface. "I can feel it beating."
None of them had real experience taming beasts, but through their time among other races they had learned the basics: a newborn beast would be loyal to the first being it saw, and if fed mana, the bond could become almost familial.
Manaia closed her eyes and began channeling mana into the egg. A soft glow wrapped around it, the shell drinking in her energy like a desert swallowing water.
"That’s it... slowly..." she murmured, though soon she realized something was wrong.
The egg wasn’t just absorbing. It was devouring.
Like a bottomless whirlpool, it sucked every drop of mana Manaia poured into it.
"Manaia, stop!" Lira shouted as she saw her paling instantly.
But it was too late. The former matriarch was trembling, drenched in cold sweat, barely standing. The egg, however, pulsed wildly. Cracks spread across its surface, glowing with multicolored light.
The air trembled, a muffled roar echoing from within. The women stepped back, eyes wide.
"It’s... it’s breaking..." Zyra muttered, clutching her spear.
The shell shattered.
An explosion shook the forest as fragments flew everywhere. From inside emerged a small serpent, only a few meters long, but its body shimmered with all the colors of the rainbow. Tiny wings sprouted from its back, and on its forehead was a crown-like protrusion glowing softly.
Manaia gazed at it with teary eyes, filled with warmth. The creature slithered toward her, then licked her cheek affectionately, like a newborn recognizing its mother.
"Hello, little one..." Manaia whispered, stroking its radiant scales.
The two seemed to communicate in silence. The serpent tilted its head, and Manaia answered with a smile, as if understanding every unspoken word. The moment was so tender that even the exhausted women couldn’t help but smile.
After a while, Manaia suddenly stood up, eyes sparkling with joy. She hopped on her feet and clapped her hands like an excited child.
"Jax! Everyone! This is a Nine-Colored Emperor Python! It was born with a rare mutation... its energy goes far beyond what it should. It’s insanely powerful!"
The women stared in disbelief. None of them could believe what they were seeing.
Jax let out a deep laugh.
"Well, little fierce one, huh?" he said, extending his hand toward the creature. "Let’s see how tough you are."
The serpent hissed, flashing its sharp fangs. In a blur, it lunged at him, trying to bite his hand.
But Manaia reacted instantly, grabbing it and scolding it like a naughty child.
"No! No biting Jax!"
The serpent let out a low whine, almost pitiful, and curled up. With a timid motion, it coiled around Manaia’s wrist, tightening until it looked like a living bracelet shimmering under the forest light.
Jax watched for a moment, then smiled calmly.
"Well... looks like you’ve got your own personal guardian now."
Manaia hugged the rainbow-colored serpent with pride, and for the first time since the catastrophe, the women laughed together, feeling that a new beginning was finally possible.
Manaia couldn’t hold back anymore. Overwhelmed with joy, she threw herself into Jax’s arms, kissing him and clinging to him tightly. But the little emperor python suddenly hissed angrily, its tiny wings flapping as it bared its fangs at Jax, ready to strike. Everyone froze for a second before bursting into laughter, watching the newborn beast act so fiercely protective.
"Looks like someone’s already jealous," Zela laughed.
Even Jax chuckled, holding Manaia tighter while the rainbow serpent glared at him with comical fury.