Fangs Against Fate by Corbin Hale

For most of his life, Xu Hei has known only hunger, prey, and the dangers lurking near a quiet village. He is an old snake. He has never imagined being anything else. Then he swallows an elixir made from a human—and begins to think. Awareness comes late. An ordinary snake lives barely ten years, and Xu Hei has already spent much of his life surviving. Another unlikely meal, this time an immortal, leaves him with a cultivation art that offers a way beyond his mortal body. With a mysterious little cauldron and a method he barely understands, he starts gathering spiritual energy, building his strength, and forming his first dragon scale. Becoming a true dragon requires nine transformations. Each promises greater power. Each could kill him. Among human cultivators and dangerous beasts, Xu Hei would rather hide, plan, and outwit than charge into battle. Corner him, however, and he will strike without mercy. Alchemy, talismans, formations, and puppets become tools for survival, while absurd mishaps make his perilous journey stranger—and funnier—than he ever expected. Immortality is still a distant possibility. For now, he must earn his future one breakthrough at a time. He has only just learned what it means to be alive. He is not ready for it to end.

Adult • Fantasy/Wuxia and Xianxia • Fantasy/Dark • Fantasy • Fantasy/Epic and High