Spell-like Abilities

Fire Oranges look similar to regular oranges.

However, they emit a strange scent from within.

In the vision of Qi Divination Technique, Roger could see a sky-high blood aura emanating from every Fire Orange tree.

Its density was comparable to that of the Red Tide Corpse Queen.

With a solemn expression, he cautiously moved deeper into the orchard.

There, he discovered extensive signs of artificial harvesting.

"It seems Cindy didn't lie to me."

"Hanfulan has been cultivating these Fire Oranges."

"To attack Dragon Tooth Village, he sure is ruthless, capable of such insane acts."

Roger knew very well.

These Fire Oranges were prepared for the Marshland Refugees.

The Marshland Refugees were originally descendants of humans who survived a catastrophe.

Under years of magical pollution.

Their brains and bodies had undergone severe deformities.

As a result, most Marshland Refugees had mastered some Spell-like Abilities. (Note 1)

Compared to true spells, these Spell-like Abilities were naturally child's play.

At best, they could only be called "tricks."

Even the strongest among the Marshland Refugees lost their subsequent casting ability after throwing two or three Little Fireballs.

Therefore, the magical abilities of the Marshland Refugees had always been insignificant.

But during the last conflict with Dragon Tooth Village, Cindy discovered that the Spell-like Abilities of the Marshland Refugees had greatly improved! Hanfulan had even specifically established three "Spell-like Warrior Corps."

They directly obeyed Hanfulan's orders, using Spell-like Abilities with similar elements, causing great destruction.

According to Cindy's later calculations.

The destructive power of one "Spell-like Warrior Corps" was equivalent to that of a peak 1st-ring normal mage.

This was highly abnormal! The Spell-like Abilities of the Marshland Refugees had persisted for decades; even if there was room for improvement, it wouldn't have appeared so suddenly.

The problem lay with these "Fire Oranges."

After Cindy's secret investigation over the past few months.

She discovered a shocking fact:

Consuming Fire Oranges could significantly enhance the Spell-like Abilities of the Marshland Refugees.

With a little training, an ordinary refugee could become a member of a "Spell-like Warrior Corps."

And consuming large quantities of Fire Oranges in a short period could push this enhancement to the extreme.

But everything has a price.

Consuming Fire Oranges drastically shortened the already short lifespan of the Marshland Refugees.

Marshland Refugees generally lived to about 30 years old.

However, after consuming Fire Oranges, many refugees had already died from the bursting of tumors on their necks.

The manner of their death was said to be extremely gruesome.

In fact, Dragon Tooth Village originally intended to migrate normally.

But Hanfulan blocked their eastward path.

He not only had "Spell-like Warrior Corps" but also Ballistas traded from the Gray Dwarves.

The latter was what Sitaroya.Muse feared the most.

No matter how powerful her bloodline was, she was now just a young dragon.

With the slightest carelessness, she could be slaughtered.

And Hanfulan himself possessed power that made the Emerald Young Dragon wary.

This was why the migration path of Dragon Tooth Village had been delayed.

This situation might have continued to stalemate.

Until Hanfulan accumulated enough strength to launch a full-scale attack.

But Roger's appearance changed everything.

Leaving the orchard under the cover of night.

Roger, activating his Shadow Cloak, infiltrated the Marshland Refugees' village.

The condition of the buildings here was slightly better than in the reeds.

The people living inside also appeared to be mostly sober most of the time.

But compared to Tongma Town.

This place looked more like a village built by goblins.

"Hmm?"

"There's a firelight... is someone queuing up ahead?"

Roger cautiously crept closer.

Ahead was an open area, possibly a small plaza.

Two queues, one on the left and one on the right, were proceeding in an orderly fashion.

Everyone was very quiet.

This was unusual in a settlement of Marshland Refugees.

After observing for a while, Roger noticed that the left queue consisted mostly of males, while the right queue was entirely females.

The males were generally over 15 years old.

The females, conversely, were under 15.

The youngest appeared to be just over 10 years old.

At the end of the male queue were baskets upon baskets of Fire Oranges.

The person in charge of distributing the Fire Oranges was a burly man with a face full of scars.

The tumor on his neck was greatly distended.

His movements were swift, and his speech was rapid:

"Next."

"Quick, next."

The people in line stepped forward one by one and left after receiving their share.

Roger noticed.

Each Marshland Refugee could receive two Fire Oranges.

Everyone who received Fire Oranges devoured them impatiently, not even bothering to peel them.

"Next..."

Just as the scarred man was speaking, there was a sudden bang nearby! A man who had just received his Fire Oranges had his head explode without warning!

A large amount of blood splattered out.

Some of it splashed onto the scarred man's lips and face.

The latter licked his lips, spat, and then wiped his face with his nondescript clothes.

"Next."

He said.

The queue moved forward slowly.

No commotion, no noise.

Only the numb faces of the Marshland Refugees.

Roger silently stared at the headless corpse.

He was speechless for a long time.

Leaving the male queue.

Roger approached the other line.

Compared to the numbness and hunger of the males, the situation in this queue seemed somewhat different.

Although they were all quiet.

Roger could clearly sense that these girls' faces were filled with longing and joy.

This queue led to a large house.

There were guards at the entrance of the house.

These guards also looked sallow and emaciated.

Roger crept over stealthily.

Along the way, he heard the girls' hushed whispers:

"I heard that after becoming a bride to Lord Hanfulan, you can receive a small basket of Fire Oranges at once."

"Then we won't have to go hungry anymore."

"I really wish I could be more useful and have a few more children for Master Hanfulan..."

Roger's footsteps halted.

It wasn't that the girls' words had a huge impact on him.

It was because he had spotted a "Gem of Truth"! This item was very effective against invisibility-based abilities.

He wasn't sure if the Shadow Cloak could bypass the Gem of Truth's effect.

After hesitating for a moment, he chose to go around, circling behind the large house.

Using the Ladder Cloud Steps, he climbed the high fence and carefully peered into the courtyard.

Just then, a young woman emerged from the house, walking unsteadily.

She was also carrying a small basket of Fire Oranges.

"Ah."

The girl suddenly cried out in pain and fell to the ground.

Roger's eyelids twitched.

The girl's previously flat abdomen began to swell at a visible rate! Within ten minutes, it had expanded to the size of a ten-month pregnancy.

She writhed on the ground in agony.

Someone ran out of the house, their scolding voice utterly indifferent: "We told you to wait until after you gave birth before leaving, but you wouldn't listen."

"Now you're causing trouble for us."

Sweat beaded on the girl's forehead from the pain, but at least someone was coming to help.

Soon after.

The sounds of a newborn's cries echoed from the courtyard.

Roger witnessed firsthand the process of the infant growing from birth to about five or six years old.

It only took about an hour.

This was definitely not something that could be explained by mutation! This girl had only entered the large house today.

When she came out, she was with a five or six-year-old boy.

Her face had also aged by more than ten years!

Roger held his breath and used the Qi Divination Technique again, carefully observing the large house.

Apart from the increasingly dense blood energy, he gained nothing.

He was about to take a more aggressive approach, delving into the large house.

Just then, the data panel, which had been silent for a long time, finally showed some activity.

[Your Specialty - Qi Divination Technique's Ring Count has increased]

[Qi Divination Technique's priority has been greatly enhanced]

[You have obtained new intelligence]

[You have detected the Ritual of the God of Tainted Blood]

(Note 1: Spell-like abilities are special abilities similar to spells. The difference is that spells are acquired through learning, while spell-like abilities are innate.)