Bone Dragon's Nest

As dusk approached, the sun began to slant westward, like a shy young woman, as if wanting the creatures of the Wasteland to take one last look before casting its last rays of sunlight.

A soft light fell on the golden feathers of the Humpback Eagle, like a magical alchemy, creating golden ripples that seemed to Humpback Eagle into a lump of gold. But this was only an appearance; the sun could not resist the Magic Power of time and was swallowed by the mountains. The Humpback Eagle's appearance began to look ordinary, like a larger hen.

Li Ziran leaned against the railing, the heat carried by the Elemental Tide patting against the protective shield of the Humpback Eagle. After being gently filtered and absorbed by the Water Element emitted by the Water Magic Stone, it felt lightly refreshing when it was patted on his face.

Undoubtedly, this was a luxury in the Wasteland, but Li Ziran had no desire to enjoy it now.

Looking up, countless corpses piled up, forming ravines and mountains, like a huge, endless crack.

This was the first time he had ever truly seen the entirety of the Corpse Mountain. It was so enormous that it exceeded the range of his vision, resembling a colossal serpent coiled quietly over the Wasteland, forming a small circular pit at its center.

It resembled a volcano with its center collapsed, and the corpses on the outside looked as if they were erupting from this huge crater.

This was much larger than Li Ziran had imagined; what he had encountered before was only a small part of the very front of this Corpse Mountain.

"Aren't we going to the Mage Tower?" Li Ziran asked Rhine was riding the Humpback Eagle.

Rhine Lion shook his head. "Sir, I was just following orders."

The Lion suddenly became very low-key. Li Ziran looked at Anfuni, who was deep in thought with her chin in her hand, and no longer had the shrewdness she had shown when she left the small building.

The Humpback Eagle flew directly over Sandrew's magic tower, across the many ravines within the Corpse Mountain, and towards the small circular pit at the very center.

Puff!

Suddenly, Li Ziran felt as if a protective film had been pressed firmly against his face, or as if a soaked piece of paper had been placed on his face, making it hard to breathe.

It only lasted for half a second before everything returned to normal, but what followed was a pungent, bloody stench.

Buzz buzz buzz!

In an instant, the surroundings were dominated by the buzzing of mosquitoes.

Looking up, all I could see were swarms of bright red mosquitoes, clustered together, flying around in a dense mass.

Bang!

Just then, a bright red dolphin suddenly leaped out, darted into the swarm of mosquitoes, and instantly devoured thousands of them.

However, this number is far too small compared to the total number of mosquitoes.

Startled, the swarm of mosquitoes suddenly changed direction, but this time another dolphin darted out at high speed to wait for them.

They had to change things again, but each time new dolphins appeared.

This is a hunt!

Li Ziran knew perfectly well that these mosquitoes were food for the dolphins.

These dolphins were different from what he knew. They were much smaller than dolphins, blood red all over, and had eerie pale eyes. Apart from their resemblance to dolphins, they were almost a different species altogether.

It should be Blood Dolphin.

Bang!

Some of the well-fed Blood Dolphin began to descend, their massive bodies Dispel the swarms of mosquitoes.

Only now, through the swarming mosquitoes, could one clearly see that beneath his feet lay a lake of blood.

The lake water was viscous and completely black, constantly wriggling from the edges towards the center, just like boiling water.

As soon as the Blood Dolphin burrowed in, it rolled around, its entire body covered in blood plasma, and disappeared. But not far from it, fins were slicing through the water, swimming swiftly.

That was clearly a group of even more ferocious predators, and in the far distance, Li Ziran even saw a giant tail slapping against the blood-red water, splashing high columns of blood.

A faint hum could be heard emanating from beneath the pillar of blood.

This place is clearly a completely independent world of blood.

Derivative World.

In an instant, that particular word entered my mind. Clearly, the discomfort I had just experienced was because this Humpback Eagle had left the Wasteland and entered an independent Derivative World.

Unexpectedly, after only a few months, I've encountered the Derivative Realm again.

These mosquitoes and Blood Dolphin are the creatures of this Derivative World, much like Medusa living among the Swamp Mud Dragon.

"This Blood Pool is well-cultivated; it seems the Dark Council has put in a lot of effort!" Just as Li Ziran was wondering, Anfuni chuckled lightly from the side, "If those Justice Light Mages of humanity knew there were so many Blood Dolphin, wouldn't they turn pale with fright? Sigh, the Wasteland is really suitable for Necromancer to develop."

Dark Council? Light Mages?

Li Ziran frowned slightly. He was very familiar with the Dark Council, the world's largest underground organization, which controlled many Slave-Catching Group, mercenary groups, assassin organizations, and intelligence Mill. Its history was unknown, but its lineage was quite long.

However, the Dark Council has a bad reputation, largely due to their ruthless methods and even various spells and research that terrify living beings.

For example, Necromancer are a legitimate presence in the Dark Council, and they hold a relatively high position.

Therefore, many races rejected the Dark Council, regarding them as maggots hiding in the mire, with the Light Mages being the most vehement.

This group possesses the Magic Gland of humans and a complete inheritance of Light Element splitting and recombination, encompassing all the Light Element magic array chains in this world, making it the most complete mage organization.

The Justice Alliance, composed of Light Mages, and the Evil Inquisition, established by a group of self-proclaimed Justice individuals, are the Dark Council's greatest adversaries.

In Li Ziran's view, they were a group of madmen living for their Faith.

But once these people catch the Dark Council's Tail, they will Undead dig and hunt it down until it is completely wiped out.

Ironically, this organization, brimming with sentiment, enjoys the support of multiple races, primarily humans, and even has an exceptionally good reputation among ordinary beings.

Even the conservative Orc have an absolute fondness for the Human Race's Justice Alliance.

I never imagined that this Blood Pool was a product of a behemoth like the Dark Council. But thinking about it, it makes sense; only such a large organization could possibly have its own independent Derivative Space.

Therefore, Sandrew is very likely a member of the Dark Council.

If one has this identity, then this observation...

"Hehe, why think so much? I'm just a midwife."

Li Ziran chuckled to himself. He had indeed overthought things; in front of the Dark Council, he was nothing more than a tiny mosquito.

Thinking too much can actually get in the way.

No matter who comes along or what changes occur, he only needs to act according to Sandrew's wishes, since the old man seems to have been treating him well lately.

They probably wouldn't kill him randomly.

He didn't respond to Anfuni's words. What the Blood Pool was wasn't important; knowing more was useless. The only thing he needed to do right now was to ensure that the Demon Embryo was born.

Quietly observing the dense swarm of mosquitoes, these mosquitoes seemed to be aware of their own existence, automatically scattering whenever the Humpback Eagle flew by.

The Humpback Eagle began to climb, and at an extremely fast speed.

Where are we going?

Li Ziran was somewhat confused; the rules within this Derivative World were completely different from those in the Wasteland.

Soon, he felt a tightness in his chest, nausea, and even vomiting, as if he were experiencing altitude sickness.

But what's even stranger is that his Spirit World is shrinking at a visible rate, as if it's about to be completely compressed into a sphere.

Intimidation.

The strong suppress the weak.

Li Ziran experienced this feeling more than a dozen times in his own pond, but it only lasted for a moment there. Now, however, it not only persisted but was also continuously intensifying.

"It's that thing!"

Li Ziran was certain that the creature flying over his pond every time was this one, but when he looked up, all he saw was a dark night sky filled with swarms of buzzing mosquitoes.

Li Ziran began to feel agitated, as if a giant hand was pressing on his chest, about to crush his heart.

At this moment, the Spirit World finally stopped shrinking, but the mental energy was running wildly out of control, like a pool of water about to boil.

"Let's talk, it'll make you feel better if we distract ourselves," Anfuni interjected, seemingly noticing Li Ziran's discomfort. "What do you think of me now? Am I still pretty?"

Li Ziran nodded, but he didn't want to speak at all; the force seemed to be crushing him.

"Your strength is too weak." Anfuni sighed softly. "It's just mental pressure, and you can't even withstand that. Sigh, Li Ziran, how will you live if I'm not here anymore?"

These words made Li Ziran laugh. He hadn't been alive and well before, even without you. He was about to retort, but he found that the eerie and oppressive feeling had disappeared as soon as he lost focus.

But once he calmed down, the nausea returned.

"How do you know about that Demon?" Li Ziran asked, trying to divert attention.

Anfuni smiled, seemingly finding the question trivial, but seeing Li Ziran's noticeably pale face, she still said, "I'm a priestess, an Elves, don't you know Elves have an innate sense for Demon? From the moment that Butterfly Girl came in, I felt something was off. At the time, I didn't think she was a Demon, but later, when I saw your aura, I was certain."

"My aura? What aura?" Li Ziran asked, puzzled.

"Demon aura, huh? What, didn't anyone tell you that merging souls leaves behind a residual aura? Anyone with even a little knowledge of souls can sense it. Your aura used to be very strong, almost at the level of Lower Demon, right? Li Ziran, can you tell me exactly how many Demon you've merged with?"

Fusion?

Li Ziran puzzled. He had used the Devouring Curse, and Annie had never mentioned that the Devouring Curse would leave any residual aura.

Is it obvious?

"Not obvious, as simple as the sun in the night. Ordinary people can't see it, but I don't know if the Justice Alliance and the Inquisition can see it. Let me think, Demon Judgment of your level should be Pillar of Fire, right?" Anfuni chuckled, seemingly enjoying Li Ziran's fear.

Inquisition? Pillar of Fire?

Li Ziran was speechless; he was a pure human being, after all.

Although the Light Mages doesn't have much influence in the Wasteland, you never know when you might run into one of these crazy people—they're like a piece of chewing gum that you can't shake off once you get on their heels.

"Can it be removed?" Li Ziran asked with concern.

"Hmm... I'm not sure. It seems there's a special Blessing Organ in the Blessing Art, but it's very rare. I've heard that Golden Silk Birdfolk are born with this kind of Blessing Art."

"Golden Silk Birdfolk?" Li Ziran was overjoyed; he already possessed one, and it was the power of Purification.

If the Demon aura doesn't belong to oneself, then it's a negative state of the soul, which can be cleared away.

Etc.

Before?

Only then did he notice the veiled meaning in Anfuni's words, and the more he thought about it, the more alarmed he became.

"You prepared this especially for me?"

"Heh, guess for yourself, you blockhead!" Anfuni rolled her eyes, then suddenly looked up at the sky. "Alright, enough talk, we're almost there." Her expression instantly turned serious.

Before Li Ziran could even process what was happening, he saw a splash, like a carp leaping out of water, and all the mosquitoes vanished. He escaped the foul-smelling Derivative Space and found himself in a Void Expanse.

It was indeed Void Expanse; there was nothing around him. The moment he appeared, Li Ziran was frozen in place.

Quiet!

Not a sound.

Here, the Elemental Tide seemed to have completely disappeared; the only thing remaining was a pale white mountain range not far away—no, it wasn't a mountain range, but pure white bones.

There was a huge white skeletal skull with a red and white crown on its head. Its slender white skeletal neck stretched for dozens of miles, connecting to a huge belly comparable to a mountain. At the top of this belly were two large wings, like two flying landmasses.

Below its belly were two towering pillars, seemingly barely supporting its enormous belly, and behind this huge belly was a pale Tail that stretched as far as the eye could see.

Bone Dragon!

Bone Dragon that is absolutely comparable to a mountain range.

I couldn't help but think of the Corpse Dragon controlled by Karen, but compared to this Bone Dragon, it was nothing more than a tiny ant.

In his memory, the only thing comparable to this guy was that Swamp Mud Dragon that had already perished.

Li Ziran was deeply shocked, but his body was unable to move. The Humpback Eagle beneath him was frozen in place, still in the shape of half a wing.

But one could sense that the Humpback Eagle was slowly drifting, like a bamboo raft, gradually moving closer to the enormous Bone Dragon.

"Li Ziran, welcome to the Bone Dragon's Nest."

At that moment, Sandrew's laughter suddenly echoed through the space. The instant the sound faded, the Bone Dragon came to life, turned around sharply, and its mountain-like head was aimed directly at Li Ziran.

Puff!

In an instant, crimson and white flames erupted from the eyes, which resembled a volcanic eruption. The entire Bone Dragon seemed to come alive, opening its mouth to reveal a bottomless black hole in front of Li Ziran.

At this moment, this quiet space finally stirred.

It was a whirlwind, or more precisely, the suction force at the Bone Dragon's throat.

It propelled the Humpback Eagle closer to the black hole, like a waterfall gradually approaching a cliff.

Li Ziran instinctively retreated, but his body wouldn't obey him. He passed through the Bone Dragon's lower jaw and saw long, bony whiskers like ice spears. He entered its mouth and saw giant, inverted spiral dragon teeth. As he approached the edge of its throat, he saw a ball of reddish-white energy.

The instant he saw it, a surge of Cold Energy erupted, instantly locking Li Ziran inside the ice sculpture.

Bang!

The Bone Dragon closed its mouth, and the entire world was plunged into darkness.