A Way

Li Ziran had no idea how he had managed to say something so against his heart. Steady and composed as he usually was, he should have been immune to this sort of flattery.

To be honest, the little girl's innocence had truly moved him.

Ever since crossing into this fantasy world, he had believed that everything he encountered was entirely governed by the laws of nature. Everyone did nothing more than struggle to survive.

So he could endure every evil, tolerate every conspiracy, ruthlessly remove organs from living creatures, and sell living beings as slaves without a shred of guilt.

Helping Annie was unrealistic, but Li Ziran did not want to owe the girl a favor.

She had helped him open his Spirit World, taught him the Devouring Curse without asking for anything in return, and even told him how to petrify and modify dragon teeth at the most critical moment.

He could have wiped away every one of those favors against his conscience. After all, he was not afraid of this Medusa.

But he could not do it.

"I can give it a try!" Li Ziran did not make any promises. "But I'll need your help."

"Of course! I'm willing! What do you need me to do?" Annie said excitedly.

Li Ziran was speechless. He did not know either. "Well... what do you think we should do?"

"Me? You're asking me?" Annie asked strangely.

"Of course. We're comrades now, so naturally we need to think of a solution together. I must gather wisdom from every side, hear your thoughts, and then devise the most suitable plan of action," Li Ziran said against his heart.

"This... this..." Annie began muttering. "If it were me... if I were the one... then... summon Lord Dragon."

"Summon the dragon?" Li Ziran asked in surprise. The thought had never crossed his mind. "You mean summon the Mud Dragon? Do you have a spell? A way?"

"No." Annie lowered her head dejectedly. "Even if we summoned him, it would not be of much use. Lord Dragon is very old. He cannot even protect the swamp where he lives. Soon, he will be swallowed by the Wasteland. Forget Medusas—even Lord Dragon's corpse would probably be carved up by those people."

Old?

Li Ziran murmured softly. Now, he was beginning to understand why this swamp existed.

Clearly, this was the living space of the Swamp Mud Dragon.

On the Red Soil Continent, ancient powerful creatures could use their unique abilities to isolate the effects of the Elemental Tide, thereby creating spaces best suited to their survival.

These were called Derivative Spaces, also known as Minor Spaces.

Minor Spaces could draw beneficial elements from the Elemental Tide while perfectly isolating the influence of other elements, thus maximizing their owners' abilities.

But the existence of a Derivative Space depended entirely on the ancient creature's power. When their power declined, the Elemental Tide would regain the upper hand and tear those spaces apart until they were utterly destroyed.

And reaching the end of one's lifespan was the main cause of those mighty creatures' declining power.

Dragons were among the most ancient creatures on the Red Soil Continent. Every adult dragon stood at the end of the food chain. Unfortunately, even they could not attain immortality.

This space was dying a natural death. It was only the creatures within it that suffered disaster.

Such creatures often shared the same trait: unparalleled talent and pitifully weak ability to survive in the outside world.

Natural aging basically meant that the organs had reached their limit.

"Organs... organs..." Li Ziran kept repeating. This was his old trade. Perhaps he could make something of it.

"Annie, can you tell me more specifically about the Mud Dragon's condition?"

"Mm... Lord Dragon's skin is wrinkled and starting to crack. He sleeps a lot—once he falls asleep, he can sleep for years. Also, his wings have fallen off, and over the past few years, almost all his dragon scales have shed. Oh, and there are many bluish-green specks of light inside Lord Dragon's body now."

Bluish-green specks of light?

That should fall within the realm of magic, right?

The more Li Ziran listened, the less confidence he had. The deterioration of the outer skin indicated natural aging. This miraculous species was already on the verge of death. If this Mud Dragon could still fight, the current Slave-Catching Group would amount to nothing.

After all, even an old dragon was still a dragon.

But how to summon the Swamp Mud Dragon was difficult.

It was as hard as making a **dying seventy-year-old man run a lap around the courtyard again.

Summoning the Mud Dragon was impossible.

"I have an idea. Perhaps we can get your tribe out." After thinking for a while, Li Ziran voiced his idea. "I know the Transformation Spell. I can turn them into frogs and take them out of this swamp, then find somewhere to settle them."

He had only said half of it, because even Li Ziran felt it was unrealistic.

He had transplanted Medusa eyes before. It would be difficult to earn the Medusas' trust, let alone since he was human.

But more importantly, there was nowhere to settle them. From Annie's words, Li Ziran had already concluded that Medusas were creatures that lived on dragons. Everything they needed to survive had to be drawn by the dragon from the Elemental Tide.

Without the dragon as their living environment, they might not survive.

The Elemental Tide shaped different natural environments, and at the same time, it determined the dependence of the species within them.

Even slave traders understood this. They would never sell a Polar Bear Warrior worth three gold coins on the ice plains to an elf's tropical jungle.

If anyone actually did that, they would definitely lose their shirt.

The Polar Bear Warrior's unique fur had the special ability to absorb fire elements and suppress ice elements. Once it entered a tropical jungle, the abundant fire elements would literally steam it alive.

"The Transformation Spell! Oh, that's wonderful!" Annie cried excitedly, completely failing to notice that something was off in Li Ziran's tone.

Li Ziran smiled awkwardly. Although the second plan had little chance of success as well, at least there was a sliver of possibility.

"Now there's a problem. First, you need to make your people believe I'm here to help them."

Annie immediately fell silent. Clearly, she had not considered this. A Medusa with weak petrification abilities persuading others to willingly turn into frogs was simply impossible.

After all, once they became frogs, it would mean losing the ability to resist. They would probably rather fight the Slave-Catching Group until both sides were destroyed than accept Li Ziran's suggestion.

"I'll find a way," Annie said firmly. "I swear by my bloodline that I'll make them believe us. Shall we act now?"

"No."

"Why?" Annie did not understand.

"It's simple. We need to get rid of this elephant first. Every one of his hairs is as hard as a bayonet now." Li Ziran smiled bitterly.

It seemed the Fire Elephant sensed Li Ziran's unwillingness. The hairs on its ears stood straight up, branching into several sharp prongs.

The underground space was also continuously reinforcing the Fire Elephant, seemingly intending to surround Karen and the others.

This tiny underground space seemed about to erupt into a storm of blood and carnage.

"Do you want to learn the Transformation Spell?" Annie suddenly asked.

Li Ziran found the question rather amusing. His Transformation Spell was already exceptionally accomplished. Was this half-baked girl going to teach him?

"No need."

"No, I mean snake transformation." Annie seemed to have summoned tremendous courage. "Actually, we Medusas are the rulers of snake-kind and possess the ability to command all serpentine creatures. That is why we can easily devour the souls of snake creatures. But no one knows that we possess the ability to transform all species into snakes. As long as our souls weave together, you can easily obtain this ability. Then we can deal with this Fire Elephant. We may not be able to turn it into a little water snake, but if we turn it into a giant python, we can escape."

Li Ziran lowered his head and looked at the enormous creature below, then felt the faint fluctuations within his Spirit World. He began to hesitate.

Soul Weaving was a forbidden art.

If organ transplantation was the transfer of organs between different creatures, then Soul Weaving was the replacement of soul fragments on a deeper level.

Li Ziran had heard of it, but only in legends and stories.

After all, the soul was countless times more profound than the physical body.

"Have you tried it?" Li Ziran lacked confidence. Instinctively, he recoiled from this forbidden technique.

"No." Annie's answer was quite calm. "Just as you said, everything has to be tried. Maybe it will bring a good result."

Li Ziran truly wanted to slap himself. Chicken soup like that really should not be brewed so carelessly.

Organ transplantation carried risks, and equally serious aftereffects. Only when he was fully prepared would he perform an organ transplant.

Li Ziran had clear principles: never begin surgery without complete preparation, and never perform surgery on himself.

But now they had made no preparations whatsoever. His instincts told him the risk was enormous. After all, who knew how ancient this forbidden subject was?

There was no need to gamble with his own soul for the sake of some Medusa girl.

"Are you afraid?" Annie suddenly asked.

"No!" Li Ziran retorted instinctively. "I'm only considering whether it's feasible and whether there are other methods."

"Are there?" Annie pressed tactlessly.

"Mm... well... if we think about it, there should be, probably!"

"You're lying!" Annie directly pierced through his lie. "I can feel you trembling."

Li Ziran smiled. "Fine, I admit I'm afraid. So what? Everyone gets afraid. Why can't I be afraid?"

The Spirit World fell silent again. This time, Annie chose to yield.

"I'm sorry." After a long while, Annie's apologetic voice came through.

Li Ziran scratched his head with a bitter smile. Why was there no solution in this world that could satisfy both sides? This girl was so adorable that she truly gave him a headache.

How long had it been since he had risked the most precious thing he possessed—his life?

"Come on!"

"What?" Annie asked.

"Soul Weaving," Li Ziran said.

"Aren't you afraid?" Annie asked in confusion.

"Who says being afraid means you don't do it? Is there something wrong with your brain, woman? You can't understand a word anyone says. Be careful during the weaving. If you carelessly turn me into an idiot, hmph, I'll make you serve me properly in your next life!"