Turning Another Green Frog

Li Ziran's movements were not particularly fast, but his gains were the greatest.

The Yellow-skinned Snake he had transformed into could precisely locate Medusa, and he preferred his own kind as well.

In less than a moment, half his waist was already hung with frogs. At most, another quarter-hour and he could head home with a full haul.

Li Ziran hid himself beneath the yellow sand, allowing the rolling grit in the sky to batter his snakeskin, while his dark eyes stared fixedly ahead.

There were seven snake women. They had harvested three Medusas from the yellow sands and were now slithering toward the heart of the camp in snake form. They were a small team returning from a bountiful harvest.

Unfortunately, with only a few dozen meters left to the camp, they would not be making it back. Li Ziran's spiritual power had already hooked firmly onto their souls.

His spiritual power danced lightly with his fingers. Beneath the Yellow-skinned Snake shells, their souls were like puppets tugged by strings, beginning to leave their most comfortable flesh and slip into Li Ziran's mind.

Perfect!

The abundant spiritual feedback felt like taking a vicious drag of thick smoke—indescribably satisfying.

He was becoming addicted to the feeling. The spiritual growth brought by devouring souls stimulated his nerves every moment.

Since mastering the Devouring Curse, his spiritual power had become fully capable of supporting a Snake Transformation Array. If he used Frog Transformation, he could instantly cast three arrays.

No wonder every Witch Doctor said that the Devouring Curse was the core of all cultivation.

Mastering the Devouring Curse meant stepping completely into another realm.

Li Ziran's fingers moved again, and the power of the Devouring Curse descended upon another soul. That wisp of soul was quietly drifting out along the path Li Ziran had laid down.

Effortless.

The familiar spiritual feedback could no longer stir Li Ziran's excitement. This was quickly becoming his greatest skill. So long as he remained careful, he could wipe out this entire seven-person group and capture the three Medusas while he was at it.

The third Yellow-skinned Snake began to go blank. This strange state instantly sparked panic among the others. They stared blindly around them, trying to see the hidden attacker.

But it was all in vain. Without seeing through spiritual power, they would never understand such unfathomable methods.

The fourth soul came easily into his hands. At this point, the Snake Women panicked, frantically flicking their forked tongues as they raced toward the center of the camp at top speed.

Li Ziran would not give them the chance to report back. His fingers curled, and the three Snake Women became like huge fish caught on hooks, their souls devoured clean.

Only then did Li Ziran quietly emerge from the dust and sand. He walked over to the seven blank-eyed Snake Women and casually turned them into frogs, tying red strings around their waists. After tidying up the fruits of his labor, he finally came to the three unconscious Medusas.

Delicate and lovely. Following their slender legs upward, every inch of pale, tender skin was captivating.

"No wonder they're worth so much!"

Li Ziran sighed. Even without the Petrifying Eye, they could fetch a huge price purely on the strength of their beauty.

But when he thought of Annie, Li Ziran still gathered in the desire at the bottom of his heart. With a light tap of his finger, the three Medusas slowly transformed into slender green frogs within wrappings of green membrane.

Li Ziran took out a red string and bent down, preparing to tie the frogs' hind legs. Then he abruptly stopped. Somehow, a canvas shoe had appeared right in the middle of the three frogs.

Li Ziran stiffly raised his head and followed the canvas shoe upward. Above it was a golden mage robe, and at the top of that robe stood Hogg, his head full of blond hair. Hogg was examining him with a strange smile.

Hogg!

The fire mage under Karen's command.

[Transformation Spell: Snake]

Li Ziran did not hesitate at all. His spiritual power traced out a Snake Transformation Array, completely enveloping Hogg.

But strangely, no black membrane of Snake Transformation appeared. Hogg merely flicked his wand, effortlessly piercing through the Transformation Array that had just formed.

At the same time, an eerie force of spiritual power pierced straight into Li Ziran's mind like a sharp blade, burrowing deep into his Spirit World.

Like a heavy cleaver, it sought to split his Spirit World in two.

This bizarre change gave Li Ziran a terrible fright, and he instinctively mobilized his spiritual power.

[Shapeshifting Curse: Frog]

This was the spell he knew best and trusted most. The Transformation Array was nearly complete in an instant, but just as it covered Hogg, a flash of spiritual light sliced through his array like scissors, tearing it into scattered fragments.

Pfft!

Li Ziran spat out a mouthful of blood, no longer able to suppress the terror in his heart.

It was the first time he had encountered a failed Transformation Spell. He instinctively stepped back, but in that instant, a fireball had already landed directly in front of him.

Had he run one step faster, he would already have become a ghost beneath that fireball.

Li Ziran stood rooted in place like a puppet, not knowing whether to advance or retreat. This fire mage, who had once been fairly respectful toward him, made him feel powerless for the first time.

But the Wasteland's rules of survival told him he could not sit and wait for death. Judging from what had just happened, Hogg at least had no absolute intention of killing him.

He slowly turned around, desperately suppressing the shock in his heart and forcing out a stiff, ghost-wailing smile. "Hey, Hogg. What a coincidence!"

Hogg played with the fireball in his hand, surveying the murky surroundings with a face full of mockery. "A coincidence? Shouldn't you be saying that the Goddess of Fortune has blessed you? I've truly never seen a human as bold as you, daring to steal from Karen's territory. Ridiculous. Utterly ridiculous."

"Are you here to kill me?" Li Ziran stared at him, his feet slowly shifting left.

"I want to kill you. That's the truth. Unfortunately, Karen won't allow it." Hogg stepped closer and pressed the fireball in his hand against Li Ziran's face. The crimson firelight illuminated his features, and the heat made it impossible for him to keep his eyes open. Hogg's expression became unusually savage. "Do you know? I can hardly wait to burn your head into ash."

"Why?" Li Ziran was afraid, but more clearly than ever, he understood that this fire mage absolutely obeyed Karen—and Karen did not intend to kill him.

"Karen doesn't like me anymore." Hogg's voice suddenly sank into dejection. "He doesn't like my Fireball Spell anymore. He doesn't like using my fireballs to kill people anymore. Do you know what he does all day? He holds a little knife and cuts here and there across those Fishman and Snake Women."

Li Ziran quietly retreated another step, moving farther from the fireball. "You mean witchcraft?"

He had long suspected it. Ever since he had inexplicably obtained the Necromancer Legacy last time, he had sensed Karen's unusual ability. Yet hearing it from Hogg's mouth still shocked him.

"Heh heh, scared now? No, that isn't witchcraft. It's an ability even stronger than witchcraft—the Bauhinia Lineage's greatest ability. He can precisely seep into your thoughts, seep into every thought you have. That is Karen's ability. Why do you think he respects you so much? Heh heh. Everything you possess is merely seasoning for him. Once he grows tired of playing with you, he'll toss you into a pile of corpses without the slightest hesitation."

Hogg seized Li Ziran by the collar. "Now tell me, knowing the truth, are you afraid?"

"Impossible!" Li Ziran pretended to be unable to believe it. He was not afraid; he had sensed this long ago.

Now, it merely confirmed the suspicions in his heart.

A Psychic Mage might be formidable, but he was by no means invincible.

There were countless wondrous things in this world. If Li Ziran had been frightened whenever he encountered the unknown, he would have died who knew how many times already.

He desperately made his body tremble. He had to pretend to be frightened, and he had to argue aloud. "Such an ability can't exist. Even a god couldn't completely see through my thoughts. How could anyone have such an ability for no reason at all?"

That posture would make others believe that he was speaking against his own heart.

"Heh heh, of course it can't happen for no reason. But didn't you drink his red wine? How was it? Fragrant and mellow, wasn't it?"

Li Ziran shuddered as he suddenly remembered the warm hospitality he had received when he first met Karen. Red wine with roast goose, lavish beyond measure. Karen had refilled his cup again and again, and he seemed to have drunk more than half a bottle.

But he had personally checked it. There were no toxins in the wine, and he had suffered no adverse reaction afterward.

Now he understood. That wine had been meant to assist Karen's special ability.

Strange! Strange! Strange!

This fantasy world was far stranger than he had imagined.

Li Ziran retreated. He had to make himself look even more flustered.

Hogg laughed loudly, apparently enjoying Li Ziran's panic-stricken appearance. Yet cautious as he was, he never loosened his control over Li Ziran.

Suddenly, his smile vanished. It seemed he had achieved the reaction he wanted. He grabbed Li Ziran by the collar and dragged him before the fireball, roaring, "Enough, brat. Come with me to the warehouse and submit to Lord Simba's command. Be a good boy and become Lord Karen's plaything!"

"Why?" Li Ziran suddenly asked.

"What?" Hogg was startled by Li Ziran's composure. In his expectations, Li Ziran should have been terrified, but now he had unexpectedly calmed down.

"Why do you know he's playing with you, yet still enjoy it so much?" Li Ziran asked softly.

Those words seemed to pierce Hogg's defenses. The hand clutching Li Ziran began to tremble as he pressed the fireball directly beneath Li Ziran's nose. "You bastard, I'll let you know..."

Unfortunately, his hand trembled more violently, as though he could no longer hold the fireball.

But unlike ordinary agitation, a layer of emerald-green membrane had somehow spread over his fingers. The membrane extended from his palm to his arm, covering his entire body in the blink of an eye.

"Impossible! You... you have no spiritual attack. You can't... can't..."

Hogg roared, his face filled with disbelief.

But Li Ziran had no intention of offering any unnecessary explanation. Looking at the perfectly formed closed circle of footprints, it seemed the most primitive methods were still the most effective.

Spiritual power really was unreliable.