Snake Women

The green film was thin as paper, seeming as though a light poke would tear it. Yet even after the Goathead Chief exhausted every ounce of strength, he could not kick it open in the slightest.

Under the gaze of all the Ram-headed People, their leader kept shrinking, shrinking, until he had completely turned into a green-skinned frog.

After croaking twice in midair, he fell into the filthy water. The freshly transformed frog clumsily kicked his hind legs, vainly trying to burrow deeper into the silt.

Unfortunately, he was not truly a frog. His repeated kicks only made him spin in place.

Li Ziran pulled out a red rope from his pocket, bent down, lifted him upside down, tied his hind legs, and hung him from the back of his waist.

The exchange between hunter and prey happened in the space of a breath. By the time Li Ziran had finished tidying up and raised his head, that familiar smile was already hanging on his face.

But now, the Ram-headed People could no longer feel even a trace of warmth from it. Instead, it was as cold and grim as hell itself.

They watched helplessly as the young man before them, a head shorter than they were, raised his wand. A string of green light enveloped the Ram-headed People in the front row.

Only after Li Ziran had subdued five Ram-headed People did the rest come to their senses. They turned and trampled through the murky mud, fleeing madly toward the Wasteland.

Although Li Ziran used his wand rather frequently, he ultimately only managed to keep seventeen Ram-headed People.

The remaining Ram-headed People escaped the range of the array with their exceptional jumping ability. Without the array's support, his Transformation Spell became useless.

"What a pity!"

Li Ziran lowered his head to look at his feet covered in silt, then at the frog hopping continuously through the mud, seeming rather dissatisfied with this hunt.

He was mainly dissatisfied with the range of the array he had constructed. If he had been given enough time, he could have drawn a Transformation Array covering half a li in every direction. Within the array, he could use the Transformation Spell as recklessly as he pleased.

Back then, writing Tadpole Script on the ground with his feet had merely been a spur-of-the-moment idea for Li Ziran. Now, however, it had become his signature skill.

With this ability, he had made no small amount of unexpected fortune on the Wasteland.

That was why he liked groups, and especially groups that set their sights on him. In particular, merchant bands like these—average in strength yet full of ambition—were Li Ziran's finest prey.

Trampling through the mud, he tied all the dozen or so frogs floating on the water's surface with red ropes and hung them at his waist.

He ignored their frantic croaking. Compared to corpses, the living were worth more money.

All he needed was to find a slave-trading band, and these Ram-headed People could be exchanged for nearly two hundred corpses.

Especially since he had caught a head ram as well. If he sold that thing to a buyer for a human gladiatorial arena, it would definitely fetch a fine price.

Only after dealing with the frogs did Li Ziran walk to the edge of the swamp, dig out those utterly shattered skeletons, and carefully untie the red ropes to preserve them.

This was Death Rope!

It was something invented by the Necromancer, brimming with violent Undead Force.

If a living creature was tied with this rope for a long time, it could be tainted by Undead Force and turn into a living corpse.

As for corpses, once the rope was cut short, they could directly become skeletons.

This was something money could not buy. To obtain one red rope, one had to bring five corpses to exchange with a Necromancer.

And if broken red ropes like these were handed to a Necromancer, three strands could still be exchanged for one brand-new rope.

These were treasures.

They could also be considered one of Li Ziran's trump cards.

As for those skeletons, they were completely useless. Having been eroded by Undead Force, all nutrients in their bones had been depleted. Even wild beasts might not eat such things.

Their only use was to sink into the mud and rot away.

Li Ziran moved extremely quickly. He understood the laws of survival: lingering too long at any battlefield could bring an unforeseen disaster upon him.

But this time, he was clearly too slow. Just as he untied the third broken rope, a sharp whistle tore through the air from behind him.

By the time Li Ziran reacted, the shadow of an arrow was already pressed against his back. He could only dive into the mud on instinct.

The choking, nauseating stench of the swamp rushed into his face, but what made his heart jolt was the whistling sound slicing past his ears.

Sharp arrowheads pierced the air and plunged into the water, splashing up sprays of water.

Li Ziran did not dare hesitate. He pulled out his wand and tapped himself, and green light immediately wrapped around him. As if controlled, the green light rapidly burrowed into Li Ziran's body.

In the span of a single breath, a tiny emerald-green frog was born.

With one kick of his hind legs, he had already swum several feet away. After several more kicks, he had completely escaped the area under attack.

Only after swimming through the swamp for half a quarter-hour did he dare raise his head and look toward where he had just been. Three slender water snakes were rapidly swimming beside the mudflat.

After lingering in the area where he had been standing for half a quarter-hour, those water snakes began swimming in his direction.

In the distance, two women with human bodies and snake tails stood motionless, staring at the water's surface.

Snake Women!

A species unique to swamps, they survived by hunting passersby. Their eyesight was weak, but they possessed extraordinary senses of smell and the racial gift, Iris.

Through Iris, they could see through any magical disguise.

Clearly, the battle just now had alerted this group of Snake Women.

And the frog he had transformed into was being countered by these Snake Women. The water snakes swimming beneath the surface could form an encirclement in mere seconds.

He could not confront them head-on. Running was enough.

These Snake Women could transform into water snakes, but likewise, they could not leave the swamp. Their delicate skin could not withstand the dry currents of air on the Wasteland.

As long as he retreated, he would be safe and sound.

However, Li Ziran did not truly intend to flee into the Wasteland. Since Snake Women had appeared here, Medusa was definitely nearby.

In ancient legends, Snake Women were Medusa's attendant race.

Barbaro had not lied to him.

This suddenly appearing swamp was an opportunity. If he missed it, there would be no second chance. As long as he swam along the river toward the center of the swamp and found a Slave-Catching Group, his opportunity would arrive.

Although Snake Women were not as popular as Medusa, they were still fairly sought-after slaves. Certain specialized merchant caravans were particularly fond of species with waists like water snakes.

These three were troublesome, but if he handled things properly, he might even be able to capture them.

Li Ziran quietly untied one frog from his waist. Freed from the red rope's restraints, the frog desperately floundered through the water, sending ripples spreading outward.

Sure enough, the unusual movement caught the attention of the three water snakes. With a simple weave through the water, they surrounded the frog. Amid a burst of rainbow light, the Transformation Spell failed.

The frog kept growing larger, stopping only when he reached the size of a Ram-headed Person. He had completely become a huge toad sitting upright.

The huge toad excitedly gestured toward the distant Snake Women, but before long, a slender fang pierced one of their necks, and the whole body fell back into the pool.

Two water snakes leaped from the surface and rapidly grew larger, transforming into two curvaceous Snake Women. Dragging the completely unconscious Ram-headed Person, they headed deeper into the swamp.

"May the Lord bless me!"

Li Ziran chuckled. Taking advantage of the brief opening, he swiftly swam deeper into the swamp.

Losing one Ram-headed Person in exchange for some time was still worthwhile to Li Ziran.

But after swimming only a few steps, he immediately sensed that something was wrong. The currents detected by the frog's skin told him that at least seven different ripples were approaching him.

Though he could not see them, the water could bring him precise information through its currents.

More than three!

Li Ziran frowned inwardly. Soon, he saw the culprits stirring up the pool: thirteen water snakes!

The moment he looked over, those water snakes clearly discovered his trail.

Damn it!

He hurriedly untied another frog!

As the disturbance arose, Li Ziran rapidly kicked his legs and swam in the opposite direction.

This was somewhat beyond his plans.

Li Ziran quietly sensed the water currents, and the more he felt, the worse the unease in his heart became.

Water snakes had begun tracking him.

One, two!

Li Ziran kept untying red ropes while concentrating intensely.

These were definitely not ordinary scattered stragglers. After that brief probing, it was obvious they were a Snake Woman unit that knew when to advance and when to retreat.

He had to take a risk.

He needed to leave this shallow pool and enter the central lake.

The lake was large, and he was small. There would be plenty of room to escape.

Li Ziran released three frogs in succession, and the surging swarm of snakes finally revealed a gap.

Charge!

Li Ziran kicked his legs rapidly, shooting into the swamp like an arrow leaving the string. With a small leap, he entered the grassland; with another light jump, he entered a deeper reservoir. Kicking his legs again and again, he plunged into dense aquatic grass.

Perfect!

The entire maneuver had flowed in one smooth motion. Li Ziran gave this escape a full score.

Leaning against the aquatic grass, he needed a brief rest. At the same time, he needed to consider what to do next.

This was already the outer edge of the swamp. By visual estimate, it was not small. Judging by how much the Wasteland had encroached upon the swamp, this swamp would last around three days.

He would move toward the central area, remain hidden in frog form, find a stretch of water to set up a Transformation Array, and, with a bit of luck, perhaps capture a lone Medusa.

Even Barbaro had managed to stumble upon one. He refused to believe his own luck was that bad.

But in that single moment of distraction, a chill shot straight up his back. When he turned around, he saw a forked snake tongue extending through a gap between two stalks of aquatic grass.

At the source of that snake tongue was a smooth tongue studded with bluish spots. A long, slender body with no end in sight swayed through the water, already weaving several feet forward until it pressed against Li Ziran's back.