Wasteland

Biodata

Feature	Details
Name	Wasteland
Original Name	荒原
Alias(es)	Great Wasteland
Type	Hostile region; later revealed to be the decaying body of an enormous Swamp Dragon
Location	Red Soil Continent
Status	Active
First Appearance	1

Nature and Environment

The Wasteland is shaped by unstable Elemental Tides. Dry, fire-heavy tides strip away water and vegetation, while accumulated fire elements can fall as destructive fire rain. At night, the loss of sunlight allows extreme cold to replace the daytime heat. 5 47

Its terrain can change within hours. Ponds become cracked earth, grass and streams wither almost immediately, and temporary swamps are consumed as dry hurricanes remove their water elements. 5 6 22 25

• Elemental hurricanes — carry dry tides that purge water elements and rapidly erase wetlands. 5
• Fire rain — forms when fire elements gather densely in the Elemental Tide, scorching the ground and destroying surface moisture. 6 47
• Spatial disturbances — concentrated elemental storms can tear space and cause spatial folding, transferring entire regions across immense distances. 5
• Extreme temperatures — scorching days and freezing nights make the region difficult for most living beings to inhabit. 47
• Barren terrain — the landscape is usually composed of red-yellow sand, naked mountains, thorn trees, and little reliable water. 5 47

Hidden Nature

The Wasteland is eventually revealed to be the deteriorating body of an enormous Swamp Dragon. Its vast remains have decayed into mountains of yellow sand, though the dragon still retains enough power to rise and roar from beneath the land. 29

The Corpse Dragon’s excavation exposes Medusas buried beneath the Wasteland and creates sandstorms that rapidly transform the former swamp into open desert. 27 29

Derivative Spaces

Ancient powerful creatures can create Derivative Spaces—also called Minor Spaces—which draw favorable elements from the Elemental Tide while excluding harmful ones. 24

A temporary swamp within the Wasteland was sustained by the declining Swamp Mud Dragon’s Derivative Space. As the dragon weakened, the swamp lost its protection and was absorbed by the surrounding Wasteland. 24 25

Environmental Effects

Effect	Consequence
Rapid loss of water	Swamps, ponds, streams, and vegetation can disappear in less than a day. 6 22 25
Loss of terrain advantage	Crocodile Warriors become slow and severely weakened once their swamp dries up. 22 25
Exposure of hidden inhabitants	The Corpse Dragon’s digging throws buried Medusas into the open. 27
Dangerous travel conditions	Travelers must contend with hurricanes, bandits, slave catchers, hostile creatures, and abrupt environmental shifts. 5
Temporary resource booms	Newly formed swamps and spatially displaced regions can create short-lived opportunities for slave traders, corpse collectors, and scavengers. 5 24

Society and Economy

The Wasteland’s instability has fostered a survival-based society in which living beings, corpses, magical organs, and information are treated as trade goods. Slave-catching groups, bandits, corpse merchants, Necromancers, and caravans all compete for resources. 1 5 33 35

Slave trading is officially taboo for small operators because major lords monopolize the industry, but it remains one of the Wasteland’s most profitable businesses. 1

Corpses are likewise a major commodity. Li Ziran purchases bodies, harvests valuable organs, and sells them to Necromancers, while execution sites and battlefields provide valuable supply sources. 1 5

• Gray Wolf Territory — a comparatively stable territory whose frequent executions create a reliable corpse market. 1
• Mading’er Town — a centaur-controlled trading town known for hospitality, slave markets, caravan routes, and concealed corpse dealings. 32 33 35
• Windmills — taverns and service centers that may function as information exchanges, medical sites, mercenary hubs, or combat venues depending on their designation. 38
• Slave-catching corps — organized groups that exploit the Wasteland’s changing terrain to capture displaced or weakened races. 16 22 25

Notable Inhabitants and Threats

• Bandits and slave catchers — prey on isolated travelers and exploit temporary terrain changes for profit. 5 6
• Wasteland Vipers — repeatedly attack travelers; Li Ziran suspects their venom or bloodline traits caused his petrification curse. 5
• Medusas — highly valuable petrifying beings whose swamp habitat is vulnerable to the Wasteland’s advance. 2 5 24
• Crocodile Warriors — formidable swamp combatants rendered vulnerable after dehydration and the loss of cover. 22 25
• Fire Elephants — artillery-like magical beasts used by slave corps in large-scale warfare. 17
• Corpse Dragon — an undead siege weapon capable of devastating terrain, crushing Crocodile Warriors, and excavating the ground. 22 27

Story Role / Major Arcs

Corpse Trade and the Gray Wolf Territories

Li Ziran begins operating in the Wasteland as an Organ Witch Doctor who collects executed bodies for organ sales. The region’s violent order provides both the danger and the corpse supply that sustain his business. 1

The Temporary Swamp

Barbaro’s information leads Li Ziran toward a newly formed swamp inhabited by Medusas. The Wasteland’s elemental conditions make the opportunity urgent: once the water elements vanish, the swamp and its inhabitants will not remain. 4 5

Destruction of the Swamp

Multiple slave-catching corps invade the swamp as the Wasteland dries it out. The loss of water cripples the Crocodile Warriors and allows the Giant Cannon Slave Corps to capture them in large numbers. 16 22 25

Revelation of the Swamp Dragon

Karen’s attempt to seize the Clear Azure Light exposes the Wasteland’s deeper nature. The land rises as the decaying body of a colossal Swamp Dragon, while the Corpse Dragon sacrifices itself and numerous beings to assimilate the dragon’s power. 29

Mading’er and the Elven Purge

After leaving the devastated swamp region, Li Ziran travels to Mading’er Town. The town later falls to an Elven force that enters the Wasteland during the Elven pilgrimage and violently purges those connected to the Elven slave trade. 32 47