The Second Biological Template

For the Boarfolk, submitting to a red dragon was actually the best choice they could have made.

Their innate bloodline held them back. Even as adults, they were little stronger than ordinary humans, and their low intelligence made it impossible for them to build a sufficiently large civilization. That left them with almost no way to rise.

If anything, they were actually worse off than races like kobolds and goblins.

After all, goblins occasionally produced individuals of exceptional intelligence, and kobolds had gods of their own. But the Boarfolk...

If they attached themselves to a sufficiently powerful creature, they would have to offer up everything, including their own lives. In return, however, they could gain more territory, more food, and basic protection, allowing their entire race to reproduce more successfully.

By becoming Sol's dependents, these Boarfolk had really reached above their station.

But Sol was still only a hatchling, and his strength was lacking, so naturally he had to make do with whatever he could use for now.

He looked at the burns and scratches on the Boarfolk prostrated on the ground. After a moment's thought, he focused and lightly tapped the square representing the Blue Mushroom on the wheel in his mind.

Ripples of light immediately shimmered through the air, and a gigantic mushroom half a meter tall appeared out of nowhere, landing in Sol's outstretched claw. He then tossed it to the Boarfolk on the ground.

"Lowly swine, I bestow this mushroom upon you as a reward for your loyalty. It will help you recover from your injuries.

Each of you may take only one bite. No one is allowed to eat more."

Now that these Boarfolk had become Sol's property, he naturally wanted to keep as many of them from dying as possible.

Just as a farmer would not begrudge his crops fertilizer, and a landowner would give his livestock plenty of feed, because they all knew that only by doing so could they reap greater returns.

Fear made the Boarfolk lying on the ground hesitate. Once again, the elderly Boarfolk reacted fastest, quickly crawling forward a couple of steps to pick up the Blue Mushroom and take a bite.

The delicious flavor burst across its tongue. It was, without question, the most delicious food it had ever tasted, and for a moment, it could not resist the urge to take a few more bites.

Fortunately, at the crucial moment, it managed to suppress its greed. It hurriedly lowered its head and passed the mushroom to the Boarfolk behind it.

This Boarfolk, however, lacked such self-control. Or rather, the vast majority of Boarfolk were so unintelligent that they acted entirely on instinct.

The moment the delicious Blue Mushroom entered its mouth, saliva flooded it. It instantly forgot Sol's earlier instructions, opened its mouth wide, and bit down hard again.

Sol, standing atop the jutting rock, saw this, and his pale golden slit pupils abruptly contracted.

Lowly swine, how dare it disobey his orders! Fury flared in his heart. With a beat of his wings, he pounced from the rock.

He crossed the dozen or so meters in an instant, his broad wings casting a vast shadow over the ground.

Before the greedy Boarfolk could react, a red-scaled dragon claw landed on it and slammed it to the ground.

Sol stood on the Boarfolk, pinning its head firmly with a foreclaw. He opened his fearsome dragon maw and immediately unleashed a blast of dragon breath.

A pillar of fire as thick as a fist burned the Boarfolk's head with pinpoint accuracy. It screamed in agony and struggled desperately, but it could not break free of the dragon's strength.

In only a few moments, the Boarfolk's entire upper body had been burned black before everyone's eyes, and it moved no more.

The distinctive stench of burnt protein spread through the air. Having witnessed the scene, every Boarfolk nearby fell deathly silent.

Sol gave them an indifferent glance, spread his wings, and landed back on the jutting rock. Then he roared at the top of his lungs.

"This is what happens to those who dare defy me!!"

The Boarfolk, already prostrated on the ground, now seemed to wish they could bury their entire bodies in the soil. Uncontrollable fear poured from them, turning into a succession of notifications in Sol's vision as his Mental Power Essence increased.

After that, none of the Boarfolk dared to be greedy. All followed Sol's instructions and took only one bite apiece.

The single Blue Mushroom was divided among more than twenty Boarfolk, so each received only a tiny bit. As for how much of the mushroom's healing effect they would get, it was better than nothing.

Once all the Boarfolk had eaten, Sol looked them over carefully again. He extended a claw and pointed at several of the strongest.

"You! You! And you! When the sun rises tomorrow, I want to see you at the foot of the tallest mountain."

The hilly region, made up of dozens of low earthen hills, was obviously home to more than a few dozen Boarfolk. There were also plenty of herbivores and rodents.

Sol soared high in the sky. His flight, enhanced by the Mernos Template, allowed him to ride the updrafts and glide effortlessly for long stretches.

Under cover of night, he could approach his prey silently, and he soon caught his dinner for the day.

After eating and drinking his fill, he flew back to the cave on the mountaintop. Ignoring Xisitana and Kalpu, who were playing around, he once again focused on the enormous wheel in his mind.

Of his previous fifteen points of Mental Power Essence, he had spent three on a Dragonvein Crystal and one on a Blue Mushroom. With what he had gained in the meantime, he had twelve points left.

Drawing a low-level monster template still seemed a distant prospect for the time being. Should he try drawing another endemic lifeform?

Having already benefited from the Mernos Biological Template, Sol did not hesitate long. He focused and tapped the wheel decisively.

A full ten points of essence were consumed in an instant. The second ring on the wheel began to spin with a rumble, its flashing point of light darting around like neon before finally coming to a stop on a small square bearing a simple drawing of a frog.

Congratulations! You have obtained the [Toad] Creature Template. Extract it now? Yes/No.

Sol recalled the creature's characteristics: they looked like pet horned frogs, brightly colored but a size larger, and were a rather distinctive kind of frog.

They fed on various insects and crustaceans and sometimes swallowed ores as well. Depending on their diet and habitat, they could also expel gas that caused paralysis, explosions, sleep, or deadly poisoning.

That ability was pretty good. Sol glanced at the compatibility rating behind it, which showed 68%.

According to the detailed description, the higher the compatibility, the more complete the abilities gained after loading a Creature Template.

If compatibility fell below 50%, conflicting abilities would cause the process to fail. Not only would he fail to gain the creature's abilities, but he might even suffer negative effects.

Sixty-eight percent compatibility was quite high. Was it because they both possessed the fire attribute and a powerful digestive system?

Sol chose to extract it without hesitation. The next instant, a ball of light containing the Toad's spirit appeared out of nowhere and lunged straight at his face.

A familiar burning sensation welled up inside him, and pale blue notification text flashed repeatedly before him.

Because the difference in their body structures was too great, the vast majority of the abilities failed to load and were converted into pure vitality.

But the most essential ability-the ability to convert food into various gases-was retained.