CHAPTER 339: CHAPTER 339: THE SECOND LAYER UNDERGROUND, THE LIZARDMAN’S BLOODLINE ENCHANTMENT TECHNIQUES_1

In the end, Wang Linchi still made his way to the second underground level, although he did not do so alongside Ye Tian.

He was willing to help, but he drew the line at indulging Ye Tian’s insistence on playing the lone hero, especially when their side clearly had a significant advantage and superior methods they weren’t using.

In layman’s terms, they’d had a falling out.

To this day, Ye Tian couldn’t understand why Wang Linchi insisted on bringing the "hindrances"—the Fallen Players, NPC rebels, and even the Elemental Giants—with them. However, in Wang Linchi’s eyes, these groups were never hindrances; they were a formidable and potent force of allies.

Furthermore, Ye Tian’s faction insisted Wang Linchi accompany them to the second level, fearing he would cause trouble on the first. This ultimately led to their acrimonious split.

At this moment, Wang Linchi was muttering to himself in displeasure.

What kind of thinking is that?

Is it the protagonist flaw? He has overwhelming force at his disposal but insists on going it alone. Wang Linchi found it increasingly difficult to deal with Ye Tian.

It was no wonder that when they first entered the first level, only Ye Tian and Linghu Sen were present. Only after the duo had gained initial control of the entire first underground world did they allow the Fallen Players and NPCs to move in.

For the common folk, Ye Tian’s actions were indeed commendable, sparing them from having to risk their lives. Only the upper echelons suffered, a fact made clear by the considerable distress experienced by Linghu Sen, who was in a management position.

However, Wang Linchi was now one of those upper echelons. He was no longer a dragon-slaying youth but an Evil Dragon. It was his nature to let those beneath him go first, especially since Fallen Players and NPCs could resurrect even if they died.

He had never imagined Ye Tian still saw himself as a dragon-slaying youth, and now he was being dragged into it.

Fortunately, he had managed to extricate himself in time. Otherwise, who knew what might have happened if he had continued to follow them deeper?

There are certainly many benefits to being with the protagonist, but the troubles are just as plentiful. By Ye Tian’s side, Wang Linchi had effortlessly obtained the completed Elemental Bloodline Potion. If he had been on his own, he would still be scrambling to collect the bloodlines of various Elemental Giants.

He had reaped the benefits but had nearly been dragged off as cannon fodder.

Even a Gary Stu like Yan Ming King doesn’t have this kind of flaw. Why is Ye Tian like this?

In comparison, Yan Ming King was usually quite logical, aside from his Intelligence Reduction Aura and his bloodsucking minions.

For instance, when the Heavenly Demon had burst out of the Secret Realm, Ye Tian would likely have charged headfirst into a deadly confrontation. Yan Ming King, on the other hand, had sensibly fled.

Unfortunately, he had fled towards the state Wang Linchi occupied, dragging him into the misfortune.

Wang Linchi quickly composed himself and turned his attention to the second underground level.

Unlike the complete darkness of the first level, the second level housed numerous luminescent plants resembling moss, making the entire area dim rather than pitch black.

Traces of civilization? Wang Linchi suddenly spotted a broken spear not far away.

Drawing closer, he immediately picked it up. Judging from the break, it must have been snapped. There were traces of blood and scales on the spearhead.

Scales? It seems to be another non-human race. The quality of this spear, in terms of smelting, is far inferior to modern standards, but the material is unusual, and it seems to carry some sort of enchantment. Wang Linchi put the spear down.

This implied that a civilization far more advanced than the Elemental Giants existed on the second level, and their mastery of the Transcendental System greatly surpassed that of the Elemental Giants.

However, if their Smelting Techniques matched their level of civilization, their actual combat strength would be far inferior to that of the Elemental Giants.

Although the Elemental Giants’ civilization was primitive, still in a tribal stage, their strength was immense. This spear couldn’t even penetrate Wang Linchi’s Defense, let alone harm an Elemental Giant.

Continuing forward from where he found the spear, Wang Linchi discovered a fragmented piece of armor. Though non-human, it had a humanoid form.

A war. A civil war within the same race.

The place he stood was likely a battlefield, and the combat traces were fresh, the fighting having concluded no more than a month ago.

As for why the items weren’t collected, it was probably because they were damaged. Alternatively, one side might have fled in defeat so hastily that the pursuing victors didn’t bother with them.

Determining it was a civil war was also simple: he had found two different styles of armor and weapons forged with distinct characteristics.

The weapons included not only spears but also swords, shields, and other items.

These weapons and armor indicated that their military armaments were quite well-developed.

A survivor! At the edge of his Thought Field’s sensory range, Wang Linchi detected a life sign.

This life sign was clearly not from an animal or plant; it was triggered by something of considerable size.

He hurried towards it.

A Lizardman... this...

After checking it, Wang Linchi found its condition to be critically severe. It was evidently a survivor from the previous battle. A human would have already perished. However, this being was not only non-human but an Extraordinary creature; judging by its physical condition alone, it was quite strong.

The wounds are infected and inflamed, severe malnutrition, broken bones, and more... A quick examination revealed a multitude of problems with the Lizardman.

Its survival to this point was entirely due to some enchantment on its armor sustaining its life.

Wang Linchi quickly identified the root cause. No matter how resilient the creature’s race, it wouldn’t have clung to life for a month without aid.

Bloodlines again. Can’t they develop some kind of energy-based technology?

Upon deeper dissection, Wang Linchi quickly discovered that the Lizardman’s power, much like that of the Elemental Giants, wasn’t derived from any cultivation method but relied on its inherent bloodline.

To succeed, one needed a bloodline.

Moreover, its ’Lizardman’ appearance was merely an evolved exterior, bearing no actual relation to lizards.

In terms of bloodline, the gap compared to the Elemental Giants is immense. However, it’s precisely this deficiency that might have pushed these Lizardmen to further develop various powers, thereby strengthening their civilization.

Of course, Wang Linchi had no intention of saving this Lizardman. Dissection came first.

Besides, he would encounter other Lizardmen in the future.

Disguising myself will be rather difficult.

Wang Linchi wanted to infiltrate the Lizardman kingdom to see if he could master their enchantment technique.

The foundation of Lizardman civilization likely lay in enchantments. However, their Enchantment Techniques were of a special kind, usable only through their bloodline.

Fortunately, Wang Linchi had a profound understanding of Elemental Bloodline.

Indeed, the bloodline these Lizardmen possessed was also a type of Elemental Bloodline.

However, it wasn’t the kind of composite Elemental Bloodline that Wang Linchi possessed. Like the Elemental Giants, they each had their own distinct type.

Theoretically, Elemental Giants and Lizardmen were relatives, sharing a common bloodline, albeit the Lizardmen were distant kin.

If the Elemental Bloodline concentration in an Elemental Giant was 1,000 units, then in a Lizardman, it was merely 1 unit.

Therefore, Lizardmen could never manifest power comparable to Elemental Giants; their innate potential was very low.

Consequently, Wang Linchi didn’t bother extracting the bloodline from the Lizardman’s body; it simply wasn’t valuable enough.

A lizard head, tail, claws, scales... how am I supposed to disguise myself as that?

He could indeed alter his appearance using the Soul Kind, but only within the confines of human characteristics. No matter how he tried, he couldn’t transform into a Lizardman; he didn’t possess such transformative abilities.

Unless he performed surgery on himself.

But if he dared to perform such extensive surgery on himself, the Dragon Soul Saint Main would surely grant him a series of non-human effect keywords.

So, this plan had to be shelved for the moment.

First, I need to find where the Lizardman civilization congregates. Subsequent problems can be dealt with as they arise; there’s no rush. Wang Linchi didn’t give up just because he couldn’t disguise himself. If infiltration failed, he could always resort to force.

The Elemental Bloodline was fundamental, while Enchantment Techniques were an application of it.

Lizardmen bloodline concentration was insufficient, so they could only use and amplify it indirectly by enchanting objects. If Elemental Giants were to learn Enchantment Techniques, it wouldn’t be mere enchantment for them but actual Spells. With their level of Elemental Bloodline concentration, they could directly cast powerful Spells without needing an intermediary.

Wang Linchi, who possessed a top-tier bloodline, naturally wanted to uncover the principles behind Enchantment Techniques.

Judging by the traces, they should be in this direction... probably north.

Living underground in pitch darkness for so long makes it difficult to discern the cardinal directions. After consulting the data calibrated by his Thought Mirror, Wang Linchi confirmed his direction.

The Thought Mirror was unlikely to be wrong because it didn’t rely on a sense of direction but updated data in real-time based on Wang Linchi’s movements. So, if Wang Linchi erred, the Thought Mirror would err with him. It was essentially an information integration that Wang Linchi had modified to produce this effect, not some game-breaking System.

In the hands of anyone else, this single feature would be practically useless.