Thousand-Faced Dragon

Chapter 169: Substitution
"Worship me, believe in me, have faith in me—in short, establish a deeper connection with me so that I can help you."

Words themselves have magic, especially the language of serpents.

The source of a beast's power is undoubtedly its bloodline. When the source of the bloodline is willing to intervene, you, downstream, will naturally be changed.

"Anyone who actively seeks others' trust is either a liar or a cult member. Okay, okay, I'll believe you a little for now. After all, you're the same person, so please don't rip me off too badly."

Rean sighed. At least verbally, he should still believe it for now.

"Tsk tsk tsk, what an insincere believer. I'm much better than those useless gods. Oh well, I'll make do. Just remember to provide me with some entertainment."

Snakes don't need believers, but they do need fun. In a sense, they might be the easiest "great beings" to deal with.

Even in ancient times, snakes did not like human sacrifices and ritual offerings. Their rituals and supernatural abilities were often quite "peculiar," the kind of peculiar that could cause "big news."

"Snapped!"

The knocking on the door was very close; it seemed to be coming from the carriage ahead.

"Ah, I'll give you money, I'll give you money! Don't kill me!"

The gasps from ahead made Rean instinctively tighten his grip on his sword.

But the more uneasy and wary he became, the more the snake smiled.

I'm getting anxious, I'm getting anxious!

Are you afraid? Are you uneasy?

The snake had unknowingly coiled itself around Rean's head, its tongue licking the young man's cheek.

He withdrew his forked tongue and nodded in satisfaction. It was indeed the smell of fear and unease. How naive Li Ensu was. I really look forward to seeing what ugly form he will take in the future.

But for now, let's take it easy. If we mess things up all at once, there'll be no going back.

"You want to run away, don't you?" The snake's allure whispered in Rean's ear.

Rean looked at his reflection in the sword, and "Desire Serpent Eyes" gave him the answer.

He wanted to escape from an invincible opponent, he wanted to disappear from this prison-like carriage, and he wanted to be like the bewildered merchant next to him, waiting to pay money and get through the crisis.

"Snapped!"

A sudden knocking sound at the door snapped Rean out of his daze.

"Open the door! Are you looking to die?!"

He then realized that he had been bewitched by the snake without even realizing it.

Meanwhile, the goblins outside were already banging on the door.

It's too late. Am I going to get scammed?

"No, no, no, a one-man show is too boring, and monologues are always unconvincing. Your stage partner is here, aren't you happy?"

In Rean's eyes, the snake's face had become distorted, and the original small black snake gradually transformed into a coiled, pitch-black shadow.

It exists here, distorting everything from air and light to space and even time.

This is still not his true appearance, but only what he can perceive.

"Your snake eyes have awakened, haven't they? You can see what that ogre and goblin want. That's right, they want money, and they're opening the door. Guess what they're expecting to find inside the carriage."

“There will be merchants carrying gold coins, just like these people.” Under the snake’s guidance, Rean revealed the bandit’s desire.

He is sketching out the future they hope for.

Inside the VIP carriage, the others were all portly merchants, who had already prepared small bags of gold coins.

"Yes, you want to be one of the merchants, and these merchants expect you to be one of them as well (so as not to cause a fight). The goblins and ogres from outside also expect only merchants to be inside. How wonderful, your goals are aligned, and the future you envision is harmonious. Open the door."

Rean stood up blankly, and subconsciously walked to the door and opened it.

"Why is it so slow! I'm dying!"

The goblin's angry rebuke caused "Merchant Rean" to instinctively take a step back.

The vase he was holding had unknowingly turned into a small bag of gold coins.

"Heh, quite perceptive," a greedy glint flashed in the goblin's small eyes. They always craved more, and these bloated merchants might offer even more profit.

“Ogre King, thank you for your kindness and wisdom.” “Merchant Rean” mustered his courage, spoke loudly, and removed his hat to salute the leader of the thugs.

Not far away, the ogre king patted his belly happily, pulled up the screaming "Lich Hat," and returned the greeting.

The lich's gaze also turned over, but he had absolutely no interest in this ordinary "merchant." In his soul vision, there was only a chubby dark elf merchant!
The leaders looked over, and the goblins immediately quieted down.

They quickly ransacked the place and left, with the last goblin giving the merchant Rean a fierce glare.

"Snapped!"

When the door closed again, everything returned to calm.

Merchant Rean disappears, and the Red Dragonborn Rean returns.

He was a little dazed, wondering what had just happened. He felt like he had really become an ordinary dark elf merchant, the kind who had a little courage but was even more greedy in protecting his property.

The other merchants in the carriage reacted, looking at Rean with faces full of fear. They had also come to their senses, but had no idea what had happened.

But the existence that can distort one's perception is definitely not something one can afford to offend.

"Hehe, isn't it interesting? This ability is quite suitable for pranks. You can help others fulfill their wishes and make them repeatedly 'pass the imperial examination like Fan Jin.'" The snake with a wicked sense of humor happily enjoyed the farce.

The Heroic Spirits Compendium only belatedly reacted at this point.

[Beastification level exceeds 10%, awakened bloodline ability: Transplantation (%&#: I love this name! 'Misaligned Eyes' and 'Cognitive Mist' are too lame! Anyone who mentions 'Cognitive Mist' again will have their account banned.)]

[Transplantation (Confusing Cognition): Guiding the subconscious mind to confuse, correct, or cover up its cognition.]

[Note: The subconscious mind has a strong self-defense mechanism; it can only be guided, not modified, and only slightly adjusted, not forcibly implanted. The more a dream is desired by the person, the more likely it is to come true; the more a dream is resisted, the more likely it is to become a shattered nightmare.]

Rean glanced at the encyclopedia and subconsciously recalled the previous battle.

"Isn't this the ability that Purple Rose used before?"

Yes, that's the ability, but most snake witches and outsiders call it 'cognitive fog'.

Looking at the 10.9% beast transformation, Rean felt like he'd been tricked by this little snake again.

Not only did he unknowingly deepen his beast-like transformation, but he also merely awakened the extraordinary abilities that he was destined to awaken sooner or later. In the end, it was his own abilities and the price he paid that resolved everything!

I paid you to do it, and in the end you asked for my help. I solved the problem myself, and even incurred extra costs. Is that reasonable?!
"Hehe, did I grant your wish?"

"It has been achieved."

Rean sighed. He couldn't get angry at this thing.

The more emotional you are, the happier he is. And if he's happy, he'll probably find some new source of amusement.

Although they spent very little time together, Rean unknowingly figured out the other person's personality.

The snake swished its tail merrily. He would only be truly angry if Rean accepted or thanked him so easily; the prankster always anticipates his opponent's frustration.

However, Rean made a crucial mistake, and the snake wouldn't warn him.

This skill tree, which originates from the snake's bloodline, awakens the Snake Eyes of Desire, which can see through desires. The next step is not actually a substitution of desires to induce or mislead desires.

What should have been awakened was the "snake's honeyed words" used to suppress and amplify desires and subconscious thoughts.

The snake did intervene, causing Rean to skip his third bloodline ability and directly awaken his fourth bloodline ability, which could solve the current problem.

This extraordinary system actually has a complete logical chain.

Initially, it involves "language proficiency" to help you understand the other person's consciousness and cognition. At this stage, both parties establish a connection on a conscious level through language.

The second step is to see through the other person's consciousness and desires through the "snake's eyes of desire." Only by establishing a connection can one see through, recognize, and predict.

The third step is to follow the other person's instinctive desires and to expand or shrink their desires using the "snake's sweet language," which can already guide and interfere with the other person's consciousness to a certain extent.

By the way, Rean has tried this trick quite a few times these past few days, and he's become very skilled at using Purple Rose.

The fourth step, a further "transplantation," can directly interfere with its self-perception and external cognition; the "cognitive fog" is actually the true name as understood by most people.

The snake's abilities, which seem completely incomprehensible and unpredictable, actually have a complete logical chain and internal program, and are a function that is constantly being enhanced and expanded.

Outsiders find it unbelievable simply because they cannot understand its essence.

"Is the next step to blur the lines between perception and reality?" Logically, this seems to be the conclusion.

There is actually an analogy to this. The ultimate goal of the illusion system in magic is said to be to distort the distance between reality and illusion, and to create real "matter".

Although he had taken a leap, Rean vaguely sensed the direction of its development.

"Hehe, you guessed right." The snake readily admitted.

"Am I wrong?" Rean immediately denied his guess.

The snake spit out its tongue in displeasure. The soul link was a bit unsettling; they got to know each other too quickly, and the subtle things beneath the real lies were easily seen through without them even realizing it.

He looked at Rean with ill intent, making the young knight's scalp tingle. Perhaps it would be better to just play dumb from now on.

"Is this the snake's power? To distort cognition and consciousness?" Rean tried to change the subject.

"To be precise, it's my ability."

The smiling snake responded.

He is a snake, but a snake is not necessarily only him.

"Uh, are there any other snakes?" Rean was a little puzzled. The deer he had encountered all had very similar abilities.

Are not all herds of beasts simply blood-related derivatives of "beasts"?

"This is the biggest difference between the Seven Beasts and the Myriad Beasts. Want to know? It involves the fundamental differences between them, and it should be very helpful to you."

"Yes." Rean really wanted to.

"Hehe, I won't tell you." The snake, as always, aroused the other's curiosity, but had no intention of satisfying it at all.

(End of this chapter)