Chapter 154: Lady Poison

"Buzz!"

When the lightning of the mind flashed through, Li En instinctively held his breath.

The first mental suggestion had already failed along with leaving the "bait"; the second mental suggestion could provide little more cover.

Several times, a Brain-Eating Aberration (a small aberration consisting only of a brain and tentacles) passing by Li En paused, seeming somewhat hesitant.

"Look on the bright side, they acknowledge you; you've activated their appetite."

Mind-Devourers are small fiends unique to the Mind Flayer race, often serving as hounds and servants; some say they are mutated by leftover brains, others say they are failed Mind Flayer parasites. But one thing is certain: they crave intelligent brains intensely and can often aid Mind Flayers in hunting.

It is said that one of the ultimate humiliations for a mage apprentice is, "Your brain is so stupid even a Brain-Eating Beast isn't interested!"

"Uh, I'd rather skip that kind of acknowledgment."

Li En simply went around the outside of the "Brain Aberration"; he did not want to challenge these small creatures' psionic sense for "intelligent brain matter."

Some things truly make no sense; when a creature is hungry enough, it can transcend its own limits.

At Kukku, Miss Shaliman, and Purple Miss Zi Qiangwei's places, Li En also increasingly understood some characteristics of "psionics" and "enchantment magic."

These supernatural abilities that interfere with the mind are not like the casual brainwashing or commands found in certain novels.

They are more like the "hypnosis" and "suggestion" of a psychologist from Li En's past life in his memory; they mainly deceive and guide the subject's instincts, following the subject's instincts.

That is, making it die is very, very hard; making it eat well and play well, while telling it that the beautiful opposite sex it craves is right there, makes it very easy to fall for it. The mental suggestion on Li En that made people ignore him was now constantly fighting against the predatory instincts of the Brain-Eating Aberrations and Mind Flayers, so naturally its effect was weakening.

"I can't keep walking."

Li En glanced behind; those Brain-Eating Aberrations were following with a pitter-patter.

They sniffed aimlessly again and again, yet could not find Li En no matter what.

But if this accumulates, they will be found sooner or later. And now, the Elder Brain seems to be still somewhat far away.

"Is there a way?"

"Yes, but it will be a bit uncomfortable. I can give you a curse to lower your thinking ability." Purple Miss Zi Qiangwei seemed prepared for this.

Li En was just about to agree, but after thinking for a moment, he paused.

"Uh, don't tell me it's the Feeblemind spell."

This high-level spell is too powerful; before a priest dispels it, the intelligence reduction is nearly permanent!

And similar intelligence-hindering spells are mostly long-lasting; if Li En became stupid now, he would likely be discovered immediately.

"No, this is a unique technique of our Snake Witches. I can stuff some slightly poisonous memories and knowledge into your brain to overload your thinking ability. It will digest in a while; there might just be some side effects." Purple Miss Zi Qiangwei seemed a bit worried.

"What side effects?" Those Brain-Eating Aberrations were almost touching Li En's feet; he was getting a bit anxious.

"It will increase your lycanthropy level. But, it should have some extra benefits for you." Purple Miss Zi Qiangwei's words were somewhat hesitant.

"Do it."

Why hesitate any longer? Li En agreed directly.

The next moment, a huge amount of "knowledge" and "memories" were poured into Li En's mind. He instantly went blank, his head dazed, as if someone had struck his brain with a large hammer.

He instantly understood this was similar to a computer's DoS attack, using knowledge the brain cannot digest to lower thinking ability.

But ordinary knowledge cannot achieve this.

"'Deer' knowledge. No wonder they said it would increase lycanthropy." For ordinary lycanthropes, mere contact is highly poisonous.

【Lycanthropy: 3.11%】 This progress bar that had been stagnant for so long started growing again.

This specialized knowledge and memory was probably stolen by Purple Miss Zi Qiangwei from the Beast Prince. Li En, whose head was splitting with pain, calmed himself down and tried to analyze a bit more.

This was crucial intelligence on his number one enemy.

And Purple Miss Zi Qiangwei's plan worked; those Brain-Eating Aberrations shook their heads for a while, then wandered away in confusion.

And the direction they left in? Well, pray for the Dark Elf nobles and the Black Dragon.

Li En himself, however, unknowingly became immersed in this memory, as if he had already become a member of the herd of deer walking on the ancient swamp.

Pouring too many memories and knowledge into the brain in a short time is quite dangerous, and could even confuse an individual's self-perception and alter their personality.

A very small number of unlucky Mind Flayers have been counter-attacked by the memories of their parasites, mistaking themselves for the victims of the memory source.

But with Purple Miss Zi Qiangwei's careful control, Li En remained stable and calm in a half-dream, half-awake state.

Even stranger, his body continued to move steadily under Purple Miss Zi Qiangwei's control. Only the walking posture was slightly subtle, a bit of an inward-turned, light-footed maiden's step.

Li En could not perceive this at all; he had been thoroughly contaminated by "knowledge" and fallen into the prison of knowledge.

"So, this is the 'Deer'. My understanding before was a bit flawed. Fortunately, I know now; otherwise, I would definitely suffer greatly later."

The Deer is a member of the Beasts. Li En understood it through actual combat, but some characteristics are not shared by all Beasts; they are unique weapons of the Deer.

"Beast of Regeneration, Beast of Circulation."

Some things, combined with Li En's understanding of deer from his past life, became even easier to understand.

The small beasts and the Holy Mother encountered earlier all possessed regeneration abilities so strong they were ridiculous. Li En thought this was a common trait of the Beasts' tough vitality, but it is actually one of the Deer's unique abilities.

Ordinary deer are also a miracle in nature, possessing incredibly absurd vitality. Even with a broken bone, they can move again in just a few days; even if they suffer severe injuries, they can heal quickly.

Especially this characteristic of "Regenerating Bones" that can be treated as supernatural, which would probably make the neighboring horses cry blood and tears.

Even many fatal injuries to life, such as arrow wounds that strip away the skin to expose flesh and pierce the skull, the Deer can still survive perfectly fine. Viruses that would nearly finish off ordinary life are not even a minor cold for the Deer. But from another angle, viruses hatched from the Deer could also be extremely terrifying and lethal.

The Deer might be the only large animal capable of regenerating organs. The antlers that change once a year are actually organs with blood, flesh, and bone!

As time passes, the flesh-and-blood antlers eventually turn into dry bones.

The dried flesh-and-blood antlers fall in winter, then regenerate again the following year. This is also one of the reasons it is called the "Beast of Life's Circulation."

"To kill it first, one must sever this circulation; otherwise, infinite regeneration is extremely disgusting."

"Its blood has a problem. Deer blood seems to be regarded as a powerful tonic to this day." This absurd regenerative ability stems from that blood full of vitality and the absurdly strong heart.

"The heart is the strongest point, but also the weakness. Perhaps blood toxins, such as coagulation toxins, would be extremely effective against it." Having gained the knowledge, Li En also found its weakness.

The Deer is also a beast of greed; its flesh and blood essence can even be used to benefit other lives.

"Perhaps certain drugs that accelerate blood circulation could also be extremely effective against it. It's just that when it first takes effect, it will be very dangerous."

At the same time, it possesses terrifying explosive power; one absolutely cannot match its brute force head-on.

This knowledge and these memories have made Li En understand the existence of the Deer ever more deeply; he is confident in facing the Antler Disciple again, possessing at least three or four additional targeted finishing moves.

And what is being analyzed next involves supernatural characteristics, also revealing in advance one of the trump cards the "Deer" might possess.

"Beast of the Lake Surface. So 'the Great Antler Pillar that controls the boundary between sky and Sea Boundary' refers to this; this is the source of its power?!"

Contrary to most understandings, the Deer is actually quite adept in water; many species even have records of crossing vast oceans, and their primary habitats include swamps and lakes.

It is for this reason that many eyewitness accounts of it running on water (actually running in shallow water and swamps) exist, and even numerous myths from East and West mention its ability to walk on water.

Lakes and swamps are the domain of the Great Antler Deer, which means

"It can summon a great flood, completely turning the battlefield into a shallow-water battlefield."

【Beast Transformation: 4.1%, Bloodline Ability Awakening】

Unknowingly, Li En's beast transformation degree was also increasing rapidly, and his flesh already radiated a thick beast (snake) aura, intoxicating the Purple Miss Zi Qiangwei.

"Soon, soon," the Purple Miss Zi Qiangwei "looked" at Li En with satisfaction; this stable gathering of Deer knowledge was about to become a toxic USB drive.

She was very satisfied with the current progress; Li En was about to analyze the "poisonous knowledge."

That was a finishing move prepared long ago for this moment; it also cost her great effort to steal the Beast Prince's memories, knowledge, and inheritance, and specifically weave them into a "virus bomb."

The toxic USB drive is nearly ready, and the "brain (computer)" capable of inserting that virus USB drive is not far away!

Just as Li En understood, the Snake's charm ability cannot force a creature to commit suicide; to fight a monster like the "Deer," one needs a "poison" specifically targeting the Deer, using its instincts to kill itself!

"Little Brother Li En, you are truly amazing; even like this, you remain so stable... No, I must hold back, hold back!" The Purple Miss Zi Qiangwei touched the corner of her mouth, wiped away the drool, and was once again a cute little lady.

(End of Chapter)