Chapter 179: Masked Dragon Knight

The snake appeared unusually enthusiastic and honest during the transaction.

In fact, judging solely by the trader, his reputation was quite good; generosity and attentive service were his trademarks. Most traders who became victims of fate ultimately destroyed themselves after falling into self-degradation.

As for whether his corruption stemmed from the transaction with the snake, inflating his desires and ambitions, that was another matter entirely.

"What a picky customer, rejecting this and that. But rest assured, I, Snake, love customers like you." The snake grew even more delighted; the pickier the other party, the more operations he could perform.

Within the realm of the Supernatural world, the snake, having crossed countless ages and histories, possessed an eye that mortals could not compare to.

He not only knew too many secrets from the Primordial and Ancient eras but even knew how to utilize them comprehensively and where to obtain key resources.

"Dragons, their hard attributes are excessive, their size is absurd, and their skin, flesh, and bones are all hard, so they love to clash head-on with other life forms. But if you think you are a true dragon and are stupid enough to use your flesh and blood body to tank their attacks directly, then you are not a true dragon but a true fool."

In the snake's words, external armor like this was always more durable and useful than a flesh and blood body.

It was not because steel was hard enough; the skin and flesh of many supernatural life forms far surpassed steel. Rather, in a forced head-on clash, injury was inevitable.

"Whether the damage is to flesh or to an outer shell is completely different matters."

If your armor is damaged, you repair or replace it; that is far better than healing damaged flesh and bones, especially since many curses, poisons, and magic are penetrating and persistent in their damage. Once they enter the body, simple healing effects won't work.

The snake's intelligence was already worth far more than its price; this was not merely solving a problem but also broadening Li En's horizons, offering great reference value for constructing his own combat system next.

"Otherworld contracts, or otherworld oaths, find a great existence and have it grant you a set of fantasy armor; that is the most realistic approach."

Just like the fairies' "Fairy Tale Armor," those "contracted items" were actually manifestations of the power of higher existences. They could be regarded as illusory things that did not exist in reality, "created" using otherworldly power. Using this to bypass basic physical limits counted as exploiting the first bug.

"There are many drawbacks. You warlocks understand; you are easily restricted or enslaved by higher existences. Moreover, those higher existences are all stingy. Even if the power they give is small, it lacks growth potential. You enjoy using a set of illusory armor now, but soon you will feel it is insufficient. When that time comes, you go back to the otherworld sect master, and the price they demand will be different."

The snake certainly would not simply say this path was unviable; he was also hinting at the unreliability and traps of otherworld pacts. They dangle small favors over you at the start, and once you are on board, they keep raising the price. By then, it is too late to get off.

Most warlocks were unlucky souls who signed contracts with demons or devils from the Lower Planes. Their final destinations basically became "residents" of the Lower Planes, either turning into soul coins or becoming members of the demons.

"So, is there a higher existence that is both generous and charges nothing, and can also tailor an armor upgrade system specifically for you?" The snake went crazy with delight again.

His self-talking posture made Li En sigh and, as a courtesy, clap to show support.

"Does such a good person really exist?"

"Yes, it is your invincible Uncle Snake, ha."

Alright, after all that talk, the point is to trick me into signing a contract with you? Li En's eyes were full of doubt; he was truly hesitating.

In stories, those who twist and turn to trick you into signing a contract are almost always the masterminds behind the scenes and the main villains. And probably no one fits this background better than the snake.

If the snake truly revived because of this, it would likely be ten times more troublesome for the entire world than the revival of the deer underground.

"Rest assured, rest assured. I never thought of living; otherwise, I would have crawled up long ago. After all, I am also one aspect of the Thousand-Faced Dragon. Signing a contract with me can also be regarded as signing a contract with the Thousand-Faced Dragon; at least I can make it become that."

Li En was stunned. What did this mean? He understood every character, but what did they mean when put together?

"... Let a senior teach you a lesson. Humans can only rely on themselves. So, sign a contract with yourself."

The snake's implied meaning was: sign a contract with the snake, and then use his own distortion ability to twist it into a contract between Li En and the Thousand-Faced Dragon!

Signing a contract with oneself? Is that even possible?

"Could it be that the Thousand-Faced Dragon has some special power?" As the sect master of the Demon Oath, one could grant power, but the premise was to have assets, right? "Uh, you ask me how much you are worth? You are the Thousand-Faced Dragon. There are no extra factors; no need to probe. But your status is high enough to serve as an otherworldly lord for making oaths. You also will not refuse your own vow."

Li En fell silent; of course, he would not refuse his own oath.

But what could a pauper lend? His own flesh and blood?

"Yes, what we want is your own flesh, blood, and bones. Don't look at me like that. I don't lie in transactions; that would be too lacking in class. Aren't you a multi-headed dragon? Kuku is quite impressive; it is truly a very good evolutionary design. I have already seen its infinite potential, but..."

The snake also sighed with emotion. Li En's luck was good; whether it was Sul or Kuku, both were rare "consciences" among the Heroic Souls, truly excellent when teaching and enlightening newcomers.

This multi-headed dragon design also fit the nature of the Thousand-Faced Dragon quite well, with high growth potential and strong evolutionary stability. It was just that...

"... Kuku probably never thought about how to use bloodlines and bodies for combat."

Kuku was completely unskilled in combat. Even if he were a theoretical scholar or a development planner, if you asked him to use technological products for war, he could do it, but his methods would be quite clumsy.

Players who enjoy the PvE building mode truly do not understand PvP.

Probably, Kuku just thought the multi-headed dragon would have multiple minds, a bit more elemental affinity, and then gain some dragon-like abilities, such as dragon breath and dragon wings...

"Wasteful, too wasteful. Such a potential bloodline ability has almost zero combat development, relying only on instinctual tearing and biting."

The snake spat out a stone talisman.

This was a "conceptual module," which he had borrowed from an old friend last night. It contained the curse of "flesh materialization."

"Sign a contract with yourself, summon your black dragon body, and have it transform into the armor and protective gear you use."

"This will not only enhance your defensive capabilities but also put the black dragon power to real use in combat."

"Using Kuku's overly primitive combat template, you would just add a second red dragon component. Overlapping abilities is too wasteful."

It was mentioned before that the "class module" of a magical girl is actually a type of "God's Shrine Maiden" or "Warlock," a special existence that borrows the power of beasts.

The creator and namer of this class... uh, unsurprisingly, was the snake himself.

Humans and beasts contract, sharing an existence, mutually restraining and balancing each other.

Now, twist it slightly. Using this "flesh materialization" characteristic ability as the core, imitate the ancient elves' system of forging divine artifacts and equipment from otherworldly power and elemental power.

The snake specially shaped a dedicated "Self-Contract Warlock."

This allowed Li En to extract his own power and have it manifest in a way that suited him.

"Your flesh and blood, your dragon bloodline, will all transform into combat accessories you are good at using. And as your power and bloodline grow, these 'armaments' will possess near-infinite growth potential."

The snake was full of pride. To borrow the relevant knowledge and modules, he had drunk quite a lot of wine last night.

Yes, he had known all of this long ago.

Junior, thank your senior for his hard work.

Guhaha, I am truly a good person.

"This is possible?" Li En was somewhat surprised.

"Of course, theoretically there is no problem... Then I can make it happen. By the way, since you can transform with armor and are a dragon power wielder, let's call you Masked Dragon Knight. You don't like it? Then reference the highly praised Magical Pretty Girl and call you Magical Handsome Boy Dragon..." The snake went crazy again.

"Dragon Binder, let's call it that!" Li En reacted incredibly fast, striving to avoid various fates of being kicked by weirdos or the tragic destiny of having people laugh their teeth off when he registered his name.

(End of this chapter)