"This species feeds primarily on plant leaves. Its droppings serve as an extremely effective fertilizer and growth hormone, stimulating plants to grow rapidly enough to meet its needs…"
Leilin mused, "And this plant-animal relationship forms the foundation of every food chain in the ecosystem…"
Only this could explain how the ecosystem's cycle had persisted for so long.
After all, this was merely an ecological laboratory, not a resource-rich great秘境. Though vast in area, it was not large enough to sustain a full ecosystem.
Now it seemed that, without the outside experimenters' supply, the organisms here had each independently evolved their own unique ecological system.
"Moo… moo…"
At that moment, a deep, resonant animal cry drifted over.
Leilin immediately concealed himself and watched as the approaching creature came into view.
It resembled a plesiosaur, but a massive black shell covered its back, bristling with rows of barbed spines that gleamed with a cold light, giving it an appearance of near-impregnable defense.
Its head was disproportionately small compared to its body. Two short bumps protruded from the back of its skull, and a long snout extended forward — the earlier cry had emanated from that snout, carrying a heavy, quivering resonance.
Thud! Thud!
The creature was no lightweight, weighing at least three tons or more. Each step sent a faint tremor through the ground.
It ambled up to the plant where Leilin was hiding, its small eyes exuding an air of languid composure. It periodically craned its neck to gnaw on the enormous leaves.
And on the edges of the leaves it had eaten, marks appeared identical to the bite patterns Leilin had seen before.
"Chip! Record this creature's image. Cross-reference the database!"
Leilin issued the silent command.
"Task established. Initiating scan and imaging. Cross-referencing database…" The Chip faithfully executed Leilin's order and delivered an answer almost instantaneously.
"No matching entry found for this creature's image in the database. Searching for the closest match…"
The Chip's mechanical voice rang out.
"Based on database comparison, this creature is identified as a snake-necked tortoise. Similarity: 87.9%!"
The Chip then provided detailed information on the snake-necked tortoise.
"Snake-necked tortoise: An ancient species, currently extinct in the wild. An omnivore with a placid temperament. The shell on its back possesses remarkable defensive properties and serves as raw material for many defensive magical artifacts. An adult snake-necked tortoise possesses strength no less than that of a second-rank
Leilin studied the image of the snake-necked tortoise the Chip displayed — an illustration from an ancient text that the Chip had recorded and preserved in its database.
"Hmm! The differences between this creature and the standard snake-necked tortoise are the shell color, the additional barbs, and some variation in the head shape. It appears to have undergone some kind of mutation…"
Leilin was not the least bit surprised. In this kind of ecological environment, ancient species that did not actively evolve would have long since perished. A bit of mutation was perfectly normal — and there might even have been behind-the-scenes pushing from members of the Quicksand faction.
What would truly be abnormal was if they had still maintained the same physical characteristics as their ancient counterparts.
"In that case, I'll just call you a snake-necked tortoise!" Leilin made his decision. After all, the snake-necked tortoises outside were already extinct and had no grounds to protest.
"Moo… moo…" The nearby snake-necked tortoise still had not detected Leilin. Having finished eating, it bellowed several times and prepared to leave.
Leilin's mind stirred, and he quietly trailed after it.
"Shadow Stealth!" Though this was merely a first-rank spell, under Leilin's control — and especially with his vaporized Spiritual Power boosting it — its effectiveness surpassed that of many second-rank spells.
Leilin's body sank into the shadow crevice and climbed directly onto the snake-necked tortoise's back.
The solid shell provided a remarkably stable footing, instilling a sense of security. Leilin looked around. Enormous leaves and towering trees blanketed the surroundings, with vines draping down like countless tassels. Enormous droplets of water rolled across leaves and vines alike, shimmering with a captivating luster.
And many flower buds larger than a person stood in full bloom, their colors extraordinarily vivid, their fragrances wafting with sweet, tempting scents — alluring yet dangerous.
Leilin twitched his nose. "Hallucinogenic pollen, and this kind of mental suggestion–type fluctuation… Even a third-rank Apprentice or a full Wizard could fall victim to it if they weren't careful…"
The place reminded Leilin of a primeval tropical rainforest from his previous life — teeming with an incredible profusion of species, suffused with a primordial atmosphere.
The snake-necked tortoise clearly had not noticed Leilin on its back and performed its role as a mode of transport admirably, carrying him steadily onward.
Its steps were extraordinarily even. Perched on its back, Leilin felt not the slightest jolt. After roughly half an hour, the snake-necked tortoise bore him to the shore of a lake.
Beside the lake lay a clearing, and upstream, a river white as a jade ribbon flowed gently into the lake, supplying the area with fresh water.
"Moo… moo…"
Here, a great many snake-necked tortoises had gathered, forming a massive herd. Numerous individuals swam about freely in the lake, occasionally diving deep before bursting back to the surface with tremendous splashes, simultaneously spouting twin jets of water from their snouts like fountains.
The snake-necked tortoise Leilin was riding grew visibly excited and scrambled toward the lake.
"Roughly seventy-five snake-necked tortoises in this group!" Leilin's eyes flashed with a calculating gleam.
The snake-necked tortoise had not been particularly renowned even in ancient times — not only was its individual strength weak, but it lacked any powerful bloodline within its body, making it entirely useless to Leilin.
But it possessed one advantage: extraordinary fertility!
The breeding period of a normal snake-necked tortoise was very prolonged. During that period, it could lay nearly a hundred eggs every month. The survival rate of those eggs was quite high — excluding predation by natural enemies, at least half would successfully hatch. With ample food, they could reach adulthood within three years and continue propagating the herd.
"This is the law of the biological world. Powerful creatures reproduce with difficulty, and even if they bear offspring, those offspring are hard to raise. Weak creatures, on the other hand, are the exact opposite — their fertility and vitality are inconceivably旺盛…"
Leilin suddenly thought of the mice from his previous life. That species' reproductive capacity and adaptability were borderline monstrous. Even if a nuclear winter occurred, they would most likely be the last animals still alive.
"And these mutated snake-necked tortoises — I can sense that the biological activity within their bodies is far more vigorous. I estimate that from egg to adulthood takes less than a year…"
Leilin stroked his chin. Clearly, in order to ensure the species' survival, the reproductive capacity of these mutated snake-necked tortoises had been enhanced. This was their acquired adaptation.
From these evolutionary choices, one could readily see that the snake-necked tortoise was far from being a top predator in this ecosystem. It sat at the very bottom of the food chain — prey, not predator.
"Keee!"
Just as Leilin was preparing to collect some snake-necked tortoise blood for later analysis, a piercing eagle cry rang out from the distance.
The sound was shrill beyond measure, carrying an incredibly powerful penetrating force.
The entire herd of snake-necked tortoises erupted into panic, surging toward the lake at full speed. Those already in the water plunged to the lakebed and refused to resurface.
The cries grew louder and louder. With his body strengthened through multiple enhancements, Leilin could now make out a streak of crimson shooting across the distant horizon.
It was an enormous eagle-like creature. Its plumage was hard and sleek, colored a deep blood-red, and several clusters of peculiar golden feathers crowned its head in the shape of a diadem.
"Blood Vulture! An ancient species possessing sonic attacks capable of manipulating the blood within a target's body. Exhibits an extremely strong interest in rare bloodline-related items. A colonial species. Threat assessment: Extremely dangerous!"
The Chip immediately projected a passage of scholarly literature before Leilin's eyes.
"A Blood Vulture!?" A flash of surprise crossed Leilin's face, quickly giving way to delight.
"This species possesses an extraordinary sense of perception for unusual bloodlines. It also has aerial vision so sharp it can spot a single hair on the ground from a height of over ten thousand feet. Ancient warlocks often kept them captive, using them to hunt down bloodline-related treasures!"
"However…" Seeing the Chip's final assessment — extremely dangerous — Leilin hesitated.
The Blood Vulture radiated a powerful aura that even Leilin could not ignore. By human classification, it had reached at least the third-rank level.
Moreover, the Chip had made it abundantly clear that Blood Vultures were a colonial species. Its nest would undoubtedly contain many more third-rank members — and possibly even a Blood Vulture King. As the leader of the entire colony, a Blood Vulture King would certainly be a third-rank crystallized entity, and there was even a strong possibility it had reached the fourth-rank Morning Star realm!
"Keee!" The Blood Vulture circled overhead, occasionally releasing piercing cries that drove the snake-necked tortoises below into further frenzy. Its calls grew ever more excited.
Crack!
Among the fleeing herd, one comparatively scrawny individual — its leg apparently injured — was jostled by its companions and tumbled to the ground.
Having tormented the snake-necked tortoises to its satisfaction, the Blood Vulture spread its wings and dove.
The gust of wind alone from its descent was enough to make Leilin's expression tighten. And as the Blood Vulture dropped lower, its silhouette grew increasingly massive, dwarfing the snake-necked tortoises by far.
From high above, the size difference had not been particularly obvious. But now, compared side by side, the enormous snake-necked tortoises looked no bigger than mice before the Blood Vulture.
"Keee!" The Blood Vulture extended its massive talons and slashed a gaping wound across the fallen snake-necked tortoise's neck. Blood gushed forth in torrents!