The Hero Turned Into A Potato And The World Fell To Ruin

Liu Ji felt somewhat ambivalent as he watched the wild peppers simmering in the pot. Truth be told, he had already experienced these mixed feelings when he cooked wild potatoes, but at that time, it was only directed toward the potatoes.

Having been a potato for so many years, perhaps he had developed some sentimental feelings toward potatoes, so it wasn't out of the ordinary to feel this way…

But now, Liu Ji realized he was wrong. Since the meal in the morning, he was aware that he could transform into many more things. It seemed that the various wild vegetables he had eaten in the morning had been added to that list.

And then, this ambivalence came. When chopping up these vegetables, he felt a mysterious twinge of phantom pain. And it was only toward vegetables; he felt absolutely nothing when chopping up bear flesh.

Could it be that I've been a potato for too long and have started to develop a sense of belonging and empathy toward plants? Liu Ji couldn't help himself from speculating.

That would be absurd!

After covering the pot, Liu Ji turned around, about to go do something else, and got a fright. Osar had returned at some point and had been standing just a step behind; Liu Ji had nearly bumped into him when turning around.

Osar realized his intrusion and quickly stepped back, flashing Liu Ji an apologetic grin, and then lifted the basket in his hand.

Liu Ji glanced over and saw that it was filled with wild vegetables and mushrooms.

The leftovers from yesterday's foraging were almost used up, and this timely supply would be a perfect addition to the bear stew.

Taking the basket of vegetables, Liu Ji smiled at Osar and turned to wash the vegetables, picking out some suitable ones to throw into the pot.

But as he washed the vegetables, he noticed that Osar hadn't left. Instead, the tigerman continued to stand behind him, watching curiously as the food was being prepared.

Liu Ji pondered for a moment and asked, "You, hungry?"

Osar scratched his head, then glanced over at Yaine a short distance away. The latter, however, was busy preparing lessons and didn't look their way.

Osar scratched his chin, then flashed Liu Ji an awkward grin.

Yes, Liu Ji had spoken in incantations, and Osar had heard the incantations that Liu Ji had spoken, but…

Osar didn't understand incantations.

It wouldn't just be Osar; Mervant, too, didn't understand them. The only one among the three who understood incantations was Yaine.

Seeing Osar shrug awkwardly, Liu Ji came to a realization. Incantations were basically a language of magic and spells, so it was normal for Osar, a brawler, not to understand it.

But standing here all this while can only mean he must be hungry, right?

At that thought, Liu Ji quickly washed the vegetables and tossed them into the pot. Fortunately, the meal was almost ready. Once the stew in the pot was done, he could…

BAAM!

A loud noise echoed. Liu Ji's hand trembled, and the pot lid nearly flew out of his hand. He turned around, only to see that Mervant had inexplicably smashed a half-constructed chair to pieces with his hammer.

Then, as if suddenly panicking, Mervant began fumbling around his collar and hurriedly fished out an old-looking disc.

He stared blankly at the disc, quickly wiped it several times, and kept shaking his head, muttering, "No, no no, no no no," all the while rubbing the disc as if trying to get it to start a fire.

Liu Ji watched Mervant's strange behavior in bewilderment, then turned toward Osar beside him, noticing that Osar's face had darkened. The latter had furrowed brows and a gloomy expression.

Liu Ji then looked toward Yaine and discovered that she had put down her notebook and strode over to Mervant's side. She snatched away the disc in his hand and closed her eyes.

In the next moment, the disc lit up with a burst of white light, but it quickly faded away.

"Yaine, Cali—something has happened to Cali!" Mervant exclaimed, grabbing Yaine's shoulders and shaking her. "She must have run into something! We have to go find her! We have to rescue her!"

However, Yaine briskly removed Mervant's hands from her shoulders and slapped him sharply across the face with a quick double-handed smack.

This action happened so fast and unexpected that it left Liu Ji staring in astonishment.

But as far as the results were concerned, it seemed quite effective. Whether he was stunned or something else, Mervant did calm down.

"Calm down, Mervant. This thing hasn't shattered yet," Yaine said, pushing the disc back into his chest. "While I don't know why it lost its link, as long as it hasn't shattered, it means Cali is definitely still alive."

"I know, but…" Mervant wanted to say something more, but Yaine cut him off with a raised hand.

"I know what you want to say, and yes, this isn't normal." Yaine sighed. After a moment of silence, she added, "Alright, let's all get ready. It looks like we have to head back to that damned place once again."

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In the barren desert, Calidora and Girunini were hiding behind a sand dune, quietly observing the bizarre ancient city that had suddenly appeared before them.

"Do we really have to go in?" Calidora whispered. "This place is too strange. Ever since we got close, I haven't been able to feel my connection with Mervant."

"I know there's something odd about this place." Girunini turned to her. "But Cali, you ought to already know that even though I'm not very lucky, I'm one who doesn't like leaving my fate up to luck.

"Like you've said, we've walked for so long that we no longer know if we're even going in the right direction," Girunini continued. "But if we can find some clues in this city, that, in my view, is much better than stubbornly following one path as if we're betting our lives on it."

"Mm… Alright, perhaps you are right." Calidora sighed.

Although she had always been the one to forge ahead and continually assured Girunini that they could only move forward in that direction, her own unease was no less than her companion's. She constantly worried—what if they were wrong? What if they were just walking around and around in circles? What if this desert never ended? What if she never saw Mervant again?

She truly didn't know. She had always been encouraging Girunini on, but no one was there to encourage herself. She could only clutch the disc tightly, sensing that link which sustained her will to continuously move forward.

But ever since stepping into the vicinity of this strange ancient city, she suddenly couldn't sense that link.

For a moment, she thought something had happened to Mervant but soon realized this wasn't the case.

As a practitioner of holy arts, she also had knowledge of barriers, illusions, and the like. She could sense that they had stepped into a place that isolated all connection with the outside world.

She had never heard of such a place in the Desert of Burials and couldn't understand why such a grand, decrepit city would have been constructed in this vast, barren expanse.

However…

Venturing into this city, even if it might be dangerous, was infinitely better than wandering in the endless, uncertain desert.

"But what exactly should we do? Just go straight in?" Girunini, peeking over the dune, whispered. "Even though that guard seems to be a statue, like the ordinary sort placed by the sides of gates… Do you think they could be some kind of race unique to the desert?"

"If it were a normal city, we'd observe how others enter, but…" Calidora looked around helplessly. "Clearly, there's no one here but us."

"Then let's just go straight through the front." Girunini stood up, dusting off the sand from her body. "We'll just test the waters a bit, and if something feels off, we just run. If we try to sneak over the city walls, we might provoke an attack instead."

Having said that, she stepped around the dune and slid down the dune's slope, headed toward the city.

"Hey! Wait… Girunini," Calidora complained helplessly but also scrambled around the dune and followed after.

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