NOVEL NEXT Chapter 7: Chapter 7: Modification: Basic Insight
At this moment, Anna's skirt and lips were still stained with specks of blood. Coupled with her pale and haggard face, she evoked a deep sense of pity.
If she were on Earth, such a delicate and doll-like little girl would likely be cherished by her parents every single day.
But now, she was stuck in a damp, dark cave with him—a black dragon—clinging to life.
Sigh—
Su Nian sighed in distress, but what came out of his mouth was a low, guttural growl.
Instead of immediately checking his skills, he focused on Anna's condition. Her status panel showed that her remaining lifespan was down to just one day.
"What happened? Could it be that I've been unconscious for more than a day?"
Su Nian was stunned.
He glanced at the few herbs scattered on the ground.
They still looked fresh, and it was still raining outside. Nothing suggested that an entire day had passed.
What on earth was going on? How did Anna end up so weak?
Su Nian was completely baffled.
However, he still had the system to rely on. Su Nian immediately opened his system panel and found some new additions.
First, there was a skill called Basic Devour, and second, he had gained 2,000 system points.
For now, Basic Devour wasn't of much use.
The key to saving Anna lay in those 2,000 system points. He certainly couldn't save her on his own, as he had no idea what illness she was suffering from.
Perhaps the system store might have some medicine to cure Anna?
With this hope in mind, Su Nian opened the system store, only to find that its inventory was surprisingly sparse. Most of the items were everyday necessities for human females, along with candies and desserts.
The most expensive item was a luxurious and exquisite Lolita dress, ten times more ornate than the princess dress Anna was currently wearing. It was priced at a staggering 10,000 system points.
Su Nian would have to be insane to exchange for that.
Aside from that, the store offered three types of herbs, none of which seemed particularly useful for the current situation.
One of them was Baikal Skullcap, which he had already used today. Its exchange price had reset to 100 system points. The other two were Golden Heal Grass and Trauma Ointment—both self-explanatory in their uses.
Su Nian frowned, realizing this wasn't going to be simple.
What kind of system store was this? Was it designed for him, or for the unconscious elven girl?
Closing the system store, Su Nian wore a grim expression as he opened the Evolution Enhancement function.
This time, the options were much more reasonable.
The Evolution Enhancement menu was divided into two main categories: External Modifications and Internal Modifications.
External Modifications referred to enhancements to Su Nian's body, including his scales and claws.
The first row featured straightforward options like Hardened Claws and Iron-Plated Scales, priced reasonably. There was even an option to modify his overall appearance, with prices ranging from 100 to 10,000 system points.
Internal Modifications, on the other hand, offered an overwhelming variety of options. From sensory organs to internal organs, muscles, and blood vessels, every part of his body was covered—even his excretory system could be modified.
The most extravagant option was upgrading his heart's energy output to a Stellar Level, which cost a mind-boggling 10 billion system points.
Su Nian gulped at the thought and dared not dwell on it.
He began searching for modifications that could help Anna.
The biggest problem now was that he didn't know what illness Anna had or how to treat it.
He needed an ability that could provide him with this information.
Initially, he had little hope.
After all, why would a dragon's evolution system include anything related to medical skills?
He was a fantasy black dragon, not some urban dragon overlord.
As expected, after searching for a long time, he found nothing useful for the current situation.
Just as he was about to give up and look for other solutions, he noticed a particular modification option.
[Eye Modification: Solidify Basic Insight]
[Cost: 1,000 system points. Upgrading to Intermediate Insight requires 5,000 system points.]
[Basic Insight: Provides a rough understanding of certain objects and conditions.]
This might be useful—though he wasn't sure if it could diagnose Anna's illness.
After some contemplation, Su Nian decided to give it a try.
"System, I want to exchange for Eye Modification: [Basic Insight]."
[Ding! Exchange successful. 1,000 system points deducted. Modification will begin immediately. Please note that discomfort may occur during the process. Host is advised not to gouge out their own eyes.]
Su Nian: "...(?????)?????"
Before Su Nian could react, a sharp pain shot through his eyes. Only then did he understand why the system had warned him not to gouge his eyes out.
Because he really, really wanted to.
It felt as if someone were jabbing needles into his eyeballs—painful, itchy, and utterly unbearable.
Fortunately, the sensation was brief. If it had lasted any longer, he might not have been able to resist.
Shaking off the dragon tears streaming down his face, Su Nian looked at the ground, and a line of information appeared in his mind:
[Ordinary sandstone ground, stained with dragon feces.]
"Uh… Was this dumb dragon always this unhygienic?"
Feeling a bit grossed out, Su Nian quickly moved away from that spot. He then glanced at himself.
[A clueless and clumsy black dragon.]
Su Nian's dragon lips twitched. He almost wanted to gouge his eyes out again—this skill was utterly useless.
However, upon further reflection, he realized that the Insight ability might be influenced by his own thoughts. After all, he had just been thinking of himself as a dumb dragon.
With this in mind, Su Nian turned his gaze to the unconscious Anna:
[Half-Elf, top-tier talent, weak, sweating, feeling cold, ulcer on thigh, anemic, coughing, stomach cramps, heart failure, lung inflammation, sprained ankle, minor abrasions…]
Su Nian stared in shock at the long list of ailments describing the elven girl. It was a miracle she was still alive.
Although Basic Insight didn't reveal the exact illness or provide any solutions, it did outline the various symptoms.
And that was enough.
To test his theory, Su Nian turned his gaze to the Baikal Skullcap on the ground.
[Baikal Skullcap: Clears heat and detoxifies.]
As expected, Insight could roughly identify the effects of herbs.
With this ability, a day should be enough for him to search the jungle for herbs to stabilize Anna's condition.
Though this approach was risky, it was the only option in such dire circumstances.
With this resolve, Su Nian covered Anna with a bear pelt and once again dashed into the rain-soaked jungle—this time, feeling a bit hungry but otherwise in decent shape. """