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"What do you want to say?" Hai Ruo asked calmly. She has always been taciturn.

"I want to know if you are willing to become my companion. If you are, I will reveal all my secrets to you, and you will become a core member of Fontainebleau. You should know that there is no distinction of race among our group. If you are not willing, I will let you leave. The fact that you worked for us and learned from the Lich will be completely erased, not a single word will be leaked. If you ever need anything, feel free to tell me, and I'll do my best to help." After saying these words, I waited quietly for Hai Ruo's answer. To be honest, I sincerely hoped she would become my companion. However, she is human, unlike Jin Luosha. In the future war against humans, it would be hard for her to betray her own race. In fact, I have already started to remove human members from the frontline combat units. It’s not that I don’t trust them; I just don’t want them to face the psychological strain of fighting their own kind. Only after I have fully controlled some human territories and managed the relationship between humans and orcs will I consider letting them rejoin the battle.

Hai Ruo thought for a moment, then gave a concise reply.

"Sure."

"Hmm? What did you say? I didn't hear clearly."

"I am willing to become a companion." The female mage said without hesitation.

"Hmm... Although the result was what I hoped for, the simplicity of her answer left me slightly puzzled. "If it's not inconvenient, Hai Ruo, could you tell me the reason? Honestly, I’ve never really understood your choices. Don’t tell me you’ve fallen for me; I’m not the type to inspire instant affection."

Hai Ruo nodded slightly, stood up, and with her jade-like hand, lifted her long hair aside. She removed a pair of beautiful pearl earrings from her glistening earlobes.

The earrings didn’t change, but Hai Ruo transformed. Her shoulder-length hair, previously smooth as a mirror, suddenly began to ripple like ocean waves, and in a short time, it turned into lustrous blue curls. At the same time, Hai Ruo's eyes became strange vortex-like pupils, and even more astonishingly, her ears gradually spread out, forming a shape like a fin. Though her facial features remained unchanged, she suddenly looked much more beautiful, as if this appearance and charm were what truly suited her existence. Simultaneously, a water-blue glow radiated from her, and even though I don’t understand magic, I could tell it was the pure fluctuation of water elements.

"You... are you a mermaid?" I was greatly surprised. Although I had never seen this race that dominates the southern seas, I had heard of their characteristics. Seeing Hai Ruo's vortex pupils and fin-like ears, I immediately recognized the significance, but then I noticed something else different. "No, why do you still have human legs? And I've never heard of any mermaid who can survive on land for long. What exactly are you?"

"A half-breed, my lord. I am half-human, half-mermaid, so I have human legs and skin but the appearance and magical talents of a mermaid. Now you should understand why I am willing to stay in Fontainebleau. Extremely insular and self-loving, mermaids are even more exclusive than high elves when it comes to foreign blood. Even though I can live underwater, I am not accepted by them. Humans, on the other hand, are a greedy race. If I revealed my identity, I would only become a plaything for human nobles. Actually, when I came north with Bailing and the others, we were looking for a place to settle within the Orc Alliance. On this continent, only orcs are indifferent to racial origins."

"I see, that makes sense." I sighed deeply. A race’s insularity is a manifestation of their self-protective instincts. After all, if a race doesn't pay attention to the purity of its bloodline, it can easily be assimilated on this continent full of various races. Except for orcs, who can enforce bloodline selection, all other groups more or less reject hybrids. This is not without cause. In history, orcs have assimilated dozens of small nations (and, of course, created some new ones), so the self-protection of bloodlines by other races is understandable. However, for hybrids, the burden they carry is quite heavy. Except for half-elves, who are recognized by humans due to the achievements of the Twelve Sages and are cursed by the gods to prevent bloodline confusion, other racial hybrids are generally rejected. At present, the Orc Alliance has gathered a large number of hybrids, who have become followers of strong warriors in various tribes. What they seek is the free and equal atmosphere within the alliance.

At the same time, I also understood why Hai Ruo had always been so taciturn. Mermaids are rumored to have extraordinary singing talents that can enchant sailors and make them puppets. I hadn't expected that even when Hai Ruo spoke normally, her voice carried a strange melody, making ordinary words sound like heavenly music. It seemed she had been deliberately suppressing this vocal trait, and her reluctance to speak was to avoid accidentally revealing her secret. Once the disguise was removed, she spoke at length, as if making up for lost time.

"So, what I want to say now is, welcome, Miss Hai Ruo."

After resolving the trust issue, the 'King of the Undead' set out for Fontainebleau with Hai Ruo that night. After all, the allure of a Crystal Dragon to an alchemy master is no less than the appeal of the Nine Yin Manual to the world’s top martial artists. With Jin Luosha having Li Jia, a theoretical master, once she receives the practical mastery of the "King of the Undead," progress will surely advance by leaps and bounds. According to Li Jia's calculations, the "forbidden spell crystals" stored in Fontainebleau are enough to create three Crystal Dragons. The Hydra’s nuclei and bones are also sufficient to support these artificial behemoths. If all goes well, within a year or two, we will have three of our own artificial super-beasts.

When Li Jia, the artificial Crystal Dragon Knight, left Saint Spirit Mountain, she didn't take any Crystal Dragons with her. Firstly, the protection of Crystal Dragons in the Temple was extremely strict, making it difficult for us to succeed even if we managed to steal one. Secondly, the Crystal Dragon Knight body Li Jia is currently using still has most of its functions locked. With our current capabilities, it is quite difficult to unlock the forbidden seals of the Twelve Sages. However, once the Crystal Dragons are successfully created and Li Jia rides them, the Crystal Dragon Knight’s power can be unlocked to 80%. At that time, although we won’t be able to directly seize control of the Temple’s Crystal Dragons on the battlefield, we will be able to have Li Jia control our three Crystal Dragons.