“Hey... come on, make a few noises. Don’t just lie there like a dead fish, unable to make a sound... Hey... Hey! At least give me a few little moans!”

Li kicked Phoebe a few times, but she remained unconscious. That potion hadn’t been processed at all—it was nothing but raw, volatile medicinal power. Taking it should’ve left her in excruciating pain all over, yet Phoebe didn’t make a peep, like a dead fish.

This is no fun at all.

Still, her vital signs were stable. She just hadn’t woken up yet because of her severe injuries.

Li had no idea when Phoebe would wake up. After carelessly tossing her into a corner, Li finally started treating their own wounds.

Hortons had gone to the trouble of remaking this body for Li, and now it was covered in wounds again—especially the left shoulder. Li had activated Pal in time to block the Netherworld King Griffin Beast’s attack, but...

“Even as a juvenile, its bite is this terrifying...”

Li took off their clothes. Their shoulder was covered in tiny tooth marks, as if rows of nails had been driven into it again and again. The bite marks were bad enough, but in some places, the beast had torn away skin and flesh. Li hadn’t noticed before, with their attention fixed on other things. Only now did the pain hit, fierce and sharp.

But compared to the pain in that pool, this was nothing...

Li bandaged the wound. There was no gauze or anything like it, so they had to make do with some long leaves. They wouldn’t be able to leave this cave for a while anyway. For some reason, the magical beasts and wild animals seemed afraid to come in here. Had Hortons left something behind?

Never mind... There was no point overthinking it. But...

Was that dragon’s roar really the roar of that dragon?

Hortons had also said that the Dragon Clan possessed a special power: females used Pal to split off a dragon egg, which hatched into a male version of themselves, bringing the true next generation into the world...

But that voice Li had heard back then... Thinking about it now, for some reason, it seemed to hold pain and fury.

Li thought it over carefully. They’d been too shocked to think straight at the time, but looking back now, that really was what it had sounded like.

“Sigh... Whatever. Who cares?”

Li had no idea what was really going on. For now, all they could do was let it go...

Even if Li cared about it, now wasn’t the time to dwell on it. They needed to figure out how to reactivate their Authority. Without it, they couldn’t just fight—they’d even have trouble with the thing they were best at: making potions.

“Norton, when will I be able to use my Authority?”

【It should become available after some time. I can’t calculate exactly how long just yet, Master. Your Authority has indeed been reshaped, but its power is no longer the same as before. So the system can’t bring up the Authority interface for you in the short term. Please wait a little longer, Master.】

“You sound just like one of those useless customer service reps...”

【I’m not! I’m Master’s loyal servant.】

“Sure, sure...”

So Li would be able to use their Authority again after some time...

Given Li’s current condition, they wouldn’t be able to leave for a while anyway. Fortunately, there was enough here to last them for some time. And... they could use half-dead Phoebe to test some new potions. Maybe the next little while wouldn’t be so boring after all.

Even if Li made potions just for the money, they had to admit that, at heart, they were still a potion-maker.