"substitute with" again

[Bethany K. Dumas]

>>The image is based on a story in which Nichiren encounters a
>>beautiful woman who reveals her true form as that of a seven-headed
>>serpent, but in this painting Hokusai has substituted the serpent
>>with the more familiar dragon.

To me, such statements are at least initially ambiguous, but
the recent discussion here suggests that I should read them
like this: "has replaced the serpent with the more familiar
dragon" - am I catching on? Does "substituted" equal "replaced"?

Bethany

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