This dungeon has mushrooms growing on it.

Chapter 207, Section 206: A Friendly Puff

Qiong's heart pounded like a drum!
Having just escaped the clutches of Keith, they have now become prisoners of an unknown entity!
He had initially thought the dragonman was an outsider, but now he was shocked to realize—it, like Qisi, was entrenched in the middle level!

What made it even more suffocating was that this dragon-man seemed to be living in symbiosis with... a group of bizarre, mushroom-shaped creatures?!

The extreme cold of the far north should have killed all fungi, and Qiong had never seen Puji.

Based solely on its seemingly soft and weak appearance, Qiong instinctively categorized it as a weak monster.

However, being able to share a floor with the ferocious Keith... the truth is clearly far more complex than it appears!
Putting aside these complicated matters, what truly worried him was that just moments before, the Puji had sprinkled something on Kari, and now it seemed that this stuff had grown into Kari's body!
The sight before them leaves no doubt that these mushrooms are meant to be eaten as nourishment!
Qiong struggled to push away the poopy creatures beside him, trying to fight back, but a cold hand with irresistible force pressed him back to the ground!
Looking back—a tall figure, skin as pale as paper, and... a pair of sharp fangs tinged with blood!

"Vampires?" Qiong's voice was distorted with extreme shock. "You...you are from the Empire!?"

Qiong was thrown into confusion, completely unable to understand why the people from the Empire would appear in the middle level of the Stone Fortress underground city, and why they wanted to capture them.

Louisa rolled her eyes, too lazy to explain to him.

The leader originally planned to have Puji knock out the demon with hallucinogenic spores before crippling the parasite, but he managed to break free ahead of time.

Let's just go straight to it!

Louisa grabbed the struggling Qiong and wrapped her arms around his neck, then bit him.

"Uh..." Life was rapidly slipping away with the warm blood, Qiong's resistance quickly weakened, and her consciousness began to blur.

Meanwhile, Louisa, sitting opposite him, was completely absorbed in the delicious food.

How long has it been since I tasted such delicious blood?

This was a sweet taste, far superior to the coarse blood of cavemen or minotaurs, imbued with the unique power of the demon race, which made Louisa squint her scarlet eyes in satisfaction.

"You're not planning to drain him dry, are you?" The boss's voice was like ice water poured down his throat.

Louisa instantly regained consciousness, and without hesitation, pulled the fangs from her neck.

She wiped the blood from the corner of her mouth, shook her head solemnly, and said: She knew what she was doing!

Lying on the ground, Sora's vision was blurred. With her last remaining strength, she reached out her arm in vain towards the unconscious Hunter...

puff--

In his last moments of consciousness, a short, soft foot gently stepped on his chest, and spores, falling like fine snow, covered his entire body.

I'll get eaten by these mushrooms too, just like Hunt...
-
"Ah, I see. No wonder you're here."

While attending to the two injured demon descendants, Lin Jun instructed Norris and Xiao Hei: "Go again! See if the meatball that was stepped on is still there, and pick it up if you can."

Something that Keith cares about so much must be a good thing!

When Qiong woke up, she was surprised to find that she and Shou were not dead. Not only were they alive, but Shou also seemed to have recovered from his serious injuries!

Although his hands are crippled, at least for now his life seems safe, and even the few wounds on his body have been filled by that parasitic thing.

Qiong didn't know what the consequences of this bizarre healing method would be, but it was a good thing that Shou survived!

Hunting requires much more composure.

Given Qisi's unusual behavior, these self-proclaimed Puji creatures are probably not benevolent people either.

But Shou didn't have many options. He tried to lie several times during their conversation, but the other party seemed to point it out unintentionally each time.

He could only give a vague account of some things, trying his best not to mention the location and situation of the tribe.

Fortunately, the other party seemed genuinely uninterested in the Demon Tribe and didn't ask any further questions.

"Sigh, you guys were forced into this by Qisi. You have to survive!" The Puji in front of me shook its head, its tone filled with a sense of shared misery. "Like our Puji family, we are peace-loving by nature! But Qisi is just jealous. He comes to smash, loot, and burn every few days. We only fight because we have no other choice..."

Qiong touched her neck, where there were still two teeth marks. Lin Jun noticed and offered an explanation: "Sigh, Little Pig is a bit greedy, but she knows her limits. Just consider it a little 'blood reward' for saving you!"

“Little pig…” Qiong’s gaze drifted to Louisa not far away.

The latter immediately turned his face away, pretending to study the shadow in the corner.

"We should repay your life-saving grace with a small reward; we don't mind." Shou calmly took over the conversation and answered for Qiong.

After a brief exchange, the Puji brought over two bowls of eerie, fluorescent soup.

"This is……"

"Mushroom soup, aren't you hungry?"

Having narrowly escaped death several times, it's impossible not to be hungry.

But... a bunch of mushroom monsters are offering you mushroom soup? And the glowing kind at that?!

This scene was as bizarre as could be.

In the end, Shouxian gritted his teeth and ate it. His life was in the other party's hands, so there was no point in thinking too much!
After finishing the whole bowl, a hint of surprise flashed in Hunting's eyes. Although the mushroom soup didn't taste very good, the warm energy quickly filled his exhausted body after eating it!
Qiong, feeling a little embarrassed, ordered another bowl.

"It's alright, it's alright, eat as much as you want, it's just mushrooms, I have as many as you want!"

After a hearty meal, Kari tried to suggest leaving, and to everyone's surprise, Puji readily agreed.

“You two are so weak, it would be best if you rested for another day or two before you left.” Puji seemed genuinely concerned about their safety.

"Thank you for your kindness, but with so much that has happened, the tribe is probably still waiting for news from us," Shou said.

"Yes, yes, you can take these with you!" Lin Jun said understandingly.

Just then, a little puff handed over a bulging leather bag and stuffed it into Qiong's hand. It was full of mushrooms. "Take this and eat it slowly on the way."

As he left, Shou spotted some Puji carrying away the remains of Qisi in the distance.

Norris went back again, but returned empty-handed, passing by Keith who had already retrieved the bodies.

The Puji escorted them all the way to the upper level before waving their mycelial tentacles to say goodbye.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

“Hunter,” Qiong Hui gazed at the deep silhouette of the ancient castle, his voice tinged with hesitation, “These Puji… seem to be quite friendly to us?”

Shou did not answer immediately, but sighed heavily, as if he were trying to expel all the turbid air from his chest.

The sigh condensed into white mist in the cold air, lingering for a long time.

"...I hope so."

"what do you mean?"

Hunt raised half of his arm, the mycelium intertwining with the magic patterns and flesh.

“Qiong,” his gaze pierced through the wind and snow, looking towards the desolate wilderness further north, “perhaps… what we should do now is to keep heading north without looking back, until we reach a place where there are no more of our people, and then… die quietly there.”

He paused, his voice full of hesitation: "But everything we've seen and experienced... all this news about Qis, about those mushrooms, about this underground city... we must also find a way to send it back to the tribe."

Qiong's thinking was much simpler. He said firmly, "Hunter! Wherever you go, I'll go! We'll die together!"

Shou stopped, glanced at him a few times, and ultimately couldn't bear to take him to his death without knowing why.

"Let's go back and see the elders first. If that doesn't work, then let the clan migrate south as soon as possible..."

　It's a little late.
　　
　
(End of this chapter)