bantayden Chapter 333: Mushroom Man
Chapter 333: Mushroom Man
After dealing with the Poisonous Widow Spiders, the trio continued forward.
Upon reaching another cave filled with poison mist, Li Wei wanted to burn it all away with a blast of fire.
But Evelyn stopped him.
"Don’t. It would be a huge waste of your Mana. Besides, the poison mist has its uses. It can help us ward off a lot of unnecessary trouble.
"Inside the Poison Dragon Cave, our enemies aren’t just the environment and venomous creatures, but other humans as well.
"And humans are even more dangerous than the venomous beasts here."
Heeding her words, Li Wei gave up on his plan to clear the mist.
He conjured a Fireball to illuminate their surroundings.
"Let’s keep moving. Where’s the entrance to the third level?" Li Wei asked.
Evelyn shook her head. "I don’t know. It must be deeper inside."
Li Wei glanced around. ’If only there was someone we could ask for directions.’
"Doesn’t anyone in Poison Dragon City sell maps of the Poison Dragon Cave?" Li Wei asked, puzzled.
Evelyn explained, "Even if someone were selling them, nobody would dare trust them. Most people who buy maps are rookies, new to the Poison Dragon Cave. Veterans all have their own personal maps; they only trust the areas they’ve explored themselves."
Li Wei felt a sense of resignation. ’Without a map, are we just supposed to wander around aimlessly?’
Lilith spoke up. "I can find the entrance."
Li Wei and Evelyn both turned to look at her.
"How?" Li Wei asked.
Lilith didn’t say a word, answering his question with her actions instead.
The shadows at her feet began to churn.
A horde of Shadow Creatures spread out from her, slipping into the various caves that branched off in every direction.
Li Wei’s eyes widened in surprise.
’What kind of Magic is this?’
He glanced at Lilith. ’This doesn’t seem like Magic... It’s more like some kind of Extraordinary Trait.’
’Commanding so many Shadow Creatures... it’s just unbelievable.’
’A typical Mage can summon a handful of creatures at most.’
’But to have hundreds, even thousands, of Shadow Creatures at her command like Lilith...?’
It reminded Li Wei of an Undead Mage.
Only an Undead Mage would have the ability to summon and control Summoned Creatures on such a massive scale.
He subconsciously touched the middle finger of his left hand.
He could still feel the outline of the Golden Bone Ring.
’In a way, I also have the ability to control a large number of Summoned Creatures.’
’The difference is, I can only control them, not summon them.’
’And I don’t know any Magic for summoning Undead Creatures.’
’In places like the Ancient Battlefield Ruins, or anywhere with a large number of Undead, the Golden Bone Ring is incredibly powerful.’
’A true Legendary Level item.’
’But in this environment, there are no Undead Creatures for me to control.’
’The Golden Bone Ring is nothing more than an ornament here.’
’It’s less useful than the trashiest Magic Staff.’
’At least a Magic Staff can amplify my spell power, even if just by a little.’
"Found something."
Lilith said.
Her voice pulled Li Wei from his thoughts.
"Where’s the entrance?" he asked.
"It’s not the entrance," Lilith said. "I found other people."
Li Wei: "..."
"Oh well, finding other people is good too. Let’s go ask them for directions," Li Wei said.
Evelyn didn’t object.
And so, with Lilith leading, the trio headed toward the location of the others.
After walking for some time, the cave ahead suddenly opened into a vast, empty space.
Li Wei felt the air grow much more humid.
’Is there an underground river up ahead?’
Li Wei guessed.
He could feel the moisture in the air thickening.
He felt something soft underfoot.
Looking down, he saw that the ground was covered in multi-colored mushrooms.
"So many mushrooms," Lilith remarked.
Evelyn glanced around. Through her abilities as one of the Hundred Flowers Clan, she could sense the surrounding plants.
She said, "These mushrooms are all highly toxic. Be careful."
"Don’t touch them. Even the slightest skin contact will poison you."
"And don’t bump into them, or you’ll release their spores into the air."
Evelyn hurriedly warned the other two.
Li Wei gazed into the distance. "I think your warning came a little too late."
He could see a vast cloud of multi-colored mushroom spores drifting toward them.
"Watch out! Fall back!" Evelyn cried urgently.
Li Wei’s first instinct was to use fire.
But there were people inside the cloud of spores.
They were here to ask for directions, not to kill.
So, Li Wei had no choice but to retreat.
The trio’s Invisible Armor was still active.
It protected them from the corrosive spores and the poison mist.
As the spores settled on them, it looked as if the trio were wearing multi-colored outfits.
A cloud of powder fell from them with every slight movement.
Li Wei’s Spiritual Power detected a powerful aura approaching.
He shouted, "Something’s coming up behind them!"
"Aaargh!"
A bloodcurdling scream rang out.
Li Wei launched a Fireball, illuminating the scene in the distance.
A massive figure appeared before their eyes.
Amidst the cloud of iridescent spores, a towering figure grabbed the slowest of the runners.
The man screamed in agony as his face turned from pale to a deathly gray, and colorful mushrooms sprouted all over his body.
In the end, his body became a desiccated husk, tossed to the ground to become nutrients for the countless poisonous mushrooms.
Evelyn recognized the monster and shouted, "A Mushroom Man!"
Hearing this, information about Mushroom Men surfaced in Li Wei’s mind.
Mushroom Men were a peculiar race native to the Underworld.
They were also known as mushroom people.
They were typically only found in the Underworld.
The Mushroom Men inside the Poison Dragon Cave had mutated, becoming extremely powerful.
They were also lethally poisonous.
The cloud of mushroom spores Li Wei had seen was one of the Mushroom Man’s abilities.
"There are people over there! Run!"
Spotting the Fireball, the fleeing group noticed Li Wei and his companions.
They immediately started running toward them.
It was a classic case of "better you than me."
At a time like this, all that mattered was outrunning the others.
They had no qualms about dragging Li Wei and his group into danger.
"Entangling Thorns!"
Evelyn made her move. A mass of Thorns erupted from the earth, wrapping around the tall Mushroom Man’s legs.
The Mushroom Man raised its leg, trying to snap the tough vines.
However, Power was not its strong suit.
It struggled for a long moment but failed to break free from the thorny vines.
Seeing that Evelyn had the Mushroom Man under control, the fleeing group subconsciously slowed their pace.
They looked back.
BANG!
A cloud of toxic mist erupted from the Mushroom Man’s body.
SSSSSS!
The magically-created thorny vines corroded under the toxic mist, sprouting spiked, poisonous mushrooms.
These were virulent spores, capable of corroding even Magic Energy.
This was an Extraordinary Power.
Seeing the Mushroom Man’s outburst, the terrified group immediately picked up their pace and fled.
A figure materialized behind the Mushroom Man.
A Shadow Giant, even taller than the Mushroom Man, swung a scythe-like arm and cleaved the creature’s body.
SPLAT!
The Mushroom Man was cleaved in two.
But it didn’t die.
Countless tiny filaments stretched between the two halves of its sundered body.
They were all composed of mushroom spores.
The Mushroom Man spun around and threw a punch at the Shadow Giant.
The Shadow Giant dissolved like liquid and vanished. The Mushroom Man’s fist hit nothing but air, creating an explosive crack.
WHOOSH!
A blue Fire Serpent shot toward the Mushroom Man.