Following the signal, he spotted that figure on horseback who seemed somewhat restless and uneasy. A certain blue mushroom felt a small twinge of confusion—who the heck was this?
When in doubt, check the status panel.
【Name: Inanna Saint-Clair】
【Level: 33】
Whoa! Isn’t this Pink Puffshroom?!
Put on some clothes… wait no, after transforming back into human form, he really hadn’t recognized her!
But how was she still connected to the mycelial network?
Logically speaking, this shouldn’t be possible. Without using 【Fusion Parasitism】, mycelium simply couldn’t take root inside a human body.
Was it because Pink Puffshroom had previously transformed into a puffshroom?
But hadn’t she already changed back to human form? Could there still be residual mycelium in her body?
Still, this was a good thing!
Lin Jun had originally planned to first relay messages through the intermediary Adin, then later figure out a way to communicate directly with the puffshroom through voice. Now all those troublesome steps were unnecessary.
But no rush. Since Pink Puffshroom had appeared, it meant this team was…
【Name: Alvin Slane】
【Level: 70】
【Skills: Sword’s Pinnacle, Qi Sense LV10, Flowing Steps LV10, Moon Treading LV10, Evasion LV10, Acceleration LV10…】
【Permanent Status: Dragon Blood Baptism (All attributes increased 10%), Sword Heart (Counterattack mental damage), Dragon Crystal Potion (Provides comprehensive high resistance), Mermaid Emperor’s Tears (Spirit +5, marked as enemy by sea clans)…】
【Titles:
Sword Saint (Blade and sword damage increased 100%)
Demon Slayer (Damage against demons increased 10%)
Dragon Slayer (Immune to dragon’s might)
Master Teacher (Increased probability of triggering guidance insights)】
The Sword Saint really was in the team!
Wow!
Looking carefully this time, this status panel was absolutely ridiculous!
Row after row of glaring LV10s, plus heaps of permanent buffs, not to mention the simple and brutal powerful title that doubled damage.
Also… Dragon Slayer? Dragon Crystal Potion?
Inanna also had this kind of potion on her. Considering that Inanna’s father was also a level 70 powerhouse, had they slain a dragon and then skinned it and extracted its essence to make potions?
Lin Jun unconsciously glanced at Little Black, who was currently rolling around happily in the pile of shiny treasures.
Maybe it was one of her uncles or aunts who had met a tragic end…
But strangely, in the skills column, aside from that mysterious 【Sword’s Pinnacle】, Lin Jun didn’t see any other blade or sword-related skills.
He wasn’t sure what that meant for now.
This team had many other members, most of them mages. The highest level was a 57-level old man named Guge, presumably the so-called “expert.”
Currently, it seemed Lin Jun’s most perfect scenario—controlling the core before the “expert team” arrived—was basically a bust.
He hadn’t even caught a glimpse of the core’s shadow yet.
He could only settle for second best. If the humans really could fix the core after coming down… that would work too!
After all, when it came to repairing the dungeon, humanity’s goals didn’t conflict with Lin Jun’s.
Maybe he could even use this opportunity to figure out the core’s exact location.
—
The “expert team’s” landing spot after arriving at Mute Wind Town was naturally the Adventurers Guild.
Upon entering the guild’s main entrance, Guild Master Farr, who had been waiting for a long time, quickly approached with several core members. His face bore just the right amount of respect and relieved gratitude as he bowed slightly: “Welcome to Mute Wind Town! Lord Sword Saint, Master Guge, Miss Inanna, you’ve had a hard journey! Thank you all for lending aid in this time of crisis!”
Inanna responded with standard noble etiquette, her bearing dignified.
However, in the instant of lowering and raising her head, her gaze imperceptibly and swiftly lingered for several moments on a certain illusionist behind Farr.
Though this was their first meeting, Inanna guessed this person was probably Adin.
On him, Inanna sensed the presence of the mycelial network.
‘So… he also connected to the mycelial network after transforming into a puffshroom?’ Inanna speculated silently.
Adin on the other side also looked toward Inanna, though his eyes held more shock.
‘To think… even the Duke’s only daughter has been parasitized by the boss?!’ Despite having suspected this beforehand, when seeing it with his own eyes became reality, the impact still left his mind reeling!
Moreover, he didn’t know what method had been used, but even he, a master illusionist, couldn’t detect the slightest trace of concealment or disguise.
Finally, their eyes met, and they pretended to already know each other, exchanging friendly greetings.
On the other side, Sword Saint Alvin merely raised his hand casually, which counted as a response.
“Master…” Fifteen stepped forward to greet him, his voice carrying respect and a barely perceptible hint of unease.
The Sword Saint glanced at him: “Hmm? Who are you? I don’t recall teaching any disciple who’d be defeated by puffshrooms.”
The smile on Fifteen’s face instantly froze, his expression full of embarrassment and awkwardness.
Guge, white-haired and bearded, wearing an exquisite mage robe, had a face carved from stone showing no emotion. He spoke in a perfectly flat tone: “Guild Master Farr is too kind. Maintaining dungeon stability is also our duty. Please arrange things quickly—we need the most detailed intelligence available.”
“Naturally! Rooms and hot water are already prepared. After your arduous journey, please rest briefly first. Afterward, I’ll have someone deliver the relevant reports.” Farr quickly responded, stepping aside to lead the way, keeping his posture very low.
…
In the private room arranged by the guild.
Inanna immediately took out an exquisite, compact item called “Veil of Confusion” and carefully hung it on the wall.
After injecting magic power, a layer of invisible ripples spread out, instantly completely isolating and blocking all aura and sound from inside the room.
Only after completing this step did she relax. She first took a comfortable hot bath, washing away the dusty fatigue of the journey.
Wrapped in a bath towel as she emerged from the bathroom, she didn’t put on clothes. Instead, she stepped barefoot onto the soft bed and solemnly raised her staff.
“Transform!”
The staff and towel fell onto the bed sheets with a soft “plop.” Light flickered briefly, and Inanna’s figure vanished without a trace. In her place remained only a round, pink, fluffy puffshroom!
The reason for not wearing clothes was that Inanna’s current transformation magic couldn’t convert clothing along with her—that was a technique only sixth-tier mages could master, and she had only recently stepped into the fifth tier.
“Boss!” After completing all preparations, Inanna eagerly called out through the mycelial network.
Complete silence—
“Hello? Boss, are you there?” Pink Puffshroom tilted her mushroom cap in confusion.
Finally realizing something was wrong, she concentrated and carefully sensed her surroundings, then discovered—she was disconnected!
Why?
The Veil of Confusion!
Pink Puffshroom suddenly realized the cause. The item she’d brought from home was too effective—it had blocked the mycelial network too?!
The small pink figure immediately bounced off the bed, struggling to crane her mushroom cap upward, trying to use her soft cap to reach the item on the wall.
Unfortunately, a puffshroom’s height was truly limited. She jumped until she was shedding pink spores, but couldn’t even touch the edge of the item.
With great effort, she pushed a small cabinet against the wall to use as a stepping stone, barely managing to touch the “Veil of Confusion”—but the thing seemed to have grown into the wall, adhering with unusual firmness!
With a puffshroom’s soft, fluffy mushroom cap, she simply couldn’t knock it down!
To remove it, she’d have to transform back to human form, but… Inanna currently didn’t know how to actively cancel the transformation spell. She could only wait for the magic effect to naturally wear off!
“Ahhhhhhh! I’m such an idiot!” On the snow-white bed sheets, a pink puffshroom writhed around in despair.
Inanna🤣🤣