Before Piggy left, Lin Jun said, “The ritual will need prep time. These days, feed on whoever—contribution points are on me. Don’t starve yourself.”
“Got it, Boss! I’ll be in top shape for the ritual!” Louisa’s eyes gleamed.
“No, I mean, if you croak, at least be a well-fed ghost.”
“…”
Louisa left, emotions swirling. Lin Jun’s mycelium tendril poked Yellow Codex. “List the materials.”
Most materials were in stock or easily bought from humans, but…
“How many?” Voice Puffshroom’s pitch spiked.
[Boss, I didn’t erase anything…]
“Six! Palm-sized! S-grade Magic Crystals?!” Lin Jun scoffed. “You think S-grade Magic Crystals grow on my Mycelial Network?!”
[Boss, lower-grade crystals work… but it’s about success rate!]
[Louisa’s key to Mushroom Garden—can’t risk a slip!]
Yellow Codex all but hugged Marshal Puffshroom’s chubby waist, begging Lin Jun not to skimp on Piggy.
“Where am I getting six S-grade Magic Crystals?”
[Please, find a way!]
[Uh… don’t the war puppets have some?]
“You’re eyeing those?” Lin Jun nearly laughed.
War puppets were loaded with S-grade Magic Crystals. One leg would cover it.
But that’s like gutting a starship engine for a tractor!
Sure, Piggy was better than a tractor, but the point stood.
Convert them with [Crystal Symbiosis LV8]? With his pitiful conversion rate and crystal stock… Lin Jun wasn’t confident.
“Crystals aside,” the Puffshroom pointed at a list item, “why does a vampire ritual need ‘fresh werewolf fur’? If werewolves went extinct, would the ritual die out?”
[Probably not. Many materials have substitutes, but this record only lists one method.] Yellow Codex sounded unsure.
[Why werewolf fur? Who cares? We’ve got some handy, right?]
True. A pack of werewolves lingered on dungeon level ten, untouched.
After chatting with Yellow Codex, Lin Jun showed the magic array to Edin.
Without much hint, Edin judged it a refining array, not a teleport or trap.
Level ten, near the staircase down, a blue-furred werewolf crouched, tearing at an unknown beast’s limb.
He held a ready-to-pounce stance, able to switch to all-fours sprinting, guarding against other level-ten beasts’ ambushes.
Level ten wasn’t a werewolf paradise. With capped levels, other beasts could threaten them.
Puff puff—
His ears shot up. Familiar sounds from the staircase!
Moments later, a round Puffshroom popped from the shadows.
“Big Mushroom! You’re back!” The werewolf tossed his half-gnawed bone, rushing forward, forgetting the invisible barrier. His nose flattened.
“Ow… hurts!” He clutched his nose, stepping back, eyeing the Puffshroom with a hint of grudge. “So jealous—you come and go freely…”
“Little Blue, why squat here all day?” Lin Jun asked casually.
“Why… nothing else to do…” He muttered. “And my name’s Wolfgang Shadowhowl Violet…”
“Hold up,” the Puffshroom cut in. “Ever think ‘Shadowhowl’ sounds… kinda cringe?”
The werewolf, unfazed by the jab, tilted his head. “Cringe? Everyone’s names are like that…”
“Fine, Little Blue.” The Puffshroom strolled out, stopping by the werewolf’s massive claws, unguarded. “Stop envying. Soon you’ll go down too.”
“Really?!” Little Blue’s huge wolf eyes widened. He crouched, nearly engulfing the Puffshroom in his shadow. “Big Mushroom! You saved me, I’m grateful, but don’t toy with me! We hate lies and betrayal!”
“Have I lied?”
Little Blue shook his head.
“Then trust me. One month max, just wait!”
Lin Jun wasn’t bluffing. He’d been probing the dungeon core, recently cracking level-restriction mechanics. A bit more time, and he’d have it.
Little Blue stayed quiet, but his thick tail thumped the ground wildly.
After a while, he snapped back. “What’s a month?”
Though busy with Far North and Mushroom Town, Lin Jun hadn’t ignored level ten. This werewolf was a recent gain.
At level 45, he challenged a Diamond-tier Crackfang Beast, level ten’s cap, and barely won!
He was half-dead, leg torn off, slumped by the corpse. Without Lin Jun, it’d be a mutual kill.
Mycelial Network now covered level ten. Lin Jun found him, “healed” him with parasitism, and reattached his leg.
Crackfang Beast corpse? Puffshroom “healing fee.”
His body was already mixed with mycelium, hidden by thick fur.
Saved, plus Mycelial Network chats, barrier-free movement, and Lin Jun’s tidbits of outside news, they got chummy fast.
Maybe to shield Puffshrooms from his pack or some subtle reason, Little Blue never mentioned Lin Jun to his kin, though Lin Jun never asked for secrecy.
He wouldn’t care if Little Blue spilled. Controlling the dungeon core sealed the werewolves’ fate—only the process varied.
While explaining “month” to the dungeon native, Little Blue sniffed the Puffshroom hard.
“Big Mushroom…” His tone wavered, unsure. “Your smell… a bit different from last time?”
Dog nose, huh?
Same-type Puffshrooms had different scents—new knowledge for Lin Jun!
“How would I know? I’ve got no nose!” A mycelium tendril pushed the wolf head back. “Forget that. I brought something fun!”
Hearing “outside fun stuff,” Little Blue’s focus shifted instantly.
The Puffshroom pulled a deep green potion from its belly…
(End of Chapter)
