Mushroom Lord in the Underground City-Chapter 251 - 243: Delicious

[Seven Sins of Greed Triggered]

[Delicious: Level 1]

Dylan finally only brought back three fruits, one of which was accidentally damaged in a fight.

However, it wasn't a big problem; Lin Jun successfully acquired a skill from the three fruits.

At this moment, in a cave in the Deep Area covered by the Fungal Mat, warm and safe, Lin Jun's core team was sitting in a circle, their eyes focused on a newly grown mushroom.

Its cap showed a bright, eye-catching deep red color that had never been seen before!

A new mushroom color had appeared!

Is it because that fruit was red?

But that's not important; what Lin Jun wants to know now is what kind of experience the bonus of this [Delicious Level 1] can bring?

As a mushroom without a sense of taste, he could only rely on the feedback from these "tasters."

Louisa was the first to elegantly raise her hand to refuse, as vampires do not eat anything other than blood.

Indeed, but what if it was made delicious for humans?

Lin Jun couldn't help but glance at Norris... well, he could just catch a Minotaur for testing later.

Xiao Hai, hugging its own tail, was rolling on the Fungal Mat, showing no interest at all in the little mushroom.

Still, Dylan was the first to pick it off, snapping off a small piece and putting it in his mouth to chew carefully. For comparison, he also casually pulled up a common gray mushroom next to it and took a bite.

"Hmm..." He frowned slightly, seemingly trying hard to distinguish, "Indeed... a bit sweet? Some umami too? But... it doesn't seem much tastier than regular mushrooms?"

Norris, seeing this, also tried it, giving a similar evaluation: "Yes, there's a bit of difference, but... it doesn't feel obvious."

"Is that all?" Lin Jun was somewhat disappointed.

Is it possible that the mushrooms themselves are too bland for [Delicious] to work?

"Maybe it shouldn't be eaten raw?" Dylan suggested, recalling the taste of that red fruit had been far beyond this.

Then, a Drilling Puki, one Dylan had never seen before, was generated right in front of him.

The Pukis beside it threw in the Red Mushroom and poured some clear water into the "pot" at the center of the Drilling Puki.

Its mushroom cap spun back and forth, its whole body started to vibrate at high speed and finely, with a buzzing sound!

Accompanied by this peculiar vibration, the water and the mushroom in the depression quickly heated up and boiled. In just two minutes, a Puki full of steaming, exotically scented mushroom soup was presented before everyone.

Dylan scooped a spoonful, blew on it, took a sip, then sprinkled a little of the salt he carried with him, and tasted it again, his eyes lighting up slightly.

Norris's eyes widened instantly when he ate it again: "Delicious, it's delicious!"

Without a care for his image, he was practically devouring the soup in the bowl, not minding the heat.

As he ate, tears unexpectedly slid down his cheeks, for in the past, a honey-glazed meat rib at the tavern was the peak of deliciousness in his knowledge.

He had only heard other adventurers talk about [Delicious], never expecting to taste it himself one day!

Still craving more, Norris reached out to get another bowl, but with too much movement, his elbow bumped against the edge of the still vibrating Drilling Puki and was pricked by a sharp spike!

Due to the high temperature and continued vibration, a scale on his elbow flew off instantly!

"Hiss—Pain!" Norris withdrew his hand. Fortunately, it was just a momentary sting, with no serious harm.

A gust of wind blew by, and Norris instinctively lowered his head to search for the fallen scale, but he couldn't find it anywhere.

He looked up in confusion, only to see that Xiao Hai had somehow moved to the farthest corner of the cave, turning its back to everyone, curling up into a ball, leaving only a facade of calm.

"Boss!" Norris suddenly thought of something, pointing excitedly at the magical Drilling Puki, his voice rising with excitement, "This! Can it be... installed on my Gida?"

"Where? Under your butt?"

"Of course... on my hand," Norris quickly gestured, "replace that Blade Whip!"

The Blade Whip was long, but its power was still somewhat lacking. Seeing the Drilling Puki's powerful Armor Piercing ability, he was instantly tempted.

"It can be done... but it probably won't be as good as you imagine." Lin Jun didn't bother explaining further; Norris would understand once it was installed.

Lin Jun, however, did not forget about Xiao Hai, who had retreated to the corner.

The Fungal Mat in front of Xiao Hai gently arched up, and a round, plump [Delicious Puki] with a deep red mushroom cap, exuding alluring magic power, was freshly produced.

Xiao Hai was immediately drawn to it, slotting the scale from Norris between its own scales, and then—

sniffing, touching, eating.

With its head buried deep into the Puki's round body, munching away with satisfaction as if afraid of missing a bite, Xiao Hai seemed also to enjoy it very much.

[Skill Upgrade: Delicious Level 1→Level 2]

Hmm?

Producing more... So that's how Delicious upgrades!

However, unlike the low-consumption skills such as [Photosynthesis] and [Fluorescence], the Delicious skill turned out to be quite magic-intensive.

Of course, this level of consumption was of no concern to Lin Jun.

The Demon Race soon discovered that alongside the original mushrooms on the exchange list, there was now an additional entry for Delicious Mushrooms. Cong eagerly exchanged for a pack...

...

...

On the surface, near Dumb Wind Town.

An adventurer weighed the half-bag of remaining mushrooms in hand, clicking his tongue in dissatisfaction.

He had been among the first to catch the scent of "mushroom wealth" and rush in, making substantial profits in two rounds.

However, the good times didn't last long.

Standing up and observing the surroundings, everywhere he looked, there were people coming and going: adventurers, refugees, guild personnel...

Mushrooms weren't infinite. When he first came, it was easy to fill several large bags in a day; now, it took a whole day just to gather this half-bag.

This quantity might be attractive to commoners, but for a professional adventurer like him, it seemed insufficient, so he resolved to leave this overcrowded place early the next morning.

As he thought so, a flash of bright red caught his eye!

Red Mushroom!

A variety he had never seen before; Purple Crystal's mushrooms had only ever been green, gray, and blue.

Among them, gray and green were edible, but the green needed to be carefully distinguished from the toxic blue, with recent cases of unfortunate people falling into a coma from mistakenly eating blue mushrooms, some even perishing in unsafe places due to fainting.

But… red was indeed a first!

Such a vibrant color... it must be poisonous...

He cautiously put on thick leather gloves and gingerly pinched the mushroom's stalk at the base, pulling it out entirely, intending to take it back for his companions to see...

...

...

...

Two days later, in the temporary camp, inside the Adventurer's Guild tent

"Fa'er! Look who I've brought!" Edin's voice carried a subtle tone of reward-seeking, as he suddenly pulled the tent flap open.

Inside the tent, Fa'er was holding a wooden bowl, floating with pieces of red mushroom. He had just taken a big sip, with fluorescent soup stains on his lips and chin, his face expressing the joy of a drought-ending rain.

Seeing the two who entered, he instantly masked all expressions, wiping his mouth a few times hastily, and stood up, blocking the Glowing Mushroom soup on the table, bowing to Inanna.

His demeanor was still impeccable, though it would have been better if he had wiped the fluorescence off the corners of his mouth more cleanly...