Mushroom Lord in the Underground City-Chapter 279 - 271: Spiritual Guidance

"I brought back three!" In the private room specifically built for Inanna, she placed the three boxes in front of the Pukis.

"You did really well! A huge help!" Lin Jun genuinely praised her.

One Puki extended its mycelium tentacles, deftly rolling away the three boxes.

The other Pukis enthusiastically gathered around, giving her a well-proportioned "mushroom massage" amidst Pink Puki’s giggling laughter, kneading and patting away the fatigue of the journey.

It wasn’t until Inanna fell into a deep sleep, still humming contentedly, that Lin Jun fully turned his attention to the three boxes.

Without returning to the Underground City, he directly went to a place in the room with a fungal mat and tossed the flower onto it.

[Seven Sins of Greed Triggered]

[Plunder Skill: Spiritual Guidance Level 1]

In the vision of [Inspiration Level 5], the faint light dot represented by the flower was like a star falling into a deep pool.

It silently shattered and dissolved, turning into countless fine particles of light, eventually being completely disintegrated and devoured, leaving not a trace or residue behind.

As the level of [Inspiration] increased, Lin Jun saw more clearly and finally confirmed one thing—flowers and plants do not have souls.

In fact, not only flowers and plants, but even most demons do not have souls.

Or rather, the "spirit" they possess is fundamentally different from the "soul" of intelligent beings like humans and Minotaurs.

Fungal mats decompose humans and eventually "spit out" a bare soul light group, devoid of all skill imprints, which gradually merges into the surrounding world.

In Lin Jun’s understanding, [Greed] only consumes the "skills" attached to it; the soul itself is not the target.

However, when decomposing demon creatures or plants lacking higher intelligence, no soul-like substance is expelled at all.

Lin Jun speculated that either they don’t possess a soul in the sense intelligent beings do, or their "spirit" is highly bound to their skills or life form, and once stripped or decomposed, it naturally perishes.

In any case, at the level of souls, intelligent life and non-intelligent existence are clearly two entirely different entities.

The specific meaning behind this distinction is still unclear, but Lin Jun felt it might relate to some fundamental logic of the world itself.

Unfortunately, he knows too little.

And even though Edin hasn’t been asked to investigate, Lin Jun felt that humans probably wouldn’t have much understanding in this area.

The reason is simple; humans aren’t even aware that the Dungeon Core can be controlled via souls, obviously lacking accumulated knowledge in this field.

He might check later, but Lin Jun doesn’t hold much hope.

On the other hand, the Demon Race might have more information, at least knowing such knowledge as represented in their Holy Scripture, the Yellow-covered Book.

Thoughts returned to the newly acquired skill.

Lin Jun remembered the panel’s description when selecting the skill; it can be used on already hallucinogenic targets.

So who to test it on?

The Pink Puki, already in dreamland...

Norris, who just slipped back into the Mushroom House...

Xiao Hai...

Impossible!

After all, the skill involved "spirit," so there’s no telling if there might be any dangers. Lin Jun now has better experimental materials.

...

On the edge of Dumb Wind Town, a settlement area loosely fenced with wooden stakes. Tents are crowded, and the air is filled with a mix of scents.

In one tilted tent, a burly man with a scruffy beard and reeking of alcohol is snoring loudly.

A Puki silently emerged from the fungal mat in the corner of the tent, quietly standing in the shadow of the corner.

To cope with the continuous influx of people, Dumb Wind Town is already hastily planning and expanding.

But this pace clearly can’t keep up with the influx of refugees.

Fa’er has forbidden these refugees from building houses by themselves; unplanned, even precarious unauthorized constructions would become a management nightmare in the future.

These refugees, who haven’t yet been planned for, can only be housed temporarily in tents within specially designated temporary accommodation areas.

Naturally, the refugee accommodation area has the worst security.

Fa’er does want to manage it, but manpower is completely insufficient, so it can only prioritize dealing with the worst criminal acts.

As for minor thefts, brawls, and the like, they can only be handled later.

The drunkard before him is a typical tumor breeding in this "lowland" area.

He doesn’t dare touch the head-losing acts such as murder, arson, rape, or plunder, but extortion, petty theft, and bullying the weak are part of his daily routine, and not a single one is missed.

Lin Jun enjoys observing human life when bored, finding in this third-person perspective of viewing human joys and sorrows a sense akin to watching TV dramas.

Of course, as a bystander, he never intervenes.

Puki is not a hero, and Lin Jun doesn’t even consider himself just. His friendliness extends at most to his subordinates, which is the limit.

But this didn’t stop Lin Jun from prioritizing picking experiments from this trash when needed.

Even if they’re ruined, there’s no psychological burden!

Now the entire Dumb Wind Town is under Lin Jun’s surveillance, and even if Lin Jun makes this guy disappear without a trace, no one would find any clues, let alone, it’s just a skill experiment.

Hallucinogenic Spores quietly filled the tent, and the already drunk bully inhaled them fully in his drunken dreams.

[Spiritual Guidance Level 1]

The moment the skill took effect, Lin Jun sharply sensed the change!

His soul seemed to have extended invisible tendrils, lightly connecting to the bully through the "bridge" constructed by the Hallucinogenic Spores under the subtle guidance of the skill.

A very weak connection, as if it would break with a slight force, nothing like the vacuum cleaner experience with the Dungeon Core, and couldn’t compare to the invasion of the Yellow-covered Book.

But this was Lin Jun’s first time actively connecting his soul to someone else, and it was quite novel.

Following the connection of the soul, Lin Jun "saw" the bully’s dream!

Lin Jun became excited instantly!

After all, since turning into a mushroom, he hadn’t dreamed again, who would have thought!

Eagerly observing this dream.

A banquet filled with gold-plated goblets, greasy food, and heavily made-up beauties, such a trite dream.

Amazingly, after Lin Jun’s consciousness entered, it even formed a tangible shape in the dream—a green mushroom lying on the banquet’s platter...

No... This is not right at all!

It’s true I’m a mushroom now, but before transformation, I was human!

Even if my race has changed, my soul should still be in my original human form!

Why did it directly become a mushroom?

Has even my soul turned into a real mushroom?!

At least... at least come as a Puki with legs...

As soon as this thought fell, the mushroom on the platter swelled like being inflated, and within two breaths, it stretched and transformed into a round and chubby, white Puki!

Hmm?

This dream...is quite convenient!

If that’s the case, couldn’t I also become human?

The Puki continued to grow, its two fungal legs quickly extending into human legs, with the body sprouting human-like arms on both sides, even wriggling fingers sprouting on the ends...

However, when it came to the head, it got stuck!

What did I originally look like again?

Strange, I should be handsome... why can’t I recall any details?

And thus, a humanoid torso and limbs, but with a mushroom head, just stood there dumbly in the center of the luxurious banquet hall, in a thoughtful pose.

Meanwhile, on the main seat of the banquet, the bully, who had been indulging in revelry, had his eyes almost popping out!

"Mon... monster!" He pushed aside the beauties in his arms and scrambled to the wall, then seemed to remember his "status", screaming, "Guards! Guards! Protect me! Kill this monster!"

"He even assigned himself a noble identity..." Even without a mouth, Lin Jun’s Mushroom Person spoke.

Watching a group of blurry-armored, puppet-like "guards" trooping in, Lin Jun temporarily put the recollection aside.

Time to test the guidance effect!

Though the connection was very weak, and the part of Lin Jun currently appearing in the bully’s dream was not even of higher soul quality than the bully himself, conscious guidance crushes unconscious dreaming, with skill assistance.

In the next instant, mushrooms burst forth from the heads of all the guards!

Their movements halted, then uniformly turned their spears, the cold tips pointing directly at the bully cowering against the wall!

"What... what are you doing?! I am your master! Kill it! Kill it!" The bully screamed in terror, his back pressed against the cold wall, with nowhere else to retreat.

Amidst the harsh screams and the muffled sound of blades piercing flesh, the glaring red gradually soaked the luxurious wall tapestry and carpet in the corner.

Lin Jun was about to continue his efforts, trying hard to recall his "handsome" face, but as the dream’s main character died completely, the entire banquet scene collapsed dramatically!

This part of Lin Jun’s consciousness was rapidly withdrawn.

Trying to reconnect the skill, the consciousness sank into a void, lifeless darkness, empty of everything.

Alright, it seems you can’t just kill the dreamer in their dream...

...

"Mushroom... Mushroom Monster..."

The next day, the bully was in a daze, muttering to himself all day, only managing to barely recover on the third day.