Mushroom Lord in the Underground City-Chapter 426 - 417: Path of the Ancient Dragon
Dragon Cliff Dungeon.
Though called a "dungeon," it’s more like a massive alternate space, and the dragons are the only masters of this realm.
Unlike other dungeons that extend downward, Dragon Cliff rises layer by layer from the base, piercing the clouds.
In the lowest layers, a variety of dragon beasts reside, most being sub-species with thin bloodlines yet able to reproduce steadily.
At the summit, tens of thousands of meters high, lies the domain of pure-blood giant dragons.
Of course, this space isn’t inhabited only by giant dragons.
For instance, the kobolds serve their respective giant dragon masters and have earned the right to operate in specific areas.
Kuku is one such kobold, destined from birth to serve the great giant dragons.
Today is the day to perform his sacred duty of cleaning the dragon’s lair for his master.
Only after the tribal shaman cast an anti-corrosion spell on these cleaners, did they dare to grab their tools and cautiously step into the cave, perpetually shrouded in a faint black mist.
Kuku tiptoed around the scattered gold coins and gemstones, terrified of making any sound that might disturb the slumbering master—a great black dragon in its prime.
However, before the cleaning even began, an unexpected incident occurred.
For some unknown reason, a series of angry dragon roars suddenly sounded from outside the cave, echoing throughout the entire Dragon Cliff.
The unabashed Dragon Mighty bore down like a tangible force, paralyzing all the kobolds, leaving them trembling uncontrollably.
One kobold, overwhelmed by the layered pressure of the Dragon Mighty, lost control and urinated, the murky yellow liquid splattering on the sacred ground of the master’s lair...
In the darkness, two massive golden vertical pupils suddenly opened wide!
The next moment, a jet of pitch-black dragon breath swept across, engulfing the incontinent kobold and another unfortunate kobold nearby, reducing them to charred skeletons with a "clatter" scattered on the ground before they could even scream.
Simultaneously, a giant claw covered in black scales lifted suddenly, its talons scraping the surface of the treasure pile, sending countless coins and gemstones flying, striking forcefully against the rock wall.
Boom—!
The entire cave shook violently, web-like cracks frantically spreading from the point of impact, stones raining down from the ceiling.
A stone hit Kuku on the back of his head, but he remained sprawled on the ground, not daring to move.
"Master, O supreme Master, please quell your anger! This is your noble lair!" The old shaman who arrived upon hearing the commotion pleaded in trembling Dragon Language while prostrate.
Kuku could even distinctly feel the scorching breath of the dragon sweeping over his trembling back, causing him not to dare to breathe.
After a brief silence, the dragon’s fury seemed to subside slightly.
The ferocious dragon’s head slowly retracted into the deepest shadows of the cave, leaving behind only a segment of cryptic Dragon Language echoing in the cave:
"A mere Vilgis... dares to covet..."
...
"There, there... it’s alright now."
Louisa’s pale, slender fingers gently brushed over the dragon scales that had flared up due to fright, cautiously comforting Xiao Hai as it curled up in its wings.
After all, a careless move could result in a mishap like the few Pukis nearby who had scratched themselves to death.
After some time, Xiao Hai slightly relaxed its body.
One paw tightly clutched its large tail, while the other clasped an unfortunate dead Puki beside it, sobbing while gnawing on it in large bites.
All around was a scene of chaos, the Mushroom House reduced to a broken foundation, the ground littered with scorched remnants of mycelium corroded by dragon breath, and the air still lingered with a faint acidic scent, making it impossible for Pukis without certain resistance to approach.
This was all thanks to Xiao Hai regaining its senses in time, or else more than half of Garden Number 3 might have been lost.
A few Pukis gathered around, with one extending a mycelium tentacle to squeeze some honey on the Puki in Xiao Hai’s embrace, adding a bit of sweetness for it.
Indeed, as the sweetness spread in its mouth, Xiao Hai ate more and more focused, its sobbing gradually coming to a stop.
Lin Jun then asked, "What happened, together you sprayed away the Mushroom House."
"Big dragon, many dragons... tail, angry..."
Still the same stuttering, fragmented sentences composed of scattered words.
Fortunately, after long-term companionship, Lin Jun had become adept at translating "Xiao Hai language."
Simply put, Xiao Hai felt like it was being chased by a swarm of dragons grabbing its tail just now and had a stress response upon waking up.
Lin Jun thought, probably discomfort from growing, after all... it had really grown a lot...
Its previously not so small dragon wings on its back had expanded by another third, and the changes didn’t just stop there...
With great effort, Puki and Little Pig managed to make Xiao Hai drop the tail in its embrace and stand upright, though it was unclear where it learned the habit of clutching its tail and passing it under its crotch.
Two Pukis stacked on top of each other stood before Xiao Hai.
Xiao Hai naturally picked up the one on top, flipped it over, and started eating from the feet.
Taking a bite and finding it wasn’t Delicious Puki, it looked around at the other Pukis somewhat puzzled, but reluctantly took one bite after another, not wasting their good intentions.
This wasn’t something Lin Jun intended for it to eat, but at this point, it didn’t matter anymore.
Just a moment ago, it was noticed that Xiao Hai now stood as tall as two stacked Pukis, about 1.6 meters, having grown a full ten centimeters taller than before.
On the panel, it had directly leveled up twice to 63, with all physical attributes, except for Intelligence, showing impressive enhancements mushrooms would envy.
And this was merely the result of Level 2 [Bloodline Enhancement]. 𝓯𝙧𝓮𝓮𝒘𝓮𝙗𝙣𝒐𝒗𝒆𝓵.𝓬𝓸𝒎
So, why isn’t there Ancient Mushroom bloodline?
As a Hero, not being able to awaken the power hidden in the bloodline is truly strange!
And there’s something even stranger.
[Status: Ancient Dragon Path 1%]
Is it the progress of bloodline unlocking?
Doesn’t seem like it, Xiao Hai’s bloodline shouldn’t have unlocked just 1%, right?
That [Bloodline Enhancement] doesn’t feel particularly special, on the Pigman and the former Half-demon Leader it seemed purely like a strengthening skill, why does it bring about so many fancy things on Xiao Hai?
The notion of an Ancient Dragon is still rather mysterious to Lin Jun, there isn’t much information even on the human side, need to find an opportunity to look through the elf library later.
...
After appeasing Xiao Hai, and letting it temporarily stay in Norris’s Mushroom House, Lin Jun turned his gaze back to his experimental base in the Far North.
Here, there’s a special Fat Otaku Puki.
[Giant LV2]
This Fat Otaku Puki is nearly half the height of its ordinary peers, its round body resembling a small mound.
But what truly delighted Lin Jun was the unconventional number on its attribute panel, its Constitution Attribute exceeding the limit for Pukis.
All along, the attribute limits for various Pukis have been directly tied to Lin Jun’s level, currently, the maximum can only reach 64 points.
In contrast, humans, upon reaching the Diamond Tier, typically have one or even two core attributes exceeding triple digits.
Therefore, even the Knight Puki is at an absolute disadvantage in sheer basic attributes, achieving superiority in power only through numerous exorbitant advanced skills.
Yet, this massive Fat Otaku Puki in front achieved a breakthrough in attributes!
Though just a single breakthrough in Constitution Attribute, it is undeniably joyful.
The only issue is this skill seems to be directly tied to body size.
Puki with the [Giant] skill will inherently grow to the size limit of the current attribute, unable to maintain the light and agile combat form like Knight Puki.
Feels like it’s a specialized skill for tanks and large bombs...
Lin Jun plans to practice this skill more, curious to see how big a Puki can grow at Level 10.
