Qiong's heart pounded like thunder drums!
Having just escaped from Qis's clutches, he had now fallen captive to another unknown entity in the blink of an eye!
He had originally thought that dragon-man was an outsider, but now he realized with shock—it was actually entrenched in the middle layer, just like Qis!?
What made him even more suffocated was that this dragon-man seemed to be... symbiotically living with a group of mushroom-like bizarre creatures?!
The extreme cold of the far north should have killed all fungi—Qiong had never seen puffshrooms before.
Based on their seemingly soft and powerless appearance alone, Qiong instinctively classified them as weak magical beasts.
However, to be able to coexist on the same layer as the ferocious Qis... the truth was obviously far from what met the eye!
Setting aside these complex matters, what truly worried him was that just now, right before his eyes, the puffshrooms had sprinkled some unknown substance on Shou's body, and now these things seemed to have grown into Shou's flesh!
The scene before him left no doubt—these mushrooms were going to consume them as nutrients!
Qiong struggled desperately, pushing away several puffshrooms beside him, trying to resist, when an ice-cold hand pressed him back to the ground with irresistible force!
Looking back—a tall figure, skin pale as paper, and... those sharp fangs tinged with a hint of blood red!
"A vampire?" Qiong's voice was distorted by extreme shock. "You... you're from the Empire!?"
Qiong fell into complete confusion, unable to understand why Imperial people would appear in the middle layer of Stonekeep's underground city, or why they would capture them.
Louisa rolled her eyes, too lazy to explain.
The boss had originally wanted to have the puffshrooms knock out this demon descendant with hallucinogenic spores before crippling and parasitizing him, but he had struggled free ahead of schedule.
Well then, they'd just do it directly like this!
Wrapping her arms around the desperately struggling Qiong, Louisa pinned his arms and immediately bit down on his neck.
"Ugh..." Life rapidly drained away along with his warm blood, and Qiong's resistance quickly weakened as his consciousness began to blur.
Meanwhile, Louisa across from him was intoxicated by the delicious taste.
How long... had it been since she'd tasted such exquisite blood?
This was incomparable to the crude blood of cave dwellers or minotaurs—this sweet flavor containing the unique power of demon descendants made Louisa's crimson eyes narrow in satisfaction.
"You're not planning to drain him dry, are you?" The boss's voice fell like ice water.
Louisa instantly sobered, her fangs withdrawing from the neck without hesitation.
She wiped the blood from the corner of her mouth and shook her head solemnly to indicate: she had restraint!
Qiong collapsed to the ground, his vision dark, using his remaining strength to drive his arm forward, futilely reaching toward the unconscious Shou...
*Poof—*
In his final moments of consciousness, a puffshroom's short foot gently stepped on his chest, and drifting spores fell like fine snow, covering his entire body.
He too would be eaten by these mushrooms, just like Shou...—
"Ah, ah, I see, so that's why you appeared here." Lin Jun attended to the two injured demon descendants while instructing Norris and Little Black: "Make another trip! See if that meatball we just stomped is still there—bring it back if you can."
Something Qis cared so much about must surely be valuable!
When Qiong awoke, he was surprised to discover that both he and Shou were actually still alive. Not only alive, but Shou seemed to have recovered from his severe injuries!
Although his hands were already crippled, at least his life seemed safe for now, and even several wounds on his body had been filled in by that parasitic thing.
Qiong didn't know what consequences this bizarre healing method might bring, but Shou was alive—that was ultimately a good thing, right!
Shou was much calmer.
Combined with Qis's unusual behavior, this group calling themselves puffshrooms probably weren't exactly benevolent either.
But Shou had few choices. During their exchanges, his several attempts at deception were casually pointed out by the other party as if unintentionally.
He could only vaguely explain some things, trying his best not to mention the tribe's location and situation.
Fortunately, the other party seemed genuinely uninterested in demon descendant tribes and didn't probe further.
"Sigh, you were also forced into this by Qis—everyone needs to survive!" The puffshroom before them shook its head, its tone carrying the lament of shared misfortune. "Just like us puffshrooms of the great family—we naturally love peace! But Qis is just jealous, coming to loot and pillage every few days. When we fight back, it's all because we're forced into it..."
Qiong unconsciously touched his neck, where two fang marks still remained.
Lin Jun noticed and proactively explained: "Sigh, Little Pig was a bit greedy, but she had restraint. Just consider it collecting a bit of 'blood payment' for saving you!"
"Little Pig..." Qiong's gaze involuntarily drifted toward Louisa in the distance.
The latter immediately turned away, pretending to study the shadows in the corner.
"For the grace of saving our lives, some compensation is appropriate—we don't mind at all." Shou steadily took over the conversation, answering for Qiong.
After their brief exchange, the puffshrooms brought over two bowls of bizarre, glowing thick soup.
"This is..."
"Mushroom soup! Aren't you hungry?"
After several near-death experiences, it was impossible not to be hungry.
But... a group of mushroom magical beasts inviting you to drink mushroom soup? And it was glowing?!
This scene was as bizarre as it could get.
In the end, Shou was the first to steel himself and eat it. Their lives were in the other party's hands—there was no point overthinking it!
After finishing the entire bowl, a flash of surprise crossed Shou's eyes. Though the mushroom soup didn't taste particularly good, after entering his stomach, warm energy quickly filled his exhausted body!
Qiong was even somewhat embarrassed to ask for another bowl.
"No problem, no problem, eat as much as you want—it's just mushrooms. I have as many as you need!"
After the hearty meal, Shou tentatively suggested leaving. Unexpectedly, the puffshroom readily agreed.
"With your bodies so weak, it would actually be best to rest another day or two before leaving." The puffshroom seemed genuinely concerned only for their safety.
"We appreciate your kindness, but after everything that's happened, our tribe is probably still waiting for news from us," Shou said.
"True, true, take these with you!" Lin Jun expressed understanding.
A puffshroom timely brought over a bulging leather pouch and stuffed it into Qiong's hands. It was packed full of mushrooms. "Take these to eat slowly on the road."
When leaving, Shou saw from afar some puffshrooms transporting Qis's remains.
He passed by Norris, who had made another trip back but returned empty-handed—Qis had already retrieved the corpses.
The puffshrooms escorted them all the way to the upper level before waving their fungal tendrils in farewell.
————
"Shou," Qiong looked back at the deep castle silhouette, his voice carrying a hint of uncertainty, "these puffshrooms... seem fairly friendly toward us?"
Shou didn't answer immediately, only letting out a heavy sigh as if trying to expel all the stale air from his chest.
That sigh condensed into white mist in the cold air, lingering for a long time.
"...Let's hope so."
"What do you mean?"
Shou raised his half-severed arm, where fungal threads intertwined with his magical markings and flesh.
"Qiong," his gaze pierced through the wind and snow toward the more northern wasteland, "perhaps... what we should do now is walk north without looking back, to a place with no tribesmen, and then... quietly die there."
He paused, his voice full of hesitation: "But everything we've seen and experienced... this information about Qis, about those mushrooms, about this underground city... must somehow be sent back to the tribe."
Qiong thought much more simply. He said firmly: "Shou! Wherever you go, I'll go! If we die, we die together!"
Shou stopped and looked at him for several moments, ultimately unable to bear leading him to an unclear death.
"Let's go back to see the elder first. If that doesn't work, then have the tribe migrate south quickly..."
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