In the rear of the kingdom, out in a desolate stretch of wilderness, a human supply convoy had just set up camp.
Dusk thickened. Several campfires flickered brighter as the night deepened, driving away the chill.
A few soldiers sat around one of the fires, chatting while staring hungrily at the big iron pot bubbling over the flames.
A young soldier idly scraped at the bottom of his boot with a stick. Clumps of sticky mycelium mixed with mud peeled away. He could not help complaining.
"This road is impossible to walk now. The ground is covered in this sticky fungus. If you do not scrape it off a few times a day, your boots get so heavy you can barely lift your feet."
"You see that and still think it is bad?"
The scarred veteran beside him chuckled mysteriously. He suddenly pulled something from his coat and flashed it quickly in front of the younger man.
It was a plump, thick mushroom with a bright red cap. Before anyone could get a good look, he tore it apart and tossed the pieces into the boiling soup.
"Delicacy shroom."
The young soldier's eyes lit up at once.
"Quiet."
The veteran glanced around nervously.
"You want the whole convoy rushing over for a share?"
The young man nodded and lowered his voice.
Where did you get it?
"Got lucky today. Found it by the roadside."
The veteran smacked his lips in satisfaction.
"Still think the fungal carpet is a bad thing?"
The young soldier shook his head so hard it looked like a rattle.
A year ago, a nobody like him would never have had a chance to taste this noble-only delicacy.
The veteran chuckled again.
"Ever since these mycelium threads spread all over this region, camping out here has actually gotten easier."
"Oh? How?"
"You have never run this route before, right?"
The veteran pointed toward the dark wilderness.
"There used to be a kind of big rat out there. What was it called again… whatever. About as big as a chicken. Sharp teeth. Loved to sneak out in the dead of night and chew through wagon wheels and supplies. Whenever we camped here, we had to double the night watch, and every little noise everyone would wake up. No one slept well."
"Once the fungus spread in, those pests vanished. Otherwise, some of us would definitely be stuck guarding the wagons tonight."
"So the fungal carpet showed up and the big rats disappeared? Why?"
The veteran shrugged.
"How would I know? Maybe they did not like this sticky stuff and moved away."
"I think I hear something… Is that the big rats you mentioned?"
The young soldier pressed his ear to the ground.
The veteran tried it too, but heard nothing.
"My ears are good," the younger man explained.
"But the sound goes on and on. Probably not rats…"
Deep inside the underground network, countless Puchi were linked nose to tail, like a living train rushing through winding tunnels.
These Puchi had joined the convoy along the Knight Puchi's return route.
Under normal circumstances, they did not have to be this cautious.
Any area that housed mycelial routes had long been cleared of burrowing monsters that might threaten the network. Otherwise, the maintenance cost would be outrageous.
But this was his personal life-bound artifact. No amount of caution felt like too much.
To be honest, Lin Jun always felt he had never fully exploited the potential of the Sunstone.
Just look at other people's Lifebark Cores. From what he knew, those could be used to attack with life energy, transfer life energy, and even open the Sacred Tree clan's doors.
Then look at his Sunstone.
He used it to sun fungus. Or to sun vampires.
Could he really not develop something like direct attacks or other more practical functions the way Lifebark Cores did?
He could only hope that restoring the complete Sunstone would bring some new surprises.
If not, this stone's final destination might simply be to get embedded in his still-unfinished Puchi God-weapon project as a super energy core.
It would take a few more days to bring the Sunstone home.
In the meantime, Lin Jun finally had space to handle other matters.
For example… handing out rewards.
Deep sector, Puchi Underground City.
Aedin was following a guide Puchi toward the designated meeting chamber.
Thanks to expensive potions, his severed arm had already grown back. The new skin, however, was so pale and tender it was embarrassing to show. So even though it was already summer, he still wore a formal noble's long coat and immaculate white gloves.
All along the way, he could not help wondering if the boss was finally going to pay him.
After he returned from the last mission, the boss had been buried in work and had not summoned him once. Aedin never asked about it, but he had been quietly looking forward to that promised S grade magic crystal.
He had even carefully planned how to make the most of different sizes of S grade crystals.
It was said that many of the Mushroom Garden's core members would attend this meeting.
Aedin had spent most of his time operating in Mushroom City. Aside from Inanna and Dilan, he rarely interacted with the others.
He decided to use this opportunity to build better relationships with his colleagues.
Mushborn, vampires, werewolves, lizardfolk…
Right, that lizardman was Norris. Aedin remembered him.
Even so, the sheer proportion of demons among the Mushroom Garden's core members made his eyelids twitch.
It felt like he had walked into a demon gathering.
Even knowing they were all on the same side, his first instinct was to hide his true body with illusion.
Only when his gaze landed on the little fairy Riel, happily swinging her legs in the middle of a crowd of demons and munching dried mushrooms from a bag, did Aedin finally relax.
Once everyone had arrived, Marshal Puchi stepped onto the central stone platform, surrounded by a ceremonial guard of armored Puchi.
Norris stood at the edge of the platform, holding a yellow leather book. He raised his voice.
"Aedin."
"For meritorious service, you are granted a magic crystal and one sip of grace."
As soon as he finished, several Puchi waddled forward, carrying a round, plump Puchi and setting it down in front of Aedin.
Aedin stared at the scene, confused.
Was this Puchi being given to him as a pet?
But the promised reward was an S grade magic crystal.
Or was the Puchi itself the so-called gift of grace?
Lin Jun suddenly remembered something.
"Oh, right. I almost forgot."
A Puchi hurried over with a silver, glittering table knife and laid it on the Puchi in front of Aedin.
Aedin was speechless.
"What are you waiting for? Cut it open," Lin Jun urged.
Still completely lost, Aedin picked up the knife. He did not feel like he was receiving a reward at all. It was more like he was participating in some strange ritual.
But the boss's orders were absolute.
He took a deep breath and carefully drew the blade across the Puchi's soft, plump body. The knife slid in easily, then struck something extremely hard inside with a faint click.
This is…
As the mycelium parted, a crystal emerged.
A crystal as thick as an adult man's forearm, entirely transparent.
An S-grade magic crystal.
Aedin swallowed reflexively.
He had originally assumed his reward would be something like the three fist-sized S grade crystals from before, maybe even smaller.
But this arm-length chunk far exceeded his imagination.
Countless ideas flooded his mind, of grand illusions built atop this single crystal, real and false woven together in impossible complexity.
"Boss."
Aedin looked up, his voice trembling.
Instead of a response, Marshal Puchi stretched a slick mycelial tendril toward him.
A clear droplet of liquid hung at the tip.
"Come. Open your mouth and receive grace."
"Grace…"
Aedin's gaze darted between the trembling tip of the tentacle and the core members behind him who were all watching with great interest.
The always-composed illusionist felt an unfamiliar flush of panic and embarrassment.
Norris, standing at the side of the platform, could not help feeling a little sympathy. He was almost certain the boss was doing this on purpose.
In the end, Aedin gritted his teeth, stepped forward, tilted his head back, and opened his mouth as wide as he could.
Several sticky, cool drops slid down his throat.
At first, he wondered what could be special about something with no taste at all.
Then a surge of pure, overwhelming life energy blasted out from his stomach, pouring through his body like a warm flood.
Every cell seemed to cheer and dance, as if his entire body were being washed and uplifted.
Only then did Aedin understand why this was called "grace."
At the same time, through the mycelial network, Lin Jun briefly explained the effects of this "Water of Life" to everyone present.
"Lady gia… Louisa."
Norris swallowed a rather insulting nickname written in the book and corrected himself smoothly.
"For assisting with command and training the new army, you are granted one sip of grace."
Before he had even finished speaking, Louisa had shot to her feet and strode toward the platform.
There was no embarrassment or hesitation in her eyes, only raw, burning desire.
"To serve the boss is my honor," she said, voice firm and ringing.
Ever since she experienced that massive remote command operation through the mycelial network, she had replayed the taste of it over and over in her mind.
Even without the blood and stench of a real battlefield, the feeling of maneuvering countless troops with a thought filled her with a thrill she could not forget.
It was pure enjoyment. Even without reward, she would have done it gladly.
She had not expected such an enticing bonus on top.
She lifted her head without hesitation and let the drops of Water of Life fall into her mouth, not losing a single one.
Then, just like with Aedin, a flood of pure life energy exploded inside her. It washed through every muscle and bone, almost drawing a groan from her throat.
[Level Up: LV54 → LV55]
After rewarding Aedin and Louisa as examples, Lin Jun distributed diluted Water of Life he had prepared beforehand. Every core member received a share and experienced its effects for themselves.
Two core members were absent from the meeting because of work outside the city: Ming and Little Black.
They each had their own private arrangements. One was already doing his best, and the other did not need to try at all. There was no real point in dragging them into a morale-boosting ceremony.
As for Pink Puchi, he planned to sneak her some later.
That [Elemental Spirit's Favor] was still worth looking forward to.
If he had time, Lin Jun even wanted to bring Pink Puchi up north and see if she could help deal with that other berserk spirit.
That was for later.
For now, he exhaled quietly.
Managing such a large team and making sure every employee was properly taken care of was not easy.
Being the boss was hard work.
The setting sun painted the sky a warm orange.
In front of Puchi Home, Old Dilan leaned back in his chair, holding a cup of herbal tea Bianca had brewed for him before she went off shift. He let out a long, contented sigh.
Another peaceful day had passed without incident.
(End of Chapter)
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