Chapter 29 The Bone Man's Offering <TOC> Chapter 31 C-Class Creature
Translator: SumTLMan
“The Exploding Mushroom’s tendrils penetrate underground, making it hard to remove. The Black Hand Mushrooms can dig it out and keep it stable, but if I were to carry it, the jolts along the way might trigger an explosion. So after much consideration, I decided not to bring the actual Exploding Mushroom.”
The Bone Man explained.
He then took out a figurine molded from mud and stone: “However, I crafted a clay model based on the Exploding Mushroom. Although it won’t explode, I shaped and sized it according to the original, so it can serve as a reference for identification.”
Zhou Yi accepted the model.
The Exploding Mushroom was flat, like a slightly raised lump of mud, with no patterns or bright colors on the surface. At the bottom, there were some thread-like tendrils.
Whether placed on the ground or buried in the soil, it was hard to detect or notice. Mixed into the Carpet Fungus, it blended in perfectly.
Without local guidance, the Mushroom Forest was an extremely dangerous natural minefield.
As Zhou Yi examined the clay model of the Exploding Mushroom, he praised: “No wonder the Mushroom Forest has never been breached by other Light Absorber species or humans. You have a very comprehensive defense system.”
“Please don’t say that. Compared to your astonishing power of commanding the Dead Sea Abomination, these defenses are hardly worth mentioning,” the Bone Man maintained a humble attitude: “The juvenile form of the Exploding Mushroom is called the Stone Pouch Mushroom. As they grow, some of them evolve into Exploding Mushrooms. The Exploding Mushroom’s tendrils cling tightly to the surface layer of the ground. When lifeforms other than mushrooms enter the range sensed by its tendrils, causing vibrations or stepping on it, it will detonate.”
“At its root, the Exploding Mushroom is a special evolution to maintain the stability of the nearby land and prevent destruction.”
Zhou Yi grasped the key point: “Some of them? Does the Stone Pouch Mushroom have other evolutionary paths?”
“You’re correct.” the Bone Man nodded: “Another portion of the Stone Pouch Mushrooms grows upward rather than collapsing downward. It becomes an inconspicuous large stone-like shape, but the energy accumulated inside grows more and more, and its surface becomes extremely hard, looking no different from the hard stones in the oasis river.”
“This growth phase lasts from several months to several years. Once it stops growing, it maintains its shape. Then it gradually cracks open, decays, and rots, turning into a large amount of nutrients and important sustenance that returns to the ground.”
Zhou Yi thought to himself, no wonder it’s called the Stone Pouch Mushroom.
But he faintly felt that something seemed off.
The Exploding Mushroom and the Stone Pouch Mushroom felt like they had some special internal connection.
Zhou Yi looked at Sun Zhonglai: “What’s inside the Stone Pouch Mushroom?”
“It’s not that I want to keep you in suspense, but please give me a moment to talk about myself, because it’s closely related to the Stone Pouch Mushroom. It will explain my current situation and why I’m in the Mushroom Forest.”
The Bone Man looked at the box at his feet.
“When I woke up, I found myself in the Mushroom Forest. My body had become what it is now, but about my past, who I was, where I was, what I was doing, I knew nothing.”
“Fortunately, beside me was this box, made from a special beast hide, with special medicinal anti-corrosion and anti-insect treatments on the surface, so it basically retained its form.”
The Bone Man recalled: “I opened the box and found some papers inside that recorded various plants with sketches and characteristics. Among them was a suicide note.”
“The letter said that if I woke up and saw this, it meant I had become a Bone Person and that I should start a new life under the name Sun Zhonglai, not to care about the past, and to look forward.”
Sun Zhonglai interlaced his ten pale fingers and continued: “The letter said that because I had been conducting drug experiments for a long time, I didn’t have much time left to live, and I was in constant physical pain and unable to sleep. So my past self reminded my present self not to worry about death; it wasn’t murder but a natural death.”
“The letter stated that I came to this Mushroom Forest originally to undergo euthanasia in the coma induced by the Giant Mushrooms.”
“However, here, I met a girl in white, exuding fragrance all over. She said she was very hungry and needed to eat my brain and body, but as compensation, she would piece me back together and let me be reborn in the form of a Bone Man.”
“At that time, I didn’t have long to live anyway, so I agreed without hesitation.”
“Then I was eaten by her.”
At this point, the Bone Man’s emotions remained very stable, as if he were just recounting someone else’s story.
“My past self said she was a powerful being from legend, the Death Angel.”
Death Angel?
It was the first time Zhou Yi had heard this name.
In his mind, Red Falcon’s supplementary information sounded.
“This is a rare lifeform of very high strength. In the public information of Recursion City, its class rating is A. Wherever it appears, there will be massive death and withering of lifeforms. It belongs to the type of individual that all kinds of lifeforms are extremely fearful and loathe… Its mechanism is still unknown.”
Zhou Yi immediately became alert.
Red Falcon’s [Bird’s-Eye View] is equivalent to mind-reading, and it’s only rated C-class. This Death Angel is an A-class skill user and comes with a death buff… That’s a bit tricky.
However, the Death Angel actually has the ability to transform someone into a Bone Man?
That’s a new piece of information.
“Most importantly, before leaving, that Death Angel lady asked me to take good care of this place. When new Death Angels are born from her offspring, she will give me a gift as a token of appreciation.”
Sun Zhonglai rubbed his bony hands and showed a somewhat ingratiating skeletal smile: “I’ve never told anyone about these things. I hope you can understand my sincerity.”
Various thoughts flashed through Zhou Yi’s mind.
So the Mushroom Forest was actually a nursery base for a Death Angel. No wonder the Bone Man had been staying here all along. He was essentially the Death Angel’s nanny or caretaker?
In other words.
“The Stone Pouch Mushrooms are the offspring of the Death Angel?”
The Bone Man nodded solemnly: “Yes, sir. But in my 70 years as a Bone Man, I have yet to see a new Death Angel born from a Stone Pouch Mushroom. They are born one after another but soon crack open and return to the earth, like eggs that cannot hatch chicks.”
“That lady instructed me to let everything follow its natural course and didn’t tell me any methods to increase the birth rate of Death Angels. But such legendary beings are extremely rare by nature, so it’s understandable that it’s difficult.”
“What I can do is to continue expanding and maintaining the Mushroom Forest and keep watch.”
“But please don’t misunderstand me; I have no other intentions. I’m just telling you everything I’ve experienced truthfully. The Black Hand Mushrooms I lead all have rich experience in cultivating mushrooms. The Mushroom Forest sincerely hopes to join your farm. This way, they can utilize their diligence and skills, and we can have a strong backing like you.”
Zhou Yi pondered.
The Mushroom Forest actually involved a legendary creature like the Death Angel.
More importantly, the Bone Man who had been managing the Mushroom Forest for a long time was indeed an experienced cultivator and caretaker. At least in terms of mushroom cultivation, they were far superior to the residents of Grub Grain.
Zhou Yi raised his right index finger: “I have a question that I need you to answer honestly.”
“Please ask.”
“It’s said that Black Hand Mushrooms are adept at theft, deception, and ambush. Are they reliable?”
The Bone Man said calmly: “I can’t vouch for others, but at least the Black Hand Mushrooms in the Mushroom Forest are basically ones I’ve watched grow up. They are a species with a short lifespan, living only 10 to 15 years, shorter than humans.”
“These children are ones I’ve nurtured and taught bit by bit. What they’re really good at is mimicking humans. In fact, in the Mushroom Forest, the vast majority of thefts and ambushes against humans are done by other humans themselves, but they attribute it to the Black Hand Mushrooms externally.”
“The Black Hand Mushrooms are weak in combat, so I require them to act in groups and learn to bluff, using Exploding Mushrooms to intimidate outsiders. These children are very hardworking; they just want to protect themselves and this place. They’ve always been cultivating Giant Mushrooms and further expanding the Mushroom Forest.”
Zhou Yi nodded: “I believe you.”
The other party’s tense bones relaxed slightly.
Zhou Yi extended his hand to him.
“Welcome to the Wasteland Development Company.”
The Bone Man wiped his hand bones with his clothes and then carefully extended them.
“From today on, the Mushroom Forest is the company’s wild mushroom protection zone, under our protection. You’ll still be fully in charge, and I hope you’ll grow more mushrooms and grow them well. If you need anything, feel free to ask.”
The other party was overjoyed and hurriedly grasped Zhou Yi’s hand with both hands: “Thank you, thank you, Chairman. We will work hard to grow the mushrooms you need. The soil in the forest is very fertile; most mushrooms can grow very well!”
Zhou Yi was in a good mood.
He was worrying about the lack of agricultural labor.
Although the Dong Fang Hong brothers are agricultural machinery, it takes several months to cultivate farmland and plant and harvest crops, and considering weather factors, there’s a certain degree of uncertainty. It’s a long-term investment and can’t be counted on in the short term.
With the natives of the Mushroom Forest, the supply of edible mushrooms was secured.
Chapter 29 The Bone Man's Offering <TOC> Chapter 31 C-Class Creature