Mushroom Spirit (1)

"Let's go play for a while," Fanxin said with a smile.

He instructed everyone to buy everything he needed. Now, the two of them were the most idle. So, they had plenty of time to play.

"Okay, let's go!" Ren Fang nodded, immediately took Fanxin's hand, and headed away towards the mushrooms.

They approached the mushrooms, examining them closely, touching and looking at them, but they didn't pick any.

Because they didn't understand these mushrooms, and they knew they might be poisonous. If they got poisoned, it would be a serious problem. So, they didn't do anything reckless.

"Those brightly colored mushrooms are probably poisonous and shouldn't be eaten," Fanxin said after observing them for a while.

The more vibrant and beautiful something is, the more likely it is to be poisonous. This is common sense. Of course, there are exceptions. However, in a broad sense, this is certain.

"That makes sense. Let's go ask them. That way, we can pick the edible mushrooms," Ren Fang suggested.

Just looking wasn't enough for her. She decided to pick some herself and take them home.

"Alright, let's go then!" Fanxin nodded in agreement. Since he had nothing else to do, and Ren Fang wanted to pick some fruit, he would naturally accompany her.

Ren Fang nodded and was about to leave with Fanxin.

However, just then, a voice suddenly came from within the mushroom bushes, saying, "Asking them won't do any good; they don't know much either."

Upon hearing the voice, Fan Xin Fanxin used his Haki to lock onto its source. He looked inside and was immediately stunned. The person who had spoken to him was a mushroom.

The mushroom was small, yellowish-brown, only about the size of a baby's palm. It walked step by step into the mushroom clump and came to Fanxin's side.

"Why can you talk?" Ren Fang asked curiously. She looked surprised and incredulous, because this was the first time she had ever seen a mushroom walk and talk.

"Because I am a mushroom fairy! I know which mushrooms here are edible and which are not," the mushroom said.

"Oh, mushrooms have elves?" Fanxin frowned slightly upon hearing this and said, "You're not lying to me, are you? Let me tell you, if you lie to me, I'll destroy this entire area."

"Oh, did you see that? I have a robot here. If you try to fool us, it won't be so lenient."

Fanxin was warning the mushroom not to misbehave. He didn't understand it, so this was all he could do. Otherwise, the little guy might just mess around with it.

"I'm absolutely not lying to you," the little mushroom said.

"Alright then, I'll trust you this once," Fanxin said, then pulled Ren Fang aside and whispered, "Don't be fooled by her cuteness, be careful, it might be a trap, understand?"

Girls love small animals the most because they are so cute. This little mushroom, although a plant, can actually talk, making it almost indistinguishable from an animal. He was worried that Ren Fang's curiosity would get the better of her and she'd be fooled by this guy.

If the other party has poisoned Ren Fang, that would be a real problem. Although there is a doctor on his ship, if even the doctor can't neutralize the poison, then Ren Fang will be in serious trouble.

"Okay, I understand. Don't worry!" Ren Fang nodded and said.

"Alright, since that's the case, then I won't stop you." Fanxin nodded and said.

Then, Ren Fang, guided by the little mushroom, went to identify the mushrooms.

Fanxin Xin watched without touching anything, because he was worried that Little Mushroom had plotted to harm them all.

If that's the case, then things will be difficult.

If he doesn't touch anything, even if Ren Fang gets into trouble, he can still rescue her in time.

Little Mushroom paid no Fanxin and kept introducing things to Ren Fang, seemingly very serious.

Two hours later, Little Mushroom got tired and stopped introducing the topic. Ren Fang, on the other hand, had received a lot of information.

"Fanxin, let's pick some to take back!" Ren Fang said, looking at Fanxin.

Although Fanxin helped her identify these things, she didn't let her pick them. She knew what Fanxin meant; Fanxin was worried that the little mushroom was up to no good.

However, she didn't believe the little mushroom would do such a thing, after all, it was quite adorable.

"Not for now, I'm worried about that." Fanxin hesitated for a moment upon hearing this, then immediately shook her head and said.

He was still uneasy, because he was worried that Little Mushroom might be playing a trick.

"I know you really want it, but this is too sudden. I can't risk your life, you understand?" Fanxin said. "Alright, let's go to the market. Everyone should have finished shopping by now."

"Alright, let's go then." Although Ren Fang was reluctant, her Fanxin wouldn't allow it, so she had no choice but to agree.

Of course, she understood Fanxin. After all, they didn't know anything about this, and it would be difficult for them to discern the truth from falsehood based solely on what the other party said.

If things are really Fanxin fears, then it will be troublesome. Therefore, she has no choice but to take precautions.

"Little Mushroom, we're leaving now, goodbye." Ren Fang said to Little Mushroom, and then she followed Fanxin and headed into the distance.

Seeing Fanxin and Ren Fang walk away, the usually well-behaved and cute little mushroom suddenly let out a disgruntled roar.

"Damn it, they won't listen to me! I'm so angry! These guys are so cautious, they're really hard to deal with!" Little Mushroom said angrily.

"No, so many people have come all at once. They absolutely must have a good meal. It would be such a waste to let them leave so safely," Little Mushroom said after a moment's thought.

When it says "a full meal," it means it wants to eat. It's a Man-Eating Mushroom that feeds exclusively on human flesh.

Of course, they themselves are very weak, which is why they want to deceive Fanxin and Ren Fang. If Fanxin and Ren Fang are fooled and eat these mushrooms, they will lose their ability to resist. Then they can take action and parasitize Fanxin and Ren Fang's bodies.

In this way, they could devour Fanxin and Ren Fang's bodies and slowly grow.

However, although it had fooled Ren Fang, it was not so easily fooled by Fanxin. No matter what it said, it remained indifferent. At the same time, it also focused its attention on itself, making it unable to harm Ren Fang.

In this way, it can only watch and can't do anything.

"Hmph, with so many of you, I'm bound to manage to get a few," Little Mushroom snorted and said.

After saying that, it immediately returned to the mushroom patch and disappeared, I don't know what it was doing.

"Fanxin, why are you so opposed? Have you noticed something?" Ren Fang asked curiously.

Fanxin Xin rarely stopped her from doing anything, because Fanxin loved her very much and generally didn't stop Fanxin from wanting anything. However, today Fanxin was acting unusually, refusing to agree to anything she said.

"Hmm, it seems strange that they're so eager for you to pick mushrooms to take home and eat," Fanxin said. "Why do they want you to pick them? What's their purpose?"

"Eat!" Ren Fang said matter-of-factly.

"Is it just about eating? What happens after you eat?" Fanxin asked.

"After eating, my stomach will be full!" Ren Fang immediately replied.

"Wrong, we'll be in trouble after we eat it," Fanxin said.

"Something happened? What do you mean?" Ren Fang asked, puzzled.

"I sensed the presence of many vengeful spirits from within these mushroom bushes," Fanxin said. "Such a large gathering of vengeful spirits is definitely not a good sign."

He was a member of the Soul Clan; he could spot any vengeful spirit at a glance, and no one could hide anything from him.

He had sensed many vengeful spirits beforehand, which is why he hadn't changed his stance because of Little Mushroom's sweet talk.

"A vengeful spirit? How is that possible? This place looks so beautiful. How could there be a vengeful spirit?" Ren Fang said in disbelief.

"Hmph, although I don't know what happened here, I'm certain that many people died here before," Fanxin said. "Raging spirits are formed when too many people die and their resentment remains unresolved for a long time. As a result, their resentment grows deeper and deeper over time, eventually forming vengeful spirits."

"These mushrooms are growing here, so they must have absorbed nutrients from the human body. Therefore, under no circumstances should you eat these things. If you do, something bad will definitely happen."

"If that's really the case, then won't we be able to eat all the things we bought here soon?" Ren Fang immediately said upon hearing this.

They buy everything they need here. If they can't eat these mushrooms, then the food here is probably no exception.

"That's true. I'll immediately tell them to stop purchasing, and destroy any items that have already been purchased." Fanxin nodded in agreement.

He was uneasy because this place gave him a very uncomfortable feeling.

After saying that, Fanxin stopped wasting time and immediately sent the robot Xiao Ning over to take care of everything.

Xiao Ning nodded and flew over immediately.

Once they arrived, it brought everyone back to the ship and destroyed everything that had been purchased.

Although everyone was puzzled, it was the captain's order, and they had no choice but to obey.

Fanxin was relieved to see that everyone had returned to the ship safely.

Afterwards, he led everyone into Wolf Valley and asked Senior Li Kecheng to diagnose them, as he was worried that some of them might be poisoned.

He had no choice; the place was too strange, and he had to be cautious, otherwise, things would get really troublesome.

"Senior, how is it?" Fanxin asked.

"No, they are not poisoned," Senior Li Kecheng said after checking everyone.

"Oh, why is that?" Fanxin was stunned upon hearing this.

"Hehe, that's because you didn't eat any mushrooms!" Senior Li Kecheng said, "The mushrooms the island's inhabitants eat are all edible, and you didn't pick them yourselves. So, you'll be fine."

"Judging from what you're saying, senior, it seems you understand where those mushrooms came from," Fanxin asked curiously.

Senior Li Kecheng nodded and said, "Yes, this was originally a country, but because the king had several sons, and the king died without leaving a will, each son held his own army and refused to submit to the others! So, they fought each other, and the people suffered terribly, many of them fled. Countless people died, and the corpses here are piled up like mountains, unburied."

"A prince, in his quest for the throne, transplanted countless mushrooms from elsewhere. The vast majority of them were poisonous. He planted them in the territories of his other brothers, but none of them were found in his own area."

"As time went by, the mushrooms grew larger. With the added nutrients, they grew rapidly, some becoming incredibly large and frightening. Due to the war and lack of food, the remaining princes had no choice but to order their men to gather mushrooms for food, but they all died. After they died, they became the mushrooms' waste again. In the end, the area where those princes had lived was completely covered by mushrooms."

"Those people all died, including the princes. The surviving prince, seeing how powerful these mushrooms were, feared they would eventually affect him. So, he had no choice but to lead his men and flee, going to live overseas."

"So, this place completely became the mushrooms' domain. However, everything has its limits; although the mushrooms dominated the area, their sheer numbers led to competition for survival."

"In the ensuing struggle, some mushrooms were killed by others, and they began to devour each other. Like venomous insects, only the strongest one survived."

"Because some mushrooms devoured a large number of other mushrooms, they gradually developed consciousness and became what you call Mushroom Spirit."

"However, although they gained intelligence and thought, their strength was greatly reduced. Heaven is fair; it gives you a benefit and it will also give you a harm."

"They can't fight, and they're not poisonous. So, they can only use words to deceive you. If you listen to them, you're doomed."

"This kind of mushroom is actually Man-Eating Mushroom. It makes you eat poisonous mushrooms, and when you are unable to resist, it parasitizes you. In this way, you become its food."

"That's terrifying," Fanxin said.

"Luckily I didn't pick them, otherwise I would have harmed everyone," Ren Fang said, still somewhat frightened. She now understood why Fanxin had stopped her. If Fanxin hadn't insisted, she might have made a grave mistake.

"Hehe, we haven't had any yet, have we? Alright, since you all know it's strange, that's fine then." Fanxin said, "We don't want anything here. Let's fill our stomachs with fish from the sea first. We'll leave here immediately and go to the next place."

He didn't want to stay there any longer because those mushrooms were terrifying. Although he wasn't afraid, he was worried that his men might fall victim to them.

If they get infected, that will be a real problem.

"Okay." No one objected. Ever since they heard about these terrifying things, they had been terrified, worried that they too would become food for those creatures.

The sooner they leave here, the sooner they can rest easy.

"Alright, pack your things right now, let's leave as soon as possible," Fanxin snapped.

Everyone nodded in agreement and immediately went to do it.

"Captain, something terrible has happened!" Just as Fanxin was making arrangements, a crew member with a full beard rushed in and into Wolf Valley.

"What's the matter?" Fanxin asked.

"Those mushrooms have moved; they've captured everyone on the island, and it looks like they're going to eat them," said the bearded crew member.

"What? What are they trying to do!" Fanxin frowned slightly upon hearing this and asked.

"I don't know either, they said they were hungry," said the bearded man.

"Damn it, does being hungry mean you have to eat people?" Fanxin shouted angrily upon hearing this.

"I..." Upon hearing this, the bearded crew member didn't know what to say, because it was Mushroom's idea, and he couldn't explain it clearly.

"Fanxin, go and rescue those people. They are pitiful too," Senior Li Kecheng said.

"What do you mean?" Fanxin asked, puzzled.

"They actually serve as nourishment for these mushrooms. If they can catch outsiders, they will eat them. But if they can't catch them, they will eat the people on the island," Li Kecheng said. "Every month, children go missing. It's not that they can't be found, but that these mushrooms eat them."

"Before, no one knew about this place. So, outsiders kept coming here because it's full of mushrooms! So, they were all safe. Because the outsiders would become their food. They had nutrients, so naturally they wouldn't harm the people on the island."

"However, if they don't get the nutrients they need for a long time, then they won't care whether they live or die."

"So, if you don't intervene, they're definitely going to die," Senior Li Kecheng said. "Of course, the pirate crew is yours; it's your decision."

"Okay, I'll go rescue them." Fanxin nodded and asked, "Is there a way to solve this once and for all? I want to destroy this place completely so that there won't be any more harmful mushrooms."

These mushrooms are terrifying. Even if he rescues these people, many more will fall victim to them in the future. If those people were pirates, it wouldn't matter. But if they are ordinary civilians, then it's a real problem.

Therefore, he planned to destroy this place, so that ordinary people who unfortunately ended up here would no longer become their nourishment.

"You must capture the strongest Man-Eating Mushroom Spirit here. Only by finding it can you completely destroy them," Senior Li Kecheng said. "If you can't find it, even if you destroy this place, they will reproduce again in a few years."

That strongest Man-Eating Mushroom Spirit can reproduce and must be eliminated; only in this way can it be eradicated completely. Destroying its offspring alone will be of no use.

"How do we find it?" Fanxin asked curiously.

"Let's burn the entire island down first!" Senior Li Kecheng said. "That way, the Man-Eating Mushroom Spirit will have nowhere to go. This will narrow down the search area. Then you can search from there and you should be able to handle it."

"Is that so? Alright, I'll listen to you then," Fanxin said. "However, before that, we must rescue all those people first, otherwise, they will die."

Those people are just ordinary folks; if they don't take action, those mushrooms definitely won't let them off easily.

"Yes, it's all up to you. Go and do it yourself!" Senior Li Kecheng nodded and said.

Fanxin nodded, then without further hesitation, he immediately stood up and headed out of Wolf Valley.

Once outside, Fanxin Xin immediately ordered the robots to begin their attack on Mushroom Island.

Robots are made of steel, not flesh and blood, so even if the mushrooms have incredible abilities, they can't harm them. It's perfectly appropriate for them to take action.

Because they are not afraid of attacks; they are not living beings to begin with.

The crew members are living beings, and flesh and blood at that, which is exactly what Man-Eating Mushroom love.

If they accidentally stumble upon a path to Man-Eating Mushroom, they'll be in big trouble.

Therefore, he didn't want them to pass.

After receiving the order, the robots didn't waste any more words and immediately flew towards Mushroom Island. Once on the island, some of them began attacking the mushrooms, while others went to rescue the poor civilians.

Mushrooms are fragile and easily destroyed. The robot has destroyed countless mushrooms along its path.

However, this is not a major problem for Man-Eating Mushroom, because their regenerative abilities are astonishing.

"Bring all the oil and fire, and burn this island to the ground!" Fanxin coldly ordered.

Upon hearing this, the crew members immediately got to work, wrapping strips of cloth around sticks, soaking them in oil, lighting them, and throwing the torches, now blazing, onto the island.

Soon after, the entire island began to burn.

Although they didn't burn anyone, they clearly heard screams coming from the mushrooms. Fanxin was certain that these weren't human screams, but rather the screams of the mushrooms.

"Sigh, I feel so choked up, but what can I do? You guys are Man-Eating Mushroom." Fanxin said dejectedly.

Every time he heard screams, he felt very uncomfortable, because he always felt that someone was being tortured.

But this time, he had no choice but to endure it, because he wasn't burning people, but Man-Eating Mushroom. Although he understood that Man-Eating Mushroom ate people because of their nature, and he couldn't blame them, he still couldn't tolerate it.

"Sigh, don't blame yourself too much. These guys almost killed us before," Ren Fang said. "This is their just deserts."