Mana Mushroom

"Isn't something a little off about the stuff in this treasure chest?"

Inside the Goblin camp, Vinnie tilted her head as she looked at the contents of the chest. What kind of treasure chest had no equipment or treasures at all, but was instead filled to the brim with mushrooms?

Was her luck really that bad, or was it because this was the Mushroom Forest, so the treasure chests here were all like this?

"Huh?" Oliver crouched down, took a mushroom from the chest, and held it before his eyes. After giving it a sniff, his eyes lit up. He snapped off a piece and stuffed it into his mouth. "It can actually restore magic power and mental strength. This should be a magical plant that looks like a mushroom."

The world contained all kinds of plants born under different environments and magical influences. These plants had different effects and uses, and many of the magical plants needed for alchemical potions were extremely valuable.

Oliver knew a little about potion-making. Quite a few of the mushrooms in this chest contained pure, gentle magic power, making them a versatile magical plant suitable for brewing both mana potions and mental recovery potions.

"One of these Mana Mushrooms is worth at least one gold coin." After saying that, Oliver licked his lips and directly ate the rest of the mushroom in his hand.

"They're actually worth that much?"

Mark and the others had been somewhat disappointed that the treasure chest was full of mushrooms, but upon hearing that each Mana Mushroom was worth one gold coin, and that there were at least dozens in the chest, worth at least dozens of gold coins—

Smiles immediately appeared on their faces. They might all have been peak Formal Professionals,

but if professionals wanted to grow stronger, every step required a great deal of money. Otherwise, why would they risk their lives by coming into the Dungeon? It was all for the treasures and wealth within.

Oliver took several specialized boxes from his alchemy storage pack and sorted all the Mana Mushrooms from the chest into them. As for the remaining ordinary mushrooms, the group only picked out a few Delicious Mushrooms to prepare for dinner that night.

"Mark, I think we should temporarily give up riding the Clearwind Boat and properly explore this area."

Vinnie's gaze swept across the enormous mushrooms around them, greed gleaming in her crimson eyes. She did not believe the mushrooms in the treasure chest had appeared there on their own. More likely than not, the Goblins had taken out the equipment inside and used the chest to store mushrooms instead.

The best proof was the large number of edible mushrooms mixed in with them.

In other words, there had to be a Mana Mushroom growing area nearby. As long as they found it and harvested the mature Mana Mushrooms, they would have guaranteed profits even if they found nothing else afterward.

"Mm, I was thinking the same thing."

Oliver likewise agreed with Vinnie. As a mage and part-time potion-maker, he was very interested in the growing conditions and environmental makeup of Mana Mushrooms. If possible, he even wanted to collect some spores and bring them back to study how to cultivate and reproduce Mana Mushrooms on a large scale.

"In that case, let's start by exploring this area."

Mark took out the map he had drawn along the way, looked at the section marking the Mushroom Forest, and nodded in agreement. They had already escaped the poisonous fog zone. It was time to start exploring properly.

"Everyone, change equipment."

As soon as Mark spoke, each of them took out a full set of equipment from their alchemy storage packs. To pass through the Venomous Swamp earlier, they had all traveled light, lest they fall into the swamp and sink straight down from the weight of their gear.

More than ten minutes later, the appearance of Mark's group of four had changed completely. Mark wore silver-white armor, held a round shield, and carried a fiery red greatsword on his back. It was his spare weapon; the enchanted greatsword he had spent a fortune forging had been lost in the Dungeon last time.

Vinnie and Oliver, both assassins, did not appear to have changed much. But Ireland, the light priest, wore armor no less impressive than Mark's. He held a spiked warhammer in one hand, with a chain hanging from its end and tightly wrapped around his wrist.

"Sure enough, this outfit is still the most comfortable."

Ireland's voice came from beneath his closed helmet. The massive spiked warhammer seemed weightless in his hand. As priests of the gods, shepherding the faithful and spreading the faith, every official priest recognized by the church was far from the delicate, fragile figure described in bard tales.

After all, weak priests did not have the strength to spread their gods' faith, eliminate heretics, and protect the flock.

"Move out."

Mark took the lead at the front of the group. Vinnie, the assassin, vanished as her figure slipped into the shadows. Oliver stood in the center of the formation, constantly alert to the movement around them, while Ireland guarded the rear.

Time slowly passed. There was no cycle of day and night within the Dungeon—at least, not on the Dungeon floors they had reached so far.

As Mark's party ventured deeper, they encountered attacks from quite a few monsters, including Swamp Giant Crocodiles. Yet these monsters, which no adventurer dared provoke lightly in the swamp's thick fog, were utterly vulnerable in the Mushroom Forest, where there was plenty of solid footing.

They were no match for Mark's group at all. Their nearly ten-meter-long bodies charged like semi-trucks at full speed, yet Ireland still dodged easily before smashing their skulls apart with a single swing of his warhammer.

"Mark, head that way. The magic power over there is more concentrated."

Oliver, who had just blasted several Swamp Pythons away with a Fireball, suddenly looked toward the front right. Sensing the magical aura coming from there, he hurriedly shouted to Mark.

"Got it."

Mark replied without looking back, even as he fought. His entire body burst into blazing flames, and the greatsword in his hand rose high and began expanding. In the end, a ten-meter flaming greatsword came crashing down, wiping out more than half the monsters surrounding them in a single strike.

"Go!"

Unleashing such tremendous power took no small toll on Mark. Before more monsters could arrive, he charged first toward the direction Oliver had indicated.

Whoosh.

A nimble figure leaped continuously between the shadows, taking a monster's life with every appearance. As an assassin, Vinnie immediately cleared away every monster blocking their path, then casually tossed down temporary magical traps after her teammates passed through.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

The firelight from alchemical bombs blocked the monsters' pursuit. Mark's group of four ran all the way until they finally charged into a strange space.

"What is this place?"

Mark raised his head to look at the canopy above, which radiated countless specks of light. Beneath his feet was soft, slightly springy ground, while the surrounding walls were covered in mycelium and countless mushrooms grew from them.

Ahead, below a cliff dozens of meters high, lay a massive sinkhole. Hundreds of Puchi within it were spraying magical spores. This was the interior of an enormous mushroom.