Above The Sky
Chapter 257 - 257 245 Don't Eat Raw Food Randomly 13

257: Chapter 245 Don’t Eat Raw Food Randomly (1/3) 257: Chapter 245 Don’t Eat Raw Food Randomly (1/3) The South Sea Relic Cluster truly lived up to the name of the ‘Southern Sea.’ Although the underground caverns were interconnected and numerous, as long as one delved deeper, they would inevitably encounter turbulent subterranean rivers and vast saltwater lakes teeming with many strange primordial sea-dwelling magical beasts.

Furthermore, there were sights such as clusters of fluorescent algae, misty thunderclouds, floating jellyfish, and other spectacular and unusual phenomena, creating a world of wonders.

But the people from Fiery Flame Land, apart from those professional scouts who recorded the conditions of the ruins and the monks from the Spiritual Tool Church, had no interest in enjoying these sceneries.

They were solely focused on searching for the main body of the relics of a previous era’s civilization and were determined to capture the imperial hybrid who killed their comrade-in-arms.

However, even though their hearts were filled with rage, the leader of the squad still keenly observed many suspicious details during the pursuit.

——Why were some of those vast underground lakes and rivers so hot that they nearly boiled, releasing countless streams of vapor?

And why were some lakes as cold as ice, with the creatures wandering within not very active, or even inexplicably alive?

The most important question was, why was there such a significant difference between hot springs and cold pools, even when they were less than a hundred meters apart?

Using his keen intuition as a former top scout, the squad leader was certain that these differences were intricately connected to the current situation of the grand relic cluster.

But soon, he pushed these thoughts to the back of his mind.

For after several hours of tracking, they finally caught up with Ian and Yisen.

The ice lake cave deep underground was damp and cold, which proved somewhat unbearable for the soldiers from Fiery Flame Land, especially when they turned on the searchlights and realized that all the sources of the fluorescent light were huge, brownish-red monstrous fungi, a shiver instantly ran down their spines.

Crack, crack, among the giant mushrooms, many magical beast beasts symbiotically hosting Giant Gold Mushrooms lifted their heads.

They were extremely sensitive to light, and among them, the largest magical beast was a Scaleless Iron Serpent.

It was tremendously large, over twenty meters long, and the metallic fungi growing on it were not huge but shone with a silver radiance, resembling the spiny ridges on a dragon’s back, clearly a unique species.

Or as per the customs of the Terra Continent, it would be called a ‘Labyrinth Species’!

The black-bodied Scaleless Iron Serpent with silver fins coiled its head high and gazed at these outsiders.

Although it moved sluggishly due to the cold temperature, it still sensed the malicious intent of these intruders.

Thus, it flicked its tongue and made a hissing warning sound.

“These monstrous fungi seem to be parasitic as well…

Don’t get close, burn them with fire!”

The squad leader’s judgment was not wrong.

In the face of these fungal parasites, fire was indeed the best option—having witnessed firsthand the horror of the parasites in this place, they dared not take it lightly.

Just as the flamethrowers of Fiery Flame Land began to ready their flamethrowers to deal with these Giant Gold Mushrooms and the symbiotic beasts, an unexpected situation arose.

As the blue-white flame that could melt metal enveloped the leading Scaleless Iron Serpent, the silver metallic fungi on the serpent’s entire body released a large amount of fine spores with a ‘pop,’ preventing the flames from reaching its body and, at the same time, instantly dissipating the heat of the flames, warming the surrounding temperature.

“Hiss, hiss—”

Feeling the transfer of heat, the black serpent seemed to comfortably shake its head.

Then, its lethargic golden vertical pupils transformed in a blink into the ferocious eyes of a predator, and its movements became several times faster.

With a slap of its tail, the serpent suddenly stirred up a cloud of silver spores and rapidly rushed toward the Fiery Flame Land squad.

Its huge and fluid body, covered in silver fungi, was so hard that the mere act of movement scraped the floor, turning it into powder and rock debris.

The Great Serpent, enveloped by a wave of land, attacked with a ferocious momentum.

But a Watcher Knight stepped forward, shield in hand.

He collided head-on with the great serpent with such force that it caused the serpent’s head to twist to one side—but in an instant, the serpent’s tail wrapped around the knight’s legs, dragging him into a nearby pool.

“Don’t worry about him; one Labyrinth Species Iron Serpent is not enough to bother a Watcher Knight.”

The female monk was not worried.

In fact, she even took the time to look around the cave.

She was not quite clear on the situation here, but tracking indicated that Ian and others had indeed been here.

The squad leader immediately ordered an attack: “Burn a path!”

At this point, the soldiers of Fiery Flame Land had already begun an all-out battle with these Giant Mushrooms and magical beasts.

For a moment, the cave echoed with gunfire, bullets ricocheting in all directions.

And a few blade-wielding frontline soldiers formed a battle formation, advancing to slash and kill, destroying many magical beasts and their associated mushrooms that were still slowly regaining their activity, filling the air with a faint glow—the result of the volatilization of the fluorescent liquid.

With the leader of the Sublimators, a Knight who held a long, broadsword inscribed with runes that increased its strength and sharpness, each swing left a faint yellowish-brown trail.

The force behind each cut was tremendously powerful, decapitating or even cutting in half the symbiotic beasts with each stroke.

After shouting orders for the squad to form up, the squad leader, too, drew his side sword.

“Follow me up!” He said, and swung his sword forward, cutting towards a fully activated Crocodragon that was glaring fiercely in front of him.

The captain deliberately did not strike at the Crocodragon’s seemingly impenetrable metallic scales, but rather at the Giant Gold Mushroom that appeared more like the ‘main body.’

Upon sensing the rise in temperature, the brownish-red exterior of the Giant Gold Mushroom began to unfold, becoming smoother, while the sunken fluorescent liquid emitted a strange sweet scent, making those who smelled it feel somewhat intoxicated.

Clang!

The captain’s sword struck the mushroom, but instead of slicing through like a hot knife through butter as he had expected, it felt like hacking at wood with a blunt knife.

Often, it was not the sharpness that cut through but the sheer force that caused the mushroom to dent inward.

After the Giant Mushroom dented, a semi-transparent fungal liquid flowed from the broken hard shell, devoid of any fishy smell, but the sweet scent in the air suddenly intensified.

As the flamethrowers on both sides destroyed many of the Giant Gold Mushrooms and the small Magical Beasts, the scent in the air became so intense that it made the soldiers, whose gas masks were not completely sealed, begin to feel dizzy and headachy.

“Wait, cease fire!”

At this moment, the captain also felt something was off.

As they fought, with the use of firearms and flamethrowers, the cave temperature rose, and the previously dark and cold cave suddenly brightened—all the Giant Gold Mushrooms began to emit a fluorescent glow, and the air was filled with spores and secretions so potent they could choke someone.

Although he did not understand biology and had no idea what this scene implied, anyone normal would sense danger: “Retreat!

This place is very dangerous!”

It was another correct decision, but it was too late.

Ian, who had intended to use the pressurized Water Gun to sneak attack from within the midst of the mushrooms, also sensed something.

He put away his weapon and then quietly retreated with Yisen Gard and Master Gossay.

And just as the three of them disengaged,

Boom!

A mound occupied by a large number of Giant Gold Mushrooms suddenly shook violently, the shockwave causing the entire cave to shudder.

Even the well-trained soldiers of Fiery Flame Land could not help but lose formation.

Several soldiers steadied themselves, trying to look up and see what was causing the commotion, but they were all startled into retreating and instinctively turned to run.

From the rumbling, a mound rose sharply, bringing with it a series of densely packed corpses of wild Beast Demons and even humans, evidently bodies that had been symbiotic with the Giant Gold Mushrooms for countless years and were now devoid of all nutrients.

They were all wrapped in mycelium, their rigid bodies corroded considerably, but now they were all moving silently toward the soldiers of Fiery Flame Land.

Simultaneously, with another violent shockwave, the mound completely collapsed, revealing the true form of the giant creature beneath.

It was an immense Fortress Tortoise, the ten-meter-long shell covered with Giant Gold Mushrooms of all sizes!

This tortoise was not dead but alive, having been in hibernation until the heat from the flames awakened it.

Thick mycelium streamed from the crevices of its shell, entwining around the surrounding corpses, and it was faintly visible that the tortoise’s eyes were blind, with a cluster of mushroom-like growths resembling wood ear mushrooms proliferating where its pupils should be.

Faced with the relentless attack from the team from Fiery Flame Land, the tortoise let out an angry roar, and the icy waters of the pond suddenly surged into waves that rolled towards the soldiers—if not for the intervention of a female monk, who used invisible Spirit Energy to shatter the waves that seemed like rolling seaweed, many soldiers would have been swept into the pond by the waves controlled by the tortoise.

“Ian…

Was that mushroom liquid we drank earlier really safe?”

Yisen Gard, who had already followed Ian to an exit, watched the creatures controlled by the Giant Gold Mushrooms battle the Fiery Flame Land troops.

While feeling a mix of relief and schadenfreude, he suddenly remembered that they had also consumed the secretion of the same parasitic fungus, and he couldn’t help but feel terrified, “I’m okay, the blood of the Eclipsing Light Refining Dragon can digest almost all parasites and toxins, but you and Teacher Gossay…”

He certainly did not want to end up with Giant Gold Mushrooms growing inside and outside his body because he had carelessly eaten relics of a bygone era!