Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Lin Juan had fought his way through.

No, that wasn't quite right. After clearing the mushrooms along the path, Lin Juan tried to find his way back.

He grabbed the largest mushroom and punched it.

With a loud crash, the half-human-sized mushroom was left with a large dent.

The mushroom was slippery, its cap secreting an unknown sticky fluid. Disgusted, Lin Juan shook his hand, then grabbed it again and gave it a vigorous shake. "Can you talk?"

The mushroom showed no reaction.

"No?" Lin Juan increased his force, his fingers sinking deep into the mushroom. "Do you have consciousness?"

Still, the mushroom remained unresponsive.

"Hey, give me back the way out!"

It wasn't until Lin Juan turned the mushroom upside down and shook it that Lu Mingxuan, who had been stunned the entire time, finally snapped out of it. "L-Little Uncle-in-law, what is this?"

"Something poisonous," Lin Juan said casually, unsure how to explain the bizarre entity.

"What about your hand…" Lu Mingxuan’s gaze fell on Lin Juan’s hand.

The young man’s fingers were slender and strong, his knuckles well-defined. Against the semi-transparent blue mushroom, they appeared even more striking.

Looking at the pits of varying depths corroded by the mushroom’s fluids in the surrounding soil, Lu Mingxuan closed his eyes.

His uncle’s spouse seemed terrifyingly formidable.

He wondered if his little uncle would get beaten up when he woke up.

Setting aside his chaotic thoughts, Lu Mingxuan brought up the matter at hand. "Little Uncle-in-law, are you okay like this?"

Lin Juan’s hand showed no signs of corrosion.

Recalling the scene he witnessed on the wedding night, Lu Mingxuan took a deep breath. His little uncle-in-law was truly powerful.

Whether it was mutated frogs or mutated mushrooms, he could take them all on.

"I’m fine. We need to deal with these things first." Lin Juan had noticed last time that he seemed immune to these eerie creatures.

Though he didn’t know the reason, it was good news for him.

After all, one of the most difficult aspects of dealing with eerie creatures was their irresistible pollution to humans.

Lin Juan had no such worry, so he could handle them without holding back.

After the largest mushroom was destroyed, the surrounding mushrooms suddenly decreased significantly. Lin Juan looked around and spotted an opening.

Not far away, a transparent wall made of mushrooms could barely be made out. Lin Juan’s intuition told him that the key to leaving was there.

"I’ll go check it out."

"I’m coming too!" Lu Mingxuan was too scared to stay behind alone no matter what.

"What about these people?" Lin Juan glanced at the few individuals who had grown lethargic as the mushrooms died.

After Lu Mingxuan woke up, these people gradually regained consciousness, but they weren’t fully conscious. They remained in a mind-controlled state, stubbornly heading toward the mushrooms, impossible to restrain.

Lin Juan took out the climbing rope from his bag and tied them up securely.

"I can’t protect them if I stay here alone," Lu Mingxuan grimaced. He was a science student—if only he hadn’t slacked off during the martial arts classes his grandfather signed him up for. "Little Uncle-in-law, I’m scared T_T"

"Alright, let’s go together then. But I can’t guarantee we won’t encounter even bigger mushrooms along the way." Seeing Lu Mingxuan’s pitiful expression, Lin Juan found himself giving in.

The unconscious individuals were still somewhat mobile, which made things easier for Lin Juan. He pulled the rope forward, and Lu Mingxuan, making sure not to fall behind, followed closely by his side.

After walking for a while, Lu Mingxuan felt his neck itching and scratched it.

The itchiness spread, and he reached to scratch his back.

"So itchy…"

Glancing back accidentally, Lu Mingxuan screamed, "Little Uncle-in-law, they’re turning into monsters!"

The bound individuals had skin turning blue, their heads enlarging and gradually turning into mushroom caps. Their mouths opened, oozing sticky fluid as their bodies twisted and struggled, mutating into mushroom-like forms.

"I-I’m mutating too!" Lu Mingxuan looked down at his own blue-tinged skin and almost passed out.

Tentatively, he touched his head and felt an unnaturally cold texture. Stiffening, he didn’t dare move again.

"Am I going to turn into a monster?"

Seized by panic, Lu Mingxuan burst into tears. "Little Uncle-in-law, I shouldn’t have brought you here for an outing. It’s my fault. If I turn into a monster, could you make it quick? I’m scared of pain, boo-hoo. Don’t worry, I’ll message Grandpa and tell him not to blame you."

As he spoke, he tremblingly took out his phone, pressed the buttons several times, and finally managed to turn on the screen.

"I won’t make it back, Little Uncle-in-law. Just leave me. I…" His eyes welled up with tears, his voice trembling and choked with sobs.

"Wipe it."

A white handkerchief appeared before him. Lu Mingxuan took it and wiped his face roughly.

Lu Mingxuan could no longer hold back. "Little Uncle-in-law, I don’t want to die!"

Despite his seemingly calm demeanor in arranging his affairs, he was just an eighteen-year-old. How could he not be afraid in such a situation?

"Who said you’re going to die?" Lin Juan spoke calmly, his voice carrying an oddly calming quality. "Remember Dr. Zhuang we saw last time? You’re infected by spores. He’ll cure you."

Lu Mingxuan gradually calmed down. "What about them…"

"They can all be saved." Lin Juan didn’t dare guarantee it, but he couldn’t let Lu Mingxuan remain panicked.

Moreover, Hua Nation had always been effective when dealing with disasters. He believed that even in the early stages of the eerie creatures' appearance, the authorities would have countermeasures.

If all else failed, he would try to find a superpower holder with purification abilities.

This courage filled him with strength, and gradually, his fear subsided.

"We've arrived."

Lin Juan stood beneath the enormous mushroom wall. They didn’t dare get too close, but as they approached, they realized the wall was formed by countless giant mushrooms pressed together. At the edges, these mushrooms were merging.

Lu Mingxuan looked up, feeling as though he couldn't see the top. "What a huge mushroom."

It was no exaggeration to say it blotted out the sky.

Dark blue ooze continuously dripped down from the mushroom wall. Any small mushrooms that came near were captured, melted, and merged into one with it.

Lin Juan observed that transparent mycelium constantly extended from the mushroom wall. Threads of mycelium, thick and thin, entangled any approaching creatures, dragging them into the wall to become nutrients.

"Watch out for the transparent mycelium!"

As soon as the words were spoken, Lu Mingxuan swiftly stepped back, narrowly avoiding the mycelium lunging toward him.

"Don't get too close yet." After instructing, Lin Juan took two steps back and took a running start.

Lu Mingxuan obediently stepped back a bit and was about to speak when he saw Lin Juan dash to the base of the mushroom wall and deliver a kick.

His jaw dropped as he watched the enormous mushroom wall collapse with a thunderous crash under the long-haired young man's kick.

Holy crap, just how strong is my uncle?!

"Huh? Are these mushrooms shooting fire here?"

Hearing his uncle's voice, Lu Mingxuan cautiously peeked out.

Whoa, there really was a giant fireball inside.

Lin Juan spotted a familiar face inside at a glance and greeted, "Dr. Zhuang!"

Hearing the excitement in his voice, Zhuang Yufeng suppressed his mixed emotions and asked, "Mr. Lin, what are you doing here?"

Sheng Tianzong retracted his superpower, grunted, and spat out a mouthful of blood.

So it wasn’t the mushroom spitting fireballs—it was a person.

Zhuang Yufeng hurried forward to support him. "Tianzong, are you okay?"

"I'm fine." It was just some backlash from overusing his superpower.

Zhuang Yufeng quickly examined him, and his anxiously pounding heart finally settled. Thankfully, though the backlash was severe, it was much better than the originally destined outcome.

Lin Juan glanced at them curiously and raised his hand, beckoning.

A nearly fully mutated mushroom-human emerged from behind him, leading a group of already fully mutated mushroom-humans.

The members of the Vanguard Squad instinctively tightened their grips on their weapons, standing ready for battle.

"Uncle..." Suddenly facing a heavily armed, battle-ready and intimidating unit, Lu Mingxuan instinctively sought protection.

"They’ve probably been infected. Dr. Zhuang, could you please take a look at them?"

After speaking, Lin Juan, realizing he shouldn’t ask for unpaid labor, proactively added, "As payment, I can help you deal with these things."

He detested unscrupulous bosses who make people work for free and refused to become one himself.

"I—"

Zhuang Yufeng had just started to speak when Sheng Tianzong interrupted, "Who are you?"

Sheng Tianzong stepped half a pace forward, stepping in front of Zhuang Yufeng. The Vanguard Squad quickly gathered behind them, forming an offensive and defensive formation.

Although it seemed like the long-haired young man, who appeared very human, had broken the "Magic Mushroom's" encirclement of them, he was too powerful. They couldn’t be sure if this was another one of the "Magic Mushroom's" tricks—waiting for them to let their guard down to deliver a fatal blow.

"My name is Lin Juan. Dr. Zhuang should know me." Noting their wariness, Lin Juan scowled. "If it’s not okay, I’ll find help elsewhere."

With that, Lin Juan turned to leave. He wasn’t without pride himself—he wasn’t blind to the obvious hostility from the other side.

Lu Mingxuan obediently followed behind Lin Juan, unconditionally trusting his uncle.

"Wait—"

After taking two steps, Zhuang Yufeng's voice came from behind.

Zhuang Yufeng knew he was taking a risk, but he had no choice. If it hadn’t been for Lin Juan earlier, Sheng Tianzong would have already sacrificed himself.

At worst, it would mean death.

But what if the gamble paid off?

"I’ll treat them. There’s no need—"

Before he could finish, Lin Juan quickly turned around, thrust the rope in his hand into Zhuang Yufeng's grasp, and pushed Lu Mingxuan into Zhuang Yufeng's arms. "They’re your responsibility now. I’m going to work."

What followed was a scene that made the Vanguard Squad question everything they thought they knew.

The giant mushroom wall, which they had exhausted their superpowers trying to defeat and could only fight through with suicidal tactics, crumbled like some fragile, flimsy structure under the long-haired young man’s flurry of punches and kicks.

But that wasn’t all. The young man searched through the wreckage of the mushroom wall and pulled out a waist-high mushroom.

This mushroom was unlike any other outside—it looked more refined, darker in color, and glistened with an otherworldly sheen. On its head grew a pair of eyes like snail tentacles that swiveled left and right, as if searching for an escape route.

Holding the mushroom by its tentacle eyes, Lin Juan returned to a stunned silence.

"This mushroom has a nice texture to squish. Bet it’s tasty?" The sight of the mushroom reminded Lin Juan of his memories of grilling mushrooms in the mountains, and he felt hungry. "Isn’t there someone in your team who can spit fire? Can you light it up?"

Everyone stared at him in horror.

Why would anyone think of eating something so creepy?!

Author's note: