Chapter 37: The Matter is Settled, Let’s Eat Mushrooms
Chapter 37: Chapter 37: The Matter is Settled, Let’s Eat Mushrooms
’Hua Liusha has a way?’
Zhu Ge’s heart stirred. "Liusha, tell me."
Hua Liusha said immediately, "Brother, I previously sensed a place near your home that can shelter a soul. I just don’t know what’s there."
’Near my home?’
Zhu Ge froze.
He explained the matter to Yu the Scholar, then hurried home.
"That’s it!"
The "囍" character beside Zhu Ge’s soul stirred slightly, and a faint, spectral image of Hua Liusha appeared at his side.
She was dressed in a bright red wedding gown, her head covered by a red veil. She raised a hand, pointing to an object in the corner of Zhu Ge’s house.
’So the ghostly figure from that night really was Hua Liusha...’ Zhu Ge realized as he looked at the phantom she had manifested.
The song he’d heard and the shadow he’d seen after visiting Mr. Chong that day had been created by the Xigui, Hua Liusha.
Unfortunately, Hua Liusha hadn’t yet advanced to the Second Realm back then and could barely speak, so she could only use a song to warn Zhu Ge.
Zhu Ge followed her pointing finger and looked toward the corner.
A basket that looked like a sea urchin lay on the ground.
"This is..."
Zhu Ge raised an eyebrow and picked up the basket. "The basket my mother wove while she was being controlled?"
"So that’s it." Yu the Scholar nodded and sighed.
"Perhaps when your mother was under control, her soul instinctively wanted to save you. She must have unconsciously woven this vessel for you. Such sincere love for a child is truly moving."
’She wove it unconsciously?’
Zhu Ge thought of the silent, reserved parents from the original owner’s memories and sighed, shaking his head.
Love is a mysterious and powerful thing.
At first, he’d thought that because his mother was being controlled, she had made some bizarre object that looked like a human head.
’Thinking back, maybe her deepest consciousness saw that I had returned to normal while she was under the Fungus God’s control, so her soul kept fighting.’
It was a pity that the original owner’s parents had their minds completely taken over and were now gone.
"Here." Zhu Ge handed the basket to Yu the Scholar. "Go ahead and plant the Fungus God."
"Alright." Yu the Scholar took the basket, then picked up the point of light in his hand and gently placed it inside.
The point of light floated to the center of the basket. Faint, ethereal mycelia extended from it, connecting to all parts of the basket.
The next moment, the basket slowly shrank, finally turning into a small, spiky seed the size of a thumb.
"It’s done." Yu the Scholar nodded and handed the spiky ball to Zhu Ge. "You have the Xigui to guard your physical soul, and now this to protect your spiritual soul. If you train your body more in the future, you’ll have all-around, gapless protection."
Zhu Ge was surprised. "I’m keeping it? But didn’t you say a god could protect the village?"
"The village?" Yu the Scholar sighed.
"There are only a few of us left in the village now. This place is no longer suitable to live in. We may need to seek refuge in the nearest city."
Hearing this, Zhu Ge also looked helpless but accepted the seed. "Will those cities even take us in?"
It was a chaotic era. Demons, Ghosts, Spirits, and Monsters were everywhere, and the major cities were already overflowing with people, filled to the bursting point.
The nearest city was called Yuan Yang City. It was said that its population had already reached two million.
Two million people!
And that was just the official count. The unofficial number was even higher!
In Zhu Ge’s previous life, this would have been normal, but in this era, it was practically unbelievable.
A few refugees like them probably wouldn’t even have the qualifications to enter the city.
Or rather, they didn’t even know what qualifications were needed to get in.
In these chaotic times, even the big cities were in a precarious state. With so many people, it was easy for a motley crew of good and bad to mix in.
The various abilities of non-humans were many and varied. What if they let someone like the Fungus God into the city?
It would be a catastrophe.
Therefore, forget about settling down—they would need certain qualifications and to pass a screening just to enter the city.
"Actually, we don’t necessarily have to go to the city."
Zhu Ge mused, "It’s thousands of miles from here to Yuan Yang City. With our strength, we might not even make it out of the jungle."
Yu the Scholar nodded. "True. There are too many non-humans around here, but the Tiger God and Mr. Chong are ’old acquaintances,’ so to speak. They won’t harm us for the time being."
’Most importantly, the Teacher’s lingering might is still present!’
’Plus, with the aura of a Second Realm Xigui present... whether it’s strong or not, it’s a Second Realm being at the very least.’
’Mr. Chong has his territory, the Tiger God has his territory, so why can’t a Xigui have one?’
’It’s a Second Realm being, after all. If the Tiger God and Mr. Chong decide to invade regardless, they’d better be prepared to lose a layer of skin.’
’This is a chaotic era. The Human Race leads a precarious existence in the mountains and forests, but that doesn’t mean other non-humans are completely safe either.’
’It’s the law of the jungle. Even if the Tiger God were injured, it could be targeted by other non-humans.’
’So, the best approach is naturally for everyone to mind their own business.’
Of course, Zhu Ge would also prepare for the worst.
"I’ll cultivate the Martial Dao for a while, and study the Confucian Dao as well." A sharp light glinted in Zhu Ge’s eyes. "Once we have the strength to protect ourselves, it won’t matter whether we go to Yuan Yang City or not."
"Well said." Yu the Scholar’s eyes filled with admiration. "I will do my utmost to teach you the Confucian Dao that I have learned. I hope you can advance even further and reach the Teacher’s realm."
Zhu Ge bowed with his hands clasped. "Then I suppose I should call you Teacher as well."
Yu the Scholar grinned. "We’re around the same age. There’s no need for such formalities."
Zhu Ge smiled as well but said nothing.
After this life-and-death crisis, he discovered that the real Yu the Scholar was somewhat different from the one in the original owner’s memories.
Or perhaps the original owner had been slow-witted, which was why Yu the Scholar had seemed so terrifying from his perspective.
"Let’s go. We’ll see how many others are still alive."
「...」
The bodies of the villagers lay scattered across the ground. Only a few people remained, some kneeling, some standing, their faces etched with grief.
Someone saw Zhu Ge and Yu the Scholar approaching and immediately cried out, "Look! It’s Yu the Scholar!"
"And that kid from the Zhu Family! They’re alive too!"
"Sigh. As long as you’re alive, that’s what matters. There are only a few of us left in Jianshan Village. It’s good that you’re alive."
Seeing Yu the Scholar and Zhu Ge alive, the four of them stood up.
It was four people, but really only three adults and one child.
Two young men, a woman, and her daughter.
Including Yu the Scholar and Zhu Ge, only six people from Jianshan Village had survived in total.
And among them, Zhu Ge and Yu the Scholar had suffered a great loss of lifespan; it was uncertain if they would even survive what was to come.
"Since it has come to this, let’s eat the mushrooms first." Zhu Ge looked at a few nearby tables of mushroom dishes that hadn’t been soiled.
"Eat mushrooms?" The very word "mushroom" now sent a chill down Yu the Scholar’s spine.
But Zhu Ge just smiled. "There’s no Fungus God now. We’ve been fighting for half the day and used up too much energy. Let’s eat something to recover, get some rest, and figure things out tomorrow, alright?"
To be honest, Zhu Ge was at his limit.
He was hungry, tired, sleepy, and weak.
Seeing Zhu Ge’s bloodshot eyes, Yu the Scholar couldn’t help but nod.
The other survivors also started to react.
"Mushrooms? Fungus God?"
"My daughter... was she killed by the Fungus God?"
"Sigh, it seems my daughter and I were saved."
Although the four of them wanted to ask questions, they didn’t say more after seeing the look on Yu the Scholar’s face.
As for Zhu Ge, he couldn’t be bothered with any of that.
He had been wanting to eat the mushrooms anyway, and now that the Fungus God was gone, it was the perfect chance to feast.
So, he devoured the table of food like a whirlwind, and then, full but utterly exhausted, he went to Yu the Scholar’s house to sleep.
Yu the Scholar took on the responsibility of standing guard. The survivors dug a large pit and buried everyone. Then, they also came to Yu the Scholar’s house to squeeze in and sleep.
Yu the Scholar also took the opportunity to tell everyone what had happened.
Zhu Ge didn’t wake up until the following afternoon. He felt it was the best sleep he’d had in a long time.
After waking up, Zhu Ge didn’t bother checking if anyone else was there. Instead, he first inspected his gains from the ordeal.
’A god and a ghost... Just what wonderful uses do you have?’