Mushroom Lord in the Underground City

Chapter 713: Chapter 702: New Fungus People

"Oh! Aaahhhh!"

Standing under Fungus Castle’s screaming bell, Listening to the wails of the Vampire alarm clock overhead, the half-demon Ze suddenly felt that his earlier move—rushing ahead of the Fungus Castle soldiers and killing Earl Ronar on his own—might have been a bit rash.

Before this, as a servant, Ze didn’t know much about Fungus Castle.

From the limited information he could get, he only knew that Fungus Castle was a power formed by a bunch of Demon Race tribes from the Northern Territory gathering together, mainly fighting by controlling Puki.

In his eyes, this was just an internal war among the Demon Race.

And based on past experience, this kind of war usually didn’t end in complete extermination.

Mid-tier nobles like Ronar, as long as they chose to submit, or paid a huge ransom, could usually keep their lives.

Whenever he thought of his younger brother who’d become blood food, Ze would never allow this chance for revenge to slip from his hands!

So he took the risk of being settled accounts with afterward, and rushed back the first moment the white fog dispersed, personally slaughtering Earl Ronar.

And now, he lay on the ground in regret, his fists hammering the floor again and again, drawing many side glances from the surrounding Fungus People.

"He got off cheap!"

That bastard was killed by him in the afterglow of his sweet dream; due to the difference in strength, Ze had stabbed wildly at the Vampire’s heart, not giving Ronar any chance to wake and struggle.

But that also meant Ronar died without suffering much!

Every time he thought of how he’d endured for more than ten years, only to exchange it for Ronar’s brief moment of pain, Ze regretted it so much he wanted to die.

You have to know, that pain could have lasted a long, long time!

After a long while, Ze crawled up, walking down the main street of Fungus Castle somewhat dejectedly.

Watching the fat homebody heating Puki that melted the piled-up snow back and forth along the street, the silent Fungus People passing through—this quiet city.

The occasional bits of conversation all came from people like Ze, newcomers to Fungus Castle who hadn’t yet undergone Symbiosis with Mycelium.

In fact, not just anyone could come straight to Fungus Castle.

No matter how large you built it, Fungus Castle was, in the end, only a city; there was no way it could hold the entire population of the north.

So most of the newly absorbed former Empire Demon Race were settled in place; if they wanted to come tour Fungus Castle, they had to apply and line up.

As for actually settling down, the requirements were even higher.

Only people like Ze, who’d actively assisted in resisting the Empire, had a chance to obtain residence rights in Fungus Castle right away.

To be honest, Ze didn’t have much concept of residence rights in Fungus Castle, nor did he feel it was that precious.

It was just that after suddenly succeeding in his revenge, he fell into a kind of emptiness, and thought about coming to Fungus Castle to see what this power that had helped him finish his revenge was really like.

At the Contribution Points withdrawal office beneath the city hall of Fungus Castle, he withdrew all his Contribution Points.

The citizens of Fungus Castle rarely used silver and gold for trade; for new Fungus People like Ze, who hadn’t yet Connected Fungal Network but did have contributions, this office could directly cash out Contribution Points.

Though most of Ze’s Contribution Points had been deducted for killing a Blood Race Lord without authorization, he still had some left.

Looking at the few "slips of paper" in his hands, Ze also felt it was a bit novel.

After withdrawing his Contribution Points, he asked the staff member who’d served him what good food was nearby, and was directed to a restaurant near the Puki hot springs center, where he tasted what was said to be the most authentic Delicious stew in Fungus Castle.

The taste was beyond words, so good that he let out an "oooh oooh oooh" right on the spot.

If only that Lizardman clerk hadn’t looked so disgusted when taking his payment, it would’ve been perfect.

It wasn’t his half-demon identity they despised, but the few paper Contribution Points he handed over.

Ze noticed that in the whole shop, he seemed to be the only one "paying."

Everyone else just nodded slightly at the clerk by the door on their way out and left.

After Ze asked, all he got was a suggestion that he hurry up and complete Symbiosis with Mycelium.

Following the map of Fungus Castle, Ze found the officially run Symbiotic Mycelium clinic.

The Symbiotic Mycelium service was free, and safety was guaranteed.

But if you paid some Contribution Points, you could enjoy a completely painless Symbiosis surgery, including subsequent recovery care.

Ze naturally didn’t lack that bit of Contribution Points.

The staff here didn’t show any disgust at his use of paper Contribution Points, and quickly finished making change; after all, everyone coming here was someone who hadn’t yet Connected Fungal Network.

"How is it? Can you sense my thoughts?" After the painless Symbiosis surgery, the doctor asked Ze lying on the bed, through the Fungal Network.

This was Ze’s first time communicating by thought, and he subconsciously opened his mouth and said, "I can..."

"Good. Now try not to use your mouth, but transmit your thoughts to me through the Fungal Network! I’ll teach you the trick—just think in your mind..."

Under the guidance of the professional physician, Ze roughly learned how to use the Fungal Network to communicate.

The next day, when he walked out of the clinic, Fungus Castle suddenly turned lively in his eyes!

The residents on the streets were no longer silent; some were chatting about family matters, discussing whether to send their children to the new Skills schools set up by the Ministry of Truth.

Others were talking about the war situation at the front, arguing whether Fungus Castle should seize the chance to keep pushing south or pause to consolidate what it had gained.

If Ze had to use one word to describe Fungus Castle now, it would be "full of vitality"!

Every Fungus People on the street seemed to be living well—so well they had the leisure to talk about all kinds of things. This was the kind of vitality you’d never see in cities full of slaves and low-tier Demon Race.

He even saw a guy who’d lost both legs, who in the Empire was only fit to curl up in some corner of the city waiting to die, now using a controlled Puki as a means of mobility, laughing as he told his companion how many Contribution Points he still lacked before he could exchange for a bottle of Fungus Castle’s special Regeneration Potion.

"It’s really unbelievable..."

Ze just stood motionless on the street for a long time, feeling as if he’d come to another world, where slaves, nobles, and discrimination against half-demons had all vanished.

It wasn’t until people started streaming in groups toward the city gate that Ze came back to his senses.

"What’s going on?" Ze grabbed a half-demon and asked.

"Heard some sinners are coming into the city to stand trial. Everyone wants to watch the show! Hurry and let go, if we’re late we won’t get a good spot!"

Ze followed the crowd and arrived by the city gate.

On the main road, two rows of blue-capped Puki controlled by soldiers from the Ministry of Truth blocked the onlookers.

In the crowd, a street vendor passed by Ze, lifting the basket in his hand: "Brother, wanna buy some Fat Insect Eggs? Ten Contribution Points apiece!"

Ze didn’t understand, glanced at the palm-sized eggs in the basket, and refused outright.

But nearby, some people bought one or two, tucking them into their arms.

The so-called sinners finally entered the city, and Ze at once spotted quite a few familiar faces among them.

There were nobles, officers, and Slave Masters...

Ze only recognized a small portion of them, all people who’d had dealings with Earl Ronar in the past; the others he didn’t know, but no doubt they were all "upper-class demons" of the Empire.

And at this moment, he finally understood the use of Fat Insect Eggs.

One palm-sized Fat Insect Egg after another was thrown out from the crowd, smashing onto the heads of those "upper-class demons" who’d once been incomparably noble and incomparably powerful, splattering sticky goo all over.

Even if some sinners roared vicious threats, all they got in return was loud laughter from the crowds on both sides.

To make sure the sinners could hear them, the Fungus People even made a point of laughing out loud.

The soldiers responsible for watching over this batch of sinners were also used to it, silently standing a bit farther away so they wouldn’t be accidentally hit by some overexcited thrower.

Ze grabbed the vendor who’d already made a round and was heading back, staring at his basket that was nearly empty:

"I’ll take the rest!"