Pink— a brand-new variant!
And it had mana— which meant it was delicious!
For Gray, such temptation was irresistible. There was no reason not to take a bite!
But just as she made her first move, the Knight beside the pink Puji reacted instantly. Its tendrils lashed out like lightning, wrapping up the dazed Inanna and bolting away!
From afar, the aura of “dinnertime” radiating off that huge black mushroom made Aedin’s scalp prickle. His survival instincts screamed. Without a word, he quietly cast a powerful invisibility spell and shrank back into the shadows.
Who knew if this was something the boss had arranged? He didn’t dare act rashly.
Inanna herself had no idea what was happening. Bound by Knight, she couldn’t even resist, her commands useless.
“Boss! Boss! What’s going on? Why is it tying me up and running?”
“And you— why did you transform into a Puji?!”
“I-I wanted… to experience the mycelium carpet firsthand!” Inanna stammered, flustered and a little shy.“???”
Something was very wrong here.
When Lin Jun realized she had used transformation magic, he was covered in question marks. What was she thinking?
And when Gray arrived, drawn by the scent, Lin Jun nearly froze solid. This wasn’t just some predator— she bore the same vengeance brand as himself!
If she ate recklessly, she’d only end up hurting herself!
Thankfully, Gray thought this was just her usual “playtime appetizer” with the Pujis. She hadn’t gone all out.
Still, this was far too dangerous.
Lin Jun hurriedly tried to dissuade her through the fungal network while also sending out several sweet-flavored Pujis dripping with honey.
One after another, they leapt forward and dove headlong under the black mushroom’s cap— right where her mouth was in this mimicry form.
Faced with snacks eagerly throwing themselves at her, Gray simply couldn’t refuse.
One, two, three…
By the time she had swallowed them all, her belly was swollen round, sticky with honey from the frenzied feast. At last, the enormous black mushroom collapsed under a towering mushroom tree.
Stuffed.
Hiccup.
By the halfway point, she had already forgotten about the pink Puji.
Groaning, Gray dragged her heavy body back to her warm nest. Soon, contented snores echoed out.
But in her dreams, that fragrant, mana-laden, tender pink Puji appeared again— and left her drooling in her sleep.
…
Damn it!
What kind of strange kink was this pink Puji playing at? That was nearly a disaster!
Lin Jun yanked Aedin (still cloaked in invisibility) out by force, then whisked the two of them down to the sixth floor, far away from Gray.
Completely unaware of how narrowly she had escaped becoming prey for a top predator, the pink Puji was dropped beside the vast “Puji communal cafeteria.”
She let out a cheer and immediately splatted herself onto the warm, moist mycelium carpet.
As countless fine threads gently wrapped and connected to her body, that familiar, deeply nostalgic warmth flooded her— as if she had returned to the womb. Mana and nutrients surged into her, filling her completely.
In that moment, there was no noble daughter, no Inanna.
Only a Puji— seamlessly merging into the mycelium network, overwhelmed by a pure and unmatchable sense of bliss.
Minutes later, the “meal” had long finished and her reserves brimmed with mana. Yet the pink Puji still refused to budge, lying there in intoxicated comfort, stubby legs twitching happily. It seemed she intended to stay until her transformation spell wore off.
“Do you… want to try too?”
The devil’s whisper slipped into Aedin’s mind as he stared at the young lady utterly sunk into ecstasy.
He shook his head firmly.
Even though he had already pledged to the Pujis, he was still human. The idea of becoming one was too terrifying.
Lin Jun had only asked casually.
Seeing Aedin refuse, he did not press.
“Aedin,” Lin Jun’s voice shifted to praise, rich with satisfaction. “You did very well this time.”
From drawing Inanna here through guild channels, to “happening” upon and securing Knight at the perfect moment, Aedin’s execution had been flawless.
Lin Jun wouldn’t leave him unrewarded.
A Puji rolled up two heavy crystals, each pulsing with pure, powerful mana, and placed them before Aedin.
“A-rank magic crystals!? And… this size?!” Aedin’s voice cracked.
He wasn’t some bumpkin—his own staff bore an A-rank crystal he had bought at high cost. But that piece was only the size of a finger, already a treasure.
These two? Each was the size of a grown man’s palm!
Sharp-edged, flawlessly clear, liquid-like mana shimmering within. Even more shocking—both were identical in size, shape, and mana frequency!
Perfect twin cores, the ultimate foundation for crafting resonant twin artifacts.
Yet even making a single staff with such a crystal would be considered extravagant!
Aedin clutched them, torn between overwhelming joy and crippling anxiety.
Finally, he snapped out of it, carefully stowing them away.
Then, as if reaching a resolution, he looked up.
“Boss! I… I want to become a Puji too!”
“…What nonsense are you spouting? I can’t understand you.”
…
…
…
The misunderstanding ran too deep. Explaining was too troublesome.
So Lin Jun simply dumped Aedin onto the mycelium carpet to let him experience what mana replenishment felt like.
The two A-rank crystals were indeed precious. But to Lin Jun, they were hardly rare.
Ever since reclaiming the old mushroom garden, its mana crystal mine had been producing nonstop.
The crystals there were far superior to those on the fifth floor. With Puji’s [Crystal Symbiosis LV7], A-rank crystals were never lacking.
He even sensed that once the skill reached LV8, he’d be able to create S-rank crystals.
But that skill only advanced through the slow grind of devouring vast amounts of low-grade crystals. No telling when the next level-up would come.
In fact, Lin Jun would have liked to reward Aedin with new skills too.
But the man, as an experienced diamond-rank adventurer, already had more skills than Dilan. Lin Jun couldn’t afford to waste mana filling such an overloaded list.
Still, judging by Aedin’s ecstatic reaction, blunt and simple rewards were more than enough.
—
On the sixth floor, Lin Jun entertained his two “guests.”
Meanwhile, in the Deep Zones, a certain silver-scaled, tailless lizardman finally stirred after being completely modified.
“Boss?” Norris’s voice was still groggy.
“Awake? Good! Then hurry over and let’s test something!”
Lin Jun could hardly wait to see what changes would come from imprinting [Mental Integration LV7] onto another being.