Sixth floor, at the edge of the rift.
A group of Treants gathered there, their gnarled roots rubbing against the rock, producing faint rustling sounds.
One of them stretched out its branches toward the darkness below, so agitated that its leaves quivered.
“Boss… what you said, is it really true? We can really go down there?”
The Treant(Tree Demon) beside it, Little Green, flicked it lightly.
“You shouldn’t doubt the boss!”
“Sorry… I’m just too excited…”
“It’s fine, it’s fine.” Lin Jun waved it off casually. “Since you’re so eager, I’ll let you be the first to try.”
“Eh? Me? First?!”
The bats under that Treant(Tree Demon)’s command were immediately seized by Lin Jun, who had them flap their wings and lift the main branch of the Treant(Tree Demon), carrying it away from the ground and down into the terrifying depths of the rift.The other Treants fell silent, nervously watching their companion’s descending silhouette, watching as it neared the range that would normally trigger lightning…
But no lightning appeared.
“I–I did it! Nothing happened to me! I made it down safely!” The Treant(Tree Demon) reported excitedly through the Mycelium Carpet, its figure vanishing into the darkness below.
“Just as I said,” Lin Jun continued, “down below lies a far vaster space, with denser mana, and no meddlesome human adventurers. I intend to relocate all of you there.”
After days of trial and sensing, Lin Jun had finally located the section of the core that managed hierarchy permissions.
What he found was not the switch for the invisible barrier between floors, but rather the permission settings for native dungeon monsters.
Monsters were constantly being born and dying inside the dungeon, and within that ever-shifting constellation of stars, it was truly troublesome to locate the ones representing these Treants.
But once found, he could grant or revoke their movement permissions at will.
Lin Jun did not find any stars corresponding to adventurers. Gray(Little Black), Norris, and the others were absent as well—it seemed to only include native monsters.
“Boss,” Little Green reported respectfully, “the batch of saplings we planted last time have now grown into demon trees, but many have yet to awaken. We’ll need some to stay behind and tend them.”
“That’s fine,” Lin Jun agreed. “Let those who haven’t reached the level cap of this floor stay to watch over the seedlings. Little Green, you lead all who have reached the cap and head down first.”
His reason was simple: the Treant(Tree Demon) that had just descended had already broken through its level 30 bottleneck and advanced to level 31 within that short time!
Soon, more than half of the Treants were ferried down into the rift by the Pujis’ bats.
Lin Jun designated several verdant, mana-rich caverns as their initial habitat, giving them space to adapt to and reshape the new environment.
He had long studied records about Treants.
Ordinary Treants like Little Green generally capped at level 50.
Although rare variants existed with greater potential, those had nothing to do with Little Green’s tribe.
That cap of 50 might not seem high, but it was already quite respectable.
For instance, Troglodytes(Cavemen) had a cap of only 35, not even reaching gold rank.
Of course, Troglodytes had an advantage Treants lacked—reproduction.
Troglodytes were oviparous, a clutch producing over a dozen.
In the past, harsh survival conditions, constant dangers, and scarce food had kept their survival rate low.
But now, with near-total safety and mushrooms in abundance, population growth had become inevitable.
In just a few months, their numbers had increased by nearly a hundred.
If not for their various bad habits, Lin Jun might even have considered focusing on cultivating them.
Unfortunately…
After settling the Treants, Lin Jun turned his attention to the werewolves on the tenth floor.
This race that once stood on equal footing with vampires, yet now cowered inside the dungeon—Lin Jun wanted to see if he could use this travel permission as leverage to make them submit.
Of course, dropping in on them directly would hardly be convincing. A representative was needed.
…
Little Blue once again squatted by the stairway, listlessly swishing his tail.
Ever since becoming close with the Pujis, he’d spent five out of ten days here waiting.
But lately, he had been rather dejected. Not because the Pujis failed to show, but because the last time he returned after being meticulously groomed, he became the laughingstock of his fellow werewolves.
They said his fur looked like it had been chewed on by rabbits…
Still, he didn’t blame the Pujis. That green liquid that stimulated hair growth had given him a glimpse of the wondrous outside world, greatly satisfying his curiosity.
Compared to that fleeting glimpse of vast skies, his fur embarrassment was only temporary. After all, he had already taught a proper lesson—with his claws—to those who mocked him.
Glancing once more into the still-empty depths of the stairway, he figured the big mushroom probably wouldn’t show today.
Just as he was about to leave, his nose twitched. He had caught a scent—one both familiar and unfamiliar.
Instantly, he crouched low, nostrils flaring, carefully sniffing the ground and the air, following the trail that grew ever stronger…
At that moment, the air before him rippled, and a Puji appeared out of thin air, its two mycelium tendrils pressing against the wet tip of his nose, which had nearly bumped right into it.
“Big Mushroom, you even have this kind of power?!” Little Blue exclaimed in disbelief, then sniffed again in puzzlement. “But… your scent seems a bit different from last time?”
“Stop analyzing my smell already, I can’t even smell it myself.” The Puji floated up and landed on his broad, furry shoulder. “Do you remember what I told you last time?”
“You mean about being a professional fur groomer?”
“Not that… the part about being able to take you ‘down there’!”
“Really?!” Little Blue’s ears shot straight up, his wolf eyes wide with shock. “Now? Right now?!”
“Really. Right now!”
“What do I do?”
“Just walk down.”
Little Blue cautiously approached the stairway entrance, gingerly stretching out a paw. The expected barrier of air did not appear; his paw passed unimpeded through what had once been an unyielding boundary.
In disbelief, step by step, he truly set foot onto the staircase!
“See? I wasn’t lying!”
“H-how is this even possible?” Little Blue looked around, bewildered. “The elders always said, only if…”
He suddenly stopped mid-sentence.
“Only if what?” Lin Jun asked.
Little Blue hesitated, then said, “The elders said only if the Demon King returned could we werewolves walk out again!”
Continuing downward, his paw brushed the cold, rough stone wall of the stairway. Each step was taken slowly, solemnly. His furry head turned constantly, greedily taking in everything in the passage. There was nothing remarkable to see, yet he gazed as if entranced.
Halfway down, he stopped again, worried.
“After I go down, I won’t be stuck there, will I?”
“Of course not! Relax. From now on, this gate is open to you forever.”
Hearing that, Little Blue inhaled deeply, savoring the damp, chilly air of the stairway, his chest rising with excitement.
“It’s like… a dream.”
At last, they reached the bottom, stepping into the vast cavern that once belonged to the Flame Demon, now long devoid of lava.
“I really… came down!” Little Blue suddenly froze, staring straight at the Puji. “You… are you the Demon King?”
“No. I’m the Hero,” Lin Jun answered honestly.
After two seconds of silence, Little Blue suddenly clutched his belly and burst out laughing.
“I knew it! Those old geezers’ stories were all nonsense!”