Chapter 550: If We Go, We Go Together
Zhuo Wangsun and the others also came down behind him, unable to help but exclaim, "This place is too beautiful."
When the lights were turned off, the fungi in the passage automatically released a faint glow, forming an unusually clear path.
"I've never seen mutated fungi before. I always thought that even with evolution, things like fungi could only undergo extremely limited changes. It seems my experience is still too narrow." Zhuo Wangsun sighed as he walked up to a green fungus, intending to scrape some off to take with him.
"Slap!" The female player suddenly turned on the light, shining it directly in his face. "How many instances have you even been to? There are plenty of things you haven't seen. This stuff can even build its own nest underground. I think it's better not to take it."
Zhuo Wangsun shielded his face with his hand and turned back, saying, "These can be taken back for experiments. Knowing about them early means we can prepare early."
Siming sided with the female player. "It's actually not very appropriate for us to come down here. There are many types of fungi; some might attach themselves to our bodies. You've seen that this entire area is covered in mycelium, which shows how powerful their reproduction is. If we accidentally bring them back to our world, who knows if it might cause a new disaster."
The three people present all turned to look at him.
The female player was quite speechless. "Why didn't you say that earlier? If you had, we wouldn't have come down!"
Siming said helplessly, "Anyway, we've already walked through the Mist Forest. Walking through it again would probably be the same. Just don't casually touch the underground fungi to avoid causing any extra trouble."
Only then did Zhuo Wangsun give up the idea of taking some fungi back for research.
"A cleaning agent should be able to handle it," Xu Huo said. "Let's first try to see if we can clear the instance."
The female player and Siming each took out their small flags and shook their heads.
Xu Huo sighed softly and shone the light ahead. "Since we're here, taking a look ahead shouldn't be a big problem."
With that, he took the lead and walked along the passage deeper inside.
Zhuo Wangsun looked at his back and, without saying much, followed.
The four of them walked through this winding passage. After a few minutes, an incredibly huge underground maze appeared before them. Crisscrossing mycelium hung like silk ribbons between stone walls and soil, some connecting to the suspended stone path they were on, others plunging straight down into the darkness dozens of meters deep. The surroundings and these mycelium were also covered in various colored, furry fungi. Under the glow, they looked more like gem-studded ribbons.
Xu Huo took a rough look at these mycelium. Most of them were suspended in the air. The roots growing from their lower ends couldn't absorb nutrients, so they curved back and pierced into the mycelium itself. These extremely long mycelium were unbroken, meaning they could grow to lengths of dozens or even hundreds of meters.
Wind blew up from the abyss below. He listened carefully and heard an extremely faint sound of water.
These mycelium had grown relying on a water source. He wondered if this was the same place as the underground fungal world mentioned in that notebook. If so, there should be defensive mycelium here.
"Look what I found!" The female player picked up an old water bottle from a corner. "There must have been people here before. Look at these suspended stone paths—they have bridges and pillars. They must have been deliberately built."
This was an underground world. Aside from the narrow passages clinging to the rock walls, the only way to cross from one side to the other was through suspended stone paths that arched like bridges in between. These suspended stone paths were stacked one on top of another, crisscrossing downward, seemingly leading to the depths below.
"What's so worth going down there for?" Siming said. "They even had to deliberately build a path."
"Humans can evolve into players; fungi can probably be put to other uses," Zhuo Wangsun said. "Not to mention anything else, those sticky mycelium are very useful. Also, many fungi are poisonous. Toxins are also very valuable research materials."
The female player tried her flag again nearby. When it still didn't indicate a clearance, she simply stuffed it into her bag, tightened the straps, and said, "I want to go down and take a look. Maybe I can find something good."
Xu Huo was the first to agree. Siming was cautious, while Zhuo Wangsun's attitude was somewhat wavering.
"Do you think this underground passage might connect to Clown City?" Xu Huo said at this point.
Siming asked in surprise, "Why do you say that?"
"The Cleanup Zone originally belonged to Clown City. This underground nest is quite large and full of passages. It might have already grown right under Clown City." Xu Huo spoke off the cuff. "The cleanup mission is quite strange. To be honest, reclaiming this bit of land wouldn't require sacrificing so many lives. Could it be that Clown City can't use heavy firepower to eliminate the Xenomorphs precisely because of these fungi?"
"Or perhaps whether or not to reclaim the Cleanup Zone is no longer important. If this place is indeed covered in fungi, there really are no conditions for rebuilding."
Of course, this argument didn't hold water, at least not to an observant person. The matter of the Cleanup Zone mission had nothing to do with the underground nest. If this underground nest really did reach under Clown City, either Clown City would have opened underground passages or completely sealed off the passages. In any case, they wouldn't have left it so unchecked like this.
Only things of no value would be left unattended.
However, Xu Huo had already thought of a good reason. "Fungi can use the corpses of animals and plants as nutrients. Since the cleanup mission isn't important, could all those people piled up here have been fed to the mushrooms?"
Saying it this way seemed to make the logic flow. The female player slapped her leg and said, "That's what I was thinking! There was no need for so many people to die. And Clown City was reluctant to send advanced players or true elites. They were probably just using these people as fertilizer. These fungi must have a major use!"
Zhuo Wangsun was also tempted. "Then let's just go down. Maybe we can even get bonus points when we clear the instance."
The higher the rating when clearing an instance, the better the items obtained. That was beyond question. Additionally, the higher the rating, the fewer instances needed for leveling up. The sooner one's level rose, the better the items they could obtain after clearing instances at that level. This was a tangible benefit that every player was willing to take risks for.
Siming gritted his teeth. "Alright!"
The four of them then followed the suspended stone path downward. After descending about thirty to forty meters, the temperature below gradually dropped. Frost-like fungi grew from the stone walls and crevices. Occasionally, snowflake-like objects were released from above, occupying a space about ten meters high.
They continued repeating the same journey. After descending about a hundred meters, Xu Huo finally stopped. "Don't go any further. We need to find another way."
The further down they went, the more complex the types of fungi became. But the general environment was similar to above, and gradually, they could no longer see any traces left by previous people. So whether they were looking for another exit or something truly valuable, this was not the right path.