Chapter 454, Section 453: Rewarding Meritorious Service

In the desolate wilderness behind the kingdom, a human transport convoy had just set up camp.

As dusk deepened, several campfires flickered in the growing darkness, dispelling the chill.

Several soldiers sat around a campfire, chatting idly while gazing longingly at the large iron pot bubbling on the fire.

A young soldier, bored, scraped the soles of his boots with a stick, scraping off the sticky mycelium mixed with mud. He couldn't help but complain, "This damn road is impossible to walk on now! The ground is covered with this sticky mycelium. If I don't scrape it off several times a day, my shoes are so heavy I can barely lift them!"

"You still don't like this?" A scarred old soldier next to him smiled mysteriously, then suddenly pulled something out of his pocket and waved it quickly in front of the young man.

It was a plump, full mushroom with a bright red cap. Before anyone could take a second look, he quickly tore the mushroom into pieces and threw it into the boiling soup pot.

"Delicious mushrooms!" The young soldier's eyes lit up instantly.

"Shh—! Keep your voice down!" The veteran glanced around nervously. "Do you want the whole squad to come and get a share?"

The young soldier nodded and asked curiously, "Where did you come from?"

"I got lucky today, I found it by the roadside." The old soldier clicked his tongue proudly. "Do you still think the mushroom carpet is bad?"

The young soldier shook his head vigorously.

A year ago, a lowly soldier like him would never have had the chance to taste such a delicacy that only men could enjoy!

The veteran smiled and said, "Speaking of which, ever since these mycelia have covered this area, setting up camp around here has become much easier."

"Oh? What do you mean?"

"You've never run this route before, have you?" The veteran pointed to the dark wilderness. "There used to be a kind of big rat here, called... something like that? Almost the size of a chicken, with incredibly sharp teeth. They'd sneak out at night and secretly gnaw on the wheels and supplies. Back then, every time we stayed overnight here, we had to double the guards, and they'd wake us up all night with all the noise they made, so we couldn't get a good night's sleep. It wasn't until these fungal filaments spread that those annoying creatures finally quieted down. Otherwise, tonight, one of us would definitely be unlucky enough to be sent to guard the freight cars."

"As soon as the fungal carpet appeared, the big rats disappeared? Why?"

The veteran shrugged: "How should I know? Maybe these slimy mycelia made their claws uncomfortable, so they moved away."

“Speaking of which, I think I heard a noise… Could it be the big rat you were talking about?” the young soldier said, pressing his ear to the ground.

The veteran tried it too, but heard nothing.

“My hearing is better,” the young soldier explained, “but a continuous sound probably isn’t from a mouse…”

...

In the underground network of tunnels, countless pukier trains are connected end to end, like a living train, crawling and moving rapidly forward in the winding tunnels.

These poops kept joining the party as the knights returned.

Logically speaking, there should be no need for such caution.

After all, Lin Jun had already cleared out the monsters that liked to dig holes and might threaten the safety of the mycelium network in all the areas, otherwise the maintenance cost would be too high.

However, since it is his own personal artifact, he can't be too careful.

To be honest, Lin Jun has always felt that she has not been able to fully tap the potential of the sunstone.

Just look at other people's Living Wood Cores; those I know of include: they can be used to attack with life energy, they can transfer life energy, and they can be used to open the door to the Sacred Tree's house...

Then look at your own sunstone; it's either used to sunbathe on a fungal carpet or to sunbathe vampires.

Couldn't we develop a more practical function like the one for the wooden core, such as direct attack or other functions?

He only hoped that the complete sunstone would bring some new surprises.

Otherwise, the stone's final destination would probably be to be embedded in his still unfinished "Ji Shenbing" (a powerful weapon), serving as a super energy core.

It will take a few more days for the sunstone to be transported back, so Lin Jun can finally take advantage of this time to handle other matters.

For example... rewarding merit.

...

Puji Dungeon, Deep Zone.

Aiding was following Puji, who was leading the way, to the designated meeting place.

Thanks to the expensive medicine, his severed arm had regrowed, but the new skin was so pale and delicate that it was hardly presentable. Therefore, even though it was summer, he still wore a formal aristocratic robe and pristine white gloves.

Throughout the journey, Aiding kept wondering if the boss was about to pay salaries.

After successfully completing the mission last time, the boss was busy with various matters and did not contact him. Although he did not ask, he was filled with anticipation for the promised S-grade magic crystal.

He had even planned how to make the most of the S-grade magic crystals of different sizes he obtained!

It is said that many core members of the Mushroom Garden will attend this meeting. Aiding has been active in the Mushroom Capital for a long time and rarely contacts other colleagues except for Inanna and Dylan.

He decided to take this opportunity to try his best to build good relationships with his colleagues.

Mushroom people, vampires, werewolves, lizardmen... Oh, that lizardman is Norris, Aidin still remembers him.

Even so, the high proportion of demons among the core members of the Mushroom Garden still made Aiding's eyelids twitch.

This looks exactly like a gathering of demons!

Even knowing they were all on his side, Aidin's first instinct was to use illusion magic to hide his true form.

It wasn't until his gaze fell on Riel, the little elf who was swinging his legs, sitting among a group of demons, and happily munching on a bag of dried mushrooms, that Aiding's tense nerves finally relaxed a little.

After all the attendees had arrived, Marshal Puji, surrounded by a group of brightly armored ceremonial guards, slowly ascended the central stone platform.

Norris stood solemnly at the edge of the stone platform, holding the yellow book in his hands, and read aloud: "Aidin!"

"For your meritorious service, you are rewarded with one magic crystal! And a bite to eat as a favor!"

As soon as he finished speaking, several Puji worked together to lift another round Puji and brought it to Aiding.

Aidin looked at the scene before him, somewhat bewildered.

Is this live Puji being given to me as a reward? But wasn't it supposed to be an S-rank magic crystal? Or is this Puji itself a so-called "gift"?

Lin Jun seemed to suddenly remember something: "Ah! I almost forgot!"

Puji rolled up another gleaming silver knife and placed it on Puji in front of Aiding.

Aidin: "..."

"What are you waiting for? Cut it open quickly!" Lin Jun urged.

Still completely bewildered, Aidin picked up the knife, feeling as if he were not receiving a reward, but rather performing some kind of sinister secret ritual.

But the boss's orders are not to be questioned...

He took a deep breath and carefully sliced ​​the knife towards the soft, plump body. The blade cut in easily, but then encountered something extremely hard, making a slight "click" sound.

"This...this is!"

As the fungus was sliced ​​open, a crystal was revealed inside! A translucent S-grade magic crystal, as thick as an adult man's forearm!

Glug—

Aiding subconsciously swallowed.

He originally thought that the reward would be at most the same size as the three fist-sized S-grade magic crystals he had received before, or even smaller ones, which he would have accepted.

The size of this arm segment... completely exceeded his expectations!

In an instant, countless ideas about how to use this amazing magic crystal to construct a vast, complex illusionary realm where reality and illusion intertwine flooded his mind like a tidal wave.

"Boss!" Aiding looked up excitedly, his voice trembling slightly.

However, what he saw was Marshal Puji extending a slippery mycelial tentacle towards him.

At the tip of the tentacle, the clear night air remained, condensed but not yet fallen.

"Come, open your mouth and receive this gift!"

"A blessing..."

Aidin's gaze shifted back and forth between the slightly trembling tentacles in front of him and the core members behind him who were staring at him with varying expressions.

He, who was usually so composed, felt a rare sense of panic and embarrassment at this moment.

Norris, standing by the stone platform, felt a pang of sympathy for Edin's predicament. He was almost certain that his boss had done it on purpose!

Finally, Aidin steeled himself, stepped forward, stood beneath the tentacles, tilted his head back, and opened his mouth as wide as possible.

A few drops of sticky, icy liquid dripped into his throat.

At first, he wondered what was so magical about this tasteless thing, but soon, a powerful and pure life energy burst forth from his stomach and surged through his body like a warm torrent!

He felt every cell in his body was cheering and jumping for joy, as if he had undergone a cleansing and sublimation!

Only now did Aidin truly understand why it was called a "gift"!

At the same time, Lin Jun also used the mushroom net to explain the effects of this "water of life" to all the core members present.

“The Giantess… Louisa!” Norris quickly swallowed back a rather derogatory title from the yellow book and corrected himself loudly, “For her meritorious service in assisting command and training the new army, she is hereby rewarded with a meal!”

Before she finished speaking, Louisa suddenly sprang up from her seat and strode toward the stone platform.

There was no hesitation or embarrassment in her eyes, only an almost burning, naked desire.

"It is my honor to serve the boss!" Her voice was loud and firm.

Ever since she remotely experienced the command of that large-scale battle through the mushroom network, she has been repeatedly savoring that intoxicating "deliciousness".

Although she lacked the overwhelming stench of being on the battlefield, the feeling of strategizing and commanding thousands of troops still stirred her heart and lingered in her memory.

It was an ultimate enjoyment, and she was willing to do it even without any reward.

Unexpectedly, the boss had prepared such an enticing extra reward.

Without hesitation, she tilted her head back and caught the life-giving water falling from the tip of her tentacle, letting the sticky, cool liquid slide down her throat, not leaving a single drop.

Immediately afterwards, just like with Aiding, that vast and pure life energy exploded within her body, washing over every inch of her muscles and bones, almost making her groan out loud.

[Level Up: LV54 → LV55]

After rewarding Aidin and Louisa as exemplary individuals, Lin Jun distributed the diluted Water of Life that she had prepared beforehand, giving each core member a portion so that everyone could personally experience its effects.

Besides the members who were unable to attend due to official business, two other people were absent from this conference: Ming and Xiao Hei.

They were both receiving special treatment from Lin Jun, and one of them was already working hard enough, while the other didn't need to work hard at all, so attending this kind of meeting aimed at boosting morale was not very meaningful.

As for Pink Puji, I'll secretly feed her some later; the [Elemental Spirit's Favor] is still something to look forward to.

When she has time, Lin Jun even plans to bring Pink Puji to the Northern Territory to see if she can help deal with the other Mad Spirit.

Of course, that's all in the future.

call--!

With a large team, managing so many employees clearly and efficiently is no easy task for a leader!

...

The afterglow of the setting sun painted the sky a warm orange-red. At the entrance of Puji House, Old Dylan held a cup of herbal tea that Bianca had specially brewed for him before he left work, leaned back in his chair comfortably, and slowly exhaled.

Another peaceful day without incident.

(End of this chapter)