[Race: Red Coral Fruit Tree]

[Skills: Delicious Level 2, Paralyzing Poison Level 2, Photosynthesis Level 1]

Lin Jun thought for a moment, then used a tentacle to knock down a fruit.

"Dylan, give it a taste."

The fruit with a spiraled red shell was rolled in front of Dylan.

"Worthy of the boss, finding food so quickly!"

Dylan took the fruit the size of a bowling ball, and Lin Jun had already opened a cut for him.

Seeing the gelatinous flesh inside, Dylan took a small sip first.

"Hmm!? Delicious!"

Dylan then eagerly devoured it through the opening, even trying to scoop out the flesh stuck to the inside of the shell with his hands, not planning to leave any behind.

But before he could scoop much, he suddenly lost control of his body and collapsed to the ground.

Scout Puki flipped him over to avoid him suffocating face down.

Judging by his reaction, the [Delicious Level 2] indeed tasted good, though Lin Jun couldn't taste it.

No worldly desires.jpg

The reason Lin Jun cared about this skill was mainly because he had seen it in the talent upgrade section.

Acquiring it would mean it would be excluded in the next skill selection, increasing the chances of getting more practical skills.

However, to obtain this skill, he would have to bring the fruit back to the Underground City.

And clearly, on this deserted island, who knew how long it would be before encountering a passing ship.

After thinking for a while, Lin Jun had Scout Puki scatter some spores around.

It wasn't expansion; the new fungal mats here wouldn't be under Lin Jun's fungal network control.

Lin Jun scattered spores here just to have more mycelium for use...

-----------------

Oath City, Adventurer's Guild Headquarters.

This four-story building covering more than 30,000 square meters not only has the conventional guild hall for taking on various tasks, but also includes many functional areas not found in other sub-guilds.

The warrior series training ground in the east wing, the magic target range to the north, the adventurer trading area on the second floor, the daylong high-temperature forging area in the basement, and the alchemy zone with vapors of different hues rising...

With the massive stone walls surrounding the guild, it's no exaggeration to call it a city within a city, focused on specialized functions.

In fact, it truly is.

Investigating its history, the land occupied by the Adventurer's Guild was the original Oath City.

The people, forced to migrate south due to the Demon Race's attack, established their first territory here.

The massive stone wall that encircles the area is more solid than Oath City's current walls and was constructed by a tenth-tier mage who personally cut and fortified the stones.

Countless magic power conduits extend from the base of the wall, which is part of the wall's defense array, still operational but usually left idle to save money.

Everyone knows the Adventurer's Guild Headquarters is the most solid building in Oath City, aside from the council hall.

However, few know there's actually a living area within the guild headquarters, located on the smallest fourth floor.

A few important guild personnel reside there, with the fourth floor equally well-equipped as a living area.

The dull thud of a knife hitting the fruit shell resonated in the kitchen.

The Red Coral Fruit's shell cracked with a cross pattern, and the maid used her knuckle to pry at the cracks, dumping the semi-transparent gelatinous flesh onto a silver plate.

Sprinkling crushed Lan Xiang Leaf and mixing in a bit of fragrant Elf Ice Wine completed this exotic dish.

But there was one last step.

Magic power gathered in the maid's hand, the brilliance of Purification Technique bathed the silver plate, removing all the paralyzing poison from the Red Coral Fruit.

She prepared a small bowl of clam soup and placed it on the tray.

A few minutes later, the maid knocked on a room door on the fourth floor.

"Young Master Fa'er, breakfast is ready."

The white-haired youth sprawled on the balcony enjoying a sunbath raised his head at the words.

"Lillian, just leave the breakfast on the table."

Maid Lillian put down the tray but didn't leave, standing by and watching the white-haired youth.

"Why are you hovering over me?"

"As soon as I leave, Young Master will skip breakfast again, and there are also documents to hand to you."

Fa'er noticed the stack of items Lillian held.

"Such a hassle..."

Complaining, Fa'er sat at the table, scooping up half of the flesh from the silver plate and taking a sip of the soup, dismissing the breakfast.

Even food with the [Delicious] attribute seemed ordinary to Fa'er.

Once Fa'er pushed the tray aside, Lillian spread out the files one by one in front of him.

"Most are materials Chairman prepared for your sub-guild appointment, including personnel information in Dumb Wind Town, regional power dynamics, and notes on the Purple Crystal Dungeon."

The "Chairman" Lillian mentioned was the current Chairman of the Adventurer's Guild and Fa'er's father.

Fa'er, however, didn't appreciate it, browsing through the files disdainfully, "Such meddling, does he think I can't even gather this level of information?"

"Sir was only..." Lillian seemed to want to defend the Chairman but was abruptly cut off.

Fa'er, holding a file with silver edges yet unopened, wondered, "Why is there a file from the Church? They're not contemplating a heresy trial in the dungeon, are they?"

"Young Master, you shouldn't ridicule the Bright Church in such a tone; it could cause trouble if spread," Lillian reminded.

Fa'er glanced at her, "Who else is here besides you? Or do you think I'm foolish enough to say this outside?"

Lillian's lips curled slightly, and she said no more.

After a while, Fa'er, having read the files, suddenly exclaimed, "They're really planning a heresy trial in the dungeon!"

"Isn't the dungeon populated by demons?"

"Precisely, it's demons," Fa'er explained, his voice now louder, showing interest, "Wing of Judgment's uniquely talented squad leader submitted a report suggesting the dungeon might be controlled by a collective consciousness."

"Controlling the dungeon? How's that possible," Lillian, though not guild staff, knew more about the dungeon than most due to prolonged exposure, "Wouldn't living in the dungeon lead to assimilation and binding? Even a collective consciousness could only control one layer."

"Generally, yes, but if someone manipulates the Dungeon Core, it's another matter. This report's possibility aligns with intelligence from the guild."

"Controlling the Dungeon Core... Can anyone manage such a feat?"

Not to mention reaching the core location's difficulty, the core isn't a switch to simply alter the dungeon with one's whims; it's the dungeon's entire operational logic.

Similar to Oath City's defense core, daily maintenance requires over forty specialists, and full activation needs up to three hundred people to operate simultaneously.

The Dungeon Core, meanwhile, surpasses Oath City's in value, with its origin still a mystery.

High authorities of humans and the Demon Race are aware of the dungeon's core, yet remain indifferent—are they unable to control the dungeon?

Indeed, they're unable.

Even considering new technology allowing control, it wouldn't be feasible for one or a few individuals.

As for large-scale personnel and material entry into the Purple Crystal Dungeon under Dumb Wind Town's watch?

No matter how negligent, the town shouldn't be that lax.

Thus, Lillian couldn't believe Young Master's conjecture.

"Lillian, you misunderstood. I said 'utilize,' not 'control'; the dungeon isn't perfect and has had loopholes."

"Had?" Lillian precisely caught the emphasis in Fa'er's wording.

"Yes, had, like over a century ago someone discovered that treasure chest refreshes swapped two chests through teleportation.

Someone then stuffed themselves into an opened chest, and upon refresh, ended up in a space they called the Treasure Vault.

He successfully acquired top-tier equipment and items from inside, and teleported out the same way.

Some equipment has even circulated to this day."

"And then?" Lillian knew it couldn't be that simple.

Fa'er didn't hold back, revealing the follow-up:

"Following that, his second attempt saw him never return. Not only him, those emulating his scheme all vanished into the dungeon, clearly the dungeon disliked thievery."

"So if it's a loophole this time, why hasn't the dungeon fixed it?"

"That's why I guess it might involve the core. Monsters being layered is Purple Crystal Dungeon's basic rule; breaking such a fundamental rule implies an issue with core logic.

Ultimately, it's speculation, maybe the Church's intelligence is wrong, or some coincidence led to this.

Either way, this time shouldn't be boring!"

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