Chapter 331: Farewell and an Unexpected Turn

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Luo De gripped the golden crown and tore off the fleshy mycelial filaments connected to Scarlett's scalp.

His hands were wrapped in sub-bodies split from Shi Laimu, forming a pair of metallic black gloves.

The ritual ground blazed with light.

Sharon, who had just activated control, immediately had her vision blocked by shadows manipulated by Tally.

The succubus had learned her lesson—she would never look directly at this thing.

Before this, Luo De had stopped Sharon from pursuing it further.

At least wait until after the ritual is complete.

The living mycelial filaments on the crown, like living things, immediately burrowed into his palm the moment they left the mycoid's body.

And they clearly pierced through Shi Laimu's fluid metal.

"Interesting."

Yet Shi Laimu's slime, possessing the 【Corrosion Domain】, seemed to be its natural antithesis—within moments, it corroded the filaments to nothing.

【Shi Laimu triggered 'Super Absorption'】

【Absorbed partial power of the 'Flesh-Woven Crown'; spiritual accumulation has increased.】

The black fluid-metal slime Shi Laimu rippled faintly, then quickly settled.

Luo De sensed it.

He found Shi Laimu's spiritual accumulation had reached the high end of fifth tier.

The corroded active filaments, now wiser, rippled away from his palm, fiercely resisting contact.

Luo De gave them a cold glance.

He manipulated sub-bodies to fully cover the crown.

Sizzle—

Like raw meat on a scorching grill.

The screams of a crying infant pierced his ears, stabbing straight into his mind.

Along with it came an indescribable stench.

"Afraid of fire and corrosion? What kind of damp, foul thing are you?"

Luo De didn't destroy it outright—after all, he could trade it for internal credits in the Magi-Control League.

He took out Aona's magic stone and activated it.

Light bloomed, then faded as swiftly as a night-blooming cereus—next instant, the crown vanished.

Luo De sensed briefly and confirmed it had been absorbed into the magic stone.

"Enough."

Sharon swept the darkness from her face and glared at Tally, who was grinning beside her.

Damn succubus—she just scraped something across my face.

She increased the ritual ground's operational speed.

It stirred the half-remaining soul of the mycoid Scarlett, forcing it to frantically absorb the primordial essence Luo De had left inside her.

Luo De stood aside, watching silently.

Come to think of it.

Wasn't Scarlett's other half-soul nurtured entirely by my essence?

Could she have developed attachment or affection toward me, like Rat No. 3 did?

Another half-hour passed.

"Done. You won the 32. % gamble—your primordial essence being exceptionally high-quality was also a factor."

Sharon exhaled, her arms drooping, exhaustion heavy on her face.

"After all, you two helped squeeze it out."

Luo De smiled.

This party game was called 'Bottle'—it meant channeling all primordial essence generated during this party into Scarlett's body.

Mixed in were the girls' saliva and other things.

Sharon let out a few cold laughs.

Then she grew serious:

"I'm leaving tonight. Take care of Dimeya. Rebuilding her magic pathways doesn't mean the magic surges are gone forever."

A witch's magic surges are an innate physiological flaw.

They can only weaken—and eventually vanish—with increased strength.

Dimeya's strength couldn't rise because her parents forced her growth. The last ritual was mainly to fix this.

It worked brilliantly.

When Dimeya first arrived, Luo De sensed her magical accumulation had already reached mid-sixth tier.

"So fast?"

Luo De looked stunned.

He wrapped his arms around her waist.

A fresh scent, like a sliced fruit, filled his nose, dispelling the stench of the crown.

Luo De buried his face in her neck, greedily inhaling the even fresher, sweeter aroma radiating from the hairs at the nape.

Except for this spot, dog-people barely sweat at all.

Even after two hours of exertion, the rest of Sharon's body remained as smooth as if dusted with powder.

"I've stayed here long enough."

She kissed his ear, then thought it wasn't enough—she sucked it between her lips and flicked his earlobe with her tongue.

Luo De didn't try to stop her.

He pulled a long string of magic rings from his spell satchel—sixty or seventy, nearly a month's output from the zombie Selina.

Sharon was stunned.

"Where did you get so many magic rings?"

"Don't ask. Just take them."

The dog-girl was straightforward—she smiled and accepted them all.

"What about Dimeya? Did you tell her?"

"No. I wanted to tell you first. And I plan to slip away quietly—girls are always so messy, tearful, and indecisive. Annoying. Besides, we're not never seeing each other again. Oh, and don't you dare touch her unless she comes to you first."

Luo De smiled:

"You say that, but she doesn't feel that way about me."

Sharon buried her face in his chest, inhaling the familiar scent etched into her mind, murmuring words no one could hear:

"Not necessarily."

They exchanged a few intimate whispers, then parted.

The stone door groaned as it slid open, scraping against the ground.

The light of a Brightness spell fell on Luo De as he stepped out.

Facing the crowd outside, he found Aona and nodded with a smile.

Aona smiled back: "I always believed in you."

"Move, don't block the door."

Sharon kicked him from behind—he didn't budge.

She squeezed past the stone door, scowling at Aona: "You stupid rabbit, always scheming."

A spell satchel was thrust before her, its mouth open—golden light glowed across Sharon's wild, beautiful face.

The dog-girl's eyes widened.

Her annoyance vanished; silently, she took the satchel and walked to Dimeya's side, saying nothing.

Aona stepped through the open stone door and checked the still-unconscious mycoid Scarlett.

She looked relieved.

"Find a suitable environment for mycoids—a calm, safe place is better for recovery."

Luo De reminded her.

That was Sharon's own advice—but knowing her, she'd never say it herself.

"What about Windwall Forest?"

Aona smiled.

"Whatever you like. I never mind girls moving into the forest—especially a cute mycoid like Scarlett."

Hailai frowned and leaned over: "Just a heads-up, Mr. Luo De, mycoids reproduce via spores—they're more like plants."

"I know."

I've done it before—how could I not?

And not just once with plants.

Though it was far better than that time with the Celestial Ancient Tree Eva.

"Here, take this. Also submit it to the Magi-Control League."

Luo De handed Aona the deep-pink magic stone containing the Flesh-Woven Crown.

Mentioning this, Ona couldn't help but feel uneasy.

The appearance of this thing is no good sign.

"I will have the Containment Division's experts"

Crack!

Before she could finish speaking, the magic stone Ona had just taken suddenly emitted a sharp cracking sound.

Everyone's expressions changed slightly.

(End of Chapter)