Chapter 419: Church of Nature

On the seat opposite Rekton, the curvaceous mature woman nodded with a smile and said in a very gentle voice:

"It's me. Are you here for that follower of the Primal Moon?"

Rekton gave a slight nod, then handed over the transparent amber in his hand. After Martina took it, he snapped his fingers lightly, and the translucent amber instantly disintegrated, scattering into specks of starlight that dissolved into nothing.

Martina looked at the mushroom in her hand, still faintly glowing, her brow gradually furrowing. She directly tore the mushroom apart with her hands, exposing the mycelia inside to the air. Within a few breaths, these mycelia turned from white to pale blue.

"Oh — a mushroom that changes color and glows!"

Tu Ba Ge exclaimed in surprise, staring curiously at the torn mushroom pieces in Martina's hand, seemingly pondering what variety of mushroom this was and whether he should grow some himself.

Rekton rubbed Tu Ba Ge's drooping ears and spoke in a calm voice:

"This is a mushroom that blends animal cells with some plant characteristics. My Eye of Secrets can discern some of its differences, but cannot directly identify its properties."

Martina nodded gently, reassembled the torn mushroom in her hand, then spread out some spirituality. The shredded mushroom seemed to come alive, growing back together and becoming a complete mushroom once more.

She sighed softly and looked at Rekton with a heavy expression:

"It has carrion-feeding properties and easily accumulates toxins and pollution. Just by looking at the surface, it's hard to tell whether it's harmful. It has strong reproductive and survival capabilities — as long as there's ample water, it can reproduce rapidly, and it's very difficult to eradicate completely."

"This hybrid mushroom can be said to be nearly perfect. Even an ordinary druid couldn't achieve this. On the Southern Continent, apart from members of the Earth Church, those most likely to have done this are those followers of the Primal Moon."

"If a lot of these mushrooms appear, what would they be used for? Competing with surrounding plants for moisture in the soil? Or covertly spreading pollution?"

Rekton asked with some puzzlement.

Martina shook her head slightly and said thoughtfully:

"I can't be certain, but this mushroom has only accumulated a small amount of pollution and toxins, not within a harmful range."

"I'll gather people to develop a potion to eradicate this mushroom as quickly as possible. Whatever its purpose, we just need to eliminate it beforehand."

Rekton nodded slightly and brought up another matter:

"That follower of the Primal Moon seems to have a Profane Card in their possession — the Mother Card!"

Martina's expression instantly darkened. After a long silence, she sighed softly:

"I will pray to the Mother Goddess. That Profane Card very likely conceals an evil god's trap."

"Come back again in a few days. By then, the potion to neutralize this strange mushroom should be about ready."

Rekton nodded slightly, rose, bowed to bid her farewell, then left the church with Tu Ba Ge.

Watching Rekton's departing figure, Martina sighed softly as she looked at the mushroom in her hand, then rose and walked to the Emblem of Life at the very front of the hall.

She sat upright before the Emblem of Life, eyes lowered, hands clasped before her mouth and nose, and devoutly began to pray to the Earth Mother Goddess.

Upon leaving the church, Rekton noticed the sky had grown completely dark. He raised his hand and gave a slight tug, pulling forth a curtain-like shadow to drape over Tu Ba Ge, cleverly concealing its figure.

He was not in a hurry to return to Pas Valley and planned to stay in Hatis for two days first to learn about the situation in East Byram.

The yellowish streetlamp light flickered unsteadily, as if the flame inside might go out at any moment.

Rekton walked toward the livelier areas while observing the surrounding buildings and pedestrians.

East Byram, colonized by Ruen, was much more stable compared to West Byram. The nights here were still fairly lively, with vendors of all kinds enthusiastically calling out to customers.

In Pas Valley, once the sun went down, unless it was necessary, people would huddle in their homes and not venture out, avoiding the armed conflicts that could erupt at any time.

Many buildings here showed signs of renovation, apparently affected by the city's continual expansion.

Rekton surveyed the surroundings, found a local restaurant with a fair number of Ruen patrons, and walked in with the concealed Tu Ba Ge. It was a barbecue shop — besides common meats, they would also brush vegetables and fruits with a special seasoning and grill them.

After ordering, Rekton lightly tapped his fingers, spread out his spirituality, and created a layer of invisible ripples.

Through his grasp of the surrounding people's mental bodies, he created a psychological blind spot, placing Tu Ba Ge in the "blind spot of awareness" of those around, thereby achieving psychological invisibility.

Tu Ba Ge bounced on its chair and, seeing that no one noticed it, directly grabbed a piece of fruit from the table that hadn't yet been brushed with seasoning and grilled, and started munching on it.

While grilling his own meat, Rekton asked curiously, "Do you know how to digest the Harvest Priest's potion now?"

"Oh — Sister Martina said that harvest doesn't only mean an increase in crop yield, but also the satisfaction of one's own heart."

"But I think if I find a plantation and use my extraordinary abilities to help them gradually expand their planting scale and increase yield, then I can achieve a harvest — a yield increase will definitely give people a sense of satisfaction, and that way I can digest the potion."

"A substantial increase in yield doesn't necessarily bring higher profits; it might instead cause prices to drop."

Rekton recalled the news he had read before and casually remarked with a sigh.

"Why? Isn't more always better?"

Tu Ba Ge asked in bewilderment.

Rekton chuckled lightly, his tone flat as he said:

"Anything, once there's too much of it, becomes worthless."

"But you could go to Mr. Plack's plantation and help him grow coffee beans. It's exactly coffee bean planting season right now, and no one would refuse the help of a Harvest Priest."

Tu Ba Ge pawed at several Southern Continent fruits that looked like sweet potatoes, crunching them with crisp sounds. Only after stuffing all the fruit in front of it into its mouth did it mumble:

"Although Pas Valley's climate is very suitable for growing coffee beans, it still takes seven or eight months to harvest even once — that's over half a year right there. Is there a way to digest the potion all at once?"

"There is," Rekton said with a light chuckle and a nod.

"What way?"

Tu Ba Ge's eyes lit up, gazing at Rekton in pleasant surprise.

Rekton placed the fruit from in front of himself in front of Tu Ba Ge and said with a smile:

"Go roll the Dice of Probability. As long as it gives you a six, you won't even need to prepare a potion — you could just gnaw on that walking stick and successfully advance to Biologist."

Tu Ba Ge mimicked Rekton's thinking pose, extending a paw to rub its furry chin. After thinking seriously for a moment, it slapped both paws hard on the table and said in a brisk tone:

"It's decided, Boss. Where's that Dice of Probability? I'll try it right now."

Rekton raised an eyebrow, reached into the inner pocket of his coat, took out a small tin box containing the Dice of Probability, and tossed it casually in front of Tu Ba Ge: "If you roll a one or a two, there's a high probability you'll become roast rabbit. Think it through before you roll."

"We're so close to the Church of Nature — as long as I still have a breath left, Sister Martina can bring me back."

Tu Ba Ge tilted its chin up slightly and said with a look of indifference.

Rekton looked speechlessly at Tu Ba Ge across the table. So that's why this rabbit suddenly got so bold today — turns out it had already figured out who to call for help.

He chuckled lightly, leaned back slightly against the chair back, and while eating the grilled meat mixed with fruit, watched Tu Ba Ge take the Dice of Probability out of the small tin box.

The milky-white dice were held together in Tu Ba Ge's two paws; it muttered a few words under its breath, then lightly tossed the dice out.

(End of chapter)