Chapter 163: 163 Micro-Illusion Scout

To guard against the new guildmaster's petty moves, Lin Jun diverted some attention to strengthen surveillance of the dungeon entrance.

However, several days passed peacefully, making Lin Jun wonder if they truly just wanted to taste what a Lighting Pujie tasted like?

What Lin Jun failed to notice was that a common adventurer, passing through the fifth floor, opened a small package and released some inconspicuous flying insects.

Naturally, Lin Jun could not have been staring at the entrance all these days.

【High-Temperature Tunneling】 was indeed useful; in just a few days, the mycelium network system had achieved significant results.

Except for the stair sections, which were reinforced by some dungeon-embedded formation and could not be dug, every other place—whether rock, brick, or soil—could be easily excavated.

Among them, the underground networks on the fifth and sixth floors were the most extensive.

If the Knight used 【Rolling Charge】 within them with his true body, absolutely no one could catch him; unless the entire floor was overturned, Lin Jun would be safe.

Unless... the opponent was also skilled at digging holes...

Seeing Xiao Hei stared at a round hole on the ground, freshly drilled and not yet lined with mycelium.

Just now, she had seen a Pujie poke its mushroom cap out from inside, then shrink back in.

In 【Mana Perception】, she could feel that delicious Pujie moving underground.

Actually, recently she had sensed many small things full of mana underground, but she never expected they were all Pujies!

That meant she had to taste it!

Seeing Xiao Hei tried to squeeze into the hole, but only managed to stuff in her head; the channel specialized for Pujies was too small for her.

Fortunately, she still had claws with 【Sharpness Lv9】!

Like a mole, Seeing Xiao Hei used her claws to widen the hole and squeezed inside.

Since she had merely crudely dug away the soil blocking her path without reinforcing the channel, the networks collapsed wherever Seeing Xiao Hei passed.

Chasing the burrowing Pujie all the way down, just as she was about to catch up, Seeing Xiao Hei suddenly stopped.

Because in her perception, a much larger, more tempting mana dumpling had appeared, dazzlingly bright!

Gulp—

Swallowing her saliva, Seeing Xiao Hei's body involuntarily began digging toward that direction, passing through the underground of the mushroom forest and entering the swamp.

Normally, Seeing Xiao Hei disliked the swamp's foul smell and would never come here, but today, attracted by the mana, she endured all the discomfort.

Halfway there, the mycelium network transmitted the Boss's voice, but Seeing Xiao Hei's attention was now completely unable to focus on communication.

Finally, Seeing Xiao Hei found a ball woven from mycelium in the swamp; after breaking the mycelium with her claws and drilling her head inside, Seeing Xiao Hei saw her familiar Knight...

The Knight Pujie had become even more tempting than before, but she still remembered the Knight Pujie's ferocity; last time, it had forcibly knocked her unconscious. (Seeing Hei's memory confusion after fainting)

So Seeing Xiao Hei did not rush to pounce; instead, she pursed her lips and approached bit by bit, wondering if the Knight would agree to let her eat one foot...

Facing Seeing Xiao Hei, who approached with shining eyes and drooling, the Knight extended a foot, pushing her head aside, while mycelial tentacles directly stuffed into Seeing Xiao Hei's mouth, force-feeding her mana like feeding a baby.

Seeing Xiao Hei normally disliked replenishing mana via the mycelium carpet, as it provided no feeling of fullness.

But when the mana volume reached a certain level, the situation was different.

Solar Knight direct charge!

Besides mana, there were also hallucinogenic spores.

The high concentration of mana quickly made Seeing Xiao Hei "overstuffed," after which she became dazed and, regardless of her body still soaking in the swamp, fell asleep on the spot.

Having a few Pujies drag this troublemaker away, Lin Jun personally repaired the mycelium ball she had bitten open to prevent more swamp water from leaking in.

Long before Seeing Xiao Hei arrived, Lin Jun had withdrawn his true body into the Knight's body; he dared not face Seeing Xiao Hei directly, for if this fool lost control and took a bite, the trouble would be immense.

Since the Knight was deeply hidden at the bottom of the swamp, Seeing Xiao Hei generally could not perceive him while active on the surface; she never expected that today, following the burrowing Pujie, she would actually approach his perception range...

Perhaps it was time to move; otherwise, if Seeing Xiao Hei came looking every few days, it would be quite troublesome.

However, this also reminded Lin Jun that besides the mycelium networks used by Pujies, he should perhaps also dig some underground tunnels passable by humans. Seeing Xiao Hei might not need them, but they could serve as emergency routes for Norris, Dylan, Little Pig, and the others.

While repairing the mycelium ball, a small insect that had drilled in through the broken hole caught Lin Jun's attention.

Many insects lived in the swamp; they had no effect on the Pujies, and Lin Jun would not bother to manage them specifically, but this one in front of him was different.

Under the 【Mana Perception】 perspective, it was actually a micro mana point!

A scout insect?

In an instant, Lin Jun guessed the purpose of this thing.

The Knight flicked his blade-whip, slicing it in half; the insect corpse blurred for a moment and then vanished into thin air.

Indeed, there was a problem!

Previously, Lin Jun had not noticed these special insects; although the insects' mana quantity was indeed inconspicuous, it was not undetectable.

Rather, before actually encountering them, Lin Jun had never thought in that direction, nor had he ever seen anyone capable of using insects for scouting.

Once Lin Jun noticed it, based on its characteristics, he swept out all the remaining scout flying insects lingering on the fifth floor in less than two seconds.

Bat Pujies dropped from the dome and began hunting these insects.

No need for self-destruction; the Pujies could simply clamp their legs together to crush these illusion insects, eliminating them all in less than ten minutes.

This familiar technique... is it that illusionist?

Given the current situation, Lin Jun was already prepared to be discovered.

Of course, this referred to the Knight being discovered by the opponent!

Not only was his true body currently stored within the Knight, but even if it weren't, if the opponent drilled in, they would only see an incredibly dazzling Solar Knight and an utterly ordinary green mushroom; this mushroom contained very little mana, and several similar green mushrooms stood nearby to confuse the eye.

Unless the opponent could also pull up a status panel, they would certainly only consider the Knight to be the important character!

But ultimately, Lin Jun had not expected the opponent to be capable of pulling off so many bizarre tricks.

First scouting, then what?

A decapitation strike?

The new president really won't let the mushroom rest as soon as he takes office!

Looks like I have to start creating Knight Two...

——

Inside the Adventurer's Guild.

Sorlin and others gathered around Edin, waiting silently.

Edin kept his eyes tightly shut, pinching a processed magic crystal, his brows knitted.

Controlling more than a dozen flying insects at once would be taxing even for a mage specializing in the mental arts like him.

"Crack"

In an instant, the sound of the magic crystal cracking startled everyone; Edin's expression changed, yet he did not open his eyes.

As time passed, the cracks on the magic crystal multiplied, and Edin's complexion grew worse and worse.

Finally, with a last mournful cry, the magic crystal in Edin's hand shattered directly into powder, and he suddenly opened his eyes, vomiting on the spot in a very undignified manner.

The experience of transforming into a flying insect and being crushed to death more than a dozen times in a row made Edin's stomach churn.

Fifteen averted his gaze and silently stepped back two paces.

Sorlin and Far simply waited silently for Edin to recover, while Lilian even brought a cup of clear water.

Taking the water, rinsing his mouth once, Edin looked at Far and said excitedly:

"Found it! Didn't find the mage behind it, but discovered the Pujji's King Insect! That powerful aura, and the hiding location, there's no mistake, it must be the Pujji King! But the bad news is... it also discovered my insects..."

(End of this chapter)