CHAPTER 47: CHAPTER 47: I DIDN’T MEAN IT

Although the Demon Tide has ceased, its impact is far from over.

The fifth layer, ravaged by the Demon Tide, is now in ruins.

A third of the trees in the forest were set ablaze by the burning beetles, their charred trunks scattered haphazardly in the cracked earth.

A third of the trees were knocked down and snapped by the colossal demons, these thirty-meter-high giant trees uprooted with claw marks and footprints all over their trunks.

The forest area has been reduced by nearly seventy percent, revealing large swathes of fluorescent-lit canopy.

However, the fallen trees could be used as a bed for cultivating mycelium, which Lin Jun could somewhat accept.

The Poison Mist Lake, however, was in a sorry state.

The three-headed serpent, dripping with poison, slithered through half of the fifth layer, leaving behind a trail of dark green poison scabs where nothing could grow—even the Poison Mist Lake was on this path.

Perhaps it’s more accurate to call it the Venom Lake now.

In the dark green lake water, all the native species have disappeared, leaving only dead fish and shrimp floating to the shore, stinking.

The poison has eroded the surrounding soil, and no vegetation can grow near it, including Lin Jun’s mushrooms.

He does have Poison Resistance, but it’s only at Level 4.

The spores he tried to scatter were instantly gone, unable to withstand such venom.

However, it’s not a complete dead end.

A small dragon beast resembling a salamander covered in scales has moved in.

[Race: Dragon Beast - Mirage]

[Racial Talent: Membrane (Protected by a membrane both inside and out)]

Honestly, Lin Jun wasn’t sure how a membrane could entirely insulate against the venom, but they managed to do so.

Coupled with a certain degree of poison resistance, they’re living well in Venom Lake.

Unfortunately, the racial talent can’t be acquired; otherwise, it might be interesting for Puki to be wrapped in a membrane.

However, Lin Jun doubted these Mirages would last long.

They’re currently filling their bellies with dead fish and shrimp by the lakeside, but there will be a time when the food runs out.

The original ecosystem in the lake has long been destroyed by the venom.

Which means they’ll soon face starvation.

After starvation, they’ll likely face natural extinction.

But, they do have the [Scale Armor] skill, maybe it’s worth considering raising them?

Just not sure if they eat mushrooms.

The lake and forest are the most heavily damaged areas.

The caves, however, were purely collapsed by Lin Jun himself, and re-excavating them will be a long project.

Only the Swamp Area remains relatively unchanged on the fifth layer.

Although Lin Jun’s Fungal Mat in the Swamp Area was trampled to ruin, the environment itself hasn’t changed much. In fact, due to the accumulation of corpses, the magic concentration in the swamp has increased.

This can be considered one of the few pieces of good news after the Demon Tide.

In contrast, the Fungal Mat on the canopy remains completely unscathed.

Even among flying demons, none came to waste time destroying mushrooms on the canopy during the Demon Tide.

Now, the mushrooms on the canopy gently shake their caps.

The long-accumulated spores are released in waves, creating a snowfall of pale blue and gray spores across the entire fifth layer.

Although the roaming magic beasts haven’t been completely cleared, their remaining numbers can’t cause much destruction anymore; it’s time to revive the Mushroom Garden.

On the Fungal Mat beside the ruins of Dylan’s Cottage.

A brand new Puki was hastened into existence, with Lin Jun holding special expectations for it.

The finally mature Puki twisted its body to sever the connection with the Fungal Mat, standing up spiritedly.

A pair of claws picked it up, followed by a Dragon Man taking a bite.

"How does it taste?" Lin Jun asked.

The Dragon Man’s bite couldn’t fully sever the mycelium, requiring tearing to consume.

The mycelium was repeatedly chewed by the Dragon Man before finally being swallowed.

"This one’s tasty, I like it!"

Glad you do, it’s a specially optimized spicy strip Puki!

Besides [Magic Storage Level 6], this Puki also has increased [Resilience Level 5].

"Finish it and then help me eliminate some monsters; when you return, I’ll give you more like this one."

The Dragon Man nodded while chewing; fighting and then getting food—it was much the same as before.

Except before, it was tough meat from big lizards and stinking rats; now it’s soft and chewy large mushrooms!

She was quite satisfied.

"By the way, do you have a name?"

It’s a question Lin Jun had actually wanted to ask for a while.

Through the panel, Lin Jun could see everyone’s name, but this Dragon Man’s panel had no name section.

Not sure if she just didn’t have a name or if it was a special reason that Lin Jun couldn’t see it.

Logically, she should have a name.

The Dragon Man could speak, albeit in a strange accent, and Lin Jun could tell she wasn’t speaking Human Language.

He strongly suspected it was Dragon Language.

Having a language, being able to communicate, she should have a name.

But, the Dragon Man shook her head while chewing on the mycelium and said,

"No name, Big Dragon said, the weak don’t have names."

Ah, well...

Lin Jun thought, then perhaps I also don’t deserve a name.

"Who’s Big Dragon, is it that super scary dragon from the other day?"

Mentioning that dragon, the Dragon Man instinctively shuddered.

"No, that’s my mom, Big Dragon is much smaller than mom."

So it’s that dragon’s kid indeed!

But remembering her behavior that day, why are you so afraid of your mom?

Could it be a menopausal dragoness?

As for "Big Dragon," it sounded like another dragon.

Is it possible they live with a bunch of dragons and Dragon Men?

"Then what do they call you?"

"Svirgis."

"Then isn’t your name Svirgis?"

The Dragon Man continued to shake her head, "No, all the weak ones are called Svirgis."

Oh, so it’s a collective term, Lin Jun understood.

He could already envision a brutal dragon society where the weak are discriminated against and don’t even have names, only referred to as "inferiors" or such.

However, although the Dragon Man didn’t have a name, Lin Jun couldn’t always just call her "you, you, you," could he?

Using Svirgis felt strange too.

"How about I give you a name then?"

Surprisingly, the Dragon Man shook her head firmly and said, "Grow stronger, and a name will come!"

So she didn’t care for Lin Jun’s naming, she was a Dragon Man with aspirations.

No choice, Lin Jun had to compromise.

"But I need something to call you, the term Svirgis doesn’t solely refer to you, it feels awkward for me to use, not to mention, it’s a mouthful.

How about I just call you ’Xiao Hai’?

It’s not naming you, just addressing you that way."

It’s not that Lin Jun lacked taste, only using terms like Xiao Hei and Xiao Bai, it was because it wasn’t naming.

It was just a temporary address, and putting more thought into it felt unnecessary.

The Dragon Man tilted her head in thought, and seemingly found nothing wrong with it, so she nodded in agreement.

After agreeing on the address, the spicy strip Puki was finally consumed—it certainly became much more enduring with added [Resilience].

Xiao Hai stretched out on all fours, then eagerly went to battle demons as Lin Jun asked.

Meanwhile, Lin Jun discovered, there seemed to be an extra line on her panel?

[Name: Xiao Hai]

[Race: Dragon Man]

...

Sorry!

I should have seriously thought of one!

Didn’t I say it’s not a name? What kind of mechanism is this!?