Chapter 70
Chapter 70
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 70
Chapter Title: Became the Gallery's Only Reptile
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A voice flowing through mana spreads toward the far depths of the cave.
Going beyond the usual way of speaking, this was transmitting words to someone at a great distance, so it required more concentration than before.
And as if in reward for that concentration, a response came back to the words sent far away.
Cheong, right beside me, also uses mana to call out to Silpi far away, just like I did.
Silpi responds in a voice that sounds somewhat taken aback.
We got even more excited by Silpi's reaction and kept sending words, and Silpi diligently answered every single one of our questions while steadily heading deeper into the cave.
At those words, we hurriedly headed deeper into the cave.
Yes, the reason Silpi went deeper into the cave wasn't just to return to her old home—it was as the vanguard to scout even further!
"Then where's the fun in that?"
Yeah, we could've just moved together from the beginning, but in the process, Cheong found some fun, leading to this situation.
"It's been a while here too!"
A past memory from when it hadn't become a spiritual entity yet and couldn't transmit thoughts via mana like now.
As if recalling that time, Silpi's face flushed red as she shouted.
To us, it was just a past mishap, but Silpi had quietly kept that day's mistake in her heart.
"Alright! Let's go!"
Deeper still from the spot that was Silpi's old home.
As we moved toward that place, the mana grew dramatically denser.
Feeling mana at least twice as thick as where we'd just been, we momentarily halted our steps.
"Huh. It definitely feels stronger."
But strangely enough, our bodies were perfectly fine.
Well, thinking about it, it's only natural.
Silpi had comfortably lived in her previous home even as a lower spirit. Even if the mana was now twice as dense, Silpi, now a mid-tier spirit, was nearly ten times stronger than back then as a lower spirit.
And no need to mention me or Cheong, who had shown growth shocking enough to establish a fight with such a Silpi.
So let's properly check it out today.
Whoosh.
Step.
Slither slither slither.
One flies through the air.
One walks on foot.
One crawls along.
We each moved in different ways, but we adjusted our speeds to match, so no one fell behind during the journey.
We'd been moving together like this for quite a while.
Everyone had tacitly fallen silent as we progressed, but Silpi broke the quiet first, wiping sweat from her forehead.
As if waiting for it, Cheong spoke up right after.
"This place is kinda tough."
Cheong was also sweating on her forehead, much like Silpi.
Except Cheong's expression was a bit more tense.
"Wouldn't it be better to just push straight through?"
It's not at the point where we can't move our bodies yet.
But rather than ignoring it and pushing on, it felt like we should take a short break.
Yeah, like arriving at a rest spot midway up a mountain.
"Can I eat this?"
At my words, Cheong immediately plucked a mushroom from the wall and asked.
You might wonder what kind of mushroom it is all of a sudden, but don't ask me.
I don't know either.
Since it sprouted right where mana pooled, the mushroom itself likely contained a high concentration of mana.
If we're lucky, it could be classified as a spiritual medicine, but high-density mana could also act as poison if mishandled.
So I told Cheong, who was eyeing the mushroom, not to eat it rashly, and instead snapped a photo of it to post on the gallery.
The consensus leaned toward "don't eat it."
Indeed, for an ordinary person, eating spiritual medicine raw would cause major issues right away.
Spiritual medicines are packed with mana, and mana doesn't have the best effects on humans.
That's why humans process mana into magic power to use it.
Even so, the idea of just eating it raw probably comes from the super famous spiritual medicines in the Jijiyong worldview.
Those can generally be consumed directly without causing mana side effects to the user.
Ambrosia falls into that category, and its prototype, Amrita, would likely be on the list too if it existed at the original timeline.
But Silpi had a different opinion from the gallery users.
While the users screamed not to eat it, Silpi said it was fine.
The reason was simply a difference in race.
Right, I'm not human. Cheong only looks vaguely human on the outside—inside, she's a spiritual entity just like me.
A frail human body can't properly handle mana, but it's different for spiritual entities that handle mana from the start.
Plus, our bodies—mine and Cheong's—are growing tougher daily with metal energy, so she must have judged that eating that mushroom wouldn't cause us any issues.
"Then shall I try one here?"
Nod.
Yeah, let's eat it right now.
Cheong plucks an extra mushroom and holds it out to me.
But as I try to take it with my tail, she dodges my tail slightly and shakes her head.
"I'll feed you."
"Yeah. Definitely."
Fine, whatever.
I nodded and opened my mouth wide, waiting for the mushroom.
Cheong, seeing my action, had her face brighten noticeably—as if the faint fatigue from getting here had vanished—and fed me the mushroom.
Gulp.
Nom nom.
I swallowed the mushroom in one go, while Cheong slowly stuffed a full bite into her mouth and chewed.
Naturally, the effect hit first for me, the one who swallowed it whole.
Zziiiiiing.
This is like drinking hot broth on a freezing winter day?
A cozy warmth spreads through my body, accompanied by a rough flow of mana coursing through, stimulating my nerves.
A situation where, if mishandled, my body might collapse from failing to withstand the mana flow.
But didn't Silpi just say it?
Me and Cheong would be fine.
'Silpi was right.'
It's rampaging dangerously, but my body is silently accepting the mana without a hint of damage.
Crack. Creak creak.
'What's up with my body all of a sudden?'
Sometimes unsettling sounds came from my body faintly, but it felt more refreshing than painful—like a pleasant massage.
Creak creak.
"Ubu bu bu. Feels cool but kinda ticklyyyy."
And just like me, Cheong was undergoing the same changes in her body.
Of course, unlike me quietly savoring it with my mouth shut, Cheong kept opening her mouth and making noises.
I was quietly enjoying the changes in my body when a new comment appeared on the post I'd made.
No real need to check since I'd already eaten it, but with no idea when these changes would end, it'd be good to kill some time.
'Ojae Mushroom?'
First time hearing the name.
At least, it's not an item from Jijiyong game.
So this user's knowledge comes from living in this world directly?
Exactly as they said.
Why's it here?
Those elixirs only dropped at ultra-low rates in endgame content after max level.