Chapter 71
Chapter 71
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 71
Chapter Title: Became the Gallery's Only Reptile
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Thanks to a pitiful comment from a certain grad student user in the gallery, I figured out the true nature of the Ojae Mushroom.
And by eating this, I could obtain the effects of all the various elixirs processed from the Ojae Mushroom at once.
Wood-crack. Drip.
"My body feels so much lighter!"
So, the elixir's effects weren't much different from the five I already knew about.
I nodded, recalling the five elixirs created while restoring the Ojae Mushroom.
Consumable items that rarely dropped while enjoying endgame content.
Weapon Elixir. Magic Elixir. Physical Elixir. Divine Elixir. Wild Elixir.
First, the Weapon Elixir.
It provided corrections to all weapon proficiencies, accelerated growth rates, and allowed skills I'd already learned to surpass their level limits.
The Magic Elixir enhanced magic spells using mana, mana recovery, and mana affinity.
The Physical Elixir boosted physical toughness, regeneration, reflexes, and other bodily abilities.
The Divine Elixir increased the size and efficiency of holy power. And it promoted soul growth, bringing one closer to the divine.
Finally, the Wild Elixir worked on non-humans—pets. It elevated all abilities across the board and allowed them to transcend their racial limits, advancing to the next stage. For ordinary beasts, that meant becoming spirit beasts.
-You've both changed auras.
In my case, I'd already shown rapid growth, nearly tripling in size before.
Cheong had grown from a childlike form to something more mature, like a middle or high schooler now.
And as her body grew, the residual energy of the Yeouiju inside her began filling up even faster than before.
At this rate, I could output even higher power without running low on strength.
"Now I can ride around on El."
"Has it? I don't really notice."
-No. Both of you have changed a ton.
Cheong approached me in a more composed manner, fitting her new appearance.
"Right. Silpi, you should try some too."
-Unlike you guys, my body is too frail. I'd get poisoned.
A spirit—incarnation of nature, closer to mana than anyone—getting poisoned?
It wasn't even funny as a joke.
Cheong gave Silpi the same incredulous look I did.
But Silpi's face showed no sign of joking or lying.
It was like a dieter staring down tteokbokki and chicken.
Swish.
-Ugh! We've rested enough—let's get moving!
When I teasingly held out an Ojae Mushroom, Silpi recoiled in horror.
A mischievous urge rose, but the sweat trickling down her cheek and her faintly fatigued eyes pricked my conscience.
Seeing her face tugged at my heartstrings, so we decided to resume cave exploration as is.
Shhh. Whoosh.
Before, three sounds echoed through the cave as we traversed it.
The sound of flying through the air.
The sound of walking on the ground.
The sound of slithering on the floor.
But now?
The walking sound was gone. Only flying and slithering reverberated.
"This is surprisingly comfy."
The reason? Cheong had given up walking and climbed onto my back.
A light weight settled on me, but it wasn't burdensome.
My enlarged body and amplified inner energy let me better withstand the cave's mana now.
-Hoo!
-I'll take you up on that in a bit.
Unlike us, Silpi hadn't eaten any Ojae Mushroom, so she was still in the same state.
While we were relatively fine, she moved on, still breaking a cold sweat.
"Huh, what's that?"
In this seemingly endless cave, we'd occasionally stumble on something intriguing.
We'd found the Ojae Mushrooms first. Now this was the second.
"Water!"
-Whoa, these carp are no joke?
This time, a massive pool of water sat against one cave wall.
Inside swam carp I'd never seen before. Strangely, their bodies were covered in golden scales—true golden carp.
'Why are these here of all places?'
Unlike the Ojae Mushrooms, I knew these.
I'd mentioned it before.
Spiritual herbs that even users could eat without much burden. The golden carp before us were "Geunseong Fish," key ingredients for making "Geunseong Pills," one such herb.
So rare in the game that no one had ever seen live ones.
"Shark? Is this the shark?"
-Not a shark, it's carp. What El just said isn't a shark—it's Geunseong Fish.
I couldn't hear the chatter behind me at all.
My full attention was locked on the school of Geunseong Fish.
Gulp.
'If I catch just one and breed it carefully without killing it, I could make infinite Geunseong Pills. One pill cures all status ailments and grants minor [Heat Resistance]...'
How valuable were they?
I wanted to pluck their scales right then, but Cheong's sudden intrusion stopped me.
"What's a Geunseong Fish that's got you so excited?"
"For real?!"
Cheong's eyes lit up brighter than mine as she headed for the pool.
Before I could stop her, she swiftly snatched one.
"Thanks for the meal!"
Crunch.
But before I could properly intervene, a gruesome sound came from the Geunseong Fish.
Cheong had sunk her teeth straight into its body.
The fish flailed a few times from the sudden attack, but Cheong clamped down harder and tore into it alive.
Sizzle. Flop.
Right, I'd forgotten for a moment.
Even in human form, Cheong was a full-fledged tiger spirit beast.
Raw meat was no issue for her.
Munch.
But watching her devour it alive right in front of me... it looked oddly delicious, leaving me flustered deep down.
"Mmm! The scales are so crunchy!"
Gulp.
"This is crazy good?! Not as good as Amrita, though!"
-Right! Amrita is to-die-for delicious! This is just delicious!
What was this?
I conjured some water in midair to splash my face.
Because Silpi, who'd been dead silent until now, was suddenly next to Cheong, eating Geunseong Fish too.
'Cheong, I kinda expected.'
Among us three, Cheong suffered the most from the heat.
Like how I hated the cold, she hated heat.
So deep down, I'd half-anticipated her reaction to hearing it would spare her the suffering.
But Silpi? Total surprise.
"El, eat some quick!"
-Yeah, you too!
I'd said you don't just eat them raw.
Geunseong Pills made from their scales naturally required other ingredients.
The scales were just the most important part—eating the fish whole wasn't the way!
Munch munch.
"Yeah! Not as good as Amrita!"
"Delicious. Not as good as Amrita."
Right, a taste that doesn't surpass Amrita.
But seeing them chow down like that, it must be guaranteed tasty.
Gulp.
There were plenty of Geunseong Fish anyway, and no poison, so one for me should be fine?
Watching them devour theirs stimulated my salivary glands.
Leap.
Just then, a Geunseong Fish vigorously jumped from the pool.
My tail instinctively whipped out, smacking the airborne fish.
Thwack. Flop.
Hit by my tail, it flew limply to the cave floor.
Shocked at suddenly being out of water, it flailed desperately.
Gulp.
Geunseong Fish were incredibly delicate.
Even separated from the pool, it hadn't lost its vitality yet.
Of course, the spot hit by my tail was weirdly caved in, but that was no issue.
This wasn't self-justification—it was a rational judgment based on the situation.
Unlike Cheong and Silpi, who munched with their hands, I gaped wide and swallowed the Geunseong Fish whole.
Gulp.
In the brief moment as the Geunseong Fish digested...
I widened my eyes at my body heating up and checked my inner energies.
Who could've known?
Eating it alive lets you absorb the fire energy it holds.
Why do Geunseong Pills from its scales grant heat resistance?
Because each scale contains scorching heat.
Roar.
But swallowing one whole—alive and bursting with heat at that...
-E-El?!
"El's on fire?!"
The massive fire energy latent in the Geunseong Fish reacted with my rapidly growing fire (火) energy, causing explosive growth.
The result? My whole body wreathed in flames—what you'd call Fire Dragon mode.
'Fire Dragon... No, since I'm an Imoogi, maybe Iron Dragon mode?'