Mushroom Lord in the Underground City

Chapter 602 - 592: The Struggle for Blessing Rights

The morning light had yet to fully dispel the chill fog above the Fungus Castle. Baroque pushed open the door, took a deep breath of the crisp air, and then moved his shoulders somewhat in surprise.

"That’s odd..." he turned to another dwarf who was washing at the stone trough outside the house. "Is it my imagination? This morning doesn’t seem as bone-chilling as the previous days, does it?"

The dwarf scooped some warm water from the heating Puki and wiped his face, nodding: "Now that you mention it... it seems the wind isn’t as biting today."

Baroque had now completed the symbiosis, and experienced the fascinating flow of thoughts within the Fungal Network. But like all newcomers, he hadn’t quite let go of the habit of speaking out loud.

He couldn’t be more satisfied with life in the Fungus Castle - the gigantic forging furnace was professionally impressive, the piles of minerals were his for the taking, and those mushrooms were so delicious they could bring a dwarf to tears!

He could even clearly feel his craftsmanship truly improving, with every hammer blow bringing the product closer to his ideal standard.

Initially, with just him and Gading facing the vast and unfamiliar miraculous city, it was unavoidable to feel a bit lonely.

But as waves of dwarf apprentices arrived and spontaneously grouped near the forging factory, the loneliness was soon drowned out by the lively discussions, hammering sounds, and the dwarves’ characteristic loud voices.

To him, Fungus Castle was undoubtedly a blacksmith’s paradise!

If there was anything lacking, it was that this "paradise" was indeed excessively cold. It was fine working around the furnace in the factory, but whenever he finished work and returned to his quarters, or now as he woke in the morning, even though Puki had heated the room beforehand, the instant the door opened, the gust of cold would always make him shiver.

This morning’s noticeably milder chill was undoubtedly a pleasant surprise.

Right then, Gading, wrapped in a thick fur coat, came out of the neighboring house with a bit of frost on his beard: "Where to for breakfast?"

Baroque’s eyes lit up, and he grinned: "Come on, let’s call on him!"

"Aren’t you tired of that yet?" Gading sighed.

"He’s a noble vampire, one slap could crush us both!" Baroque rubbed his hands with enthusiasm. "Listening to his morning rant I can swing fifty more hammers! You in?"

The two exchanged smiles and walked towards the canteen, stepping on snow that seemed softer than usual. Along the way, they noticed some icicles on the eaves were shorter than yesterday, slowly dripping under the morning sun.

Fungus Castle, it really seems to be warming up bit by bit.

...

Within the ruins, the chaos between ice and fire continued unabated.

"You... you stop fighting!"

In the flames and frost, Inanna’s voice was filled with helplessness.

The "Elemental Spirit’s Favor" could forcibly alter the attitude of elemental spirits towards her, but it wasn’t true absolute control.

Especially for these lords, this "favor" seemed more like an instinctive protective desire rather than unconditional obedience.

Above, the snowy storm and surging flames clashed in various forms, each impact exploding into skyfulls of ice crystals and flowing fire.

The tug-of-war between cold and heat formed violent turbulence, lifting the dust and debris within the ruins into the air.

The steam from the battle formed rolling white mist, quickly enveloping the entire ruin in a chaotic haze.

Pity for this archaeological treasure, the ancient structures are being destroyed in large swathes by this scale of conflict.

Luckily, Lin Jun had already scavenged the valuable items from the ruins, otherwise, he’d be heartbroken.

The two Elemental Lords had been fighting for almost the entire day, showing no signs of settling their score.

No. 4, relying on its persistent life force, finally managed to escape from the swirling aerial vortex, tumbling awkwardly behind a still intact low wall.

It extended a tentacle to examine it, with its tip first frozen into a solid icicle, then scorched by passing flames, presenting a strange condition of charred crispiness covered with frost.

Carefully, it pulled the unfortunate tentacle close, observed briefly, then with a crisp "snap," decisively broke it off.

Holding the charred icy tentacle, it rolled over to the anxious Inanna: "Pink Puki, try this for me, how does it feel? Crisp on the outside and tender inside? Or did the freezing make it too hard, affecting the flavor?"

"???

Inanna felt like No. 4 had wandered onto a path of no return...

As time passed, the battle above was finally reaching its conclusion.

The strongest aspect of an Elemental Lord lies in changing the environment and using the altered environment to enhance their combat power, a self-improving cycle.

And the Northern Territory was evidently the Frost Elemental Lord’s domain.

Here, every wisp of cold wind and snowflake serves as an aid to Lady Frost, whereas the Fire Elemental Lord’s mere presence here was constantly draining energy.

Gradually, the fiery domain began to shrink.

The Fire Elemental Lord’s blazing fists that roared met more resistance with longer regeneration times while ice spikes and frigid breaths became increasingly dense.

The situation was clear, and the Fire Elemental Lord, being quite intelligent, was certainly not a fool to fight stubbornly.

With concentrated power, the Fire Elemental Lord explosively pushed the Frost Elemental Lord away.

"Damn, damn, damn! You icy scum, you’re good! Someday I’ll melt you into a puddle of waste, just wait for it!" The voice reeked of shame and anger.

Understandable really, like being thoroughly beaten and robbed of one’s beloved possession, the Fire Elemental Lord as the ruler of the Molten Fire Dungeon, had never suffered such humiliation before.

Unfortunately, the situation was beyond personal might.

With the final words, the weakened fiery figure transformed into a streak of fire, retreated back into the binding ring on Inanna’s left hand. The ring’s sheen completely dimmed, as if entering a slumber.

The ruin now was left with lingering warmth and the refilling pervasive chill.

On the wall, a heap of debris and ice covering the Frost Elemental Lord shifted.

Debris fell away, and a slender, crystalline figure slowly floated out.

Its icy skirt appeared slightly damaged, yet its poise remained impeccable, seemingly untouched by the Fire Elemental Lord’s final harsh words.

The Frost Elemental Lord floated in front of Inanna, lifting a hand made of the purest ice crystal, then mercilessly replaced Inanna’s "Blessing of Flame" with its own "Blessing of Frost."

This time, no one was there to stop it.

Afterward, the gown swayed lightly as it floated behind Inanna.

Those cold hands tenderly cradled Inanna’s cheeks.

Following this, Inanna smoothly harnessed it via the elf... binding ring, encountering no resistance from this powerful Elemental Lord throughout.

Thus, with flames residing in her left hand and frost guided by her right, No. 4 perched atop her head, and Sword Saint Puki cradled in her arms, the modern era’s mightiest Summoner was born!

Meanwhile, the temperature in the Northern Territory finally began to fall, even though it was still winter...