naaapseattle Chapter 576 - 566: No. 4’s Abilities
Chapter 576 - 566: No. 4’s Abilities
Badri Deep Furnace fulfilled his promise, and he did it quite thoroughly.
He not only assigned a seasoned dwarf guide familiar with every mountain path and pass but also provided the delegation with sufficient supplies to support their journey all the way to the City of Forged Fire.
More importantly, there was an official pass document stamped with the Deep Furnace Clan emblem and the seal of the Ash City Lord.
This parchment indeed brought many conveniences during the subsequent journey across the dwarf clan territories. The checkpoint guards, after inspection, would usually wave them through, sparing them from much questioning and negotiation hassle.
Of course, the so-called "smooth passage" pertains only to human-made obstructions.
The dwarf’s domain may not be large, but it is rugged and the roads are winding.
The team trekked daily on seemingly endless mountain stone paths, goat hooves, and wheels clattering monotonously against the rough stone surface, day after day, it was still a long arduous journey.
The guide’s name was Bronn Stone Anvil, a middle-aged dwarf with a beard braided into several thick plaits and a loud voice, quite chatty by nature.
According to him, the team would pass by the city of Golden Flames, which had suffered great calamity, by tomorrow.
This also meant that they were less than three days away from the destination, City of Forged Fire.
When night fell, the team camped behind a wind-sheltering rock.
The dwarves set up a sturdy iron pot, poured in water and various dried foods, and soon the pot gave off a bubbling sound and a strong fragrance began to pervade the air.
Even during cooking, Bronn’s mouth didn’t stop.
"Hey, this is our dwarf treasure, Forge Stew!" Bronn stirred the thick paste-like food inside the pot with a long-handled spoon, introducing it quite proudly, "Put dried mountain wolf meat, tough tubers, and a dozen spices in and boil them together, look at this color! Smell this aroma! After a busy day, a hot pot of this will invigorate you! I must say, this taste isn’t much worse than those[Delicious]!"
A straightforward human female warrior in the delegation curiously scooped a small bowl.
She blew on the heat, carefully tasted a bit, chewed a few times, and raised an eyebrow.
"How is it?" Bronn looked at her expectantly.
The female warrior hesitated a bit but honestly replied, "The flavor... is quite solid, but it doesn’t compare much to[Delicious]of that level, at least not as good as the delicious mushrooms I’ve tasted."
Bronn’s smile froze, "It can’t be..."
"But the delicious mushrooms are indeed tastier," the female warrior insisted, scooping another spoonful and savoring it, "This spice flavor is a bit strong... delicious mushrooms have fresher texture and the flavor is much softer."
Bronn’s beard slightly curled, clearly not very pleased, muttering about "outsiders just have poor taste" and the like as complaints.
Their argument made Inanna crave a bit.
She stroked Na in her arms and regretfully mumbled, "Should’ve brought more delicious mushrooms out."
Unexpectedly, as soon as she spoke, Na rolled out of her arms.
"Little Four?"
"Ah Pink, there are actually delicious mushrooms in the team."
"Where?" Inanna asked puzzledly.
Did someone in the delegation secretly bring some dried delicious mushrooms?
But that’s someone else’s thing, Inanna wouldn’t ask her subordinates to hand over their snacks.
However, Na just left Inanna a cool-looking back (self-proclaimed).
To everyone’s astonished gaze, Na picked up a kitchen knife, mimicking Saint Puki’s moves on the stage, did a wild dance, then sliced one of its tentacles and dropped it into the pot.
Huge question marks appeared above everyone’s heads.
Inanna quickly took out the Magic Potion, applied it to the slowly healing cut of the tentacle, and said distressingly, "Little Four, what are you doing?"
Na just took the long spoon from the stunned dwarf’s hand, stirred a few times in a model manner, and then handed it to Inanna, "Taste it!"
Na was quite confident in its flavor.
The black demon would always show a blissful expression every time it gnawed on Na.
Inanna looked at the paste with slices of mycelium tentacles in it, showing a reluctant expression.
Some people around even showed expressions of terror.
Inanna first thought of asking if Na’s brain was not working properly?
Who would let partners taste their own flavor?
But the expectant thoughts from Na kept coming through the Fungal Network.
If she didn’t eat, Inanna feared she’d hurt Little Four’s feelings.
Inanna had to take the bowl, eat a small bite.
Hmm!
It was indeed the flavor she usually ate—[Delicious Level 10]flavor!
Even chewier than ordinary delicious mushrooms.
Inanna drank a big mouthful, in an instant feeling as if she had returned to the Mushroom Garden.
Seeing Inanna’s satisfied face, Na stood even taller.
Not far away, the Sword Saint didn’t understand what that dumb mushroom, just positioned as reserve food, was being so proud about.
"Is this the delicious mushroom?" Dwarf Bronn was still dwelling on the argument; after Inanna finished eating, he immediately scooped a small bowl for himself.
He wanted to see just how tasty the delicious mushrooms that the female warrior spoke of, surpassing their "Forge Stew," were?
A few seconds later, watching the dwarf twisted on the ground, repeatedly shouting "So happy," "Previously living was in vain," the female warrior sneered in disdain.
A hillbilly of the mountains—his first taste of delicious mushrooms revealed his utterly unsightly appearance.
Recalling her first taste of delicious mushrooms, although heavenly shocking, she didn’t express such a losing face appearance.
Thinking thus, she also went forward to scoop a bowl.
Then she also started muttering "How can it be this delicious?" right along with the dwarf’s twists.
Watching the two twist like maggots on the ground, Ronan looked at his bowl, momentarily not daring to have any action.
He couldn’t imagine becoming that sort of appearance himself, how he might maintain prestige in the team thereafter...
Others didn’t have this worry. After realizing the two weren’t poisoned but were simply deliciously deranged, no one wanted to miss this opportunity to experience it.
In the end, a big group was spread near the pot on the ground, which, observing without context, made it seem as though they’d all been poisoned to death.
Can’t blame them for losing so much face.
Inanna didn’t have such a big reaction because in the Mushroom Garden, she’d have[Delicious Level 10]daily.
While most others had only tasted delicious mushrooms between Level 1 to Level 3.
Even Ronan, who held a position, had only tasted[Delicious]up to Level 4 at most.
Just that, once everyone climbed back on their feet, there was a slight change in their gaze towards Na.
Of course, Na didn’t realize this change at all.
...
The next day, the delegation continued along the mountain road.
Most members still bore some dazed expressions, their tongue tips seemingly still lingering with the flavor from the tentacles of delicious Puki from yesterday.
Only Bronn was somewhat low in spirit, not because of the delicious mushrooms, but...
"Up ahead is the City of Golden Flames, usually when reaching this corner, raising the head, you’d be able to see the copper spire of the city’s big clock tower, shining under the sun, now it’s just..."
He couldn’t continue, only sighed heavily.
No need to reach the city; the scars left by the elemental riot from the underground depths were already displayed before everyone’s eyes.
On both sides of the road, previous sections of trees and iron thistle shrubs had disappeared, replaced by endless charred land.
The land had turned rugged, with pit edges exposed after being melted by high temperatures, then cooled and solidified into twisted rock shells.
No bird calls, no traces of beasts, even when the wind blew past this land, it felt hollow. The air was filled with a vague ash smell.
Not long after proceeding, the group encountered a team of fully armed dwarf warriors head-on.