Chapter 13: Purple Briefs

Little Mushroom looked at the chat channel messages and couldn't help but shiver. In broad daylight, with the sun so bright, everyone had already started telling ghost stories.

"Social"

"Got Nothing Better to Do?": The god trapped there is too bored, so it plays pranks on people passing by.

"Le Yi Li": What's there to be afraid of? Didn't they say we can't die? We always have N+1 lives.

"Got Nothing Better to Do?": The book says the god likes shiny things, so it takes people's left eyes.

"Got Nothing Better to Do?": It also turns people into Bokoblins.

"The Man Who Would Be Smoked Fish King": What's that?

"Got Nothing Better to Do?": It's a kind of pig-headed little monster.

"Got Nothing Better to Do?": It also turns people into caterpillars with facial features, squirming and wriggling all over the ground.

"The Man Who Would Be Smoked Fish King": Damn...

"The Cold-Faced Pig-Raising Succubus": Forget it, I'll just fish over here. Slow's fine with me.

"Sleep at Two": Netting fish is pretty tiring. I should head home!

Clearly, everyone was scared by Got Nothing Better to Do?'s horror stories.

Jiang Ye thought for a moment, then used two of his mycelial strands to type and send a message.

"Social"

"Mushroom Soup": So what if someone gets turned into a Bokoblin or a caterpillar?

"Mushroom Soup": Can they turn back?

Jiang Ye looked down at his mushroom stem. Mushrooms had nothing to do with pig-headed little monsters, nor with caterpillars, but...

But essentially, weren't they kind of the same?

Being a mushroom had its pros and cons. Jiang Ye wondered—if Bokoblins and caterpillars could turn back into humans, could he too?

"Got Nothing Better to Do?": The book says so.

"Mushroom Soup": Really!

"Mushroom Soup": What does the book say?

"Got Nothing Better to Do?": I think it's all just a prank.

The book recorded that a worldly bard once encountered a caterpillar with a human head near the shrine. The bard told the caterpillar that as long as he kept boosting his charm, he could regain his human form.

"Mushroom Soup": Charm?

Little Mushroom was totally lost. That sounded so abstract.

It was like that fairy tale Beauty and the Beast—the beast prince needed a girl to fall in love with him to break the curse and turn him back.

But how could beautiful girls fall in love with a terrifying, uncouth beast? The bard said that in such a case, the beast prince needed to work on raising his charm level.

The mycelium scratched his plump mushroom cap, feeling even more confused.

"Got Nothing Better to Do?": The bard even gave a specific method. Wanna guess what it was?

"Mushroom Soup": I have no idea.

"Got Nothing Better to Do?": The bard told the caterpillar to collect men's briefs—and they had to be purple!

"Mushroom Soup": ???

"The Man Who Would Be Smoked Fish King": ???

"The Cold-Faced Pig-Raising Succubus": ???

For a moment, the chat channel was swamped with question marks.

The bard said that once you collected 99 pairs of purple men's briefs, your charm level would rise to a whole new tier, and you could transform from a monster back into a human.

"Mushroom Soup": ...

"Sleep at Two": Did the bard specify the style? Briefs? Boxers? Thongs? Would my lime green pair not work?

"The Cold-Faced Pig-Raising Succubus": That bard is a total con artist, isn't he?

Jiang Ye also thought... this sounded so sketchy!

"Got Nothing Better to Do?": I think it's nothing but a prank. The book also says that later someone discovered the bard wasn't an ordinary human at all—he was actually the God of Lies!

"Mushroom Soup": ...

Jiang Ye: "..." What a headache.

Jiang Ye closed the chat channel and looked up to find himself passing by a clothing store.

In the transparent window display stood two wooden mannequins, one male and one female. The female wore a white Empire-waist dress, and the male wore a tailcoat outfit with a black silk vintage top hat.

Jiang Ye stared at the top hat for a couple of seconds, thinking it would look great on his scarecrow.

A price tag was stuck on the wall beside it: Top Hat—5,000 rupees.

Jiang Ye was shocked. Way too expensive. No way he could afford that.

"Welcome, sir!"

The clothing store door swung open, and the owner came out to welcome him warmly. "Please, come in and take a look. We just got fresh stock today."

The owner appeared to be a man around forty years old, with long hair and eyes that curved into crescents when he smiled. He wasn't sleazy at all—instead, he exuded a mature, steady charm.

The raised mycelium was about to wave no, but Jiang Ye thought for a second and stepped inside anyway, his gaze sweeping around.

Did the clothing store... by any chance sell purple briefs?

The store was spacious, with countless garments neatly hung—both men's and women's styles, all looking pretty pricey.

In the corner on the right, there was even a rack displaying a set of antique knight armor.

Whoa—

The mushroom hopped in place, Jiang Ye's eyes widening—awesome!

The silver-gray armor, complete with a tin-can helmet, looked dignified and imposing, with even a longsword beside it.

As for the price...

There were so many zeros he lost count.

The owner noticed Jiang Ye's gaze and smiled, saying, "You've got great taste, customer. This is the treasure of my shop."

Apart from these, there seemed to be no underwear for sale.

Jiang Ye was just browsing. He politely said "thank you" and headed for the door.

"Please wait, sir." The owner hurried to the door and said, "May I ask, are you Mr. Mushroom, who just moved to the farm next to the town?"

Jiang Ye nodded.

The owner said, "So it is you. I almost forgot to give you your gift."

The owner took out a pair of gloves from behind the counter and handed them to Jiang Ye.

"Leather Gloves x1"

The owner said, "I hope you like my gift."

They were simple black leather gloves, sturdy yet soft to the touch.

"If you'd like, you can wear these leather gloves while doing farm work. They'll protect your hands from injury and make you look even cooler," the owner said.

Jiang Ye thanked him, noticing that the residents of Sun Town were all very friendly. Well, except for that general store owner.

The owner walked Jiang Ye outside and glanced up at the sky: "By the way, the weather forecast this morning said there might be thunderstorms this afternoon. The clouds are already rolling in—it might rain, so you'd better head home soon."

Jiang Ye thanked him again; he was indeed planning to head back to the farm.

This trip had been a good one for Jiang Ye. As he walked, he opened the gift box from the old lady at the seed shop, revealing a tiny seed inside.

"Peach Tree Seed x1"

It was a tree seed. Plant it on the farm, and after one season it would grow, giving him fresh peaches every day.

"Great." Jiang Ye was a big fan of peaches.

Rumble—

A muffled rumble came from far away—thunder.

The mushroom raised its head, squinting into the distance: "It really is going to rain..."

He quickened his pace, scurrying back, and even paused briefly to pick some fruit from the apple tree along the way.

The apple tree was bare, but luckily Jiang Ye had sharp eyes and spotted a few green apples hidden behind the dense leaves. His mycelium excitedly plucked them.

"Green Apple x4"

His backpack had been upgraded by now, so he could carry plenty of things without any problem.

Rumble—

The thunder rumbled closer.

"Almost there! Almost there!"

The mushroom sprinted along, already spotting the signpost and crossroads ahead.

Straight ahead was the farm, and the path beside it led to the temple and the mine.

CRACK!!!

A silver lightning bolt struck down, dark clouds instantly swallowing the sky, dimming it as if someone had flipped off the lights.

Luckily, the mushroom wore a glowing ring, wrapping Jiang Ye in warm light so he could see the path ahead clearly.

The next second, lightning struck again, accompanied by a shout of "Whoa!"

It wasn't a human cry—it sounded more like a crow's caw.

The mushroom was startled, its mycelium bristling, almost puffing up into a fluffy ball.

The crow's call came from the direction of the temple, and Jiang Ye instinctively glanced over.

The path to the temple was pitch black, with tall trees standing like two rows of black giants, making the narrow road feel oppressive.

He couldn't make anything out.

Jiang Ye thought, Two-Thirty-Not-Asleep wouldn't still be fishing in there, would he? This weather is dangerous.

"Wait..."

The mushroom stopped mid-sprint, even stepping back a couple of paces.

Intermittent lightning flashed, dappling the path to the temple with shifting light. In those brief flashes, Jiang Ye thought he spotted a figure lying on the ground.

He wasn't sure.

"What's going on?"

The mushroom hesitated, bounced on the ground, then turned and dashed toward the path, shouting, "Hey! Hey! Are you okay? You alright?"

Sure enough, someone was lying face down on the ground, motionless and covered in blood.

He was hurt!

Jiang Ye immediately remembered the adventurer in his dream saying that many small monsters lurked near the temple. This person looked like they'd been attacked by a monster and were seriously hurt.

The mushroom sprinted over, wrapping its mycelium around the unconscious person's arm and shaking it twice.

No response.

"Wake up, wake up," Jiang Ye said.

Four more strands of mycelium extended, working together to flip the unconscious person over.

In the warm glow, Jiang Ye gasped in shock.

The unconscious person appeared to be male, definitely over six feet tall, with broad shoulders and long legs, making Jiang Ye briefly envious.

As for his age or appearance, Jiang Ye couldn't tell at all.

He was wearing a helmet!

It was a fully enclosed burgonet helmet. Silver-gray steel face, gold inlay, sapphire accents—every detail meticulously crafted.

The helmet was covered in scratches of varying depths, smeared with bloodstains, giving it a strangely weathered and mysterious air.

Jiang Ye thought, wow, this tin-can helmet must be worth more than the one at the clothing store! Just that sapphire alone must be worth a fortune!