The Mighty Dragons Are Dead

The dissipation of magic power was something Liszt could see, even though he wasn’t a magician and couldn’t delve into the essential reasons behind its loss. But as a transmigrator with a scientific mind, he had his unique insights.

“What’s the biggest difference between the mushroom cultivation substrate for Fragrant Mushrooms and the new substrate?”

“According to Crooked-neck Bob, the growing conditions for most mushrooms are roughly the same, with slight differences in temperature, humidity, and nutrient ratios at most.”

“But the fact that Flame Mushrooms can grow in the Fragrant Mushroom substrate indicates they don’t reject it outright. We’ve been experimenting with the new substrate for quite some time, trying all kinds of ratios, yet still unable to help Flame Mushrooms thrive. It mustn’t be an issue with the substrate.”

“If it’s not an issue with the substrate, then what is it?”

A moment later.

He formulated a hypothesis—the most significant difference between the Fragrant Mushroom substrate and the new substrate is that Fragrant Mushrooms grow on the former!

Mushroom Hamlet had cultivated Fragrant Mushrooms for many years with no other mushroom species invading, yet Flame Mushrooms emerged, suggesting that Flame Mushrooms could be a mutant variety of Fragrant Mushrooms. This mutation might not result in an entirely new species but rather a coexisting variety during the growth of Fragrant Mushrooms.

Mushrooms are fungi.

Fungi are always full of surprises. The mycelium of Fragrant Mushrooms and Flame Mushrooms might entangle with and promote each other’s growth.

Therefore, he said, “Teacher Goltai, please inform the serfs involved in the cultivation to try intermingling the Flame Mushroom spores with those of the Fragrant Mushrooms to see if it works.”

“Intermingling the cultivation?” Goltai didn’t quite understand, but he did as instructed.

Crooked-neck Bob, upon hearing Liszt’s words, was greatly energized, “Lord Landlord, Bob will try intermingling the cultivation right away, I must cultivate Flame Mushrooms for Lord Landlord!”

“This Fragrant Mushroom shed, remember not to mess with it at all, don’t destroy the environment needed for the growth of Flame Mushrooms,” Liszt later emphasized sternly.

It was alright if the Flame Mushrooms took a bit longer to cultivate; he wasn’t yet at the stage where he needed to rely on magic potions to increase his Dou Qi.

But if he ended up killing all the Flame Mushrooms, he would go mad.

In the blink of an eye, five days passed.

Liszt would visit the Thorn Cordyceps Shrubbery every day to check on the progress of fertilization and logging. The Lumberjack Team was experienced, and especially after the Smithy made a batch of sharp axes, the efficiency of cutting trees increased significantly. A large circle of trees around the shrubbery was completely cut down.

Basically, all the trees within the region that could be affected by the Thorn Cordyceps were felled.

The Fire Dragon Horse calmly ate various weeds; it was pregnant, but it didn’t show, and riding it was still normal. According to Marcus, riding it for a few more months posed no problem.

In its box, the Thorn Bug lay on jade powder, comfortably wriggling.

Over these days, Liszt could distinctly feel the Thorn Bug’s spirits were high, constantly in a state of excitement. That was abnormal as, typically, the emotional fluctuations of Elf Bugs are very small—after all, no matter how magical an Elf Bug is, in essence, it is still just an insect; one could not expect it to exhibit human-like emotions.

“Could this little fellow really be wanting to evolve?”

No sooner did the thought arise than he swiftly extinguished it, for the likelihood of success was too slim. Greater hopes lead to greater disappointments, so it was better not to indulge in unrealistic fantasies.

At that moment, Blair, responsible for supervising the work, came over.

“My Lord.”

“Have you made any discoveries?”

Blair hesitated a bit but then spoke up, “I don’t know if I’m making a big deal out of nothing, but around the shrubbery, many young Thorn shoots have sprung up like grass from the soil, already reaching about half a finger in length.”

His eyebrows raised.

Liszt followed Blair to inspect these Thorn seedlings.

Indeed, on the cleared land where trees had been cut down, tender but lively Thorn seedlings were poking through piles of fallen leaves.

The Thorns weren’t like any variety found on Earth, being merely a type of spiny shrub that, at most, grew to a person’s height, non-toxic, not flowering, and not fruiting, propagating by continuously extending roots to sprout new seedlings. To be exact, Thorns were considered weed-trees, with Thorn Bugs being merely wild Elves.

The wilderness jungles, untraveled by man, always be home to a small number of naturally bred elves.

But the wild vegetation is messy and the soil poor, which means the probability of breeding Elf Bugs is very low. This chance is far less than with species that humans have been cultivating over a long period, which produce a greater number of Elf Bugs.

Moreover,

the varieties of Elf Bugs found in the wild are hard to guarantee. They might be a weed or a poisonous fruit tree, with relatively low utility value.

The greatest use of a Thorn Bug bonded by humans is to construct a hedge.

Especially for the Nobles, who plant a hedge around the perimeter of their estates to separate themselves from commoners.

In Fresh Flower Town, the Thorn Bug really doesn’t have much use—the space outside the castle has all been converted into a racecourse, with absolutely no need for any hedge to act as a barrier.

Regardless, since it’s an Elf Bug, Liszt still decides to cultivate it.

“Did all these thorn seedlings just sprout up in the last two days?” He gently pulled out a seedling. It was tender, but there wasn’t the slightest trace of Magic Power flowing within it.

“I didn’t pay much attention at the start,” Blair shook his head, “It wasn’t just me, none of the serfs noticed either, as if they had all grown overnight.”

Liszt inspected the situation carefully.

Indeed, these were not the “Magic Medicine Thorns” he had imagined but merely common thorn saplings.

He still decided to summon the Smoke Mission to check on the situation. When the smoke twisted into Serpent Script, he finally understood—”Complete mission, reward: fast-growing thorn species.”

This meant that the mission to nurture the Thorn Cordyceps had been completed. It was disappointing that he didn’t receive Magic Medicine Thorns as a reward, just a fast-growing type of thorn.

“A fast-growing thorn species, what do I need this for?” Liszt sighed in his heart, recognizing that not every Smoke Mission would bring a sizable reward.

He didn’t dwell on it and turned his attention to the newly issued mission.

“Mission: Without the devastation of the Fruit Thief Monkeys, the Fragrant Coconut Trees have finally borne ripe Fragrant Coconut Fruit. However, the fruit from one of the trees seems different. Please find out why. Reward: an Elf Bug.”

Having read the mission, the sense of disappointment he felt just before was quickly smoothed over, and he became excited.

Why was the Fragrant Coconut Fruit different?

Because it was nurturing a Fragrant Coconut Tree Elf Bug!

The familiar pattern and familiar rewards shifted Liszt’s gaze away from the thorn seedlings. He said to Blair, “Don’t stop fertilizing the shrubbery, but the logging work can be scaled back, shifting focus to fence building. Keep a careful eye on these thorn seedlings and record their growth.”

“As you wish.”

Moments later.

Liszt had arrived at Oyster Village.

The construction of houses in Oyster Village was not rapid, barely managing to accommodate a few hundred serfs. No longer haphazardly built, the houses are arranged neatly into blocks, following the sketch personally planned by Liszt.

Near the sea in the block, a huge plaza is reserved.

In the plaza, a small hill made of colorful seashells symbolizes the specialty of Oyster Village—seafood.

On the East Coast beach, stands a clump of tall Fragrant Coconut Trees, among which, one near Oyster Village has a slightly larger house and yard beneath it—the Fruit Thief Monkey Training Ground.

A few of the best serfs at training Fruit Thief Monkeys live here; they have been freed from the fields and seawater to focus on training and raising Fruit Thief Monkeys, becoming the honored—Fragrant Coconut Fruit Farmers.

“Lord Landlord!”

Upon seeing Liszt, several Fragrant Coconut Fruit Farmers knelt and paid their respects.

“Stand up everyone. You’ve been training the Fruit Thief Monkeys for quite some time now. Can they climb trees and pick fruit yet?”