Chapter 640
, Initiation Ceremony
Chapter 640, Section 639: Initiation Ceremony
The United Kingdom, centered on its capital Oath City, extends from northeast to southwest, connecting four other major cities and eight fortresses to form a defensive system known as the "New Line of Defense."
Now, with the combined efforts of the nation and the assistance of the elves, the main part of the new defense line has been completed, with only the two ends still under construction.
On the southwestern side of the new defense line, in a gentle slope of woodland far from the city, a small cluster of mushroom houses has appeared.
The tall mushroom houses are connected by bridges woven from mycelium. This small settlement is home to nearly a hundred displaced people.
There are several other mushroom forests like this in the nearby wilderness, all created by the Mushroom Charity Association, or the Mushroom Worship Cult, for the homeless refugees.
Will is one of the residents here.
When the demons attacked, he unfortunately encountered demons while fleeing, lost his right arm, and became a cripple.
This made it impossible for him to find work in the city. In the war-torn years of the past, most migrants like him, who had lost their right arm and were far from home with no one to help them, would not have survived a winter.
But this time it's different.
Fungal carpets appeared all over the kingdom, and the abundance of mushrooms allowed him, with only one arm, to easily fill his stomach.
Therefore, he has always scoffed at those who spread rumors that fungal mats pose a danger.
Without the fungal carpet, he would starve to death in a week. Who cares about the risks that may not be apparent for who knows when?
Later, Julia from the Bagu Cult found him.
She said they wanted to build mushroom houses for refugees like him who could only find food by picking mushrooms in the wild, and asked him if he would like to move in.
Julia did not attach any conditions to this gift, but he was already grateful to the creep and the Puji, so he naturally joined the cult.
The following month was unlike anything he had ever experienced before.
He worked with his followers to survey the terrain, clear obstacles, and level the land.
Since he had no right arm, he used his left arm to carry the stones and his shoulder to lift the wicker basket.
No one urged him on, and no one pitied him.
On the day the mushroom master performed the ritual dance and brought forth the mushroom house, he watched as those grayish-white fungal columns slowly rose from the soil and eventually grew into a giant mushroom house.
This kind of behavior—a group of people helping others without expecting anything in return—was something Will had never experienced before.
A month has passed, and Will has become a devout mushroom worshipper.
Today is an important day.
Will and his group of converts
He will formally participate in the initiation ceremony of the Bagu Church.
He had already been told that it was nothing more than a symbolic ceremony devoid of any magic.
But this means gaining the approval of the Gourmet Cult, which at least excites Will.
Not everyone who wants to convert to the religion can take this step.
Those who tried to profit from it and enjoy special privileges have been gradually weeded out over the past month.
Those who remain are the ones who truly believed in something.
Inside the mushroom house where the ceremony was held, more than a dozen newlyweds, like Will, either whispered to each other or awkwardly communicated through the mushroom network. Everyone was curious about what kind of ceremony it was and wondered if they would ever see the mushroom envoy again.
Then they saw Julia bring in a pot with her people, and start pouring mushrooms and various ingredients into it, while a simmering flame was steadily burning inside.
"Want to have some mushroom soup together? It seems... kind of ordinary?"
"Indeed, we used to eat mushroom porridge together all the time, so there's no difference, right?"
Listening to the discussions around him, Will didn't say anything, but he felt it was rather ordinary. He had thought it would be like the Church of Light, with some kind of midday prayer or hymn singing ceremony.
Will was still a little puzzled; there was a step next to the pot, and he wondered what it was for. He was slightly disappointed.
However, this initial disappointment quickly turned into fear.
Twelve came in with a "plop plop" sound, then went up the steps to stand next to the pot, and under the slightly frightened gazes of everyone, jumped into the pot with a "plop".
"Live...live-boiled mushrooms?"
Will stood up and instinctively wanted to rush over and pull the mushroom out, but Julia stopped him.
"Don't be nervous, Mushroom will be fine."
Will then noticed that the mushroom didn't struggle at all in the boiling pot, as if it were a hot spring bath rather than boiling water.
Will was a little embarrassed. As the messenger of the Mushroom Lord, the Mushroom Envoy was naturally not as fragile as the other Puji.
Fortunately, Julia didn't scold him; she simply let him return to his seat.
After simmering for a while, Twelve, still wet, crawled out of the pot. Immediately, a follower came forward to wipe its body clean before leaving the room.
Julia then distributed the mushroom soup.
“Drink up, it means the Mushroom God is with us!” With that, Julia took the lead and drank the soup in her hand.
Everyone else did the same, and then...
"Oh oh oh oh oh oh!" xN
【tasty】
Juicy
Trembling, Will felt a taste of happiness.
……
After the initiation ceremony, Will became a formal member of the Mushroom Cult.
But this also means that Julia and her friends have to leave and build the next mushroom house shelter.
Ordinary believers can choose to stay and maintain the existing mushroom forest, or they can follow Julia to help other refugees.
Considering he only has one arm and doesn't want to be a burden to others, Will reluctantly chose to stay.
There was nothing he could do about it, but he still wanted to do something for the departing group, so he took the initiative to take on the task of purchasing supplies before the team set off, and entered the nearest city again after a long time.
He was accompanied by two other believers, who chose to split up in order to complete their purchases before the city gates closed at sunset.
After working together for a while, Will frowned as he looked at his list.
Everything else was fine, but the firefly grass was the only problem. He had looked in several supply stores, but they were all sold out.
It's not because it's a scarce commodity; it's simply that this thing is almost extinct in the United Kingdom.
It has long been known that creep is incompatible with it; where there is creep, firefly will be eaten by creep. This is one of the examples often cited by those who support the "creep threat theory".
Firefly grass can only be obtained through trade with the mountains, which takes too long, and since it's not a strategic material, shortages are the norm for merchants.
Just as Will was debating whether to go and meet up or try to find them again, someone patted him on the shoulder from behind.
“Friend, it seems you’re looking for firefly grass? If you’re in a hurry, I know a place that still has some in stock, but the price is a bit high.”
After learning that the price was already 50% higher than before, Will finally agreed and followed him to the downtown area.
(End of this chapter)