Mushroom Lord in the Underground City-Chapter 400 - 392: Hand of Death

North of Mushroom City, Solalin led her squad into an abandoned village.

Thick dust accumulated everywhere, the cobwebs under the eaves trembled slightly in the wind, yet most of the wooden houses’ structures remained intact.

After all, the villagers had only left a few months ago.

As the new city rose, these nearby villages naturally were the first to be affected, moving village by village, leaving only empty houses quietly decaying here.

According to the "northern ruins" clue provided by the blacksmith, the place that fit the description was here.

Further places that matched the description were out of reach for ordinary people by walking distance within a day.

The members searched the whole village carefully but found nothing.

Indeed, it had already been abandoned with no traces of human activity.

Several discovered cellars were merely ones where villagers had stored food in the past, long ago emptied.

It seemed to be another fruitless search.

The group was mentally prepared for this outcome, given that the clue came from drunken words heard by the blacksmith, and it wasn’t even certain if the missing person had actually come here; not finding any clues was the norm.

Nevertheless, Solalin diligently inspected every cellar personally.

Just as the team was about to leave, she suddenly gestured to pause and turned back into one of the cellars.

Standing in this seemingly ordinary underground space, Solalin felt that something wasn’t quite right.

When she noticed a lone mushroom in the corner, she suddenly realized: "Mushroom! That’s right! This place has been abandoned for so long, why haven’t mushrooms grown everywhere as they have in other cellars? There’s only this one!"

She carefully checked every corner, confirmed there was no hidden fungal mat, and finally stopped hesitating.

"Wherever you go, traces are left!"

As the Realm of Truth opened, Solalin’s pupils were dyed with a shade of silver.

What she saw was the ground covered in chaotic footprints, and a deep blue ritual array, although faded, still recognizable!

Solalin immediately summoned Fa’er’s assistant: "Report to Fa’er, I need reinforcements. I’ll also request support from the Church."

"Master Solalin, what did you discover?" the assistant asked.

"It’s a cult," her voice was grave, "Hand of Death!"

...

On the other side, seeing Vera’s group rushing into the farm first, Edin and Norris had no choice but to remain inactive for now, hiding in the forest on the farm’s outskirts, observing the situation.

Vera’s squad was tasked this time by a tall, thin man named Barton.

Barton had collaborated with them several times before, quite pleasantly, and this time he sought them out proactively.

Barton was a friend of the original owner of the farm, and he worriedly told Vera: "My friend has longed to own his farm for ages, and he finally realized that dream; there’s no reason for him to suddenly sell the farm without incurring losses! Plus, I can’t reach him at all anymore. I’ve tried to ask the new owner about the situation several times, but I was rudely chased away. Please, accompany me inside, I just want to ask face-to-face, and I promise I won’t ask you to do anything illegal."

The task wasn’t difficult, and the reward was high; moreover, it was an old employer’s commission, so Vera had no reason to refuse.

The group walked into the farm, where everything seemed normal.

Many mushroom farmers were busy on the farm, moving picked mushrooms into warehouses.

In the big farmhouse, they met a well-dressed middle-aged man; he was the new farm owner, Gavin.

Gavin wore a stern face, clearly unwelcome to Vera and her group.

"What business do you all have here? We’re busy, not accepting any visitors," Gavin said calmly, but his words were filled with dismissal.

Allen stepped forward immediately, agitatedly saying, "Mr. Gavin! I just want to know, why did my friend sell the farm? Where is he now? Why can’t I reach him?"

Gavin maintained his politeness: "Mr. Barton, the sale procedures are crystal clear in the City Lord’s Mansion; you can apply to check if you have questions. As for your friend, wherever he went after is none of my concern; please leave."

As Allen and Gavin argued, the elf Sirean quietly approached Vera, whispering in a low voice: "Vera, something’s wrong. The life force I sense from those ’mushroom farmers’ around us exceeds that of average people."

Vera looked around, thought for a moment, and changed to a helpless expression, trying to calm the atmosphere: "Mr. Barton, as Mr. Gavin said, the procedures are complete. Maybe your friend just didn’t want to be disturbed? Asking this way doesn’t seem very appropriate; shall we return for now?"

Gavin added: "Indeed, he might be enjoying himself in the Archipelago now? You won’t find him but keep troubling me; it’s quite vexing!"

Being pulled by Vera, Barton didn’t catch Vera’s intent and instead asked: "Go to the Archipelago? Why do you say that?"

"Just a random example; whether he went or not, I wouldn’t know," Gavin casually explained.

Barton suddenly shook free of Vera’s hand, pointing at Gavin and shouting: "Impossible! Barton can’t tolerate sea breezes; his skin breaks out in rashes when near the sea; there’s no way he’d plan to go to the Archipelago! He loves telling people this! Since you bought the farm he cherished as life from him, how couldn’t you have heard him chat about these?"

Vera: "Pig..."

After Barton’s shout, the atmosphere within the farm froze instantly.

Though evidence wasn’t ample, Gavin’s smile had completely disappeared, replaced by a shadow of gloom.

He realized this Barton wouldn’t give up easily.

"Being unreasonable, it seems a gentle send-off isn’t feasible now," Gavin said coldly, stepping back and signaling.

The mushroom farmers who were previously busy or spectating instantly straightened, their expressions turning fierce. They swiftly drew concealed swords and knives from various corners of the room, their movements quick and unified, immediately surrounding Vera’s group and Allen, blocking all escape routes.

Not only that, there was a sudden magic power fluctuation among the mushroom farmers; clearly, there were even mages among them, far from being ordinary people!

And Gavin, at some point, had also donned a pair of claws: "Since you refuse to leave willingly, then let me send you off... forever."

Barton opened his mouth wide, initially thinking at most it was a forced buyout, but the situation seemed far beyond his imagination?

Baffled, Barton froze in place, forgetting to dodge even as Gavin’s claws swung toward him.

Quickly pulling Barton behind him, Vera at this moment couldn’t spare any complaints about this troublesome employer.

Vera swiftly gave instructions: "Fei Yin, enhancement magic! Fei Ling, explosive arrow, collapse this place! Sirean, help guard the rear; I’ll break through!"

...

In the distance, Norris realized a fight was breaking out, instantly jumped out of the woods yet held back.

Within the Fungal Network, after getting the boss’s approval, he set aside his worries, charged forward headlong, along with Edin.