Chapter 202

Translator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation

Among the escort were over ten so-called “knights”, and the rest were mostly “attendants”. There was also a relatively well-dressed, slightly obese lizardman “noble”.

Evidently, the lizardmen took Lord Ji Chen’s presence very seriously, sending a “noble” to greet him.

When the lizardman noble saw Ji Chen and the others, just like the other lizardmen, his eyes were filled with incredulity, doubt, and a hint of awe.

“Your Excellency Ji Chen, welcome to the Western Lizardmen’s realm, the Dork Kingdom. On behalf of the elders, i extend our friendly greetings to you.”

The Western Lizardmen?

Ji Chen’s lips twitched. Please don’t tell him there are also Eastern Lizardmen, Northern Lizardmen, Southern Lizardmen, and each one has its own kingdom.

If that were the case, he would have to deal with four lizardmen civilizations. That would be too troublesome.

“Alright, i understand. Shall we go meet your elders now? I’m eager to ‘visit’ them,” Ji Chen said with a hidden meaning in his words.

The lizardman noble didn’t catch the hidden meaning and readily agreed, “Of course, that can be arranged. The elders also wish to meet a guest like you from, um, the surface.’”

With that, the noble gestured for Ji Chen to enter.

Ji Chen nodded. Being able to directly meet the core people of the Dork Kingdom was undoubtedly the best option, saving time and effort.

Led by the lizardman noble, the group marched towards the depths.

As they ventured deeper, they encountered more lizardmen along the way.

On the surface, humans lived in villages, towns, and cities. But here, thanks to the cave terrain, the lizardmen lived in clusters of caves. Larger caves served as larger settlements, while smaller ones were for smaller communities. They connected to each other with various sized passages.

This distinct way of life, contrasting with the human civilization on the surface, intrigued Ji Chen.

He couldn’t help but marvel at the wonders of this world, which had given birth to such unique lifestyles.

Throughout the journey, Ji Chen took note of everything he saw and heard, gathering information about the lizardmen.

For example, a significant part of their diet consisted of mushrooms that emitted a green fluorescent glow.

These glowing plants were similar to crops for humans and were grown in considerable quantities on the soil.

Ji Chen witnessed how the lizardmen turned those glowing plants into powder, which they then spread like fertilizer over the mushroom beds.

This piqued his curiosity, so he inspected the information panel of the fluorescent mushrooms.

The sight of it startled him.

These mushrooms were far from ordinary.

[Fluorescent Mushroom]

[Tier]: 4-Star Special Product

[Usage]: Provides a substantial amount of energy for living organisms

[Daily staple food for the lizardmen, though the taste is not exceptional]

A 4-star special product that could fill one’s stomach?

Seeing Ji Chen’s expression, the attendant lizardman noble thought he was curious about the mushrooms and enthusiastically explained, “Your Excellency, these mushrooms are the main staple of the lizardmen. Eating just three of them a day can satisfy their daily energy needs.”

“Made into a cold salad with glowing grass, the taste is incredibly delicious, and you won’t be able to forget it once you try it!”

At those words, Ji Chen’s curiosity grew even further, not about the latter half of the sentence, but about the first half – eating three mushrooms to satisfy one’s daily energy needs?

“Someone, pick some fluorescent mushrooms for our honored guest to enjoy!” The lizardman noble quickly ordered.

Soon, a large bowl of fluorescent mushrooms was brought before Ji Chen. He casually picked one up. The mushroom was not particularly large, with a stem about the thickness of two fingers and a cap as wide as a fist. Looking at the faint green glow emanating from the cap, he couldn’t help but feel doubtful.

Is this stuff really edible?

The brighter the color, the quicker the death, right?

And it was still glowing.

Will eating this cause him to meet his ancestors who passed away many years ago?

However, looking at the sincere expression on the lizardman noble’s face, Ji Chen estimated that the noble wouldn’t harm him in such a way.

So, he decided to take the plunge and carefully chewed on the mushroom.

His brow furrowed, and he almost wanted to spit it out.

This thing tasted awful!

The texture was as dry as meat roasted for a whole day and night, and the taste was like a durian left out for three days and nights.

But, after just eating one, Ji Chen instantly felt a sense of fullness, similar to eating a large piece of meat.

Not to mention three, even two of them would make him feel full!

This stuff was incredible!

“How is it? The fluorescent mushrooms are truly delicious, right?” the lizardman noble asked enthusiastically.

“Well, they are indeed very delicious,” Ji Chen replied, managing to swallow the mushroom in his mouth. He calmly handed back the large bowl of fluorescent mushrooms, “But 1 think we should hurry on our way. Otherwise, it will take too long, and your elders might become anxious.”

Upon hearing this, the lizardman noble nodded in realization. “You’re right; we should focus on the important matters.”

The group continued on their way.

During the journey, the lizardman noble warmly introduced Ji Chen to the local customs and the scenery along the way.

However, Ji Chen was absent-minded, thinking about those fluorescent mushrooms from earlier.

Those mushrooms had great potential.

Even though their taste and texture were terrible, their ability to provide a significant amount of energy gave them immense value.

If they could be obtained in large quantities, even without being consumed by his people in Ocean Crown, they could be sold as a commodity to the outside world.

He couldn’t help but think about how many players were still worrying about the issue of food and sustenance in their territories.

These fluorescent mushrooms could solve their problem easily.

Even the voracious appetite of the orcs and half-beasts could be satisfied with five or six mushrooms a day, without considering taste or texture.

Moreover, the lizardman noble mentioned that the production of fluorescent mushrooms was very high. With enough soil and fluorescent plant powder, a yield of 1,800 per mu (approximately 0.16 hectares) was not a problem. According to Ji Chen’s estimation, the maturity time was also much shorter than that of ordinary crops, rivalling even seawater rice.

As Ji Chen pondered the business opportunities, the voice of the lizardman noble rang out.

“Your Excellency, we have arrived. Welcome to Dork City, the capital of the Dork Kingdom!”

Ji Chen looked up, and outside the passage, an extremely vast underground space came into view.

The rock dome reached a kilometer high, and the eye could not see its end. Only a faint outline of the city walls could be discerned.

Outside the city walls, the ground was covered in fluorescent mushrooms, and many lizardmen were laboring in the fields.

“Your Excellency, you cannot see the full magnificence of Dork City from here. But i assure you, as we get closer, you will be amazed by its grandeur and beauty.”

“Even in the so-called above ground, i believe no city can surpass the magnificence of Dork City,” proudly said the lizardman noble.

Among the capitals of the four lizardman kingdoms, Dork City was undoubtedly the most worthy of its name.

Ji Chen glanced at the confident noble and silently shook his head. Although he hadn’t seen the whole city yet, he estimated that it wasn’t too large.

“Let’s continue forward. The elders must be waiting,” Ji Chen suggested.

As they hurried towards Dork City, inside the council hall, a five-story stone-made cathedral, the lizard elders were engaged in a heated argument. “From the surface? That’s impossible. Our ancient stone tablets tell us that it is a world filled with rocks and soil, with magma intermingled, and there is no so-called ‘surface’ world!”

“But according to the knight’s report, there is indeed a group of creatures with completely different appearances from ours appearing on the border. They can also speak many words we have never heard before, like… sky, sunlight, ocean.”

“Nonsense! They are just a group of mutated lizardmen. How can we believe their words? They might be spies sent by an enemy country, trying to harm the Dork Kingdom!”

“I agree. After all, for thousands of years, we have been constantly expanding our borders, but we have never found anything beyond rocks and soil. Now, suddenly, this group of bipedal creatures claiming to be from the surface appears. It is indeed hard to accept…”

“Regardless, everything will be clear when they arrive in Dork City.”

Just then, a guard’s report echoed from outside.

“Report! Strangers have arrived outside the city!”

The lizard elders exchanged glances. “Alright, now we can soon get to the bottom of our doubts. Bring them here!”