Warlock Apprentice

Chapter 3006: Chapter 3007: Moss Baby

"First-generation Dream Plant Fairy?" Greya’s eyes lit up. "There are generations for the Dream Plant Fairies?"

Greya turned her head to look at the Meat Mountain Baby, seeming to want to ask him. However, the Meat Mountain Baby also showed a face full of confusion, as if he didn’t know what a First-generation Dream Plant Fairy was.

With no other option, Greya had to turn her gaze back to Angel.

Angel: "You’re focusing on the wrong point. The important thing isn’t the generations, but why is he here? Did you abduct him?"

As soon as he finished speaking, the Meat Mountain Baby shook his head at Angel, looking anxious and babbling non-stop.

Even though Angel couldn’t understand what he was babbling about, he could tell that the Meat Mountain Baby had denied Angel’s assumption. In other words, Greya did not abduct him.

Angel remained skeptical about this.

From the perspective of the Meat Mountain Baby, maybe Greya hadn’t abducted him, but the concept of "abduction" could be redefined.

Perhaps Greya had coaxed the Meat Mountain Baby into coming out with her words, but in the baby’s eyes, it seemed like he chose to come out on his own. With different expressions, the same result can be depicted in such variant ways, sometimes making black appear white, and turning the victim into a willing supporter.

Plus, the Meat Mountain Baby didn’t look very smart. It’s possible that what he saw was just a powdered version of the truth.

Therefore, Angel kept his eyes on Greya; more so than from the Meat Mountain Baby, he wanted answers from her.

"I didn’t abduct him; he ran out by himself. We happened to meet halfway, so I just gave him a ride," Greya shrugged.

The Meat Mountain Baby beside her nodded frantically, as if to say that what Greya said was true.

However, Angel still had doubts, because there were too many questionable points in Greya’s words.

Angel glanced at Greya without saying anything further and simply extended his finger, pointing into the void.

In the eyes of the Meat Mountain Baby, the space in front suddenly had ripples. When they calmed, Greya and Angel still appeared to be standing there, but their eyes had lost the liveliness from before, as if their souls had left them.

The Meat Mountain Baby wanted to approach, but just as he lifted his foot, Angel, whose lively glow had left his eyes, suddenly regained that vibrancy. Angel then turned to the Meat Mountain Baby and softly said, "I’ll chat with Greya alone, you don’t need to worry."

After speaking, Angel’s eyes lost their vibrancy once more.

The Meat Mountain Baby tilted his head in thought for a moment, seemingly understanding something, then sat down right on the spot, foolishly waiting for the moment when their vibrancy returned.

On the other side, although Greya still seemed to be in the same place from her viewpoint, a sense of invisible distance was maxed out as if she and the Meat Mountain Baby were now in different spaces.

No, it wasn’t as if.

Greya carefully sensed the surrounding space. Although the location hadn’t changed, the space was like a quiet, almost deathly still mirror image.

Although the Meat Mountain Baby was no more than twenty meters away, in Greya’s perception, it felt like there was an entire world gap.

"Where is this..." Greya looked at Angel in confusion.

"An Illusionary Realm," Angel said casually. "I think it’s better to speak with you directly; his words aren’t very reliable."

"Illusionary Realm? Tsk tsk, your illusion technique seems more realistic than before. You aren’t walking the path of True Illusion like Sumishe, are you?" Greya didn’t doubt Angel’s words because the illusion techniques of the Illusion Demon Island lineage were always this strange and real, utterly unlike "fake" illusions.

Angel: "... No."

"No? Then aren’t you almost at the same level as Sanders in illusion techniques? If that’s the case, there’s nothing left to learn on the Illusion Demon Island. Why not leave and join the Candy House instead?"

Angel wasn’t bothered by Greya’s blatant instigation; he even seriously replied, "If it means getting my culinary spell techniques to match my current illusion technique level, I wouldn’t mind joining the Candy House."

Greya’s teasing mood was instantly silent at Angel’s words.

Culinary ’spell techniques’? Angel couldn’t even master the most basic Level 0 trick in the culinary genre... Or wait, he did learn it, but among the Magic Bread he made, nine and a half out of ten taste like smelly socks—who would want to eat that?

Seeing Greya fall silent, Angel’s expression slightly turned dim... Though he was joking, if Greya had indeed promised, he might actually feel a tiny bit tempted.

But Greya wouldn’t even lie to him, which left Angel feeling a peculiar discomfort deep down.

"Ahem, back to the main topic," Angel said. "You just mentioned that the Meat Mountain Baby wanted to leave on his own; are you sure you didn’t do anything?"

Greya: "What could I do? He wanted to leave, so I brought him out... And he’s not called Meat Mountain Baby. He calls himself Lumines True Moss, but I heard the Fairy Guard Squad calls him Moss Baby."

Moss Baby? Angel had initially guessed that the Fairy Guard Squad might be after the Meat Mountain Baby, but their using such a nickname for him didn’t imply there were any deep grudges.

So, what exactly happened?

Angel: "Tell me, what exactly happened between you and him?"

Greya shrugged: "Just like I said, he left on his own, saying he wanted to see the humans’ domain, so I brought him along. But he smells nice and tastes good, so now we’re in a cooperative relationship."

Angel didn’t react much at first but was stunned by Greya’s last sentence.

Moss Baby smells nice and tastes good?!

Are you raising him as food?

Greya: "Don’t look at me like that. I’m not some dark gourmet, nor do I treat Moss Baby as live food. When I said it tasted good, I meant the produce he bears is delicious. Hey, it’s like the mushroom he gave you earlier; you can try it if you don’t believe me."

Angel looked at the "mushroom meat" in his hand and frowned. "Leaving aside the taste, isn’t this considered his flesh?"

Greya shook her head: "That’s not an appropriate analogy. Instead of calling it flesh, it’s more like an excrescence. Or you could think of them as nails, dead skin, body hair, skin flakes... anything like that. These things coming off his body doesn’t harm him; if they accumulate, they become a burden."

Angel: "... That sounds even less edible, geez!"

Greya: "Besides, he eats them himself too. Look back if you don’t believe me."

Following Greya’s line of sight, Angel looked over to see the "outside" Moss Baby. He was sitting on the ground watching the direction where they stood, as he detached mushrooms or moss-like plants from his body and casually tossed them into his mouth, chewing slowly.

As Moss Baby munched and swallowed, the excrescences he had plucked from his body slowly grew back at a speed visible to the naked eye.

Seeing this, Angel was left speechless.

What Greya said was likely true; those excrescences on him could definitely be eaten... Is this really the reason why Greya is cooperating with him?

Angel continued to ask questions.

Greya stopped her teasing this time and explained the story from the start.

The main axis of the matter indeed aligns with what Greya said.

——The Moss Baby ran off on its own, intending to go to human territory, and halfway it encountered Greya, who then brought it here.

However, Greya is not the type to willingly play the babysitter; the main reason she agreed to take the Moss Baby away is because she saw a spark in it.

And that spark was the growths on the Moss Baby!

At that time, after leaving the Mother Tree, the Moss Baby walked alone toward the human territory. When it was hungry, it would tear off its own moss to eat, and that’s when it ran into Greya. Greya went to the Mother Tree to explore the food culture of the Dream Plant Fairies.

When she saw the Moss Baby eating the moss he grew himself, Greya’s "gourmet radar" immediately went off. Unlike Angel, she had no reservations about eating. As long as there was potential for something to become gourmet, no matter how dark, she dared to take a bite.

So Greya thickened her skin and approached, wanting to mooch a taste.

The Moss Baby itself wanted to go to the human lands and hoped to ask Greya about human affairs, so it agreed to let Greya have some of its growths.

Upon her first taste of the growths, Greya didn’t find them particularly delicious, just edible.

It was normal gourmet food.

But as Greya learned more about these growths on the Moss Baby, she discovered something shocking.

The growths on the Moss Baby were not only cultivated and consumed by itself, but could also change form and flavor based on what the Moss Baby ate.

For instance, initially, the moss produced by the Moss Baby was pale yellow, with almost no taste. This was because, at first, the Moss Baby did not have a concept of gourmet food; when hungry, it only ate the moss on itself, and this moss was essentially born from... photosynthesis.

This monotonous life continued until last month.

On that day, many species inexplicably appeared on the ground, which alarmed many Dream Plant Fairies.

But for the Moss Baby, who loves eating and sleeping, it didn’t care much about this.

Until one night, when a group of firefly honey butterflies invaded the Moss Baby’s house.

After inadvertently swallowing this group of firefly honey butterflies, the Moss Baby was shocked to discover it could control some part of its growths.

The next day, the growths on its body transformed from the consistent pale yellow moss to a milky white glowing moss.

The texture remained unchanged, but it now had a hint of honey sweetness.

The Moss Baby tasted "sweet" for the first time, much like a bear sneaking honey, it was astounded, and from then on, unstoppable.

For several days, it turned its growths into this glowing moss.

But constantly eating the same flavor became monotonous, prompting the Moss Baby to start its "renovation plan."

It began eating species it had never seen before, and as these species altered the Moss Baby, the range of its growths became increasingly diverse.

Not every kind suited the Moss Baby’s taste, but with varied combinations, it always found a satisfying flavor.

But as time passed, the Moss Baby discovered fewer and fewer species around it... Later, it learned that Sister Vine had issued a prohibition, blocking off some species that might harm the Mother Tree.

Afterwards, the Moss Baby heard from some seed-spreading Dream Plant Fairies that there were more species in human territory, and moreover, exquisite food there.

Having developed a taste for delicacies, the Moss Baby listened intently.

Though Sister Vine had forbidden non-seeding Dream Plant Fairies from going to human lands, the Moss Baby couldn’t suppress its urge.

In a night unnoticed, the Moss Baby set off.

Under normal circumstances, it was unlikely that the Moss Baby would escape. After all, the area around the Mother Tree is forest, and the forests are the eyes of the Dream Plant Fairies.

The fact was indeed so; not long after, the Moss Baby was found and brought back by the Fairy Guard Squad.

However, the Moss Baby was stubborn; if it failed once, it would try a second, third time.

But each time, it was unsuccessful, leading the Fairy Guard Squad to become less vigilant over time.

Unexpectedly, the Moss Baby encountered Greya on another escape attempt.

Greya also discovered the Moss Baby’s unique talent, making her feel as if she saw a dreamlike spark.

Thus, Greya decided on the spot to take the Moss Baby with her!

Under the negligence of the Fairy Guard Squad and with Greya’s help, the Moss Baby successfully left the forest.

However, there were plants outside the forest as well, and these could become eyes for the Fairy Guard Squad to track the Moss Baby. Left with no choice, Greya started digging underground tunnels with the Moss Baby, continually escaping the Fairy Guard Squad.

Along the way, they did encounter the Fairy Guard Squad, but with Greya’s protection and deceit, they managed to escape smoothly every time.

Until today, as they were about to reach New City, they encountered Angel.

...

"That’s what happened." Greya glanced at the Moss Baby outside: "He is a treasure."

"The first time I ate moss that he produced, the taste was very ordinary. But in just a few days, the mushrooms he produced have already amazed me." Greya’s eyes flickered with bright light.

Of course, the biggest contributor here was Greya, as she possessed the Authority of the Membrane of Rhythm, allowing her to provide the Moss Baby with the best species, leading to maximum variation in its growths.

"I have a hunch that it won’t be long before he surprises me greatly!"

Angel: ... no matter how delicious, it’s still growths!

Although feeling a bit uneasy internally, seeing Greya’s look of anticipation, Angel couldn’t help but ask: "Is this considered a transcendent ingredient?"

Greya shook her head: "Not currently, but it is extremely delicious."

"Even if it’s not a transcendent ingredient, does it matter?"

Greya: "What Gourmet Sorcerers pursue is taste. Whether it’s a transcendent ingredient or not doesn’t really matter. For instance, the food your mentor Jon made uses ordinary ingredients, yet the taste is extraordinary."

"However, this doesn’t mean the Moss Baby cannot produce transcendent growths. When the flavor reaches an extreme, it naturally affects the Material Realm, and might even influence a higher spiritual level, which can undoubtedly be considered a transcendent ingredient."