Chapter 127: Level 6
Because he had already researched all of the species in this thematic zone, Isaac didn't bother to waste any time on fighting the monsters here and only eliminated those that got in his way towards the nearest staircase. Due to the impressive range of his Eyes of Hermes, it only took him a handful of minutes to find one, and to make his way down to the 63rd floor.
Considering that this was a Safety Point, he wasn't held up for long here either. Just like in the rest of the Glacier Territory, all there was on this floor was ice and snow, but because no monsters could spawn here, only a miniscule amount of them could be seen wandering around. After searching for a staircase leading further down, he scanned his surroundings thoroughly until he found a relatively sheltered cave in one of the many mountains that dotted the landscape. He quickly bought another teleportation node and left it in there, but only after making sure that he had labeled it correctly..
The 64th floor was where things finally changed for the better again, as it was the beginning of a new thematic zone that stretched all the way to the 68th floor. Following a familiar naming pattern, it was called the 'Mushroom City', and it really wasn't difficult to understand why.
Once Isaac stepped off the staircase, he found himself in a short cave that led out into the wider environment of this floor. Like before, the ceiling could be made out many kilometers above… wait, it couldn't, at least under normal circumstances. Only due to Isaac's mastery of the Eyes of Hermes could he spy it - a regular adventurer without some kind of night vision ability would never be able to see it. The reason for this was simple: Everything was shrouded in darkness, and the only light sources around merely reached up to, at most, one kilometer from the ground. Just like when one tried to gaze out into the night from the comfort of a campfire, one simply wasn't able to see much further than the range of illumination.
But enough about that, and back to what had given this zone its moniker - the mind-boggling amount of mushrooms of all forms and sizes that grew everywhere in this seemingly endless, massive cavern! A few of them were luminescent, which made it possible for one to get a decent grasp of one's imminent surroundings, but there were also occasional flashes of light streaking through the air, momentarily shedding even more light upon the areas that they passed by. Everything looked a bit alien, and like a wonderland at the same time. It was quite literally a jungle of mushrooms, quietly growing in the relatively damp darkness.
Although he had already been told that the Mushroom City didn't have a Monster Rex presiding over it, Isaac wasn't disappointed. In fact, he was even quite entertained by what he was seeing. Most previous thematic zones of the dungeon had been… well, nothing out of the ordinary, and while mushroom-themed biomes weren't really a rarity in the stories and works of his old world, they at least weren't as common as crypts and dragons. Because of that, this environment felt a little bit like a fresh breath of air - although the air was actually anything but.
Speaking of breathing, the first kind of monster had already approached Isaac, in huge numbers, at that. Due to the subpar lighting all around, it was incredibly hard to make out that massive clouds of tiny bugs could be seen all over the place. They weren't more than half a millimeter in size individually, and pitch-black. If one didn't pay extremely close attention, one would easily miss the nearly soundless beats of their wings as well.
The name of these stealthy insects was 'Suffocating Spores'. While it was simple and clearly inaccurate - they were bugs, not spores - it wasn't as insufferable of a name as some others. It felt like the people who had named them had quite a bit of respect and fear for them. Every single one of these countless insects was at Level 6, just like all other monsters from here on out. The reason for such apprehension towards them, however, weren't their physical stats, which were all not even comparable to those of a Goblin, or their Magic stat, which could reach up to H-100 / 45,050 - it was their method of attack.
Usually, before the adventurer would notice, the Suffocating Spores would get breathed in in huge numbers, allowing the bugs to attack the body from the inside. But still, their physical stats weren't high enough to even leave a scratch on any of the insides of anyone who made it to this point, so while their presence would be disgusting, it wasn't dangerous or lethal. Because almost everyone chose the Abnormal Resistance Development Ability, the considerably dangerous poison in the bugs' bodies also wouldn't be able to overwhelm their opponents.
Well, that was if one had only swallowed a few hundred of them. But once a single one of them managed to enter into an adventurer's body, the entire swarm would go mad and try to enter the same body through any and all of its orifices - a truly gruesome sight to behold. This was where the former half of their names came into play. They would literally suffocate their victims to death, either by preventing them from breathing in an effort to keep them out, or by rushing into their bodies until they simply couldn't breathe anymore. Needless to say, even the prestigious Zeus and Hera Familias had taken grievous losses back when they had first advanced to this thematic zone, because the Suffocating Spores had been too unexpected - and even after they knew about them, it was difficult to employ countermeasures. Only after a considerable while had they developed Magic Items similar to gas masks and other protective equipment that allowed them to ignore these pests. Although the bugs' stats didn't pose a danger, all in all, they were still the most major threat.
Even if Isaac hadn't been warned about the Suffocating Spores by Fels, he wouldn't have been taken by surprise. It was slightly difficult, but relying on his regular eyesight and focus, it wasn't too hard to notice the bugs once they were about 100 meters away. If his exceptional hearing was included in the equation, then he could even deduce their positions in a radius of close to double that distance all around him, leaving no blind spots. Of course, if he relied on his Eyes of Hermes, then the bugs could only find themselves in an even more harmless position.
For close to ten minutes, Isaac observed the surrounding swarms, easily dodging them successfully whenever necessary. He baited them into specific attack patterns, and tested whether or not they would respond differently once only certain amounts of survivors were left. What he discovered left him a bit disappointed, but also relieved at the same time. Contrary to what he had mentally prepared himself for, the bugs were truly only simple-minded killing machines, who couldn't employ even the most rudimentary of formations. Once one wore protective equipment, one could completely ignore them, and they wouldn't be able to pose any threat at all.
As he hadn't come here with any special gear of that sort, he had to rely on different methods. First of all, he could simply evade all of the bug swarms, which he opted to do whenever it was feasible. But occasionally, they would rudely intrude upon his research on other monster species, so he had to decimate their swarms. The easiest way to do so was, yet again, to rely on his trusty wind blades. Because they were physically frail, the bugs couldn't offer up any resistance. He only had to create a few hundred wind blades and manipulate their paths to completely eradicate a swarm consisting of tens of thousands.
Aside from the Suffocating Spores, there were five other monster species that could be found starting from the 64th floor.
Pure stats-wise, the weakest of which weren't actually the omnipresent black bugs, but another type of small insect - the Glowbugs. These monsters were practically no threat whatsoever. They moved alone or in groups of a few tens at maximum, and were simply oversized fireflies that were about five centimeters long. Admittedly, their physical stats were relatively high, especially their Agility, which could reach up to I-50 / 43,450, but they could only damage their opponents by flying head-first into them. There were no tactics, they had no hidden weapons, and they were literally glowing, announcing their presence loud and clear. In other words, they were light sources that could slightly harass adventurers. Honestly, even Isaac couldn't really imagine anyone falling prey to them.
Next on the list of anticipated research targets was another glowing monster species - the Luminescent Weasels. For once, their name was actually quite flattering, at least in Isaac's eyes. While weasels had been considered to be pests in his old world, they at least could be described to look reasonably cute - however, the same couldn't be said about these monsters.
Their overall build was nearly identical, just enlarged by a few times until they reached close to five meters in length, but they didn't have any fur or eyes. Their pale-white flesh and the blue-ish veins pulsating and glowing underneath, squirming like worms in the process, left any observers with a healthy dose of disgust. Gone was the cuteness, replaced by the strange and alien look of a creature whose species hadn't seen the sunlight in thousands of generations. At first glance, it honestly made no sense that creatures that were glowing would lose their eyesight, and even disregarding that, they still lived in a decently illuminated area. But once one considered that they hadn't actually come about by natural evolution and had been created by the dungeon, then their existence could be more easily accepted.
Aside from being interesting to observe and dissect, the weasels were actually a bit dangerous. While three of their stats - their Strength, Dexterity and Agility - could reach up to H-150 / 46,650, this wasn't actually what made them threatening. Their similarities to anglerfish, however, were. Most of their body was emitting light, attracting the attention of their prey, but their tails were entirely left in the dark and quite scorpion-like, even sporting a sharp stinger at the end. The weasels would engage their opponents and wait until they showed an opening, then they would strike, skewering them in the process. If one didn't scrutinize them carefully, then one could easily lose one's life.
The Fungus Treants weren't especially interesting. Although they posed a bigger danger than the Luminescent Weasels, mostly because of their higher stats that could reach up to G-200 / 48,250, they were basically just mushroom-themed reskins of the Treants that Isaac had encountered multiple times already. Just like before, there were many variations of them, and he could indeed spend a lot of time researching all of their specifics, but they didn't stand out in any particular way. Occasionally, there would be groups of them mixed into the surrounding massive mushrooms, which made it possible for them to ambush unsuspecting travellers, but honestly, any adventurer worth their salt would know to deeply distrust their environment by this point.
The Shroom Crawlers fell into the same category. Although they looked a bit different from the Killer Ants and Illusory Termites - their carapaces were completely overgrown by mushrooms - and had the ability to rapidly regenerate by relying on the fungi's vitality, they were, in essence, yet again just reskins. They didn't even have a central existence like the Illusory Termite Queen to lead them and were simply relying on their huge numbers to overwhelm their enemies. Groups of them could range anywhere from a few tens to many thousands, and they could call for aid using similar pheromones to those that the Killer Ants employed. The Crawlers' Strength and Endurance could reach up to G-250 / 49,850, which was the last noteworthy detail about them.
Thankfully, the strongest monster species on this floor, the Preying Mantises, actually were an entirely new monster species again. Appearance-wise, they were up to fifteen meter tall praying mantises with pitch-black carapaces. They relied mostly on their Strength and Agility, which could reach up to F-300 / 51,450. Usually, a praying mantis would hide in plain sight and then attack once their prey got close enough, but down here in the Mushroom City, the Preying Mantises behaved a bit differently. They stuck to the shadows, deliberately seeking out places without any nearby light sources. As for what came next, they behaved just like the regular insects from Isaac's old world. Once their prey approached them, they would attack, but this time from the veil of absolute darkness, and without making much of a sound at all. They were like silent reapers that could behead their foes with their sickle-like arms before anyone even knew what had hit them. In conclusion, they weren't the most fascinating species that Isaac had come across - far from it - but at the very least they weren't another reskin.
Close to two hours after he had entered the dungeon, he finally arrived on the 67th floor, where two other new monster species started to appear.
The weaker ones were the Long-Tailed Hounds, whose Strength, Endurance and Agility could all reach up to F-350 / 53,050. They… actually were monsters who had fallen prey to that horrible naming sense again! Out of all of the creatures that he had encountered in this entire thematic zone, they were by far the most regal - honestly, they looked quite impressive! It truly felt like someone in the Zeus or Hera Familia had had a personal vendetta against any genuinely majestic monsters - after all, most of them had been branded with the most pathetic names in the book.
The hounds actually looked very similar to a mythical creature that Isaac had read about in his old world, the Alphyn. They were only about two meters tall when standing on all fours and most of their body was that of a grey-brown wolf, but their neck was surrounded by a lion-like mane. Instead of regular paws, their forelegs ended in the talons of an eagle. Furthermore, they had a seven meter long, tufted tail that they had a remarkable amount of control over, enabling them to perform stunning maneuvers. They could even use their long and sharp tongues to catch their prey off guard. Usually, they would roam the floor in packs of twenty or more, and they could also make use of relatively advanced formations and positioning, making them expert hunters.
As for the stronger new monster species, they were called the Shadow Stalkers. They relied on their long claws to ambush from the shadows and behaved quite similarly to the Preying Mantises, but relied more on repeated attacks than one-hit KOs. This also showed in their stats - their Agility and Dexterity could reach up to E-400 / 54,650, but their Strength was quite a bit lower. A single group of them numbered in the hundreds, so even though the damage of a singular attack wasn't that high, one would quickly find oneself sliced apart from all sides, experiencing a 'death by a thousand cuts'.
What was perhaps the most unusual about the Shadow Stalkers was their appearance. Yes, they did have sharp claws, but what they were connected to… was a little strange. They were white-eyed humanoid monsters that were about two meters tall - so far, so good - and their entire bodies were formed from hyphae. Yes, they were made up of the same material as the rest of the mushrooms all around, with the only differences being a circulatory system and a brain-like structure quite similar to those of a human, as well as a magic stone embedded next to their heart. Of course, the reason Isaac found out about these details doesn't really need to be stated, does it?
On the 68th floor, there was one last monster species that he had to research. They were most likely why the dungeon had felt it unnecessary to put a Monster Rex here, because the overwhelming danger that these monsters posed couldn't be understated. They were even far more dangerous than the nigh omnipresent Suffocating Spores.
Once Isaac stepped foot into this environment, he instantly realized that, although the surroundings looked to be the same, they were entirely different. He didn't even need to rely on his Eyes of Hermes to observe the strings of mana connecting nearly everything like a puppet theater - simply the movements of the various monsters that he could see instantly made him realize that everything was… 'wrong'. They carried themselves a lot more robotically and efficiently than before, and they seemed to systematically patrol the area. Even the swarms of bugs in the air felt more like squadrons of fighter jets defending their airspace.
Back when the Zeus and Hera Familias had first come here, this had been a point where they had taken grievous losses again. They had come to expect for the monsters to behave in the same ways as before, and been taken by surprise - but this wasn't even close to the worst of it. All of the monsters were connected, and could call upon seemingly endless reinforcements. It was like all monsters on this floor could sense their position starting from the very moment that they first got spotted. Additionally, all of the monsters completely disregarded almost all of their injuries, and crawled closer to them even when dismembered, just like Zombies from the Haunted Halls. To find the cause of all of these strange phenomena had taken the two familias multiple decades - only after they had secured the help of an Elf who was outstandingly adept at sensing mana did they even stand a chance.
There was something else that the two old hegemons hadn't been able to conclusively confirm - none of these monsters were actually alive. Killing them awarded no excelia whatsoever, and it didn't count towards Isaac's Level 6 monster slaying quest either.
Although there wasn't much to be gained aside from monster loot, he still dispatched all monsters that swarmed in his direction, all the while closely observing his surroundings and walking through the floor. He didn't want to expose the culprits behind all of this by using his Eyes of Hermes, as that would simply be 'too easy', so he chose to rely only on his regular senses instead. Thankfully, they didn't let him down, and after about ten minutes, he finally spotted something that hadn't been present on all the previous floors - a singular, small white mushroom that was only about one centimeter tall. It had been hidden in the shadows of many other, much bigger fungi and honestly didn't stick out at all. If one hadn't paid ridiculous attention to every single detail of all other floors of the Mushroom CIty, then one never would have ever suspected it to be the cause of all of this - or, to be exact, a part of the cause.
Little Whitecap, that was the name of this monster, who had pretty much no physical stats whatsoever. Its Magic, however, could reach up to E-450 / 56,250. Right after spawning, every one of these mushrooms would start to use their mana to parasitize every monster in the surrounding kilometer or so, and kill them off in the process, turning them into their manually controlled limbs, connected to their immobile main bodies via threads of mana. They were like puppeteers pulling the strings of their zombie puppets, but they also weren't foolish enough to tighten their defenses the closer their prey got to their main bodies - after all, that would give away their positions. Truly, their instincts were top-notch amongst the monsters of the dungeon.
All of this wasn't what made the Little Whitecaps so dangerous and the rulers of this floor. Rather, the fact that all of them were connected as well and could share both their puppets as well as their obtained intel made them a nightmare to face. They had a hive mind. Every adventurer who stepped on this floor would quite literally have to face every single monster on this floor, and even killing a Little Whitecap would only temporarily create a safe zone, which would be flooded by the troops of the other mushrooms in mere moments. Only by eradicating many of the Little Whitecaps in a row and constantly staying on the move while looking for a staircase downwards had the Zeus and Hera Familias managed to proceed to the 69th floor back then.
During Isaac's research on the tiny mushrooms, there came a point where additional results could only be gained via usage of his Eyes of Hermes. What would happen if he cut the mana threads that were connecting the Little Whitecaps to their puppets, or even those linking them to more of their own kind?
When attempting the former, the lifeless puppets would instantly stop moving, and it seemed like the mushrooms had no way to take control of them again. Apparently, they relied on sensing the life force of the other monsters to target them, so once they were dead and disconnected, they could only perceive them as a part of the scenery.
If the Little Whitecaps got isolated from their brethren, then the others would send vast armies to their territory, because they judged their fellow mushroom to have been eliminated - therefore, there had to be prey in the area that they had lost contact with.
Lastly, what Isaac wanted to find out was why the mushrooms had not attempted to parasitize him as well, and he soon found his answer - their mana threads were connected to the magic stones of the monsters. Once he realized this, he noted it down and put the issue aside for the future. When he finally understood magic stones in their entirety, then he would return to this place.
As he was in the midst of his fungi slaughter, he finally got a much-anticipated system notification.
[ All stats have reached the post-update maximum.
Quest 'Reach the Level 5 stat limit.' completed. 5000 AP rewarded. ]
Usually, it would have taken him one or two more, even stronger, monster species to gather all of the necessary excelia, but his many Hunter-series Development Abilities were finally starting to pull their weight.
Taking a deep breath, he retreated far into the hundreds of kilometer wide zone that he had cleared so far and found a spot that would be safe for at least a couple of minutes, then he contentedly closed his eyes.
Seconds later, accompanied by a relieved sigh, he opened them again, a confident glint flashing within. His body had undergone a ridiculous improvement again, in any and all aspects. With another rank up under his belt, he decided to do some warm-up exercises while studying his updated Status, to get accustomed to his enhanced vessel. His stats had more than doubled, and such experiences were hard to get used to, even for him. Anyone else would have at least been lost in blissful euphoria for minutes or hours on end.
[ Name: Isaac Blackshaw ]
[ Familia: Loki Familia ]
[ Affiliation: None ]
[ Race: God ]
[ Divinity: None ]
[ Arcanum: None ]
[ Level: 5 -> 6 ]
[ Age: Unable to measure ]
[ Charisma: 34 ]
[ Divine Energy: 67,601 -> 139,709 ]
[ Stats ]
[ Strength: I-0 -> SSS-1,500 -> I-0 (69,750 x 2.003) ]
[ Endurance: I-0 -> SSS-1,500 -> I-0 (69,750 x 2.003) ]
[ Dexterity: I-0 -> SSS-1,500 -> I-0 (69,750 x 2.003) ]
[ Agility: I-0 -> SSS-1,500 -> I-0 (69,750 x 2.003) ]
[ Magic: I-0 -> SSS-1,500 -> I-0 (69,750 x 2.003) ]
[ Magic ]
[ Anemoi Steps ]
[ Eyes of Hermes ]
[ Laser Cutting Construct ]
[ Skills ]
[ Divine Being ]
[ Reverential Resonance ]
[ Development Abilities ]
[ Huntsman: F -> SSS ]
[ Hunter: H -> SSS ]
[ Experienced Hunter: I -> SSS ]
[ Veteran Hunter: I -> SSS ]
[ Expert Hunter: I ]
[ Mana Cultivation - Foundation Establishment: F -> C ]
[ Spirit Healing: G ]
[ Can be chosen from when ranking up: Archer, Mage, Swordsman ]
He had just finished reorganizing his Development Abilities a little when he suddenly thought of something.
'So Mina will be getting a bonus of 419 Level 1 stat points in every stat, huh? Not bad, but not good enough. Now that I'm done here, I shouldn't loiter.'
[ Mina Teagle's Devotion has increased by 5. ]
A small smirk played across his lips and he couldn't help but chuckle at this timing. It seemed like the huge improvement in her own strength hadn't gone unnoticed.
'Alright, it's 489 now.'
Not bothering to restrict his stats to those of his opponents any longer because his research on this floor was over, he rapidly sped into the distance, directly barging through any and all monsters in his way. As he had already long since spotted a staircase leading further into the depths, in less than a minute, he disappeared from the Mushroom City.
CREATORS' THOUGHTS 
Shiro_the_Hero
Shiro_the_Hero I know that some of you skip monster descriptions altogether, but rest uneasy in the knowledge that there will always be some hint, or something relatively crucial, that you'll be missing~ ;)
I hope this knowledge will make you sleep better! (read: worse xD)
All jokes aside, I hope you enjoyed the chapter! I know it's not necessarily everyone's cup of tea, so just think of it like a bandaid that has to be ripped off in case you're not too fond of some parts of it~ \o/
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