Chapter 4: Deal Reached |
Using mushrooms and medicine to shake off a mutation?
Lino subconsciously shifted his gaze to Lai Ya's hairline.
Since he was shorter than her, Lino easily spotted the scale-like patterns hidden beneath the brim of her hat.
Lino narrowed his eyes slightly and silently commanded, 'Use Appraisal on that patch of mutated skin.'
[Appraisal complete.]
[Name: Mutated Part]
[Description: Mild mutation of the epidermal layer. Non-contagious. Sampling and testing of the mutated part are required to determine the underlying cause of the mutation.]
Appraisal and Fungal Analysis were two functions of the Mushroom Farm.
The former could be used on anything, while the latter was exclusively for fungi.
After all, this was a system centered around fungi, not a universal deconstruction system capable of analyzing all matter.
Lai Ya shifted uncomfortably under Lino's gaze.
She raised a hand to pull down the brim of her hat, concealing her mutated forehead.
Lino got back to the point, pondering for a moment before speaking.
"I can sell you the sample-grade mushrooms. However, I won't accept ration cards. Have you ever come across any glowing fungi in the Ruins Zone?"
"Glowing fungi?" Lai Ya furrowed her brow slightly, muttering to herself.
"There are plenty of glowing things in the Ruins Zone, but they are generally quite dangerous and highly likely to be radioactive. I know of a few relatively safe light sources, but they don't seem to have anything to do with fungi... Oh, wait, I remember."
Lai Ya excitedly snapped her fingers.
"There is a type of glowing fungus. It isn't radioactive, but it is highly toxic. It looks somewhat like a jellyfish and likes to hover a meter or two off the ground, using its glow to lure insects before hunting them with its tentacles. We call them Fluorescent Spores."
As she spoke, Lai Ya gestured with her hands to show the shape and size of a Fluorescent Spore.
This kind of fungus wasn't very large.
Even the largest specimens were only about the size of an adult man's fist.
The light they emitted was a milky white, capable of illuminating a three to ten meter radius around them.
Lino was quite tempted.
The lighting fixture in his living quarters was a Promethium Lamp fueled by promethium. The original owner's father had purchased this expensive lamp so his son could read at night.
The Promethium Lamp gave off a harsh, blinding blue-white light, and burning it produced exhaust fumes that were detrimental to one's health.
If he could find a way to remove the toxicity of the Fluorescent Spores, he could use them to replace the Promethium Lamp.
Not only would it save him the cost of buying promethium, but it would also protect his health. It was the best of both worlds.
Lino immediately made his decision.
"Then it's a deal. For twenty kilograms of regular mushrooms, I'll charge you three hundred ration cards.
"In addition, I'll give you two kilograms of sample-grade mushrooms as a deposit for the Fluorescent Spores.
"My only requirement is that you bring me at least fifty live Fluorescent Spores, regardless of their size. Once it's done, I'll give you another three kilograms of sample-grade mushrooms as final payment. Does this arrangement work for you?"
Twenty kilograms of regular mushrooms for three hundred ration cards was noticeably higher than the stall prices.
But this premium didn't spark any resentment from Lai Ya; in fact, she even thought it was a bit low.
Most residents of the Lower Hive were uneducated and had no idea that the Imperium maintained a strict classification system for mutants. In their general understanding, ordinary people who came into contact with mutants were at risk of being infected.
Because of this, Lower Hive citizens believed it was incredibly dangerous to do business with mutants, which naturally drove up the prices of goods purchased by mutants.
In reality, whether a mutant would spread their mutation depended entirely on its underlying cause.
Genetic mutations caused by radiation generally lacked the conditions to be transmissible.
Mutations caused by pathogens in the material universe inevitably carried some degree of contagiousness.
Mutations caused by supernatural factors didn't even need to be mentioned; contagiousness was merely a baseline feature.
What Lai Ya didn't know was that Lino had already used Appraisal to confirm that her mutated parts weren't contagious, which was the only reason he chose to do business with her in the first place.
"Your asking price is very reasonable, and I have enough money to buy the mushrooms. Capturing fifty live Fluorescent Spores shouldn't be an issue, either. Even though these little things are toxic, as long as I'm careful, I can still gather enough of them."
Lai Ya smiled happily.
Lino pointed toward the mouth of the alley.
"Wait here for a moment. I'll go outside and bring the mushrooms over. The sample in your hand is yours to keep."
"Thank you," Lai Ya replied with a bright smile.
Lino turned and jogged away. Images of the stinking ditches, trash cans, and puddles he had passed earlier flashed rapidly through his mind, before he finally selected one as his destination.
Before long, he turned into another alley.
After confirming there was no one around, Lino rolled up his sleeves, grabbed a handful of mushrooms from his Fungal Storage, and submerged them in a pothole full of stagnant water.
The stagnant water mercilessly defiled the mushrooms, allowing germs and impurities to seep into their stems, gills, and caps.
At this moment, Lino was like a black-hearted boss, cooking up a dark dish in completely unsanitary conditions.
A moment later, the task of degrading the mushrooms' quality was complete.
Lino tentatively took a bite. Pah! It tasted exactly the same as the ones sold at the stalls. What kind of water had that stall owner been using to water his mycelium anyway?
From now on, he would just have the system use dirty water to cultivate the mushrooms meant for trading, while continuing to use the system's built-in purified water for the mushrooms he ate himself.
Lino quickly shook the water off the mushrooms and stuffed them all into a woven sack, then took out another small bag to hold the sample-grade mushrooms.
Retracing his steps back to the alley where Lai Ya was waiting, Lino came to a panting halt and handed over the two bags.
Lai Ya quickly took inventory before placing a bulging cloth bag down in front of Lino.
"This bag contains three hundred ration cards. Keep it safe. Could we schedule our next trade for the night after tomorrow?"
"Sure, let's do the night after tomorrow." Lino then added, "By the way, bring more ration cards next time. I'll be bringing a larger batch of regular mushrooms, probably around forty kilograms."
Lai Ya's eyes lit up.
"Forty kilograms... I'll have to get my companions to help out. Will there be this many mushrooms in future trades too? You don't have to worry about me not having enough money. As long as you're selling, I can buy as much as you have."
Lino couldn't give an answer just yet.
It had only been a few days since he crossed over into this world, and he wasn't exactly sure what consequences expanding his mushroom sales might bring.
This was the Warhammer world, a place that ate people alive without spitting out their bones, consistently ranking at the top of the list of worlds that transmigrators hated the most.
Even a primarch could find themselves in mortal danger through a moment of carelessness, let alone an ordinary boy from the Lower Hive.
To survive in this world, he had to tread carefully, proceed with steady caution, and think before making every move.
"Let's talk about the future later. For now, we'll set the trade volume at forty kilograms, trading once every two days, starting next time."
"Mhm! Okay. I'll be going now."
Lai Ya hoisted the sack over her shoulder and walked deeper into the darkness of the alley.
Lino patted the ration cards hidden under his clothes and nodded to himself.
With the production and sales pipeline for Milk Mushrooms established, he now had a stable source of income. It was time to execute his second survival plan.
The Milk Mushrooms solved his food problem, so the next step was to solve his water problem.
As for wealth.
There was no need to deliberately pursue such a thing.
It was merely a byproduct he would acquire along the way, guided by Maslow's hierarchy of needs, as he worked to solve his own survival requirements.
