Chapter 264: Mom’s Appetite

Huangfu Miaomiao’s eyes flew wide. Before she could even react, a system message announcing the completion of the Maze mission popped up before her.

Immediately after, a chorus of wails filled the air!

Thousands of Mouse Monsters, and a single creature that had lost a third of its flesh, were all wailing hysterically!

It was as if they were mourning the fall of a god!

Huangfu Miaomiao couldn’t help but cover her ears.

Feng Ling, however, listened intently for a moment. “It’s fine,” she said. “It’s just crying, not laced with spiritual power.”

Ye Zheng scoffed. “A Pseudo-God’s spiritual power is, in the end, borrowed from the Maze Master. Now that the Maze Master is dead, the Pseudo-God has lost its ability. It can’t be so arrogant anymore.”

The wailing subsided, and the swarm of mice slowly dispersed.

They fell into a state of leaderless chaos. Some ran, some howled, and some fixed their gaze on the monster outside the safe house—the one adorned with the smiling Buddha.

The monster that had just been threatening Feng Ling and Ye Zheng’s lives had now lost all ability to protect itself. It collapsed, bloated and clumsy, letting the swarm of mice tear it apart and devour it, gradually reducing it to a bloody pulp…

Witnessing such a gory scene, the mood of the group grew heavy.

Li Qing sighed softly. “Genetic labs can’t create gods, because no power in this world can satisfy infinite desire. So, it was only natural for this Maze to collapse.”

“I have a different opinion.” Feng Ling watched the Black Flood Dragon on the ground as a Card slowly materialized above its black scales.

She said, “I think it did succeed. Among all the wishes, the strongest voice is the desire to live. If you don’t consider the quality of life, how is being stuck to all those chunks of flesh not a form of eternal life?”

Feng Ling thought herself quite humorous and even let out a couple of laughs.

Unfortunately, the atmosphere in the safe house was oppressive, and no one was in the mood to laugh.

Feng Ling’s lips twitched. She looked at Li Qing. “What are the properties of this South Sea Jiao Card? Is it suitable for me to digest?”

Li Qing said, “The South Sea Jiao’s properties lean toward storage and accumulation. This signifies a process of building up power before evolving into a dragon. The Nest also has energy-storing properties, so I believe they are compatible.”

Feng Ling gazed at the Card before her, lost in silent thought.

Seeing her hesitate, Ye Zheng raised an eyebrow. “Are you worried? That if you digest this Card, your Pollution Value will increase, and you won’t have enough leeway left for that… Eye of Ho-something?”

Feng Ling shook her head gently. “I’m not.”

“Then what are you hesitating for?” Ye Zheng urged. “Hurry up and digest the Card so we can leave this Maze.”

Feng Ling said with a straight face, “Look, the South Sea Jiao is black, but my current second form is white. If I digest the South Sea Jiao, will I turn… zebra-colored? That would be really ugly, wouldn’t it?”

Ye Zheng: “…”

Li Qing: “…”

Xu Yiming: “…”

Huangfu Miaomiao: “…”

The mood instantly turned cold.

Feng Ling was a little disappointed. ‘They have no sense of humor,’ she thought.

She looked at the Card that had materialized from the Black Flood Dragon and stopped dawdling. Reaching out, she gently grasped it, and the Card was absorbed in an instant—

[You have obtained the Card “South Sea Jiao.”]

[South Sea Jiao, a legendary demon beast. It is not a dragon and is often considered an ill omen—a disaster that precedes fortune, an evil that comes before auspicious signs. If granted a golden form and worshiped with incense, it can become a Dragon God.]

After the informational prompt appeared, a long time passed with no follow-up.

Digesting a High-level Card always took more time.

Feng Ling waited patiently for a moment, and the text before her eyes finally changed.

[“South Sea Jiao” has been digested.]

[Your deck has grown significantly. Pollution Value: 18%.]

Feng Ling’s heart clenched when she saw the number 18.

She had been relaxed and comfortable with a Pollution Value of 13%, but now that it was 18%, why did everything suddenly feel so tense?

‘This is so unfair,’ she thought. ‘The Queen Mother of the West, a full-fledged goddess, only raised my pollution by three points. The South Sea Jiao hasn’t even evolved into a Dragon God yet, so how dare it raise my pollution by five?’

Great. Now there really wasn’t much room left for the Eye of Horus!

Feng Ling’s personal rule was to keep her Pollution Value under the officially recognized 22% threshold.

If the Eye of Horus’s Pollution Value was greater than 4 points, the more it went over, the greater the negative side effects would be.

She couldn’t help but regret it. Had she been too rash in digesting the Black Flood Dragon’s Card?

Just then, text describing the newly digested Skills appeared before her eyes—

[You now have the ability to absorb energy from fresh flesh. Regardless of whether the target is living, the nutrients it contains will be converted into your energy upon contact. Please name your new Skill.]

[You can mark any living entity for tracking. All marked entities will be plunged into nightmares and tormented by fear. Effective duration: 48 hours. Please name your new Skill.]

[Your spiritual power can now influence nearby living beings. Affected beings will feel close to you, admire you, trust you, and regard you as a being worthy of their utmost reverence and intimacy. This Skill does not require a name.]

Feng Ling’s eyes lit up!

‘Whoa, these five points were so worth it!’

She immediately renamed the Skills. Without any better ideas at the moment, she stuck to her usual style. The tracking ability became Mother’s Thoughts 2.0, and the energy-absorbing one became Mother’s Appetite.

[New Skills successfully named.]

Feng Ling felt completely refreshed and invigorated!

“Pack your things, let’s go~” she called out.

Ye Zheng asked with concern, “How much did your Pollution Value go up?”

Beaming, Feng Ling held up five fingers.

“It went up by that much?!” Ye Zheng was stunned. “If the Cards are compatible, it usually doesn’t increase by more than 3%.”

Ye Zheng immediately turned to question Li Qing. “What happened?!”

“Feng Ling absorbed a High-level Card. The Pollution Value for High-level Cards can fluctuate quite a bit, so 5% is actually acceptable,” Li Qing hurriedly explained.

Ye Zheng’s brow furrowed. He said to Feng Ling, “Don’t digest any more Cards for a while!”

Feng Ling, still basking in her joy, thought, ‘Not like I could digest any more anyway. I wouldn’t even glance at an ordinary Card, hahaha!’

Xu Yiming couldn’t help but chuckle. “Feng Ling, if you keep smiling like that, your face is going to get stuck.”

“Hehe~” Feng Ling said happily. “Let’s go, let’s go! Once we get out of here, I’ll treat everyone to a meal to celebrate!”

Li Qing, upon hearing this, was about to say that he abstained from eating, but seeing how happy she was, he didn’t want to spoil the mood. He smiled and agreed, “We should indeed celebrate.”

Xu Yiming said, “Let’s get hot pot!”

Huangfu Miaomiao raised her hand high. “I want ice cream!”

Feng Ling nodded with a grin. “We’ll eat! As soon as we get back to Qingjiang City, we’ll eat!”

The Cat Owl sidled closer and let out a cry.

Feng Ling looked down at it and asked with a smile, “You want to join the fun, too? Okay then, you’re included. What do you want to eat?”

The Cat Owl cried out again, its voice tinged with anxiety.

Feng Ling froze for a moment, her head turning to look at the corner—she had almost forgotten. She couldn’t leave the Maze yet. The Cat Spider was still inside its web and hadn’t come out.