The scene devolved into utter chaos. Team members were either collapsed on the ground clutching their chests, propping themselves against tree trunks while cradling their bosoms, or pulling open their collars in disbelief to look inside.
Terror was etched across their faces as they watched their chests steadily balloon outward. It was more horrifying than any monster or deadly crisis they had ever faced.
"How could this happen? Why—why are my boobs getting so big? I'm a man!"
"Quick, check if our dicks are still there!"
"Can we even go back to normal?! What's going on? Why did I get so exhausted all of a sudden..."
The team members babbled in sheer panic. The bizarre incident had struck so abruptly that everyone was at an absolute loss.
World Returns to Fire stood by the edge of the path, one hand holding his steadily swelling chest and the other bracing himself against a tree trunk. His face was ashen, his cheek twitching violently.
Even if he was a Fire Master blessed with intellect, he was still a Fire Master at heart—how could he possibly endure such humiliation?
Beside him stood the feminine, handsome Tone-Deaf, eyes wide and thoroughly questioning his life choices.
Jiang Jingwei sat slumped on the ground, staring down at her own chest in stunned bewilderment, yet with a hint of eager fascination, as though she were experiencing what it felt like to grow up.
She actually seemed to find it rather entertaining.
Asano Ryo was paralyzed on the ground, blushing furiously with mortification, her mouth blabbering words like "gross" and "pervert."
Pandemonium reigned.
Resting on Guan Ya's back, Zhang Yuanqing lowered his head and watched his own chest swell relentlessly, wedging more and more distance between him and her back.
Something seemed to be inflating rapidly beneath his skin. He had no idea what it was, but one thing was certain: it definitely was not fat.
*Holy shit, this has to be a G-cup already. Guess I have the assets to outshine most women now...* Although he also thought it was totally fucked up, as their leader, Zhang Yuanqing knew now was not the time to question his existence. With a heavy heart, he patted Guan Ya's shoulder.
"Put... put me down."
The old veteran driver was already an E-cup powerhouse; he could not add to her burden any longer.
Guan Ya crouched halfway down and set him beside the path.
"You... you're fine?!" Only then did Zhang Yuanqing notice that Guan Ya's chest had not swollen in the slightest, remaining at its original, pleasingly ample size.
Guan Ya glanced down at Yuanshi Tianzun's chest, kept a straight face, nodded, and murmured in confusion, "I seem to be okay..."
*Why is she completely unaffected? It can't be that hers is already too big and hit a bottleneck, right?!* Zhang Yuanqing keenly realized that discovering why Guan Ya remained unchanged might hold the key to solving the crisis everyone faced.
Compared to the others, what made Guan Ya unique?
It certainly was not her class—there were plenty of Scouts on the team.
Could it be an item?
Zhang Yuanqing caught sight of the vine armor strapped across Guan Ya's chest, and a spark lit in his mind. "Sister Guan Ya, take off your vine armor and see what happens."
"No!" Guan Ya refused with righteous indignation. "Are you saying mine isn't big enough as it is?!"
Having said that, she hurriedly pressed her lips together, fighting with all her might to hold back a burst of laughter.
"You really want to laugh, don't you?" Zhang Yuanqing stared at her expressionlessly.
Guan Ya turned her face away, but in the end she could not hold it in and snorted out a laugh.
"Sorry, sorry! I know I shouldn't, it's not appropriate, but I really can't help it! Pfft, hahaha... What a shame we don't have phones inside a trial realm, hahaha...
"Ahem! In all seriousness, I think the set's defensive effect must have kicked in. Regardless of why your chests are expanding, there's no doubt this is an external attack."
*This wretched woman...* Zhang Yuanqing took a deep breath to steady his emotions, racking his brain to make sense of the sudden emergency.
Guan Ya was right. The chest enlargement was the work of an unknown attack, and it had everything to do with this Reproduction Forest.
Perhaps a curse?
Come to think of it, as his chest swelled, the numb, itchy sensation faded, replaced by pain—a prickling, needle-like ache.
At the same time, an intense wave of exhaustion crashed over him, making him drowsy. The physical agony made it impossible to think calmly.
Just then, Little Fairy of Niulanshan, whose chest had been the first to inflate, called out weakly, "It's... it's spores...
"We've been infected by parasitic spores..."
As a Wood Demon, after her brief panic, she sensed a surge of vigorous vitality burgeoning alongside the swelling in her chest.
The reason they felt so weak and exhausted was that their vital essence and blood were being drained by the spores.
"How do we fix this? How do we cure it?"
"Can you Wood Demons help dispel the spores?!"
The nearby team members clamored in panic.
"We can't dispel them!" shouted The Little Match Boy, who was also unable to stand due to his engorged chest. "We Wood Demons can only fight them for control of our life force!"
"I feel like my chest is going to burst..." a female Earth Monster cried out.
No sooner had she spoken than her bulging chest indeed detonated with a loud pop. Her clothes tore apart, and billowing plumes of grayish mist erupted from her chest.
Immediately afterward, clusters of mushrooms sprouted across her face. Lush green moss, bluish ferns, tiered lingzhi mushrooms, and twisted vines burst through her skin...
In less than twenty seconds, she was completely overgrown with vegetation.
"Help... help me..."
She did not die right away. From within the dense thicket of flora came her frail, pleading voice.
Chills ran down everyone's spines at the sight, as if they had just witnessed their own impending doom.
"Fuck!"
A nearby Fire Master seemed to snap from the shock. Reversing his grip on a dagger, he stabbed it viciously into his own swollen chest. With a loud pop, his chest burst open, spewing grayish vapors.
Instantly, moss, fungi, and ferns erupted frantically across his body, their roots digging deep into his flesh to siphon nutrients.
Zhang Yuanqing roared, "Don't do anything rash! Stay calm!"
He was mainly warning the hot-headed Fire Masters. Having witnessed the gruesome aftermath, the others would never dare make such a reckless move.
*So that's what 'Reproduction Forest' actually means. It doesn't mean stimulating the animals entering here to reproduce, but plants consuming the flesh and blood of living creatures to reproduce... The spores were probably inhaled through the air. That means earlier I was truly aroused, which is why I thought Guan Ya smelled so sweet...* Zhang Yuanqing felt his chest swell a bit more, creeping dangerously close to its breaking point.
At that moment, he saw World Returns to Fire's chest visibly deflate, shrinking from the brink of bursting down to a D-cup.
World Returns to Fire let out a breath of relief and shouted, "Concentrate fire-attributed spiritual energy in your chest! It can eradicate the spores' vitality!"
Hearing that, the other Fire Masters followed suit. Sure enough, their ballooning chests began to deflate.
The Water Ghosts took inspiration from this, tacitly drawing their weapons to slash or stab at their own chests.
Squelch, squelch! Their chests did not burst; instead, their passive abilities triggered, turning their flesh into streams of clear water.
Within the water, grayish granular spores could be seen drifting clearly.
"No, it still doesn't work!"
Yet the moment their bodies reformed, their chests swelled right back up as before.
Unless they discarded the water that made up that part of their body. But the problem was that there were no ponds or rivers nearby. Giving up that water meant they had no way to replenish themselves—it was equivalent to cutting off half their torso, a guaranteed death sentence.
On the other side, the chests of the Fire Masters that had just deflated began swelling again, albeit at a noticeably slower pace.
World Returns to Fire said grimly, "This won't do. We have to get out of here immediately."
From the looks of it, Wood Demons were the only ones who could effectively curb the spores' growth, followed by Fire Masters. Water Ghosts could barely hold out against the parasitism if they had enough water.
Earth Monsters and Scouts, on the other hand, were as good as dead.
Especially the former—earth birthed wood in the five elements, so the spores drew the most sustenance from Earth Monster bodies.
Zhang Yuanqing's night-vision-capable gaze swept across the crowd. He could clearly see that the Wood Demons were already fighting the urge to ditch their companions and flee the area.
The Fire Masters looked ready to bolt as well.
The Water Ghosts and Earth Monsters wore faces of despair.
*No, I have to find a way, or morale will crumble in panic sooner or later...* Zhang Yuanqing urgently asked, "World Returns to Fire, can you Fire Masters help suppress the spores' vitality in others?"
World Returns to Fire shook his head. "Fire-attributed spiritual energy is the least controllable. While it would kill the spores, it would also kill you. In fact, you'd die even faster, because the spores are far more heat-resistant than flesh and blood."
It would be drinking poison to quench a thirst.
Zhang Yuanqing fell silent, his thoughts racing. Although he had the Yinyang Robe, which granted him water and fire control skills, those abilities came from an external item, not his own body.
He lacked innate fire-attributed power.
A Night Wanderer possessed immense vitality, so he could hold out longer than ordinary classes, but it was still perilous.
Deploying the Yinyang Array could temporarily resolve the crisis, but that was merely a stopgap measure, not a permanent fix.
*What method can snuff out the spores' vitality without harming living flesh? For instance... controllable flame?*
Zhang Yuanqing thought of an item he had not used in a long time—the Demon-Subduing Pestle!
The Demon-Subduing Pestle, infused with the divine power of the sun.
The pestle's purification effect was exceptionally potent against debuffs. While slightly less effective against foreign toxins or parasites like voodoo poisons, it could still...
*Wait, if I use the Demon-Subduing Pestle, will it summon that old crone?*
The thought flashed across Zhang Yuanqing's mind, but he pulled out the Demon-Subduing Pestle anyway.
Two reasons gave him the courage to make this choice.
First, the Ghost Bride had told him about the old crone's attitude toward him—she was annoyed, but she harbored little murderous intent.
If the old crone truly descended into this killing trial, the worst he would have to do was rely on his signature move: drop to his knees and kowtow in complete submission!
He would just obediently surrender the item.
Second, this was not an ordinary trial realm; it was a killing trial.
Killing trials differed from regular realms. Their purpose was to filter out the cream of the crop from each stage and offer class advancement opportunities, holding immense importance.
By normal logic, the more important a trial realm was, the higher its 'encryption' level would be.
Would the Spirit Realm permit an overwhelmingly powerful boss to disrupt a killing trial?
Zhang Yuanqing felt that the old crone most likely could not get in.
Since she probably could not enter, and even if she did, his life would not be in jeopardy, why shouldn't he use it?
Gripping the heavy brass pestle, he plunged a blade into his thigh without hesitation.
Blood transformed into crimson threads, pouring into the Demon-Subduing Pestle. A dazzling golden light burst forth immediately, piercing the darkness and bathing the surrounding trees in a golden sheen.
A searing heat washed over Zhang Yuanqing, and brilliant golden light flooded his eyes.
Right away, he felt his chest, which had been on the verge of tearing through his T-shirt, rapidly shrivel down to a female B-cup size, turning into two firm, protruding mounds of flesh.
*It really works, though it can't eradicate the spores completely...* Zhang Yuanqing sprang to his feet and called out loudly, "I found a way to alleviate it!"
Under everyone's stunned, delighted gazes, he strutted toward his teammates with his modest bust and hit each of them with a blast.
Dazzling beams of golden radiance flared and subsided in sequence. Pair after pair of eyes flooded with shimmering golden brilliance before contracting.
Before long, everyone regained their ability to move.
Aside from the female Earth Monster who had exploded first and died, the second Fire Master who had detonated his own chest survived and received treatment; the divine power of the sun had incinerated most of the vegetation clinging to his body.
"It shrank! It shrank!"
The Fire Masters were so grateful they looked ready to drop to their knees and kowtow.
"Thank you!"
Peony Fairy clutched her still-substantial bosom, biting her lower lip with bedroom eyes.
She had no choice but to hold it, because the earlier swelling had snapped her bra straps, causing it to slip off. In the thin summer clothing, it would be glaringly obvious if she didn't cover herself.
The others offered their heartfelt thanks in succession.
Letting out a sigh of relief, Zhang Yuanqing stowed the Demon-Subduing Pestle, pressed his hands downward to quell the commotion, and announced loudly, "The purification only lasts for a limited time. The moment you feel your chests swelling again, tell me immediately. Now, let's get out of here, fast!"
Hearing that, the team members shuddered and reformed their formation at once, resuming their march.
Thirty minutes later, after four rounds of purification, the slightly anemic official walkers heard the Spirit Realm's notification chime in their ears:
[Ding! You have successfully crossed the Reproduction Forest. Reward: 10 points.]
Everyone was thrilled—in fact, they nearly wept tears of joy. Looking back on the past half-hour of their chests constantly swelling and deflating, it had been an absolute nightmare.
It was more agonizing than facing a powerful boss head-on.
*Huh? No item reward?* Zhang Yuanqing was taken aback, but then he heard Guan Ya announce cheerfully, "I received a consumable reward—Madly Reproducing Spores."
*Why did she get the reward? She clearly didn't do anything! Is the reward mechanism based on whoever has the strongest vitality after crossing the Reproduction Forest getting MVP?* Zhang Yuanqing quickly said, "What are its stats? Let me take a look."
Guan Ya opened her inventory and held out her open palm, revealing a handful of gray powder.
Zhang Yuanqing instinctively took a step back, drew a deep breath, and poked his finger into the pile of powder.
[Name: Madly Reproducing Spores]
[Type: Consumable]
[Function: Reproduction]
[Description: Madly reproducing spores, a variety of vegetation demon. They often dwell within living organisms, absorbing the host's nutrients to grow. Can infect through the respiratory tract, skin contact, and other means.]
[Note 1: It just wants to reproduce. What did it do wrong?]
[Note 2: Because it is a consumable, it carries no negative cost.]
*It infects through skin contact too? That means most defensive abilities won't work against it, unless you have a powerful set like Guan Ya's...* Zhang Yuanqing was delighted. With this item, he could give the evil classes a taste of what having giant boobs felt like.
Meanwhile, his side had the Demon-Subduing Pestle to suppress the parasitic growth.
"We're almost out of the Labyrinth Forest," Long Live the White Tiger, who was responsible for charting their course, reported. There was no joy in his voice, only worry. "If I remember correctly, this is the final stretch of the route, and there are still three people behind me. Based on the pattern so far, it will take about forty more minutes to cross the Labyrinth Forest.
"That means we'll encounter at least one more crisis—a crisis right near the exit."
His words caused the smiles on the faces of the newly relieved official walkers to slowly vanish, replaced by heavy hearts.
"Regardless, we're finally getting out," Zhang Yuanqing said.
Only then did the teammates perk up.
Ten minutes later, as they trudged along the trail through the dark, dense forest, they heard another quest notification chime:
[Ding! You have entered the Moving Forest. Please observe your surroundings carefully and exit as soon as possible.]
***
High in the deep, distant 'cosmos,' countless stars formed a glittering galaxy.
While most Dominators were watching the battles among the Saints, an elder of the Spirit Society glanced down at the Transcendent stage killing trial during a spare moment, let out a soft exclamation of surprise, and then looked shocked.
"Among the Transcendent youngsters, someone wields the power of a Day Wanderer?"
Those words drew the gazes of the Dominators, including the female Grand Marshal, toward the primeval forest.
Their gazes penetrated layers of dense tree canopies, locking onto a certain spot.
The female Grand Marshal asked in a melodious voice, "What item is Yuanshi Tianzun holding?"
The teddy dog beside her answered, "It's the one he retrieved from the Lady Sandao Temple."
*I wrote it very clearly in the report. You didn't read it again, did you?* Elder Dog grumbled silently in his heart.
Then, he saw the white-haired female Grand Marshal turn her clear, profound eyes toward him and say nonchalantly, "I indeed didn't read it."
Elder Dog: "..."
Before the supreme leader of the Scouts, even if you kept a completely straight face, she could see right through your thoughts.
Suddenly, the four supreme powerhouses—the female Grand Marshal, Fear Heavenly King, the President, and the Cult Master—turned their heads in unison toward a certain point in the deep, starry sky.
There, a streak of golden light was roaring through the cosmos like a comet.
Chapter 258