Little Mushroom

"None." An Zhe stepped back again, his back against a plastic sheet. "I went the wrong way."

"You went the wrong way?" The woman wondered. "The second underground floor is the casino. Where do you want to go?"

She held a cigarette between the fingers of her right hand. She sucked it with her red lips and smiled. "Beware of losing yourself."

An Zhe looked around but he was forced into a corner by the woman and there was no way to get out. This beautiful woman was more difficult than the monsters of the Abyss.

"Don't be afraid." She spat out a mouthful of white smoke and said, "I won't eat you."

"Then can you let me go?"

The woman smiled again.

"Go?" She raised her eyebrows. "Only those with nowhere to go will come to the third floor. Where can you go when you leave?"

Then she grabbed his shoulder and pulled him forward. "Are you scared here? You don't have to be here. I'll give you a big room."

"Thank you." An Zhe lowered her head. "However, I really went the wrong way."

"Eh?"

"I was just looking for a normal job." He explained, "Then someone told me to come to the third underground floor."

"You can only see people on the first floor of the black market." The woman heard his words and blinked, eyes like smoke. "You don't even know this?"

"I know now." He knew about the free market from the base manual and that it was known as the black market.

"Base laws don't protect the black market." The woman leaned against the way while smoking. Instead of pressing An Zhe tightly into the corner, she left a gap.

An Zhe thought it was a signal that she was going to let him go. He had just stepped out when he saw two tall, black men behind her. There was one to the left and one to the right, blocking any direction he might go in.

"Anyone who comes to the third floor can't go out." The woman's voice was no longer sweet and charming. Rather, it contained a cold chill. "Still, you should count your luck."

An Zhe looked up at her.

"I'll give you a chance," she said. "Boss Shaw's workshop is short of staff. If he wants you then you can work with him. If he doesn't want you—"

Her words came to an abrupt end and she turned in one direction. "Come on."

An Zhe thought about it for three seconds before following after her. The cubicles were dense and he seemed to be walking in a maze built in a beehive, the lights getting dimmer and dimmer. Finally, a door on a grey wall appeared at the end of the space.

The woman raised her hand and knocked on the door. "Boss Shaw, I want to talk to you about business."

There was a squeak and the door opened. He was an old man with white hair. He wore black clothes and there was a bow tied at his neckline. He glanced at the woman. "Du Sai, you're a rare guest."

The woman smiled as she extinguished the cigarette she was smoking on the wall. "I found you for something."

"How big is the job?" The man known as Boss Shaw glanced at her before turning to look at An Zhe.

The woman—Du Sai put her elbow on An Zhe's shoulder. "It isn't big or hard. I'm just afraid you won't agree and specifically found a meeting gift for you. I heard that your last apprentice died after drinking and that you're looking for the next one. You find women ugly and like men who are stupid. Look at this child who entered my house."

Boss Shaw's blue eyes turned and stood on An Zhe. "He looks obedient."

"He actually is obedient." Du Sai played with her hair. "I saw him and instantly felt that Boss Shaw would like him."

Boss Shaw smiled. Then he said to An Zhe, "Reach out and let me see."

An Zhe stretched out his hands. His fingers were white with a slight pink to them.

"Du Sai, where did you get this person?" Boss Shaw wondered. "How can a child like this be willing to come to the third floor?"

"He was tricked."

An Zhe, "……"

He heard Boss Shaw order him, "Make a fist. Do it slowly."

An Zhe slowly closed his five fingers.

Boss Shaw added, "One more time, slow down."

An Zhe slowed down.

"Slow down a bit more."

In the end, An Zhe slowed down to the point where it was hard to detect with the naked eye. Although he didn't know why Boss Shaw did this, it wasn't hard for him. In his mushroom form, he had to control thousands of fine mycelium at the same time. Now he only had five human fingers.

At the end, even Du Sai came over.

"Boss Shaw, you've found a treasure." She lit another cigarette and said, "His hands are steadier than your last apprentice."

Boss Shaw looked at An Zhe's hands and smiled. "Lend him to me for a few days. If he is easy to use then I'll accept it."

Du Sai stated, "You have to pay the child money."

"Okay."

An Zhe was worried. He definitely needed money but listening to the phrase 'easy to use', he always felt it was a bit dangerous. Du Sai seemed to see through his concerns and patted him on the shoulder. "Don't be afraid. Boss Shaw might not be a good person but his craft is expensive."

"I'm not a good person?" Boss Shaw snorted. "I'm the biggest good person in this base."

He turned to An Zhe. "You stroll through the store first. I have something to say with this crazy lady."

An Zhe was obedient. He turned to look at the nearest shelf and found some odd-shaped vials full of liquids and solids. The bottles were printed with naked human bodies. Further down, there were some books with similar covers—he knew this. A large part of the reason for the close of the base department that An Ze previously contributed to was that the base's books were ignored while pornographic books circulated by the black market were popular.

Below the shelf was a transparent glass drawer filled with cigarettes. Next to it was a drawer filled with many mechanical USB drives.

At this time, the conversation from Boss Shaw's side could be heard.

"The child is good. Ms Du has always been stingy. The fact that you sent me a big gift means the job you want to talk to me about must be unusual." The sound of a lighter came from Boss Shaw and the concentration of smoke in the room doubled.

"He is a child I picked up." Du Sai giggled a few times. "It really isn't simple asking Boss Shaw to do things."

"Anything is fine as long as the money is enough," Boss Shaw stated in a relaxed tone.

"You might not dare to do it." Du Sai said slowly.

"I dare as long as you add more money."

Du Sai sneered and uttered, "The Judge. "Do you still dare to do it?"

An Zhe didn't know how the Judge could be linked to these two people in the black market. There was a burst of silence from Boss Shaw. Eventually, he said, "I only do dead people, not living people, because I'm afraid of getting into trouble. You want to create the biggest trouble for me."

"To tell you the truth, I have a friend who loves the colonel and is going mad. Thus, I have to get him." Du Sai explained. "You know that any living person doesn't dare approach within three metres of the Judge. The only way is to buy a fake from you. My friend will play at home and never cause any trouble. What is the price? Boss Shaw just needs to say it."

Boss Shaw just laughed and didn't talk.

At the same time, An Zhe slowly moved inside the store. He was walking when he kicked something. He lowered his head and saw a white and miserable hand lying alone on the concrete floor. Looking at the state, it was just broken off but the break was smooth and clean. No flesh or blood could be seen.

An Zhe bent down and poked the skin of the hand. It was very soft and like a human hand, but not. This was a fake hand. He stopped exploring and got up. At this stop, he saw a man standing behind a glass window. In the dim light, a pair of dark eyes stared at him with half the body hidden in the darkness. It was a bit scary.

An Zhe watched him for a long time. Three minutes later, he didn't see the person breathing. Maybe it was a doll like that fake hand.

"Scared?" Boss Shaw's voice suddenly rang out behind him.

An Zhe replied, "I'm fine."

Boss Shaw asked, "Is it similar?"

"It's similar."

Boss Shaw laughed hoarsely. Then he pressed a switch on the side and the lights here became much brighter.

An Zhe finally saw the entire picture of the man in the glass window. He was a man in black clothes, tall and slender with good features. Once the light hit his face, it reflected a thin layer of white shimmer, adding a sense of ambiguity for no reason.

"The head of the AR137 mercenary team Hubbard, have you heard of him?" Boss Shaw questioned.

An Zhe didn't speak and only Boss Shaw's voice continued to ring in the room. "One of the most powerful mercenaries who led his team to a place with a five star danger rating like he is going to play. Isn't he rich?"

"En."

He knew that supplies brought back from the outside could be exchanged with money at the base's military supply station and that powerful mercenaries weren't short of money.

Boss Shaw pointed to the man in the window. "This person was his deputy. They grew up together since childhood and became mercenaries together as adults. They had a friendship of over 20 years. Last time, he went out to the wild and he died. No body was left and it was terrible."

Having said that, Boss Shaw laughed and continued, "Three months after this man died, Hubbard came to me. He had lost his soul and spent more than half his net worth to buy this person from me. I can't make a mistake with a single strand of hair."

"I also don't dare make any mistakes. Apart from the fact that he isn't alive, everything else is the same." Boss Shaw sighed. "After all, that person will be watching such a doll in the second half of his life."

"I used to do this type of thing to make people happy. They were the inflatable types. Later, everyone felt that they were living people. If a person dies outside, the easier it is for their loved ones to go crazy. I started this craft and it is valuable." Boss Shaw patted him on the shoulder. "Learn from me and after 10 years, you will have more money than any mercenary."

An Zhe looked up at him and remembered the previous conversation with Du Sai. "Are you going to make the Judge?"

"Why not?" Boss Shaw laughed. "The Judge is too busy killing people and he can't be bothered taking care of this type of trouble."

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