"Vileplume, Bellossom, Breloom!" Ange waved at the four Pokémon from afar.
"Bellossom~"
"Vileplume~"
"Breloom!"
Hearing Ange's voice, the four Pokémon stopped and waved back to greet him.
When Ange walked up to them, he looked over the two Brelooms and asked, "Did Shroomish evolve?"
"Breloom!"
"Breloom!"
The two Brelooms happily nodded in response.
Hearing this, Ange said with a smile, "Well then, congratulations. You've finally made it through the hard times."
"Breloom~"
"Breloom~"
Both Brelooms looked at Ange with grateful eyes; without him, they wouldn't be where they were today.
"Right, what are you carrying in those baskets? Are the Nono Mushrooms ready?" Ange leaned forward to peek into the baskets the four Pokémon were holding.
"Vileplume~"
"Bellossom~"
"Breloom!"
At this, the four Pokémon nodded and handed their baskets out to Ange. The baskets were completely filled with various mushrooms.
Aside from Nono Mushrooms, Big Mushrooms, Small Mushrooms, Aroma Mushrooms, Swords Dance Mushrooms, and Double Team Mushrooms had all fully matured.
Big Mushrooms and Small Mushrooms looked very similar, both featuring red caps adorned with yellow spots.
However, the Small Mushrooms had a slightly lighter color, rounder caps, and a smaller overall size.
Aroma Mushrooms were even smaller, featuring yellow caps with red circular rings.
Nono Mushrooms were quite large, pale gray overall, with caps that spread wider than an adult's palm. They looked plump, tender, and extremely appetizing.
Swords Dance Mushrooms had a more unusual appearance, with red caps and white stems. Furthermore, their shade of red differed from the red of Big and Small Mushrooms.
While Big and Small Mushrooms were a standard red, Swords Dance Mushrooms leaned closer to a maple-leaf red, and their cap shape resembled duck-foot-shaped leaves.
Unlike Big Mushrooms, Small Mushrooms, and Aroma Mushrooms, which grew individually, these grew together in tight clusters.
Growing in clusters just like Swords Dance Mushrooms were the Double Team Mushrooms, though their shape was far less eccentric, consisting of standard rounded caps and cylindrical stems.
What made them unusual was their coloration.
The caps of Double Team Mushrooms were green, their stems were pale yellow, and a green ring-shaped pattern ran right down the middle of the stem.
With colors more vibrant than the last, who would dare to eat such things back in Ange's past life?
Looking at the bountiful harvest of mushrooms, Ange said with satisfaction to Vileplume and the others:
"You've all worked hard lately. Thanks to your careful tending, we finally have this harvest today."
"Breloom!" One Breloom shyly scratched its head, conveying that it was all thanks to the mushroom-cultivation knowledge Ange provided, otherwise they wouldn't have grown so well.
Ange patted its shoulder, saying, "No need to be modest, nobody can take away your hard work!"
Hearing this, the four Pokémon exchanged glances, a trace of pride blooming across their faces.
Ange asked again, "Are these all the matured mushrooms?"
Vileplume immediately shook its head, "Vileplume, vileplume~ There are still many, many more; we only harvested a small part of them."
Delighted, Ange said, "Alright, head back to eat lunch first, and I'll go harvest with you this afternoon!"
"Vileplume~"
"Bellossom~"
"Breloom!"
The four Pokémon nodded, hoisted their baskets, and trotted back home with light steps.
Parting ways with Vileplume and the others, Ange brought Munchlax and the rest back home. As soon as they stepped inside, a rich, mouth-watering aroma greeted them, and the table was already laid out with various dishes.
Pawmot was gripping the edge of the table, drooling eagerly.
Magearna, who was setting out the bowls and chopsticks, saw them return and promptly urged Ange and the others to come sit down.
"Mew, mew~" Spotting the delicious food, Mew immediately zoomed to the space above the table and happily did a somersault.
It reached out to sneak a bite, but Magearna quickly swatted its hand away.
"Magearna!" Go wash your hands!
"Mew!" Mew giggled and flew off to wash its hands.
"Pawmot!" Meanwhile, Pawmot impatiently rushed over to Ange's side, pulling his hand toward the table.
Ange had to be seated before it could start eating.
Once all the dishes were served, Inteleon and Gengar—who had done the cooking—emerged from the kitchen. Everyone gathered around the table and happily enjoyed a lunch together.
After lunch, Mew, Munchlax, and Pawmot sprawled out across the reclining chairs by the doorway, rubbing their round bellies.
"Munchlax~"
"Pawmot~"
"Mew~"
The three Pokémon let out satisfied burps together, completely content.
Munchlax cradled a Komala, which had eaten its fill until its belly was completely round.
Inside the house, Magearna and Robert 2 were clearing off the dining table. Seeing this, Ange called out, "Diancie, want to come pick mushrooms with me?"
"Yes, I'd love to!" Diancie agreed happily.
"Diancie!" I'm going too.
Upon seeing this, Doublade hurried over to Ange's side.
Ange chuckled, "Alright, you can come too."
Noticing Baltoy spinning idly nearby, he added, "Baltoy, you're coming too."
Making me do chores again! Though Baltoy felt disgruntled inside, it obediently fell in line behind Ange.
With that, Ange led his group of Pokémon, carrying baskets, and set off to harvest mushrooms.
Diancie also brought along two Spinarak, Munna, and Mareep.
They first stopped by the employee dorms to pick up Vileplume, Vileplume's companion, the two Brelooms, and the two Paras, before heading together toward the mushroom cultivation base.
Upon arrival, they found the cultivation beds packed tight with an abundance of mushrooms. What a crowded sight!
Just as Vileplume and the others had said, it was truly a bumper harvest!
Ange called out to everyone, "Start harvesting, everyone! We're having mushrooms tonight!"
At Ange's words, everyone cheered excitedly.
Awesome, more delicious food!
Fueled by thoughts of tonight's dinner, everyone's enthusiasm for harvesting reached an all-time high.
"Doublade!" Doublade unsheathed both blades, and after a series of swift sword flashes, mushrooms were severed cleanly at the base, tumbling down from the cultivation beds.
"Spinarak!"
The two Spinarak quickly darted forward, spitting out silk to weave a net that instantly caught all the falling mushrooms.
Mareep trotted closely behind Diancie, carrying a small basket on its back, into which Diancie placed the harvested mushrooms.
Munna used its psychic power to pick the high-reach mushrooms that Diancie couldn't easily reach, placing them into Mareep's basket as well.
Vileplume, Gloom, Breloom, and Paras chatted and laughed as they harvested, enveloped in a warm, harmonious atmosphere.
Only Baltoy worked away with a gloomy aura hanging over its entire body.
It wanted to meditate, not do manual labor.
Ange glanced at it and said, "Work honestly, or else you might catch a beating."
"Baltoy!" Baltoy was fuming. You do nothing but threaten people all day—are you the only one with big fists?
Well, Ange's fists certainly were big.
Baltoy had no choice but to work obediently.
As time passed, basket after basket of mushrooms was collected, practically covering the ground of the cultivation base.
Ange fetched two Golett and instructed them, "Golett, could you please help carry these mushrooms back home and have Inteleon and Gengar help wash and dry them?"
"Golett!" The two Golett nodded repeatedly, then snatched up the mushroom-filled baskets and dashed back toward the house.
Hardly had the Golett left when Vileplume and the others suddenly let out cries of surprise.
Ange followed the sound and saw that both Paras were glowing with a bright, intense light.
At this sight, Ange's eyes lit up.
Paras were evolving!
The two Paras were quickly engulfed in evolutionary light, their bodies rapidly expanding within the radiance.
When the light faded, two entirely new Pokémon stood before everyone.
The lower half of these Pokémon was orange, their backs carried red caps covered in yellow spots, their eyes were white, and they possessed three pairs of insect legs.
This was precisely the evolutionary form of Paras—Parasect, the Mushroom Pokémon, possessing both Bug and Grass types.
Following the evolution, everyone stepped forward to offer their congratulations.
Ange smiled and said, "Well, now all six of your little group have evolved."
Vileplume, Gloom, the two Brelooms, and the two Parasects looked at one another, their eyes filled with joy and happiness.
With the celebration of the evolutions concluded, everyone returned to the task of harvesting mushrooms.
Working together with united effort, their harvesting speed remained swift, and by mid-afternoon, all the mature mushrooms had been gathered.
Ange led the Pokémon and the two Golett to transport the final batch of mushrooms back home.
Back home, Ange saw that the plaza in front of the door was already lined with sieves filled with washed mushrooms drying in the sun.
Above the plaza, Solrock radiated intense solar energy, accelerating the drying process of the mushrooms tremendously.
Magearna, Munchlax, Inteleon, and Gengar—alongside Lucario and Riolu—were busy washing the remaining mushrooms, while even Pawmot and Mew lent a hand.
Ange called out to Inteleon and the others, "Inteleon, Munchlax, Gengar, leave the rest of the washing to Magearna and them. Come over here, let's make the Hundred-Mushroom Essence and Spicy Mushroom Paste together!"
Hundred-Mushroom Essence and Spicy Mushroom Paste were the precise rewards Ange had unlocked when acquiring the Nono Mushroom spores.
Among them, Hundred-Mushroom Essence served as a special seasoning capable of replacing MSG.
Meanwhile, Spicy Mushroom Paste functioned as a versatile condiment that paired with various foods.
Ange had long looked forward to these two items.
"Munchlax!"
"Inteleon!"
"Gengar!"
The senior brother and sister duo acknowledged the call, quickly bringing Riolu and Lucario over to Ange.
Since the batch of Hundred-Mushroom Essence and Spicy Mushroom Paste needed to be quite large, Ange decided against using the indoor kitchen, setting up tables, chairs, pots, and stoves right in the plaza instead.
The first item on their agenda was the Hundred-Mushroom Essence.
The fungal ingredients required for Hundred-Mushroom Essence included Big Mushrooms, Small Mushrooms, Aroma Mushrooms, and Nono Mushrooms.
Among these, the Nono Mushroom served as the core ingredient, while the other three acted as supplementary components.
Ange instructed his disciples, "First things first, we need to process the mushrooms."
With that, he grabbed a dried mushroom to demonstrate, using scissors to trim it into strips while applying Aura Power to fine-tune the mushroom's aura during the process.
Munchlax, Inteleon, and Gengar watched and imitated his technique.
While Munchlax could process the ingredients independently using Aura Power, Inteleon and Gengar handed their trimmed mushroom strips over to Lucario and Riolu to handle.
Since Riolu had just arrived, its technique was still a bit unpolished and slow, but far from showing any annoyance, everyone patiently and warmly guided it, deeply touching Riolu's heart.
Soon, a full basket of mushroom strips was prepped, prompting Ange to say, "Alright, that's enough for now. Let's move to the next step."
"Munchlax!"
"Inteleon!"
"Gengar!"
The three disciples nodded.
"Lucario!" "Riolu!"
Lucario and Riolu also nodded with utmost focus, taking their duties very seriously.
Ange then ignited the fire and heated the wok, tossing the freshly prepared mushroom strips in for a low-heat stir-fry.
As he stir-fried, Ange instructed his apprentices on the precautions to keep in mind.
"Keep stirring gently like this the whole time, make sure it doesn't burn."
The Pokémon nodded repeatedly.
The stir-frying process for the mushrooms didn't take too long; once the moisture evaporated, the mushrooms would emit a crisp sound in the wok and release a rich fragrance.
Additionally, another requirement was the precise proportion of ingredients: Big Mushrooms, Small Mushrooms, Aroma Mushrooms, and Nono Mushrooms had to be added in a 1:1:3:5 ratio.
Once stir-fried, the mushrooms were transferred to a plate on the side to cool down gradually.
Aside from the core mushrooms, making Hundred-Mushroom Essence also required dried small shrimp and nori seaweed—both of which Ange had on hand.
While the nori was store-bought, the dried shrimp were made from small shrimp raised right at home, boasting exceptionally rich nutritional value.
The processing of the shrimp and nori mirrored the mushrooms, requiring them to be stir-fried dry in a wok.
Once the shrimp and nori were done, they were mixed with the mushrooms in a 2:2:6 ratio and ground into powder using a grinding cup.
And just like that, the savory seasoning known as Hundred-Mushroom Essence was complete!
The final step involved storing the finished Hundred-Mushroom Essence in airtight jars to prevent moisture and spoilage.
Looking at the finished jar of Hundred-Mushroom Essence, Ange felt a silent twinge of disappointment.
Why didn't a special effect trigger? Hand of God, where's your magic touch?
Immediately after, Ange instructed his disciples to continue producing more Hundred-Mushroom Essence using the remaining Nono Mushrooms, Aroma Mushrooms, and others.
With everyone dividing the labor, each worked busily in front of their own stove.
Ange worked individually, Munchlax had a station to himself, and Gengar and Inteleon each oversaw Riolu and Lucario respectively.
As the quantity of produced Hundred-Mushroom Essence grew, some batches finally began displaying special effects.
"Hundred-Mushroom Essence: Loved by Pokémon in the Monster and Dragon Egg Groups; long-term consumption slowly increases their defense and attack."
Seeing this effect, joy lit up Ange's heart—it was a food with an effect similar to Doubanjiang.
While Doubanjiang only increased maximum stamina, Hundred-Mushroom Essence raised both attack and defense simultaneously.
Naturally, Hundred-Mushroom Essence would only take effect on specific Pokémon groups: those in the Monster and Dragon Egg Groups!