Of ordinary height, his skin burned crimson, etched with golden fissures. Flames surged from his head, leaping and crackling, radiating searing heat.
Heatblast rode the Cloud of Steam, speeding above the Mycelium.
He could no longer hear the Mycelium's whispers.
All that remained were feral roars and fangs sharp enough to devour the heavens and swallow the earth.
[Ding~ Alien Hacker Mission Triggered]
[Eliminate the ancient Mycelium and save Earth]
[Mission success will unlock a random Alien Hero]
The System's notification echoed in Heatblast's mind.
He raised his palm and unleashed a blazing fire dragon. Roaring with scorching heat, it tore straight toward the Mycelium.
Suddenly, thick vines burst from the surrounding barriers.
The purple tendrils, like demonic claws, layered over one another and spread across the sky, surging toward Heatblast in a tidal wave.
In the blink of an eye, Heatblast was swallowed by the flood of vines, his fate unknown.
"Lucian!" Grandpa Max shouted, but the vines had bound him tightly, leaving him unable to move.
Staring at the grotesque, nightmarish Mycelium, Ben suddenly had an idea.
"Grandpa, you said special effects powder works great against fungi. So what do you think will happen if I try this?"
With that, Ben kicked off one shoe and hurled it downward.
The shoe, packed with athlete's foot special effects powder and carrying a pungent stench, flew straight into the Mycelium's mouth.
The Mycelium froze, then snapped its jaws shut.
The air around them seemed to congeal. Everything went still.
Two seconds later, the Mycelium let out a piercing scream and began thrashing violently.
"It's working!" Ben exclaimed, eyes lighting up.
"I'll devour you both!" The Mycelium raged, baring its jagged fangs as it lunged at Ben and Grandpa Max.
How dare this insignificant ant force it to swallow garbage? It was asking to die!
Both of them blanched and tried to run, only to find themselves pinned in place by serpent-like vines.
At that critical moment, the vine-wrapped "cocoon" nearby suddenly erupted in blinding flames, blazing like a massive furnace.
The thick vines melted at astonishing speed, burning to ash, unable to contain what lay inside.
Heatblast emerged, standing tall amid swirling firelight, perched atop a blazing phoenix.
Ruthless killing intent flashed in his golden eyes.
With a firm step, the fire phoenix cried out, spreading its blood-red wings as it shot toward the Mycelium.
Whoosh!
Heatblast and the fire phoenix fused into one, transforming into a roaring pillar of fire. Without hesitation, he slammed into the Mycelium's mouth with thunderous force.
"Cuz!" Ben cried out, face draining of color as he watched Heatblast vanish into the dark abyss.
"No, Lucian… He'll be fine!" Grandpa Max shook his head, refusing to believe otherwise.
Inside, Heatblast was swallowed by darkness.
But he knew exactly where he was—the Mycelium's interior. All he had to do was blast it apart.
He didn't waste a second. With a shout, Heatblast clenched his golden fist and unleashed a terrifying burst of flame.
Red patches began spreading across the Mycelium's surface.
Scorching lava poured out from within, burning through the Mycelium's skin and flesh. Its internal organs had already been completely consumed by the flames.
The Mycelium shrieked in agony. Its jaws snapped open and shut as pink sludge sprayed from every part of its body, sickening to behold.
At last, Heatblast drove a blazing punch straight through, utterly destroying the Mycelium's brain.
The entire Mycelium exploded in an instant.
Crash!
A vast tide of pink slime surged into the air like a roaring tsunami, rising high and taking the shape of a colossal hand as it came crashing down toward the stunned Ben and Grandpa Max.
A streak of fiery red burst out of the slime, wrapping around the two of them before accelerating at full speed. Like a blazing rocket, it shot straight out of the underground cavern.
Meanwhile, back at the campsite.
Below the rock-climbing area, the Mushroom Zombies, Chompers, and all the other mutated plants shriveled up. They lost the ability to move and completely withered away.
Gwen paused for a moment, then broke into a relieved smile. "Looks like Cuz and the others pulled it off."
"Oh yeah! That was awesome!" Gilbert cheered.
"That was so much fun! We have to come back again next year!" Mandy's eyes shimmered as she smiled innocently.
Her brother Andy collapsed on the spot.
Not long after, Heatblast returned to camp with Ben and Grandpa Max.
"The Mycelium's dealt with, but what about all these spores?"
Ben scanned the dense clusters around them, worry written across his face.
The Mycelium's death had only stripped the mutated plants of their mobility. But if these spores matured and spread across the globe, countless mutant plants would emerge, seriously disrupting the ecological balance.
It might even give rise to another Mycelium.
Billions of mutant spores were no small matter.
"Honestly, I've got a pretty good idea," Gwen said with a mysterious smile.
...
The next morning.
As the sun rose, warm light spilled over the vast patches of spores.
Two Stinkfly flapped their wings, circling above the campsite.
"Nice! I like this plan!" one Stinkfly grinned, glancing back at his cousin riding on his back.
"Haha, this was my idea, you know," Gwen said proudly.
As she spoke, she pulled out several bottles of athlete's foot special effects powder from her backpack and began sprinkling it below.
The other Stinkfly flew even faster, sweeping across the jungle and scattering box after box of the powder.
The special effects powder was highly effective against fungi, including mutated plants and spores.
After working hard all morning, they finally cleared out every last spore, completely eliminating the lingering threat left behind by the Mycelium.
As for Gilbert and the twins, Grandpa Max contacted the local authorities to have them taken away.
With everything settled, the group set off once more toward their next destination.
On the road, feeling bored, Lucian opened the Alien Hero Chest.
[Chest Successfully Opened]
[Congratulations, Host, on unlocking a powerful hero]
[Chromastone!]