Little Mushroom

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“Until the day humanity falls.”

In the year 2020, Earth’s magnetic poles disappeared and humankind was nearly wiped out by cosmic radiation. Within the span of a hundred years, living creatures began to mutate and devour each other while the remaining humans, numbering in the tens of thousands, struggled bitterly in their man-made bases.

In the Abyss, home to the mutated xenogenics, there lived a sentient little mushroom. Because it had been nourished by the blood and flesh of the deceased human An Ze, not only did it take on a similar-looking human form, but a similar name as well: An Zhe.

An Zhe is determined to go to the human base to search for his spore, which had been harvested by humans. Once there, however, he faces the omnipresent risk of discovery and certain death as he tries to keep his non-human nature hidden from the Judges, whose responsibility is to inspect for and eliminate xenogenics like himself. And of all the Judges, Colonel Lu Feng is the most perceptive and merciless—as soon as he determines that someone is a xenogenic, he will execute that person on the spot.

But An Zhe’s mutation goes undetected by Lu Feng’s eyes, and so a tale of humans and xenogenics unfolds…

Silver Award winner at the 12th Chinese Nebula Awards for Chinese Science Fiction.

Associated Names
One entry per line
Cây nấm nhỏ
Xiao Mogu
เจ้าเห็ดน้อย
小蘑菇
Related Series
N/A
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Recommendation Lists
  1. Novels I've read
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  5. Best Danmei with my both favourite calm & smart ma...

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Date Group Release
05/14/25 Little Pink Starfish c44
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338 Reviews sorted by


Peeping Girl
Peeping Girl rated it
July 26, 2020
Status: Completed
Don't follow my footsteps and be deceive by the fluffy synopsis! There's a lot of angst in this novel and I cried a lot. But then everything here is so satisfying... Now I understand why it has a highest rating among all BL novel.

I love the character development of MC here in how he becoming more human. Yes, this is a dark novel however looking at An Zhe giving hope to others made you feel some warm inside. I also like how MC describe ML as the Aurora in the... more>> sky...

Both are innocent in love but when they realized what's spurting inside their hearts, it will really give you a bursting emotions. Specially in the part of MC when he said, "I don't want to see him... But I want to see him. I don't regret leaving him.. But I regret it."

The first novel I keep appeasing myself to have a good ending.

Spoiler alert: Satisfying ending indeed! <<less
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Litolito
Litolito rated it
July 6, 2020
Status: Completed
I never thought I would cry so much from a webnovel. The imagery in this novel was quite moving and I had to remind through most of the book that they would indeed get a happy ending. The amount of thought that the author put into this work is just astounding. For those who love a plot driven story this should at least be on your list. I also have to say that these characters are the most dynamic I've seen and they're characters that have the ability to make... more>> ME a book lover cry multiple times. This novel is also the only novel that I have given 5 stars to or even wrote a review about. If you haven't start reading or planning to I recommend starting in the morning because you aren't going to be able to put this book down and don't forget to bring a blanket, tissues, and a glass of water. <<less
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patch
patch rated it
February 16, 2020
Status: Completed
As you'd be warned, this is not fluffy. It was rather dark, deep, and meaningful. I commended the author for creating this apocalypse without zombies world that at the same time beautifully reflected human nature.

MC was a little mushroom as pure as any mushroom. As a non-human, he put himself in a human's society with a viewer standpoint. His growth process was wonderful.

ML was not bland at all. He was full of conflict inside with his position being in a center of controversy and morals.

This story is full of death,... more>> sometimes you like a character and the next few chapters.... death. But that how it suppose to be, the author didn't hide away from doing that at all.

And if you ask for love, it was there.... you might not find it a lot but you feel it along the journey. They really love each other deeply.

Reading is experiencing, and this story took me on a wonderful journey. <<less
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calledout
calledout rated it
February 10, 2020
Status: c84
the prose is so beautiful. even when its shitty google translate mtl it made me cry. its more than a novel about a little mushroom its about humanity and human will against the vast unknown of the cosmos. every chapter makes an indelible mark. and yet in the end it really is about our little mushroom, and his judge, and how they finally meet each other at the end of all things. im very glad I read this and I cant wait for rainbowturtles translation so I can fully appreciate... more>> each word. I cried a lot

Spoiler

and oh my god the way I find clarity and understanding at the very end... every plot hole is filled. everything has a reason, everyone mentioned has a role. freaking an zhes spore was always close to lu feng because it was his second body oh my god im gonna go cry.

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frankly I regret mtl-ing this novel because it means I cant experience it for the first time in its full glory. ifi could tell myself anything I would say, be patient goddamnit and go study <<less
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Ekoyi
Ekoyi rated it
February 7, 2020
Status: Completed
I feel sad for the MC through the whole story but he really is a strong baby? And the ML, he gave MC his love even through he's voilaing his own morals by doing so. Neither MC nor ML tried to control each other. They just tried to understand and forgive each other.
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penquimm
penquimm rated it
April 14, 2025
Status: Completed
Loved. There's not a lot of romance, and it is very slow burn, but I think about it so often. Probably one of my favorite danmei's I've read.

The world building was well done, I loved the characters, and the story was so beautiful. Though I will say a warning and say that despite the fact that this has a happy ending, there was a lot of sacrifices to get it there. Iykyk
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EiKa.301222
EiKa.301222 rated it
February 19, 2025
Status: Completed
I've been holding off reading this novel for quite a long time mostly because of the premise, which I thought would be mostly fluff in the apocalypse (which happens quite a lot in novels with apocalypse themes) but I was pleasantly surprised at how the novel was so focused on capturing how bad the situation was and the struggle of the people in the situation.

There was a sense of helplessness and despair captured in the writing that I rarely see in other apocalypse novels, which often inadvertently turns into some... more>> kind of power-up fantasy novel where the main character collects team members in their journey to survive. Rather, death is the norm here, not just for the main characters but also for everyone else as well. We go through the journey of exploring a world that is struggling with the little mushroom, whose perspective of the world is obviously not that of a human but has been strongly influenced by that of An Ze, a gentle soul who he accompanies in his final moments. As the story progresses, we peel back the different layers of narrative: on the suffering of the common people, on how the city came to have such cruel and unforgiving rules, and on how some people were forced into a position that meant they have to sacrifice more than others
Spoiler

such as the woman, who were essentially forced to become something like a breeding machine due to the circumstances, stripped of their freedom

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.

Throughout the story, we see that lives are taken and freedom is sacrificed in the name of the survival of humanity, but while the story does lean on the main characters side a little
Spoiler

especially with the ML having an accuracy of 100% in spotting the irregulars, which honestly feels way to OP and feels like a way to make us side more with him

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.

The little mushroom remains neutral in most of these issues, in fact we rarely see him give his opinion at all. And I appreciate that, because through his perspective, which is less emotionally charged given that he is not human, we see the tragedy of this situation and we understand that there was never going to be a perfect solution for any of these issues, and it makes us question, how much sacrifice is truly justifiable in the name of survival given all the suffering everyone is going through? <<less
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yufanpilled
yufanpilled rated it
January 30, 2025
Status: Completed
I LOVED this omg the writing the plot the characters are all perfect.. Though I do feel like the romance is a bit weak ish?/ totally subjective though I love their bond sm!!! The last few chapters broke me umm

Spoiler

the part where an zhe cries in pauli's arm and realizing that he loves lu feng got me.. Pauli is such a well written character omfg

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anyways I loved this and might prolly reread this soon
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sxrvitto
sxrvitto rated it
December 27, 2024
Status: Completed
A sci-fi + apocalypse typa story? Count me in dudes

This is the first ever danmei I have read. Before reading it I had many high expectations, and oh boy while reading it did have my expectations. But, I have heard a lot of people complain about the fact that the romance was almost non-existent and I could maybe agree to that. The romance was lacking but hey it made it feel realistic tbh. Okay hear me out why, the ML is an arbiter/colonel right? And you know that they have... more>> tons of work to get done like protecting the base, identifying and killing the infected ones, and not to mention he is the one responsible in keeping everyone safe which kind of prevents him from having more lovey-dovey scenes with the MC. But I could say that the plot +world building overpowers and dominates the romance, so if it actually didn't have any romance, the interactions between them would just change a bit. Another thing is that they say MC is dumb and s*upid? He just didn't know what to do, act, and feel in these situations because he is a mushroom. It is his first time being a human and he is trying to fit in with them so that people won't get suspicious of him being not human. I mean he was emotionless and yeah he was at sometimes clueless but not like those stereotypes where they just act pretty, cute, don't know nothing and just don't do anything.

Anyways, I love this story and I'm also interested in other works this author (Shi Si) has made. <<less
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Kewind_nu
Kewind_nu rated it
November 10, 2024
Status: Completed
I highly recommend reading. It is sweet, filled with heartaches, can make you feel frustratingly helpless for the characters or situations, and deeply heartbroken 💔.... but finally delivering a happy ending.

... more>>
Spoiler

A kindhearted, little mushroom finds his spore stolen and begins a journey to the human cities in an apocalyptic world. Mutations and fear of death is always present. He finds himself surrounded by danger from the elements, monsters, and humans. The mushroom grows to understand humanity in all its forms of cruelty and beauty. The love story is slow but a beautiful development between the executioner judge and mushroom. The characters and supporting characters are all well rounded in their respective roles, views, and they all give meaning to the story. I truly cared about all of them because you could not truly hate anyone EXCEPT for the lecherous soldier who dies early in the novel.

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<<less
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Mochirily
Mochirily rated it
September 24, 2024
Status: --
One of the few actual great novels on this site, especially for the post-apocalyptic genre. There's a melancholic undertone throughout and the writing is effective and emotive. Props to the author for this beautiful novel.
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yisang
yisang rated it
June 13, 2024
Status: Completed
Review written pre-reading the epilogues/extras;

I honestly don't know how I feel about this one. My objective analysis quite contradicts what I felt reading the novel, book 1 was an easy 10/10, but book 2 was kind of meh — like it needed more chapters. ANYWAY! I have a lot to say about this novel.

Starting with the writing; Can I just say that I absolutely loved how the author perfectly captured the post-apocalyptic and tragic atmosphere that it was trying to go for? And it's done in a way that's completely... more>> show rather than tell. It established the setting in a manner that was easy to digest for the readers, and at the same time, keep the immersion and interest. Although I think that there were side characters who couldve been further developed such as the poet, I also felt like their abrupt deaths far amplified the feeling of loss and the graveness of the situation. It perfectly stirred the thought in me that human life is fleeting and lives should be valued. I loved how their stories were from implications, words of numerous people, or didn't come from the mouth of the characters themselves, as that made them feel more human. After finishing this novel, ive come to appreciate all the side characters even if the backstories of some of them were never expounded upon. Overall, the atmosphere, writing, and setting may be the strongest points of this novel.

I think one of the cons for me is how the genre is romance, which is ironic considering it's literally a danmei. The romantic relationship between LuZhe were barely developed, and the scenes in book 2 of them realizing their love for each other just didn't feel romantic. Them as companions? Love that. Them as a QPR? Absolutely. Them as a romantic couple? Um. An Zhe just felt too much as someone who's disconnected to the whole situation, or a true "bystander". Even without that, there was too much of a power imbalance between the two of them that I just wasn't a fan of.

Spoiler

ALSO! An Zhe is extremely parallel to Jesus — Reviving in the THIRD year, self-sacrifice to save humanity, witnessed the good and evil nature of humankind, and allat. This thought alone made me feel more detached from LuZhe as a couple.

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I feel like even without the existence of romance, the themes it wanted to show could still be properly and beautifully presented. As individual characters, I absolutely adore LuZhe though. The nuances in Lu Feng's character were a delight to uncover and An Zhe — It's better to read the novel for yourself to understand what's so great about him.

I think it would've been better if it were a few chapters longer so that the execution of its themes would feel much better, considering that during the second half of book 2 (which I think is the worst part btw!), I just felt disconnected with the whole novel. Contradictory to how good book 1 was, the second half of book 2 had SO much tell rather than show, accompanied by rushed development — There was thought behind the scenes and the vision is clear, but they weren't executed in an immersive manner. Starting with An Zhe leaving the base until the end, the tragedies (as objectively well-written as they are) didn't stir any feelings within me anymore. The ending was also kinda meh to me and was not as good as the build-up but I understand the direction that the author was trying to go towards. It didnt feel like a sudden twist to me or anything, unsatisfying is just what it was.

Overall! I think that this is still very much worth reading. I love An Zhe and his journey. <<less
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BiMyself
BiMyself rated it
April 1, 2024
Status: Completed
"He's just... a little mushroom" Sometimes, he feels like a god, other times more humane than humans.

The tone of the novel is very sombre, like a sweet lullaby, although most of the time the lullaby felt like a story from Grimm's fairy tales. While reading the novel, I had to go back to the synopsis countless times to confirm that it indeed had a HE. It felt terribly sad and hopeless sometimes, but An Zhe's stories and feelings and thoughts made one want to keep going.
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MangaNoob1995
MangaNoob1995 rated it
March 26, 2024
Status: Completed
If I'm to summarize the whole story it should be, "A complex plot but a sweet story".

Although I have come across a ton of reviews mentioning that this is an underrated gem, I took my sweet time to start reading it. I regretted not reading it before, and I regretted that I finished reading it fast. The story is indeed underrated (Maybe not as much as it was before since it got popular with the manhua adaptation).

As the summary says, He is a little mushroom who after a series of... more>> events, comes to the human base to find his spore, where he meets the cold colonel, Lu Feng. The beginning of the story was really sweet which made me so impatient to read faster. The couple interacts a lot as the story goes on. The plot can be a tad heavy but not so complex. The second half, or more or less towards the end of the story it becomes a bit complex (not boring) and sad enough to make you bawl your eyes out for a good few hours. I guess the sugary and sweet extras make up for all the tears I cried during the climax of the story.

I don't think I have anything to say except singing praises and expressing my love over and over again for this story and the characters. This is a story I found the side characters to be unforgettable as much as the main characters.

I loved the ML, Lu Feng; the cold colonel who kills without hesitation but curious about An Zhe, and I have so much love for the MC, An Zhe because,

After all, he's just a little mushroom. <<less
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heartlessbambi
heartlessbambi rated it
February 4, 2024
Status: Completed
This book is just one of a kind!!! A must read book!!!

Our little mushroom who is the MC is actually a smart person, not a naive kid who came from the wilderness. Although he looks like the incidents happening are unrelated to him, he still feels sad when he loses his companions. He can be called more humane than the other real human.

... more>>
Spoiler

It was heartbreaking when he left his spore and left the ML leaving just a note. It was very sad when he was nearing his death. It was devastating when he really died after taking just a glance at the ML. But luckily he was brought back to life.

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The ML was just doing his job, to serve humanity, to save all the people in the catastrophic times. He was a lone man who is hated by everyone. No one understood why he was so ruthless. Everyone was just blaming him, without even considering they are alive because of this cold man. The ML is not a hard hearted man. He is a bit awkward around people when he shows his kind heart. It is just everyone is so judgy.

Spoiler

He was always teasing our little MC. He just adores him. The ML understood his feelings first. The first kiss was really unexpected. It was a pity the MC took time to sort out his feelings.

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Luckily this book has a happy ending. So read without any hesitation!!! Highly recommended!!! <<less
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J3xxie
J3xxie rated it
January 25, 2024
Status: Completed
I don't have enough words in my vocabulary to describe what I feel about this novel. It is simply amazing. Probably one of my favorite dystopian novels I have read. The world building here is one of the best I have seem in a while, and although it is quite a melancholic novel, (and I am not a big fan of angst) this was still amazing.

The romance is slow for sure, in fact, the story mostly revolves around the plot (mind you I'm not a big fan of romance... more>> sub-plots) but once it does occur, it hits you in the feels <3

As for the characters, I loved each and every one of them. They all had a certain depth that other stories simply can't match. Not to mention that every character contributes to the plot and there is no flat character that I know of.

Especially when it comes to the main character, An Zhe. The author did a great job on making this character feel alive and I really liked the fact that he was adapting to humanity rather than the other way around. Many science fiction books actually do the opposite, where the MC is a human trying to adapt to the supernatural changes of the world, and this book's perspective on it feels like a breath of fresh air.

Spoiler

Only thing that left me a little unsatisfied was the ending, specifically the extra chapters. It feels like after An Zhe was reborn, their relationship sort of... dwindled? Idk how to explain it, but I do know that they both love each other, it's just that the author should've spent a little more time trying to tie up their romantic relationship. But other than that, I am really satisfied with this novel.

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The genre of the novel itself is one of my favorites (other than thriller/mystery) so I was already going in with high expectations, but man, this book took it to a whole new level. It doesn't matter if you are or are not into a post-apocalyptic type book, I can assure you that from the moment you start reading it, you will be completely immersed in it. <<less
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shinnn
shinnn rated it
January 6, 2024
Status: Completed
Truth be told I was unsure at first if I'll read this novel or not, even though a lot of my online peers have recommended this a lot, again and again I didn't budge not until this year came. I'm not used to with this type of genre since I'm more into mystery/thriller, but regardless of the genre I still have it a try and guess what??? I'M SO IN LOVE WITH THIS NOVEL😭. No words can't explain what I truly feel but I say to all THIS IS WORTH... more>> READING.

As it was coming to and end it suddenly occured to me that, "I'll stop reading this book for now" for the reason that I can't bear the thought that it's coming to an end (it was 10 chapters before the epilogue) but then again I can't stop thinking about it so in the end I BINGE READ THE WHOLE NOVEL.

I SO MUCH LOVE AN ZHE, HE'S EVERYTHING.

I LOVE HOW LU FENG TEASES AN ZHE, and I can't get enough of it HAHAHAHA

An Zhe is effortlessly funny I tell you.

All in all, I really love this novel.

Highly recommended! <<less
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Aniv2008
Aniv2008 rated it
December 6, 2023
Status: c1
The novel is about a fight for survival in a post apocalyptic world. Fighting with mutant creatures outside of the base and fighting with own kind on the inside. Fighting for the rights to stay alive and to keep one going with the principle that survival of humankind is the upmost goal.

The survival of humankind for the price of humanity. One of our greatest abilities is to control our innate desires and make the right decision. But where is the check and balance? What part does emotion play or not... more>> at all?

A novel with very strong theme and very well executed plot. I'm not a fan of sci-fi or apocalyptic stories but this novel hit all the right notes. There were quite a few scenes which had me crying and some had me laughing out loud.

I was hooked from the get-go by our simple MC. His simple goal and his journey8 to become more human. MC offered a pragmatic view on humankind current affairs and our ML He brought some much humour and light-heartedness to our gloomy ML. Looking at the humanity and ML through his mushroomy perspectives, it's refreshing and cute. Our cold & detached ML seems to get more human with his increasing contact with the little sentient mushroom. I feel for our ML, his sacrifices only seen by MC's non human eyes. These two characters growing closer slowly, building trust and dependency on each other.

By the way, there is an audio book production which is just awesome - from the 2 lead voice actors to dialogue to sound, just such a great production.

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Camelalala
Camelalala rated it
October 24, 2023
Status: Completed
It was simply amazing, I really really loved it; the character's were exceptional and I could feel the depths of their desperation and determination. I can gladly say that this is the best danmei novel that I've ever read. Thank you author and to the translators who worked so hard to bring this novel to life. I will forever treasure An Zhe and Lu Feng in my heart, one of the best couple that I've met. I'm glad that I read this and may their story be remembered by many.
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MeowMeowMeow12345
MeowMeowMeow12345 rated it
October 2, 2023
Status: Completed
I love love loved "Little Mushroom"

Why? Because of the relationship of the main cast, because of how the story is just so well written and not just focused around romance or world building. All of it balances each other out so well.

Sure, there's some parts which might make your heart clench in literal pain, but always remember its an HE (Happy Ending) so, never feel too down (like me, since I ended up sobbing for my babies)

The angst isn't too much, nor to little. The romance is just the... more>> right amount, even in dangerous situations it seems that our main cast can still feel as though its fine, they'll get through it.

Also, the development of them both. Lu Feng's development was literally beautiful, so so beautiful.

An Zhe's development on the other hand, was just so damn good that I can't explain it with words. We can slowly but surely see the way, that our little mushrooms emotions show up, they are very minimal at first, but as you continue on with the novel, you can literally just see and appreciate the character development in all its glory.

All in all, it was a beautiful story, well written, good character development, just the right amount of romance and world building.💗 <<less
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