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173. Spongiam Petram
More commonly known as sponge rock, is not actually a rock. Instead, it is a type of fungi. It can be found on the sides of mountains in arid environments.
It is known for its rock like hardness when it is dry and its sponge like texture when it is wet. When dry, it has the appearance of a smooth sandstone rock typically like that of the mountain it is on. This makes the sponge rock blend into the mountain and look like the natural environment. When wet, it has a sponge like texture and turns a deep red color.
It survives by absorbing bacteria that is washed down the mountain when it rains. Once inside, the bacteria find themselves in an environment in which they can reproduce. The sponge rock then feeds on the excess bacteria effectively farming its own food source inside itself. This makes it effectively immortal.
Once dry, the outside grows hard into a shell made up of tiny little spores. When it rains, the spores are then washed down the mountain where new sponge rocks can grow. It takes sponge rocks roughly 3-5 years to be fully mature and grow the size of a grapefruit.
Sponge rocks are sought after by chefs from all over the world for their unique flavor profiles created by the unique bacteria profiles inside of it. Different mountainsides give them unique flavors and they are prized much like wine, making some varieties incredibly valuable. Many chefs will make expensive dishes such as sponge rock soup or sauté sponge rock.
In arid lands with sparse water sources, travelers have also been known to carry Sponge rock fungi with them as a sort of "poorman's canteen", and can extract water from it for long periods of time before it goes dry.