Chapter 71: Return Voyage

Chapter 71: Chapter 71: Return Voyage

"Boss, this monster’s shell is just too hard, practically no different from alloy steel plate."

Tang Ling was currently squatting beside the corpse, her pretty face flushed red from the earlier intense overexertion of Spiritual Power to release fireballs.

Her entire body was soaked in fragrant sweat.

The already tight overalls clung damply to her form, vividly outlining her exceptionally curvaceous figure.

Especially that pair of proud peaks, rising and falling with her rapid breathing.

Exuding a body fragrance steamed out by the high temperature.

She extended her fair little hand and knocked hard on the mantis’s bluish-gray carapace, looking up somewhat dejectedly at Lin Ji.

"I don’t even have a decent tool on hand right now, there’s no way to take this big guy apart."

Lin Ji withdrew his gaze from Tang Ling’s collar and walked over to the massive insect corpse, shaking his head.

"Creatures of this level have carapaces that are naturally formed Mimicry wholes."

"Disassembling it would disrupt the energy transmission circuits inside, reducing the effectiveness of any blueprint crafted from it."

"Take the entire thing into the storage pouch and deal with it slowly back home."

With that, Lin Ji’s eyes narrowed slightly as he activated the [Eye of Insight] once more.

His vision instantly deepened, as if gaining X-ray-like penetrating power.

It directly pierced through that thick, Concealment-property carapace, locking onto a core point of light beneath the mantis’s head, radiating dense Wind Attribute energy.

"Just as I thought. Since this thing could grow to this level, it must have condensed a core inside!"

Under the astonished and puzzled gazes of the others, Lin Ji formed his right hand into a blade-like finger.

He thrust it into the tiniest gap at the carapace’s joint, his movements as practiced as an art.

As Lin Ji stirred his arm, he could even feel the warm sensation inside the carapace.

The next moment, with a gentle flick of his wrist, he forcibly extracted a crystal the size of a chicken egg.

Covered in intricate natural patterns, it was pulled from the mantis’s viscous bodily fluids.

[Level 3 Mutated Magic Core (Wind Attribute)]

[Description: Extracted from a Mutant Creature with Wind Talent potential, extremely rare.]

[Effect: Can provide high-energy power for Vessels, charge weapons, or be used to craft high-level equipment with Wind Attribute properties.]

"Wow! What a beautiful stone!"

Bai Taotao curiously leaned in, her big eyes filled with admiration.

Tang Ling was so excited she literally jumped up, her chest wobbling wildly from the violent motion, making Lin Ji’s vision swim.

"We’re rich, Captain! This core will fetch an astronomical price at the Trading House for sure!"

Lin Ji smiled, feeling the cool sensation transmitted from the core in his hand, and unceremoniously pocketed it.

With this top-grade Magic Core, plus the Red Pressure Booster Valve...

The motivation to upgrade to LV4 was now completely stable, with even a considerable surplus.

However, he definitely wouldn’t use this as a power source—there were far more important places where it could be applied.

A sense of satisfaction from surviving the ordeal filled everyone’s hearts.

Lin Ji looked at the women beside him, each with their own unique charm, gazing at him with admiration, and a fiery warmth quietly rose within him.

"Listen up, everyone! All of you, head back to the ship and rest!"

At Lin Ji’s command, the women felt as if they had heard heavenly music, cheering in unison.

The environment on this Magma Floating Island was truly unbearable.

With temperatures nearing forty degrees and the heart-stopping life-and-death struggle they had just endured, these originally delicate beauties were now drenched in sweat and utterly disheveled.

Bai Taotao’s pink Lolita dress was completely soaked through with sweat, clinging tightly to her petite, delicate frame and outlining the budding curves of her youthful figure.

Meanwhile, Lin Yurou, who had just joined the team, wore a thin white dress that had become semi-transparent from sweat, faintly revealing her fair skin and the outline of her light-colored undergarments.

Lin Ji didn’t linger on the sight but walked straight to the large tree.

There, Shen Manyun lay motionless on the grass with her eyes closed, as if still unconscious.

However, Lin Ji’s Eye of Insight had long since seen through her current state.

"Pretending to sleep?"

A mischievous smile curled at the corner of Lin Ji’s mouth as he crouched beside her.

Without hesitation, he extended his large hand and gave Shen Manyun’s perky rear a light pat.

Smack.

Though the sound wasn’t loud, it echoed crisply in the quiet jungle.

Shen Manyun’s body stiffened abruptly, her tightly shut eyelids trembling violently, yet she stubbornly bit her red lips and refused to open her eyes.

Lin Ji leaned close to her flushed ear, lowering his voice to a volume only the two of them could hear:

"Teacher Shen, you’ve worked hard."

"Thanks to your healing this time."

"Once we’re back on the ship and washed up, I’ll make sure to reward you properly."

Hearing these suggestive words, Shen Manyun’s cheeks instantly burned as if on fire, and even her snow-white neck flushed with a rosy pink.

Clutching her tattered shirt tightly, she felt utterly mortified, yet she could only continue gritting her teeth and pretending to sleep, allowing Lin Ji to scoop her up in his arms.

On the other side, Gu Yihan and Tang Ling helped support the injured and weakened Su Qingyue.

The three beauties, each with their own charm and all bearing the marks of battle, walked ahead, leaving Lin Ji, who followed behind, feeling parched with thirst.

In this sweltering jungle, he felt even his breath grow hot and dry.

The journey back was far smoother than expected.

With Bai Taotao’s [E-Grade Affinity] aura clearing the path ahead,

coupled with Lin Ji having just slain that Level 3 Withered Wood Reaper,

his body still carried the terrifying presence and scent of a top predator.

All the mutated venomous insects that had been lurking in the shadows, restless and eager,

now scattered like mice fleeing from a cat, keeping a wide berth.

None dared approach the group even slightly.

Soon, the party made it safely through the dark jungle and returned to the rocky shore.

Seeing his Level 3 Steam Ironclad intact and anchored there, Lin Ji finally relaxed his tense nerves.

Although the ship was bound to the system and couldn’t be stolen by others,

in its current defenseless state, if other survivors had boarded to vandalize or steal supplies, it would have been both infuriating and costly.

Fortunately, the island’s intense heat seemed to deter most ordinary people from approaching.

"Everyone, board the ship!"

Lin Ji, carrying Shen Manyun in his arms, strode onto the deck.

As soon as he boarded, he called out to Tang Ling, who was about to find a shady spot to collapse and rest:

"Tang Ling, no time to rest!"

"Hurry to the Power Chamber and reassemble those five Steam Cores and your Smelting Furnace!"

Lin Ji placed Shen Manyun on a wooden chair and wiped the sweat from his forehead.

"This damn place is unbearable, way too hot."

"Let’s get the ship moving first. We’ll rest once we’re out of this scorching sea!"

Hearing Lin Ji’s words, the women, though aching all over from exhaustion, nodded in emphatic agreement.

Their clothes were now soaked with sweat and clung uncomfortably to their skin.

They just wanted to leave this sweltering hellhole as quickly as possible and enjoy a refreshing shower.

"Roger that, boss!"

Though panting from exhaustion, Tang Ling, energized by the thought of leaving soon, sprang into action.

Pulling out her tools and wrench, she dove into the lower-level Power Chamber.

Then, Lin Ji looked at the remaining women and waved a hand.

"Come on, let’s all go take a shower! Cool off!"