Chapter 40: Shadowstalker Rat King

Chapter 40: Chapter 40: Shadowstalker Rat King

[Level 3·Shadowstalker Rat King (Elite Mutant)]

[Ability 1: Perfect Concealment (In dark environments, completely eliminates form and scent, only exposed during the moment of attack.)]

[Ability 2: Armor-Piercing Tail Spike (Tail has evolved into an ultra-hard alloy bone spike with extreme penetrating power.)]

The moment Lin Ji clearly saw the panel, the Rat King, feeling its territory violated, suddenly materialized from the void.

It completely ignored the four women nearby, transforming into a gray-black blur as it lunged straight at the most threatening target—Lin Ji.

Lin Ji’s second-tier enhanced physique instantly erupted with neural reaction speed.

He violently twisted sideways, narrowly avoiding the fatal strike aimed at his throat.

But the Rat King was too fast—its sharp claws still tore a deep, bone-exposing gash across his forearm.

Blood instantly gushed out.

"Lin Ji!"

Seeing Lin Ji injured, Shen Manyun hurried to his side.

Without regard for danger, she rushed forward, her hands glowing with faint green light as she pressed them against Lin Ji’s wound, using the E-grade Hemostasis Skill.

In her haste, her full, firm chest pressed tightly against Lin Ji’s arm.

Facing this life-or-death crisis, Lin Ji remained utterly calm. Instead, taking advantage of the bandaging moment, his other large hand smoothly wrapped around Shen Manyun’s slender, soft waist.

His palm even restlessly gave her thigh a firm squeeze.

"Teacher Shen’s healing technique is truly addictive," Lin Ji chuckled softly, looking down.

Shen Manyun instantly flushed crimson all the way to the base of her neck.

She trembled slightly as if electrocuted.

Instinctively, she wanted to pull back, but feared disturbing Lin Ji’s wound.

She could only bite her red lips in shy annoyance, her eyes lowered, not daring to meet the man’s gaze, allowing that large hand to remain where it was.

Flirting aside, Lin Ji was acutely aware of the lethality of this Level 3 monster.

He immediately communicated with the Divine Evolution System in his mind.

"Extract C-grade Rock Armor!"

This was the Talent Energy the system had retained from when he killed the scar-faced man earlier. ℯℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮

The system’s cold prompt instantly sounded.

[Detected that the host currently possesses a second-tier physique. The body’s meridians can accommodate up to 5 non-inherent Plunder Skills.]

[Currently occupying 0 slots. Load the first skill?]

"Load!"

The next second, a surge of heavy earth-elemental power violently flooded into Lin Ji’s body.

The Rat King’s second concealed attack arrived in an instant.

With a low roar, Lin Ji directly activated the Rock Armor.

A layer of hard, gray-brown rock instantly encased both his arms.

"Clang!"

A sharp metallic clash rang out, sparks flying everywhere.

Although he successfully blocked the attack, a flicker of shock passed through Lin Ji’s eyes.

That terrifying penetrating force had shattered the surface rock defense, nearly piercing his skin.

Only then did he see clearly—what had attacked him wasn’t claws at all.

It was the Rat King’s sharp tail tip, like a spear.

"Everyone, fall back!"

Lin Ji shouted, his mind racing as he began formulating a hunting strategy.

Because the Rat King could turn invisible, they first had to force it to reveal itself.

Lin Ji pulled Su Qingyue, who was beside him, in front of him, making her press tightly against his body.

Su Qingyue, wearing a tattered school uniform skirt, felt her delicate skin constantly rubbing against Lin Ji’s sturdy thigh through the torn fabric.

"Cooperate with me!" Lin Ji whispered in her ear. "Cover the ground with your strongest Frost Energy!"

Stimulated by Lin Ji’s rough and intensely possessive actions, Su Qingyue—who was deeply insecure inside—instantly felt an indescribable excitement.

Her face flushed red as she let out a soft moan, then slammed both hands onto the ground.

The Frost Energy within her overloaded and erupted.

A piercing white mist instantly swept out, coating the entire floor of the core chamber with a thin layer of solid ice.

At the same time, Gu Yihan used abandoned machinery to nimbly leap onto a high platform.

From her elevated position, she drew back the red Storm Hunter Bow to its full extent.

Her tight yoga pants clearly outlined her alluring S-shaped curves and breathtakingly long legs.

Lin Ji glanced up and found his eyes lingering, unable to look away.

"Nice legs. Make sure you aim carefully later—don’t miss."

Gu Yihan snorted proudly, though her cheeks uncontrollably grew hot.

The moment the thin ice covered the ground, the Rat King moved again.

Even while in its Invisibility state, its sharp claws inevitably left clear scratch marks on the icy surface.

"Found you!"

Lin Ji’s pupils contracted, his muscles tensed, and he actively charged forward.

Pushing the speed of his second-tier physique to the limit, the edge of his right hand was instantly coated with a C-grade Wind Blade.

Risking having his Rock Armor shattered once more by the tail spike, he firmly grabbed the Rat King’s deadly tail.

The Rat King’s form was instantly forced to reveal itself.

"Shoot its eyes!"

While gripping the Rat King’s tail tightly with his hand, Lin Ji shouted toward Gu Yihan.

The tacit understanding between the two was already at its peak.

Gu Yihan released the bowstring, and a Magic Shark Arrow imbued with Frost Power instantly pierced through both of the Rat King’s eyes.

The Rat King let out a shrill, agonized scream and struggled violently.

Lin Ji raised his hand and brought it down like a blade, a fierce hand-chop accompanied by a cyan airflow.

A sharp Wind Blade cleanly beheaded the formidable Level 3 monster.

To Lin Ji’s surprise, a single Wind Blade hadn’t been enough to sever the creature’s head.

He quickly followed up with several more strikes.

The heavy, headless corpse finally crashed onto the icy floor, completely lifeless.

The system notification tone, like heavenly music, flooded Lin Ji’s mind.

[Ding! Successfully killed LV3 Shadowstalker Rat King while under-leveled!]

[Obtained Evolution Points: 500 points!]

Lin Ji checked his balance—his current surplus of Evolution Points had now broken through the one-thousand mark.

[Obtained rare material: Shadowstalker Rat King’s Armor-Piercing Tail Spike (Red Quality).]

Note: This item is extremely hard and can be directly crafted into an indestructible spear or an armor-piercing dagger.

[Dropped item: Basic Concealment Fur (Red Quality).]

[Note: These hairs contain special Shadow Energy. If sewn into a cloak or clothing, they can grant the wearer an Invisibility effect in dark environments.]

[Dropped resource: Shadowstalker Rat King Essence Meat x10 units.]

[Note: Although the meat is tough and dry, it is rich in energy. Consuming it can slightly improve physique.]

After confirming the surroundings were completely safe, the real celebration began.

Tang Ling transformed into a frenzied mechanical dismantler, charging toward the five generator units with her tools.

With the vast storage space of Lin Ji’s system as backup, she didn’t need to worry about running out of room at all.

After a flurry of work, they harvested a full five Steam Cores radiating high heat.

And over forty High-Density Alloy Steel Plates piled up like a mountain.

This not only perfectly met the upgrade requirements for the LV3 Vessel.

It even provided the materials needed to install Defense Turrets on the ship later.

Looking at the epic-level materials filling her pack, Tang Ling excitedly hugged Shen Manyun beside her.

Both women had extremely voluptuous figures.

The forceful embrace instantly squeezed their proud assets out of shape.

Tang Ling’s somewhat grease-stained overalls pressed tightly against Shen Manyun’s professional attire, which was torn in several places.

The astonishing softness and overwhelming visual impact made Lin Ji, standing nearby, unable to resist stealing a few extra glances.

Shen Manyun, struggling to breathe from Tang Ling’s tight hold, blushed and gently patted her back.

Lin Ji withdrew his gaze and glanced around the now-cleaned core chamber.

"Alright, enough hugging."

Lin Ji casually stored the rat king’s tail spike and fur into the System Space.

"Take all the supplies we can carry and get ready to return to the ship."

"We’ve gathered enough today. We’ll upgrade to the LV3 Raft as soon as we’re back."

Hearing about the ship upgrade, the women’s eyes lit up with excitement.

In these perilous waters, a sturdier and larger ship was their greatest assurance of survival.

The group quickly organized their equipment.

Following behind Lin Ji, they swiftly retreated along the passage they had come through, heading out of the cargo ship.

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