66 The Twisted Gloria [End of Little Racker’s Arc!]

The Scorpion Tail slowly ascended, leaving Little Laker behind.

Gloria urged Lu Chen to open the holographic screen on his wristband and log into the Adventurer Bank account.

Lu Chen logged in and took a glance. As expected, a transfer of one thousand spirit stones had arrived from the Guernica Beast-Tamer Corps. With this, the account balance of the Primordial Star Vault leapt to two thousand spirit stones! It also proved that the last rescue by Nan Yuanzi had been done for free.

Satisfied at last, Gloria continued to eat and drink, though she complained with a hint of resentment, "That woman really knows how to bargain. Had I known, we should have demanded ten thousand spirit stones for our reward!"

Lu Chen took a sip of Scorpion Tail wine and shook his head helplessly. "I never imagined the Federation would lose its backbone. No longer do they talk of liberating all humanoids in the universe; now they rely on a single adventurer group to win over a handful of humanoid beast-tamers, following a path of elite pragmatism."

In his previous life’s game, the story of the Federation rebelling against the Empire and vowing to liberate all humanoids had been stirring and passionate. Sadly, that was a tale from a thousand years ago.

Lu Chen snapped out of his reverie for a moment and, for the first time, picked up his chopsticks. "Fortunately, the food here is very good, isn’t it?"

Gloria, tipsy, nodded. "Yes, the wine is excellent..."

Aili also smiled and nodded. "The desserts are delicious!"

The three ate their fill and went to the front desk to inquire about the bill paid by Scorpia. To their surprise, the meal had cost five hundred spirit stones! In one sitting, Lu Chen had consumed half a ship’s worth...

Gloria patted her slowly bloating belly and suddenly said, with a meaningful tone, "Perhaps joining the Guernica Beast-Tamer Corps wouldn’t be such a bad idea after all."

Lu Chen, however, was calmly analyzing Little Laker’s prices. "Eco-friendly ingredients are still too expensive. Clothes and cosmetics, on the other hand, are very cheap because of branding."

Aili secretly packed some fruit and desserts, but when she noticed Lu Chen watching her, she tried to cover her embarrassment by asking seriously, "Captain, are we really going to Mist Sea Star to fish?"

Lu Chen nodded. "Since the Desert Prince even paid for the fishing spot, we might as well take a look. If there are no fish, at least we’ll relax for a while... Tonight, we’ll rest here in Little Laker, and depart at dawn tomorrow."

Night fell.

The vibrant five-colored planets hung in the sky like five moons, casting a mysterious glow over Little Laker’s night.

Lu Chen booked a semi-open bird’s nest suite at the extravagant price of eighty spirit stones. To save money, the three shared a single nest. The semi-open room had a large skylight and a viewing balcony, visible right from the bed. You couldn’t see in from outside, but from inside, you could see out. Three beds.

The evening breeze danced, fireflies flickered, succulent hanging fruits dripped juice, and the cool, smooth willow mats invited rest. Fireworks and circus performances filled the jungle sky.

Lu Chen showered and lay on his bed, resting his head on his arm, gazing up at the vibrant planets. Adventure was indeed joyous, but occasionally pausing to savor the scenery along the way was healing—truly uplifting.

The universe was, indeed, marvelous.

Gloria, on the bed to the right, didn’t care for the view. Wearing the hotel’s virtual glasses, she played local games, never forgetting to tease Lu Chen, "I didn’t expect you to have the leisure to enjoy life... Are you still pining for that Scorpion woman?"

Lu Chen replied solemnly, "Think about it—we’ve been at sea for over a month. Have I had a single proper night’s sleep? This suite costs eighty spirit stones per night. I booked one room to save money. If you disturb my sleep again, I’ll go back to the ship alone, and if I sleepwalk and pilot the vessel by myself, don’t blame me!"

Gloria shrugged and continued her game. "Alright, alright, you sleep. I’ll play for a while!"

"Aili, what about you?"

"I’ll read for a bit."

"Good, then I’ll sleep first."

That night,

Lu Chen slept soundly.

Except, he had a dream in the middle of the night.

A spring dream...

He dreamt that the Scorpion woman, clad in black leather, was riding atop him, whipping him with her scorpion-tail whip, slowly unzipping the front of her jacket...

Just as the view became interesting, the dream abruptly ended!

Lu Chen endured his grogginess, feeling a burning pain on his chest, as if he’d really been whipped, his skin split open...

He suddenly opened his eyes, raising a hand to grab the whip.

It was a scorpion tail!

The Scorpion woman, Scorpia, was actually sitting on him, her figure alluring, eyes shining with red hearts, her intoxicated expression beyond description...

"What a charming man you are!"

Lu Chen was so flustered his body betrayed him.

Refusing to believe it, he curiously pinched the Scorpion woman’s thigh.

The sensation was unmistakably real...

Yet beneath her skin, he could distinctly sense the restless power of the shadow demon.

As he had expected.

"If you keep fooling around, I’ll go back to the ship."

"Huh?"

Gloria was startled, not expecting Lu Chen to catch her so quickly. She angrily pulled off the Scorpion mask, revealing a stunning face as beautiful as a painting.

"You saw through me so fast? Boring! Why is it that pleasure never lasts?"

She turned to look at Aili, tucked under her blanket on the left bed. "Little Ai, how did the video turn out? Quick, let me see!"

Lu Chen turned to look; Aili was on the next bed, hiding under the covers, secretly recording with her wristband...

"Aili, are you learning bad habits from Gloria?"

Aili, still under the blanket, didn’t dare show her face, but spoke with earnest seriousness, "I’m documenting the captain’s self-control. It seems the captain prefers humanoid girls..."

"Enough!"

Lu Chen thought to himself, the whole universe pursues freedom—what’s wrong if my tastes are a bit freer?

He turned to Gloria, asking seriously, "Why didn’t you tell me you could do this?"

Gloria remained seated atop him, swinging her scorpion-tail whip and tying a little braid in her hair. "Everyone knows transformation is a basic succubus ability. Sister saw how hard you’ve been working for a month, and how you couldn’t take your eyes off the pretty Scorpion woman. What’s wrong with rewarding you once?"

Hm... Lu Chen had never felt so sure that choosing Gloria as a teammate was the right decision!

"Actually, you could be a bit more convincing."

Gloria pinched her unprecedentedly slender waist, confident she had pulled off a perfect transformation, and protested, "How am I not convincing?"

Lu Chen sneered, "Does the Scorpion woman weigh ninety pounds? You’re one hundred and twenty pounds sitting on me—how could I not notice?"

Gloria’s forehead darkened with lines, her demonic energy boiling over, barely contained.

"Little Ai, bear witness: if I accidentally kill this guy tonight, it’s entirely his own fault!"

With that, Gloria and Lu Chen wrestled, the scene devolving into chaos.

Eventually, the two succumbed to sleep under Aili’s newly learned hypnosis spell.

...

The next day, with the sun high in the sky.

The Leonine slowly ascended, departing Little Laker.

Lu Chen, dark circles under his eyes, glared at Gloria, fuming.

Yet, thinking it over, Gloria’s transformation ability was indeed convincing. If she weren’t sitting on him or if he didn’t touch her body, it would be hard to tell by spiritual sense alone. Perhaps, in special circumstances, Gloria could handle reconnaissance work.

However, classic Japanese movie plots sprang to Lu Chen’s mind, combined with Gloria’s scatterbrained personality...

Forget it!

She wasn’t suited for the job.

Gloria stared at Lu Chen, recalling her dominant position before Aili hypnotized them last night, with a look of triumphant satisfaction. "Why are you staring? Just admit you enjoyed last night! You were drooling in your sleep, and your post-wake air pressure... All the evidence of your depravity is in my wristband. If you ever misbehave, I’ll savor it again!"

Lu Chen snorted coldly. "I could hack your wristband without lifting a finger—voice command would suffice."

Gloria, alarmed, immediately powered off, removed her wristband, and hid it deep in her ample bosom...

Size is privilege!

Lu Chen had nothing more to say.

After two days of jostling,

The Leonine finally arrived at the legendary Mist Sea Star.

Looking out, the scene was far livelier than Lu Chen had imagined.