221: Chapter 221 Equipment Wholesale, Made by Oda!

"Xiao Tian..."

Wen Yiran swallowed hard.

"You've turned Princess Xiyao's token of love into a mass-produced commodity?"

She lowered her voice, as if afraid of being overheard. "If those mermen saw this, they'd probably be scared to death. We have a whole pile of national-treasure-level treasures in our hands!"

"And there's more," Tian Xiwei took out another thick stack of skill books.

The parchment scrolls were neatly stacked and bundled by level and type, with the top one glowing with a dark purple luster. "Identical skill books can be stacked in the same slot, so I focused on copying Level 3 skill books. With this quantity, I estimate we can directly synthesize Level 5 ones!"

[Arcane Wisdom], [Counterspell], [Venomous Arrow], [Death Venom], [Flame Strike]...

She pushed the items together and then looked up at Lin Xiao.

In those bright, big eyes was an expression so serious it was almost solemn.

Before Lin Xiao could react, she took out two more battle axes from her backpack.

"And..."

Dark red patterns flowed across the axe bodies, and the blades glinted with a cold, sharp light.

[calamity bane - debt collector].

Two identical ones.

Then came the fist spikes, Level 3 [Blade of Shadow], two of them.

Seeing Lin Xiao's surprised look, Tian Xiwei didn't forget to explain: "I can [Remember] anything I've handled. This is likely an additional ability of the star emblem. As long as I have enough mental power, I can construct them directly without needing the original item."

"Oh, right, I also copied several copies of Sister Wanwan's [Amplification Codex - Ripple] and Ranran's [Cloud Piercer Compound Crossbow]. They're probably... all piled up on the sofa on the second floor."

Tian Xiwei raised her hand and pointed upstairs.

Then she stood there with a smile.

The tips of her ears were completely red, like a child waiting for an adult's praise.

The meeting area fell silent once more.

Wen Yiran's mouth hung open, and the earring blueprint in her hand almost dropped to the floor.

Jiang Wanwan also stopped flipping through the blueprints, her gaze slowly scanning the battle axes and skill books with surprise.

Lin Xiao looked at Tian Xiwei.

A thousand words couldn't compare to a warm hug.

He opened his arms and pulled her into his embrace.

"Well done."

Tian Xiwei felt Lin Xiao's warmth, and her lips curled up, but her eyes quietly turned red.

"Go pick out the jewelry you like," Lin Xiao said softly.

"Mhm." Tian Xiwei looked up from his arms and responded reluctantly.

"Xiao Tian, come here quickly. Help me see which color necklace would look good with these earrings."

Wen Yiran walked over, took Tian Xiwei's arm, and pulled her to sit aside.

The two began to study the color coordination and matching of the jewelry.

The lights in the territory were a warm yellow.

Outside the window was the endless deep sea and the [Nail of the Cold Heavens] that was gradually receding.

Lin Xiao sat in his chair, looking at the constructed equipment and skill books on the conference table, feeling deeply moved.

Jiang Wanwan put down the blueprint in her hand and walked behind him.

Her hands rested on his shoulders, her fingertips skillfully finding the pressure points and beginning to massage them gently.

The pressure was just right, neither too light nor too heavy to make his muscles tense.

Lin Xiao leaned back in the chair and closed his eyes.

"Wanwan."

"Yes?"

"Your massage technique is much better than mine."

Jiang Wanwan's fingers paused for a moment.

Then she continued the massage.

"Is that so? Maybe... it's just from practice..."

Her tone was casual, as if she were talking about something insignificant.

Lin Xiao was silent for a moment.

Then, he raised his hand and covered Jiang Wanwan's slightly cool hand.

"Wanwan, you weren't like this before."

Jiang Wanwan stopped the massage. "How am I different?"

Her tone was still gentle.

There was a faint, almost imperceptible smile in her words.

Lin Xiao didn't answer immediately.

He remembered the moment Jiang Wanwan had activated her [Domination Field] on the roof of the Astral Express earlier.

A light blue light shield had expanded with her as the center, and the Steam Core at her waist had spun at high speed, emitting a low hum.

At that moment, the aura she exuded was that of a completely different person.

It carried a faint sense of lethal intent.

Not quite like the girl who was always gentle in her speech and actions.

"Back in college, I didn't know any massage techniques."

Lin Xiao deliberated for a moment before finally speaking, voicing a doubt he had hidden in his heart.

That night in the bathroom, Jiang Wanwan had lain on the massage table, and he had given her a massage.

His fingertips had slid slowly down her neck, reaching into...

Then, she had whispered a sentence.

[Xiao Lin's massage technique has improved a lot since college.]

At that time, Lin Xiao's hand had paused.

Because he didn't Remember ever giving Jiang Wanwan a massage in college.

Not even once.

So why did she say that?

Lin Xiao didn't think further.

It wasn't that he didn't want to, but that he didn't dare...

Hearing this question, Jiang Wanwan's fingers curled slightly in Lin Xiao's palm.

"You know."

Her voice came from behind, with that reassuring tone.

"star emblem abilities can sometimes change a person."

Saying that, she withdrew her hand and gently patted the back of Lin Xiao's hand.

"I'm going to help Ranran organize the supplies. That girl is clumsy and can't manage it alone."

Then she turned and walked toward Wen Yiran and Tian Xiwei.

Lin Xiao sat alone in his chair.

star emblem abilities can sometimes change a person.

What did that sentence mean?

It was true that some people gradually became unlike themselves due to excessive use of star emblem abilities.

But when Jiang Wanwan said those words, he always felt there was something else in them.

Some things, perhaps, didn't need an answer right now.

Lin Xiao turned his head and glanced at the three huddled together.

They were chattering about which necklace went with which earrings and which ring looked best on which finger.

He withdrew his gaze, took a deep breath, and cleared the distracting thoughts from his mind.

Then, he stood up and walked toward the control area.

Passing through the airlock, the honeycomb-structured crystals on the walls lit up layer by layer, reflecting real-time monitoring footage from outside the Astral Express.

The turrets on the roof had all reset and entered a silent state.

The Coating integrity was slowly recovering, and the energy figures rested at a reassuring value.

Lin Xiao walked up to the [tide core].

The round crystal was embedded in a groove in the center of the ceiling, emitting a deep blue light from the inside out.

He raised his hand and injected stardust.

The deep blue glow suddenly brightened a bit.

Then, he sat in the seat behind the control console.

The seat was large, covered in grey-black Living Armor that contoured to the curves of his body.

The moment he sat down, he could feel the back of the chair contract slightly, as if it were embracing him.

Lin Xiao took out the jade slip given by Xi Muyuan from his backpack.

The jade slip lay quietly in his palm.

When he had first obtained it at the capital's underground station, it was just a warm piece of jade with ancient runes he couldn't understand carved on the surface, emitting a faint halo.

Like a sleeping relic.

Now, with the successful completion of the public event, all the seals had been lifted.

The jade slip flowed with a cyan-gold light.

That light was exactly the same as the one on the poseidons trident.

As the saying goes, a good horse deserves a good saddle.

A legendary weapon should be paired with top-tier skills.

The jade slip was a collection of secret techniques passed down through generations in the Di Peoples Kingdom.

Xi Muyuan had said that it contained all the Di Peoples Kingdom's understanding of ocean power over thousands of years.

Water control, current manipulation, summoning, sealing...

The kings of the Di Peoples Kingdom used these secret techniques to establish their undersea kingdom and suppress the abyssal rifts.

Now, these secret techniques were his!

With a thought, Lin Xiao delved into the jade slip.

Perhaps hearing his call, a surging energy poured out of the jade slip, spreading up along his fingers.

Then, like a tide, it flooded his entire body, wrapping him in layers.