Seeing the little spider nuzzled up against Yuntun, Yun Luohe felt a twinge of reluctance.She’d keep it a while longer before giving it to Yu Chenjin.She took out the black Conch Communicator and called Yu Chenjin.Hatching a spider egg this fast caught Yu Chenjin a bit off guard.The two of them discussed a name for the little spider.She couldn’t send photos to Yu directly, but Yun Luohe came up with a workaround: she posted a thread with a numeric title—low-profile on purpose—embedded the pictures there, and told Yu the keywords to search.@Endless good reads, all at Jinjiang Literature CityThey stayed on the call the whole time. As soon as Yu found the post, Yun deleted it.Yun Luohe: “Well? Isn’t it adorable?”Yu Chenjin: “It is.”Yu Chenjin: “Let Yuntun stay with it a while longer. I’ll take it when it’s a bit bigger.”After soothing Yuntun and the little spider, Yun Luohe returned to the warm villa living room. Flames danced in the fireplace. At last she had a moment to sit, open her backpack and storage pouch, and carefully tally everything from the Volcano Island run.She still needed to split it with Yu Chenjin.He’d said he was already sorting on his end.Then she had to hurry up: finish the sorting before bed, then pop a few shells and recycle a wave of junk.Heart of Geothermal ×1—the key material, foundation for a large hot-spring build.High-Grade Lava Stone ×45—basic geothermal stock, for heating-unit base layers.Obsidian Lava Stone ×8—core material for winter constant-temperature devices; required by many cold-resist rigs.Spatial Heat Crystal ×1—for crafting a Heated Storage Box; carries both spatial and heating attributes.Geothermal Warmth Stone (small) ×12, Hot-Spring Warmth Stone (large) ×7.Small warmth stones: for greenhouse seed beds and as auxiliary heaters on small pool floors.Large warmth stones: imbued with gentle mineral elements; first-choice wall/floor material for hot-spring pools.Pure Volcanic Ash ×891. Thanks to that person’s “supply drop,” she’d scored a lot—humble but crucial.In winter it becomes insulation cement, a soil conditioner for cold-hardy crops, and a base for high-grade fire-resistant coatings.Volcanic Blaze Pepper (gold) ×4—truly packed with extreme heat and anti-cold energy; used in anti-cold cuisine, spirits, and special chill-warding draughts.Volcanic Rock Wool ×89, Healing Mud ×69, Fire Lizard Hide ×4…Plus a pile of extra spoils confiscated from the “gift-you-gear” trio: loads of volcanic ash, assorted tools, a stack of Designated Island Cards, Teleport Cards, the Bat King’s Scepter…The scepter was shadow-aspect—no immediate use for Yun—but as a component of the Bat King set it was valuable. She had other gear pieces too; it might prove pivotal later.@Endless good reads, all at Jinjiang Literature CityCome to think of it, that set fit Mu Zitang perfectly. With his Blood-Thirst trait, the Bat set was probably his best match.It had lifesteal and self-healing properties.[Bat King’s Shadow Scepter: Core component of the Bat King set, imbued with shadow-devouring power. Armor-break +25, slowly drains target HP and Stamina, enhances maim effects. Spend 50 Stamina to activate Shadow Devour. Set Effect: Assemble three pieces to unlock Shadow Mimicry.]“So there’s a set skill, too.”She didn’t know the exact effect, but it wouldn’t be weak.She already had the Bat King cuirass—one more piece to go.Previously, Lin Zhu had pulled a blueprint—the Blood-Drinker Visor blueprint. She could ping him to see if it was for sale.Maybe that was the missing piece.Before long, Yun Luohe and Yu Chenjin finished the split. They put everything together and cut it straight down the middle.Fastest and simplest.Stretching, Yun glanced out the window. At this rate, once winter hit, the cold would slam down hard.She had to start prepping winter gear tonight.She picked up the first shell.With Luck higher now, the pearl tiers had climbed. Gray was rare.Mostly whites.Let them pile for three to five days, crack eight or ten at once, and sometimes two golds would drop. Blacks and iridescents were still rarer.Golds weren’t that hard anymore.Right now, she had nine shells saved over three days.Yun Luohe cracked them in one go.Three whites, two grays, two blacks.Not bad, not bad.Now for the good stuff![Opened black pearl, obtained: Designated Island Card ×1, Pet Satchel ×1, Frostbite Relief Ointment Recipe ×1, Advanced Snow Boots Blueprint ×1, Anti-Slip Rubber Sole ×1, Constant-Temperature-and-Humidity Seed Storage Box ×1, Anti-Freeze Lubricant ×5, Advanced Observation Goggles ×1, Polar Warmth Sleeping Bag Blueprint ×1, Body-Warming Boiling Hotpot ×2, Energy Storage Battery ×1][Opened black pearl, obtained: High-Efficiency Greenhouse Constant-Temperature Controller Blueprint ×1, Constant-Temperature Chip ×1, Signal Flare ×2, Strong Stamina Recovery Potion ×2, Mini Weather Station Blueprint ×1, Portable Geothermal Drilling Machine Blueprint ×1, Cold-Ward Herb Pack Recipe ×1][Opened white pearl, obtained: Copper Pipe ×2, Mugwort Foot-Soak Pack ×1, Torch ×2, Basic Bandage ×2, Common Bait ×5, Coarse Fur ×8, Common Cotton Thread ×10, Sealed Waterproof Cloth ×5][Opened white pearl, obtained: Advanced Lumber ×5, Copper Ingot ×20, Thick Wool Blanket ×3, Animal Fat ×15, Stone Brick ×10, Tempered Glass ×2][Opened white pearl, obtained: Cotton ×4, Cold-Hardy Vegetable Pack ×2, Advanced Alloy Ingot ×1, Damaged Snow Boots ×1, Doenjang Soup ×1, Twisted Sugar Fritters ×2][Opened gray pearl, obtained: Linen ×5, Damaged Clay Pot ×3, Simple Fish Trap ×1, Withered Herb ×1, Dirty Fur ×1, Sand ×10, Precision Gear ×2][Opened gray pearl, obtained: Damp Firewood ×5, Cotton ×2, Potato Chunk ×1, Freshwater ×3, Pebble ×6, Tinder ×1, Linen ×2, Whetstone ×2, Hardtack ×3]Sweet!Cracking that many at once felt amazing.With so many winter-useful supplies in the haul, Yun rushed to sort everything into categories, then dug into the details.[Constant-Temperature-and-Humidity Seed Storage Box: Interior environment fixed at low temperature and low humidity; perfectly preserves all kinds of seeds.][Advanced Observation Goggles: Wind-, snow-, and glare-proof; improves visual clarity on snowfields.][Energy Storage Battery: High-capacity battery providing reserves for powered devices such as constant-temperature controllers.]…While checking details, Yun glanced at her messages.She was busy all day and couldn’t always reply in time. Close contacts had communicators anyway—they could reach her directly for emergencies—so most pings got answered when she saw them.Cheng Xuening: “Luohe, I cracked shells and pulled a bunch of great winter items—underfloor heating blueprint, anti-freeze fabric recipe, plus snow-fox plush hide and de-icer. What do you need over there?”Mu Zitang: “Sister Yun, are you back from Volcano Island? Not many players have upgraded through the Association. A few in the management-trainee group didn’t make it. Those of us who did… we figured we could take some in. What’s your plan?”Yun replied to Cheng Xuening first:“Send me the material requirements. I’ll transfer them to you. When you’ve got time, help me craft a few.”Mu Zitang’s question needed thought.She’d already had the architect start on the new housing.Better to see exactly who in the trainee group hadn’t upgraded. If some had real potential, she could consider taking them in.They were probably debating it in the trainee chat already, but Yun didn’t have time to scroll. Easier to ask Mu directly.Yun Luohe: “Forward me the list—who are they?”Mu Zitang: “Honestly, you don’t even need the list. Si Qi hasn’t upgraded. Everyone’s trying to recruit them. Want to consider it?”Yun blinked. “Si Qi still hasn’t upgraded?”Mu Zitang: “They’re doing research every day and ignoring material collection. Now they’re late to it. They suddenly need a ton of materials and can’t scrape enough together. And we just upgraded—nobody has piles of spare upgrade mats lying around…”Yun understood. Si Qi was research-driven—head down in R&D. Autumn had dumped tons of new things to test, and they were also leading a research group. End result: they’d never gone out to gather for themselves.If it was Si Qi, there was nothing to debate.“I’ll go talk to them.”She wasn’t about to let Si Qi get eliminated—but even if Yun didn’t take them, someone else would.All the same, Yun had a very good impression of Si Qi. Ever since the management-trainee group formed, Si Qi had been the one she admired most.Mu Zitang: “Great. If you’re willing to bring them in, even better. They haven’t agreed to anyone. I figured they might be hoping to join you.”Yun wasn’t that confident. They didn’t really chat privately—mostly transactions for materials and gear.So she messaged Si Qi:“Si Qi, I’m building new housing. Want to consider moving? My island’s progressing well. If you come, I can build a dedicated research lab and experimental botanical garden for you right away. Afterward, I’ll work to attract the apothecary Liya to settle in.”No immediate reply.She didn’t know if Si Qi was busy or hesitating.@Endless good reads, all at Jinjiang Literature CityIf they weren’t willing, there was nothing she could do.She went back to item details, then skimmed new forum posts.[Strong Stamina Recovery Potion: Rapidly restores a large amount of Stamina to counter extreme-environment drain.][Portable Geothermal Drilling Machine: High-tech gear! Can drill through ice or permafrost to search for underground heat sources or hot springs. Has a chance to acquire Geothermal Warmth Stones directly or open a small geothermal vent. A powerful tool for exploring the Frozen World!][High-Efficiency Greenhouse Constant-Temperature Controller: Installed in a greenhouse to precisely regulate the temperature of embedded Obsidian Lava Stones or small geothermal heating cores, greatly boosting crop growth efficiency.][Materials: Precision Gear Set ×2, Constant-Temperature Chip ×2, Copper Wire ×6, Insulation Material ×10, Obsidian Lava Stone ×2][Polar Warmth Sleeping Bag: Uses a thermal liner to provide house-level sleep warmth—an essential for field survival.][Materials: Top-grade Duck Down ×2, Ultra-Thick Fur ×2, Waterproof Cloth ×3; crafted on the Advanced Sewing Machine.][Body-Warming Boiling Hotpot: A top-tier anti-cold dish. Can be made with Volcanic Blaze Pepper, high-grade meats, cold-hardy vegetables, and a special broth base. After eating, greatly increases cold resistance for a long duration and continuously restores Stamina.]Reading fired Yun Luohe up—she wanted to start crafting right now.But she was still short on several materials.She didn’t even feel like sleeping tonight; she wanted to grind.First she’d compile all materials required by the blueprints and recipes, post the list to the ❀ Nоvеlігht ❀ (Don’t copy, read here) group, and have people help collect. She’d gather too, of course—she couldn’t camp the Trade Hub nonstop. The Association had members who specialized in sourcing and bartered for materials that way.The Volcano Island haul hadn’t been widely usable yet—maybe because winter hadn’t actually started, or maybe because she hadn’t rolled the right blueprints.Yun pinged Du Ruan-tian and Lin Zhu about what they’d pulled today, to see if they could swap blueprints and trade materials.And while she was at it, she asked Lin Zhu about the Bat King gear.

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