Chapter 492: Plan, Unboxing

Chapter 492: Chapter 492: Plan, Unboxing

Hearing Dexter Luther volunteer, Paul Payne nodded, took a deep breath, and closed his eyes.

The next second, a faint wave of Energy spread from Paul Payne’s body, slowly enveloping Dexter Luther.

The wave was so faint that it was almost undetectable unless one focused intently.

It was like a thin layer of mist, or a transparent film of water, clinging imperceptibly to the surface of Dexter Luther’s skin.

"It’s started." Paul Payne opened his eyes. A thin sheen of sweat already beaded on his forehead.

Without hesitation, Seraphina Sullivan sent the [Anesthetic] in her hand shooting into Dexter Luther’s arm like a tiny needle.

The Anesthetic entered his body.

Everyone held their breath and stared at Dexter Luther.

One second.

Two seconds.

Three seconds.

Dexter Luther blinked, rolled his neck, and then hopped a couple of times.

"Huh?" A surprised look appeared on his face. "I don’t feel a thing?"

Seraphina Sullivan nodded, motioning for him to keep moving.

Dexter Luther did a few squats and jumped in place a few more times. His face still showed no signs of being anesthetized.

"The Effect is very good," Seraphina Sullivan said, then turned to Paul Payne. "How are you feeling? How long can you maintain it?"

Paul Payne caught his breath, his face a little paler than before. He thought for a moment before saying, a bit uncertainly, "If I’m only protecting one person, I think I can last for about ten minutes. But if I try to protect several people at once..."

He paused, as if sensing the drain on his body.

"The more people there are, the faster it drains me."

He said honestly, "If I protect all of us at the same time, I think... one minute, tops."

"One minute?" Flora Sullivan’s face scrunched up. "That’s it?"

Paul Payne’s face flushed, but he quickly lifted his head, a hint of defiance in his voice. "If I had something to restore my energy, I could keep it up!"

Seraphina Sullivan said nothing, but her mind was already racing.

’One minute is definitely short.’

’But if we time it right, one minute is enough to do a lot.’

’Like rushing up to the Raging Cat Demon and landing a heavy blow.’

With a flicker of thought, she reached into her Space. She considered the items she had that could restore energy.

Several special items lay quietly in a corner.

"I do have something that restores energy."

Paul Payne’s eyes lit up.

What Seraphina Sullivan meant was the [Zengzeng Recovery Soup].

It was a special dish she had brewed using Growth Potatoes as the main ingredient, following a recipe from her [Food Atlas].

Its Effect was straightforward: drinking it quickly restored one’s energy and stamina with no side effects.

She used to make it all the time right after she first got the recipe.

But as her [Magic Cuisine] Talent grew stronger and she created an endless stream of bizarre and wonderful foods, she had forgotten all about the Zengzeng Recovery Soup in a corner of her Space.

She never thought it would come in handy now.

She pulled a thermos from her Space. It was filled to the brim with a golden broth that gave off the faint, clean scent of grains.

"Here," she said, handing it to Paul Payne. "This is Zengzeng Recovery Soup. One sip will restore a good amount of your energy. Drink some whenever you feel like you’re about to hit your limit."

Paul Payne accepted the thermos, his eyes lighting up.

"Awesome! With this, I can keep my [Mysterious Guardian] up for everyone indefinitely!"

Meanwhile, Dexter Luther was squatting nearby, studying something with a serious expression.

A translucent shield floated before him—one he had materialized using his [Shield] Talent.

But unlike usual, a faint wave of energy, identical to Paul Payne’s Mysterious Guardian, was flowing across its surface.

"Heh heh..." Dexter Luther grinned. "I managed to ’wrap’ Paul’s guardian effect into my shield."

He reached out and tapped the shield. The energy wave rippled slightly but didn’t dissipate.

"From now on, if I block something with this shield, no fire, ice, or poison will even touch the person behind it."

Flora Sullivan leaned in and poked the shield curiously. "Whoa, it’s real! Does that mean we can go find that Cat Demon now?"

Crystal Lynn glanced toward the garage entrance.

Even though it was blocked by a sunshade and other junk, they could still see the blinding sunlight outside and the air shimmering from the intense heat.

"Going now would be pushing it," Matthew Dawson said, adjusting his glasses.

"During the day, we’d have to fight not only the boss monster but also the extreme heat. Even with the Insulation Suits, we can’t fight for long in that kind of temperature."

Matthew Dawson paused, then looked at Seraphina Sullivan. "I think we should wait until night. For now, everyone should rest up and conserve their energy."

Seraphina Sullivan nodded in agreement.

"Besides," Matthew Dawson added, "even if we go now, we might not find the Cat Demon. It’s smart, so it’s bound to be on the move."

A slight smile touched Seraphina Sullivan’s lips.

"No need to worry about that."

She took out the [Three Realms Compass]. On it, a small point of light was slowly moving—the mark left by her [Life Mark].

"As long as it’s not dead, I can find it."

Everyone looked at the Compass, and the tension on their faces eased considerably.

"Then what are we waiting for?" Dexter Luther slapped his thigh. "Let’s open the Treasure Chests! Let’s see what kind of good stuff we got!"

"Yeah!" Flora Sullivan grew excited as well. "We might get some powerful items! That’ll give us a better shot at taking down the Cat Demon tonight!"

Everyone nodded in agreement.

Seraphina Sullivan laid out the four Treasure Chests she had found.

The others took out their own hauls as well.

Dexter Luther and Crystal Lynn each had one. Sean Chandler, Matthew Dawson, and Paul Payne had a whopping fifteen Treasure Chests piled into a small mountain.

"Open them," Seraphina Sullivan said.

One after another, the brilliant lights of opening Treasure Chests flared up in the garage.

Then Seraphina Sullivan discovered something a little disappointing.

Her King of Fortune status seemed to have no effect on these event Treasure Chests.

Every chest they opened produced only one item.

Exactly one. No more, no less.

She glanced over at Sean Chandler’s group. Fifteen Treasure Chests, fifteen items.

Paul Payne was excitedly gathering the items into his arms, a smile practically spilling from his face.

Then she looked at her own haul: four Treasure Chests, four items.

In terms of quantity, there was no comparison.

But when she took a closer look at what she had received, her disappointment turned to surprise.

The first Treasure Chest yielded a crystal-clear seed with a faint green glow on its surface.

The second Treasure Chest produced a palm-sized scale covered in complex, shifting patterns.

The third Treasure Chest contained a scroll that looked as if it were woven from some kind of plant vine.

The item from the fourth Treasure Chest was the most peculiar of all—

A branch.

To be precise, it was an ordinary-looking branch, about the length of a forearm, with a few tender green leaves still attached.

But the system notification told Seraphina Sullivan that this item was anything but ordinary.