Chapter 55 - 56: Taming the Ice Queen

Chapter 55: Chapter 56: Taming the Ice Queen

Gu Yihan murmured something indistinctly.

Burying her face in Lin Ji’s chest, she fell back into a deep sleep.

On Lin Ji’s other side, Shen Manyun lay with her back to him.

Her body was tense, not even daring to breathe heavily.

She hadn’t been as bold as Gu Yihan to embrace Lin Ji.

But her mind was filled entirely with the embarrassing scenes and sensations from earlier.

Just then, a pair of warm, large hands suddenly reached over from behind.

Lin Ji’s hand naturally wrapped around Shen Manyun’s plump waist.

While his other hand gently caressed Gu Yihan’s smooth back.

Lin Ji’s hands wandered over the two distinctly different yet equally alluring bodies for a while.

On the left was Gu Yihan’s tight, elastic supermodel figure, and on the right was Shen Manyun’s plump, soft curves exuding mature charm.

This sense of control, of having both women in his arms, was indeed irresistibly satisfying.

However, even with a Second-tier Constitution.

After the intense battles during the day and the wild activities at night, Lin Ji truly felt a trace of fatigue.

He withdrew his mischievous hands, closed his eyes, and fell into a deep sleep.

...

Four hours later.

When a faint, grayish-white light pierced through the sea fog outside the window, Lin Ji opened his eyes precisely on time.

Since his constitution had strengthened to the Second-tier, and after synchronizing with Shen Manyun’s Life Series Talent [D-grade Purification] last night.

His vitality and recovery ability were now far stronger than before.

He only needed four or five hours of sleep each day to completely dispel fatigue and become energetic and full of vigor.

Lin Ji gently sat up from the bed.

He had intended to let the thoroughly exhausted Shen Manyun beside him sleep a bit longer and didn’t wake her.

But although Shen Manyun was tired, her mind remained alert.

Sensing movement beside her, she immediately sat up as well.

The oversized men’s shirt slipped from her smooth shoulders, revealing a large expanse of fair skin.

"Captain..."

Shen Manyun rubbed her eyes, her voice still carrying the drowsiness and hoarseness of just waking up.

"Why don’t you sleep a bit more?"

Lin Ji reached out to help her pull up the slipping shirt, casually pinching her soft cheek.

"I’ve slept enough."

"But you, after being worn out by me last night, if you’re tired, just keep sleeping. I can keep watch alone for the latter half of the night."

Hearing Lin Ji mention last night’s wildness, Shen Manyun’s pretty face instantly flushed red to the tips of her ears.

She bit her red lips in shy annoyance, brushing away Lin Ji’s mischievous hand.

"I’m not tired!"

"My Purification skill not only heals wounds, but is also very effective at restoring mental energy."

"I promised to take over the night watch for Yihan. I don’t want to be a freeloading deadweight on this ship."

As she spoke, Shen Manyun stubbornly pushed back the covers. Enduring the soreness between her legs, she began to put on her clothes.

Seeing her serious expression, Lin Ji smiled and didn’t press the matter further.

After all, in these perilous seas, having one more alert person on night watch was always a good thing.

Once both were dressed, they pushed open the door to the captain’s cabin and descended the iron staircase to the deck below.

On the deck, the sea wind remained bitingly cold.

Tang Ling and Su Qingyue, wrapped in rather thin clothing, were standing their watch for the first half of the night.

Tang Ling was clearly someone who couldn’t stand being idle.

Bored, she was squatting in a corner, continuously conjuring small orange-red fireballs in her hands.

She tossed them like coins to pass the long hours of the watch, while also warming herself up a bit.

Su Qingyue was the complete opposite.

She stood quietly at the edge of the deck, like an exquisitely beautiful ice sculpture.

She almost blended into the cold sea mist, making no sound at all, silently gazing into the dark expanse of the distant sea, lost in her own thoughts.

Seeing Lin Ji and Shen Manyun descend from the upper deck, Tang Ling quickly extinguished the fireball in her hand and excitedly rushed over.

"Boss! You’re finally here to take over!"

Tang Ling rubbed her slightly sore shoulders, complaining with a pained expression.

"This sea wind in the middle of the night is freezing! I was getting so bored I thought I’d die!"

"I was starting to think you two up there... ahem, had forgotten all about the night watch."

At this, Tang Ling gave Shen Manyun a suggestive look.

Shen Manyun, feeling extremely uncomfortable under her gaze, guiltily lowered her head and pretended to adjust her clothes.

Lin Ji chuckled wryly, then reached out and gave Tang Ling’s pert, oil-stained work pants-clad backside an unceremonious slap.

Smack!

"Enough nonsense. Go get some sleep."

"And while you’re at it, go to the lower deck cabin and wake up that little girl Bai Taotao for me."

"It’s her turn to contribute for the second half of the night."

Being spanked in public by Lin Ji, Tang Ling’s face instantly turned as red as a ripe tomato.

But instead of getting angry, she felt a sense of intimacy, as if she were being treated like family.

"Alrighty! I’m on it!"

Tang Ling agreed with relief and scampered off toward the lower deck cabin as if fleeing.

Meanwhile, Su Qingyue, who had been standing at the edge of the deck, also sensed Lin Ji’s arrival.

She turned around and cast a cold glance at Lin Ji and Shen Manyun.

Especially when she saw Shen Manyun’s radiant complexion, even carrying a hint of the delicate charm of a newlywed woman.

The jealousy and resentment in Su Qingyue’s eyes were almost palpable.

She said nothing, only biting her lower lip tightly.

With a cold expression, she brushed past Lin Ji, preparing to return to her room to sleep.

"Su, the campus belle."

Just as they passed each other, Lin Ji suddenly called out to her.

Su Qingyue’s steps faltered, but she didn’t turn around.

Lin Ji looked at her thin, stubborn back and frowned.

"Truly worthy of being our school’s famous Ice Queen."

"Since awakening her Ice Affinity, her temperament has grown colder and colder."

"Now she doesn’t even bother greeting her own captain when she sees him?"

"What? Does she think her contributions aboard the ship are so great that she can look down on even me, her boss?"

Though Lin Ji’s words carried a somewhat joking tone, they sounded particularly grating to Su Qingyue’s ears.

A wave of grievance welled up inside her.

She was clearly the first to follow him!

She had clearly fought desperately for him, even setting aside her pride to try to get closer to him!

But what about him?

He would rather flirt with that Tang Ling, who was inferior to her in every way, or seek out that older woman Shen Manyun, than spare her a single glance!

And now he even came to mock her with words like these!

Su Qingyue clenched her fists, her nails digging deep into her palms.

She took a deep breath, forcing back the tears welling in her eyes, and snorted coldly.

"Captain, you jest. How would I dare look down on you?"

"I’m tired. I’m going back to rest now."

With that, she quickened her pace without looking back, rushed into the lower deck cabin, and slammed the door shut with a heavy thud.

Watching the tightly closed cabin door, Shen Manyun sighed with some concern.

"Captain, aren’t you being a bit too harsh on Qingyue?"

"After all, she’s a girl, and... she actually cares a great deal about how you treat her."

Lin Ji withdrew his gaze, lit a cigarette, and his eyes grew profound and cold.

"In this post-apocalyptic world, there’s no need for a pampered young lady."

"She’s too proud. If she can’t shatter that lofty pedestal herself and fully recognize reality..."

"Sooner or later, she’ll become a hidden danger to the team."

Lin Ji exhaled a smoke ring, looking toward the gradually thinning sea fog in the distance.

"On my ship, Lin Ji’s ship, I don’t keep idle people, much less ancestors who put on airs."

"If you want to survive, if you want my protection, you have to play by my rules."