It was an unexpected surprise, and even the usually composed Lin Feng couldnât contain his excitement.
The main reason was the Mind Sensing ability. Though not as overpowered as Jiang Yunâerâs Mind Control, for the current Lin Feng, it was the support ability he desperately needed!
Both the Level 19 Grenade Cannon in his hands and his successfully upgraded RV now had a greatly enhanced attack range.
But Lin Feng lacked any long-range reconnaissance capabilities. Drones were easily taken out by Cyan-winged Zergs, and using his Hawkeye ability and optical scopes, he could only see clearly for about a kilometer...
Anything further was difficult to spot, as the numerous obstructions on the Jiangnan Plain made it hard to track the Zerg Raceâs movements from several kilometers away.
Often, by the time he detected them, the Zerg Race had already gathered an army of hundreds or thousands, advancing with menacing speed.
But now, with a Spiritual Type support-detection Skill, his chances of successâwhether attacking the Zerg Race or retreatingâwould multiply.
That was precisely why Lin Feng was so thrilled.
To him, the non-offensive Mind Sensing was far more important than Mind Control.
His excited movements, however, woke the woman sleeping peacefully beside him...
Jiang Yunâer slowly opened her eyes to see a shirtless man lying beside her...
Still groggy, she instantly snapped awake and let out a terrified scream.
"Ahh!"
"What are you doing in my bed?!"
"Lin Feng, is that you?! How could this happen?!"
Lin Feng frowned slightly and clamped a hand over her mouth to quiet the spooked kitten.
Jiang Yunâer kicked and flailed, but her sharp nails couldnât even scratch Lin Feng, let alone pry the hand clamped over her face.
"Can you calm down?"
Lin Feng asked coolly, completely unfazed that the blanket had been tossed aside, leaving them facing each other, completely exposed.
Realizing their embarrassing predicament, Jiang Yunâer quickly grabbed for the blanket to cover her heaving chest. With resentful tears welling in her eyes, she nodded repeatedly.
Seeing this, Lin Feng slowly released his hand.
"Take another look. Whose bed is this?"
"So, shouldnât I be the one asking the questions?"
"Jiang Yunâer, what are you doing in my bed? This is Chen Yanyanâs spot. You sneaky little kitten, you crawl in here in the middle of the night, I get the wrong person, and now you have the gall to turn it around on me?!"
Jiang Yunâer faltered. She subconsciously felt Lin Feng had a point, but looking at their situation, she was clearly the victim. Sheâd almost been taken in by his twisted logic.
But for now, forced to swallow this injustice, Jiang Yunâer was at a loss for how to deal with Lin Feng.
She recalled the previous evening. After sheâd entered the Awakening state, a pain had gradually built in her mind until her head felt like it was splitting open. Unable to bear it, she had crawled out of her RV in tears.
She happened to run into Chen Yanyan, who was coming out to hang laundry, and begged for help.
Chen Yanyan helped Jiang Yunâer into the RV under the tarp, laying her down on the bed in the bedroom.
Under her attentive care, Jiang Yunâerâs agony did lessen. The pain in her head subsided, but the feeling of thermal expansion from her Spiritual Power persisted.
Eventually, she passed out in a daze.
Late that night, when Lin Feng returned, he assumed the person in his bed was Chen Yanyan. Not paying much mind, the two of them, in a muddle of confusion, experienced their first âgrowthâ together.
Seeing Jiang Yunâer nowâcurled at the foot of the bed, wrapped tightly in the blanket, her eyes filled with tears as she sobbed quietly, a pitiful picture of resentment and indignation...
Lin Feng sighed softly and slowly began to explain.
"If it werenât for me last night, that rampaging Spiritual Power would have shattered your mind."
"Have you forgotten? Your complete Awakening went horribly wrong. If I hadnât taken a risk to try and dissipate that Spiritual Power, you wouldnât have lived to see the Sun today."
Jiang Yunâer sniffled. Recalling the peril of the previous night, it did seem that the wild Spiritual Power only began to dissipate after Lin Feng arrived and started... handling her.
It even got to the point where she was the one taking the initiative.
During her âgrowthâ with Lin Feng, while she was unconscious, she had seen a black halo in the sky of her Spirit World, constantly absorbing the uncontrollable Spiritual Power in her body.
Her body, which had felt like it was about to incinerate, had gradually returned to normal with the haloâs help.
So Lin Feng was right.
If not for him, her consciousness would have been annihilated by the rampaging Spiritual Power.
Seeing the woman nod gently in agreement, Lin Feng breathed a small sigh of relief. He spoke as he moved closer.
"Your Spiritual Ability is powerful, but your weak Physique canât handle such a strong Spirit. Thatâs why you need me to help share the burden."
"Thereâs a special connection between us now. If you donât believe me, close your eyes and try to feel it."
Watching the man draw closer, Jiang Yunâer didnât pull away this time. Instead, she closed her eyes, half-doubting and half-believing.
Suddenly, she sensed a unique connection tangling with the man before her. She could somehow feel his placid emotions, his stable spiritual State...
It was a completely alien State!
In the next second, a flicker of fear caused Jiang Yunâer to pull back from the sensation. Her eyes snapped open, a look of disbelief flooding her face.
The man before her was smiling, slowly reaching out to gently caress her cheek.
"See? I was right, wasnât I?"
"This sensation is called Mind Sensing. It will be an eternal spiritual bond between us."
As Lin Feng touched her, Jiang Yunâerâs nervous, fearful heart gradually calmed. It seemed his caress was having a profound effect on her.
Once she confirmed the sensation was real, her heart grew conflicted. Her feelings for Lin Feng had, until now, been limited to curiosity.
There had even been a trace of disgust.
His vile actions that one night had already stolen so many of her firsts, and now, on the night of her Awakening, he had taken her most precious treasure.
The man before her was her first.
But Jiang Yunâer had to admit, Lin Feng was right. This spiritual bond, this Mind Sensing, had tied them firmly together, making her subconsciously feel an urge to rely on him.
Having faced life and death, she desperately craved a sense of security.
And Lin Feng was the only one who could provide it. Otherwise, she never would have parked her RV so close to his repair shop.
Now, Lin Feng gave her more than just physical and material security; through Mind Sensing, Jiang Yunâerâs spirit and mind were also constantly being soothed.
This feeling was especially pronounced whenever he reached out to touch her.
Under Lin Fengâs gentle touch, she found herself trusting him implicitly.
Seeing the womanâs emotions stabilize, Lin Feng realized the effects of Mind Sensing were far more profound than its simple description suggested.
With his Spiritual Power far surpassing hers, he could subtly influence Jiang Yunâerâs perceptions. His words seemed to carry a certain magic, making her willingly let down all her defenses.
To test this theory, Lin Feng pressed closer and slowly pulled away the blanket she clutched in her hands.
"Donât fight it."
"Youâre destined to be my woman."
Feeling the man so close, Jiang Yunâer, though still a little hesitant, no longer felt her earlier resentment. It was replaced by a deep shyness.
During their gentle struggle over the blanket, her face flushed pink with bashfulness. Once again, she revealed her most perfect self to the man before her, completely exposed.
This time, it was voluntary.
"Want to?"
Lin Feng asked in a soft voice.
Remembering how scattered her consciousness was last night, how sheâd rushed through the experience without savoring it, Jiang Yunâer let out a barely audible "Mmm," and buried her face in Lin Fengâs chest.
...
An hour later, the womanâwearing Lin Fengâs clothes and a hatâstealthily opened the RV door. After looking left and right to confirm no one was around, she quickly scurried out from under the repair shopâs tarp.
She ran all the way back to her own RV, her heart pounding with anxiety, like a thief with a guilty conscience, terrified of being seen.
Only when she was inside her own luxury RV did Jiang Yunâer finally breathe a sigh of relief. The pajamas sheâd worn yesterday had been torn to shreds during their entanglement, and she hadnât dared to wear any of Chen Yanyanâs clothes. Sheâd had no choice but to borrow a T-shirt and shorts from Lin Feng to get back.
Looking around her trashed RV, she remembered how sheâd almost lost her life in here yesterday.
Thankfully, Chen Yanyan had saved her and brought her to Lin Fengâs RV.
Thinking about what sheâd done afterward, Jiang Yunâer couldnât help but worry...
âWill Miss Chen resent me for this?â
She walked to the bathroom and looked at herself in the mirror.
Aside from a slight soreness between her legs, Jiang Yunâer, now a woman, saw that her once innocent and beautiful face now held the alluring charm of a mature woman.
"Mhm, youâre just as good as anyone!"
âHe will definitely be yours!â
...
Lin Feng watched Jiang Yunâerâs retreating figure as she snuck away from his RV like a fugitive, and her data appeared before him:
[Jiang Yunâer, Lv10/19]
[Life Value 60, Physique 60, Spirit 60]
[Superpower Awakening: Mind Control (Can control beings with a Spiritual Value less than half of her own; max 30 minds; range 1000 meters)]
âHer ability isnât that amazing after her complete Awakening,â Lin Feng mused. âProbably because I absorbed and siphoned off a portion of it.â
âAt most, she can fully control three ordinary people or Enhanced People below Lv6. But her Charm Attribute is still there, so she can subtly influence those around her.â
âThe main issue is that humans have high Spiritual Values, making them difficult to influence. If she were controlling Zergs, she could probably handle three Black Spine Zergs directly.â
âThatâs much stronger than most Awakeners.â
âAnd in the Late Stage, when her Attributes grow exponentially, this ability will become truly terrifying.â
âSo the Evaluation calling her a weakened Mother Empress isnât without merit.â
âWith this new Mind Sensing, my original plan has been more than accomplished. Iâve not only conquered Jiang Yunâer in body and mind, but Iâve also reaped all sorts of unexpected rewards.â
After confirming that she had stepped into her RV and disappeared from sight, Lin Feng closed the door. The updated data for his integrated and upgraded Lv14 Armored Tank appeared before him:
[Armored Tank Lv14/19, Red Quality]
[Upgrade Points 74/10, Damage 80, Defense 100, Average Speed 150, Range 600km]
[Extra Attributes: Biological Armor (Defense Power +50), Armor-Piercing Car Head (Damage +50), Unlimited Firepower (Ten machine guns, average Damage 40), Self-Propelled Artillery (Three Lv15 Machine Cannons, Damage 110, ammo 4365, Bullet Recovery 1/min)]
[New Extra Attributes: Life Radar (For every 1 Upgrade Point consumed, can detect all beings with a Life Value over 50 within a five-kilometer radius), Storage Space (For every 1 Upgrade Point consumed, can expand internal capacity by 1 cubic meter. Current living/combat area: 60 cubic meters; trunk: 20 cubic meters)]
âThis Upgrade increased all the Basic Attributes by 20. The other Attributes didnât change much, except that the Machine Cannons also got upgraded, improving the Bullet Recovery rate by one tier.â
âBut what I didnât expect was that the benefits of claiming Jiang Yunâer wouldnât just manifest in me. Even the RV unexpectedly gained Life Radar, a special Attribute similar to Mind Sensing.â
âAnd the Storage Space Iâve been dreaming of has finally appeared.â
âAlthough, the one-to-one exchange rate of one Upgrade Point for one cubic meter is a little surprising.â
âOn top of that, the Life Radar also consumes Upgrade Points. It looks like the points Iâve stockpiled wonât last very long.â
But Lin Feng didnât hesitate, decisively spending thirty of his reserved Upgrade Points to expand the trunkâs Storage Space.
âAdding that to the original twenty cubic meters gives me a total of fifty. That should be enough for now.â
âItâll be more than enough to stack and store twenty-odd Black Spine Zergs, even after I chop off their legs and stingers.â
Just as Lin Feng was preparing to get out and inspect the external changes to his Lv14 Armored Tank...
The RV door was suddenly opened.
He saw Chen Yanyan walking toward him with a smile.