However, the reality was that Fang Senyan and Jiao Shi were rare tanks. With their combined health far exceeding 1000 points, this link almost gifted them an extra life!

Of course, this Life Link wasn't as miraculous as it sounded. In an environment where the odds were stacked against them, even Jiao Shi, as resilient as he was, could only last a few minutes, perhaps ten at most, once trapped within the link. If the enemy held an absolute advantage, they wouldn't bother chasing the linked Fang Senyan; they would simply focus their assault on Jiao Shi.

Even if the enemies’ attack power was reduced to the bare minimum, they could still deal at least 1 point of damage. An "Immune" state was out of the question. By the time the transferred damage pushed Fang Senyan to the brink of death, the link would sever—a potential double kill scenario could even unfold.

Yet, overall, this Life Link team skill undeniably boosted their combined survivability significantly. That was beyond dispute. Furthermore, it could be upgraded? Although the cost was a terrifying three team skill points...

Subsequently, since the Life Link team skill already occupied one of the three available slots, Fang Senyan and Jiao Shi could only draw four more team skills and select two from those draws. Jiao Shi showed considerable interest in this process and voluntarily applied to make the draws. The four resulting team skills, labeled A, B, C, and D, were as follows: A: Aegis LV1 (Passive), granting all team members an increase of 100 points to their maximum Health and 100 points to their maximum Spirit. This effect vanishes if a member leaves the team. B: Finance LV1 (Passive), reducing the expenditure of all team members by 33% when purchasing exclusive items from the space using Nightmare Imprints, and increasing the income by 33% when selling miscellaneous items to the space via Nightmare Imprints. C: Radiant Heal LV1 (Active)—The team's radiance can pull members back from the brink of death at a crucial moment. Activating this ability grants continuous health recovery over 12 seconds, totaling 50% of the maximum Health pool. Casting this team ability costs nothing and has a cooldown of 12 hours. D: Pierce LV1 (Passive), increasing damage dealt by all team members by 12%.

Following the guidance whispered by the hoarse voice, SIR, Fang Senyan and Jiao Shi conferred briefly and selected two more skills geared toward survival: Aegis LV1 and Radiant Heal. After confirmation, the hoarse voice stated, "Very well, the team is successfully established. I shall depart now. I hope you continue to achieve favorable results in your upcoming challenges."

Fang Senyan was grappling with the matter of restoring the ten fingers chopped off the Fourth Uncle and was just about to inquire about related matters with this officer who claimed to be from the future, when the individual abruptly vanished. It truly felt like a dragon showing its head but never its tail. At that moment, the familiar monotone synthesized electronic voice returned: "Small Silver Team: Ace established successfully!" ... "You have joined the Small Silver Team: Ace!"

"Team Size: Small." (In missions requiring a large team to complete, members of a small team can choose to join a large team collectively, but they cannot enjoy the large team's bonuses or team skills. Generally, lower-tier teams have difficulty viewing information on higher-tier teams... unless the latter actively discloses it.)

"Team Tier: Silver."

"Team Level: LV1 (0/15)." Progress to the next level requires 15 Team Experience Points.

"Whenever the Team Leader, Deputy Leader, or Formal Member completes a Main Quest or Hidden Quest, 1 Team Experience Point will be awarded to the team."

"Additionally, other methods to gain team experience include irregularly appearing team-level exclusive missions, achieving kills during team battles, and more."

"Team Leader: ID Number 1018. Current Rank: Second Lieutenant. This information can be hidden from team members."

"Note: To advance to the next team level, the Team Leader's rank must be raised to First Lieutenant. If the team experience reaches the prerequisite for advancement before the rank promotion, the excess experience will carry over; a situation like 20/15 will not occur (meaning experience will not be lost)."

"Team Deputy Leader: ID Number 770123. Current Rank: Lieutenant Colonel (Reserve)." This information can be hidden from team members.

"Hidden Team Skill: Life Link LV1. This information can be hidden from team members."

"Team Skill: Aegis LV1 (Passive)."

"Team Skill: Radiant Heal LV1 (Active)."

"Formal Team Members enjoy Silver Tier privileges: During team battles against other teams, they can directly suppress the enemy team's skills, reducing their effectiveness by a minimum of 10% to 30% (determined by the opposing team's tier), and increasing the chance of enemy team skill failure to 20% to 50% (determined by the opposing team's tier)."

"Non-formal team members only enjoy the team skill: Aegis."

Gazing at the final outcome, both Fang Senyan and Jiao Shi felt a surge of pleasant surprise. Honestly, reaping such benefits far exceeded their initial expectations.

Their previous adventure in the Lord of the Rings world had indeed been draining... an A-level difficulty world was truly terrifying; even casually encountering two minor leaders could overwhelm them both.

Surviving under such conditions naturally multiplied the pressure. Therefore, after their initial excitement faded, the immense mental exhaustion hit them. They quickly bid farewell and rushed back to the real world, needing to recover and relax first and foremost.

............

Upon returning to the real world, Fang Senyan was still in Hong Kong. He even lacked the interest to meet Jessica, who had called to ask him out. He was utterly exhausted. He found a hotel with a decent exterior nearby, booked a room, and decided to soak in the bathtub first.

In his drowsy state, Fang Senyan couldn't help but drift into considering his next steps. He had quite a few things to attend to in the real world: Firstly, while working for Mr. Saruman, he had tested wolves, common freshwater fish, snakes, and dogs—even mantises—as viable raw materials for concocting potions. If he could master even one of these, it would enrich his range of available potions.

Secondly, there was the issue of talent awakening that Jiao Shi had previously mentioned. After his fight with Iboof, Fang Senyan felt he was brushing against the edge of talent awakening. Therefore, spending some time in rigorous training in Thailand should give him a solid chance of breaking through.

Finally, there was the critical matter of the Fourth Uncle's health. On one hand, he needed to supervise his treatment; on the other, he needed to actually build the boat to reassure the old man—which also served to give him a task to occupy his mind and prevent him from overthinking.

From a personal benefit standpoint, experimenting with new potion formulas and talent awakening were equally important. But for Fang Senyan, who placed high value on kinship and family, he couldn't shake his worry for the Fourth Uncle, who was like a father figure. Ultimately, he chose to return to Taiwan. He preferred to take slightly greater personal risks if it meant the Fourth Uncle could have a few days of peace and happiness. Moreover, returning to Taiwan would also allow him time to try out the new compounding recipes.

Having decided his course of action, Fang Senyan’s consciousness slipped into a semi-conscious state, and he fell asleep directly in the bathtub, letting out even breaths until the cold water jolted him awake. Only then did he climb out of the tub, crawl back onto the bed, and sleep again, only rising once briefly to relieve himself.

He slept soundly for a full 24 hours. Finally, Fang Senyan was roused by several service staff who looked immensely relieved. Because the hotel had recently been embroiled in a drug scandal, they were all on edge. Seeing a guest like Fang Senyan stay locked in his room for 24 hours, they feared getting entangled in another murder scandal. After repeated knocks went unanswered, they took the drastic step of breaking down the door.

Facing these staff members who looked genuinely terrified, Fang Senyan felt a mix of exasperation and amusement.

He shrugged helplessly, but knowing you shouldn't strike a smiling face, he realized the only thing left to do was settle the bill and leave. However, stepping out of the hotel, his stomach immediately rumbled with hunger.

Spotting a crowded open-air food stall nearby, the tantalizing aroma wafting over, he couldn't resist walking toward it.

The food stall looked incredibly rudimentary; if they strictly enforced hygiene standards, it would undoubtedly fail. Fang Senyan managed to wait for a spot only by sharing a table with others. Although the tabletop had been wiped, the grease layer was at least as thick as a fingernail. Before he could even order, a thin, sallow-faced woman slapped down a bowl with a loud clank. Water marks were clearly visible on the bowl, indicating it had just been rinsed with water and served to him after the previous customer finished eating.

Just as Fang Senyan reached for a tissue to dry the bowl, the thin woman grabbed a large aluminum basin. Her iron ladle scraped loudly against the bottom of the basin with a clatter, and she proceeded to scoop out half a ladle of thick, viscous paste, pouring it into the bowl. The paste was incredibly dense, mixed with fine threads of vivid red and snow white, and as hot steam rose, an indescribable, exotic fragrance wafted out.

He couldn't help but lift the bowl and sip a small spoonful with his ladle. The soup was silken and soft on the tongue, carrying a strange, rich flavor blending seafood and mountain game. Upon a slight chew, he realized his teeth encountered very "tough" fine threads that required effort to masticate—likely the vermicelli added to the dish, giving it a bouncy texture.