The three androids leaned silently against the wall, their expressions blank, appearing from a distance like mere statues. Their core principle was absolute energy conservation, as the nutrient fluid required for replenishment cost their master money.

Fang Senyan peered through the opening into the distance, watching the lightning storms connect into a vast net, churning wantonly in the sky. Now and then, a bolt would strike down, invoking a profound sense of dread. One flash even hit no more than twenty or thirty meters away. Fang Senyan could clearly see the earth and vegetation mercilessly ripped apart, thrown up, and then crash back down, leaving behind a dark brown crater spanning seven or eight meters, the mud still swirling.

Some trees were also struck by the lightning. Though battered by the wind and rain, they caught fire, the flames stubborn and flickering, persisting stubbornly like an undying beacon.

Fang Senyan had never imagined such a sight on Earth, much less witnessed it. He was suddenly reminded of the planet's myriad strange creatures—if only Sanzai were here!

Sanzai was currently facing the Summoner's most exquisite dilemma: his abilities were more than sufficient, yet... he lacked sufficiently powerful beings to contract with! What a maddening situation! This had become his biggest bottleneck.

Moreover, Sanzai likely knew that Fang Senyan had pulled him into the Ace team and even outfitted him with super-premium gear, placing a massive burden upon him. Even if others said nothing, they must harbor resentment—that gear could indeed have been exchanged for general points to purchase items they could use! Meanwhile, Sanzai himself hovered perpetually on the periphery, contributing little, causing him great anxiety.

Fortunately, both Reef and Zi had experience leading teams and understood that the Summoner class truly required opportunity and luck. One could remain obscure for a long time. But once fortune turned, people would truly remember the saying, "Never slight the poor youth."

Just like Metal Mentor’s fervent devotee, Fan Nu, who was constantly suppressed at the team's lower tiers until a powerful Ceratosaurus took a liking to him, catapulting him to the number two position in the team!

Thus, the team still treated Sanzai with utmost care, without any complaints. But Fang Senyan knew, based on his position as team leader, he could not passively allow this situation to continue indefinitely, as prolonged stagnation caused significant harm to the team's morale.

And now, with Fang Senyan successfully landing on Planet Epross, and the high probability of him encountering numerous formidable and terrifying creatures—this should be Sanzai's best chance yet!

As long as Fang Senyan used "Ukiyo-e" to imprint the creatures he fancied, he could bring their essence to Sanzai. What followed would be one of two outcomes: embrace it with open arms, or... embrace it with weapons and skills. In either case, there would be no loss.

Only now did Fang Senyan deeply appreciate why Ukiyo-e was an exclusive reward from the Golden Branch Quest! The item seemed unremarkable initially, but when actually put to use, one realized it was needed everywhere, because possessing Ukiyo-e was tantamount to having an extra avenue and solution for problems.

Currently, the biggest drawback of Ukiyo-e seemed to be its limitation of only three uses. Hmm, only two remained now.

After pondering Sanzai’s situation for a while, Fang Senyan suddenly recalled a crucial mission for this journey. According to the Miner, there was a high chance of completing it here. If he could manage to finalize the follow-up quest—Silver Series Quest Hidden Branch Chapter: Injection—along the way, he wouldn't have to separate from the team in the next world.

He was about to pull up the relevant mission details for study when he noticed that the Silver Series Quest had somehow changed.

"Silver Series Quest Hidden Branch Chapter: Injection triggered."

"Quest Description: You must inject energy into the Liquid Metal Enhanced Lifeform within thirty days. This world contains a peculiar ore called Tearstone. Its non-metallic components greatly aid the division and proliferation of metallic cells. You must acquire a certain amount of Tearstone to feed the Liquid Metal Enhanced Lifeform. The more you feed it, the higher the quest completion evaluation."

"Hint: The Liquid Metal Enhanced Lifeform possesses an excellent sensitivity to Tearstone. Therefore, when you approach this peculiar ore, you will sense a heating anomaly on its surface; the closer you get, the higher the temperature."

Fang Senyan stared at the prompts, unable to hide his astonishment:

"This... didn't the Miner mention Speckled Crystal? Why has it turned into Tearstone?"

But reality was harsh, and Fang Senyan could only silently accept it.

Looking at the bright side: first, his wish was granted; at least he wouldn't be separated from the team in the next world. Second, if he played his cards right, he could leverage the resources of others for his own benefit—like Aldaris... Other worlds might not feature such powerful assets available for exploitation.

Once he settled his thoughts, Fang Senyan remembered to pay a visit to the Cockatrice's nest. That location was on the other side of the hill, originally a den likely inhabited by large animals like wild boars or bears, but it seemed abandoned—the original occupant either left or became prey for the Cockatrice.

Thick bushes covered the entrance to the den, cleverly shielding it from unwelcome gazes and the flowing rainwater. Led by the androids, Fang Senyan bent low and entered. Surprisingly, there was no foul odor inside; several nests were constructed from dry grass and feathers.

The androids discovered five fist-sized eggs in one nest, their surface reddish-brown with rust-colored speckles. They consulted the offline database they had previously downloaded and found the eggs worthless, suggesting they be saved for Mr. Ramtas as dessert.

However, Fang Senyan rejected this idea. He believed the Cockatrice's petrification ability had notable merits. If he could hatch them, hand them to Sanzai for selective breeding and subsequent taming, it would be a worthwhile prospect.

On the west side of the cave, which seemed to be the Cockatrice's living room or recreation area, Fang Senyan found numerous petrified insects and small animals. It appeared the Cockatrice had a penchant for collecting petrified victims. There were no gems, though. The only valuable find was a piece of ore, and it wasn't Xuan ore. According to Android Unit One, this particular piece was also a rare mineral, capable of fetching a considerable three contribution points if turned in.

Undoubtedly, venturing out to hunt or stroll during a thunderstorm was extremely hazardous, and it seemed the creatures of Planet Epross understood this well. Thus, Fang Senyan and his party safely weathered their first night on Epross amidst the rumbling thunder.

To show his satisfaction with the three androids' performance, Fang Senyan rewarded each with an extra 250 grams of nutrient fluid. For the androids, this was equivalent to an employer granting an extra month's salary—a massive bonus. Consequently, the team's morale appeared remarkably high.

Because Fang Senyan placed considerable trust in Ramtas, he slept soundly. The next morning, Planet Epross was rarely clear, with the two suns positioned north and south in the sky, pouring down light and heat onto the planet without reservation. The combination of ample moisture, fertile soil, and sufficient light immediately allowed Fang Senyan to witness a marvel.

Across the vast plain, numerous plants rapidly grew before his very eyes, condensing into flower buds, then flower heads, finally forming brilliant golden sunflower discs, about half a meter tall, furiously absorbing light and heat from the suns!

Imagine a sea of tens of thousands of golden sunflowers, swiftly covering the entire grassland, overwhelming the field of vision in a short time—it was a breathtaking, vast beauty!

However, just as Fang Senyan was about to order the advance, Android Unit One stepped forward again:

"Master, I do not recommend moving out yet, because the Sun-Wheel Flower is most dangerous when blooming. If disturbed, it will spray toxic mist, and when setting seed, the hard seeds will be ejected from the disc at high speed, with lethality comparable to rubber bullets. More critically, its blooming period lasts only half a day."

Upon hearing Android Unit One, Fang Senyan tentatively touched a stalk and indeed found white mist spraying from small holes in the root structure. Even inhaling a little caused him slight dizziness.

Keep in mind, the air here was already unsuitable for human survival; Fang Senyan needed periodic bursts of pure oxygen to sustain his body. Adding this toxic mist would severely harm him. Thus, he could only wait patiently.

Since the weather was clear for once, and Fang Senyan was situated on a relatively high mound, he climbed to the summit. Without much effort, he spotted the unique mushroom-rock landscape in the distance. It was perhaps twenty kilometers away. Even traveling at a normal human pace of five kilometers per hour, four hours would suffice to reach it.

But just as Fang Senyan was looking toward the mushroom rocks, he suddenly saw a series of fire flashes erupting from the top of one. This was immediately followed by a tremendously violent explosion. The destructive power was so astonishing that it blasted away nearly half the mushroom rock's apex, causing it to collapse. Even from this distance, he could feel the immense force as millions of tons of rock and dust roared downward, slamming into the ground with earth-shaking power!