Chapter Twenty-Five: Installing the Device

After traversing the sea beast's corpse three times and even diving into the ocean to study it for a long while, Liu Zong finally determined the general situation of the creature before him.

Judging by its form, this sea beast appeared to be a mutated Mosasaurus. Though its origins were unknown, it was clear that during high tide, the Mosasaurus had become wedged against the cliffside rocks and ultimately starved to death.

For a considerable period after its demise, no one paid attention to this spot; only the tides carried fine sand and stones to the area. Consequently, the Mosasaurus's body gradually merged with the rocks that had trapped it.

If one did not look closely, it would be impossible to recognize it as a corpse.

No one knew how many years ago the Shadow Hand Organization established a base here. Large numbers of useless corpses were thrown into the sea, attracting the three-headed serpent Bikadrak. From then on, the Mosasaurus's corpse became both a step and a latrine for the serpent.

The various bones scattered across the corpse were remnants left by the three-headed serpent's feeding. Furthermore, the sea was littered with skeletal remains, so much so that it had altered the properties of the waters.

After careful measurement and calculation, Liu Zong realized that if he only took away the Mosasaurus's corpse, he would be wasting this opportunity. The best approach would be to remove the fused stones, the pile of skeletons on its back, and the polluted seawater.

Yet, that would mean taking too much. The positioning devices he had brought might not be sufficient, so he would have to make choices.

After pondering for a long time, Liu Zong finally made his decision: first, the Mosasaurus's corpse must be taken in its entirety, and the bones on its back could be taken along as well.

For the underwater section, he could use two positioning devices to mark the rocks wedging the Mosasaurus. As for the bones and seawater, it would depend on luck.

With his plan settled, Liu Zong moved swiftly. He quickly affixed the smallest positioning devices to various points on the Mosasaurus's body, to the rocks trapping it, and threw a dozen or so into the sea.

These fist-sized devices were designed to determine the size of the target; generally, placing them on the surface would suffice.

Next came twenty-eight of the shortest positioning rods—these were for ley lines, used to indicate which energies should be locked and extracted together.

Arranging these twenty-eight devices was much more complicated. Liu Zong had to consider the direction of energy flow within the Mosasaurus, or rather, the pattern of its veins. If he erred, a device could be wasted, and the Mosasaurus brought back might not be whole.

For this, Liu Zong carefully positioned, researched, and repositioned until he was satisfied, spending a full three hours on the task.

Once this was complete, it was time for the seven longer positioning devices.

These were spatial positioning devices, effective in marking everything within their radius for extraction. Liu Zong could thus take all the bones on the Mosasaurus's back, as well as those underwater and the surrounding seawater.

Originally, these devices were not meant solely for bones and such. Liu Zong had intended to lock onto the Mosasaurus's internal organs to see if anything useful remained.

To achieve his goals, Liu Zong placed two devices on the Mosasaurus's back, one underwater, and with the remaining four, he followed the creature's mouth into its interior.

Though most of the Mosasaurus's corpse had petrified, the mouth and throat remained passable; crawling in through the mouth, one could see the passage to the throat.

Following this route led to the stomach, and from there, he could reach the places he needed: the lungs, heart, and brain.

Stomach, lungs, heart, and brain—these were the organs Liu Zong had to ensure were taken. Originally, he had many more sections in mind, but his equipment was insufficient, so he had to settle.

After planting these devices within the Mosasaurus, Liu Zong was left with the last and longest positioning rod.

This was the main positioning device, divided into three sections: the first locks all other devices, ensuring none are missed; the second section supplements energy, injecting power into all devices—without energy, nothing could be transported regardless of positioning; the third section connects to the academy's spatial portal, necessary for extracting items from the instance, requiring tremendous energy and active communication.

Because of this, the placement of the main device was crucial. After crawling out from the Mosasaurus's abdomen and retracing his steps across its back, Liu Zong finally chose the spot between its eyes, at the center of its brow.

Having confirmed the location, Liu Zong did not immediately proceed. Instead, he checked all the devices he had set for any issues.

Only after ensuring everything was correct did he walk to the designated spot and insert the main positioning device into the Mosasaurus's brow.

The instant the metallic rod pierced the earth, a beam of white light shot from its tip, vanishing into the sky.

The middle layer of seven mirrors began to rotate ceaselessly, countless rays of light gathered from all directions, traveling along the mirrors to the base of the rod, and from there, through the other positioning devices.

No matter whether the other devices were marking basins, diamonds, or gemstones, once swept by the white light, they responded with their own glow.

Even the devices underwater reacted thus; in an instant, the Mosasaurus was enveloped in a vast net of light.

But the radiance did not cease; instead, it grew in intensity. When the net nearly became a cocoon of light, a red pillar descended from the heavens.

This pillar struck the main positioning device, forcibly opening a black portal and dragging the Mosasaurus and all marked items into the sky.

The hunters, still standing on the platform watching, saw this and finally let go of their last vestiges of worry.

The hunter turned to his companions and said, "Looks like our young friend has completed his task. We can head back."

As he spoke, a flash of red light swept by, and everything vanished from the air. The Mosasaurus beneath the cliff was gone, leaving only the three-headed serpent's trio of heads still draped over the platform's edge.