Bai Fu's slow-and-steady leveling plan ran into a small hitch: it was getting harder and harder for the Wildfire Gang to capture players alive.
As time passed, players gradually became capable of protecting themselves in fights against ordinary Wildfire Gang members.
This was thanks to the overall increase in the players' levels, as well as the combat comparison video Digging Princess had uploaded to the forums a few days ago.
After watching the video, two groups of players stepped forward.
The first group was a mixed bunch.
Among them were craftspeople, engineering students who happened to be home on vacation, miserable coders who could only squeeze in an hour of gaming after work, and guys who worked in plumbing, electrical, and civil engineering.
After seeing how much freedom the crafting system in Above the Stars offered, they put their knowledge to good use and built a small-scale workshop.
The workshop could produce small traps. According to the experts, as long as they had enough materials, they could even handcraft firearms.
The second group of players was a purer breed. They were pure menaces.
At first, they just followed Digging Princess and the others' example by throwing lime and chili powder. But after realizing that most Wildfire Gang members wore goggles, they had to come up with new tactics.
Some players deliberately enchanted their weapons with shit. Others put on women's clothes to lure lone Wildfire Gang members in. And one player had developed an extremely useful taunt skill in the middle of a fight: he'd insulted the ancestors of all four enemies by himself, creating plenty of chances for his teammates to launch sneak attacks.
Thanks to their thoroughly inhuman tactics, some Wildfire Gang members had begun to resist fighting them.
It was only a little money for a month's work. Who the hell would risk their life for that?
Lose, and you died on the spot. Win, and you'd be disgusted for the rest of your life.
Bai Fu had once seen a Wildfire Gang member hit by flying shit kneel on the ground and vomit nonstop, crying his eyes out as he did.
"That's too brutal!"
Bai Fu felt a chill run down her spine.
She was glad she'd built a good relationship with the players.
Even she would have a hard time calmly facing such unreasonable attacks. After all, she'd put all her points into Constitution, not Agility.
Once her initial fear had passed, Bai Fu quickly realized this was a great opportunity.
When nobody else wanted to fight the players, she volunteered to be sent out. If she couldn't raise the Wildfire Gang's Favorability this way, she'd write Fu Fu's name backward!
As it turned out, she was right.
When the Wildfire Gang Boss heard she'd volunteered to go toe-to-toe with the players, his Favorability toward her shot up by 21 points, from 12 to 33. His attitude also changed from [Recognizes You] to [Admiration].
Now that was something!
The Wildfire Gang Boss beamed with approval.
Looking at the determination in Bai Fu's eyes, he couldn't help thinking of that run beneath the setting sun—the youth he'd left behind.
Once, he'd been an ambitious young man too. But after years of wear and tear, he'd ended up a middle-aged man with hemorrhoids.
Young people as outstanding as Bai Fu were getting harder and harder to find these days.
Clever, loyal, driven...
If the Wildfire Gang had more people like Bai Fu, why wouldn't they grow stronger and eventually leave this backwater of an Abandoned Cooling Plant?
"Go find the External Affairs Department Minister. He'll give you your new assignment." The Wildfire Gang Boss paused, then added, "You've done very well these past few days. You can make any additional requests you have, and I'll do my best to grant them if I can."
That was an unexpected bonus, and Bai Fu naturally wasn't going to be shy about it.
"Boss, since you put it that way, I do have a small request. I'd like to borrow a few books from the library. I found a child outside, and she's at an age when she should be learning. I was hoping..."
The Wildfire Gang Boss cut her off. "No need to explain. I understand. You can go into any library from now on, except the one that's locked."
He tossed her a card.
Bai Fu quickly caught it and thanked him.
After spending two days in the interrogation room, she'd already raised Spiritual Apprentice to Lv. 7. With the Lv. 10 cap not far off, she wanted to look through the library for profession advancement knowledge books, so she wouldn't get stuck when the time came.
After saying goodbye to the Wildfire Gang Boss, Bai Fu hurried straight to the library.
Compared with the public library, which was full of junk, the advanced library had quite a few more useful books.
It had not only secondary profession knowledge books like The Chef's Self-Cultivation and Gold Miner, but also main profession knowledge books like Basic Boxing Tutorial and Firearm Assembly.
The only problem was that it didn't have a single profession advancement knowledge book. There were none for Spiritual Apprentices, nor for any other professions.
"Is the level cap in Novice Village only 10, or are all the good things hidden in that locked library?"
Bai Fu searched the library a few times, but in the end, she found only one notebook related to psychic energy. Its title was ridiculous—
<Research Notes: A Few Worthless Spiritual Prayers (by Freya Egmond)>
Bai Fu: "..."
Good grief. So she'd come all this way and gotten nothing out of it.
Bai Fu still wasn't convinced, so she opened the notebook.
[Read Research Notes?]
[Yes]
[You begin reading Research Notes. Low-Level Psychic Specialization takes effect. Your reading speed increases by 10%. Current progress: 0.1%.]
A few minutes later, the progress bar smoothly reached 100%.
[While reading, you learned new skills: [Power Surge (Poor)] and [Rate Amplification (Poor)]]
Bai Fu opened her status panel.
[Template]: Ordinary [Experience]: 191 [Main Profession]: Spiritual Apprentice Lv. 7 (0/7500), Unemployed Lv. 3 (0/1000) [Secondary Profession]: None [Health]: 220/220 [Psychic Energy]: 55/55 [Attributes]: Strength 5, Agility 3, Constitution 22, Intelligence 3, Spirit 11, Inspiration 11 [Skills]: Frenzy Lv. 1, Hardening Lv. 1, Spiritual Vision, Innate Spirituality Lv. 1, Low-Level Psychic Specialization, Power Surge (Poor), Rate Amplification (Poor) [Talents]: None [Attribute Points]: 0 [Reputation]: 1 [Faction]: Wildfire Gang (Faction Reputation 20)
Bai Fu looked over the two new skills she'd gained.
Power Surge (Poor) had a 10-second cooldown. It cost 20 points of psychic energy to increase Strength by 3, but lasted only 60 seconds and reduced Stamina by 20%. Its cost-effectiveness was terrible.
Stamina in Above the Stars was closely tied to attributes. If it dropped below a certain point, it temporarily lowered your attributes. At best, it made you feel weak and helpless like you'd been hit by a dog-headed monster's debuff; at worst, you passed out on the spot.
Rate Amplification (Poor) was even more useless. It had a one-second cooldown, cost 5 points of psychic energy, and reduced the duration of the next active skill's buff by 50%. Who would use a skill like that to sabotage themselves?
"No wonder the notebook is called A Few Worthless Spiritual Prayers."
Bai Fu's mouth twitched.
Fortunately, skills in the game didn't take up skill slots. Otherwise, learning these two would have been a huge loss.
Just as she was wondering whether she'd missed any books, she suddenly had an idea.
If she used the two skills on herself or a teammate, they would increase her or her teammate's Strength by 3 for 30 seconds, then reduce her or her teammate's Stamina by 20% after 30 seconds.
But if she used them as offensive skills on an enemy, the description changed: after a 30-second cast, they would reduce the enemy's Stamina by 20%. The downside was that the enemy's Strength would increase by 3 during the cast.
Considering that Spiritual Apprentices were fragile, they generally couldn't use this combo on their opponents.
In the early game, 3 Strength was no small amount.
If they used this combo on an opponent and got caught at close range, they could be beaten to death by the enemy's extra 3 Strength before the enemy's Stamina even dropped.
But Bai Fu didn't have those concerns.
She looked at her Constitution of 22 and smiled in satisfaction. A tank-built Spiritual Energy Priest had nothing to fear!
"At least the trip wasn't a waste."
Bai Fu stood up and returned the notebook to its original place.
She walked around the library a few more times, confirming that she hadn't missed any books related to psychic energy, then left and headed to the External Affairs Department.
Since the Wildfire Gang Boss had already spoken to the External Affairs Department, she received a new mission as soon as she arrived.
[You have triggered the Faction Quest [Turn the Tables]]
[Quest Description: Although the Wildfire Gang has gained the upper hand in its battle with the Outsiders, a considerable number of its members have fallen into fear. Their cowardice has dealt a heavy blow to the Wildfire Gang's morale. The External Affairs Department Minister is extremely dissatisfied with this and has organized a sudden raid against the Outsiders. They must reverse the tide!]
[Quest Objective: Launch a surprise attack on the temporary stronghold the Outsiders have built on the outskirts of the western district of the Abandoned Cooling Plant while they're off guard. Show the Wildfire Gang's might!]
[Reward: Depends on Contribution Points]
[Accept/Reject]
Bai Fu's eyes flashed.
After being battered by the players' outrageous tactics, the Wildfire Gang had finally had enough?
She clicked Accept.
The External Affairs Department Minister tapped the desk lightly. "Good. Go get ready. We'll meet back here in half an hour and begin the operation."
"Half an hour?"
Bai Fu froze.
That soon?
She'd originally planned to sneak off and alert the players to gain some Favorability, but half an hour wasn't enough time to make a round trip, so she had to abandon the idea.
She'd complete the mission today and apologize to the players tomorrow.
Bai Fu went to the Logistics Department, grabbed a pair of goggles and a knife, and returned to the External Affairs Department.
As everyone began gathering, she saw Cao Wenliang approaching from a distance. He spoke quietly with the External Affairs Department Minister.
"Hmm?"
Bai Fu furrowed her brow and quickly used Spiritual Vision on the External Affairs Department Minister.
[Favorability]: Indifference (-3)
That number seemed fine, but Bai Fu still wasn't reassured.
Cao Wenliang hadn't shown up earlier or later. He'd appeared at this exact moment, which meant he definitely had something up his sleeve.
"Could he be planning to use this operation to kill me?"
Bai Fu thought it was very likely.
She was even more certain after seeing the people assigned to her group.
There were four of them. Only one had a positive Favorability toward her, and the highest among the other three was still only -25. If they claimed they hadn't been sent along with a mission, not even a ghost would believe them.
Bai Fu kept her thoughts to herself.
At the order to "Move out," she followed the main group toward the temporary stronghold the players had built.
An hour later.
The sun sank in the west, and night fell.
Among the ruins in the western district of the Abandoned Cooling Plant, the External Affairs Department Minister made his final arrangements. "Bai Fu, you and your group will cover the west side. When you see my signal, don't hesitate. Charge straight in."
"No problem."
Bai Fu readily agreed, her gaze sweeping over the four people in her group.
Once they split off from the main force, these guys would probably make their move, wouldn't they?
She'd been killing players for days. It was about time she tried something different. She just wondered how much experience these four would give her.
But what happened next was far beyond her expectations.
Even after the signal flare rose into the sky, the four showed no signs of attacking her. Instead, after running a short distance ahead, they stopped to remind her, "What are you waiting for? If we get there late, we'll definitely be punished afterward."
Bai Fu: "..."
Had Cao Wenliang turned over a new leaf?
Still full of questions, Bai Fu followed the four toward the players' stronghold.
As they charged forward, she noticed something was off.
The four seemed to be rushing at full speed, but they kept taking detours. Before long, she'd overtaken them and was in front.
At this rate, she'd be the first to reach the players. Whether those four would follow her like they said was another matter.
"I see!"
Bai Fu understood at once.
They had never planned to get their hands dirty. They wanted to use the players to kill her!
It was a good plan. When they took stock afterward, nobody would think it was a plot. They'd assume she'd been too eager to prove herself, charged too far ahead alone, and got separated from her teammates, leading to a tragic end.
Too bad they had no idea how good her relationship with the players was.
Even if she didn't have a good relationship with them, her Constitution was high enough that the players wouldn't be able to kill her quickly. In the end, their plan would still fail.
"So that's how you want to play it, huh?"
Bai Fu couldn't help smiling.
She'd been fretting over how to warn the players in advance, and now the opportunity had fallen right into her lap.
The Favorability she'd gain from "attacking the players' stronghold first and apologizing afterward" couldn't compare to "risking exposure as a mole to warn the players," could it?
Thank you, Wenliang. Without you, I wouldn't have found such a good chance to "sacrifice" myself so soon!
With that thought, Bai Fu sped up and charged straight into the players' stronghold.
Inside the stronghold.
Patrick Star and the others sat in a circle, discussing how to give Cao Wenliang a surprise.
"That old bastard keeps going after Fu Fu. If this continues, Fu Fu's real identity might be exposed. We can't let him keep this up."
"I agree. A few days ago, he even shouted in the livestream that he was going to kill all of us."
"I've already found out where he lives. My suggestion is..."
While their discussion was in full swing, a white figure suddenly vaulted over the window frame and landed inside the room.
"An en— Huh? It's Fu—"
Once she saw that it was Bai Fu, Calamity Dragon opened her mouth to shout.
"Keep your voice down!"
Bai Fu quickly reached out and covered her mouth.
Everyone in the room froze.
Why was Bai Fu here?
"Fu Fu, what's wrong?" Patrick Star asked.
Bai Fu glanced around. This time, she had completely lost her usual composure and could only urge them over and over, "There's no time to explain. Just hurry up and pack your things and leave."
Huh?
Digging Princess couldn't help asking, "Fu Fu, what's going on?"
Bai Fu gritted her teeth. "I said there's no time to explain! Just listen to me and hurry up and go!"
Patrick Star stood up and shook his head. "Fu Fu, the more you say that, the less likely we are to leave. Something serious must have happened, right? It's easy enough for us to leave, but what about you? You came to warn us—what's going to happen to you?"
"Exactly! We can't leave you behind!"
"Fu Fu, I'll never let you get hurt for my sake!"
The players all shouted over one another.
Bai Fu stared at them for a long while before finally letting out a deep sigh. "I'm beginning to understand why you're worthy of being the legendary Brave."
Before you continue