Chapter 126: At This Moment, More People Liked Bai Fu
Meeting the Digging Girl had been scheduled several days earlier. At that time, the Digging Girl said she wanted to conduct an exclusive interview, and Bai Fu immediately agreed.
【The most popular NPC among the stars, Bai Fu, is being interviewed by a player for the first time!】
Using “first time” as a hook would undoubtedly attract massive player attention. Bai Fu seized the opportunity to promote her Origin Star Reconstruction Project.
She spoke vaguely to tease and whet appetites, lest some players get bored in the Garden of Silence and log off.
To make the interview video more appealing, Bai Fu deliberately changed into a new outfit to give players a fresh impression.
A straw hat, a pale yellow dress, white open-toe flats…
She looked fresh and relaxed, like she was about to meet a friend on a holiday.
That was her intention: to give players a sense of closeness.
“Recently some people have slandered me, calling me a farmer pretending to be a landowner who treats players like serfs. My answer is—nonsense!”
“Players are my family. I consider them in everything I do. I would never do anything that harms family!”
But Bai Fu never expected that, once she led the Digging Girl indoors, the first words from the Digging Girl would be the location of the Truth Society’s base.
“Oh my!”
Bai Fu blurted out. Realizing she had said an impolite word, she feigned composure and covered her mouth.
“How did you find it?”
The surprise hit too abruptly; she took a moment to calm herself.
The Digging Girl hadn’t expected such a reaction from Bai Fu. She was relieved she recorded that moment—this new video would have a bigger explosive moment.
“Here’s how it went.”
The Digging Girl explained as she pulled out two maps, one large, one small.
On the large map, a red X marked the location of the Truth Society’s main base. The red X lay in the area directly north of the Gene Primordial and the Old Republic, literally translated as the Deep Slumber Zone. This surprised Bai Fu. It showed that the Truth Society’s main base was actually very far from the Marsk Mutant Laboratory, though much closer to Black Hawk Base.
No wonder the players she dispatched toward Marsk found nothing.
The small map was an interior map of the Truth Society’s main base, drawn by Tai’er Zhenren. Since his activity zone was quite limited, the map covered only a small area but clearly marked the exact location of the laboratory. It was very useful.
A phrase relayed from Tai’er Zhenren caught Bai Fu’s attention.
“The Truth Society brings them to the main base to test a drug related to psionic power. The drug they’re testing comes from an imprisoned test subject, and only the laboratory supervisor Dr. Aid can access that test subject.”
Could this laboratory actually be the true body of Yulia?
“Wait a moment.”
Bai Fu hurried into the bedroom and conveyed the news to Little Yulia.
Little Yulia said: “That’s me.”
Amazing!
Bai Fu silently gave Tai’er Zhenren a thumbs-up.
The benefits of building a good relationship with players turned out to be far greater than she imagined. If she hadn’t met Tai’er Zhenren—this player determined to be the King of Spies—while ambushing Graham, she might not have discovered the Truth Society’s main base for a while.
“This is a once-in-a-millennium opportunity!”
Bai Fu became excited.
She had to use this opportunity to rescue Yulia. That way, she could not only deal a heavy blow to the Truth Society, but also complete the entire “Watcher’s Dirge” main storyline. The rewards from one mainline would surely boost her strength again.
“A frontal assault isn’t advisable. If we charge in, and the Truth Society’s president decides to die along with Yulia, then we’re done for.”
Bai Fu decided to wait until the Truth Society began executing the big operation mentioned in Tai’er Zhenren’s intelligence before taking action. Then the main base would be vulnerable, and her rescue mission would have a much higher chance of success.
But even that wouldn’t be completely safe. What if the president of the Truth Society found out the base was under attack and abandoned the operation to return to defensive mode full-force?
“That’s when it’s time for other forces to get involved.”
Bai Fu had already thought it through.
If the raid failed, she would inform other factions of the Truth Society’s base location and have them dispatch forces to assist. If it succeeded, she would tell other factions that the Truth Society was in the middle of a major operation and have them help prevent the Truth Society from sending reinforcements.
This was her plan to maximize benefits.
She was actually quite confident about the raid. Her current strength was not to be underestimated, and she had gained a lot of experience these past few days. Once the operation began, she could further enhance her capabilities.
“Wait for my good news.”
After greeting Little Yulia again, Bai Fu returned to the Digging Girl and sent her a faction quest that players could complete with a click, as a reward for passing along the crucial intelligence.
“For now, don’t tell anyone else about this. Also, please tell Tai’er Zhenren that I will remember his contribution. When he returns, I will give him the hero’s reward he deserves!”
The Digging Girl nodded repeatedly.
Bai Fu gestured for the Digging Girl to take a seat in the chair: “Now that we’ve covered the serious matters, let’s proceed with the interview we discussed earlier.”
The Digging Girl was delighted. She had thought today’s interview was canceled. She never expected Bai Fu to remember it.
Maybe this was just who Fu Fu was: always considerate of others, truly touching.
……
After the interview ended, Bai Fu posted several bounty requests on the dark web for psionic knowledge. Then she reached out to Gao Yuan, Su Li, and Ferreira the Insect Father to ask them to keep an eye out for any rare psionic knowledge.
“It doesn’t have to be advanced knowledge—just uncommon knowledge will do.”
Gathering psionic knowledge, accumulating experience, crafting Prayer Cards, ordering battle suits for Hei Fu, commissioning weapons in sizes for Little Hei Fu—Bai Fu began her final sprint toward the upcoming operation.
While she was busy, the Digging Girl’s third installment of the Garden of Silence News Express was finally released.
This video had been in preparation for a long time. The changes in the Garden of Silence had already gone viral in previous high-traffic livestreams. So players rushing to see the video cared most about the Digging Girl’s “Bai Fu interview.”
At that moment, the Digging Girl, the dwarf playing the game but the giant for stirring up hype, soared in popularity.
At the end of the video, she inserted a one-minute blooper clip, which showed Bai Fu exclaiming “Oh my!” and covering her mouth after hearing the intelligence.
Because Bai Fu had instructed not to reveal the intelligence yet, she muted Bai Fu’s words, added lots of voiceover and special subtitle effects.
“Let me show you a different side of Fu Fu.”
“Silver Moon? Garden of Silence’s ruler? Sovereign of the Shadowed Night? No—today’s star is the friendly big-sister-next-door ‘Homebody Fu’!”
“Fu Fu personally poured me tea!”
“Free-for-all guess: what caused Fu Fu to show such shock?”
“Specific reasons will be revealed in the next video. It’s really not that I don’t want to say—it’s just that the situation is very special.”
The Digging Girl had managed to elevate this video’s popularity to a level it never should have reached, all with just a short clip.
Players had already been guessing whether Bai Fu’s interview content was connected to the future main storyline. After this stunt, a whole new wave of drama-watching players flooded in.
【Oh my god, you can cliffhang a video like this?】
【Oh my god, Digging Treasure, you didn’t attack Bai Fu, did you?】
【Don’t you dare touch Fu Fu! I’ll kill you, kill you, kill you...】
【I command you to release the next video right now】
One group of players lost their minds at the Digging Girl, another at Bai Fu.
The Sovereign of the Shadowed Night, who casually annihilated high-level Espers, actually covered her mouth in embarrassment in front of players due to a reflexive gesture of surprise. This contrast...
【Ah Wei is dead】
【Now I like Bai Fu even more】
【So cute, I want to see more!】
“Not gonna lie, Bai Fu really is pretty cute.”
“At least she’s way easier on the eyes than those researchers stabbing me with needles every day.”
“If it was Bai Fu doing the needling, I’d be fine with a few extra jabs every day.”
At this moment, in the Truth Society’s main base, Tai’er Zhenren was taking a rare break and watching the Digging Girl’s newly released video together with over a dozen players.
Tai’er Zhenren said nothing. The others chimed in on the party chat, sharing their takes.
They started by complimenting Bai Fu’s looks—very aligned with domestic beauty standards—and her surprisingly cute personality. But soon enough, their praise turned into collective complaints about the Truth Society.
They weren’t like the players who were captured by the Truth Society and forcibly modified—they had voluntarily joined. They thought the Truth Society must be extraordinary to have stood alone against the other Four Major Factions for nearly a century without falling. While others shunned it, they believed joining such a formidable organization would bring big gains.
This logic wasn’t entirely wrong. After joining the Truth Society, their experience gain rate was indeed far superior to the average player.
But the longer they stayed, the more they felt like joining the Truth Society was a grave mistake.
Aside from leveling quickly, the downsides of joining the Truth Society were just too many.
For instance, one had to undergo modification to join, and after modification, one couldn’t leave the Truth Society voluntarily for a while.
Also, players had extremely low status in the Truth Society—treated no better than Mutant NPCs. There was virtually no chance of rising in rank through Reputation, and even a low-ranking NPC could bark orders at them with terrible attitude.
But the worst part came after they accepted a new quest and arrived at this base. That’s when they realized how much worse the experience could get.
“How long have we been here?”
“Almost a month.”
“Damn it. This past month, we’ve either been test subjects or laborers. It’s worse than a real job. If I’d known this, I’d have gone to fight Bai Fu bare naked at level one.”
“No kidding. Now we can’t even switch factions. If we want out, we’d have to start over with a new account.”
No one wanted to switch accounts. They were already close to level 20. Starting over now would be a huge loss.
Honestly, if they didn’t have something to compare to, the players working in the Truth Society’s main base might’ve been able to endure it. After all, they were leveling fast and didn’t need to grind monsters.
But ever since the end of version 1.1 and especially at the launch of version 1.2, Garden of Silence players had been flaunting their achievements all over the community, livestreams, and video sites.
Leveling fast?
Garden of Silence players weren’t leveling slowly either. Some were even faster.
And their gameplay experience absolutely crushed that of the Truth Society players.
Rich mainline quests, faction quests, and commissions, building their own city, having roads and buildings named after them on the game map, receiving personal commendation from the faction leader Bai Fu for good performance...
“What a damn shame!”
The players gathered in discussion no longer wanted to compare.
How could they?
Compare the Truth Society president to Bai Fu?
If the president were a catgirl, maybe there would be a chance. But that was obviously impossible. Based on current public intel, the president of the Truth Society was thoroughly outclassed by Bai Fu in every aspect.
“Bu Xiang Wan La!”
“Sigh, the president... sigh, Bai Fu... Just endure a bit longer. If nothing changes, I swear I’ll switch accounts and defect to Bai Fu.”
“From today, I won’t look at the community anymore. It just hurts.”
The sorrow between people was never the same. The complaining players just felt that the others in the community were being obnoxious.
Tai’er Zhenren, watching silently the entire time, flicked his eyes—people’s hearts were ready to be swayed. Perhaps he could take advantage of Fu Fu’s recent wave of popularity to turn these players?
After thinking it over, he decided to hold off. If even one of these players was only agreeing casually and later found out he was a mole and reported him, all his past efforts would go to waste.
The closer the storm approaches, the more one must remain calm!
Tai’er Zhenren continued gathering intel with utmost caution.
……
Six days later.
Bai Fu was at the Psionic Research Institute No. 2 Subdivision administering medicine to Old Nissen and Anya.
The medicine had been created by a few researchers from the Old Republic she had captured during missions in Tongshan Camp and the Old Republic.
【Muscle Enhancement Potion (Prototype Type I)】: +3 Constitution after first use.
After confirming the potion had no issues, Bai Fu drank a bottle herself, then distributed one to every senior member of the Garden of Silence. The rest she planned to give out later as quest rewards for top-performing players.
She had thought about selling it, but current production capacity couldn’t meet demand.
“How do you feel?”
Bai Fu asked Old Nissen and Anya after they drank the potion.
Anya stood up and spun around a few times: “Boss, I feel like I’ve gotten a tiny bit taller.”
Obviously, that was an illusion!
Bai Fu rolled her eyes, but while Anya hadn’t gotten taller, her Constitution had indeed gone up by 3 points, making her tougher. Same for Old Nissen.
“I wonder how good Yulia’s medical skills are. Can she cure Old Nissen? If not, I’ll have to find another top-notch doctor to bring back.”
Lately, Bai Fu had been working on strengthening not just herself, but the people around her.
Players were useful, but she couldn’t rely solely on them.
She would leave Origin Star, and when that happened, she would need someone she could trust to manage the main base of Origin Star and recruit more new players.
Currently, there were only two people she could trust unconditionally—Anya and Old Nissen.
“Origin Star, being the Beginner Planet, must have many hidden rewards. I might not need them all. The ones I don’t need can be used to train players who are worth cultivating, or to strengthen Anya and Old Nissen.”
Bai Fu had a new plan, but all of it would have to wait until the Truth Society and Gene Primordials were eliminated and real safety arrived. Even then, she might not be any more relaxed than now. Before officially entering the Star Sea, she still had a massive amount of preparation to do.
Just then, her Personal Terminal suddenly rang.
Digging Girl?
Bai Fu pressed the answer key.
“Fu Fu, the Truth Society has started to move!”
The Truth Society acted quickly. Tai’er Zhenren had just relayed the news, and they had already launched from the main base.
Upon receiving the message, Bai Fu no longer hesitated. She glanced at the 12 million XP she had accumulated in recent days and used 760,000 to level Moonlight Dancer (Advanced) to Lv20, then spent all the remaining XP to raise Psionic Illustrator from Lv1 to Lv8 in one go.
【You have learned the new skill [Psionic Restoration Lv1]】
【You have learned the new skill [Summon Frenzy]】
Psionic Restoration could consume psionic power to restore the HP of summoned True Spirits, with Lv1 restoring up to 200 HP per use. Summon Frenzy consumed psionic power to put a True Spirit into a frenzy, boosting its power by 15%. At this stage, if used on Hei Fu, it would upgrade Hei Fu from 0.8 Bai Fu to 0.92 Bai Fu—a major improvement.
Besides these two new skills, all of Bai Fu’s other stats saw a significant jump.
【HP】: 3962/3962
【Psionic Value】: 3495/3495
【Qi】: 300/300
【Stats】: Strength 33, Agility 79, Constitution 143, Intelligence 50, Spirit 60, Inspiration 231
Although her HP hadn’t changed much since the last upgrade, her other stats, especially Inspiration, had skyrocketed.
Bai Fu felt that now, even with her eyes closed, she could accurately track every move around her and respond flawlessly.
Powerful, inside and out!
“At this level of power, even if I run into the Truth Society President, I shouldn’t be afraid.”
Bai Fu nodded silently.
Last time, the game hinted that collecting more Psionic Knowledge Chain pieces could unlock the Psionic stat. Hopefully, she’d gain something at the Truth Society’s main base.
After bidding farewell to Anya and Old Nissen, Bai Fu quickly returned to Bai Fu Town.
She loaded everything she had prepared onto the vehicle. That very night, she issued more detailed quests to the players.
She selected a group of high-level players to accompany her, while the others were assigned to different factions, ready to disrupt the Truth Society the moment they detected its attacks.
“This operation is very special. I can’t tell you much yet. I’ll explain everything once we reach the destination.”
Bai Fu’s gaze swept across the players standing in the front row—Starfish‑bro, Convert to My Fu, Old Dog, Black Tiger Ah Fu.
Every player she looked at subconsciously straightened their backs.
Although they didn’t know what was happening, this was clearly part of the main storyline. Even Black Tiger Ah Fu, who usually only enjoyed fighting, looked especially serious this time.
“If there are no questions, let’s move out!”
Old Dog opened his mouth, then said nothing in the end. Most of his guildmates had been dispatched to investigate the Gene Primordials and transport Xia Shi’s submitted files, and had thus missed this quest—what a pity.
Seeing no objections, Bai Fu drove out of Bai Fu Town under the cover of night, heading straight toward the Deep Slumber Zone.
She moved quickly. Even most Garden of Silence players didn’t know she had left, let alone players from other factions.
By the time she drove into Old Republic territory, some had realized she had left the Garden of Silence—but even those who had been secretly watching her now had no time to react.
Explosive news broke: multiple areas in the Old Republic and the Human Alliance had come under attack, with the attackers suspected to be the Truth Society.
The scale of these attacks far surpassed the earlier assault on Black Mountain City in the Old Republic. Everyone believed this was the prelude to a full-scale revenge campaign from the Truth Society. A storm was brewing.
But Bai Fu knew all this was just a diversion to cover the Truth Society’s real target.
Although Tai’er Zhenren hadn’t been drafted into the Truth Society’s expedition force, he knew someone who had. After questioning that player, he discovered that the Truth Society’s main force was rapidly advancing toward the Gene Primordials. The real target was likely the Gene Primordials!
“They’ve been preparing for so long. Looks like they’re finally going big on the Gene Primordials.”
Bai Fu was thrilled.
Her two mortal enemies were about to clash. What could be better than that?
……
Days later.
Dark clouds hung over the Deep Slumber Zone. A biting wind blew from the icy valley, making the players hiding by the roadside shiver. Most had disabled Cold Sensation, but the effects of cold didn’t just disappear because of a toggle.
“How long are we going to stay here like this?”
“Who knows? Just wait. We’ve been traveling for days already, what’s a little longer?”
“Do you guys even know where we are?”
Bored players chatted idly in the faction channel.
Just then, a strange NPC appeared from the left turn at the far end of the road, catching the attention of every player.
They held their breath as the NPC walked toward them.
When he drew close, the thick snow suddenly burst open—two adorable little ones crawled out from beneath. They wore white outfits, and had been face-down in the snow like buried radishes. Only when the NPC neared did he realize something was wrong.
But it was already too late.
One of the little ones tripped the NPC, while the other covered his mouth with a cloth. Their smooth coordination and execution efficiency left many of the larger players feeling inferior.
“Bring him back.”
Bai Fu controlled the two Little Hei Fus to deliver the captured NPC.
After interrogation, she extracted a good amount of useful intel.
The captured NPC didn’t know whether the Truth Society President was in the base, but the Minister of the Combat Unit, Benardo, definitely was.
According to this NPC, the Truth Society’s main base had seven levels—two above ground and five below. The underground was divided into four zones: A, B, C, and D. Each zone was connected by password doors or elevators requiring special clearance. Even those working in the base year-round didn’t fully understand how the zones interlinked.
“Looks like the first step is infiltrating the base and obtaining a detailed map.”
Bai Fu sent the prisoner away and fixed her gaze on the Truth Society base in the distance.
To prepare for this operation, she had spent a lot of XP drawing Prayer Cards along the way. Now it was time for those new Prayer Cards to shine.