Chapter 203: Bai Fu’s New Ability, the Defection of Cersia
While the Grand Steward of the Secret Tower was focusing on composing a passionately stirring essay, far away on Jingu Star, Bai Fu suddenly sensed an unusual aura.
“Why does my chest feel warm?”
She almost thought her chest had entered another growth spurt, about to develop in the aesthetic direction favored by people from Titan Industries’ territory.
After spacing out for a moment, she realized she had stuffed a copy of the 【Esper Evolution Tree Chart】 in the inner pocket of her combat suit. She hurriedly pulled out the chart.
“What’s wrong?”
Yulia was the first to notice something strange and asked in confusion.
“This chart seems to have some effects I didn’t know about.”
Bai Fu unfolded the chart and was surprised to find that two small light dots had appeared in the upper left corner of the evolutionary tree drawn on it, as if two small branches were about to sprout.
She quickly cast a Spirit Vision onto the chart. As expected, the feedback panel had changed slightly.
【Esper Evolution Tree Chart】
【Quality】: Orange（+）
【Item Description】: A special item obtained from the King of Espers, recording numerous traits of Esper Powers and their evolutionary directions. Origin unknown.
【Additional Effect】: None
【Note】: This item is an S-grade item from Jingu Star
“There’s a + sign now?”
Bai Fu paused in surprise.
She had felt something odd about the Esper Evolution Tree Chart from the beginning.
It was a good item, but for most people, its value was far below the Pillar of True Spirit or the Needle of Judgment. Only in her hands, as a special NPC, could it become a divine tool for reaping players.
By all rights, such an item shouldn't exist in the game design, because it was unfair to players on Jingu Star.
Players from Ancestral Source Star and Indigo Star had divine artifacts, and those artifacts were even bound to exclusive quests. And what did players on Jingu Star get? A chart with no quest binding?
Brothers, charge the devs!
What, the item all went to Bai Fu and had nothing to do with the players? Well, maybe that was a form of fairness in itself?
Bai Fu secretly shook her head and tapped on the 【+】 symbol.
“Was I just using the chart wrong all this time?”
In that moment, a new game notification rang in her ears.
【You’ve triggered the hidden quest [Nascent Esper Evolution Tree Chart]】
【Quest Description: The Esper Evolution Tree Chart of Jingu Star seems to contain secrets unknown to you. Try to unlock those secrets — you might discover a whole new world.】
【Quest Objective: Additionally collect 3 new Esper Powers rated no lower than grade A】
【Reward: 10 million experience points, Esper Evolution Tree Chart unlocks new additional effect [Copy]】
【Note: This quest has a high chance of triggering follow-up quests, depending on your interactions with various factions】
Bai Fu suddenly understood.
Well, no wonder the chart had no additional effect, yet the panel had a line specifically stating “None.” It turned out this chart not only recorded Esper evolution methods — it could evolve itself.
【Copy】: Allows you to copy one Esper-type skill. The level of the copied skill depends on the level of the Esper Evolution Tree Chart.
Bai Fu took a look. This additional effect was quite useful. It allowed someone like her, of the psionic class, to steal and use an Esper-type skill.
For example, if she copied Cersia’s skill 【Life Drain】 — the one that absorbs others’ life force to heal herself...
Kids, today Aunt Bai Fu will show you what it means to be a “glass cannon mage” who can both tank and deal damage!
“How do I collect new Esper Powers?”
Neither the quest nor the chart gave an explanation, but Bai Fu quickly figured it out.
The Secret Tower’s ship was descending upon them. Aboard the vessel, Foster and the others immediately spotted Bai Fu and Yulia standing amidst the forest.
“Found them!”
Foster exclaimed with delight.
He didn’t hesitate and immediately used a Dimensional Shard to seal Jingu Star, preventing Bai Fu from escaping into outer space via spacecraft.
“Let’s go, we’re heading down!”
After all, their goal was to capture Bai Fu alive. So Foster didn’t order the ship to fire. If the bombardment wasn’t properly controlled and ended up killing Bai Fu, they’d lose all their leverage.
Never underestimate the power of orbital bombardment. The ships they brought were considered standard-grade main battleships even by galaxy-level civilizations. Although they couldn't blow up a star, it was still possible to spend a bit more time and burn an entire planet into glass.
Foster led the A-grade and above Espers, along with Onandi, off the ship to personally capture Bai Fu. The others remained on the ship or aboard the onboard aircraft to restrict Bai Fu’s escape path from above.
“Bai Fu, didn’t expect us to find you so soon, did you? Your schemes are as flimsy as paper in the face of our unity—you can’t run anymore!”
Foster’s laughter echoed from the sky.
On the ground, Hei Fu, disguised as Bai Fu, looked up and stared directly at Onandi in his flight suit.
The moment she saw Onandi, Bai Fu understood.
【Esper Power [Profiling (SS)] scanning in progress, current progress 0.5%……】
She didn’t need to do anything special. The Esper Evolution Tree Chart had an automatic scanning function. She just needed to stand next to the target with the chart and wait for it to complete the scan.
Of course, that was easier said than done.
The stronger the target and the rarer the Esper Power, the longer the scan would take—possibly measured in days or even months. (Scan time would shorten after the chart evolved.)
For example, trying to scan Cersia right now—how? She didn’t have the kind of ability that could make Cersia willingly stay by her side for several hours or even a day without doing anything lethal.
“Looks like I’ll have to complete this quest once I return to the Starsea. Whether it’s hiring people or using visits as an excuse to meet people with rare Esper Powers, it won’t be too difficult.”
Bai Fu stuffed the chart back into her pocket.
Profiling?
She didn’t yet know what that Esper Power did, but now wasn’t the time to worry about that—Foster had already launched the attack. She needed to deal with this wave from the Secret Tower first.
In the encrypted channel, she said to Manu and the others: “Begin.”
From the start, Bai Fu had no intention of clashing head-on with the Secret Tower’s forces.
The Secret Tower had clearly invested heavily in this mission to Jingu Star. A direct confrontation was far too risky and unnecessary. Stalling for time until the Starweb Commonwealth and other forces formed a joint fleet to deal with the Secret Tower was the best strategy.
If she acted rashly and got herself killed or captured, it would be a total loss. If she provoked the Secret Tower into using their ship for orbital bombardment, that was also a loss.
With that in mind, after the insect tide was resolved, Bai Fu had hidden in an underground cavern. She let Hei Fu, with a decoy created by Yulia, draw attention on the clearing above.
The tactic worked well.
Foster and the others, who had rushed in hastily, didn’t notice anything wrong at all. They thought they’d found the real Bai Fu and completely ignored the real one hiding underground.
“Want to capture me alive?”
Hei Fu let out a cold laugh and suddenly threw out over a dozen prayer cards.
In an instant, a massive black square prison appeared out of nowhere, trapping Foster and the others inside.
Immediately afterward, a giant psionic storm whipped across the clearing. Like a surging flood, it rushed straight toward the prison. Emerging with the storm was a shadowy vortex located precisely beneath Foster and his team.
“Careful!”
Bronze Furnace’s expression shifted slightly within the formation.
Back on the Tidal Galaxy, he hadn’t fought Bai Fu personally, but he had observed Bai Fu’s battle with Cersia from afar. For Bai Fu to suppress Cersia in a short time meant she was one of the absolute top-tier among the S+ ranks—not someone any of them could handle alone.
“Join forces!”
Bronze Furnace’s suggestion was quickly agreed upon.
Dozens of Espers combined their attacks. Even the +10-grade Confinement Zone was instantly shattered. They split up and tried to encircle Bai Fu from multiple directions.
But as they exited the control zone of the shadow vortex, they were stunned to see dozens of Bai Fu clones suddenly emerge. Some wielded cards, some held guns, and others brandished blades, all fierce and unrelenting.
“?”
Where did so many Bai Fus come from?
“They’re illusions! Everyone, be careful!”
At that moment, an A-grade Esper with a strong understanding of mental powers shouted out.
Illusions? That was a relief...
Bang!
Suddenly, one of the Bai Fus punched an S-grade Esper square in the jaw. The powerful impact caused his head to snap back, exposing a vital opening. That Bai Fu wasted no time, pressing a high-energy beam gun to his neck and pulling the trigger.
“Ahhhhh—!”
The scream momentarily drowned out the roar of the storm.
Fortunately, the one attacked was an S-grade Esper. He wasn’t killed outright but was still seriously injured.
Another S+ Esper nearby, Schroeder, charged in with a roar. A qi cannon blasted from his palm, instantly blowing that “Bai Fu” into pieces.
“It’s a clone, not the real one! The real one’s still in the original spot!”
Someone rushed in to give emergency treatment to the injured Esper, while the rest charged furiously toward the smiling Bai Fu who remained standing in place.
What they wanted was a live Bai Fu. Whether she had missing limbs wasn’t important. In fact, a wounded Bai Fu would be even easier to control.
Boom boom boom——
Over a hundred attacks were unleashed in quick succession. Some targeted the area around Bai Fu to block her movements, while others struck her directly. The violent explosions instantly turned the surrounding forest into a lifeless wasteland. When the smoke cleared—Bai Fu was gone.
“Could she have been blasted into nothing?”
“No way. I held back on purpose. Even if Bai Fu’s a psionic cleric not known for defense, there’s no way she’d die that easily!”
Just then, a silvery laugh floated in on the wind.
“You’re right. I’m not that easy to kill.”
Bai Fu?
They snapped their heads around and saw Bai Fu floating mid-air to the rear flank, holding another stack of prayer cards.
Time to play!
Bai Fu raised her right hand. The prayer cards in her palm scattered into tiny white starlights. As those starpoints fell like snowflakes, black thorns spiraled outward from the tips of her hovering toes, blooming like a vortex. From above, it looked like an enchanting black rose.
Bastard!
Foster and the others were furious beyond belief.
This time, they didn’t rush in like fools. Instead, they divided their roles—illusions, psychic assaults, restraints, all launched first. The ship’s scanning systems locked onto Bai Fu and shared the data in real-time. The rest aimed at her limbs and launched the second wave of attacks.