31: Chapter 31 Interlude & The Temporary Fourth Person – Ljubetty

The camping lamp was lit in the corner of the gun shop's back storage area. Post-meal lethargy kept the three of them in a rare state of quiet.

"I'm still three thousand experience points away from level eight." Su Wan suddenly spoke, her voice sounding exceptionally clear in the quiet back storage area. She plucked the strings of her lyre, testing a clear, resonant scale. "If I maintain this intensity next week, I might hit level 8."

Lin Rui flicked a scab he had picked off into the corner and replied, "I gathered enough experience to reach level seven on the first day I entered the instance, and now I'm at level seven plus thirteen hundred." He said it nonchalantly, as if reporting his step count for the day.

Both of them looked at Hu Jinsi.

Hu Jinsi was stunned. His fingers paused on his knees, and after thinking for a moment, he spoke, "I haven't reached it yet. I estimate it won't be a problem next week."

He was clearly holding back, but who didn't have secrets? The other two didn't press Hu Jinsi for more details.

"Tell me," Hu Jinsi suddenly perked up and crossed his legs tighter, "if we disregarded the cost and went all out with firepower, how much experience could this instance yield in seventy-two hours?"

Lin Rui leaned his one-handed hammer against the wall, his fingers tapping unconsciously on the handle as if calculating mentally. He pondered for a moment and said slowly, "First, we have to limit the weapons to submachine guns. If we used a configuration like the Gunpowder Squad, got a vehicle, and prepared three or more firearms to rotate, we could fire about ten thousand rounds in three hours. If we output firepower all day, a class capable of using firearms could harvest a maximum of ten thousand class experience points in a day."

Hu Jinsi and Su Wan were both shocked and gasped.

"Ten thousand?" Su Wan was stunned. "Doesn't that mean, based on our levels, they could level up twice in 3 days?"

"That's all theoretical." Lin Rui smiled, a look of sober helplessness in his expression. "Actually, it's impossible; the body can't take it. The recoil from firearms is significant; shooting continuously for three hours would wreck your shoulders and wrists. With this calculation, a person simply can't handle it. However, two thousand a day is possible for a class user who can use firearms."

"Then what about our squad?" Su Wan asked, her fingers unconsciously twisting the strings of her lyre.

"Actually, the first day was already close to the highest efficiency our squad can achieve." Lin Rui said in a deep voice, "After all, our stamina is limited; just over a thousand is the limit. Increasing it further would require extra investment, such as buying more stamina potions, Molotov cocktails, or spare weapons, which wouldn't be cost-effective in the end. Besides," he paused, his gaze lingering on Su Wan's face for a moment, "we have to save our strength to handle emergencies; we can't just dump all our resources into grinding monsters like the Gunpowder Squad."

Hu Jinsi nodded, stuffed the last piece of compressed biscuit into his mouth, and chewed twice: "Understood. Raccoon City has a high monster density, but given our physique and class configuration, we can't handle it. If we force it, we might end up without even the strength to escape from a Licker."

"So, is it confirmed that we aren't coming here next week?" Hu Jinsi brushed the biscuit crumbs off his hands and looked at the two.

Lin Rui pondered for a moment, his short sword resting across his knees: "Let's go check out the Cold Plains first. After all, this instance is still somewhat dangerous for Su Wan. Although one Licker isn't enough to kill her instantly, if two come at once, it becomes a matter of probability. However, the premise is that we need to find a suitable temporary teammate. Su Wan, you said you had some suitable candidates this afternoon, let's hear them."

Su Wan set her lyre aside and began counting on her fingers: "There are indeed a few. I'll list them, and you guys analyze them."

"Gao Feifei, from Class 3, her class is Embroiderer. It's a hybrid class with no direct combat skills, but she can set up threads on the battlefield and control them for binding. She's also a beneficiary of our 'tripping the pig' tactic; she started getting familiar with me when she asked about the tactic a few weeks ago."

After listening, Hu Jinsi waved his hand directly: "That's probably difficult. Right now, 'tripping the pig' is the simplest and safest channel for experience, and her class is so well-suited for this tactic that there's no need for her to risk following us to the Cold Plains. Why would she give up stable money to come and risk her life with us? Unless she's out of her mind."

"That's true." Su Wan nodded and continued, "There's another one, Gu Jie'er, from Class 4, her class is Shrine Maiden. From what I know, she has exorcism barriers and purification talisman arrays, which have special effectiveness against the undead. Her combat style is more stationary; once she sets up her barrier, she needs to maintain it herself and cannot move."

Hu Jinsi raised an eyebrow: "The one who was talking to you on the car ride here on Sunday?"

"Yes." Su Wan confirmed.

"Doesn't she have a squad?"

"No, she doesn't have a fixed squad; they are all temporarily formed based on the situation." Su Wan explained, "However, since last month, she has been forming teams to come to Raccoon City. Part of the information I have regarding Raccoon City was gathered by asking her."

Lin Rui was lost in thought, his fingers gently rubbing the spine of his short sword: "Now that you mention it, her playstyle is indeed suitable for Raccoon City. Set up the barrier, find a tanky class, and just lure the zombies over to kill them; it's even more efficient than us. There's no reason for her to give up such high efficiency to leave here for the Cold Plains. Let's discuss this again; ask her when we get out, but I think it's unlikely."

"There's one more," Su Wan took a deep breath, as if she had finally reached the main point, "Liu Betti. You guys know her too, from Class 3, Rogue class, an archer-type ranged attacker with a fire arrow skill."

Hu Jinsi frowned: "She's still short of teammates? A hybrid elemental and physical ranged attack class, she can just form a team easily, right?"

"Ever since the incident with Zhao Lei, she hasn't looked for a fixed squad." Su Wan's voice dropped a little, "It seems her class has an attached mandatory quest that requires her to eliminate monsters from that series of world fragments. So, for the past few weeks, she has been teaming up with different people to go to the Cold Plains."

Lin Rui and Hu Jinsi looked at each other and reached the same conclusion.

"In other words," Lin Rui said slowly, "Liu Betti is the most likely candidate?"

"That can indeed be understood that way." Su Wan nodded.

"Then it's settled." Hu Jinsi slapped his thigh, causing the dust on the cushion to jump up, "Ask her as soon as we leave the instance. If it doesn't work, then ask Gu Jie'er. Now let's talk about the arrangements for tomorrow morning."

He stood up, walked to the broken window of the back storage, and looked towards the police station through the broken glass. Smog rolled in the twilight like an overcooked pot of thick soup.

"I noticed the map on the wall at the police station again." Hu Jinsi turned around and gestured in the air with his fingers, "Our current position, to the west is the commercial district, to the north is the residential area, to the east is the police station we went to today, and there is still no label to the south. You guys look at which way to go?"

Lin Rui didn't even think: "North. The residential area is safer; the building structure is simple, and the monster density is relatively low. As long as we don't get noticed by the crows this time, it'll be fine."

"Agreed." Su Wan stood up clutching her lyre, "There are too many shops in the commercial district, and it's easy for Lickers to hide in corners. To the south, there isn't even a map, so I'm even less inclined to go there."

The three finished their discussion and said no more. In the back storage, only the sizzling sound of electricity from who knows where remained, mingled with the lingering echo of a police car siren in the distance outside the window, weaving into a kind of morbid requiem in the night sky of Raccoon City.

The next morning, the smog was lighter than yesterday, but the sky was still gray, like a rag soaked in oil stains. The three wheeled out their bicycles and rode slowly along the alleys between the buildings. The sound of the bells was deliberately kept low, emitting only a faint jingling. The zombies here were much sparser than at the police station entrance, mostly residents in pajamas, wobbling and poking their heads out of broken windows, only to be silently dealt with by the three using cold weapons and crossbows.

No sirens, no flocks of crows, no Lickers. This final battle was as plain as completing some daily routine. The three mechanically harvested experience, occasionally chatting about the weather, but more often just silently pedaling, luring monsters, killing them, and pedaling again.

At ten o'clock sharp, the gray-white teleportation light film rose from under their feet. Their vision was swallowed by the light, and when they opened their eyes again, they were already standing in the exit square of the Raccoon City instance.

Instances with fewer people have their advantages. No queuing, no crowding, no eye-rolling from No. 3 High School students. Reporting, getting on the bus, the bus starting—the whole process took no more than twenty minutes. The sound of the bus engine seemed exceptionally lonely in the empty parking lot, and the scenery outside the window gradually changed from ruins to the green belts on the outskirts of Wei City.

Su Wan sat in her seat, took out her phone, and operated it quickly on the screen. A moment later, she looked up, the corners of her mouth curling up: "Liu Betti replied. She agreed. She said we can discuss the specific arrangements when we get back to school."

"Efficiency." Hu Jinsi leaned against the back of the chair, resting his iron-clad long staff by his feet, "Saves us from running to Class 3 to intercept her."

The bus bumped along the road. Hu Jinsi felt a bit bored, so he took out his phone and flipped through the school forum and class group. The message bar was densely packed, but after scanning it, there was basically no big news. Most of the content still revolved around the Goldshire instance—gossip like "XX Squad crashed," "XX dropped a top-tier item in Goldshire," "New tactic for Murlocs in Crystal Lake," etc., nothing nutritious.

"That S-class squad of twins from No. 3 High School," Su Wan suddenly leaned over and tilted her phone screen toward him, "also achieved the combat victory achievement against seven elites this week."

Hu Jinsi scanned the post title: No. 3 High School's Double S-Class Squad Wins Goldshire Protector Achievement!》. He curled his lips: "They aren't the first to achieve it, so the achievement level is lower. We were [Elwynn Forest Protector] back then; theirs is called [Goldshire Protector], sounds like it's a tier lower."

"I don't know what the reward is either." Su Wan retracted her phone, "I guess it will be announced after other students get it."

"Anyway, it has nothing to do with us." Hu Jinsi stuffed his phone back into his pocket, "Goldshire, I don't want to go there again in the short term. People are still keeping an eye on us regarding that achievement announcement."

The parasol trees outside the window receded rapidly, and sunlight filtered through the smog, casting mottled spots of light on the seats. The three closed their eyes, taking advantage of the return trip to catch up on sleep.

Nothing earth-shattering happened during the break. Su Wan finally made a decision. She listed the [Wailing Resonator] on the school exchange. That piece of equipment's attributes were indeed practical, but the description was truly disgusting. Su Wan got goosebumps for three days just by wearing it once. She would rather do without that bit of blind-sight advantage than have a piece of bone hanging on her ear.

She handed all the money earned from selling the resonator to Mother Su, asking her to help make a piece of equipment that could burst movement speed instantly.

Two days later, the finished product was delivered to Su Wan.

[Swift Performance Belt]

[Type: Curio]

[Level Requirement: None]

[Effect: Tap the wind-letter stone on the belt, and the wearer's movement speed will burst to four meters per second within six seconds. Three Charges. Automatically recovers one to three Charges daily.]

[Item Description: This belt was sewn by mother's own hands. The exterior is the ink-colored satin that the daughter often wears, with fine stitches, but the inside hides a mystery. A line of extremely small words is embroidered on the inside of the belt: "Every step brings a lotus, safely return home." It is an amulet filled with concern, not a cold industrial product.]

Su Wan tied the belt around her waist and gently stroked the wind-letter stone embedded in the buckle. The stone was warm and smooth, with a slightly cool touch, as if it had been warmed by her mother's body temperature. She didn't say anything, just looked down at the line of small words on the inside, her eyes feeling a bit hot.

"No flashy additions," Hu Jinsi commented objectively from the side, "but the effect is very direct. Three Charges a day, and it can automatically recharge according to the surrounding environmental energy density. It can save your life at critical moments."

As for Hu Jinsi, he didn't have any big moves on the surface this week; he didn't buy new equipment or change his meditation aids. However, the numbers on his panel surprised even himself.

He was already level seven.

It wasn't piled up hard through meditation. Although the efficiency of the four-piece set—the meditation cushion, prayer beads, calming wooden plaque, and flowing breath silk scarf—was truly astonishing.

It was because in the Raccoon City instance, the experience he gained was even higher than what Su Wan and Lin Rui had described.

At first, he thought it was an illusion; after all, the fighting was so chaotic, who had the time to stare at the experience bar and count the details?

But after returning to reality, he checked repeatedly and confirmed that his experience gain had indeed exceeded the normal ratio.

He consulted many notes and forum posts left by predecessors and finally found the answer in a dusty collection of insights on the Monk profession.

It turned out that, unlike the Eastern school of Monks who focused on "training martial arts to strengthen the body," the Western classic school of Monks he had first awakened centered on the core tenet of "upholding the path of balance."

Monks were seen as regulators of the world, and their duty was to eliminate existences that disrupted the balance.

And the zombies in Raccoon City were precisely the products of a broken cycle of life and death. The dead lingering in the world of the living was the greatest blasphemy against the natural order.

"Cleaning up zombies is indeed the duty of a Monk..."

Hu Jinsi stared at this line of text on the screen, his mouth twitching as he felt like he had missed out on a gold mine.

He even mentally ranted: If I had known this, I should have encouraged the squad to grind Raccoon City to death instead of wanting to switch instances because I thought it was disgusting.

As it turns out, I was the class best suited for farming zombies, yet I was the first one calling to leave. What is this? Begging with a golden rice bowl in hand?

He continued reading, his heart growing colder.

"As expected, Monk is an idealistic profession." He closed the notebook, leaned back onto the bed, and stared blankly at the ceiling. "My depth of thought doesn't match this profession. I'm just a second-year high school student; where would I get such high enlightenment? Asking me to understand 'cycles of life and death' and 'natural order' is not as practical as letting me spin a few more Spinning Crane Kicks."

But regardless of the process, the result was good. His level kept up, he didn't hold the team back, and that was enough.

As for the so-called path of balance... He rolled over, buried his face in the pillow, and decided to think about it after he turned thirty.

Returning to school on Friday, the three of them had just stepped through the back door of the classroom when they were surrounded by their classmates.

"You didn't go to Goldshire this week?"

"Really? Then where did you go?"

"I heard Raccoon City is disgusting; there are zombies and Lickers everywhere, is that true?"

The barrage of questions flooded in like a tide. The three of them didn't explain why they gave up on Goldshire; instead, they pragmatically shared their experiences in the Raccoon City instance and the lessons they had learned in blood.

"As long as you don't run into Lickers or those enhanced zombies, the danger level of Raccoon City isn't actually that high." Lin Rui stood in the center of the crowd, his voice steady. "The monster density is very high, making it very suitable for teams with large-scale area-of-effect damage capabilities to try. But you must pay attention to controlling the noise level of the battle; don't attract too many zombies. Sirens, gunshots, or even a breaking glass bottle could become a death warrant."

"The only danger is the Licker." Hu Jinsi added, tapping his right hand on the desk. "The squad needs to be equipped with a high-perception profession, or have classmates with detection skills join. Without these two things, going in is just delivering takeout to the Lickers."

Su Wan took out her phone and showed everyone a video she had recorded using the in-instance recording function—it was footage of Lin Rui holding a submachine gun fitted with a silenced barrel, sweeping through a group of zombies at a street corner.

The tongues of fire from the muzzle were suppressed into muffled popping sounds, and the zombies fell in swathes like wheat cut by a sickle, their green blood pooling into streams on the asphalt road.

"The submachine gun and the silenced barrel were found at the police station shooting range," Su Wan explained. "They can't be taken out of the instance, but you can have a blast inside. With a setup like Gunpowder Squad's, combined with this, you could almost go on a rampage."

The video was passed around the classroom, causing a wave of low gasps and discussion.

Item trading was also completed in full swing on Friday.

The [Crocodile Skin Loafers] were taken by Gunpowder Squad for the friendly price of 7,000 credits. Chen Yu came over personally, patted Hu Jinsi on the shoulder, and said: "With this thing, we'll sweep through Raccoon City next week. Silent Gait plus Water Walking—we'll walk sideways in the sewers."

That batch of [Damaged Police Pistols] was also sold to them cheaply; anyway, Jack-of-All-Trades Squad really didn't have the energy to set up a stall and sell them one by one, and Zhou Hao could just take them back to dismantle them for fun.

The [Canine Bulletproof Vest] was sold to Sun Yao for 3,000 credits, practically a gift. The girl held the mini tactical vest, her eyes sparkling, already calculating how much damage it could absorb once she put it on her pony or hunting dog.

Only the [Wolf Totem] ran into a snag. Hu Jinsi found Yi Chun full of anticipation, his mind already crafting a hilarious scene of a "Druid transforming into a hunting dog to perform Fang Over Fang," but Yi Chun pinched the skull necklace, was silent for three seconds, and then refused with a serious face.

"I don't intend to take the wild shape career path." Yi Chun pushed his glasses up, his voice muffled. "And my animal companion hasn't been determined yet, so I don't need this for now. You guys should sell it to the school."

Hu Jinsi clutched his chest, feeling that his future joy had been significantly reduced. In the end, the [Wolf Totem] was handed over to the school's recycling center for 5,000 credits. The remaining miscellaneous items—worn police uniforms, mutated dog teeth, dog tags, carbon fiber batons—were all bundled up and thrown to the class monitor to handle, to be settled next week, with priority given to taking care of classmates.

All in all, the total profit for the week was 15,000 credits. But after deducting the cost of Lin Rui's broken set of leather armor and round shield, Hu Jinsi's ruined school uniform, the repairs needed for Su Wan's lyre, plus the repair of other weapons and replenishment of miscellaneous items, less than 8,000 credits remained.

The squad didn't split the earnings but temporarily put them into the squad fund. After all, they didn't know what supplies would be needed for Cold Plains, so keeping it for emergencies was safer than splitting it up and spending it.

After finishing the social interactions and item trading, the three of them, as agreed, met up with Liu Betti in an empty classroom in the teaching building.

Liu Betti was thinner than when the three of them last met, and her mixed-race features looked especially sharp under the classroom fluorescent lights. She carried a compound bow, the limbs of which were wrapped in fireproof cloth. She didn't engage in small talk, getting straight to the point, and honestly explained to the three of them her reasons for delving deep into Cold Plains.

"First," she held up a finger, "my profession has about a 50% profession experience bonus when fighting in Blood Moor and instances formed from fragments of the same world. This is a perk of the Rogue profession and the reason why I've been running there."

"Fifty percent?" Hu Jinsi raised an eyebrow. "No wonder you level up so fast."

"Second," Liu Betti held up a second finger, her eyes darkening. "When I changed classes, I received a quest requiring me to eliminate a specific monster in that series of world fragments. If I don't complete this quest, my level will be locked at level eleven."

The three of them were stunned; they hadn't known that the Awakening Stones they sold had such a huge hidden risk.

"At the time, I didn't know who 'Blood Raven' was," Liu Betti smiled bitterly, "but after the school announced this batch of instances, I knew where the quest target would fall."

"Blood Raven..." Lin Rui mused. "Teacher Fan mentioned that she is one of the three bosses in Cold Plains."

The three of them learned about the monster strength in Cold Plains in detail from Liu Betti. Liu Betti was pragmatic; she neither exaggerated nor concealed anything, explaining the characteristics of various monsters.

"Basically, the strength hasn't increased too much," she said. "Many monsters can be seen as strengthened versions of those in Blood Moor. Fallen, Zombies, Quill Rats—you are all familiar with these. For most professionals, as long as you don't run into those few boss monsters, there is no danger."

As for Liu Betti's quest target, Blood Raven, she was indeed one of the three boss monsters.

Hu Jinsi had no way to use his past gaming experience to measure the true strength of the monsters in the instance. After all, the "Blood Raven" in his past life's memories was just a game NPC, while the Blood Raven here could take a life. He looked at Liu Betti: "Blood Raven... just how strong is she?"

Liu Betti admitted: "I don't have first-hand experience fighting Blood Raven yet. But I have been to the Burial Grounds where Blood Raven is located with a squad, walked around a bit, cleared out the undead there, and explored the mausoleum."

She paused, seemingly organizing her thoughts: "That place is full of undead monsters, except for Blood Raven. And from far away, it seems Blood Raven has the ability to summon the undead. She is a ranged boss with a bow, which is indeed quite tricky."

"Summoning plus ranged..." Su Wan frowned. "One of the most disgusting combinations."

"Of course," Liu Betti quickly added, her gaze sweeping over the three of them, "I am not asking Jack-of-All-Trades Squad to help me kill Blood Raven the first time you go to the instance with me. That would be too risky."

She took a deep breath, her tone sincere: "I chose Jack-of-All-Trades Squad because you are the team I know of that is currently ranked among the top in strength. The gains from following you might be greater. After all, I have been in a state of free-grouping before, and those squads are mostly focused on getting experience and equipment, with very little possibility of actively challenging boss monsters, especially when it involves such a tricky, disgusting type of combat like ranged plus summoning."

Hu Jinsi and Lin Rui exchanged a look. Su Wan nodded gently.

"Since there are no obstacles to cooperation between the two sides," Hu Jinsi reached out his hand, "then it's settled. Next week, Cold Plains, four-person squad."

Liu Betti shook his hand; her palms had calluses from long-term bow drawing, rough and warm.

"Since the team is confirmed," Lin Rui took out his notebook from his backpack and started making a list, "what supplies does the squad need to replenish to handle this battle?"

Liu Betti thought for a moment and answered quite directly: "Just prepare a few sets of cold-weather supplies. The temperature in Cold Plains is much lower than in Blood Moor; prolonged exposure to low-temperature environments will drain stamina, and in severe cases, it will even trigger a frostbite debuff."

"Cold-weather supplies..." Su Wan counted on her fingers, "Thick coats, cold-weather gloves, warming potions, and maybe non-slip boot covers."

"The squad fund is going to decrease again." Hu Jinsi sighed, but the corners of his mouth were turned up, "Fine, I'll place the order when I get back. Anyway, money is just money; it's worth more if traded for survival."

The four of them walked out of the empty classroom, and the sunset in the corridor stretched their shadows long. Liu Betti walked towards the direction of Class 3 with her bow on her back, her ponytail swinging behind her head. The three from Hu Jinsi's group turned towards the back door of the classroom, preparing to go to Teacher Zhang to report the four-person squad list for next week.

"Finally, we have four people." Su Wan hugged her lyre, her steps becoming lighter, "Next week, we can officially go to Cold Plains to explore."

"Four people, a new experience!" Hu Jinsi counted on his fingers beside her, "Especially since we finally have a full-time damage-dealing teammate; I hope we have better luck than Zhao Lei."

"Can you say something positive?" Su Wan nudged him with her elbow.

"This is a reverse flag," Hu Jinsi said with a straight face, "if you say it out loud, it won't come true."

Lin Rui walked at the very front without turning his head, simply tossing out a calm sentence: "Go back and write the procurement list. Cold-weather supplies, stamina potions, spare arrows, and—" He paused, "Prepare another round shield for Su Wan; practice cannot stop."

"Got it." Su Wan replied, her fingers unconsciously stroking the belt around her waist that her mother had sewn.

At the end of the corridor, the setting sun was slowly sinking behind the silhouette of the teaching building, dyeing the sky into an orange-red sea of fire. Next week's Cold Plains was waiting for this temporarily assembled four-person squad.