Outside Jicheng.
The ruins of the old city.
On the ground, the corpses of blood-eyed rat monsters were scattered. Lin Fan stood on the rooftop of a tall building, head bowed, fiddling with his wristband as if making a phone call.
Lin Yu did not wake him directly but sneaked a glance at his wristband.
He wondered, "Where did this kid get a wristband? Let me see who he's calling."
Lin Fan finally dialed the number.
Ring, ring, ring!!!
After a moment, the call was connected.
Above the wristband, a projection appeared of a young man in a yellow uniform and a steel helmet.
The man was zipping through the city on a hoverboard. The first thing he said after answering the call stunned Lin Yu.
"Hello, Bao Le Ma delivery rider Fei Paopao is on the way with your order. How may I assist you?"
"Deliver a meal for me!"
"Sir, you can order directly through the Bao Le Ma delivery app. I cannot take orders here."
"I've already ordered, but where is my meal?"
"May I have your name, sir, so I can check for you?"
"My name is Lin Fan!"
"Okay, sir, please wait a moment while I check."
The delivery rider stopped his hoverboard, brought up the app, and entered Lin Fan's name.
When the results came out, he wore an unpleasant expression, but quickly replaced it with a professional smile.
"Sir, I found your order. The distance is too far, and we cannot deliver it. You can click to request a refund, and the platform will process it promptly. I apologize for the inconvenience. Goodbye!"
The call ended.
Lin Yu stared in disbelief. It was truly eye-opening to see a delivery rider with customer service-level politeness.
He was curious about which city's takeout Lin Fan had ordered.
Jicheng had no such delivery service.
Lin Fan stomped his foot in frustration. "Hmph, if you can't deliver, you can't deliver. Why not just say so? I waited three days for nothing."
The thought of his arduous life in the wilderness filled him with distress.
He longed for his past life, when he was carefree and only needed to buy food and clean for his main body. That was true happiness.
"Main body, have you forgotten me again?"
"You went to the academy and forgot your dear brother, Lin Fan. You are too heartless."
"I've worked so hard, yet you don't even praise me or tell me if I've completed my tasks!"
"Alas, I'm hungry again. Forget it, I won't hunt monsters today. I'm going back to Jicheng for a feast!"
After complaining for a while, he was about to get up and leave when Lin Yu's voice suddenly echoed in his mind.
"I originally intended to test you, to see your state of mind. I am very disappointed, a pity." Lin Yu deliberately shook his head and sighed.
These words fell into Lin Fan's ears, making him feel a little ashamed. His main body was testing him, yet he...
Seeing his downcast and ashamed demeanor, Lin Yu thought it was time for the main course. He seemed to produce a pump from his hand, and Lin Fan was like a deflated balloon. He then said:
"I'm contacting you now to congratulate you on completing your mission. Because you've exceeded expectations, I've decided to reward you with an extra Talent Crystal. As for skills, don't worry. I'm already looking into them. Once I learn them, I'll share them with you."
Lin Yu's words were both sincere and emotional, moving Lin Fan to tears.
"Main body, you are too good to me. How can I repay you?"
Lin Fan looked up at the sky with a moved expression, as if Lin Yu's silhouette was present there, a deity he worshipped.
Lin Yu watched him and thought, "Isn't his reaction a bit over the top?"
He smiled and said, "Continue hunting monsters for the next few days. I'll give you another million-dollar mission. When I contact you next time, come to Nanjiang City, and I'll give you the Talent Crystal. By then, I should have learned a skill or two. You've worked hard these past few days. For our bright future, you'll have to endure a little hardship for now. Alas."
"Main body, I'm not suffering. I'm so grateful to you. You are too kind to me. Don't worry, I'll definitely hunt monsters diligently and not disappoint you!"
Lin Fan was so touched he could weep, wishing he could embrace Lin Yu and kiss him soundly.
Seeing him like this, Lin Yu thought, "No way, he's that easy to fool."
"Yes, I have high hopes for you. Keep it up!"
"Mhm, main body, I'm going to hunt monsters!"
"You haven't eaten yet, have you? Go eat something first. You'll have more energy to hunt monsters. You have half a day off today." Lin Yu said.
Lin Fan was instantly moved. "Main body, you're too good to me. I'll work hard. For our bright future, I'll complete the tasks you've assigned me even if I die of exhaustion, thirst, or a fall."
"Be careful, don't push yourself too hard."
"Main body, are you looking down on me?" Lin Fan asked, tilting his head.
Lin Yu was slightly taken aback and then chuckled, "No, I'm not looking down on you."
"Then don't say such disheartening things, and don't give me time off. I want to hunt monsters!" Lin Fan insisted.
Lin Yu reluctantly agreed. He mused that the effect of boosting Lin Fan's morale was unexpectedly good.
He smiled and withdrew his consciousness.
"I need to hurry and learn a skill. Lin Fan is still waiting over there."
"But what skill should I learn?"
He tapped his desk, lost in thought.
After a long while, he looked ahead and murmured, "This alchemy skill is necessary. At the very least, the library doesn't have relevant books. I can ask my senior brother for advice. He is proficient in the six arts, especially artifact refining, which is close to master level."
"Right, I also need to learn puppet-making. Otherwise, the puppet control Talent Crystal will be useless."
"So, I'll learn two skills first: alchemy and puppet making. Learning skills requires manuals, and I don't have any. I'll have to start with some basic knowledge."
Having decided on the two skills to learn, Lin Yu commanded his clone to find relevant books to read. To become an alchemist and a puppeteer, one must first lay a solid foundation. While the library didn't have many other books, it was filled with theoretical texts that were inexhaustible.
Soon, the clone brought back dozens of books, including "Basics of Alchemy," "Herbal Compendium," "Principles of Essence Extraction," "Principles of Pill Formation," "Pill Resonance," "Puppet Encyclopedia," "Material Details," and so on...
These were all basic books. The chance of becoming an alchemist or puppeteer by relying solely on this knowledge was very small.
However, after reading these books, Lin Yu benefited greatly and gained a deeper understanding of these two skills.
With the clone's diligent efforts, Lin Yu formed a vague concept of these two skills.
Alchemy, in a broad sense, could involve any material in the universe. In a narrow sense, it was simply following a formula to refine pills. However, he discovered that alchemy consumed mental energy; otherwise, pills could not be formed.
"No wonder this world is technologically advanced, yet elixirs are still rare. It turns out alchemy cannot be mass-produced," Lin Yu muttered.
Puppet making, on the other hand, was much simpler.
Puppet making also consumed mental energy. The principle was to integrate one's mental energy into the puppet, imbuing it with sentience and enabling skillful manipulation.
The strength of a puppet depended on the materials and the master's refining techniques. Different techniques and materials resulted in different puppet strengths.
Skilled puppeteers could even control thousands of puppets. Legend had it that there was a material that could regenerate after being shattered. Puppets crafted from such material were said to be immortal puppets.
Lin Yu organized the information in his mind, gaining a deeper understanding of these two skills.
Then, he turned his attention to another skill: Elemental Clone Technique!