Chapter 198: Starsea Idol Training, Fu Fu Number One in the World! 【5.7k】

As Cersia ran off, Bronze Furnace sensed something was wrong. After punching Elron, who was already nearing his limit, away, he glared fiercely at Elron, and a golden octahedron suddenly surfaced in the palm of his hand.

"This time, it looks like you really played me. I didn't expect you to be colluding with the Tidal Civilization, but don't think that means you've won, hahaha..."

Bronze Furnace unfolded the octahedron in his palm, and the golden light that shot from it surged like a tidal wave, engulfing his entire body.

By the time Elron got up and tried to stop him, there was no trace of Bronze Furnace in the air, only a manic laughter echoing unpleasantly through the ruins.

"A spatial directional teleportation device?"

Elron’s expression darkened.

Bronze Furnace had escaped. That should have been good news, but right now he couldn’t feel the slightest bit of joy.

Why were there two S+ level Espers hidden in this laboratory? If he had known earlier how dangerous this place was, he wouldn’t have dared to come here recklessly, even if he had hired Bai Fu and Scarlet Leaf.

This time, it was entirely thanks to Bai Fu’s sudden eruption, holding back Nightmother Cersia alone. Otherwise, all of them would have died here.

If he died, everything he had hoped for would be nothing but a mirage.

Elron felt a wave of lingering fear, but along with it came immense shock.

The last time he saw Bai Fu, she had only been a regular S-level Esper, far inferior to him when using the Descent Secret Technique. But in less than two months, Bai Fu could now fight Cersia evenly.

How had she improved so fast? Could it be she had been deliberately hiding her strength all along?

Elron shook his head vigorously.

He had no direct conflict with Bai Fu. So far, their relationship had remained cordial, yet he still felt a hint of unease.

He had finally gotten intel on the Pillar of True Spirits, but why did the situation feel more and more unpredictable?

As Elron was deep in thought, Suixi emerged from the interior of the laboratory, shaking the data storage device in her hand.

"I’ve retrieved the information."

Elron breathed a sigh of relief and even managed a rare smile. "Good, let’s regroup with Bai Fu and the others."

Everyone turned and flew toward Bai Fu.

They had already been shocked watching Bai Fu and Cersia fight from afar. Now that they were closer, they were utterly dumbfounded.

Holy crap—there wasn’t a single visible injury on Bai Fu?!

"Doesn’t that mean Bai Fu held the upper hand during the entire fight with the Nightmother? Scarlet Leaf is already near Calamity, yet still no match for the Nightmother. Now the Nightmother is no match for Bai Fu, so Bai Fu’s true strength must be..."

[Calamity]

That word suddenly popped into Herbert’s mind.

Holy hell.

Herbert was so frightened that he immediately retreated behind the others, terrified that Bai Fu would notice him.

But the more one feared something, the more likely it would happen. Just as Herbert peeked his head out, he found Bai Fu smiling brightly at him. He wanted to dodge, but the area was far too open, with nowhere to hide. He could only force out a smile more hideous than a ghost’s to respond to hers.

I’m screwed!

Herbert was having a mental breakdown.

He simply didn’t believe that Bai Fu could rise from a normal S-level Esper to near-Calamity—or even Calamity level—in just over a month. That left only one truth: Bai Fu had been hiding her strength all along!

Why would Bai Fu hide her strength?

It was unlikely she was scheming against Star Accord. If that were the case, she wouldn’t have acted so high-profile.

After thinking hard, Herbert concluded that Bai Fu was probably here because of Scarlet Leaf. As for what exactly she wanted from Scarlet Leaf, that was unclear. Maybe they had a special relationship. Maybe she lusted after Scarlet Leaf’s body. Maybe it was her abilities.

But whatever the reason, he was doomed.

Bai Fu came for Scarlet Leaf, and he had been bullying Scarlet Leaf right in front of her. At this point, forget about competing for the minister position—if Bai Fu lost her temper, whether he could stay alive would be questionable.

The more Herbert thought, the more frightened he became. The more frightened he was, the paler his face grew, and his body even began to tremble.

"Are you okay?"

Elron looked at Herbert with concern.

Herbert braced himself and said, "I’m actually fine... still standing."

Elron was puzzled. Wasn’t he the one who stood at the frontlines during the fight with Bronze Furnace? He was unharmed, so what could be wrong with Herbert?

He stopped paying attention to Herbert’s kidney-deficient look and turned to Bai Fu to discuss business.

Now that the commission was complete, it was time to hand over the reward to Bai Fu.

"200,000 credits have been transferred to your account. This is the advanced knowledge ‘The Principle of Truth’ cherished by our Sanctification Order."

Elron took out a communicator and forwarded a file to Bai Fu.

The moment she saw the advanced knowledge, Bai Fu got excited.

Perfect. Now she only needed one more piece of advanced knowledge to unlock her class transition quest!

"Since we’ve already gotten what we came for, let’s leave now, in case the people from Secret Tower return for a counterattack."

Elron had no objections to Bai Fu’s suggestion. Just as she was eager to go back and digest the newly obtained knowledge, he was equally anxious to analyze the data they had retrieved from the lab.

But just as they boarded the ship, a small fleet of over a dozen ships suddenly appeared overhead.

"Secret Tower?"

Bai Fu’s expression changed instantly.

Scarlet Leaf quickly reached out and tugged her shoulder. "Don’t panic, they’re from the Tidal Civilization."

...

According to the original plan, the Tidal Civilization’s small fleet was scheduled to arrive at the lab in over twenty minutes. But en route, they suddenly received a message that a fierce battle had broken out at the lab. So they abandoned concerns about exposing their movements and rushed over at full speed.

They were worried that the fight would alert Secret Tower and cause the entire operation to fail. Even on the way, the fleet commander was frowning and grumbling nonstop.

But once they actually arrived on the scene and heard from Elron what had happened, every one of them stared at Bai Fu with bulging eyes.

Holy damn, this was a true Holy Maiden Savior!

They weren’t just blindly praising Bai Fu—they were genuinely impressed and grateful.

Secret Tower had hidden two S+ level Espers in the lab. What did that imply? It meant this lab was a trap designed to target them!

If Bai Fu hadn’t suddenly appeared and repelled Cersia with terrifying strength, had they charged into the trap, they’d be lucky if even one out of ten of them made it out alive.

"Thank you so much, truly, thank you!"

Bai Fu nodded with a smile.

You guys keep thanking me, but how about giving me some benefits too?

While everyone surrounded Bai Fu, singing her praises, Elron’s communicator suddenly rang at an inopportune moment.

"What is it?"

Elron glanced at the contact info and, seeing it was from the Sanctification Order, answered the call.

"Bad news, Holy Son, our cathedral has been suddenly attacked by Secret Tower. The losses are extremely severe, and the members of Secret Tower we recently captured have also been taken!"

A panicked voice shouted from the communicator.

"What?"

Elron and Suixi's expressions changed at the same time.

Disaster had struck, and it was only the beginning. Soon, the fleet commander of the Tidal Civilization also received a message.

"While we were launching the encirclement, Secret Tower simultaneously launched strikes in multiple locations. Several long-range communication stations and star gates have been destroyed!"

"Those bastards! This must have been a diversion tactic!" The fleet commander of the Tidal Civilization slammed his fist in anger. "Return, we must return immediately."

Secret Tower’s special operation threw the entire Gateway Cluster into chaos. The major civilizations all believed they had found Secret Tower’s hidden base, only to discover they had fallen for a trap. For a while, pessimism flooded the networks. But in the darkness, there was always a glimmer of light—this time, that light was Bai Fu.

She had repelled the notorious Nightmother Cersia with her own strength, foiled Secret Tower’s trap in the Tidal Civilization, and ensured zero casualties for the fleet they had sent. That wasn’t just a star’s brilliance—that was the radiance of a supernova!

Bai Fu’s fame had once been limited to the Sea Lion Galaxy and its neighboring regions. Now, the entire Gateway Cluster was singing her name. The title of Holy Maiden Savior had been embraced by the masses.

While Bai Fu and Scarlet Leaf were still aboard their ship returning to the Star Accord branch, countless companies across the Gateway Cluster urgently convened meetings. The theme: they couldn't let the Starweb Commonwealth hog the spotlight. They, too, wanted a piece of the traffic from the "Queen of the Dark Zone · Holy Maiden Savior · Bai Fu".

"Find a way to contact Bai Fu and send her an ad offer!"

"Boss, we might not be able to afford that much ad money..."

"Ah, well... Wait, if we can't get Bai Fu herself, then invite the people around her. Wick, Yulia, Anya—anyone. Right now, Bai Fu is so popular, anyone even slightly connected to her can bring us traffic."

While major companies in the Gateway Cluster were mobilizing, the production team of "Cosmic Web" also noticed Bai Fu for the first time.

"When we release the next card pack, maybe we should consider adding Bai Fu. With her current popularity, it might boost next quarter’s sales in the fringe worlds."

"Let’s start with a basic card. If she gets even more famous, we can release SP, purple-limited, gold, and platinum card expansion packs."

...

Some rejoiced, while others worried.

Right now, Bronze Furnace was deeply worried.

Secret Tower’s operation had been a great success. They had sacrificed only a few unimportant strongholds and achieved excellent results in multiple locations, sweeping away the gloom from their previous defeat in the Sea Lion Galaxy.

However, this success had nothing to do with him. He was the only one among all the squads who had failed.

Bronze Furnace couldn’t understand how Cersia could fail to take down even Bai Fu.

He found it hard to believe Bai Fu really had power comparable to Cersia. If Bai Fu were that strong, back on Sky Lake Star, she wouldn't have needed help—she could have destroyed the bug swarm by herself.

What? You say Bai Fu wasn't that strong back then and only grew this powerful in the past few months?

To grow that fast in a few months? That’s absurd. Bronze Furnace found it even harder to believe.

He glanced at Cersia, then at his own hands, wanting to ask if Cersia had deliberately held back. But thinking about the gap in their strength, he decided to hold that thought for now and wait until they got back.

When Cersia and Bronze Furnace returned to Secret Tower headquarters, they found the Steward in the middle of a scolding.

"I heard Bai Fu’s advertisement rate has jumped from an average of 200,000 to 400,000. Tell me, how much of her current value did we contribute to?"

The Steward's voice lacked any anger, but the words hit like a hammer—nobody dared to respond.

After a long silence, the Steward raised a finger.

"Ninety percent, maybe even one hundred. When it comes to cultivating ultra-popular idols, we truly have a knack. In just a few months, we’ve created a superstar renowned throughout the Gateway Cluster. Even the top entertainment companies in the cluster can’t match that. At this rate, we’ll soon make Bai Fu the most commercially valuable celebrity in the Gateway Cluster."

Everyone listening was drenched in cold sweat.

Too kind, truly too kind. We’ll work even harder next time to make Bai Fu the Great Nether Star!

The room was filled with a heavy atmosphere until Cersia and Bronze Furnace appeared, easing it slightly.

"Let’s hear it. Some are saying Bai Fu might already be at Calamity level. What do you think?"

The Steward didn’t even bother looking at Cersia and Bronze Furnace.

Bronze Furnace turned to Cersia, who explained, "Based on my fight with Bai Fu, she should still be stuck at S+ level—she’s weaker than me. But her abilities are special. She can transform into a unique energy form, making most of my attacks ineffective. Meanwhile, she uses high mobility to harass me. Her attacks don’t cause much real damage, but they’re extremely annoying."

The Steward nodded noncommittally.

He had once held high hopes for Cersia, but her recent performance had been too disappointing. Plus, Bronze Furnace had quietly reported that she might’ve held back against Bai Fu, so he decided to put her on ice for a while.

"Stay within Secret Tower from now on and refine your abilities. Unless I order otherwise, you’re not going anywhere."

Cersia knew the Steward was disappointed in her.

In the past, she wouldn’t have said anything—because there was no point. But things were different now. She had deliberately taunted Bai Fu before they parted, and if she couldn’t leave Secret Tower now, she’d break that promise.

That couldn’t happen.

To make sure she could catch Bai Fu, she had intentionally revealed that Secret Tower was targeting Golden Valley Star, hoping to lure Bai Fu there.

"Steward, I..."

The Steward’s expression darkened. "You don’t need to say anything. Just follow orders. I have my own plans for dealing with Bai Fu."

Cersia nodded and said no more.

She returned to her quarters, stripped off her torn clothes, and, too lazy to change, lay directly on the bed.

She closed her eyes, wanting to sleep off the tension, but every time she did, scenes of her conversation with Bai Fu on Ulysses Star, their recent battle, and the Steward’s reprimand would replay in her mind.

She had no hope of sleep now.

Even if Bai Fu’s kindness had been an act, it was still better than the maskless coldness of the people in Secret Tower.

Cersia summoned a virtual screen in front of her. This time, she proactively searched for news about Bai Fu online.

The top trending article came from a reporter who had personally visited the Star Accord Gateway Branch to interview Bai Fu.

In the photo, Bai Fu wore a casual white dress suited for home, her fair and jade-like feet faintly visible through the sheer hem of the dress, crossed tightly together, drawing particular attention.

It was the first time Cersia had seen Bai Fu dressed like this—refreshingly different.

Standing beside Bai Fu was Scarlet Leaf. Scarlet Leaf again. She was always by Bai Fu’s side—during missions, during interviews, and now in photos too.

Cersia unceremoniously erased Scarlet Leaf from the photo.

She stared fixedly at Bai Fu.

"I will definitely go to Golden Valley Star. I will kill you there. I will, I will!"

The more she chanted, the emptier Cersia felt inside. And the more hollow she felt, the more she wanted to act.

In the end, her hand rested on her navel, where Bai Fu had landed three punches, and she gently rubbed it.

...

"This trip was totally worth it!"

While Cersia vented her frustration, Bai Fu remained in high spirits.

She had obtained the advanced knowledge she wanted and received numerous advertisement offers. She couldn’t help being happy.

From the moment she returned to the Star Accord Gateway Branch, she had been so busy for two and a half days that she barely had time to rest. Her feet were sore from walking, but she enjoyed every moment of it.

If she could keep earning money at this pace, it’d be worth it even if her feet got twice as sore.

Besides, when her feet got sore, there was someone eager to massage them.

"Boss, you’re just too amazing!"

Anya held Bai Fu’s feet, enjoying herself while smiling.

Beside them, Scarlet Leaf, Yulia, and Xia Shi remained silent, simply watching.

Bai Fu narrowed her eyes lazily and said, "Once this busy stretch is over, the exact coordinates of Golden Valley Star should be calculated. It'll be busy again then."

"I’ll go with you when the time comes," Scarlet Leaf said quickly.

She had heard from Bai Fu that her strength had grown significantly, but she still couldn’t feel at ease. After all, going to Golden Valley Star meant possibly encountering Secret Tower.

Bai Fu did not refuse.

Having Scarlet Leaf by her side gave her a huge sense of security.

She wasn’t worried that dragging Scarlet Leaf around would affect Scarlet Leaf’s succession as branch leader in place of Lemans.

After the Tidal Galaxy operation, Herbert—perhaps scared out of his wits—had been all smiles when he saw her these past few days. He greeted her, saluted, even returned Master Tai Er and the others without a fuss. If not for saving face, Bai Fu figured from the way he kept eyeing her shoes that he might have gone even further to lower himself.

In short, Herbert probably didn’t dare compete with Scarlet Leaf for the branch leader position anymore.

As for the other department heads, there was nothing to worry about now.

Even if she dragged Scarlet Leaf around without doing any serious commissions, the position of branch leader was basically guaranteed to fall into Scarlet Leaf’s lap.

So what if the score was zero?

As long as all the competitors quit the exam, even zero points meant first place!

Starlight sped by.

Two and a half days later, Bai Fu received the precise coordinates of Golden Valley Star from Star Accord’s specialist as scheduled.

"I’ve already contacted Manu on your behalf. To prevent leaks by traitors to Secret Tower, Manu’s suggestion is to hold off for now. Wait until Secret Tower makes their move, then contact other civilizations to flank them from the rear," Yulia said.

Bai Fu had no objections to this plan.

She wasn’t the mother of the civilizations in the Gateway Cluster. What opinions could she have? Even if she had one, it wouldn’t matter.

"Just in case, we need to make extra preparations. I happened to earn some money recently, so let’s stock up on more items before setting off."

After signing a pile of advertisement and endorsement contracts, Bai Fu had become a true rich woman of the Gateway Cluster. She alone had built ten prayer card production lines and reserved a large sum to transform Ancestor Origin Star and Ulysses Star.

Another day passed. Once Bai Fu had stocked enough items, she set off on her journey to Golden Valley Star with Scarlet Leaf and the others.

Before departure, she had already made a landing announcement through Digging Ji.

At that moment, all the players on Golden Valley Star were in a frenzy.

[Fu Fu Number One in the World]

[Awesome awesome awesome]

[But it’s kind of bad that Secret Tower has their eyes on us]

[As long as Fu Fu is here, everything will be alright!]

Bai Fu nodded with a bright smile.

At this pace, she should be able to plunder ten newbie planets before version 2.0 launched, complete five or six planet mainlines, and secure her promotion to Calamity level.

"Once I reach Calamity level, I’ll be able to take on most missions in the fringe worlds. That way, even when the Starsea Era fully begins, I’ll be able to maintain my status in front of players and won’t be outshined by some newcomer."

While Bai Fu plotted her future carefully aboard the ship, the Steward of Secret Tower was also arranging the operation for Golden Valley Star.

Whether they captured Bai Fu or recovered the lost mother body was secondary—what mattered most was capturing a large number of Undead. The research on these Undead might determine the future of Secret Tower.

Just as the Steward was speaking at length, someone suddenly rushed in.

"Steward, something’s happened."

"What happened?"

"Cersia is missing!"