"Phew, the embedding is complete."
Li Fan, after a busy period, wiped the sweat from his forehead.
"Complete? Where did these small embedded parts come from?"
Yudora asked curiously, looking at the deck.
"Because there might be subsequent disassembly and debugging, I've only installed part of it,"
Li Fan explained.
"Thank you, I'll try it out."
Yudora said, lifting the Wind Serpent Helm and placing it on her head.
Since one piece was not enough to achieve floating flight, she put on three pieces in one go.
Whoosh, whoosh...
After swimming and flipping several times in mid-air, Yudora exclaimed excitedly, "The resistance to dizziness is very strong, it really has the effect of three spheres. If all the remaining ones are embedded with Attack Spheres... then I can gain the power boost of twelve spheres."
"That won't do. The True Charged Slash itself puts a great burden on the body. If you embed so many Attack Spheres, you won't be able to bear it,"
Li Fan warned.
"Then what spheres should I use instead?"
Yudora stopped floating and returned to the deck.
"Full-Power Spheres or Challenger Spheres. Their abilities are called 'Power Release' and 'Challenger,' which primarily stimulate the body's potential and do not cause too much burden on the body. Three stacked to level 9, plus one Divine Blessing Sphere, would be the most suitable equipment combination for you,"
Li Fan informed her.
"Power Release, Challenger... Then I'll choose Challenger,"
Yudora pondered for a moment and made her choice.
In the game, the activation effect of Challenger is that when the monster enters an enraged state, the hunter gains critical hit rate and attack buffs.
The maximum level is 5.
As for the real-world implementation, according to the decoration manual, the Challenger effect is activated when the hunter enters an enraged state while facing a large monster.
After finalizing the decorations to be crafted, the team headed to the Handicraft Workshop together.
Having informed them of the spheres to be crafted, the team sat in the workshop lobby to wait.
"So, Hunger Suppression Spheres and Diet Spheres only reduce the sensitivity of hunger, they don't actually resist hunger..."
Yudora said with some disappointment, looking at the ability descriptions in the decoration book.
"Haven't you studied decorations before?"
Li Fan asked, somewhat surprised.
"My wallet wouldn't allow it. I could only activate abilities through armor. I remember when I first crafted the Blademaster Mail, I spent all my savings..."
Yudora recalled.
"Master Shihan, meow!"
With a Felyne's cry, a middle-aged man in a brown robe, carrying a large paper umbrella, walked into the workshop lobby.
"Hello, little Felyne."
The middle-aged man smiled kindly and sat down in the innermost seat.
"I heard he's a very remarkable hunter, but he's retired now,"
Yudora whispered.
"Haha, why meet in a place like this?"
A moment later, a white-bearded old man wearing a cowboy hat walked in from the entrance.
Shihan, who was sipping tea, smiled slightly and replied, "I don't want to go to the Guild, and there are people from the Dragon Cult elsewhere. This is as good a place as any."
The white-bearded old man placed his cowboy hat on the table and sat opposite the man.
Li Fan initially thought this was just two old friends meeting, until the man named Shihan mentioned a name: Sophia.
"I received intelligence that Sophia has been acting a bit strange lately, so I wanted to ask you to take a look."
"Sophia... Impossible, she explicitly stated she was giving up the search."
The white-bearded old man said, placing his teacup, which he had just brought to his lips, back on the table.
"There's no need to be so tense, Guild Master. I'm only suspicious, which is why I called you here. However, given Sophia's usual behavior, it's best to be prepared,"
Shihan sighed softly.
"Alright, I'll go to the doll shop right away."
The white-bearded old man, addressed as Guild Master, picked up his cowboy hat, put it on, and left with a grave expression.
What did it mean for Sophia to be acting strangely?
Listening to their conversation, it sounded as if Sophia were a dangerous person?
Li Fan couldn't help but wonder.
Time quickly passed to noon. Once all the decorations were crafted, the team returned to the Fire Dragon.
Ferry studied the map to determine their course, while Li Fan and Yudora draped cold-proof covers over the airship's balloons. They finally set off before evening.
Six days later, on a stormy snowy night.
The Fire Dragon, its hull covered in snow, arrived at Pokke Village, located halfway up the mountain.
As the cabin was not equipped with a heating stove, after landing at the airport, the team stepped into the knee-deep snow and headed to the Pokke Village Guild Branch.
"Welcome to Pokke Village Guild! Please come to the hearth to warm yourselves up!"
A female attendant at the counter by the large hearth greeted them warmly.
The team shook off the snow from their bodies and approached the hearth, extending four hands and several pairs of cat paws simultaneously.
"So~ warm~ meow!"
Dielu, who had been shivering, said.
"Yes, meow!"
Ferry and the chef team agreed at the same time.
"I'll go to the counter to inquire. You all wait here, and absolutely do not wander off,"
Li Fan instructed.
The Fire Dragon was too cold to stay in now. Li Fan was worried that Ferry and the chef team, lacking experience with the group, might encounter some accident.
After all, in such bad weather, if they got lost, even within Pokke Village, it would be very dangerous.
"Don't worry, I'll look after them,"
Yudora assured him.
Li Fan, holding a G-rank quest called "Absolute Strongman," approached the counter.
"I'd like to inquire about this quest."
"Alright! Let me see..."
The enthusiastic female attendant's expression quickly turned strange.
"The client for this quest... no, the quest Felyne is over there at the table. If you want to hunt, I suggest you talk to them first."
The attendant pointed to a round table.
Li Fan observed for a moment and noticed only one Felyne sitting there.
"What is this Felyne's name?"
"It's called the Unclaimed Felyne in the village, named Patchy,"
the attendant informed him.
Li Fan walked over to the round table. The Felyne, with half black and half white fur, wearing a fluffy armor, was lying on the tabletop.
Moving aside an empty wine bottle in front of Patchy, Li Fan sat down beside him and asked, "Patchy? Do you remember the Absolute Strongman quest? Did you post it five years ago?"
"Uh... meow... Master, when did you get back..."
Patchy mumbled, his eyelids slightly opening. Upon seeing Li Fan, his eyes suddenly lit up.
"Meow! You're back!"
Patchy leaped into Li Fan's arms.
"Please don't be scared, meow. Patchy means no harm, he's just drunk,"
a Felyne sweeping at the table reminded them.
"It's alright, I brought a team of cats myself,"
Li Fan said, pointing towards the hearth.
Seeing several Felynes waving and greeting, the sweeping Felyne finally relaxed.
"My name is Treasure, meow. Patchy is drunk and definitely can't explain the quest situation right now. Why don't you take Patchy home? You can spend the night there too,"
Felyne Treasure suggested.
"Can't we stay on the second floor of the Guild?"
Li Fan asked curiously.
"Due to the severe snowy weather, a large number of hunters are stranded, and the second floor was filled up a long time ago, meow,"
Treasure explained.
"Alright then."
"Please wait a moment, meow. I'll be off duty soon."
"Are you going to take us there?"
"I live there too,"
Treasure replied.
About fifteen minutes later, led by Treasure, the team arrived at a two-story building next to the Guild.
Creak! The wooden door opened, and three cat heads by the fireplace quickly turned.
"Treasure Team members! Dinner is served, meow!"
Treasure raised the leftover food packed by the Guild and shouted.
"Treasure, meow, you're amazing!"
"The Treasure Team is proud of you, meow!"
"Set sail, meow!"
As the three Felynes finished their cries and ran over, Li Fan noticed that the three figures illuminated by the firelight were all extremely thin.
"Eat as much as you want, meow. I've already eaten while working,"
Treasure said, then led the team into the bedroom and turned on the oil lamp.
It was a room with old furnishings and patched walls.
Inside, there was a storage chest commonly used by hunters, a spacious bed, and a message board for Felynes and their masters to communicate.
"The environment might be a bit humble, meow, but we clean it diligently every day,"
Treasure said, hands on her hips.
"Li Fan, if possible, could you help repair the Felynes' place... Li Fan?"
Yudora raised her voice as Li Fan seemed unresponsive.
"Oh, alright."
Li Fan nodded, snapping back to reality.
"Patchy only sleeps in this room, so we'll have to trouble you to take care of him, meow,"
Treasure informed them.
"May I ask, did Patchy's master live here before?"
"That... seems to be the case, meow,"
Treasure hesitated for a moment before answering.
"Did you meet later?"
"Patchy and I grew up together in Pokke Village, meow,"
"Then why can't you be sure of the owner's residence?"
Li Fan asked, confused.
"Because... only Patchy has seen him, meow. In any case, you'll understand everything if you ask Patchy tomorrow,"
Felyne Treasure's ears drooped, and she closed the door and ran off.
"Ugh... I didn't expect our team's first G-rank quest to be so bizarre,"
Yudora sighed.
Gulp, gulp, gulp...
The team drank several bottles of hot beverages, wrapped themselves in blankets made of Snow Rabbit Fur, and slowly drifted off to sleep in the cold, snowy night.
Cluck! Cluck!
Two rooster crows sounded, and Li Fan saw the sunlight filtering through the window.
He got up and pulled open the curtains. The strong light flooded the room, instantly making it difficult for him to open his eyes.
Seeing Yudora sleeping soundly, hugging a pile of Felynes, Li Fan didn't disturb her. Instead, he walked through the living room and pushed the door open to the outside.
Pokke Village, which had been ravaged by wind and snow last night, was now covered in a blanket of white as far as the eye could see.
Villagers were clearing snow from the roads.
"Careful!"
Whoosh~
A cry from above was followed by a mass of snow sliding down from the roof tiles.
As Li Fan retreated back inside, the snow clump landed precisely at the doorway.
"I'm so sorry! I thought no one would come out of this house, so I wasn't paying attention."
A young man in a white padded suit, holding a snow shovel, apologized to Li Fan from the roof.
"It's alright. Has this house been uninhabited for a long time?"
Li Fan asked, looking up.
"Yes, as far as I can remember, only Felynes have been living here,"
the young man replied.
"Do you know Patchy inside?"
"Of course, I know him well. Everyone in Pokke Village knows him."
"Is there anything different about Patchy?"
"This..."
The young man hesitated slightly, then lowered his voice.
"Patchy once had a master, but everyone's memory of him is very vague. They only remember that this hunter was obsessed with hunting the Monoblos. It's said that after trying to defeat it more than forty times, he never returned. Patchy was greatly affected by this. He would often tell people that he followed his master to defeat the White God, protected Pokke Village, had a vast fertile farm, and even journeyed to the Lava Islands to fight a very terrifying monster. The local Felynes believed Patchy was bragging, and they grew more distant from him."
"In such harsh natural conditions, it must be difficult for a Felyne to survive away from the Felyne community, right?"
Li Fan inquired.
"Indeed. But after a period of depression, Patchy showed exceptional hunting talent. So, he stopped relying on the Felyne community and didn't accept hunter commissions. Instead, he led a few close Felynes and lived by hunting,"
the young man explained.
"A Felyne surviving by hunting on its own..."
Li Fan was greatly surprised.
He seemed to have only encountered a similar situation when recruiting the chef team.
"Please don't let Patchy hear that. To this day, Patchy still firmly believes he has a master, he's just... temporarily disappeared. That's what he says,"
the young man warned.
"Temporarily disappeared? Nonsense. How can a living person suddenly disappear? He was probably killed by a Monoblos,"
Li Fan dismissed.
"Uh... whatever you say."
The talkative young man suddenly turned around and continued clearing snow from the roof.
"Roar! You're the one who was killed by a Monoblos, meow!"
Li Fan heard the fierce cry of a Felyne and turned around to see Patchy, wearing white fluffy armor.
"I'll duel you, meow! Are you ready?"
Li Fan remained unmoved, stretched, and picked his ear.
Patchy, however, was quite serious. He crouched and gathered his strength for a moment, then leaped into the air.
Swish! Li Fan flicked his wrist, and a scroll contract unfurled.
"It's the Absolute Strongman... contract, meow!"
Upon seeing the quest name, Patchy quickly retracted his strength and veered to the side.
Whoosh! Thump!
After flying out of the house, his head buried in a snowdrift.
Li Fan grabbed him by his hind legs, pulled him out upside down, and held him in front of him.
Man and Felyne stared at each other for a moment.
Patchy's cat eyes widened, as if he had seen something unimaginable.
But he immediately shook his head as if denying it. Li Fan, splashed with snow water, could only put him down.
"If the master cannot be found, only half the reward can be claimed, meow,"
Upon seeing the contract, Patchy had already guessed the team's intention.
"Hunting a G-rank Monoblos for only half the reward, don't you think that's a bad deal for the hunter?"
"I can't help it, meow. This is what Treasure Felyne gathered by selling the entire Treasure Team,"
Patchy said with a heavy heart, looking down.
"Alright, then what treasure can substitute for the reward?"
"Such a cunning hunter, meow. So that's why you came... But let me say first, it's a treasure in the eyes of the master. The Guild's material appraisers don't think so,"
"Let me see first,"
Li Fan said with anticipation.
Patchy rummaged inside his small chest armor and finally produced a black rectangular object with a white lanyard.
It was a PSP!
Li Fan's gaze shifted to the distant, majestic white peak, and he nodded, "It is indeed a treasure. Put it away quickly."