Watching the departing figures gradually disappear into the distance, Lofan turned back towards the small town.
He was now wearing a black leather overcoat, his face etched with the marks of time and hardship, and his hair streaked with gray, giving him the appearance of a man nearing sixty.
A pang of sentiment tugged at Lofan's heart as he gazed at the familiar figures, but he quickly suppressed the emotion.
His family life was relatively happy, and he had little desire to remain in this world permanently.
Besides, even if things took a turn for the worse, according to the Genshin Impact storyline, the Teyvat Continent was destined for destruction.
Although a yellow-haired "toolman" was destined to save the world eventually, Lofan couldn't completely entrust his life to someone else, especially when he knew nothing about the future.
If he didn't diligently earn Points to enhance his strength, even with the System's assistance, how could he resurrect himself if the Teyvat Continent ultimately met its doom, leaving no habitable place for him?
To be on the safe side, he needed to continue accumulating more Points.
After all, having no trump cards and having them but not needing to use them were two entirely different things.
If something went wrong with the Yellow-haired Toolman, he would have more options.
Having temporarily set this matter aside, Lofan began organizing the gains from the recent incident.
The events had largely unfolded according to his plans, except for Arlecchino's unexpected appearance, which forced him to slightly adjust his subsequent plans. However, this turned out to be a good thing.
Arlecchino had also provided him with a substantial number of Points. With his total now exceeding 300,000, he finally unlocked the System's advanced AI Hosting feature.
Lofan had long been frustrated with the System AI's limited capabilities. The past few weeks had been incredibly hectic.
Not only did he have to constantly switch between his own consciousness and the AI's, but he also had to be careful not to arouse suspicion from others, which would expose his ability.
Moreover, he had to constantly guard against other characters blurting out compromising information.
Now that these grueling days were finally over, he could confidently delegate less critical tasks entirely to the System AI.
Of course, more complex actions still required his personal intervention, but this was already a significant improvement.
Originally, Lofan had anticipated receiving fewer Points overall. However, the unexpected intervention of Arlecchino and Neuvillette had provided him with a substantial bonus.
Even after supplementing his collection of elemental mastery types and obtaining Intermediate Hydro Element Mastery, his final Points tally remained sufficient.
Lofan refrained from immediately exchanging for Advanced Fire Element Mastery, as the ability cost a staggering 250,000 Points. Exchanging it would leave him financially stretched.
He needed to spend some time accumulating more Points before proceeding with his next phase: probing the Hydro Archon Furina and the Oratrice Mecanique d'Analyse Cardinale.
With the advanced System AI Hosting now available, Lofan gained more ways to earn Points.
The simplest method was to have the body he had created stage particularly shocking cases. Lofan already had some ideas for this, and he planned to study the techniques of previous criminals for inspiration.
Having considered these matters beforehand, Lofan next exchanged for the missing Electro and Geo Element control, completing his mastery of all Elemental Powers.
In addition, he exchanged for over a thousand characters with diverse identities, dispersing them across Fontaine's towns and cities. The System AI Hosting would manage them, ensuring they maintained their assigned personas on the surface.
After these exchanges, Lofan's remaining Points were meager. However, Lofan remained unperturbed, confident he could quickly replenish them.
Next, he examined the System's next unlockable feature, which required a staggering one million Points. This meant the task would indeed take considerable time.
Even if he focused his efforts solely on Furina, Lofan estimated it would take two or three major incidents to accumulate enough Points.
The effects unlocked upon reaching the required Points were quite impressive.
The first perk was a discount on body customization, allowing him to adjust his body's parameters to his exact specifications for only double the base Points cost. Needless to say, this would accumulate into significant Points savings over time.
The second feature further upgraded the System AI Hosting, a boon for the lazy.
The third unlocked function allowed him to grant a System AI-hosted body one of his already acquired Skills, up to its maximum capacity.
This feature was particularly valuable. Currently, Lofan's redeemed Skills could only be used on the body he was actively controlling. To use a Skill with another body, he had to switch consciousness, which was not only cumbersome but also prevented multiple bodies from using the same Skill simultaneously.
The next-tier System feature would perfectly resolve this issue.
As expected of a feature requiring a staggering million Points to unlock, each perk offered substantial benefits.
Lofan felt a surge of impatience, but seeing his Points dwindling to near zero, he crushed any unrealistic fantasies of achieving this quickly and refocused his thoughts.
"Before moving on to the next phase of our plan, let's milk the last dregs of this incident," Lofan murmured.
With a sharp turn, Lofan slipped into a narrow alleyway. He walked only a short distance before stopping before the door of a dilapidated shack.
He didn't knock, but the door swung open from within.
A crowd had already gathered inside, dressed in a motley assortment of attire: ordinary workers, merchants, doctors...
Their physiques varied, but they shared one striking feature: each wore a pure white mask, identical to those worn by the Masked Men in the secret base!
Their eyes burned with fervor as they turned toward Lofan, bowing respectfully.
"Lord Cult Master!"
Lofan nodded in acknowledgment. "For now, let's establish this place as our base of operations and spread the teachings of our Cult of No. 6 to more people."
"This is my first command as Amos, the first Cult Master of the Cult of No. 6."
"Go forth! Find the 'Six' among the masses and bring them back to us!"
"Yes, Lord Cult Master!"
-
To Neuvillette's surprise, Clorinde was already waiting in his office when he returned. His expression immediately turned serious; he knew that given her strict adherence to protocol, Clorinde would only break protocol to wait for him here if the matter was exceptionally urgent.
"Neuvillette, take a look at this."
Clorinde approached him as soon as she saw him and handed him the report.
Seeing Clorinde's equally grave expression, Neuvillette's heart sank slightly. He took the report and began to read it carefully.
"[ Splice ]?"
(SpyNote- The Title of the No.1 Unit that lofan has)
Neuvillette paused, recognizing the vaguely familiar term.
"That's right. It's what I've discovered over the past few weeks," Clorinde nodded, explaining her recent activities.
Clorinde had initially planned to investigate by analyzing Echoing Conches scattered throughout the streets and alleys, as well as photos of Furina, but her initial efforts yielded nothing.
Just as Clorinde was about to give up and shift her investigation to other avenues, she finally spotted a suspicious individual and began tracking them.
When she saw the person, after confirming no one else was around, carefully place several Echoing Conches in a hidden corner, Clorinde knew she was on the right track.
Instead of immediately apprehending the suspect for questioning, Clorinde silently observed them placing each Echoing Conch, one by one. The suspect even brazenly walked up to the Maison Gardiennage to turn in the final Conch.
Through continued surveillance, she discovered the person's secret hideout within Fontaine.
What followed was predictable: Clorinde launched a surprise attack on the hideout, preventing the suspects from destroying the intelligence stored within.
Realizing their mission had failed, the suspects charged at her one by one like madmen, detonating the explosives strapped to their bodies.
Although Clorinde escaped unscathed, the base had been severely damaged by the explosion, making it impossible for her to uncover any further intelligence.
After reviewing the recovered documents, Clorinde immediately grasped the gravity of the situation. She rushed to Neuvillette's office at full speed, intending to share the information with him.
However, she learned that Neuvillette had already left and his return time was uncertain.
Left with no other choice, Clorinde knew she had to inform Neuvillette of this crucial intelligence immediately. To prevent leaks, she resolved to wait at his office until he returned.
"According to the documents, the terrorist group directly challenging the Fontaine authorities has code-named members with incomplete names. Their full names should include 'Slice' after their serial numbers."
"As far as I know, one of Snezhnaya's Fatui Harbingers, 'The Doctor' Dottore, has created multiple versions of himself across different timelines, all of whom he also calls 'Slice'."
Fontaine had undoubtedly conducted a thorough investigation into Dottore. After all, his formidable power and disruptive activities in Sumeru, so close to Fontaine's border, meant he could infiltrate their territory at any moment for clandestine operations. Fontaine's high command regarded this Fatui Harbinger with extreme caution, and their informants maintained constant surveillance over Sumeru.
"Moreover, intelligence suggests that years ago, No. 1 engaged in days-long exchanges with a mysterious figure. It was around that time that No. 1 successfully completed controlled experiments with Elemental Power and applied them to human subjects."
"Based on the informant's description of the mysterious figure, it's highly likely that it was Dottore himself."
As Neuvillette listened to Clorinde's analysis, his brow furrowed deeply. His grip tightened unconsciously, crumpling the report slightly.
From their current intelligence analysis, No. 6 was obsessed with manipulating human hearts, No. 2 was a pure brute force type, and now they had uncovered new information suggesting No. 1 specialized in multidisciplinary research.
It seemed perfectly reasonable that two mad researchers, upon learning of each other's existence, would meet and engage in academic exchanges.
Moreover, it was common knowledge that the Fatui Harbingers were not united in purpose, each pursuing their own agendas.
Therefore, it was understandable that Arlecchino was unaware of Dottore's actions.
Neuvillette grew increasingly convinced of Dottore's involvement in this matter. After all, the ability to wield Elemental Power without a Vision was something he had only ever heard of from the Fatui.
And the very person who had developed the Delusion was none other than Dottore himself!
A cold glint flickered in Neuvillette's eyes. If the investigation revealed Dottore's involvement, he would show no mercy.
He would personally bring Dottore to Judgment!
"I will arrange for investigators to determine whether the Fatui are involved in this matter."
"For now, a more pressing question demands our attention: what does the suffix 'slice' after the serial number signify?"
Neuvillette pondered briefly. He found it hard to believe that within such a terrifying organization, "slice" could similarly refer to alternate versions of oneself, given the stark differences in personality and specialization between the members.
Clorinde shook her head slightly. She had been pondering this matter herself for some time, but remained clueless.
After all, they possessed far too little information to draw any meaningful conclusions.
A heavy silence settled over the room.
Although they had narrowly gained the upper hand in their recent clash with the enemy, they felt no sense of relief. The mysterious force had only shown them the tip of the iceberg.
"Neuvillette, you don't need to look so grim," Clorinde said.
"Regardless, we won this time."
"At least Fontaine will enjoy a period of peace."
Hearing Clorinde's words, Neuvillette hesitated for a moment before nodding.
Just then, a Melusine frantically knocked on the door. Upon receiving Neuvillette's permission to enter, she rushed into the office and immediately blurted out:
"Monsieur Neuvillette, something terrible has happened!"
Neuvillette's heart sank at her opening words.
"The Maison Gardiennage is calling for reinforcements from the Court of Justice."
"I heard there have been several murders in quick succession recently. The Maison Gardiennage is completely stretched thin!"
Hearing this news, both Neuvillette and Clorinde's moods grew heavy once more.
It seemed the repercussions from those broadcasted scenes were already surfacing. The question was, how long would it take for these effects to fully subside?
-
Volume 2 Done! Updates will come back soon after I come back from my trip!