The next morning, when Fang Yi woke up, the system store had already finished updating.
So, after washing up, he didn't rush out. Instead, he sat on the edge of his bed and opened the system's shop interface.
In addition to the previous items, many new options had been added. The first thing that caught his eye was the lottery pack:
"10x Lottery Tickets – 1,900 Points (Limit: Once per day)"
"Random Skill – 5,000 Points (Limit: Once)"
"Body Inheritance – 10,000 Points (Limit: Once)"
"Strength Inheritance – 10,000 Points (Limit: Once)"
"Agility Inheritance – 10,000 Points (Limit: Once)"
A single lottery ticket costs 200 points, but a bundle of 10 was discounted at 1,900—saving 100 points.
All of the one-time-purchase items looked amazing—Fang Yi practically drooled just looking at them.
If only I'd known the shop would upgrade at 10,000 points, he thought bitterly. I never would've wasted so many on lottery tickets… I didn't even get anything useful from them!
His current point balance: 10,772
That was just enough to buy one of the 10,000-point Inheritance items, plus the random skill, and still have 500 left over.
There was no doubt—he wanted them all eventually. The question was which to prioritize.
After some serious thought, Fang Yi hesitated between the Random Skill and Body Inheritance.
The skill option was cheaper, and he'd still have 5,000 points left afterward—but the downside was obvious: it was random.
He couldn't guarantee the skill would be useful. If he ended up with something like a cooking skill, he'd have nowhere to cry.
On the other hand, Body Inheritance was simple and effective. His stamina was currently lacking, and this would help improve his endurance and energy recovery—something he desperately needed, especially with powerful AOE skills like Flame Dragon Burst that consumed huge amounts of stamina.
Without enough stamina, it didn't matter how many skills he had—he wouldn't be able to use them.
So in the end, Fang Yi chose Body Inheritance. Skills were nice, but stamina helped everything.
After enduring the all-too-familiar wave of intense pain, he clenched his fist and gave a wry smile.
This thing worked, no doubt about it—but man, did it hurt every time.
Once he recovered a little, Fang Yi finally stepped out of his room. Wanza was already waiting for him on the deck.
Since they needed to build up teamwork, Fang Yi spent every day with Wanza. If his room had been a little bigger, he would've moved Wanza's entire nest in there.
"Yi, Mr. Rayleigh wants to see you!"
Fang Yi was practicing mounted archery with Wanza when a crewman called out to him.
"Got it! Be right there!" he replied, patting Wanza on the head and telling him to rest.
He made his way to the ship's dining hall, where Rayleigh, Roger, and Jaba were already waiting and chatting.
"There you are, Yi. Have a seat," Roger said, smiling.
"Captain, Mr. Rayleigh, Teacher Jaba—what's going on?" Fang Yi asked, taking a seat with curiosity.
"There is something important that needs your help," Rayleigh said, glancing sidelong at Jaba.
"Me?" Fang Yi looked confused, especially noticing Jaba's awkward expression. "What is it?"
Rayleigh grinned mischievously, leaned over, and whispered something in Fang Yi's ear.
"…You're serious?" Fang Yi's eyes went wide. He stared at Jaba in disbelief. "Is that true?"
"Er… I'm not sure myself," Jaba said, clearly flustered.
"What do you mean you're not sure?" Rayleigh rolled his eyes. "Besides you two and those three brats, who doesn't know?"
"Still, I'd never noticed it before! Rayleigh, you'd better be right—this could go wrong," Roger added cautiously.
Rayleigh let out a long sigh. Talking to these people was exhausting.
"So, Teacher Jaba's intention is… to confirm it, right?" Fang Yi smiled slightly. "But Mr. Rayleigh thinks there's no need to confirm—just act."
"Exactly! See? This kid gets it way better than you two!" Rayleigh nodded approvingly.
"Well then… how about we do this… and this… then that… what do you think?" Fang Yi's eyes sparkled with mischief as he outlined his plan.
"HAHAHA! That's brilliant!" Roger clapped, laughing.
Rayleigh didn't object either. Only Jaba still looked reluctant.
"Quit making that face," Rayleigh snapped. "Yi's plan is solid—we'll go with it."
"But… but what if she figures it out? I don't think I can pull this off," Jaba groaned.
"Who said you had to lie?" Fang Yi placed a small pill on the table. "This is the key part of my plan, Teacher Jaba. If you're serious about this—take it. Once you do… there's no turning back."
All three men froze.
Especially Roger and Rayleigh—their expressions turned serious as they stared at the pill.
The truth was, this whole meeting was about Jaba's feelings for Yameng. Recently, he'd begun to suspect he might feel something for her, so he came to Roger and Rayleigh for advice.
But the moment he asked, Rayleigh almost beat him up.
The entire ship could see there was something between him and Yameng. The problem? They were the only ones who didn't realize it. Watching them tiptoe around each other was driving the crew crazy.
So Rayleigh's solution was simple: force the issue and make them face their feelings.
Roger and Jaba had been stunned. "Wait, you all knew? How come we didn't?!"
And Jaba wasn't even convinced yet. "If I don't even know how I feel, how does Rayleigh know for sure?"
So, they brought in Fang Yi—someone close to both of them, and someone who could quietly test the waters with Yameng.
Once Fang Yi knew the full story, he proposed a plan:
Next time they land on an island, Jaba would fake being poisoned—and Yameng would be the only one who could "save" him. The cure, of course, would involve something slightly intimate or emotional.
At that moment, the rest of the crew would jump in and "tease" them into confessing.
If Yameng didn't care for Jaba, she'd refuse to help.
If she did have feelings, she'd go along—and that would settle things.
That way, both Rayleigh's bold plan and Jaba's desire for confirmation could be satisfied.
But once Fang Yi brought out an actual pill, all three of them felt things had escalated too far.
What if Yameng refused to help? Was Jaba supposed to just die?!
"Relax," Fang Yi said with a smile. "This pill won't kill you. It'll just make you display some poisoning symptoms."
Only then did they all exhale in relief.
Even so, Jaba was still hesitant. He didn't like the idea of tricking Yameng. But he also didn't have a better plan… so, in the end, he agreed to go through with it.
After the meeting, Fang Yi left the dining hall and went to Yameng's cabin. Not long after, he found the ship's doctor and whispered a few instructions.
As if the heavens themselves supported his plan, that very afternoon, they spotted an uninhabited island.
"Jaba, take Yi and scout ahead. We'll follow after sorting things on the ship," Roger said casually, exchanging a knowing glance with Rayleigh.
"Perfect. I've been training with Wanza—we can hunt on the way and test our coordination," Fang Yi said, stringing his bow.
"Gulp… Alright then," Jaba replied nervously, adjusting his sunglasses and sneaking a glance at Yameng, who remained unaware.
"I want to go too!" Buggy and Shanks shouted, but Rayleigh grabbed both by the collars.
"You two, behave! It's just a scouting mission—why do we need so many people? Yi and Jaba are enough. Now help us sort supplies!"
There was no way he'd let them mess up the plan.
After landing, Jaba pulled Fang Yi aside, nervous as ever.
"Yi… what if Yameng doesn't come to save me? What should I do then?"
Fang Yi gave him a strange look. "Uh… Teacher Jaba… maybe don't just sit there waiting to be saved? You should probably say something—like a confession or something!"
Jaba blinked. "What should I say?"
"Something honest! You're a man—take the initiative. If you don't express your feelings, how's she supposed to respond? She can't read your mind," Fang Yi advised sincerely.
"But… I'm not even sure myself! I just wanted to ask Rayleigh and Captain Roger what they thought. How did it end up like this?" Jaba said helplessly.
Then just say whatever's truly in your heart, Fang Yi said, looking at him meaningfully. It's always better to say something than nothing at all.