Chapter 430: Chapter 257: The Bookstore Owner’s Identity
"Please... There are four Salvation Society members undercover in Rainbow Wings? That makes up a third of the organization, plus my brother the avenger. So half of the world’s strongest superpower user organization are insiders?"
Gu Wenyu murmured softly, raising an eyebrow as he once again examined the task details on the panel.
After confirming he hadn’t mistaken the numbers, he suddenly lost the desire to turn on his gaming console, looking down at the game disc in his hand also without much interest.
So he raised his hand, tightened the cap on the cola, placed the drink on the table, folded his hands in front of his abdomen, and slumped on the sofa pondering:
"The difficulty is even higher than I imagined. I thought it would be plenty if the Salvation Society inserted one or two spies into Rainbow Wings. How do I uncover these four Salvation Society members and trap them all? At the very least, they are four Catastrophe-level..."
"Anyway, currently the only confirmed identity is ’Urushibara Ryuri’. Start with her and let my brother observe which Rainbow Wing members are close to her."
"Take it step by step. Now that it has come to this, let’s add some points first."
Gu Wenyu sighed, pulled up the attribute panel, and quickly allocated the only attribute point he had.
[Your No. 1 unit "Black Cocoon" ’s "speed" attribute has changed: A+ level → A++ level (the speed of your restraint belt will also increase accordingly)]
[Current character attributes of No. 1 unit: Strength: A level; Speed: A++ level; Spirit: C+ level]
"If I add another point to speed, will it reach S level?" Gu Wenyu wondered, "Honestly, my speed should now be faster than most Quasi-Calamity levels, or rather, it should already be approaching the Catastrophe-level?"
He shrugged, looked up at the ceiling, and recalled: "It’s not clear what my brother’s attributes are. I should have measured them with the restraint belt before he left... But I remember that half a month ago, Li Qingping’s speed seemed to be A+ level, while Dad’s speed was A level."
"Their speed attributes at that time were both lower than my current No. 1 unit."
"But in actual combat, most Anecdote Envoys are not good at physical confrontation. If they don’t merge with a generational-level anecdote, they would die once approached. Only the Royal Court Team’s Sword in the Stone Laine and Li Qingping are exceptions, so it’s better not to use the Anecdote Envoys’ attributes for comparison."
"At least Dad’s Quasi-Catastrophe-level superpower user’s attributes are a good reference. My current speed is already a big notch faster than his. Though I cannot surpass my evolved brother, claiming to be near Catastrophe-level should be no problem."
With this thought, Gu Wenyu closed the attribute panel and turned to open the character skill tree.
[Current No. 1 unit "Black Cocoon" possesses skill points: 3 points.]
Last time, due to nowhere to use, he saved 1 skill point. Plus this time, by helping his brother enter Rainbow Wings, he earned 2 skill points, totaling 3 skill points.
Currently, the skills to be learned in the three skill branches are:
[Branch "Hidden" — Incarnation Enhancement: Allows your restraint belt incarnation to gain 70% of the body’s attributes. (Learning this skill requires spending 2 skill points)]
[Branch "Frenzy" — Restraint Chainsaw: Enhances your restraint blade in a short time and makes it rotate around the restraint belt like a chainsaw blade (Learning this skill requires spending 2 skill points)]
[Branch "Li" — Superpower Overload: Strengthens the power of a superpower you have stolen. (Learning this skill requires spending 2 skill points)]
"Although ’Superpower Overload’ and ’Restraint Chainsaw’ both sound good, the ’Hidden’ branch is nearly fully expanded. So focus on this branch first and see what skill is at the end of it."
With this thought, Gu Wenyu raised his index finger and long-pressed midair on the skill icon "Incarnation Enhancement."
The icon in his pupil went from dim to bright and finally burst into a color full of black vitality.
[Consumed "2" skill points, successfully learned the skill "Incarnation Enhancement" (passive skill) in the "Hidden" branch]
[The next skill in the "Hidden" branch is now open for learning - "Shifting Form and Shadow" (active skill) (After using this skill, your body will instantly swap positions with your restraint belt incarnation) (Learning this skill requires spending "1" skill point)]
[Tip: The skills in the "Hidden" branch have been developed to the end of the branch.]
"Swap positions? Is it somewhat similar to the captain’s Crow swap? But there is no distance restriction, meaning I could even swap myself from China to the United States?" Gu Wenyu raised his eyebrows, "In this way, my fake death plan now has a way out?"
[Consumed "1" skill point, successfully learned the skill "Shifting Form and Shadow" in the "Hidden" branch.]
[Tip: All skills in the "Hidden" branch have been fully developed.]
[Remaining skill points for No. 1 unit: 0 points]
"That’s it." Gu Wenyu lay back on the sofa again, his thoughts swirling, "I’m leaving Li Jing soon... I should say goodbye to the bookstore owner and Swallowing Silver Mouse first. Anyway, I guess I won’t return to school in September."
By mid-September, he should be on his way to the Salvation Society’s base, with no need to return to Li Jing.
Gu Wenyu didn’t even bother changing into the Black Cocoon suit hidden in the room. He simply took out a pair of sunglasses from his pocket and put them on.
Then, wrapping himself in the restraint belt, he instantly entered the color change state, blending into the air like an invisible man.
He strode out the door like a shooting star, using the restraint belt to latch onto a passing van, landing on the roof and lying on his side to play with his phone.
Two minutes later, Black Cocoon appeared in a corner of the Broly Bookstore.
The bookstore’s radio was playing a song called "Open Door," and the dreamy jazz music echoed in every silent corner.
As for why no one was there, after all, it was early morning and the store had just opened; the owner was still dusting the shelves with a feather duster. He turned his head to see a huge, pitch-black cocoon suspended from the ceiling, emitting a bizarre aura.
If it were anyone else standing here, they’d probably be scared out of their wits.
But after half a month, the bookstore owner had long since become accustomed to this old customer’s sudden appearances, merely glancing up at Black Cocoon before looking away.
"Here to borrow books again?" he asked.
Just like an ordinary guest, Black Cocoon emerged from the large cocoon, browsing through "Quiet Flows the Don" as he answered:
"No, no, no, I won’t be coming to borrow books for some time, so I’m just taking one last look."
"Are you leaving?" The owner smiled, "Where to? Is it far from Li Jing?"
"Yes... I’m leaving. As for where I’m going, I can’t say."
Black Cocoon flipped through the pages with a rustle, then glanced at the owner upside-down and added, "But, I mean, it’s possible you’ll never see the ’Black Cocoon’ character again."
He withdrew his gaze, "Will you be lonely, owner? Without me, such a talkative and charming customer, you might find yourself sorrowful on some sunny afternoon."
"The way you say it, it sounds like you’re going off to die." The owner looked up at him through his glasses.
"Hmm... pretty much, I guess?" Black Cocoon closed the book, speaking thoughtfully.
He thought, once he completed the Rainbow Wing mission line, it would be time for the Black Cocoon character to take a bow temporarily, feigning his death in front of family,
and then guide them to the Salvation Society base to find him, becoming his first support in breaking through the Salvation Society; by then, whether it was the Catastrophe-level Ghost Bell, the Catastrophe-level Blue Arc, or the Rainbow Wings chasing them, they would undoubtedly be a formidable force.
"Since it’s goodbye, let me give you this book."
As the bookstore owner spoke, he took out a yellowed diary from the drawer of the counter and placed it on the counter.
"What is this?" Black Cocoon asked, "A diary? It doesn’t look like a published book."
"My favorite novel," the owner said softly, "Or rather... it’s actually my daughter’s diary from when she was little. After she had an accident and passed, I’ve kept it here since."
"You have a daughter?" Black Cocoon raised an eyebrow, rambling, "Then why do you look so young? Do superpower users age so slowly? And giving your daughter’s diary to someone else, is that really what a father should do?"
The owner chuckled, "Sometimes... appearances can be deceiving."
"Never try to be mysterious in front of me, sir; it’s my forte," Black Cocoon said as he reached out with the restraint belt to take the diary on the counter, "Actually, I’m curious, what’s your daughter’s name?"
"Su Ying."
As the owner finished speaking, a brief silence suddenly shrouded the bookstore.
Black Cocoon heard this and was lost in thought for a long, long time before he slowly lifted his eyes from the diary.
At that moment, a red-and-black prompt suddenly popped up before his eyes.
[A new ’collaborator’ has been detected, and the task progress of the ’Social Superstar’ system has been updated.]
He was silent for a while, slowly calling up the Character Cultivation System’s panel, his gaze sweeping over the names of collaborators, flipping the task progress list to the end.
Then, Black Cocoon squinted, noticing an inexplicable name.
["Su Wei" (Third Tier Exorcist).]
The bookstore owner picked up a cup and poured himself a cup of hot coffee from the coffee machine, the gurgling water sound overshadowing Black Cocoon’s thoughts.
"Gu Wenyu... if you need help with anything, you can come to me."
As the owner spoke, he sipped his hot coffee while sitting down on the chair behind the counter, reading with downcast eyes.