novelraw Chapter 187 : Return of the Night Domination Bai Fu, Anya's Extraordinary Power!
Chapter 187 : Return of the Night Domination Bai Fu, Anya's Extraordinary Power!
Chapter 187: Return of the Night Domination Bai Fu, Anya's Extraordinary Power!
Bai Fu had never been to Azure Sky Star, but she knew more about Azure Sky Star than the vast majority of players, and even many of the natives of Azure Sky Star.
Who let her lurk in the player community and snoop around any time she wanted?
As early as when players began linking her with the Night Domination of Azure Sky Star, she had already started intentionally searching for relevant information about Azure Sky Star in the community. Recently, with some free time, she had categorized and compiled all the data she collected.
Now, even if she met a history enthusiast from Azure Sky Star, Bai Fu was confident she could engage fluently without exposing any major flaws. Even if she got some details wrong, she could explain it away by claiming she hadn’t been on Azure Sky Star for years.
What actor didn't memorize their lines or understand the backstory of their role?
As the spaceship flew toward Azure Sky Star, Bai Fu once again opened the encyclopedia she had compiled on Azure Sky Star for a final review.
...
Azure Sky Star, like the Origin Star, was a Newbie Plane, but the two had completely different styles.
Origin Star featured a nuclear apocalypse theme. Everyone, including players, sought survival in the wasteland. Azure Sky Star had not undergone disasters like Psionic Leakage during its development, but that didn’t mean it was a land of peace and prosperity. If it really were peaceful, what space would players have to shine?
In truth, Azure Sky Star was no less dangerous than Origin Star.
On this Newbie Plane where technology coexisted with mental force, the greatest threat to ordinary people came from secret cults, monsters born of mental force, and periodically occurring aberrational phenomena called Psychic Catastrophes.
Among them, Psychic Catastrophes were the root of all chaos. No one knew where this "root" came from. Monsters were born from these phenomena, and secret cults were formed by those pursuing the essence behind the aberrations.
Due to the large number of secret cults, Azure Sky Star had been in turmoil since ancient times.
This chaotic situation only escalated with the arrival of players. In Versions 1.2 and 1.3, the secret cults of Azure Sky Star finally realized the tremendous value of players. They actively recruited players into their cults, hoping to use their power to find the "root" and become a "Demon God".
Schemes, calculations, alliances, betrayals...
All sorts of mind-bending plots unfolded on Azure Sky Star. During this period, however, something absurd occurred.
The Dusk Cult—a completely unremarkable small fry among Azure Sky Star’s many secret cults—suddenly became the apple of many players’ eyes.
The first time a horde of players surged in, the leader of the Dusk Cult, the Psionic Venerable, was so scared he flipped over the backyard wall and forgot to wear shoes.
Who wouldn’t be scared?
Normally, when players charged in like that, it meant someone or some faction was doomed.
But this time, things didn’t go as the Psionic Venerable imagined. The players had come to join the Dusk Cult.
Hell, the Dusk Cult had once been powerful, sure, but now it was just a small, declining group. What right did it have to attract so many players?
Carefully inquiring, the Psionic Venerable finally learned that the reason these players wanted to join the Dusk Cult was because the Dusk Cult worshipped the Night Domination.
For a moment, he was even more confused.
Night Domination?
Though Night Domination was a Demon God, she was a fringe deity in Azure Sky Star’s many legends—associated with death, no less. Did she really hold such immense appeal?
The Psionic Venerable didn’t have time to be shocked by the players’ sudden arrival, because from that day forward, more and more came each day.
Within just a month, the Dusk Cult had become the faction on Azure Sky Star with the highest number of player recruits.
The Psionic Venerable was baffled.
He racked his brain but couldn’t make sense of it. In the end, he could only attribute it to the Night Domination.
“My goodness, the Night Domination’s manifestation is real!”
Overall, the Psionic Venerable was thrilled. As the Dusk Cult grew stronger, so did his status—but soon, he encountered something even more absurd.
“This Night Domination statue isn’t right, is it?”
Some players pointed and whispered at the statue of the Night Domination that had stood for over a hundred years.
What do you mean not right? It’s always looked like this.
The Psionic Venerable stared for ages but couldn’t spot anything odd. He wanted to say something in defense, but a player retorted, “Looks like you really don’t get it, huh?” and then replaced the statue—with a woman he had never seen before.
That woman wore a small black crown, held a black staff blooming like thorns, draped a charming cape over what appeared to be a tight-fitting outfit underneath, and even wore high heels.
The Psionic Venerable had to admit—she radiated the aura of a queen.
But...
Hey, does your Night Domination really look like that?
The legend of the Night Domination dated back centuries. Where the hell would high heels have come from back then?
The Psionic Venerable cursed loudly—and then gave in.
Change it, change it. Didn’t they say religious organizations needed to keep up with the times? Today, the Dusk Cult would go with the flow and replace their plain-looking Night Domination with this high-heeled black-stockinged goddess who fit the tastes of the youth.
Honestly, the Psionic Venerable mostly feared that not changing it would anger the players. If they abandoned him to form some new Dusk Cult, wouldn’t he be back to square one?
A small secret cult like his should bask in the limelight while it lasted. No need to overthink it.
That night.
At the Dusk Cult’s headquarters—a building that blended the beauty of natural landscapes and modern technology—the Psionic Venerable lounged in the backyard garden, leisurely admiring the moon.
Beside him, a Psionic Relaxation Device emitted a soothing blue glow and constant waves of frequencies that relaxed the mind and body.
Even so, the person who barged in next couldn’t hide the panic and urgency on their face.
“Psionic Venerable, the Drifting House has issued us an ultimatum. If we don’t submit, they’re going to take action against us.”
The Psionic Venerable was helpless.
Submit? How?
The Dusk Cult wasn’t under his control anymore. In name, he was still the Psionic Venerable, but the ratio of locals to players in the Dusk Cult had already exceeded a shocking 1:30. The difference in numbers was huge, and the gap in strength was just as bad.
Psionic Venerable sounded impressive, right?
In truth, this generation’s Psionic Venerable was only a C-grade Esper—not much stronger than players. A slightly larger group of players could easily crush him.
“Sigh, looks like these days are over. Time to run.”
The Psionic Venerable shook his head helplessly. He couldn’t afford to offend the players, nor could he go against a large cult like the Drifting House. All he could do was flee.
Zzzzt—
Not long after sending his followers away, just as the Psionic Venerable rose from his chair, a sharp noise suddenly rang out from the sky.
Enemy attack?
He quickly looked up, and then saw a blazing red streak like a meteor tearing through the night sky. After piercing the long darkness, it instantly sliced off a tree branch inside the courtyard and stabbed straight into the ground, kicking up a cloud of white dust.
“What is that?”
The Psionic Venerable was stunned. He hesitated for a full two minutes before finally mustering the courage to approach and pull out the spindle-shaped object embedded in the ground.
Seconds later, he suddenly raised both arms and burst into wild laughter.
“The Night Domination is coming back, the Night Domination is coming back!”
This unrestrained laughter immediately drew the attention of nearby players.
What? The Night Domination is coming back?
The players were baffled.
The Night Domination was Fu’er. If the Night Domination was coming back, didn’t that mean Fu’er was coming to Azure Sky Star?
No way.
Two days ago during Digging Princess’s livestream, Fu’er had still been on the way to the Star Covenant’s Initial Gate Galaxy Cluster branch. How could she suddenly appear on Azure Sky Star after just two days?
Perplexed players hurriedly messaged Digging Princess.
Since she had been on the spaceship for the past two days with nothing to do, Digging Princess had simply logged off to rest. After all, waiting offline was far shorter than waiting in-game. When she saw the messages in her inbox, she looked completely dumbfounded.
Fu’er going to Azure Sky Star? When did that happen? I really don’t know!
“Hold on, I’ll go check if it’s real or not.”
Digging Princess quickly logged back into the game. The moment she got in, she opened the game map.
Unfortunately, since the spaceship was in constant warp travel, she couldn’t determine her exact location on the map at all. Helpless, she tried looking for Bai Fu, but Bai Fu was intentionally planning a surprise reveal to boost her popularity—there was no way she’d let Digging Princess find her easily.
“Digging for treasure, digging for answers—any luck figuring it out?”
Digging Princess spread her hands helplessly. “Unless the spaceship exits warp travel, there’s no way to figure out where we are. I know you’re all anxious, I’m anxious too. Everyone wants to know if the Psionic Venerable’s ‘Night Domination’ is Fu’er, but there’s nothing we can do. Just wait a little longer.”
In a very short time, players in the community split into two camps.
Most players believed the Night Domination was Bai Fu, and Bai Fu was the Night Domination, about to head to Azure Sky Star. A smaller group immediately switched to mocking mode.
“Come on, Bai Fu was still at the Initial Gate Galaxy Cluster two days ago—how could she suddenly show up on Azure Sky Star?”
“Ha! Guess everyone was wrong. Bai Fu isn’t the Night Domination at all, she just shares a few traits.”
The community was in chaos, while the players on Azure Sky Star had their hearts hanging by a thread.
Was she really coming?
“Ahhh, I can’t take this!”
“Should I join the Dusk Cult right now?”
“Wait, my current faction has been targeting the Dusk Cult lately. If Fu’er returns, will she think I’m the enemy?”
In truth, many players on Azure Sky Star only admired Bai Fu, unlike the Origin Star players who worshipped her obsessively. After all, they hadn’t experienced the benefits of Bai Fu’s presence, nor had they shared adventures with her.
But upon hearing that Bai Fu might be coming to Azure Sky Star, they still couldn’t help feeling nervous.
If Bai Fu did arrive, they might enjoy the same treatment Origin Star players received. Some might even get to follow Fu’er into the stars.
This was a chance to enter space two versions ahead of schedule!
Azure Sky Star’s players were both excited and cautious, afraid that if Bai Fu wasn’t the Night Domination, they’d end up disappointed.
In any case, the allure of the Star Sea Succubus Fu’er was on full display at that moment.
Many Azure Sky Star players felt like they were going crazy.
Ahhh, why did Fu’er suddenly disappear at such a critical time? If not, Digging Princess could have just asked her directly!
Could Fu’er be part fox spirit? How else could she be so good at teasing people?
Fox spirit?
Yeah, yeah, I specialize in tickling hearts with my tail.
In her room, Bai Fu laughed as she watched players react from all directions.
As for her deliberate silence and refusal to reveal her destination to the players, Yulia responded with two eye rolls.
Such a rotten personality—classic you!
“Wanna run some experiments?”
Yulia extended the invitation.
Bai Fu considered for a moment, then nodded.
She had nothing better to do anyway. She might as well take this opportunity to layer more effects onto the Heart of the Apostle. She had already layered two times, gaining 15 points of Inspiration. With more experiments with Yulia, she could soon complete the third layer.
While Bai Fu was pushing Yulia to the point of spiritual exhaustion, the leaders of various secret cults on Azure Sky Star weren’t doing so well either.
“What’s going on?”
They were shocked to find that players who normally followed orders after receiving quests were suddenly acting rebellious.
New quests?
Not accepting them.
Already accepted new quests?
Not doing them for now.
When asked why, they only sighed. Occasionally, a few who were willing to speak all mentioned the same name—
Night Domination!
What? The Night Domination?
The cult leaders had once suspected that all players were summoned by the Demon God Night Domination, but since their investigations turned up no supporting evidence, they gradually dismissed the idea and focused on recruiting players to do work.
But today’s events seemed to scream that players really were summoned by the Night Domination!
Some cult leaders began to worry—maybe Demon Gods were real.
Others had the exact opposite reaction. If the Night Domination truly existed, then the Demon Gods they worshipped or coveted must also be real.
Good, good.
In the legends of Azure Sky Star, many Demon Gods born from the Root once roamed the world. These gods clashed constantly and refused to coexist, their conflicts ultimately erupting in the Night of the Gods, where the Demon Gods battled and perished one by one.
It was worth mentioning that, according to legend, these Demon Gods were born from the Root, so they could not truly die and would return when the time was right.
So now—was this the moment foretold, when the gods would return?
Some of the leaders of the secret cults became excited.
The Night Domination was only a fringe Demon God in Azure Sky Star's legends. Among the many Demon Gods who appeared during the Night of the Gods, she wasn’t considered powerful. Backed by stronger Demon Gods, they had no reason to fear.
All they needed was to look forward to the arrival of a grand era for Demon Gods!
The day after receiving the news, the leader of the Drifting House led a large group straight to the gates of the Dusk Cult.
This time, he had specifically prepared a ritual to summon the Lord of Time he worshipped. The moment the Night Domination appeared, he would summon the Lord of Time to devour her and seize control over all the players.
With the Lord of Time above him as backing and countless players beneath his feet as stepping stones, under his leadership, the Drifting House would surely become the true king of Azure Sky Star—even the great nations would have to submit.
Once crowned king—heheh—naturally, he had even greater ambitions.
The leader of the Drifting House ultimately aimed to seize the Root and become a true undying Demon God, eternally ruling over Azure Sky Star. For that goal, he would stop at nothing and was willing to take the greatest risks.
But he wasn’t the only one with that ambition. Not long after arriving at the Dusk Cult, he discovered that members of other cults had also shown up.
Everyone wanted to see what the Night Domination looked like. Everyone wanted to use her to reach the legendary Root.
“Heh...”
The leader of the Drifting House swept his gaze across the scene and sneered coldly.
Since everyone wanted a piece, then it was every man for himself.
His eyes finally landed on the Psionic Venerable.
Under everyone’s gaze, the Psionic Venerable grew uneasy. Although that spindle-shaped object had conveyed a Psychic Phenomenon foretelling the Night Domination’s return, would she really return? If not, he was in big trouble today.
The Psionic Venerable waited anxiously, and so did the surrounding players. The most critical moment was here—whether Fu’er was really the Night Domination would be decided today!
...
Oh?
Watching the livestream from players on the ground, Bai Fu couldn’t help but raise her eyebrows.
She had launched a spindle-shaped probe toward Azure Sky Star in advance to generate buzz. She didn’t expect that in raising hype, she’d also draw many major secret cults of Azure Sky Star.
What a wonderful opportunity.
This time, she came to Azure Sky Star partly to open up a blue ocean and extract experience from Azure Sky Star players to nourish herself, and partly to collect the main questline rewards from Azure Sky Star.
These secret cults were key participants in the main storyline of Azure Sky Star. Now that they had all gathered here, she no longer had to find them one by one.
“In that case, no need to keep looping around Azure Sky Star with the warp engine on. Shut down the warp engine.”
Bai Fu sent a message to Xia Shi.
“Received.”
Xia Shi nodded and pressed the engine control switch.
As the black domain behind the spaceship gradually faded, the ship officially exited warp travel.
At that very moment, Digging Princess, who had been waiting anxiously, suddenly noticed a change in the view outside the ship. The vessel had returned to normal space, and in the far distance, a planet could vaguely be seen. The ship seemed to be heading straight toward it at high speed.
She immediately opened the game map. On the map, three characters above the planet seized her gaze—
Azure Sky Star!
“Yes!”
A shout of excitement echoed through the spaceship cockpit.
Even without her explanation, the nearby players knew exactly what she was shouting about—because they had also just opened the map.
“They’re back. I feel it. They’re all back!”
After Digging Princess posted a screenshot of the map in the community and started a livestream, all disputes disappeared. The hearts of Azure Sky Star players, once suspended in mid-air, were finally relieved—then bounced back up like a trampoline.
“Fu’er is here!”
“Hahaha, now we get the same treatment as Origin Star players!”
“To the Star Sea! I’m going to the Star Sea!”
Cheers erupted like thunder, shattering the heavy atmosphere at the gate of the Dusk Cult.
The leaders of various secret cults were completely confused. They tried to understand what the players were yelling about, but due to game mechanics, many key terms were filtered into censored beeps in their ears.
Fu’er? Who was that?
And what did it mean to go to the Star Sea?
Just as they were about to seize some players for interrogation, a strange sound suddenly echoed from the sky. They quickly looked up—and witnessed a sight they would never forget.
A spaceship—a massive ship stretching a kilometer long, like a monstrous beast—emerged from the clouds!
The secret cult leaders were dumbfounded.
The spaceship hovered in midair without descending further. After a moment, a smaller craft flew out from it, dived down, and stopped twenty meters above the ground.
The gust stirred up by its descent messed up people’s hairstyles, but no one cared anymore. Everyone simply stared, not daring to even breathe.
As the hatch on the left side of the craft opened, six people jumped out one after another.
The girl at the front looked exactly like the newly erected Night Domination statue in the Dusk Cult these past few days.
No, she didn’t just look the same—she wore the exact same outfit. A black headpiece, a dark staff in her hand.
When the tip of her high heels touched the ground, the girl spoke.
“I heard you’ve all been waiting for me to return?”
Bai Fu used a translator, and the voice that emerged spoke the common language of Azure Sky Star.
No one answered.
The entire scene fell silent, every eye locked on her.
The Night Domination had truly returned!
That alone wasn’t too shocking. What shocked everyone was that the Night Domination had returned by spaceship!
What the hell? An alien? Was the Night Domination actually an alien?
The leader of the Drifting House was the first to voice the question on everyone’s minds: “Why did you come from the sky?”
Bai Fu replied with a smile: “Just took a trip out there. Naturally, I returned from the sky.”
The leader of the Drifting House gritted his teeth.
No, there was no time to hesitate or be curious anymore. Since the Night Domination had already appeared, they had to quickly summon the Lord of Time!
“Hurry!”
The leader of the Drifting House shouted. His members immediately sprang into action. They were scared too—while summoning, they silently prayed, fearing Bai Fu might strike and interrupt their ritual.
But to their surprise, Bai Fu hadn’t moved a muscle the entire time. Instead, she gave them an encouraging look, as if saying, “Don’t rush, take your time. You must summon the Demon Gods.”
That was exactly what Bai Fu wanted.
Summon them first, so she could deal with those Demon Gods afterward!
What disappointed her was that after all the trouble these secret cults caused, they hadn’t summoned a single thing.
Worthless. She had been hopeful for quite a while.
Cold sweat dripped from the Drifting House leader’s forehead. The Night Domination had appeared—this meant the legend was true! Yet why couldn’t he summon anything?
Try again?
Probably not. Running away was unlikely to succeed either. Now there was no choice but to fight.
At that thought, he gave his entire team an attack order and launched a psychic assault on Bai Fu himself immediately.
Hundreds of skills flew toward Bai Fu, hundreds of submachine guns spat fire at her.
Bai Fu didn’t dodge or move, standing silently in place.
Skills? Bullets?
They all sank like stones, not even disturbing a single strand of her hair, much less piercing her clothes.
“It’s been a long time since I fought such weak opponents. Truly nostalgic,” Bai Fu smiled. She could easily block bullets back on Origin Star, let alone now.
Facing their horrified faces, she glanced at Anya.
“Most of these people are mental espers. Leave them to you.”
It was a good chance for Anya to practice.
“Leave it to me, boss!”
Anya had been eager for action. Despite her youthful appearance, she was a bona fide B-rank psionicist now. Those dissociative agents weren’t used for nothing.
“Damn!”
The Drifting House leader did not underestimate Anya’s small stature, but by the time he realized the danger, it was too late.
Psychic shocks rippled outward like water waves, centered on Anya’s body. The attack was ruthless. Except for the few NPCs who had already reached B-rank strength, hundreds of others fell instantly, convulsing on the ground.
“Holy shit!”
“When did Anya get so strong?”
“I thought I could beat Anya now. Turns out I was dreaming.”
Terrifying!
Absolutely terrifying!
Even the players were stunned, let alone the surrounding NPCs, who turned pale and trembled.
This was the Demon God, her entourage?
Impossible to defeat them!
Despair spread rapidly.
The Drifting House leader retreated step by step, but after only a few steps, he felt an invisible force grip him. No matter how he struggled, it was useless.
“Did I let you leave?” Bai Fu snorted coldly. “I’m back to end the Demon God chaos once and for all, to bring peace back to Azure Sky Star. Tell me everything you know about the Demon Gods. Don’t try to hide anything, or I’ll show you the true horror of the Night Domination!”
The Drifting House leader opened his mouth slightly. After more than ten seconds, he lowered his head in defeat.
Resist?
They weren’t even on the same level. Besides obedience, what else could he do?
While players howled excitedly and the leaders of the secret cults gathered at the Dusk Cult honestly confessed, the news of Bai Fu’s arrival on Azure Sky Star spread to other secret cult leaders.
The Night Domination descended from the sky!
Hold a meeting! Gather everyone quickly!
To deal with this sudden troublemaker, the only plan now was to unite all their forces!