Now that she had decided on her plan, it was time to prepare properly.
Time for a long-overdue upgrade!
Her current Points totaled... 3,950,000. Qin Yu stared at the number for a moment before a smile spread across her face.
Such a delightful number.
Yet when she recalled the source—mostly from kissing—her expression turned awkward.
So that method really yields a lot of Points. If I'd done more of that earlier, I'd have even more now... No, no, I can't think like that.
Ignoring the source of the Points for now, Qin Yu focused on the Skill Tree.
First, what's the biggest weakness in my current combat system?
I'm versatile—capable of close combat, ranged attacks, shields, healing, flight, and stealth. Sounds all-powerful, but...
My endurance is lacking.
All her active Skills relied on stamina consumption. Now that her system was relatively complete, improving her endurance was the optimal choice.
Against an enemy as formidable as Childe, maintaining sustained combat capability was paramount.
It didn't take Qin Yu long to find the relevant Skill in the latest unlockable Skill Tree:
[Biological Battery I - Special Universal Skill. When using any Skill that consumes "Energy," you can choose to replenish it with the Biological Battery's reserves instead of Stamina. The Biological Battery automatically recharges slowly at all times, but you can also actively recharge it by spending Stamina. ]
Currently, many of Qin Yu's Skills were tied to "Energy."
And since the [ Biological Battery ] could be used by both combat-oriented and production-oriented Skills, it was the ideal Skill for enhancing her endurance.
"Six hundred thousand Points... I guess I have no choice but to allocate them."
She upgraded it once more.
Energy capacity expanded, and the automatic recharge efficiency slightly improved. That should suffice for now.
Next, she upgraded another versatile passive Skill:
[Human Transformation MAX - Your body has undergone the highest-level modification upgrade. The "Smart Core" device now assists your movements while unlocking a wireless interface, halving the Energy consumption of all Skills and Abilities. Permanently enhances your physical capabilities, increasing all Attribute Points by +30 except for "Sensitivity," and grants you the secondary active Skill "Overclock." The effects of "Overclock" are maximized. ]
[ Overclock ]—a sub-skill of [ Human Transformation ]. Upon activation, it slows down time while drastically enhancing one's physical abilities for a short duration. The effect lasts 16 seconds, after which the user enters a state of near-paralysis for 1 second. It consumes a significant amount of energy.
I never imagined I'd max out Human Transformation one day, Qin Yu mused.
Halved energy consumption and improved endurance? Perfect.
As expected, unlocking the Skill Tree is far more rewarding than simply increasing attributes.
At least for now.
The later skills seem to require millions of Points each. They're undoubtedly powerful, but obtaining them will be difficult without significantly raising my Evaluation first.
After this, I should focus most of my Points on attributes.
I currently have 2.2 million Points.
What else do I need?
Celestial System? It's sufficient for now. Unless there's a significant upgrade, I don't need to rush it.
Armament Platform? Hmm... Qin Yu hesitated, scrolling through the Skill Tree panel.
Sister Ganyu said that choosing the high-risk solution—extracting the wicked entity formed from the Wicked Mark—would result in an uncontrollable and potentially extremely powerful being.
Assuming it's a high-level enemy seems prudent.
She thought of Childe.
Fighting such an experienced enemy, where many attacks would be anticipated and countered, was an utterly dreadful experience. Qin Yu had no desire to repeat it.
If she were to fight again, it would have to be under circumstances where she could completely overwhelm her opponent.
But how could she achieve such overwhelming dominance?
Qin Yu pondered,
First, maximize her own enhancements to unleash nuclear-level damage. If she could instantly kill her enemy, she wouldn't take any damage.
Second, develop comprehensive countermeasures to prevent her opponent from dealing any damage, thus avoiding injury.
Ultimately, it was a choice between offense and defense.
After careful thought, Qin Yu concluded that a high margin for error was paramount.
In that case...
Her gaze fell upon a newly unlockable skill:
Apex Trooper—Requires Human Transformation MAX. Your body undergoes initial Optimal Evolution, and your Smart Core evolves into an Apex Core, retaining all original functions. While your attributes remain unchanged, all your modifications can now operate flawlessly, paving the way for further evolution paths. Grants the passive skill "Data Collection" and the active skill "Causality Calculation."
Data Collection—Apex Trooper auxiliary skill. Automatically collects all enemy data upon entering combat. Data collection rate directly affects the effectiveness of "Causality Law Calculation."
Causality Calculation—When activated, this skill processes data collected by [ Data Collection ] to calculate and display information in your mind such as "future attack angles," "optimal attack timing," and "predicted movement patterns." It consumes minimal energy but requires continuous operation. The accuracy of the results depends on the data collection rate; the more data collected, the higher the accuracy.
This skill requires 1,800,000 Points, but its effects are truly extraordinary.
While it doesn't directly enhance your attributes, it unlocks the [ Causality Law Calculation ] as a primary auxiliary skill.
In essence, it uses data to predict the future.
The more actively an enemy moves, the better it gathers data.
Once an enemy stops moving, you can simply bury them—no further data collection required.
The longer the battle lasts, the greater your chances of victory.
It's a top-tier countermeasure, though regrettably, its utility is limited to combat.
Still, that's more than enough.
Qin Yu pondered for a moment, then activated the skill. Immediately, a surge of warmth coursed through her body, as if internal changes were occurring.
Soon, everything returned to normal.
Qin Yu wiggled her fingers, noticing they felt even more agile than when she had first maxed out her Human Transformation. Was this just her imagination?
While her attributes remained unchanged, she now felt she had far better control over her body. This vague sensation surfaced in her mind as she exhaled deeply.
"Excellent!"
With this, her combat prowess had increased significantly.
This boost in strength gave Qin Yu a greater sense of security.
Yet the thought of deliberately venturing into dangerous territory still made her uneasy.
"It'll be fine. It's nothing too serious," Qin Yu reassured herself.
Unable to endure prolonged suffering, she had no choice but to opt for a short burst of pain.
Even now, her conviction remained unchanged: she could only protect herself; relying on others was not an option. That's why she wouldn't actively seek out Shenhe or the others.
No dependence.
Moreover, she didn't even have the right to burden them with her troubles.
Keqing and Shenhe's words flashed through her mind.
Family... Is this really the right thing to do? No, precisely because we're family, I can't let them worry, right? This is perfectly normal. There's nothing strange about it.
Qin Yu convinced herself.
"That's right, being alone is best. Once this is resolved, I can finally live with Shenhe..." Qin Yu murmured, lying down.
Meanwhile, Cloud Retainer had found Shenhe.
After explaining the situation in detail, Shenhe pondered for a moment before replying, "I understand. Rest assured, Master, I won't let her face this alone."
"Absolutely not."