Chapter Fourteen: The Great Surge of Merit Points!

"System!"
Host: Yu Fei
Physique: 1.2
Spirit: 1.0
Skills: Combat LV.2 (0/100), Marksmanship LV.2 (0/100), Computer LV.2 (0/100)
Merit Points: 67

Yu Fei had spent eleven merit points to upgrade his computer skill, but then turned around and earned thirty more. Between the deduction and the addition, his merit points had not decreased; instead, they had reached a total of sixty-seven.

"Getting closer and closer to one hundred merit points."

Sixty-seven points meant he was two-thirds of the way to his goal. Yu Fei couldn't help but feel a surge of anticipation. He wondered just how much help he would receive once a skill reached LV.3. LV.2 was already at the level of a quasi-boxing champion or quasi-marksman; surely LV.3 would be the absolute pinnacle of human ability?

Considering that the gap between LV.2 and LV.3 was based on a tenfold increase in time and effort, the improvement should be immense. "Even if physical limitations and natural talent prevent a true tenfold difference, surely dealing with two or three boxing champions or marksmen wouldn't be a problem, right?"

Once he reached that level, even in the Marvel Universe, he would no longer be a weakling. At the very least, the street-level heroes or criminals there wouldn't necessarily be stronger than him.

"Not only that, but this computer skill seems to have increased my Spirit attribute by a bit?"

When the computer skill reached LV.2, Yu Fei could feel his spirit receive a minor boost, though it was very slight. On his status panel, it amounted to an increase of roughly 0.01 to 0.02. Such a subtle improvement naturally wouldn't show up on the system interface.

"It seems that not only the Physique attribute but also the Spirit attribute can be 'farmed' through skill upgrades. This computer skill is a clear example. It’s just that the synergy between the computer skill and the Spirit attribute is quite low, and since my own Spirit attribute isn't low to begin with, it’s unlikely to yield a 0.3 increase like the combat skill did."

To gain such a significant attribute boost, Yu Fei would first need to find a skill with a higher affinity for the Spirit attribute. "Well, I'll think about that later."

Yu Fei set the thought aside for now. Increasing his Spirit attribute wasn't a priority, and there was no need to go out of his way to find specific skills to upgrade. In fact, even with the computer skill, he wouldn't have upgraded it if it hadn't proven useful. Merit points were hard-earned; he had to spend every single one where it counted.

***

"What should we do now? Should we remove the Red Queen’s motherboard first?" James turned to look at Yu Fei.

After this series of events, the group had begun to implicitly look to Yu Fei as their leader. Even James, the leader of the assault team, would subconsciously seek Yu Fei’s opinion when faced with critical issues.

"Hmm, let's not touch the Red Queen’s motherboard yet." Yu Fei pondered for a moment before vetoing James's suggestion. "The Red Queen’s motherboard is linked to the internal operating network of the entire laboratory. Once removed, the entire Hive facility will reboot!"

"Don't forget, the entire Hive is now a nest for zombies. What do you think will happen if the laboratory reboots?"

"It would mean..."

"Zombies unleashed!"

"Hiss!" Everyone gasped in horror. If that scenario came to pass, they would be trapped with a horde of zombies!

"Then we should just leave the motherboard alone! We don't need to complete the mission anyway. We already have control over the laboratory and can view the surveillance feeds at any time; it makes no difference whether we have that motherboard or not," Rain suggested.

Her point gained approval from many in the group. Since they had already been treated as expendable, why bother with the mission objective regarding the motherboard? As long as they didn't touch it, the Hive's internal network would continue to run. It was hard to say for how long, but it would be long enough for them to leave.

"No!" Yu Fei rejected this proposal as well. "Whether we complete the mission isn't the point, but having the motherboard is critical—it determines whether the Umbrella Corporation will decide to hit us with a missile!"

The higher-ups at Umbrella knew the internal situation of the Hive far better than they did. The main reason they hadn't wiped out the laboratory yet was the Red Queen’s motherboard. The board functioned as an artificial intelligence—plug-and-play and incredibly powerful. Although Umbrella later created the White Queen, her capabilities were clearly inferior to the Red Queen’s. Therefore, they would never willingly abandon that motherboard.

"Ugh!" Rain was left speechless. Given her understanding of the Umbrella Corporation, they might hesitate slightly over a missile, but they wouldn't have any reservations about using rockets or other heavy weaponry. Without the Red Queen’s motherboard as a bargaining chip, they would likely be blown to bits the moment they stepped outside.

"Then what should we do now?"

***

Alice also frowned and asked, "If we take the motherboard, we face a mountain of zombies. If we don't, we face heavy artillery fire. Neither choice seems like a good idea."

"It's simple: we just need to clear out the zombies first!" Yu Fei said calmly.

"Hm?" The group looked puzzled for a moment. James was the first to react. "You mean we should use our control over the lab to open the labs one by one and clear out the zombies bit by bit? That’s actually a good idea!"

Everyone's eyes lit up. Only Kaplan, looking at his handheld computer, shook it and said, "Guys, I hate to be a wet blanket, but we don't have much time! If the people outside don't see any activity from us after a certain point, then..."

He didn't finish his sentence, but everyone understood what he meant.

"No time to lose, let's start immediately!" Yu Fei decided decisively. "Let's deal with the monsters in the B-Restaurant first!"

The group headed to the B-Restaurant. The cryo-chambers there were still intact, and none of the Lickers had escaped.

"Give me the computer in your hand." Yu Fei took the handheld device from Kaplan. It was already connected to the Hive's internal network, granting him total control over the facility.

*Beep, beep, beep!*

After a few quick operations by Yu Fei, all the Lickers were incinerated in a sea of fire, consumed completely by the flames.

"Ding!"
"Host acts with benevolence, merit is immeasurable!"
"Merit Points +100!"