Seeing Stelle's expression grow more and more deranged, Pei Guang was completely dumbfounded for a moment.
But then, thinking about it, he realized that he was usually the weirder one: maybe Stelle had just learned it from him.
Not really a big deal.
Sensing Pei Guang's gaze, Stelle snapped back to reality. "Huh? What's wrong? You need me to do something?"
Pei Guang shook his head. "No, I just wanted to tell you not to wander off. Even though that monster decided to set up an ambush ahead of time, if it sees us splitting up and changes its mind, that'd be annoying."
"Relax," Stelle said confidently. "I've learned your advanced anti-flag techniques!"
While Stelle joked around, Pei Guang pulled out his synthesis pot and got ready to craft. No recipe, no skill—just pure luck.
He tossed in everything labeled "Memetic Fragment" from the current map, Memory Zone: he kept one of each for later and then dumped the rest in without hesitation. The pot made a series of crackling noises before going silent again.
When it finally quieted down, Pei Guang opened the lid, and found a four-leaf clover with leaves bigger than his head and a thin, spindly stem.
"No matter how many times I see it, this ability is just… absurd."
Firefly had watched him dump a whole pile of monster materials and random junk into that pot—and a few seconds later, a perfectly normal-looking four-leaf clover popped out.
There was just no logic to it!
"Absurd?" Pei Guang said. "This is science! If you ask me, games where people clap their hands and boom, instant alchemy, that's even worse. Let's see what we got—holy crap!"
He picked up the clover, eyes going wide.
"What's wrong?" Stelle asked. "Is that thing special or something?"
Pei Guang twirled the four-leaf clover experimentally. As he waved it, the clover began to spin like a tiny windmill.
Watching it spin, Pei Guang checked the system description. "Special? Yeah. So special that even I'm not sure how broken it is."
[One-time Item: Miraculous Four-Leaf Clover]
[Miraculous Four-Leaf Clover: Infuse it with energy to activate. Once activated, it creates an area of effect based on the amount of energy infused. All enemies within that area who are airborne will be forcibly blown to a designated location. Flying enemies can be stopped by obstacles.]
Among all the weapons and items Pei Guang had ever obtained, every single one did exactly what the description said: no tricks, no hidden effects. The code said what it did, and it always worked.
A normal person might think the item was weak.
Airborne enemies only? Limited range? One-time use? Sounds lame.
But for a gamer, especially one who's played games where "the description is law", this was god-tier.
"Airborne" meant anyone not touching the ground. Even enemies attacking mid-air counted. As long as they were even slightly off the ground, they could be blown away.
And since the effect was forced, that made it one of the most broken mechanics possible, even if it was single-use.
You could use it to keep enemies suspended longer after launching them. Or interrupt airborne bosses and cancel their ultimates.
Everyone knew: the stronger the ultimate, the higher the boss floats—and when they're midair, that's the perfect time to use this thing.
Instant humiliation.
Pei Guang checked the crafting recipe and discovered the materials weren't even rare: just an eyeball from a "Something Unto Death" and a few drops from Remembrance-type memes.
And the recipe didn't specify which eyeball: any "Something Unto Death" would do.
Seeing that, Pei Guang grinned and licked his lips in excitement.
A powerful enemy was scary, sure, but if strong enemies dropped useful loot, that changed the entire nature of the game.
And on top of that, the "Something Unto Death" itself floated constantly. Meaning…
At that realization, a sly, almost villainous smile spread across Pei Guang's face: so smug it was practically glowing.
Stelle didn't know why he was laughing, but she started laughing along anyway.
Firefly, who had been wondering the same thing, ended up joining in too—the laughter was contagious.
In that moment, the dreamscape echoed with the laughter of three lunatics. And upon hearing it, the Remembrance-type memes and the Dream Troupe members nearby froze.
Those who could hide, hid. Those who couldn't shrank into corners, praying they wouldn't be noticed.
After a while, Pei Guang stopped laughing and looked curiously at Stelle and Firefly. "I was laughing because I got a new toy. What are you two laughing at?"
Stelle shrugged. "You looked happy, so I'm happy for you."
Firefly giggled. "I just heard you two laughing and couldn't help it… What does that little thing do, anyway?"
Pei Guang nodded seriously. "Oh, it's a good one. This item can pull in every airborne enemy within range—very handy stuff."
He didn't bother explaining further. Instead, he poured all his energy into the clover. In an instant, it began spinning furiously, like a tiny storm.
"It's spinning?" Firefly said in awe.
As it spun faster and faster, a powerful gust erupted through the area. Firefly could feel the wind roaring against her, yet somehow it didn't affect her at all.
The monsters scattered throughout the space, on the other hand, together with even the floating text fragments around them, were all caught in the gale and dragged forward uncontrollably.
That's right: even monsters walking on the ground got swept up. Because as long as a creature lifted its foot off the floor, that foot was technically "airborne." The moment that happened, the wind grabbed hold and, if the foot went, the rest of the monster followed.
Within just a few breaths, Firefly's eyes went wide in shock.
"So… so many!"
She watched as one monster after another was blown toward them.
If it were only monsters, that would've been one thing: but she even saw the floating words in the air being swept along, too.
Staring at the letters drifting toward them, Firefly couldn't help but comment, "Those… count as enemies too?"