["Honkai: Star Rail will undergo maintenance tonight..."
"...merging updates for versions 1.1 and 1.2..."
"Expected downtime is 30 minutes; players will receive maintenance compensation and update rewards..."]
After reading the full content of the announcement, Guinaifen could barely contain her ecstatic expression!
Her lips stretched upwards uncontrollably, bursting with joy!
"[Zhao Xiangji] and [Banned Account], you two did an outstanding job!"
"Now Feathered Spirit must be panicking for sure!"
"They had to rush an overnight update!"
"And it's updating two versions at once!"
"Fierce battle! So thrilling!"
"Tonight, Little Gui continues the epic fight!"
"Bringing you the latest game storyline developments right away!"
"The relationship between Dan Heng and Imbibitor Lunae! What's next for the Astral Express Crew? Are there more hidden dangers lurking at Luofu?"
"Tune in to Little Gui's stream tonight! We'll reveal everything one by one!"
After Guinaifen finished speaking,
the chat erupted with cheers.
Gifts flooded the stream like money was no object!
"Knock, knock, knock..."
A series of knocks sounded on the door.
Sushang, seated on the couch, instantly went on high alert.
She asked on behalf of Little Gui, "Who is it?"
"And who might 'me' be?" Sushang continued interrogating.
"Aiya! It's that young man!" Guinaifen recognized the voice immediately.
Excitedly, she rushed to open the door. "Young man, long time no see! Or wait, not really that long."
"What brings you here?"
Lin Yu smiled warmly. "Since I'm settling down temporarily nearby, I brought some local specialties from my hometown for you to try." He handed over a small box to Guinaifen.
"Oh, how kind of you! But I already mentioned wanting to treat you to dinner..."
"We're all outlanders; it's only natural to look after each other."
"Well then, I must take my leave now. My little sister is waiting at home, insisting I play games with her."
"Bye! Feel free to watch my stream when you get back, okay?"
Reuniting with the young man again brought immense joy to Guinaifen's heart.
Returning to her seat, she eagerly opened the local specialty gift Lin Yu had given her.
"What's this delicious treat? It looks like a box of cookies. Shangshang, try some too!"
After streaming for so long, Guinaifen was indeed feeling hungry.
She took a bite of a cookie.
Her eyes suddenly lit up!
"This is absolutely scrumptious!"
"Huh? Wait! I suddenly feel incredibly energetic and satisfied!"
Sushang also displayed a look of disbelief.
Rushing to the mirror, she pinched her cheeks.
"Not only am I full of energy, but my complexion looks much better too, as if I've had a month-long rest!"
"Oh my gosh! Little Gui!"
"Could these local specialties from your friend be some kind of magical elixir?"
"You know what, it might just be!"
Guinaifen hastily wrapped up the remaining cookies, cherishing them carefully.
"I'll have to properly thank that young man later."
Returning to her stream:
"Alright, everyone! Little Gui here has fully recharged and is back!"
"There's still some time before the update, let's aim to complete another side quest during this break!"
"Little Gui is always so full of energy! That's fantastic!"
"Honestly! I'm more impressed by you than anything else out there!"
"Did Little Gui secretly apply makeup? Or did she enable a beauty filter? Suddenly, she looks much better than before!"
"Now that Little Gui is a top-tier streamer with the whole universe watching, it's definitely important to maintain her image."
This time, Guinaifen selected a side quest on Jarilo-VI.
She let out a heavy sigh and posed a soul-searching question, "You've been hiding all the knives in these side quests, haven't you?! Feathered Spirit!"
"You heartless developer!"
"If I ever find you, I'll definitely... give you a fierce punch!" she exclaimed vehemently.
The recently completed quest took place in Belobog's Underworld district, at an underground boxing arena.
A boxer donned armor from rift creatures to provide for his wife and daughter.
Initially strong, he quickly grew weak but continued donating a portion of his earnings.
In the end, when he died, not even his body remained intact.
Guinaifen was stunned by this scene for a long moment.
It was now precisely the top of the hour.
The game automatically logged out.
"It's going for an update!"
"Luckily, the update will only take 30 minutes; just sit tight for a bit."
"My fellow players, let's speculate on who might be added to the card pool after the update. After all, Feathered Spirit hasn't announced it yet."
"Little Gui guesses there'll be Luocha, but I'm not sure about the others..."
"It's here, it's here!"
"No more guessing! Feathered Spirit's official card pool announcement is out!"
"Looks like Feathered Spirit was forced to become their own spoiler!"
Guinaifen, constantly refreshing the forum, naturally spotted this new announcement as well.
Instantly, goosebumps covered her skin!
In these two merged major updates, who would become playable characters? What abilities and mechanics would they introduce? How would they impact the current game environment?
With these questions swirling in her mind, she clicked on Feathered Spirit's announcement post! The first card pool that caught her eye was...
Protocol Zero: Silver Wolf!
Not just Guinaifen—every player was stunned upon seeing this card pool.
"The first one isn't Luocha..."
"A Stellaron Hunter!"
"Wait, already available so soon?"
"I thought we'd have to wait much longer for the chance to draw Silver Wolf!"
Below the card pool reveal, there was also a corresponding link:
[Honkai: Star Rail - Silver Wolf Character PV - [Quite Intriguing]]
"A Stellaron Hunter's character PV?"
"W-wait, is this something I'm allowed to watch?" Guinaifen felt her mouth go dry.
Above Scalegorge Waterscape, on board the ship:
In the cabin, March 7th and Stelle sat together on one side, while Silver Wolf and Kafka occupied the other. Each had a screen before them, their gazes seemingly glued to its content.
"The first card pool after the update is..."
March 7th covered her eyes with her hand, then cautiously peeked through her fingers.
Her expression turned incredulous as she looked at Silver Wolf seated across from her.
"It's you?! Already?"
Kafka leaned forward behind Silver Wolf, placing one hand on the table.
"Nice work, Silver Wolf," she said. "I can't believe Feathered Spirit released you this early."
"Oh~ there's another character PV below; let's watch it together."
"It might be quite interesting."
March 7th hastily whispered to Stelle, "Quick, go fetch Uncle Yang. This video could reveal some secrets about the Stellaron Hunters! We need to stay ahead of the curve."
Stelle scratched his head. "Are we considered allies with the Stellaron Hunters now?"
"We're just...just temporarily setting aside our differences and joining forces as players!"