Chapter 101: Increased Exploration, Unlocking the Opportunity for Advanced Classes [5k]
Jiujiao handed Bai Fu two maps: one of the current Goli Desert and another from before it became a desert. Both maps had a conspicuous red cross marked at the same coordinates.
[Parapsychic Research Institute Branch No. 2]
Next to the red cross was Jiujiao’s note.
By observing the maps, Bai Fu discovered that the location of the institute used to be an uninhabited river valley. However, after the [Great Calamity], the entire Goli region transformed into a desert, rendering distinctions between hills, valleys, or cliffs meaningless—now all one could see were endless sands.
“It’s over 300 kilometers away from Shelter No. 11; no wonder Elder Nissen couldn’t return after leaving the institute.”
Without the map function aid provided by players, even with the pre-calamity map of the Goli region, finding that institute would have been extremely difficult.
“The remarkable contributions you’ve made will be remembered by all the sages of Silent Courtyard!”
Bai Fu lavishly praised Jiujiao and the players in the expedition team.
Not long ago, she had awarded medals for outstanding achievements in martial arts competitions.
The medal is called the Explorer Medal, its design need not change, just switch the color to gold, and this unique attribute will stand out.
Technology relies on changing shells, honor depends on changing colors—it makes perfect sense!
Bai Fu prepared more than a dozen colors for the Eye of Heaven Medal. If all these colors were used up, then slightly modify the shape of the medal, add some embellishments, and start a new round of color changes.
After sending off Jiujiao, Bai Fu went to Elder Nissen’s tavern and retrieved Xiao Xiao Youlia from her box hidden upstairs.
“How do you feel?”
Upon hearing that some of her loved ones chose suicide so as not to burden her, Xiao Xiao Youlia suffered a heavy blow, causing her emotions to spiral out of control.
But after about ten days of recuperation, she seemed to gradually accept reality.
Grieving and anger alone are useless; one must find ways to make those who persecuted her grieve, or even lose their ability to grieve!
“Help me take revenge! As long as you can help me take revenge, I’ll do anything you ask!”
Though lying in her hand was merely a doll, Bai Fu inexplicably felt a chilling sensation of being watched.
She couldn’t help but think that Youlia seemed like someone destined to turn into a villainous boss.
Upon reflection, it was a classic setup: a kind character betrayed by those she once trusted, losing freedom, family, and friends alike.
Finally, overwhelmed by despair and oppression, she turned dark.
As the saying goes, when one turns dark, they become three times stronger. In a fit of rage, her newfound power allowed her to annihilate her enemies, but by then, there was no turning back.
Once in the abyss, there’s no return!
After countless self-proclaimed superhero NPCs fell, the next to arrive on the battlefield were—
Players following the clues of the main quest!
[As long as you show your health bar, even gods will be killed.]
“Could Youlia’s storyline really unfold like this?”
Bai Fu paused, then shook her head.
Even if it was originally set up this way, now it must have deviated.
The reason is simple: due to her interference, the person most important to Youlia besides her biological parents—Elder Nissen—not only isn’t in danger, but he’s living comfortably, his tavern thriving, admired by players, and his past dreams within reach.
Given the current situation, as long as Elder Nissen doesn’t meet a tragic end, Youlia won’t completely turn dark.
Bai Fu poked Xiao Xiao Youlia’s belly, realizing she had overlooked something.
Previously, she had been thinking about how to seize the protagonist’s storyline and make herself the new lead. But what if she altered the future antagonist’s storyline, turning the future big bad into her follower? Would that yield the same benefits as seizing the protagonist’s storyline?
The more Bai Fu thought about it, the more appealing this path seemed. Even if the experiment failed, reducing the world’s number of terrifying villain bosses would still be a meritorious deed.
Having done too many exploitative things involving player resources, she needed to accumulate some cyber merits during her downtime.
Xiao Xiao Youlia stared sharply at Bai Fu, quietly waiting for her response. But what happened next was entirely unexpected.
First, Bai Fu poked her stomach, then her gaze grew increasingly intense, as if something scorching hot were about to spill out from her eyes.
“!”
She felt a chill down her spine.
Surely not, surely no one could have evil thoughts about a doll barely over 20 centimeters long, right?
Distracted by Bai Fu’s gaze, she momentarily forgot her hatred and experienced a rare moment of “tranquility.”
Bai Fu took a deep breath: “Rest assured, I will eventually dismantle the Truth Society. Today, I came here to ask for your help.”
In her conversation with Elder Nissen, he mentioned that Youlia’s spiritual energy talent was unlocked after being exposed to a beam of light in the desert. She suspected that the light might be connected to the laboratory buried under the sand, so she planned to bring Xiao Xiao Youlia there to investigate.
After listening to Bai Fu’s request, Xiao Xiao Youlia quickly agreed; having lain in the box for so long, she also wanted to go out and explore.
…
This journey took her six hours. The closer she got to the institute, the more sandworms appeared on the road, and their levels increased accordingly, giving her a growing sense of foreboding.
“What’s the situation now?”
Bai Fu arrived at the entrance of the institute, asking Elder Nissen, who had already been waiting for quite some time.
Glancing beyond Elder Nissen’s shoulder, she saw that the institute’s doors were half-buried in sand, with a small sign partially visible on the left wall. The sign read “Institute.”
Desolation, desolation interwoven with a chilling eeriness.
Bai Fu saw blood on the walls and fresh sandworm corpses near them.
Elder Nissen shook his head: “When we found this place, we discovered many sandworms inside. Fortunately, there were undead to cover us, otherwise, I might have perished here. The last time I came here, there wasn’t a single sandworm, perhaps I disturbed something I shouldn’t have when I entered the institute.”
Bai Fu nodded. She didn’t rush to enter the institute but first opened the faction management interface, assigning the institute under faction jurisdiction, and then set up a resurrection point outside the institute.
With this resurrection point, players wouldn’t have to travel for hours to return here after dying.
“Let’s go in and take a look.”
Under Elder Nissen’s guidance, Bai Fu familiarized herself with the interior of the institute.
Just as Elder Nissen had said, all security facilities inside the institute were destroyed, and every few steps revealed a skeleton lying on the ground. One could imagine the fierce battles that once occurred here.
“On the walls, doors, skeletons… Are these claw marks? Animal claws or mechanical ones?”
Bai Fu reached out to touch a skeleton on the ground.
Some timid players deliberately stood far away, unable to bear how realistic the skeletons looked, even with the harmony mode activated.
“Everyone split up and search for any overlooked documents.”
Bai Fu assigned a new task, then followed Elder Nissen to what seemed to be the central control room. Everything in sight was severely damaged, with several large holes in the walls.
Is that it?
No way.
After all, the main quest in the Goli Desert, [The Watcher’s Lament], specifically listed finding this institute as a separate branch.
Bai Fu felt disappointed.
Just as she was about to leave, Xiao Xiao Youlia, tucked in her pocket, spoke: “There’s a place on the left with very high parapsychic energy levels; something’s definitely wrong there!”
Left?
Bai Fu immediately used her spiritual energy perception on that wall. Instantly, a red question mark appeared in her vision, accompanied by a game prompt.
[You have discovered the hidden map [Parapsychic Research Institute Branch No. 2 – 2nd Floor]]
Damn, it’s a hidden wall!
Isn’t the game designer fond of placing hidden walls in unexpected places, just like Xiao Gao?
“You guys step back.”
After the players and Elder Nissen retreated outside, Bai Fu placed two Xiao Xiao Bai Fu explosives on the wall.
With a loud explosion, the wall crumbled into pieces. When the dust settled, a staircase leading underground was revealed behind the wall.
She summoned a new Xiao Xiao Bai Fu and let her…
Bai Fu descended the stairs to investigate the situation.
Even though many years had passed, the various devices on -2 floor seemed to still be functioning properly.
Xiao Xiao Bai Fu proceeded without any obstruction and eventually discovered a cylindrical room at the end of -2 floor. The room was open, so Xiao Xiao Bai Fu slowly floated inside.
The scene shifted, and Bai Fu’s eyes landed on a peculiar lifeform contained within a culture vessel.
She cast a Spirit Vision on it.
[Psionic Primordial (Deceased)]
[Introduction]: A primordial life created by the Psionic Research Institute Branch Two using [Black Basalt]. Its energy intensity approached 100 units. After the Great Cataclysm, due to insufficient nutrients for sustenance, it died. As a corpse, it still possessed an energy intensity of 43 units.
“Seems like I’ve found something significant.”
Bai Fu furrowed her brows.
The materials Elder Nissen took from this research institute mentioned that they were studying a peculiar black stone tablet, which should be the so-called [Black Basalt].
Speaking of Black Basalt, she recalled the data she had stolen from the Oceanic Life Research Institute, which included a Black Basalt Plan.
There seems to be a connection between these two.
Aside from Black Basalt, the term “energy intensity” also caught Bai Fu’s attention.
As she pondered, a player approached.
“Fufu, we’ll handle the reconnaissance mission.”
Bai Fu nodded: “Be careful.”
In terms of reconnaissance, Xiao Xiao Bai Fu had many advantages over players but also many disadvantages. The biggest disadvantage was that Xiao Xiao Bai Fu’s limbs were essentially decorative; she couldn’t control them to search through things. Therefore, this task still needed to be handed over to the players.
Upon receiving the mission, the players cautiously entered the -2 floor of the research institute. It took them nearly ten minutes to finally reach the entrance of the cylindrical room.
When they saw the Psionic Primordial in the culture vessel, their eyes widened.
“Holy crap, what kind of monster is this?”
“If I walk over now, will it suddenly break the glass and jump out with health bars?”
“Reconnaissance skill check failed, too high level.”
“Alright, alright, let’s check if there’s anything valuable nearby.”
The players rummaged through the room and found a safe in the corner. A physically-oriented player tried punching it twice, only to swell his own hands.
This wasn’t something they could break, and besides, the safe was nailed firmly to the ground, impossible to move.
“Let me handle it.”
Bai Fu walked in from outside the door.
The players had been here for over ten minutes without encountering any unexpected events, so it seemed the -2 floor really wasn’t dangerous.
With one slash, she split the entire door of the safe off and retrieved a stack of paper documents.
[Mayer’s Diary]
[November 2nd: An institution calling itself the [Psionic Diffusion Committee] approached me. They invited me to join their newly established research institute. When I hesitated, they suddenly informed me that the meteorite that fell on the border of the White Tower Republic last month was actually an alien starship. This instantly piqued my interest. We have wondered countless times whether there are truly other civilizations in the vast Star Ocean, and now it seems we have an answer.]
[November 4th: I saw the starship. I am certain that no country or company on Source Star could have manufactured such a vessel. It truly came from another planet. I see a new era beckoning, and I must join this new project!]
[November 5th: I heard there was an alien on the ship, but unfortunately, I didn’t get to meet him. I received a new assignment to study a special stone tablet coded as [Black Basalt].]
…
[November 11th: A colleague who forgot to wear gloves when touching the Black Basalt mutated. He killed three people before being subdued. Tomorrow, we will perform an autopsy on his body.]
[November 12th: Incredible, the physical strength of that colleague increased several times after mutating. The Black Basalt might be the key to evolution, but it also connects to hell. We must proceed with caution!]
The diary ended on the 12th, but even just this much revealed a great deal of intelligence.
Alien starship!
This explains why Source Star previously lacked spiritual energy, but suddenly had it before the outbreak of the world war. Spiritual Energy was most likely brought by that alien starship.
[You have triggered a hidden plotline. Exploration Progress of Source Star Plot +0.7%.]
[You have completed Task [Watcher’s Lament] Branch 5 [Find Lost Ruins]. Exploration Progress of Source Star Plot +0.4%.]
Two prompts sounded in Bai Fu’s ears consecutively.
Her heart bloomed with joy.
Is this the reward for the main quest? Her exploration progress immediately rose from 0.9% to 2.0%, more than doubling. It was simply too generous; those ordinary hidden quests couldn’t compare!
Even the previous exploration progress of less than one percent had drastically changed her identity positioning, and now her exploration progress had risen to 2.0%. The improvement during her next enhancement would surely be even greater!
But the 1.1% exploration progress was not all Bai Fu gained from this action.
She triggered a new task.
[You have triggered a hidden task [Mystery of the Black Basalt] (Level 35 Total Level Limit).]
[Task Introduction: All work at the Psionic Research Institute Branch Two revolved around the mysterious [Black Basalt]. However, after the Great Cataclysm, the Black Basalt suddenly vanished. Find it!]
[Task Objective: Locate [Black Basalt]]
[Task Reward: 700,000 Experience Points, Rare Prayer Card Blueprint [Mind Blessing]]
[Accept/Reject]
Based on the item description, Mind Blessing was a blessing-type prayer card that could significantly increase attributes for a short period after use, making it a god-tier card in the early stages.
Besides the exploration progress and the new task, Bai Fu also found what she wanted on an old terminal nearby.
[NCC-1773 Terminal storing Advanced Psionic Knowledge]
[Quality]: Purple
[Item Description]: A terminal very common in the old era, but it contains advanced psionic knowledge.
[Note]: This terminal has multiple layers of encryption. Attempting to access the data or dismantle the terminal will activate the self-destruct system in one hour. Non-professionals should not touch it casually.
Bai Fu was ecstatic.
It appeared—finally, the last link in the chain of psionic knowledge she had been waiting for!
Once she successfully mastered this chain of knowledge, she would truly be one step away from unlocking the advanced class. Once she unlocked the advanced class, presidents and generals alike would perish under her command!
Bai Fu quickly scanned the note.
Self-destruction?
No matter!
The self-destruction system would only take effect after one hour, while she only needed twenty to thirty minutes to learn a chain of psionic knowledge. There was plenty of time.
[You begin reading the Advanced Psionic Knowledge in the NCC-1773 Terminal. Intermediate Psionic Mastery activated, your reading speed +20%, current progress 0.1%…]
Bai Fu estimated that this progress bar would take slightly longer to complete this time, but it wouldn’t exceed forty minutes.
Watching the progress bar climb slowly, her mood improved greatly.
“Come to think of it, wasn’t discovering the fifth chain of psionic knowledge too easy?”
A thought suddenly arose.
Before Bai Fu could curse herself for speaking out of turn, a player suddenly rushed in anxiously.
“Bad news! A large number of sand worms are suddenly surging outside!”
Shit, I knew things wouldn’t be this simple. This is a high-level map; if there were no dangers at all, it would be absurd.
Bai Fu couldn’t extricate herself right now, so she spent all of today’s task quota and issued a new faction task to the players.
[Delay Time]
[Task Introduction: …]
[Task Objective: Prevent the sand worms from entering Bai Fu’s room]
[Task Reward: Rewards vary based on contribution]
Massive experience points, Bai Fu’s affinity, prayer cards, faction reputation…
When these rewards were laid out before them, all the players present went into a frenzy.
[Protect Fufu!]
[To harm Fufu, you must trample over my dead body!]
[Where there’s Fufu, there’s me!]
![[TS] The End of Magical Girls Has Come](https://i3.wp.com/darkmtl.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/1737407792-8993-TS-The-end-of-magical-girls-has-come.png?resize=85,105 "[TS] The End of Magical Girls Has Come")
