Chapter 69

### Chapter 69: Task Settlement, The True White Death [55k]

After receiving the task completion prompt in the car, Bai Fu did not rush to settle the task.

The road from Bagalos Base to the Goli Desert mentioned by Yulia was largely abandoned, and along the way, she would inevitably encounter various mutated creatures or outlaws wandering in the wilderness.

She was worried about encountering unexpected situations while settling the task, so she waited until she drove the car to a small settlement before checking the gains from her trip to Bagalos Base.

The faction conflict quest for Bagalos had five branch objectives.

Branch One [Clarify the Situation]: Explore the internal situation of the Bagalos Base. This task was completed incidentally when Bai Fu and Basque played hide-and-seek.

Due to many players participating, her contribution to this task was not particularly high, only around 30%, but she still received a reward of 5,000 experience points and 2 additional attribute points.

This experience was insignificant to her, but the attribute point reward was an unexpected surprise; she decided to add them to her constitution first.

Branch Two [Merciless Slaughter] and Branch Three [Beheading Operation] were settled even before leaving the Bagalos Base, so Bai Fu ignored these two and focused on Branch Four [Team Power] and Branch Five [Eliminate Bagalos Base].

During this operation, she and the players made indelible contributions, almost completely turning the tide of battle.

For this, the game directly gave her an “Excellent” evaluation.

The reward for Branch Four was 100,000 experience points, and the reward for Branch Five was 150,000 experience points and a new skill.

“Besides experience and a new skill, there are no other rewards?”

Bai Fu was taken aback.

Although the task settlement gave her a lot of experience, the rewards outside of experience seemed somewhat perfunctory.

She selected the newly acquired skill and began checking its description.

**[Dimensional Erosion]**: Each time your skill deals psychic damage to a target, it applies the [Dimensional Erosion] effect to the target. This effect can stack up to 5 times. Each stack will continuously burn the target for an additional 1% of their maximum health in psychic damage over 5 seconds. At three stacks, it reduces the target’s resistance by 10%. At five stacks, the effect becomes extremely unstable and will detonate within 3 seconds, dealing psychic damage equal to 10% of the target’s maximum health (+Inspiration * 1), with a 5-second cooldown after detonation.

**[Note: This skill can evolve into a unique talent]**

“Wow!”

After reading the skill description, Bai Fu shook off her previous gloom, her eyes shining as brightly as if she had just won the lottery with 5 million.

Isn’t this similar to the passive ability of a fire mage?

Before this, she was a pure support character, relying on her tankiness to fight enemies back and forth, but with this passive ability, the situation changed drastically.

If her opponent had a maximum health of 500, after performing five psychic attacks with her current attributes, she could deal 110 psychic damage solely through the passive effect of Dimensional Erosion.

Of course, this 110 damage was theoretical; due to the target’s psychic resistance, the actual damage inflicted would be discounted.

Even so, this was still quite impressive. The skill itself also had base damage, and after five consecutive hits, she could nearly eliminate 200 points of the opponent’s health!

But this wasn’t the limit of Dimensional Erosion.

Just by glancing at it, Bai Fu thought of a new use for this skill—she could first stack the Dimensional Erosion passive on a target and then immediately use **[Chain Reaction]** to bind this target with others once it reached five stacks.

The cooldown for Chain Reaction was 1 second, while the countdown for the explosion of Dimensional Erosion was 3 seconds. This meant that as long as she moved fast enough, she could detonate one passive and affect three people simultaneously.

Iron chains connecting boats, burning the Red Cliffs, right?

“Now I can finally live up to my nickname ‘The True White Death.'”

Bai Fu felt very happy; this made her distinct from ordinary elite monsters, but she still had a long way to go before reaching the level of a boss like Yulia.

To become a qualified boss, relying on physical toughness alone wasn’t enough; she needed a bunch of bizarre skills that could torment players to death and beyond.

Bai Fu knew what she should do next.

Before trading with Yulia at the 11th Shelter in the Goli Desert, she planned to learn a few offensive psychic skills to defend herself.

Currently, the only offensive skill she had was Psychic Boil, but the damage caused by Psychic Boil was physical damage and couldn’t trigger the Dimensional Erosion passive.

“From Bagalos to the Goli Desert, this journey passes through many large settlements. When I get there, I’ll ask around; I should be able to find skill books or professional mentors. If not, I can post a task on the Darknet; I still have 300,000 credits left.”

Bai Fu closed the skill description and invested experience to upgrade her Spiritual Prayer Mage from Lv7 to Lv9. With just over 20,000 more experience points, she could level up again.

However, compared to simply leveling up, she was more excited about obtaining the psychic knowledge she wanted from Yulia. This would unlock the **[Apprentice Soul Painter]** profession for her, which would bring much greater benefits than just a couple of levels.

After closing the attribute panel, Bai Fu opened the quest panel and after some fiddling, the destruction contribution for the plot quest **[Truth Unknown]** increased from 0.28% to 1.19%.

They had destroyed a base, but the progress only increased by less than 1%. It seemed this base wasn’t very important to the Truth Society.

Bai Fu pursed her lips and decided to intensify her efforts.

The Truth Society wanted her dead, but Bai Fu was far from being a pushover.

**[Excavator Jiujiao].**

After finishing her own tasks, Bai Fu called Jiujiao over. She had urgent matters to discuss.

…

The assassination of Basque’s trusted follower in the tavern caused a sensation.

The Gene Progenitor officers present almost fainted from anger. They rushed towards the Convert to Me Fu, but before they could subdue him, he shot himself twice.

Want to catch me?

I’m not playing this game with you!

When Convert to Me Fu fell to the ground, whether they hated Bai Fu or not, everyone felt a sudden chill, as if someone had poured cold water on them.

Bai Fu wasn’t dead yet, but her followers were already so resolute. If Bai Fu died, they didn’t dare imagine what kind of retaliation would follow.

Those big shots usually had guards following them, so they weren’t afraid of revenge, but these small-time Karamis couldn’t withstand such torment.

Soon, agents from Si Chu arrived on the scene.

Seeing the two corpses on the ground and the familiar face of Convert to Me Fu, they immediately understood what had happened.

They weren’t sure if this was ordered by Bai Fu. After all, Bai Fu had killed Basque in front of everyone, so ordering her followers to kill Basque’s trusted followers didn’t seem impossible.

Regardless of the true situation, they felt secretly pleased seeing the stunned officers.

The Intelligence Bureau and the military always had mutual disdain. During this operation, although Basque acted normally, his subordinates had caused a lot of trouble for the Intelligence Bureau, and they had been seething with anger for a long time.

Now things were good.

Didn’t you guys think you were tough? Try being tough now.

“Bai Fu is awesome!”

“Such a big incident, the military definitely won’t let it slide. Being wanted by both the Truth Society and the military, I wonder if Bai Fu can survive,” Xu Hong sighed, worrying about Bai Fu’s future.

Like Xia Shi, he was a staunch anti-Truth Society fighter. Although Bai Fu had repeatedly angered the Truth Society, he considered her a comrade in his heart.

Xia Shi was deeply troubled until someone called her name.

“Xia Shi, if you intervene, the military will certainly hold you accountable when you return.”

Xia Shi shook her head, “It’s fine, my father won’t abandon me.”

“Alright,” Lu Yulin stepped forward, “For the time being, don’t discuss Bai Fu anymore. Leave everything to me. If anyone asks, say we only have a regular cooperative relationship, and know nothing else.”

Agents from Si Chu turned to look at Lu Yulin.

At critical moments, Old Lu really held his ground!

Lu Yulin was indeed holding his ground. That night, someone came to inquire about Bai Fu’s situation, and he directly took the initiative.

Facing inquiries, he said he didn’t know anything. Facing accusations, he asked if they had clear evidence if they claimed Bai Fu had issues, and demanded evidence if they couldn’t provide any.

“We value accuracy and timeliness in intelligence work. If we believe everything we hear, then who in the Gene Progenitors doesn’t know the Truth Society?”

Lu Yulin adopted a tough attitude, saying, “Are you trying to teach me how to do my job?” This made the person angry but helpless, as Lu Yulin outranked him.

“If you find Bai Fu’s whereabouts, report it immediately!”

He could only leave with those words.

Lu Yulin achieved a major victory, but he was quite heavy-hearted. He had heard that Basque was acting under the orders of a general, and the Gene Progenitors were hiding something from him.

He went out to find Xia Shi, “Your father just contacted me, asking me to send you home immediately. I’ll give you a paid vacation.”

Xia Shi nodded, “Thank you, Uncle Lu.”

She felt that she probably wouldn’t be able to continue as an agent. Her father would surely not allow her to run away again after returning.

But when she stood up to help Bai Fu stop those soldiers, she had prepared herself mentally, so she didn’t regret it.

Life is often like this; choosing one thing means giving up another.

For example, when she chose wealth, she gave up the troubles of being short on money.

Xia Shi stood by the car, feeling the cold night wind. She remembered the conversation she had with Bai Fu in the car after catching Li Cheng. At that time, she promised to investigate the 001 file recording the source of psychic energy on Source Star. Now she could handle this matter on her way back.

While thinking, she suddenly heard footsteps nearby.

“Hmm, you are… If I’m not mistaken, you are one of Bai Fu’s followers, right?” Xia Shi turned her head.

Pai Da Xing replied, “My name is Pai Da Xing. I came here to deliver a message from Bai Fu.”

“What message?” Xia Shi was puzzled.

Pai Da Xing said, “She said she remembers your kindness. Anytime, anywhere, if you’re in trouble, you can find her. She will be your solid support.”

Xia Shi was stunned, then she burst out laughing.

“That sounds nice, but I don’t even have her contact information. Where would I find her if I’m in trouble?”

Pai Da Xing said, “It’s simple. Just find any outsider like me and ask them to pass the message. Regardless of the distance, Bai Fu will receive your message soon.”

“Is that so?”

Xia Shi didn’t believe it, but she still felt quite happy. It was rare for someone to say such things to her.

Unfortunately, she had hoped to become friends with Bai Fu, but the military suddenly went crazy, disrupting everything.

“Tell her I’m doing well and that she should take care of herself first and not die from assassination bounties.”

After sending Pai Da Xing away, Xia Shi returned to the car. Soon, she heard a commotion outside.

“Something happened! Songshan Settlement was attacked by the Truth Society, causing heavy losses!”

Instantly, chaos erupted throughout the Bagalos Shelter.

…

Long before the chaos erupted in the Bagalos Shelter, the Truth Society headquarters was already in turmoil.

Yulia brought shocking news: The Bagalos Base was breached, and Carlos, Deputy Commander Qian, Guido, and Yulia’s fake body were all dead.

“Are you sure you’re not telling me a sci-fi story?”

The president of the Truth Society had red, bloodshot eyes.

He immediately sent people to investigate, and the truth was exactly as Yulia said, and even more infuriating because all these deaths were caused by Bai Fu.

Hearing you want to kill me?

Not only did I take out your assassins, but I also destroyed one of your bases. How does that make you feel?

Angry!

The president was so angry that he transformed into a furious Tom from Jerry’s diary.

“Worthless, a bunch of worthless!”

He immediately ordered Chief of Operations Department Bernardo to increase Bai Fu’s bounty. The previous amount was too small, and he wanted to raise it to 3 million, a number that would drive most assassins mad.

Bernardo quickly complied, but during the process of logging onto the Darknet, he noticed a problem.

“President, the Gene Progenitors have also issued a bounty for Bai Fu, with an amount of 1 million.”

“What?” The president’s expression gradually returned to normal, “What’s going on?”

Bernardo had a grim expression, “I tried consulting the Makarov family, who runs the Darknet, but they currently have no accurate information. All they know is that Bai Fu has indeed fallen out with the Gene Progenitors, and rumors say she killed many of them.”

“Interesting.”

The president paced back and forth in the laboratory.

“The original bounty for Bai Fu doesn’t need to be increased; keep it as it is. Send people to investigate the reason for Bai Fu’s falling out with the Gene Progenitors. Also, inform our own people that if they encounter Bai Fu, they don’t need to act hastily. If she wishes to join us, I can forgive her past rudeness.”

Bernardo nodded, “Yes. President, we also received news from Songshan. Our raid was successful, and we’ve successfully obtained the data you requested.”

Upon hearing this, the president’s gloomy mood instantly lifted, and he laughed loudly.

“Good, good. Even though the Bagalos Base is gone, as long as we obtain that data, it’s worth it!”

Yulia, locked in a circular machine, silently listened to the president and Bernardo’s conversation.

She wasn’t particularly interested in these matters; she just wanted to know if Bai Fu would indeed come to the Goli Desert.

Her time was running out; if she missed this opportunity, she didn’t know if she could escape from here.

…

The next day.

Bai Fu continued her journey with Jiujiao and Anya.

She drove for a while, then stopped, collecting as much gasoline, food, water, and materials for prayer cards as possible from the settlements and camps along the way.

During her free time, she browsed the community, observing the players and the Gene Progenitors.

In yesterday’s operation, many players lost experience multiple times, initially fearing they wouldn’t recover it. However, after the task settlement, they were pleasantly surprised to find that not only did the task rewards cover their losses, but they were also enough to level up again.

**[Combat! Awesome! Next time I want to follow FuFu again!]**

**[Wake up, Bai Fu has already fled, you won’t be able to enjoy it.]**

**[Don’t worry, wherever FuFu goes, I’ll follow. I’ve figured it out; FuFu is like a human-shaped cheat code for us novices. Without following FuFu, my level wouldn’t have risen so quickly.]**

**[Damn, I’m so envious. Those who lost twice got so many rewards; how many levels can Pai Da Xing and the others skip?]**

**[By the way, how much did the Iron Rain Guild get? Didn’t they discover the Bagalos Base?]**

This topic caught the attention of many people. Many guild leaders who had been humiliated by Sword Aura Sky Piercing came forward, like the Black Warrior from Zhongyi Hall, and @Sword Aura Sky Piercing, demanding he show off again.

Watching the endless notifications in the background, Sword Aura Sky Piercing just wanted to escape Earth.

Rewards?

Forget it!

Since he was tied to the lab bed, during the task settlement, he only received the basic rewards. It could be said that among the hundred or so players who participated in the action, the Iron Rain Guild members were the most unfortunate.

It was truly tragic.

He joined the Truth Society because he thought Bai Fu’s popularity was too high, and the rewards from following her were limited. But he never expected the Truth Society to make him lose so badly.

Damn it!

Now, Sword Aura Sky Piercing didn’t dare show his face. If the guild leaders who had been humiliated by him found out how bad his situation was, they would laugh their heads off.

How could he stand such humiliation?

Fortunately, he had hidden his personal information when he first entered the game, otherwise, he would have been exposed. But hiding his identity temporarily didn’t mean he could hide forever. Once the rankings were open in the next version, and they saw he wasn’t on the list, Black Warrior and the others would immediately know he failed at showing off.

Sword Aura Sky Piercing gritted his teeth.

All thanks to the Truth Society, damn it!

If they didn’t let him join, he would do everything in his power to prevent other players from joining. Without player assistance, he would see how they could compete with the other factions!

Angry, Sword Aura Sky Piercing refused to accept his fate.

He believed he still had a path to walk.

He had just received news that Bai Fu had left Lin En, meaning the number of players around Bai Fu would be low in the short term. If he could seize this opportunity to take on more tasks from Bai Fu, he might turn things around before the new version arrived.

“Damn it, isn’t it just about who can better flatter Bai Fu?”

Sword Aura Sky Piercing quickly contacted Jiujiao again. Only Jiujiao, who was taken by Bai Fu, knew where Bai Fu was.

…

“FuFu, Sword Aura Sky Piercing just contacted me. He wants to know where you are and hopes to continue following you.”

In the car, Jiujiao turned her head and said.

Bai Fu gripped the steering wheel tightly, looking straight ahead, “It’s too dangerous now. We’ll tell them once we settle down in the Goli Desert.”

Now wasn’t the time to reveal their whereabouts. She didn’t want anyone to disturb her transaction with Yulia.

With her saying this, Jiujiao naturally had no objections.

Actually, Jiujiao hoped that other players would stay away from Bai Fu, so she could have exclusive access to Bai Fu for her reports.

After driving through the infection zone for a day and fighting mutated creatures twice, Bai Fu finally learned the offensive psychic skill she wanted in a large settlement.

**[Psychic Attachment Lv1]**: Consumes 5 points of spiritual energy to cause (100% * base damage + 5) psychic damage on the next attack.

It’s time to find a place to test the value of this white death!

PS: In the previous chapter, the task reward for **[Secrets Deep Within]** was set at 50,000 experience points and exploration progress because it was part of a quest chain, and the key to this segment was Li Cheng revealing the secret of the Gene Progenitors.

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