Lu Li currently had no clear understanding of the purchasing power of Terminus Coins. However, he reasoned that since these six options were presented together, their relative value should be roughly equal. Therefore, it made logical sense to prioritize the rewards that seemed the rarest.
Free Attribute Points were straightforward. The Terminus Space had provided a brief tooltip stating that by visiting the Enhancement Hall, Explorers could allocate these points to directly boost their foundational physical or spiritual stats.
He was absolutely selecting Option A. Although he could passively raise his stats through grueling physical training, there was absolutely zero reason to refuse free, instant numbers handed to him on a silver platter.
Scanning the remaining options, Lu Li pulled up the detailed description for the Title.
[Title: The Fearless]
Rating: B+ (Title Tier Scale: E- to SSS+)
Origin: The Explorer achieved the legendary "Speedrun" graduation record at the Shin'o Academy within the Derivative World: Bleach. Their fearless spirit in actively challenging a Captain in a deathmatch is widely sung throughout the Academy.
Effect: While this Title is equipped, the Explorer's Base Strength attribute is locked at +1. This effect remains permanently active regardless of the Explorer's future Tier.
PS: Specifically upon re-entering the Derivative World: Bleach, equipping this Title will grant the Explorer an additional +1,000 Base Reputation.
Evaluation: I generously polished 'reckless meathead' into 'Fearless'. You're welcome.
Lu Li stared at the evaluation note, his mouth twitching. This system is a real smartass. If you wanted to call me a reckless meathead, just say it! You didn't have to 'polish' it into Fearless!
Sarcasm aside, the Title itself was incredibly solid. A permanent, unconditional +1 to Base Strength at any Tier was a straightforward, brutal buff. It perfectly patched the slight deficiency in his current Strength stat.
Based on his limited knowledge of RPG mechanics, Titles were generally quite difficult to acquire. After a brief moment of thought, he confirmed the selection.
The remaining options left him slightly conflicted. Based on his experience with the predatory gacha games developed by the megacorporations in his previous life, random "Loot Chests" were notoriously unreliable.
However, he didn't fully understand the true value of the Inheritance Crystals. Furthermore, he harbored a deep, martial artist's skepticism toward using external tools to artificially inflate combat proficiencies. If the System magically downloads the muscle memory into my brain, will it truly feel the same as tempering the skill myself through a thousand battles?
After mulling it over for a long while, Lu Li ultimately selected the Inheritance Crystals (Option E). He felt the loot chests were simply too volatile.
Judging by the structure of the Terminus Space, there had to be a massive population of other Explorers. He could head out later, gather some intelligence on the local economy, and then decide whether to consume the Crystals himself or sell them to other players.
Having confirmed his selections (A, E, and F), the rewards were instantly deposited into his Spatial Inventory.
Just as Lu Li was about to head into the washroom for a hot shower to wash off the phantom blood and sweat, the mechanical voice of the Terminus Space echoed again.
[The Terminus Space formally invites Explorer 404040404 to ascend and become a Pioneer. Do you accept?]
"A Pioneer?"
Lu Li rolled the word over on his tongue. He recalled the initial prompt when he was first violently drafted into the Terminus Space. The system had mentioned that based on his performance in the Trial World, his baseline Contract terms would either be upgraded or downgraded.
So, is this Pioneer title an upgrade or a downgrade?
[The Terminus Space actively selects Explorers possessing the highest degree of innate talent and combat potential to sign the Pioneer Contract. Pioneers are deployed to conquer highly unstable, unsynchronized Worlds. Thus, they are the vanguard. They are the Pioneers.]
As if reading Lu Li's exact thoughts, the system immediately provided clarification.
[Please review the Pioneer Contract.]
A glowing, holographic parchment materialized in the air before Lu Li. It detailed the stringent responsibilities and exclusive privileges of the Pioneer status.
The document was incredibly dense, but Lu Li quickly honed in on the most crucial clauses:
[Pursuant to Article 26 of the New Terminus Regulations: Barring extreme, anomalous circumstances, the Terminus Space is strictly prohibited from deploying a Pioneer into a World where the Maximum Difficulty Rating is lower than the Pioneer's current Mark Tier.]
[Pioneers shall be exclusively deployed to conquer high-difficulty, unsynchronized Worlds. They will frequently face highly demanding, borderline-impossible Main Missions. Everything is for the sake of the Terminus Space assimilating new reality anchors.]
[During periods of active Spatial War, Pioneers are absolutely prohibited from refusing a Terminus Draft Order. (All Draft Exemption Medals and immunities are rendered permanently null and void for Pioneers). Should the Pioneer secure victory for the Terminus Space during the war, they shall be granted astronomically lucrative Special Rewards.]
[Under highly specific, extreme circumstances, Pioneers may be temporarily burdened with the duties of an Adjudicator, tasked with executing rogue or violating Explorers. (This clause is only invoked if the designated Adjudicators of the corresponding Tier have repeatedly failed their execution mandates).]
[Pioneers shall be granted exclusive access to the Glory Exchange Shop. Pioneers may utilize Pioneer Merit Points to purchase highly restricted, premium items and artifacts.]
[The administrative authority level of a Pioneer's Mark is permanently elevated by +1 Tier by default.]
Lu Li understood the trade-off perfectly. In simple terms: the Pioneer Contract offered incredibly high administrative authority and massive rewards, at the cost of immense responsibility and borderline suicidal risks. He would be exclusively dropped into the most lethal, chaotic worlds to fight the bloodiest, hardest battles the Terminus Space had to offer.
Sounds incredibly fun. Completely suits my palate.
"I sign," Lu Li answered without hesitation.
[Contract Established. The Pioneer's original ID Number has been permanently encrypted and converted into a localized alias to ensure absolute privacy and operational security. Pioneer 008, the Terminus Space looks forward to your conquests in the New Worlds.]
The moment the contract was finalized, Lu Li noticed the pale green Explorer's Mark on his wrist rapidly shift, transforming into a deep, abyssal purple. The vine-like patterns became significantly more intricate and mysterious.
According to the system, regardless of whether someone was a standard Explorer or a Pioneer, the Mark was entirely invisible to everyone else—both native NPCs and other players. It was a localized, absolute identity protection protocol.
Having signed his life away for the second time today, Lu Li finally took a long, hot shower, changed into some fresh clothes provided by the hub, and pushed open his "front door," full of anticipation.
Brilliant, golden sunlight filtered through a massive canopy woven from colossal, city-sized vines, casting a beautiful, dappled mosaic of shadows across the ground. Lu Li took a deep breath. A profound sense of physical and mental relaxation washed over him. He had never, in his entire life, breathed air this impossibly fresh and clean.
In the dystopian cyberpunk era he came from, the global air pollution was so catastrophically severe that stepping outside without a heavy-duty respirator was a literal death sentence. In the deepest, poorest sectors of the mega-cities, the Megacorporations literally monopolized and sold breathable oxygen. The right to simply breathe required a premium subscription fee. If you were too poor to pay, you suffocated.
Looking around, Lu Li realized he was currently standing on the surface of an impossibly massive, petrified vine. The "front door" to his personal room was actually a long, purple leaf growing directly out of the bark.
The colossal vine served as a massive thoroughfare. It was bustling with thousands of people wearing an absolutely chaotic, wild assortment of clothing and armor styles—from high-tech sci-fi power suits to traditional fantasy wizard robes.
Like a shark smelling blood in the water, Lu Li's wide-eyed, completely lost expression instantly outed him as a fresh, wet-behind-the-ears rookie.
"Hey there, brother! New in town?"
A burly man with a dark, deeply tanned face quickly sidled up to Lu Li, acting incredibly familiar. "Just survived your Trial World?"
Lu Li nodded. "Any advice you can offer, friend?"
"Oh, I bet that Trial World scared the absolute piss out of you, huh? Don't worry, buddy, now that you're in the Hub, you're safe... for now," the dark-faced man grinned. "Getting drafted into this hellhole is definitely a stroke of terrible luck, but a man's gotta keep moving forward, right? Let me tell you a secret, brother: if you want to survive your next deployment, intelligence is absolutely vital..."
The man paused, rubbing his thumb and forefinger together in the universal gesture for money. His implication couldn't be more obvious.
"How much?" Lu Li asked flatly.
He knew perfectly well how critical information was. He had just arrived in this massive, multi-dimensional hub completely blind; he genuinely needed a tour guide to explain the local mechanics. However, if this guy thought he could violently fleece a rookie, he had picked the absolute wrong target.
Seeing Lu Li ask for a price, the dark-faced man couldn't hide his greedy grin. "Not much at all! Just 500 Terminus Coins! Relax, the intel I'm providing is absolutely worth the price. Ask anyone in the Tier 1 Sector; everybody knows 'Black Whirlwind' has the best information network!"
"50. Otherwise, I'll figure it out myself," Lu Li countered, staring dead into Black Whirlwind's eyes.
He was a battle-crazed meathead, not an idiot. The very first sequence of his Main Mission had only rewarded him with 500 Terminus Coins. For the average, non-genius Explorer, scraping together even 1,000 Coins from their entire first Trial World was likely extremely difficult. This guy was blatantly trying to rob him blind.
Black Whirlwind's expression froze. He looked deeply conflicted, clearly trying to gauge if he could push for more. But seeing Lu Li immediately turn around and start walking away without a second glance, he panicked and rushed to block his path.
"Alright, alright! Damn, you drive a hard bargain! 50 it is!"
Operating under the eternal hustler principle of 'any profit is better than no profit', Black Whirlwind eagerly began to explain the foundational, common-sense mechanics of the Terminus Space.
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