Who would study psychology unless they had some issues?!-Chapter 404 - 397 [Flow State·Beginner]

Over the past month and a bit, Nan Zhubin has completed five [Monthly Goals] in total.

The first four of these were concentrated in the month following the conclusion of the Wang Rui incident.

At the start, Nan Zhubin was looking forward to seeing if the new month would bring any novel task rewards.

But what he got was a trait he’d acquired before—

—[Emotion Soothing Ability (Voice) +4]

This was the ability he received upon completing his first [Monthly Goal].

Although he didn’t gain a new ability, Nan Zhubin was still quite satisfied with it.

[Emotion Soothing Ability] is a very useful skill for Psychological Consultation, and in previous work and life, this ability had already proven its worth.

As for the reward for completing the fifth [Monthly Goal], it was a bit unpleasant—

—[Charm (Eye Contact) +1]

"..."

To say again, excessive charm can cause many troubles in life.

It can cause even more trouble in Psychological Consultation.

This is one of the reasons Nan Zhubin hasn’t taken on extra consultations during this period.

Thinking about this, Nan Zhubin sighed, then refocused his gaze on the computer screen in front of him.

[You have one [Psychological Skill Deepening] ready to claim]

During the past month and a bit, many [Monthly Goals] had been completed, but [Case Archive] had not yet been finished.

However, this is actually the normal progression. The healing of psychological disorders is influenced by multifaceted factors, and many disorders can’t even be eradicated, plaguing the patient’s life like a bone-gnawing disease.

"But considering the two cases in my hands, Xu Pengcheng’s situation should have already been cured long ago..."

Based on Nan Zhubin’s judgment in consultation, and Xu Pengcheng’s subjective account.

About a week before the college entrance examination, Xu Pengcheng should have rid himself of all negative influences.

On the other hand, Li Mingchen seemed to be perpetually close yet a step away.

"There’s only one explanation for this," Nan Zhubin mused, "that is, Xu Pengcheng’s issue didn’t actually reach the level of [Neurotic Anorexia] as a [psychological disorder], it was merely a [psychological issue] related to anorexia."

This can explain why after Xu Pengcheng’s recovery, it didn’t lead to a [Case Archive] for Nan Zhubin.

Honestly, if it weren’t for [Micro-expression Analysis] showing that Xu Pengcheng wasn’t hiding his actions, the initially unresponsive Nan Zhubin almost thought the other party had some kind of [smiling depression].

"It makes sense. Based on the collected data at that time, the better physique Li Mingchen actually started his weight control diet later than Xu Pengcheng, but he was the one who fell earlier, and during the subsequent month at home he continued high-intensity anorexia behavior..."

Nan Zhubin made a judgment in his heart.

In this case, the current [Case Archive] is Li Mingchen’s recovery from [Neurotic Anorexia].

Although Li Mingchen experienced a fundamental improvement outside of the consultation, which surprised Nan Zhubin.

But Nan Zhubin was aware that Li Mingchen often did [Mindfulness-Based Eating Training] with Xu Pengcheng autonomously. It was unexpected, but within reason.

Gathering his thoughts, Nan Zhubin focused his attention on the current [Psychological Skill Deepening].

[You have claimed [Psychological Skill Deepening]]

[Please choose your deepening direction—]

[Option 1: Upgrade an existing skill.]

[Current skill available for upgrade: [Micro-expression Analysis·Basic]]

[Option 2: Learn a new skill.]

Nan Zhubin already had a draft in mind regarding the direction for this skill deepening.

...

For the current available skills, he didn’t have any demand for continuing deepening.

Let’s see what main abilities Nan Zhubin currently possesses.

[Emotion Soothing Ability], [Emotion Infection Ability], [Neural Reflex Speed], [Charm (Temperament)], [Charm (Eye Contact)]—these obtained through [Monthly Goals] can be set aside for now.

[Micro-expression Analysis·Intermediate]—is the foundation of Nan Zhubin’s career. But it is already capable of handling all situations Nan Zhubin encounters; even the professors at the forefront of domestic micro-expression research are amazed by Nan Zhubin’s current [Micro-expression Analysis] ability.

This ability in Nan Zhubin’s current work and life environment is too powerful, like killing mosquitoes with a cannon.

If it upgrades further, to express in gaming terms, it would be "excessive damage overflow."

Even with [Intermediate] level micro-expression analysis, Nan Zhubin hasn’t fully mastered it yet. There’s entirely no need to upgrade further.

[Emotion Rebalancing·Basic]—same as above, entirely sufficient, no need to upgrade.

Nan Zhubin estimates that the upgrade direction for this ability could either allow emotions to be adjusted to a custom fixed value or reduce energy consumption during rebalancing. freewēbnoveℓ.com

However, Nan Zhubin has already been using the "energy consumption" debuff as a positive buff for quickly falling asleep, so he actually somewhat regrets potentially losing this negative effect due to upgrading.

Rapidly entering high-quality sleep is a precious ability; people who do not have insomnia cannot understand it!

Moreover, Nan Zhubin’s original emotion management ability is strong enough, combined with a "forced calm" switch, it is more than enough to cope with all current situations.

Totally sufficient, not necessary to upgrade.

[Memory Palace·Basic]—this does have some necessity for upgrading. Nan Zhubin most desires not having to sleep and being able to freely access past memories.

But considering how this skill currently performs and the upgrade path, Nan Zhubin estimates [Memory Palace·Intermediate] would at most allow him to shift from "100% memory of texts" to "100% memory of texts and images."

To reach the ideal stage in his mind, it would at least need to be upgraded to [Memory Palace·Advanced].

Should he save this [Psychological Skill Deepening] or first upgrade the [Memory Palace] to an [Intermediate] level that temporarily doesn’t offer much help?

Nan Zhubin’s response to this—

"Beware of growth traps."

"Compared to obtaining sophisticated abilities that I currently don’t need, it’s better to see if new abilities can complement some of my weaknesses."

"And also..." Nan Zhubin had confidence in himself, "Once in Beidu, there certainly won’t be a shortage of cases. There’ll be plenty of opportunities to explore the limits of these abilities."

With such a thought in mind, Nan Zhubin extended his finger to gently tap the computer screen.

[You’ve chosen your deepening direction]

[You’ve learned a new skill.]

[You’ve mastered the skill [Flow State·Basic]]

[Flow State·Basic: Actively blocks all negative interference, allowing for "absolute focus" on the current target of attention. During this state, active thought levels will be forcibly maintained at individual peaks, with accelerated physical and mental consumption. Can be exited voluntarily.]

Nan Zhubin’s eyes lit up: "Oh oh oh oh, this is good!"

...

Thump thump thump—

The sound of knocking on the desk woke Nan Zhubin from his dream.

He looked up; Weng Pinting, now assigned as Nan Zhubin’s new consultation assistant.

Though it’s actually not entirely correct to say "Nan Zhubin’s assistant," since Nan Zhubin seldom does consultations. After discussions, he now shares an assistant with another consultant.

After all, if one doesn’t want to work, one can’t hinder others from earning money, right?

"Teacher Nan," the shared assistant said, "the boss wants you to go to the office now."

"And in one hour, your visitor will be arriving; you can prepare for that."

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