# Chapter 3: Only Raise Blade Mastery to Lv.70, Attempt to Use Remaining Soul Coins to Max Out "Basic Passive: Spirit Toughness," and If Anything Remains, Raise "Basic Passive: Blood Awakening."
...
First, eliminate the third option. "Basic Passive: Spirit Toughness" at its current level is sufficient for now. Once funds are more abundant later, this ability can be maxed out then.
As for the second option, promoting Dragon-Slaying Flash to Origin rank would certainly bring exaggerated improvements in slashing power and other aspects. However, the problem is that at its current Immortal rank +14, combined with the +5 damage tier bonus for blade-type weapons, it's already sufficient to cut down enemies as strong as the Eternal God.
This also means that, given Su Xiao's current overall strength, Dragon-Slaying Flash's sharpness is temporarily adequate. His current focus must first be on being able to land a hit before considering other factors. When facing enemies with formidable defense, the dual sharpness bonuses from "Silver Moon Blade" and "Spirit Blade" are enough to handle the situation.
He closed his stall. A notification appeared indicating a refund of 12 Soul Coins for the stall rental fee. Su Xiao walked towards a building marked with the ф symbol in the distance and returned to Reincarnation Paradise via the teleportation device.
A flash of light before his eyes, and Su Xiao was back inside the building at the end of Trade Street. After leaving Trade Street, he returned to his Exclusive Room. Beini took the [Dark Matter Absorption (Skill Scroll · Abyss Trait)] and headed to the agreed meeting point to trade with the chubby Black Demon contractor. The price had been negotiated beforehand; the other party was willing to pay 11,000 Soul Coins.
This price was already very high. At the Great Gathering Place, this item wouldn't even sell for 6,000.
Besides this, Bubu Wang was responsible for going to the Enhancement Hall area to sell the 24 [Refined Immortal Stones] to the merchants there. Judging by the current situation, it was temporarily unlikely that he would be enhancing Immortal rank weapons or Immortal rank special equipment.
After returning to his Exclusive Room, Su Xiao sat on the sofa. He estimated that raising Blade Grandmaster + Melee Grandmaster would require a total of 349,200 Soul Coins.
Besides this expenditure, he still had 71,620 Soul Coins left over. This surplus wasn't enough for Dragon-Slashing Flash's promotion, and using it to raise "Basic Passive: Blood Awakening" carried somewhat high risks.
The reason raising "Basic Passive: Blood Awakening" in the near future was considered risky was because Su Xiao planned to go all out. He had been using various "Basic Passives" to enhance his physique, accumulating for so long. Now, he finally had the chance to attempt his previous conception.
Apart from the two Grandmaster abilities, it was safest to temporarily not raise other abilities. This way, the remaining surplus of over 70,000 coins could be used to open an item he had obtained earlier.
Su Xiao had wanted to open this item for a long time: the [Steel Box]. This was the secret treasure once guarded by the Sun Bird, Taihakak. Back then, the Sun Bird had chased Su Xiao to the bottom of the sea precisely because of this [Steel Box].
Before purchasing two Technique Souls from the Goblin Merchant Guild, Su Xiao planned to open the [Steel Box] first. If he got lucky and obtained a "Blade Soul" or "Body Soul," he wouldn't need to buy them at a high price from the Goblin Merchant Guild.
He took out the [Steel Box]. This item was about 1 meter high and 70 centimeters wide, divided into three layers overall, looking both ancient and sturdy.
[Yes/No to open the Steel Box. This item has a three-layer structure and can be opened a total of three times. Each opening requires purifying the Fate Force on it, costing 20,000 Soul Coins per attempt.]
[This item was left behind by the God King, Os Tobiah, and is sealed by a powerful Fate seal. It may contain the secret treasure left by the God King, or it may be completely empty.]
Su Xiao chose to open it. His Soul Coin holdings rapidly decreased. After consuming 20,000 coins, a series of clicking and clattering sounds of mechanisms retracting were heard. The mechanism lock of the first layer of the Steel Box was released, and it unfolded by itself.
"..."
Su Xiao reached his hand into the Steel Box, knocked on the bottom, and confirmed that the first layer of the [Steel Box] was empty.
Fortunately, he hadn't opened it before. If he had spent 20,000 Soul Coins to open an empty box during the late Eighth Rank stage, life would have been difficult for a long time afterward.
Su Xiao didn't believe the second layer would also be empty. He opened it, and then...
"..."
Su Xiao lit a cigarette. Beside him, Baha and Amu both pretended nothing had happened, barely daring to breathe. Bubu Wang, who had just returned, came closer.
Su Xiao knocked on the bottom of the second layer. This layer was also empty. He was a bit puzzled. Two out of three layers empty. What exactly was the Sun Bird, Taihakak, guarding? He spent another 20,000 Soul Coins to open the final layer.
[You have obtained: Fate Blood (World-Class Item).]
[You have obtained: Drive Core · Storm Lord (Origin-Class Item).]
[You have obtained: Brewing Method (Ancient Knowledge).]
[You have obtained: Primordial God Blood (World Ink).]
...
[Fate Blood]
Origin: World of Paintings
Quality: World-Class
Type: Rare Item.
Effect: When in a Primordial World (not Transcendent), this item can be implanted into a Plot Character's body. This Plot Character has a certain chance of becoming the World Child of this world.
Description: This was left behind by the God King, Os Tobiah, for the continuation of the spark in the World of Paintings.
Selling Price: 150 ounces of World Force.
...
[Drive Core · Storm Lord]
Origin: World of Paintings / Second Era: Alchemical Civilization.
Quality: Origin-Class
Category: Drive Core.
Durability: 19/680 points.
Effect: This is the drive core of the Sky Giant Wing · Storm Lord.
Rating: 2359 points (Origin-Class equipment rating is 1500~3000 points).
Note: If this drive core is successfully repaired, its rating will be restored to 3000 points.
Description: In the Second Era: Alchemical Civilization, alchemists' demands for drive cores reached an almost obsessive level. Drive cores that did not achieve perfection were not allowed to be sold or transferred externally. This also resulted in very few drive cores being left behind. That this precious drive core has survived to this day is nothing short of a miracle. If you wish to use it, you must first repair it. Even for an alchemist, repairing it is very difficult, as it has been "repaired" multiple times by the craftsmen of the World of Paintings, causing damage to this extent.
Price: 5,700 Soul Coins.
...
[Brewing Method]
Origin: World of Paintings.
Category: Knowledge Record (Cannot be used directly; can only be mastered through interpretation of the recorded content).
Learning Prerequisite: Element Affinity 20 points or higher.
Recorded Content: A wondrous secret brewing method. After processing the brewing raw materials through this secret method, natural elements are allowed to participate in the fermentation and brewing process. This secret method cannot forcibly control elemental power, so a sufficiently high Element Affinity is required to allow elemental power to voluntarily participate in the brewing process. The higher the Element Affinity, the more elemental power is gathered, and the richer the brewed liquor becomes.
Note: Prolonged use of this method will gradually increase Element Affinity.
Warning: After mastering this method, do not use any means to control, manipulate, seal, or interfere with natural elements, or else Element Affinity will decrease.
Description: A secret art once recognized by the Law Destroyers. Unfortunately, the God King, Os Tobiah, regarded it as a treasure not to be passed on, only willing to leave this method to those who inherit his power.
...
Su Xiao flipped through the small booklet in his hand. After a moment, he roughly understood why this brewing method was recognized by the Ancestral Law Destroyers. This brewing method had nothing to do with abusing or devouring elemental power. To be precise, many things in daily life involve the participation of elemental power; people just can't see elemental power and are unaware of it.
Coexisting with elements, and even naturally absorbing a small amount of elemental power, is something Law Destroyers do not interfere with. This is the natural law; there's no need to intervene. To be precise, this is called the Elemental Cycle. After people absorb natural elements, they don't digest them. After a period, these elemental powers leave the human body and return to nature.
This brewing method uses one's own Element Affinity to attract more natural elements, then seals the wine vat. After brewing for a period, when the wine vat is opened, the elemental power inside leaves. Not only does it not consume elemental power, it actually increases it. After the elemental power leaves, what remains is the fine liquor brewed with the participation of numerous elemental powers.
What is referred to as abusing and devouring elemental power is the non-renewable consumption of elemental power. When this occurs, natural elements will decrease, the environment of that world will deteriorate, resource production will decrease, fresh water will become turbid, and so on, worsening until the Abyss invades.
Interestingly, this brewing method can increase Element Affinity, showing that its process provides considerable benefits to elemental power. No wonder the Ancestral Law Destroyers were interested in this brewing method. Brewing liquor in worlds where elemental power is nearly depleted might even delay the onset of elemental depletion there.
Although interested, the Ancestral Law Destroyers wouldn't resort to outright robbery. Of course, enemies were an exception. For enemies, it wasn't robbery; it was first beheading them, then tallying the spoils. In the Law Destroyer formula, the simplest formula was: Enemy's = Mine.
Su Xiao was very interested in this brewing method. Although he only drank occasionally himself, he had brewing conditions that no one else could match.
First was this closely guarded brewing method. According to the description, the higher the brewer's Element Affinity, the better the liquor produced. With his Element Affinity of 983 points, the bonus in this aspect would be incredibly high.
Those ordinary elemental powers often gathered around him. Once, they almost singed his hair. Now, he had a place for them to go.
Besides the advantage of the brewing method, the most important thing in brewing was water. Regarding this, Su Xiao couldn't think of anything better than Eternal Spring water.
His Black Maple Tree, now over 7 meters tall, often shed branches and such. Some branches that didn't meet quality standards would probably make good material for brewing barrels.
The main ingredients needed for brewing could be exchanged using material exchange quotas with Soul Coins within Reincarnation Paradise. This aspect would certainly not be lacking.
Barring any accidents, the quality of the final fine liquor obtained would be astonishingly high. This was a path to wealth.
Besides this brewing method, the value of [Fate Blood (World-Class Item)] and [Primordial God Blood] needed no further explanation. Su Xiao had obtained the latter in the World of Paintings; it was a miracle item used for painting worlds.
As for the [Drive Core · Storm Lord (Origin-Class Item)], this item alone meant that opening the [Steel Box] this time was a huge profit.
He put away all the obtained items, entered the single room used as a study, and activated the [Goblin Universal Trading Device].
The [Goblin Universal Trading Device] transformed into a cylinder less than 1 meter high. At the very top, a creature resembling a toad emerged. It had over a dozen legs, grabbing the top of the cylinder below. This large toad was covered in various types of currency—some paper money, some gold coins, and some Soul Coins.
The large toad said enthusiastically, "Welcome to Unit 18, esteemed Law Destroyer guest."
"Are the Technique Souls I ordered last time ready?"
"We have both Blade Soul and Body Soul in stock. Esteemed guest, to be honest with you, someone wanted to buy the Blade Soul before, offered 160,000, and we didn't sell. You see..."
The large toad's smile grew even more enthusiastic. As for its claim that someone had wanted to buy the "Technique Soul · Blade" before, it was just an attempt to raise the price.
"Forget it then. I'll contact other dealers later."
"Don't say that, esteemed guest! I was just making casual conversation."
The large toad changed its tune and began talking about how excellent their stored "Technique Soul · Blade" was.
After some negotiation, the price for the "Technique Soul · Blade" remained unchanged, while the "Technique Soul · Body" was 140,000 Soul Coins each. Although the selling price wasn't cheaper, the large toad offered a freebie: a "Smoke Explosion Bomb" produced by the Goblin Company, priced at 3,000 Soul Coins each, with an outstanding effect.
After the transaction concluded, the large toad didn't leave immediately but asked Su Xiao if he had encountered Kaiser recently. Upon receiving a definite "no," it reluctantly departed.
After leaving the study, Su Xiao sat cross-legged on the carpet and took out the two Technique Souls he had just obtained. One faintly emitted blue light, the other a light red.
[To raise Blade Grandmaster Lv.69, you need to consume "Technique Soul · Blade" and 27,000 Soul Coins.]
Su Xiao chose to raise it. The next instant, he was enveloped in a myriad of radiant light. When his vision cleared, he had arrived at a place of misty clouds, as if standing atop the highest peak of the clouds.
Su Xiao walked forward. Initially, he could roughly distinguish directions. After walking for a long time, his sense of direction began to blur. The surrounding mist also thinned, and he arrived at a barren land.
He continued walking for an unknown duration. It felt like only a few minutes, yet also like several years, or even longer. He seemed to pass through ice fields, wastelands, deserts, and underground lava caverns. The surrounding scenery constantly changed. One second, the sky was clear and cloudless; the next, the sun was setting in the west; then, in an instant, a torrential downpour began.
Suddenly, everything around him stopped. Individual raindrops froze mid-air. The fresh scent of earth stirred by the rain still lingered in his sense of smell, so much so that the sound of earthworms pushing through the moist soil was exceptionally clear and distinct.
Su Xiao looked up at the high sky. He felt as if he had comprehended something, yet it also seemed the same as before. He continued walking forward. The frozen raindrops around him all scattered away.
Three stone tablets stood before him. Each was several meters tall. The first was blood-red, emitting wisps of blood smoke. The second was translucent blue, covered in slashing marks. The third was pitch black, giving off a feeling of the Abyss.
Su Xiao knew this was the choice he had to face after his Blade Grandmaster reached Lv.70. The first option was to develop towards a pure Blood Qi system, where all blade techniques would transform into Blood Qi type.
The second was the sharpness tendency, which was the style Su Xiao had always adhered to.
The third was the Abyss tendency. Choosing this tendency would cause his strength to skyrocket in a short time, even if he couldn't obtain resources afterward. However, the corresponding cost would be too great to bear.
Without any hesitation, Su Xiao raised his hand and pressed it against the second stone tablet. With a crackling sound, the surrounding world shattered. The translucent blue stone tablet covered in slashing marks also shattered, and a blue energy from within merged into Su Xiao's chest.
Inside the Exclusive Room, Su Xiao's eyes opened. He was still sitting cross-legged on the carpet. Everything that had just happened seemed illusory. He raised his hand, and water droplets dripped from his rain-soaked sleeve.
[Blade Grandmaster has been raised to Lv.70.]
[Blade Grandmaster: Lv.70 (Passive)]
Skill Effect: Blade-type weapon attack power increased by 969% (increase of 20%), Base · Neural Reflex Speed +175 points (increase of 20 points), Damage Tier caused by blade-type weapons +1.
Lv.10 Ultimate Ability: Mind Blade (Passive)...
Lv.20 Ultimate Ability: Soul Blade (Passive)...
Lv.30 Ultimate Ability: Blade's Extreme (Passive)...
Lv.40 Ultimate Ability: Heart · Soul · Blade (Passive)...
Lv.50 Ultimate Ability: Soul Edge (Passive)...
Lv.60 Ultimate Ability: Blade Domain (Ultimate · Active), creates a 100-meter range Blade Domain. When you are within this domain, you gain 10% overall damage reduction, and can parry strong attacks with a power attribute not exceeding your own by 25 points. Upon successful parry, you briefly and significantly increase your resistance to knockback and knock-up.
Note: After activating this domain, it consumes 1,500 Mana Points per second.
Note: While within the Blade Domain, your slashing damage is increased by 20%.
Note: While within the Blade Domain, your Dragon Shadow Flash ability activation speed is increased by 35%.
Note: While within the Blade Domain, all your blade technique abilities are strengthened by the Blade Domain.
Lv.70 Ultimate Ability: Blade · World (Ultimate · Passive), Damage Tier caused by blade-type weapons +4.
...
Feeling the transformed Blade Grandmaster, Su Xiao was very pleased. The "Blade Domain" was no longer a scraping domain but had become a Grandmaster divine skill.
After activating the Blade Domain, besides the 10% overall damage reduction, being able to parry strong attacks with a power attribute not exceeding his own by 25 points was an ability Su Xiao had always wanted.
Whether fighting the Old Knight, the Nether Emperor, or the previous Eternal God, Su Xiao had been blasted away by enemies' strong attacks more than once.
Now that the "Blade Domain" had completed its transformation, such things wouldn't happen easily again. Of course, the strength of the "Blade Domain" needed no further explanation, but its consumption was equally high. It consumed 1,500 points of body energy per second.
Fortunately, Su Xiao had 60,128 Mana Points, allowing him to activate the "Blade Domain" for a maximum of 40 seconds. This was a killing move only activated when fighting to the end and engaging in a bloody battle with the enemy. 20 seconds would be enough, not even needing 40.
The first ability awakened was "Lv.70 Ultimate Ability · Blade · World." This ability embodied Su Xiao's consistent blade style: simple, pure, and powerful.
Su Xiao had accumulated for so long to reach a +5 damage tier for blade-type weapons. Now, with a sudden +4, reaching a total of +9 damage tier for blade-type weapons, he was even less eager to promote Dragon-Slashing Flash.
Su Xiao even wondered if an Origin-rank shield with a rating below 2,300 points could block a single slash from Dragon-Slashing Flash. He didn't know if there would still be tank-type contractors using shields at the Ninth Rank. If he encountered a hostile contractor wielding a shield in the next world, he would have to test it on them.
After meditating for a moment, he took out a large number of Soul Crystals and the "Technique Soul · Body" and began to raise Melee Grandmaster.
In the past, he would definitely raise it level by level for stability. But now, having just finished raising Blade Grandmaster, he was in an unprecedented state, so he chose to make a single large improvement.
A large number of Soul Crystals shattered. The "Technique Soul · Body" transformed into energy and merged into Su Xiao's body.
Half an hour later, Su Xiao's entire body emitted scorching white steam. The fiery red in his eyes faded. During this half hour, he felt as if all the blood in his body had turned into boiling lava, surging through him.
[Melee Grandmaster has been raised to Lv.70.]
[Melee Grandmaster: Lv.70 (Passive)]
Skill Effect: During melee combat, kick attack power increased by 790% (increase of 18%), Base · Neural Reflex Speed +52 points (increase of 10 points), Base · Dynamic Vision +47 points (increase of 10 points), Physical Defense Power, Physical Toughness increased by 37%, Immune to all physical control effects derived from power or agility attributes lower than your own (e.g., can instantly break free from freezing or binding).
Lv.10 Ultimate Ability · Power Penetration · Kick Basic Enhancement (Passive)...
Lv.20 Ultimate Ability · Power Penetration · Kick First Enhancement (Passive)...
Lv.30 Ultimate Ability · Power Penetration · Kick Second Enhancement (Passive)...
Lv.40 Ultimate Ability · Power Penetration · Kick Third Enhancement (Passive)...
Lv.50 Ultimate Ability · Power Penetration · Kick Fourth Enhancement (Passive)...
Lv.60 Ultimate Ability · Power Penetration · Kick Fifth Enhancement (Ultimate · Passive)...
Lv.70 Ultimate Ability · Power Penetration · Kick Sixth Enhancement (Ultimate · Passive): Damage Tier caused by kicks +2, and the overall attack intensity of kicks is "Massively" increased, causing the judgment to be raised to "Destruction Level."
Destruction Level: You use pure explosive power to pierce and penetrate the enemy's physical defense, causing 40% to 55% of your straight kick damage to be irreducible True Damage.
...
Before checking the skill effect, Su Xiao had already felt that his Melee Grandmaster ability was, as always, singularly focused. All the bonuses were accumulated into one straight kick. The purer it was, the stronger it became.
Facts proved that Melee Grandmaster had never let Su Xiao down. His straight kick had once forced powerful enemies like the Iron Feather King, the Alien King, the Blood God, the Feather God, Rogesh, the Nameless Captain, the Abyss First Daughter, the Old Knight, the Nether Emperor, and the Eternal God to kneel on one knee, their bodies numb.
Su Xiao looked at the remaining 11,620 Soul Coins. No matter how many Soul Coins he had, it never seemed enough. This feeling persisted even after reaching the Ninth Rank. Perhaps this currency, condensed from soul energy, would never be enough, which was precisely why it was so alluring.
Su Xiao tried to raise Blade Grandmaster Lv.70 to check the cost.
[To raise Blade Grandmaster Lv.70, you need to consume Soul Crystals × 100 + 6,300 Soul Coins.]
Seeing this prompt, Su Xiao's gaze gradually became serious. He closed it and tried again.
[To raise Blade Grandmaster Lv.70, you need to consume Soul Crystals × 100...]
Reality was sometimes this merciless. After Blade Grandmaster reached Lv.70, the cost for a single level increase was a staggering 100 Soul Crystals.
At this moment, Su Xiao suddenly recalled a conversation during the previous Empty Seat Banquet. When chatting with Tuanzhang, he mentioned that he was developing three Grandmaster abilities. At that time, Tuanzhang's gaze seemed somewhat surprised. Then, as if examining a new species, he looked Su Xiao up and down and finally said, "As expected of a wealthy alchemist."
The good news was that the Holy Maiden Seat still owed him 250 Soul Crystals, and she would definitely repay them.
The bad news was that the Holy Maiden Seat was located in a Void faction. Although the output of Soul Crystals there was considerable, too many people needed them, resulting in a pitifully small amount per person after distribution.
This time in the Gloomy Continent, Su Xiao had obtained a total of 9 Golden Skill Points. Before, he would definitely have used them to raise an X ability to X. Now, he wanted to try using them to raise Blade Grandmaster.
Su Xiao tried to activate a Golden Skill Point, but immediately gave up on this method. The feeling was very wrong. The energy drawn out by the Golden Skill Point had a strong "penetrating feel," but it wasn't as abundant as when consuming a large number of Soul Crystals.
Golden Skill Points could certainly raise the level of Blade Grandmaster, but although the level increased, the effect wouldn't be as good as raising it with Soul Crystals.
A simple analogy: consuming a large number of Soul Crystals to raise Blade Grandmaster was like using a vast amount of soul energy to nourish the ability's growth.
Using Golden Skill Points to raise it was like using a small amount of energy with extremely strong "piercing power" to break through the ability's level barrier. Although the level increased, the enhancement effect was far inferior to that brought by consuming a large number of Soul Crystals.
Conversely, even using a thousand Soul Crystals couldn't raise an X ability to X+ or the limit of X.
Golden Skill Points could achieve this, because the small amount of energy with strong "piercing power" they carried was specifically designed to break the upper limit and allow the ability to reach new heights.
In the past, when his abilities' tiers weren't high enough, Su Xiao thought Golden Skill Points could perfectly raise all skills. Now it seemed this wasn't the case. Back then, his abilities required less "nourishing energy," so Golden Skill Points gave him the illusion that they could raise everything.
Despite this, Golden Skill Points were still exceptionally precious. "Basic Passive: Awakening, X," "Basic Passive: Revival, X," "Soul Severing Shadow, X," "Supreme Blade, X+" — these abilities were all eagerly waiting to be raised with Golden Skill Points.
In other words, Su Xiao only had Golden Skill Points as a means to raise these abilities.
In the future, after "Basic Passive: Spirit Toughness" and "Basic Passive: Blood Awakening" reached X, they would also require a considerable number of Golden Skill Points.
Su Xiao had previously been using Golden Skill Points to raise the "Azure Shadow King" ability. He was actually puzzled. The passive effect of this ultimate move was very strong, and the active effect seemed strong based on the description. But when actually used, it always felt somewhat lacking, not as reliable as the Blood Beast pouncing.
Now it seemed that Golden Skill Points were not meant for raising the ultimate move "Azure Shadow King." But there was no other way; in the past, he simply had no means to raise "Azure Shadow King." It was only recently, with the awakening of the Shadow Hunt talent, that he gained a suitable method to raise it.
Using Golden Skill Points to raise "Azure Shadow King" wasn't without benefits. The skill level was propped up first. At most, he could later use a large number of Law-Destroying Skill Points to fill in the deficit of "Azure Shadow King." Law-Destroying Skill Points could perfectly achieve this. Then, even if Azure Shadow King's level remained unchanged, its power would undergo earth-shaking changes.
In this regard, there was no chance of getting useful guidance from the unscrupulous mentor, Mawen Hua'erzi. When the matter was brought up last time, Mawen Hua'erzi's reply was: "Hmm, use your own judgment."
In reality, Mawen Hua'erzi's thoughts at the time were: "What the hell is a Golden Skill Point? Never heard of it. Better not say too much, in case this kid goes down the wrong path."
Now, Su Xiao planned to invest the 9 Golden Skill Points he had obtained into "Supreme Blade, X+." With the [Seal Demon] scabbard, he could now confidently raise this ability.
As Golden Skill Points were invested one by one, the level of "Supreme Blade" began to increase. After investing 7 points, the ability gave a feeling of cracking open like a shell, then fell into a temporary state of dormancy. Its attributes couldn't be viewed through the skill list either, only showing that the ability was undergoing transformation.
There were 2 Golden Skill Points left. Su Xiao invested them into "Basic Passive: Awakening" to further increase the upper limit of his perception power.
This wasn't the end. Su Xiao still had 30 Law-Destroying Skill Points. He activated his mark with his will, and the Law-Destroying Skill Points began to be consumed rapidly.
A roar sounded in Su Xiao's ears, and his vision went black. When he woke up, he found that over two hours had passed. Time really flew.
[Azure Steel Shadow ability has reached Lv.89.]
[Azure Steel Shadow: Lv.89 (Active/Passive Skill)]
Usage Condition: After activating the Azure Steel Shadow ability, it consumes 340 Mana Points per minute.
Active Effect: Each melee attack burns 1,445 Mana Points from the enemy (increase of 450 points), and deals True Damage equal to 1.8 times the burned Mana Points (2,601 True Damage + 25% increase from Dragon-Slashing Flash + 30% increase from Azure Shadow King = 4,032 True Damage). The enemy will suffer intense pain from the Mana burn.
Defense Form: Proud Song (Active)...
Combat Form: Shock Burst (Active), immediately consumes 20% of maximum Mana Points, creating an Azure Steel Shadow energy shock burst centered on yourself, affecting all enemies within a 1,000-meter radius, significantly reducing the success rate of their magic energy and natural element resonance, and preventing them from devouring elemental energy, causing a significant decrease in the power of the enemy's magic-type abilities, or entering a "Silence" state where they cannot use magic-type abilities.
Note: This ability requires Element Affinity of 800 points or more to use.
Note: The cooldown of this ability is 5 hours.
...
With a full 30-level increase in the Azure Steel Shadow ability, the increase in True Damage was naturally exaggerated, breaking through the 4,000-point mark.
The new characteristic of Azure Steel Shadow was quite extreme, very useful against magic-type enemies. Previously, spellcasters of similar strength attacking him with magic abilities already felt like scraping. With this new ability, those scraping technicians' techniques had significantly declined; the scraping didn't even hurt anymore.
Su Xiao meditated for a while longer, then entered the Alchemy Laboratory and began concocting in a 5-meter-diameter metal pool.
First, he had Amu fetch Eternal Spring water, filling the metal pool to half. Then, Su Xiao began concocting various potions, one jar at a time, pouring each type into the metal pool. He also added 32 ounces of World Force.
Seeing this scene, Bubu Wang and Beini wilted. They hid under the bed, as if anticipating what was about to happen.
In the Alchemy Laboratory, after several hours of mixing, Su Xiao, standing before the metal pool, was quite satisfied with the result. He took out an old-style sealed container, opened it, and poured the [Abyss Blood] inside into the metal pool.
Clang, clang.
Su Xiao tapped the edge of the metal pool with his scabbard. Bubu Wang, Amu, Baha, and Beini were forced to stand in a line.
Amu was first. After Su Xiao had him use [Wandering Warrior Soul Blood] + one [Dark Stone], he was the first to step into the dark red medicinal pool. His whole body shivering, he crouched in the liquid, only his head exposed. After a moment.
"Moo!!!"
Amu's agonized howl came from the Alchemy Laboratory. The feeling of soaking in this dark red medicinal liquid was like being cut by countless blades, from the inside out.
Not only Amu, but Bubu Wang, Baha, and Beini each received a [Dark Stone].
Clang.
Beside the metal pool, Su Xiao tapped the edge again with his scabbard. Seeing this, Baha, who was second in line, stepped forward. He stood by the pool, first tentatively dipping one eagle claw into the dark red liquid.
"Ah~! Damn it~! Hiss~! Damn it!!"
Baha slid in bit by bit, like being thrown into a pot. After fully submerging, he 'enjoyed' himself to the point of semi-consciousness, almost going into shock.
Seeing this, Bubu Wang's dog face turned pale. He looked pitifully at Su Xiao and shook his head.
Clang!
Su Xiao tapped the edge of the metal pool with his scabbard. Seeing this, Bubu Wang came to the edge of the pool, first testing with his hind legs. After letting out a series of indistinct howls, such as 'Second Uncle,' 'Oh my god,' and 'Two hundred and fifty,' he completely submerged himself in the dark red liquid.
Finally, it was Beini's turn. Tearfully standing by the pool, she raised her cat head and jumped straight in. After a slight splash, Beini sank. A few seconds later, she floated back up, only her back exposed.
Su Xiao also entered the metal pool, took a deep breath, and sat cross-legged, completely submerging himself in the dark red liquid. He had concocted this pool of liquid at great cost to increase his Abyss Resistance.
Previously, when he obtained the [Abyss Blood], he had realized the value of this item.
After a long time, Su Xiao stood up in the metal pool. The originally dark red liquid had turned black.
[Note: Your Abyss Resistance has increased by 5 points!]
Abyss Resistance was more difficult to increase than imagined. Su Xiao fished out Bubu Wang, Amu, Baha, and Beini, said they would have dinner, and Amu stubbornly stood up.
Two hours later, inside the Skill Upgrade Hall, in the Skill Upgrade Pod Su Xiao most frequently used.
The pod door closed behind him. Su Xiao had come this time to raise the "Aura Release" ability, and he planned to take the risk of maxing it out. This was also the main reason he hadn't raised "Basic Passive: Blood Awakening" yet.
The reason he needed to raise the "Aura Release" ability as soon as possible was to activate the ability derived from Blood Spear Grandmaster Lv.60.
[Blood Spear Grandmaster: Lv.60 (Passive)]
Skill Effect...
Lv.10 Ultimate Ability: Killing Spear Blade (Passive)...
Lv.20 Ultimate Ability: Ruthless Spear Blade (Passive)...
Lv.30 Ultimate Ability: Iron Blood Spear Blade (Passive)...
Lv.40 Ultimate Ability: Death Before Surrender (Passive)...
Lv.50 Ultimate Ability: Blood Loss (Passive)...
Lv.60 Ultimate Ability: Blood Soul Resonance (Ultimate · Passive), requires raising the Aura Release ability to X, or a higher X, to fully awaken this ability.
Note: Upon completing Blood Qi Resonance, your Blood Qi release ability will be integrated into this ability.
...
Su Xiao activated the Skill Upgrade Pod, chose to raise "Aura Release," and the next second, he disappeared from the pod, heading to the Ancient Battlefield.
Time ticked by.
Five minutes.
Ten minutes.
Twenty minutes.
One hour.
Boom!!
Su Xiao suddenly appeared, crashing into the metal wall of the Skill Upgrade Pod, creating a dent, with blood splattering on the metal wall.
Bang! A blood-red crystal claw pressed against the pod wall. At this moment, Su Xiao's eyes were bloodshot, but he was very calm. His long-term meditation, coupled with Blade Grandmaster reaching Lv.70, prevented him from being overwhelmed by the Blood Qi erosion.
[To remove Ancient Battlefield Blood Qi erosion, you need to consume 2,250 Soul Coins.]
[To remove Blood Qi residue from the aura, you need to pay 3,870 Soul Coins.]
[To restore physical damage, you need to pay 392 Soul Coins.]
Su Xiao chose to pay all. Starting from his elbow, the blood-red crystal forearm and claw shattered, and the bloodshot red in his eyes faded visibly.
[Aura Release ability has been raised to X.]
This time, Su Xiao went to the Ancient Battlefield and absorbed a large amount of Ancient Battlefield Blood Qi, emptying a large area. In return, the Aura Release ability reached X.
[Blood Spear Grandmaster · Lv.60 Ultimate Ability: Blood Soul Resonance (Passive) has been activated.]
[Blood Soul Resonance (Passive): Can integrate aura-type abilities (requires aura-type ability to reach X, or a higher X). After integration, the aura ability will be removed from the skill list, but will not reduce your current Blood Qi intensity or total Blood Qi. After completing this integration, it will bring a certain degree of improvement to Blood Spear Grandmaster and further enhance the quality of your Blood Qi.]
...
Su Xiao now understood why the "Blood Soul Resonance" ability would only activate after Aura Release reached X.
Simply put, it was to sacrifice the "Aura Release" ability to enhance Blood Spear Grandmaster and further purify one's own Blood Qi energy.
In this case, in the future, when raising Blood Spear Grandmaster, he could consider not using Soul Crystals but instead acquiring aura-type skills. Although only one "aura-type skill" could be mastered at a time, Su Xiao's aura was Blood Qi. As long as he could go to the Ancient Battlefield, "aura-type skills" would level up very quickly.
If he unrestrictedly absorbed Ancient Battlefield Blood Qi, he could max out a newly mastered "aura-type skill" in one go. Then, using "Blood Soul Resonance" to integrate this ability, he could raise Blood Spear Grandmaster's level and make his own Blood Qi purer.
In this way, raising Blood Spear Grandmaster was secondary. As long as he could absorb Ancient Battlefield Blood Qi, Su Xiao could continuously master new "aura-type skills," max them out, use "Blood Soul Resonance" to integrate them, freeing up the skill slot for "aura-type skills," then master a new "aura-type skill," and so on in a cycle, constantly stacking his own Blood Qi volume and intensity.
The main cost was acquiring new "aura-type skills." The type didn't matter, or rather, "aura-type skills" didn't have a clear type. Su Xiao's aura was Blood Qi. If he mastered a new "aura-type skill," this "aura-type skill" would definitely enhance Blood Qi. This was the same logic as wearing shoes on your feet wouldn't turn your feet into claws.
"Aura-type skills" were generally somewhat expensive, especially those of sufficiently high grade. Also, each time he returned from the Ancient Battlefield, removing the Ancient Battlefield Blood Qi erosion and the Blood Qi residue from the aura was a considerable expense.
Compared to the benefits, these were all worth it. When Blood Spear Grandmaster reached Lv.70 and each level required 100 Soul Crystals, this method of improvement would seem extremely cost-effective.
After stabilizing his aura for a moment, Su Xiao left the Skill Upgrade Hall and walked towards the agreed meeting point. The Saber-haired King still had one final treatment to complete. After this treatment, that side would have to hand over the treatment payment.
[Note: Your bracer-type equipment, Black · King's Cycle, has been raised to Origin rank.]