Chapter 68: High-Tier Ability
After strolling through the forging district, Su Xiao found nothing of interest in the few shops he visited. Opening his contact list, he saw that Lide had sent quite a few messages.
Perhaps due to the numerous repairs on [Wild Hunt Night], Lide had developed a deep 'friendship' with the long leather coat. Now that [Wild Hunt Night] had advanced to Origin rank, Lide 'happily' sent so many voice messages.
Actually, compared to repairing [Wild Hunt Night], Su Xiao had another bold idea. He had obtained a trio of dangerous items from the old Beast King. [Original Sin Core] was fed to the Book of Original Sin, [Extreme Pure Abyss Blood] was used to enhance Abyss Resistance, and now only [Ember Flame (Semi-Sealed)] remained.
Whether it was an illusion or not, Su Xiao felt that [Ember Flame] and [Wild Hunt Night] should have a high compatibility. Therefore, he wanted Lide to try it out. After the other party finished repairing [Wild Hunt Night], he could attempt to use [Ember Flame] to enhance [Wild Hunt Night].
Su Xiao didn't open all the voice messages in the dialog box. Instead, he sent this idea along with the attributes of [Ember Flame]. After a few seconds of silence, Lide replied, indicating it should be feasible.
After passing the forging district, the shops on both sides mainly sold gems and accessories. Continuing forward, Su Xiao arrived at the Appraisal Institute.
The Appraisal Institute was an imposing iron-black building with multiple entrances, but there were very few people. The reason was that over ninety-nine percent of equipment didn't need appraisal. Only some Eternal rank equipment required appraisal to be activated.
Entering the Appraisal Institute through a corridor-like entrance, Su Xiao walked forward to a small window and a single-person seat. After sitting down, a metal tray on the opposite side popped out. Su Xiao placed [Gravity Magic Ring] into it, and the metal tray retracted.
Above, a row of numerical wheels began to click and turn, finally stopping at the number 14270. This meant that appraising this equipment required 14,270 Soul Coins.
This wasn't good news. The maximum appraisal fee for Eternal rank equipment was 15,000 Soul Coins. This value indicated that the rating of [Gravity Magic Ring] might not be very high. This puzzled Su Xiao. As one of the rulers of Arcane Eternal Star, Dean Guya's ring should have been among the top tier of Eternal rank.
Su Xiao didn't have to wait long before the metal tray popped out again. On it, [Gravity Magic Ring] faintly emitted a black, gravity-related light.
[Gravity Magic Ring]
Origin: Arcane Eternal Star.
Quality: Eternal Rank.
Type: Ring.
Durability: 70/70 points (Permanently reduced by 120 points).
Basic Bonus: All gravity-type abilities, Level +2.
Equipment Requirements: True Intelligence 350 points or above, True Stamina 320 points or above, Magic-type Basic Skill Lv.85 or above, Gravity-type Basic Skill Lv.80 or above.
Equipment Effect 1: Gravity Magic Core (Core · Passive), gain HP bonus equal to current True Intelligence attribute × 150.
Equipment Effect 2: Life Secret Art (Core · Passive), when Mana Points are insufficient, gravity-type abilities can be released by consuming HP (consumption rate: 1 HP equals 0.9 Mana Points).
Equipment Effect 3: ?? (Core · Passive), this equipment is damaged, this ability cannot be activated.
Rating: 5190 points (Eternal rank equipment rating is 3000 to 6000 points).
Introduction: Originally one of the top magic rings, but after suffering severe spatial damage and Solar Flame damage, this equipment was damaged, causing its rating to drop significantly.
Price: 8500 Soul Coins.
Seeing the attributes of [Gravity Magic Ring], Su Xiao understood why Dean Guya's ring wasn't a top-tier ring. It originally was, but after the battle in the Wind Sea World, this [Gravity Magic Ring] was damaged.
The original [Gravity Magic Ring] was definitely several grades stronger than its current state. Fortunately, the current one wasn't bad either. Su Xiao arrived at the Trade Market and found Bubu Wang and Beini already waiting there. He led them to the teleportation tower at the innermost part of the Trade Market. Entering it, a spatial flash occurred, and they arrived at the Great Gathering Place.
The Great Gathering Place was quite lively. Su Xiao went to Beini's long-term rented stall. Sitting behind the stall, he priced [Gravity Magic Ring] at 300,000 Soul Coins. The price range for Eternal rank equipment was between 100,000 and 500,000 Soul Coins. Although the price of 300,000 was inflated, it was still somewhat reasonable.
The reason it was considered inflated was that the target audience for [Gravity Magic Ring] was very small. Gravity-type users weren't common to begin with, and those who could meet the equipping requirements for [Gravity Magic Ring] were even rarer.
Su Xiao glanced at his remaining 246,000 Soul Coins, then opened his skill list to check the seven [Basic Passives] that had all been raised to X and were emitting a faint golden light, lined up in a row. He had invested a massive amount of resources into these seven [Basic Passives]. In return, these seven [Basic Passives] hadn't let him down, making his path of 'normal attacks being ultimate moves' even more powerful.
The current problem was that all seven [Basic Passives] were maxed out. [Overlord's Power] still needed 1 Golden Skill Point to be maxed out as well. Under these circumstances, he finally had the qualifications and resources to challenge a [High-Tier Passive] ability.
Su Xiao looked towards a stall area on the south side of the Great Gathering Place. There were very few people there, but the dozen or so stalls displayed many skill scrolls. Without even checking their attributes, just by looking at their appearance, one could tell these skill scrolls were no ordinary items.
An interesting fact was that [Basic Passives] were very difficult to buy, and the highest potential [Basic Passives] were simply unavailable for purchase. They could only be obtained through [Basic Passive Skill Scroll Chests]. On the other hand, [High-Tier Passive] ability scrolls were easy to buy, and even the highest potential [High-Tier Passive] ability scrolls were relatively easy to acquire.
The reason for this was that such abilities were not only expensive in themselves but also costly to upgrade. More importantly, not everyone was qualified to master such abilities. Over ninety percent of contractors didn't have this qualification. As a result, although the production of [High-Tier Passive] ability scrolls was scarce, even fewer people could use them, making them easy to buy.
After setting up the stall for a while, a man in a black robe stopped in front of it. After stopping, he took off his hood, revealing a bald head and a barcode on the back of his head. Without needing to think, this was a contractor from Death Paradise.
"This ring is not bad. Name your price."
The black-robed man didn't hide his satisfaction with [Gravity Magic Ring]. Being able to access Eternal rank equipment meant he was either Rank 9 or stronger. Having struggled to this extent, some once-useful tricks were no longer necessary, such as pretending to be uninterested in the equipment to haggle down the price.
"I'd prefer to trade for an equipment of the same rank."
Hearing Su Xiao's words, the black-robed man nodded and asked with a hint of probing, "Technique Grandmaster?"
"Yeah."
"That's a pity. I have an original ring of the energy control system. Your ring, 300,000, not a single coin less?"
"Can't."
"Are you interested in inscription pieces?"
Hearing the black-robed man say this, Su Xiao became somewhat interested and nodded. The black-robed man opposite him took out three Eternal rank inscription pieces.
[Molten Iron Inscription × 3 (Eternal Rank Inscription): Increases the intensity of some fire-type abilities.]
Seeing these three [Molten Iron Inscriptions], Su Xiao felt a bit of regret. This should have originally been an inscription stone, but it was shattered, and only fragments could be used to make inscription pieces.
Seeing this item, Su Xiao had a good idea, but he was still missing one inscription piece. Therefore, he set a price, "Add one more."
"This..."
The black-robed man pondered for a few seconds, picked up [Gravity Magic Ring], and didn't hide the satisfaction in his eyes.
"Alright, I'm really satisfied with this ring. I'll give you all four."
The black-robed man placed all four [Molten Iron Inscriptions (Eternal Rank Inscription)] on the stall. Although the rating of these four inscription pieces was only 3900 to 4000 points, placing them at the lower end of Eternal rank inscription pieces, Su Xiao was very interested in them.
Moreover, even an Origin rank inscription piece would cost tens of thousands of Soul Coins, let alone Eternal rank inscriptions. Even though these four [Molten Iron Inscriptions] were polished from a broken inscription stone, significantly reducing their price, if a suitable buyer was found, the price would definitely exceed 300,000 Soul Coins.
From the furrowed brows of the black-robed man earlier, it could be seen that these four [Molten Iron Inscriptions] had been stuck in his hands for a while. Now that they could be sold, he naturally didn't hesitate.
Although the equipment was sold, Su Xiao didn't get up from behind the stall. He took out [Inscription Base: Divine Sacrifice].
[Inscription Base: Divine Sacrifice]
Type: Five Inscription Slot Base.
Main Inscription Slot: Supreme Blazing Sun.
Sub Inscription Slot: Scorching Heat.
Sub Inscription Slot: Blazing Flame.
Sub Inscription Slot: Flame Secret Art.
Sub Inscription Slot: Light Knight.
Inscription Effect: Supreme Blazing Sun (Core · Passive), Immune to 61% of Solar Flame damage, including True Damage caused by Solar Flame (Base 55%, for each sub-inscription inserted into the inscription base, the effect of this main inscription will be additionally increased by 0.1% to 5%, meaning a maximum of 75% Solar Flame damage immunity).
With a few crisp sounds, Su Xiao stripped off the four sub-inscriptions above and handed them to Beini. Not far away, there was a stall that bought inscription pieces. Originally, buying these four Immortal rank inscriptions cost a total of 24,900. Now, selling them actually fetched 26,800 Soul Coins. After using them for one world progress, not only did he not lose money, but he also made a profit of 1,900 Soul Coins.
At this point, only [Supreme Blazing Sun], an Origin rank inscription, remained on [Inscription Base: Divine Sacrifice]. Normally, an Origin rank main inscription could at most be paired with Origin rank sub-inscriptions, which was the limit. But Su Xiao intended to overload this inscription base.
Although the effect of [Supreme Blazing Sun] was good, Su Xiao was now using [Solar Holy Sword] as his means of dealing with enemies. Even with 61% damage immunity, he still couldn't withstand it. Although Dean Guya had withstood the [Solar Holy Sword], Dean Guya was an old-school powerhouse, and his physique was by no means weak, as could be seen from [Gravity Magic Ring].
With a click, Su Xiao pressed a [Molten Iron Inscription] into a sub-inscription slot of [Inscription Base: Divine Sacrifice]. A burning sensation came from his hand, and the entire inscription base felt like it was about to melt. [Supreme Blazing Sun], [Molten Iron Inscription], and the inscription base showed signs of fusing together.
Ignoring this, Su Xiao pressed the remaining three [Molten Iron Inscriptions] into the three empty sub-inscription slots.
[Warning: Your main inscription and inscription base are overloading!]
[Overload: 20%, 45%, 100%.]
[Status has stabilized.]
[Tip: When your inscription base is in an overloaded state, it will exhibit stronger performance. However, when its endurance reaches its limit, it will be damaged, causing all inscription pieces on it to be destroyed as well.]
[Inscription Base: Divine Sacrifice]
Main Inscription Slot: Supreme Blazing Sun.
Sub Inscription Slot: Molten Iron Inscription.
Sub Inscription Slot: Molten Iron Inscription.
Sub Inscription Slot: Molten Iron Inscription.
Sub Inscription Slot: Molten Iron Inscription.
Inscription Effect: Supreme Blazing Sun (Core · Passive · Overloading), Immune to 85% of Solar Flame damage.
Warning: This inscription base will consume durability at a rate of 7 to 8 times the normal rate, and in the overloaded state, durability cannot be repaired.
Warning: Due to this being a scorching overload, all inscription pieces have fused with the inscription base.
Su Xiao reattached this pendant-like inscription base to his waist, alongside the Soul Lock Lamp. One was a ghostly green, the other a blazing golden-red. Although this item had become a consumable, he didn't feel regret. This was a trump card for critical moments. Even if it could only be used a few times, it was worth it.
Standing up from behind the stall, Su Xiao arrived at the stall area selling [High-Tier Passives] and began searching for a suitable [High-Tier Passive] among these dozen or so stalls. Picking up the first scroll, he found that this charm-attribute [High-Tier Passive] scroll was priced at 145,000 Soul Coins.
Before long, a skill scroll caught Su Xiao's eye. The aura of this scroll felt somewhat familiar.
[Skill Sublimation: Supreme Blade (High-Tier Passive): Price 185,000 Soul Coins.]
[Skill Sublimation: Supreme Blade: Lv.1 (Technique Class · Passive)]
Tip: Only after mastering the [Skill Sublimation] ability and raising [Skill Sublimation] to X can this ability be mastered.
Tip: Only after mastering seven or more [Basic Passive] abilities and raising them all to X, or a higher X, can this ability be mastered.
Skill Effect 1: Blade-type weapon attack power increased by 10%.
Tip: Only after the Blade Grandmaster ability reaches the limit of attack power bonus, granting you [Grandmaster's Heart (Passive)], can you obtain this bonus.
Skill Effect 2: Blade technique power increased by 10%.
Tip: Only after raising [Skill Sublimation] to X can you obtain this bonus.
Skill Effect 3: Blade technique potential rank +1.
Skill Effect 4: Blade Grandmaster upgrade cost +50%, upgrade effect +50% (This characteristic cannot be enhanced by any means).
Tip: This ability only takes effect for Blade Grandmaster above Lv.80, and after mastering this skill, a corrective upgrade can be performed once. Without raising the Blade Grandmaster level, additional resources can be consumed to increase Blade Grandmaster intensity. This correction can only be performed once.
Not to mention the price, just the prerequisites for mastering it were enough to deter many contractors. Seven Basic Passives at least reaching X, requiring the top-tier [Skill Sublimation] ability as a foundation, plus a minimum Lv.80 Blade Grandmaster.
In return, the enhancement from [Skill Sublimation: Supreme Blade] was also significant. After Blade Grandmaster raised [Blade-type weapon attack power] to 1200%, further improvement in this aspect would stop. To continue improving, one could only rely on this [High-Tier Passive].
Compared to this, Skill Effect 4 of [Skill Sublimation: Supreme Blade] was even more powerful. This directly affected the upper limit of intensity that Blade Grandmaster could achieve. As for the corrective upgrade mentioned in this characteristic, it was very suitable for Su Xiao's current situation.
His Blade Grandmaster had already been raised to Lv.82. Through this corrective upgrade, by consuming 10 Soul Crystals and 95,000 Soul Coins, he could complete the corrective upgrade for Blade Grandmaster Lv.80 to Lv.82 without raising the Blade Grandmaster level. This opportunity was only available once, but it was enough. He just needed to gather 10 Soul Crystals.
Su Xiao immediately bought [Skill Sublimation: Supreme Blade]. Recalling the experience of mastering [Skill Sublimation] back then, he chose to use this skill scroll directly.
The mastering process went smoothly. Su Xiao checked his newly mastered [Skill Sublimation: Supreme Blade].
[Skill Sublimation: Supreme Blade: Lv.21 (Technique Class · Passive)]
Skill Effect 1: Blade-type weapon attack power increased by +210%.
Skill Effect 2: Blade technique power increased by 210%.
Skill Effect 3: Blade technique potential rank +5.
Skill Effect 4: Blade upgrade cost +50%, upgrade effect +50% (This characteristic cannot be enhanced by any means).
That's right. As soon as Su Xiao mastered this ability, it was raised to Lv.21. This was the bonus brought by his Blade Grandmaster ability. However, there was a problem. Although this [High-Tier Passive] was very strong, its upgrade cost was also very expensive, at 24,000 Soul Coins per level. This was even after the 20% reduction from [Reincarnation · Glory Medal].
After waiting a few minutes at the Great Gathering Place, a goblin merchant hurried over. The other party smiled obsequiously and said, "Guest, this is the goods you requested. Our inventory of this item is very limited. We barely managed to scrape together the quantity you need. If you need more in the future, please be sure to place an order in advance."
"Mm."
Su Xiao opened the sealed box and checked the [Precipitated Glass] inside. There were a total of 3,200 pieces. After confirming there was no problem, he paid 1,500 ounces of Space-Time Power. The style of the Goblin Merchant Guild remained the same. These [Precipitated Glass] were worth at most 1,000 ounces of Space-Time Power. However, with the Goblin Merchant Guild's style, if Su Xiao wasn't a regular customer, they would have dared to ask for 2,000 ounces.
He collected all the obtained [Precipitated Glass] into the Abyss Shop, then opened the exchange list of the Abyss Shop.
[Exclusive Authority has been activated. Authority: Original Sin Sealer.]
[Original Sin Sealer (Passive Authority): For each Abyss · Original Sin item you hold/seal/suppress, the exchange price of all items in the Abyss Shop will be reduced by 10%.]
[Current exchange price reduction obtained: 40%.]
[Current Precipitated Glass: 5,418 pieces.]