Chapter 489 - 244: Merging a True Skill’s Trait, Talent Upgrade, The Final Assessment Begins
Chapter 489: Chapter 244: Merging a True Skill’s Trait, Talent Upgrade, The Final Assessment Begins
But with careful Sensing, one could discover that the air around this hazy gray True Qi was actually distorting, emitting a heart-stopping heat!
Jiang Che casually picked up a discarded iron ingot from the table, used as a paperweight, and swiped his finger across it.
Without any resistance, the hard iron ingot was sliced apart as if it were tofu. The cut surface instantly glowed a molten crimson!
’Success!’
A flicker of joy crossed Jiang Che’s eyes.
’Myriad Phenomena True Qi is truly domineering. It perfectly absorbed the high-temperature properties of the Crimson Flame Golden Burning Technique!’
’My True Qi’s destructive power is now at least twenty percent greater than before!’
But that wasn’t the most important part.
The most important part was that as the True Skill reached Perfection, the panel vibrated again!
HUMMM—
[Crimson Flame Golden Burning Technique has been cultivated to Perfection!]
[Obtained Talent: Fiery Fire Burning Armor!]
’A four-word Talent!’
Jiang Che’s pupils constricted.
Previously, cultivating Qi Blood Realm Martial Arts only yielded basic, short-named Talents like [Barbaric Power] and [Tenacity].
And now, a single Low-Level True Skill at Perfection had directly granted a four-word Talent!
It was only Mortal Level, but still, not bad at all!
Before Jiang Che could even examine the Talent’s specific properties, his Core Talent, [True: Infinite Battle Armor], which had long been famished within his Sea of Consciousness, radiated an extremely intense desire to devour!
’Extremely high compatibility?’
Jiang Che’s heart stirred. Without a moment’s hesitation, he commanded, ’Devour!’
BOOM!
Deep within his Sea of Consciousness, the entry for [True: Infinite Battle Armor] erupted in a dazzling light, absorbing and fusing with the newly born [Fiery Fire Burning Armor]!
Immediately after, a surge of incomparably pure and ferocious power flooded back into Jiang Che’s entire body!
He could clearly feel every cell and every inch of muscle in his body cheering, as the upper limit of his strength was forcibly raised by a significant measure!
A moment later, the light subsided.
Jiang Che quickly checked the updated stats for [True: Infinite Battle Armor].
[Active Skill: Erupt with your body’s full Strength to deliver a twenty-eightfold strike!]
’Twenty-eightfold...’
Jiang Che stared at the number, his breath growing ragged.
It jumped straight from twenty-fivefold to twenty-eightfold!
He had to remember the grueling effort it took before, stacking dozens, even hundreds, of Qi Blood Realm Martial Arts just to grind his way from twentyfold to twenty-fivefold. It had been an arduous process.
And now, a single Low-Level True Skill had yielded such a massive increase!
The difference between the two was as vast as the heavens and the earth!
’I understand now...’
A spark of realization lit up in Jiang Che’s eyes.
’Qi Blood Realm Martial Arts represent the peak for mortals. True Skills, on the other hand, are the very beginning of the transcendent!’
’Using True Skills for Stacking Passives—that is true evolution!’
’In comparison, ordinary Qi Blood Realm Martial Arts are practically useless now, aside from padding the numbers or supplementing some extremely niche resistances.’
’From now on, if I want to grow stronger quickly, I have to feed my Talent with True Skills!’
Having come to this realization, Jiang Che felt both excited and heavy-hearted.
He was excited to have found a clear path to even greater power.
But his heart was heavy because...
’This path is paved with money!’
A single Low-Level True Skill cost five hundred points.
To stack that ’twenty-eightfold’ multiplier up to ’thirtyfold,’ or even ’fiftyfold’ or ’a hundredfold,’ how many points would he have to sink into it?
Tens of thousands? Hundreds of thousands?
Just thinking about that astronomical figure made his head ache.
’Points... I still don’t have nearly enough!’
He sighed, touching his Identity Token.
The points within were completely gone.
’I need to figure out a way to earn some points.’
But that was a problem for another time.
For now, there was still one more thing to practice.
Jiang Che picked up the Jade Scroll containing the Blood Burning Secret Technique.
’First, I’ll master this Ultimate Technique. It’ll be another ace in the hole to save my life.’
He took a deep breath and entered a state of Cultivation once more.
This time, the Cultivation process was not an easy one.
The Blood Burning Secret Technique focused on reversing one’s Qi Blood to burn away one’s life force.
The moment he began, Jiang Che felt as if his blood was boiling. Excruciating, heart-piercing pain wracked his body, and a fine layer of blood beads even seeped out onto his skin.
For an ordinary person, even if they mastered it, a single use would severely drain their Vitality, leaving them bedridden for a month or two.
But Jiang Che was different.
As his Qi Blood burned, the various recovery-related Passives that had been integrated into his handful of True Level Talents all triggered instantly!
In the blink of an eye, the damage caused by the burning was converted into new life force and True Qi, which in turn nourished his body.
Burning and replenishing simultaneously.
At the same time, Jiang Che’s Skill Level skyrocketed!
...
On Chuyang Peak, a bell chimed melodiously, yet its tone carried a grim, murderous undertone.
The time for the annual assessment had finally arrived.
For every New Disciple on Chuyang Peak, this was Judgment Day—the day their fates would be decided.
Would they be the carp that leaps the Dragon Gate, officially entering the Inner Sect to stand at the apex of the Martial Arts World?
Or would they be cast back into the dust, relegated to the Outer Sect to struggle miserably in the mud at the very bottom?
Everything depended on today.
The gate of C Seventy-Two Courtyard slowly swung open.
Four figures emerged one after another.
They had been neighbors, living under the same roof for a full year.
Yet now, their formation was clearly divided, radiating an undeniable sense of distance.
Lin Xiao and Su Xiaoxiao walked at the very front.
Bao Da and Jiang Che, meanwhile, walked side-by-side a dozen or so paces behind them.
"Sigh..."
Lin Xiao, who was walking ahead, suddenly let out a sigh.
This past year, she had worked incredibly hard.
To earn points, she had taken missions day and night, even venturing out to hunt dangerous Exotic Beasts at great personal risk.