Chapter Eleven: Significant Attribute Enhancement!

This sandworm nest was even more vast than he had imagined. Aside from the three hundred or so monsters on the surface, it was estimated that, hidden within the tunnels, there were nearly five hundred more. At his current level, lv6, Yi Shen needed only 600 experience points to advance. So, after clearing out these monsters, he sought another location to continue his hunt, rapidly pushing his level to lv7 before finally putting aside the idea of further grinding.

During this time, perhaps because Yi Shen was too lazy to clean up the battlefield himself, the two girls grew noticeably closer to him, volunteering to help with the task. This time, Zhu Qing was no longer embarrassed to benefit for free; she offered to pay him a certain fee for the subsequent collection of snow serpent corpses. Yi Shen had originally not cared to bother, but Zhu Qing insisted—it was a token of her goodwill, and she hoped he’d accept. That way, should they ever meet again, their future interactions would be more harmonious.

He had to admit, with the company of the two girls, hunting was indeed far more entertaining than going solo. They chatted idly as they worked, and he learned that both of them were students at Qiqiang Martial Academy. At present, within the Jingmen Safe Zone, there were four martial academies: Qiqiang, Radiance, Penglai, and the First Martial Academy of Jingmen Safe Zone. Of these, the First Martial Academy was the earliest established and the most prestigious. Qiqiang and Radiance were both converted from former universities, standing side by side as second in rank. The weakest in terms of strength was Penglai Martial Academy, founded only in the last decade, and mainly serving students from civilian backgrounds.

To gain admission to Qiqiang Martial Academy was already a mark of considerable ability. Thanks to his family’s connections, Yi Shen would be able to enter the First Martial Academy directly to continue his studies. The odds of meeting these two girls again were slim—such was the nature of a fleeting encounter, a twist of fate.

...

There was no way to track time in this world—one couldn’t even distinguish between sun and moon. Most people still kept time by the 24-hour cycle of Earth. Yi Shen had arrived at the snowy desert near midnight, and it wasn’t until seven or eight the next morning that he finished his monster hunt, feeling fatigue at last. Since their foray together had proved so profitable, Zhu Qing and Zhu You were both reluctant to part ways. Nevertheless, Yi Shen chose to return home first to get his things in order; as this was his first time hunting monsters, he had played it quite cautiously.

Once he had gathered his thoughts, he planned to head straight for a stronger area on his next venture.

[Ding: You have conducted a spell research session. The materials absorbed have been converted into 28 research points.]
[This spell research session has granted you: +17 Intelligence, +19 Spirit, +12 Endurance, +4 Strength, and the E-rank skill: Arcane Impact.]

After parting ways with the two girls, Yi Shen immediately took out everything in his inventory and backpack that could be dismantled, found a secluded spot, and began his spell research. Any decent equipment he kept for himself, while the rest he threw into the disassembly pile. The materials gleaned from several hundred monsters brought him a tremendous boost in power, and he emerged with a new E-rank skill.

At first glance, Yi Shen hadn’t expected much from an E-rank skill. His main method for hunting was the D-rank skill Firebomb, which was already more than sufficient. But upon reading its description, he realized this skill seemed tailor-made for him!

Previously, his single-target skills relied on stacking multiple Fireballs and Firebombs. But with Arcane Impact, he now possessed a technique that would soon become his most powerful single-target attack.

[Arcane Impact: Consumes 40 mana points to release arcane energy, dealing 76 arcane damage to the target. Each time you cast Arcane Impact, all your arcane spells deal 15% more damage, and arcane skill casting speed increases by 15%, but Arcane Impact’s mana cost also increases by 200%. This effect can stack up to 4 times, lasting for 6 seconds, or until you cast any arcane damage spell other than Arcane Impact.]

From what Yi Shen had gathered on the forums, the mage class was mainly divided into five branches: fire, ice, arcane, wind, and lightning, as well as a few strange and rare spellbook types. Of these, fire and arcane were widely accepted as the highest in offensive power.

Arcane Impact was a fairly well-known skill, famous for its ability to stack sustained damage. Its only drawback was the heavy mana cost—once the stack count rose, most mages simply couldn’t afford the drain. But for Yi Shen, who suffered no such limitations on skill use, this meant that when facing a single target, he could unleash this spell almost endlessly, transforming himself into a magical laser cannon!

With this in mind, Yi Shen returned to the snowy desert to test his damage output on several monsters. He found two level 10 creatures and repeatedly cast Arcane Impact. Once fully stacked, he needed only half a second to charge up a spell, with the stacked damage approaching two hundred and a DPS of nearly 400, crushing the two level 10 monsters with overwhelming force.

By now, his stats had changed dramatically compared to when he first entered the Academy Desert.

———

[Name: Yi Shen]
[Class: Mage]
[Level: lv7 (46/700)]
[Health: 360/360]
[Mana: 1330/1330]
[Base Attack: 29-58]
[Base Defense: 17]
[Strength: 29]
[Agility: 34]
[Endurance: 36]
[Intelligence: 133]
[Spirit: 97]
[Skills: Spell Research (SSS), Firebomb (D), Arcane Impact (E), Fireball (F), Haste (F)]
[Talent: Heart of the Mage lv1 (59/100)]
[Items: Health Potion (F), Mana Potion (F), ...etc.]
[Equipment: Snowfield Tunic (F), Tattered Pants (F), Exquisite Shoes (F), Exquisite Bracers (F), Novice Ring... etc.]
[Contribution Points: 3381]

———

Yi Shen’s attributes had all improved. As a mage, strength mainly affected his attack, and agility was tied to defense, so both his offense and defense saw a boost. Of course, his greatest leap was in intelligence—many of the materials he researched only increased his intelligence. When he obtained higher-level skills that further boosted spell damage, his intelligence would truly shine.

In terms of equipment, though he had acquired quite a few pieces, most offered only limited stat increases, so he picked those that looked the most stylish. His skill set now looked more substantial, but there was still room to expand. He planned to return home to rest, then scour the forums for new targets. Next time, he would head straight for the high-level zones, or perhaps seek out a secret realm to challenge on his own.