Chapter 197
Chapter 197
Ding!
[System Notification: Congratulations! You have completed your class advancement. Growth Star Ratings have increased substantially!]
Ding!
[System Notification: Congratulations! You have completed your class advancement. The Sword Demon Emperor’s exclusive skills [Ten-Direction Shadowkill] and [Divine Abyss Sword Qi] have advanced to Exclusive SS Rank!]
Ding!
[System Notification: Your level has reached the required threshold. The power contained within your equipment [Ask the Heavens] and [Mystic Heaven Ring] has increased further!]
Ding!
[System Notification: Congratulations! You are the first player to complete a third class advancement and have received the following rewards: Free Attribute Points +100, the Rare SSS-Rank item [Life-and-Death Pact], and Fame +1,000!]
Ding!
[System Notification: Do you wish to publicize the legend you have created on the Destiny Continent? (Note: Once publicized, it will be visible to all players on the server.)]
Ding!
[Server-Wide Announcement: Attention! An adventurer has completed their third class advancement. [Pinnacle Showdown] (Server-Wide) is now officially open. All adventurers are welcome to register!]
…
The benefits from a single class advancement exceeded all expectations.
It had increased not only his personal strength but also granted extra system rewards.
However, those gains had been predictable and were not the main point.
What truly delighted Zhou Ming was the Life-and-Death Pact, whose power he had witnessed before, and the server-wide Pinnacle Showdown.
The Life-and-Death Pact needed no explanation. Used properly, its potential gains were explosive.
As for Pinnacle Showdown, the rewards from a single region had already earned him such treasures as god-tier ore and a Rare SSS-Rank skill. The server-wide rewards could only be better!
For Zhou Ming, who had to face Flame Sovereign · Gu Ming three months from now, it had arrived at the perfect time.
“I can’t lose sight of my priorities!”
Suppressing his impatience, Zhou Ming decided to head deeper into the Snow Domain and continue leveling.
This time, he would not remain at the same level as the other players just to compete with them. He could barely protect himself, so how could he spare any attention for their affairs?
“Crunch…”
Zhou Ming’s footprints extended behind him as he crossed the thick snow.
The bone-chilling wind and heavy, feather-like snowfall could not hinder his urgent desire to level.
After passing the territory of the Level 180 Snowfield Ice Bears, he saw pitch-black undead wreathed in sinister energy roaming among the glaciers. They carried all kinds of weapons, and though the equipment on their bodies had long since decayed, Zhou Ming could still vaguely sense how glorious they had been in life.
Thick resentment and killing intent seemed to linger throughout the area.
[Wraith Swordsman] (Domain Grade ★★★★★)
Level: 200
HP: 50,000,000
Attack: 380,000-425,000
Defense: 240,000-248,000
Skills: [Rampaging Sword Qi], [Super Combo], [Super Toughness], [Brutal Blow], [Vast Sword Qi], [Swelling Resentment]
Description: A great war once erupted in the Snow Domain. These were the defeated side, but their resentment refused to fade, transforming them into undead. The remnants of their fighting will drive them to attack anyone who approaches.
…
Level 200, five-star Domain-grade monsters!
They were on a completely different level from the Snowfield Ice Bears. Even Zhou Ming felt considerable pressure.
As the saying went, know yourself and know your enemy, and you would never be defeated. To make absolutely certain, he opened his character panel and examined the details.
[Flame Venerable · Zhouyou Shijie] (Flame Demon Emperor / Sword Demon Emperor)
Level: 120
HP: 41,534,400
Attack: 418,770-432,795
Defense: 95,320-98,720
Fame: 29,530
Luck: 30
Skills: [Command], [Demonic Flame Armor], [Baptism by Fire], [Astral God Art], [Ten-Direction Shadowkill], [Divine Abyss Sword Qi], [Return to Ruin], [Flame Soul Art], [Bedrock Shield], [Rider and Mount as One], [Heavenly Meridian Sword Art], [Heavenbinder], [Soul Refinement], [Heavenrend], [Immortality], [Forbidden · God of Blazing Flames], [Forbidden · Flames of Eternal Calamity] (Note: Only SS-rank and higher skills are displayed.)
Description: Nightmare of the gods, sworn enemy of the demons, and a future unknown to all.
—
[Flame Demon Emperor] (Exclusive SSSS-Rank Hidden Class)
[Sword Demon Emperor] (Exclusive SSSS-Rank Hidden Class)
Description: ???
HP Growth: 120★
Attack Growth: 224★
Defense Growth: 120★
Speed Growth: 120★
…
His base growth was terrifying. Even Zhou Ming was startled by it.
However, he was still only Level 120 and had just completed his third class advancement. Apart from HP and Attack, his Defense remained far below that of a Level 200 Wraith Swordsman.
If he became surrounded, he might truly fail to gain any advantage.
With that thought, Zhou Ming decided to defeat them one at a time.
At the edge of the area, he bent down, scooped up some snow, packed it into a snowball, then threw it hard at an isolated Wraith Swordsman.
“Splat!”
-1!
Snow scattered, and the Wraith Swordsman’s attention immediately snapped toward him.
“Kekeke!”
With a hoarse shriek, the Wraith Swordsman charged at Zhou Ming like a madman. Its rust-covered iron sword unleashed a powerful wave of sword qi.
Ding!
[System Notification: Wraith Swordsman has used [Swelling Resentment]. All Attributes +100% for 5 minutes!]
Ding!
[System Notification: Wraith Swordsman has used [Vast Sword Qi], dealing 800% of its Attack as damage to enemy units hit!]
Soul Plunder, Baptism by Fire, Demonic Flame Armor!
Zhou Ming activated his enhancement skills without hesitation, weakening one side while strengthening the other. He then swung Ask the Heavens, its edge infused with Heavenrend’s power, and shattered the incoming sword qi. The remaining force transformed into roaring sword energy that struck the Wraith Swordsman and dealt considerable damage.
-8,551,400! (Critical Damage)
Heavenrend remained as powerful as ever. Even the residual force instantly erased one-sixth of the monster’s HP.
“Xiaoyou, summon the duplicate!”
Zhou Ming did not forget to give the order as he charged forward to fight.
“Chirp! Chirp!”
Xuanniao understood at once. It immediately used Shadow of Heaven’s Way to summon a duplicate with 50% of Zhou Ming’s Panel Attributes, then threw out all manner of buffs and debuffs.
Ten-Direction Shadowkill!
The instant he closed in on the Wraith Swordsman, Zhou Ming used Heavenbinder, then confronted it head-on with Divine Abyss Sword Qi, the Sword Demon Emperor’s exclusive skill that had advanced to SS rank.
Ding!
[System Notification: You have used [Divine Abyss Sword Qi], dealing 1,950% damage to enemy units within a 30 x 200 area ahead. If this attack kills a target, its cooldown is halved. It also has an extremely high chance of inflicting Knockback, Launch, and other effects! (Note: Damage decreases by 20% for each enemy penetrated, to a minimum of 500% damage.)]
“Clang!”
The two weapons, separated by an enormous gap in rank, collided. The Wraith Swordsman’s iron sword shattered into pieces, and the Abyssal Sword Qi sent it flying backward.
-6,895,204!
Ten-Direction Shadowkill!
The next instant, Zhou Ming and his duplicate activated the skill simultaneously. Condensed sword intent transformed into a series of afterimages that darted back and forth around the Wraith Swordsman, producing a flood of damage numbers.
Ding!
[System Notification: You have used [Ten-Direction Shadowkill], condensing sword intent to deliver 10 ultrafast strikes against an enemy. Each strike deals 195% of your Attack as damage and is treated as a normal attack!]
-1,555,566!
-3,199,588! (Critical Damage)
-3,214,756! (Critical Damage)
…
Zhou Ming’s current Critical Hit Rate was quite high.
His main body and duplicate delivered twenty strikes in total. With the additional dark-element damage from the Core of Darkness, they instantly reduced the monster to critical HP.
He followed with two more sword strikes and finished it with ease.
Ding!
[System Notification: Congratulations! You have successfully killed [Wraith Swordsman] (Domain Grade ★★★★★). Current Level EXP +163.7%!]
“Whoosh!”
Golden light scattered, and Zhou Ming reached Level 121. The time he had spent was…
One minute?
“If you keep leveling this efficiently, the gods may never sleep soundly again!” Qianying said in admiration.
He had crossed an eighty-level gap to grind monsters, and he was doing it with ease!
Had she not witnessed it herself, she would never have believed anyone could do such a thing.
“Once I reach Level 150, my speed will immediately slow down,” Zhou Ming analyzed. “These monsters in the Snow Domain are already near the very top. Finding anything stronger will be difficult.”
After thinking for a moment, Qianying suggested, “When you reach Level 180, I believe your strength will be enough to contend with the gods. At that point…”
“Right!”
Zhou Ming nodded, understanding what she meant, and continued, “At that point, I’ll settle my debts with the gods first. The gains from slaying them will give me strength rivaling Saint tier!”
…