"Bang!"
Fang You slammed the door shut again.
Pei Hongjing had finished learning his skills but was sleeping like a log, so there was no need to wake him. He checked Pei Hongjing's status and found no issues, so he let him be.
He then pondered over the ownership of the last skill book, 'Phantom Void Steps'.
"Phantom Void Steps is an auxiliary skill that enhances speed, creates illusions, and allows for brief aerial suspension. It's simple, crude, but very practical."
Unlike 'Two Forms Healing,' which was clearly suited for Yin Ling, 'Phantom Void Steps' could be useful for many people, including himself, Hei Dao, Xing Jinglei, and so on.
After much deliberation, Fang You still decided to give this skill to Hei Dao.
Brother Hei Dao truly needed speed and some life-saving measures, otherwise, his battles would be too heart-stopping.
As for himself, he was also very covetous of it.
Alas, he could only wait until Hei Dao learned it and mastered it, then he could "freeload" it.
Each skill had its owner and a bright future.
Fang You glanced at the situation with the Apostles. Well, as per usual, he'd keep the Apostles at arm's length for now, observe them secretly for a while.
He then studied the strange artifacts he had just acquired, along with that one golden-grade item.
In the blink of an eye, night deepened.
Only the lounge and the training grounds remained brightly lit.
...
The next day,
Training Ground One,
Pei Hongjing's eyes snapped open, and with a sudden Water Splash, he leaped upward.
The floor was cold, but his heart was burning, "Yes, the one from yesterday taught me a skill, a very special skill."
"Explosive Card!"
Pei Hongjing closed his eyes, carefully savoring it. After a long moment, he understood.
Indeed, it was a very powerful skill.
"This skill requires metal as a medium, injecting one's own life energy to create special cards. The created cards can be manipulated simply... the manipulation isn't the key; the explosion is."
"Metal cards can explode. The stronger my power, and the more suitable the metal used in the creation process, the greater the explosive force."
The destructive power of a single exploding card might be limited, but what about ten, a hundred, or a thousand?
Only with sufficient quantity could it be called explosive, a storm of destruction!
This was the hot-bloodedness of a middle-aged man!
Although it was a very expensive skill to learn, Pei Hongjing declared that money? He had no shortage of money; he loved spending it the most!
"Secretary, go acquire all sorts of metals for me."
"What kind of metal? Of course, buy everything I can get my hands on!"
...
With the raw materials in hand, Pei Hongjing's excited heart couldn't wait to try.
But he found to his dismay that he couldn't use it, no matter how he tried.
He had to ask Instructor Hei Dao for help.
Hei Dao pondered for a moment, "Your skill is too advanced; it requires life energy to activate. Your physical strength and mental focus when you're unawakened are not enough."
"In your situation, you can apply to the mentor for a 'Mysterious Infusion.' The mentor will approve it."
The instructor was indeed reliable!
He had even provided a solution, although Pei Hongjing had no idea what a 'Mysterious Infusion' was.
He simply applied as Hei Dao instructed.
It was approved quickly. His contribution points took a hit, and Pei Hongjing, in a daze, underwent the Mysterious Infusion, then in a blurry state, awakened.
The process was a bit painful, but not difficult.
As a novice in this field, Pei Hongjing even felt it was a rather ordinary day. After awakening and writing his awakening experience, he eagerly began to try crafting.
He picked up a metal ingot and held it in his hand. With the other hand, his fingers slowly traced across the metal ingot, drawing a mystical symbol.
He was a bit clumsy at first, but soon, the metal ingot slowly melted, transforming into a liquid state in his hand. Finally, it took the shape of a gray card.
Whoosh!
Pei Hongjing flicked the card, and the gray metal card spun through the air, embedding itself into a distant target.
"It can even be manipulated... The manipulation power is relatively weak, but manipulating the card's flight or making it change direction..."
He tried it for a while, and he could do it!
This represented extraordinary tactical significance.
However, these were merely preliminary steps. According to the skill inheritance information in his mind, both card crafting and manipulation were just preparations for the final art.
The art of explosion!
Boom—!
The gray card exploded, blasting the entire test target into pieces. Pei Hongjing, like a young boy, couldn't help but cheer.
"This power... is equivalent to a hand grenade."
"And this is just one card. For me, even detonating five, ten, or twenty cards simultaneously would be completely feasible... it all depends on how many cards I have!"
"The drawback is that I have to prepare these cards in advance. With my current life energy, I can create five cards if I deplete it all."
Five cards, still quite a lot.
If he drank more life potions, it wouldn't be impossible to craft fifty cards in a day.
At most, it would be both grinding and "氪" (spending money).
Supernatural power was within his grasp, and a bright future lay ahead. Grinding, Pei Hongjing had no problem with that.
"氪" was his favorite.
Spending money to gain power superior to others was something he loved in games. Now, in reality, he had the opportunity to "氪."
As long as he possessed enough explosive cards, his burst damage would far surpass that of his peers.
Then, he would grind, and he would "氪."
"氪" out a bright future!
...
"This skill is indeed simple and crude, just a bit taxing on the liver and the wallet."
In the adjacent training ground, Fang You also "freeloaded" 'Explosive Card' and gave it a try.
It could be called an artifact-based, or pay-to-win playstyle.
"Even though Pei Hongjing is still at a weaker level among first-stage awakened individuals, as long as he accumulates more explosive cards and unleashes them all at once, he could instantly kill a two-star ominous entity."
"The cards can be manipulated, which also ensures accuracy of hits."
Fang You flicked his finger lightly, and a gray card shot out like a sharp blade, flew in a loop, and then continued to spin around him. His control was more than ten times stronger than Pei Hongjing next door.
Of course, the speed wasn't very fast, and it was still far from being used as a throwing knife, "But as the skill proficiency increases, perhaps new uses can be developed."
"Hmm, let's wait for Pei Hongjing to raise his proficiency level first."
Fang You stopped paying attention and instead looked at the two strange artifacts before him.
Both were high-grade items, comparable to 'Heavenly Net Hand.'
The strange artifact on the left was a large bird, reddish-brown all over, with an unusually large mouth that resembled a big pouch. Its appearance was somewhat eerie.
It flew around the empty training ground, emitting a "Ga~ Ga~" cry.
It would occasionally stop to voraciously devour the pile of fresh meat he had prepared.
Its eating posture was fierce, like a bird of prey.
But Fang You knew that, as a strange artifact, the 'Bloodmeat Flying Bird' had a fundamental difference from Little Illusion; it was not alive, merely an artifact.
[Bloodmeat Flying Bird (Purple)]
[Category: Strange Artifact]
[Ability One: Puppet-type strange artifact. As long as it is fed a sufficient amount of ominous crystals, the Bloodmeat Flying Bird can move freely. This puppet possesses extremely high flight speed, reaching up to Mach 3, but is not adept at combat.]
[Ability Two: Dimensional Maw. The Bloodmeat Flying Bird's giant mouth contains a ten-direction space.]
[Side Effect: The Bloodmeat Flying Bird must be fed fresh blood and flesh regularly, otherwise it will become difficult to control and become aggressive.]
On the right, a strange artifact, entirely pale blue, resembling a water droplet, hovered.
[Angel's Tear (Purple)]
[Category: Perfect Strange Artifact]
[Ability One: When held, it can slightly increase mental strength and accelerate the holder's life energy recovery speed to 300%.]
[Ability Two: Accumulation of Life. When the holder uses abilities or skills, it will charge Angel's Tear. The charge amount is 35% to 55% of the skill's consumption, with a maximum charge of 600 units of life energy.]
[Note: This is a tear from an angel, processed.]
Angel's Tear!
Six hundred units!
What did this mean? He, Fang You - the Torchbearer mentor, the second-stage awakened - only had about 15 units of life energy, and that was after drinking a life potion once.
If he could have six hundred units, he could transform into a lightning cannon.
Although accumulating it wouldn't be easy, requiring frequent use.
Fang You pondered.
A new idea gradually began to form.