"An Jianyou has accumulated 10.6 Mystery points, but there's no indication of a secondary awakening. This suggests the starting standard for a second awakening might be 20 units."
"Heitong also can't awaken... Looking at Heitong's current state, it's equivalent to a first awakening? Does it also need to accumulate 20 points?"
Not much, all things considered.
Whether it's ten units or twenty, accumulating them won't take too long.
If the Investigation Bureau knew, they'd be green with envy. The scarcity of their Special-Grade Investigators is not only due to the extreme danger of awakening but also the incredibly slow accumulation of Mystery points.
Unlike a Destiny Apostle, who can absorb Mystery points just by slaying a minor anomaly.
He tapped the "!" icon next to the "Black Blade" entry. A prompt immediately appeared.
[Prompt: You can guide the Destiny Apostle 'Black Blade' to undergo a second awakening. This guidance requires 'Destiny Points x3' and 'Anomalous Crystals x9'. The awakening probability is 75%. Failing the second guidance will consume more resources.]
[Prompt: Do you wish to guide the Destiny Apostle 'Black Blade' to undergo a second awakening?]
He didn't rush to guide.
"The cost for the second awakening guidance is three times that of the previous one, not too expensive... Alright, nine Anomalous Crystals are still a bit pricey."
And the awakening probability had decreased!
During the first awakening guidance, Black Blade had a 90% success rate. This time, it dropped to 75%. What about the third and fourth times?
The odds weren't great, so Fang You commanded Black Blade to rest and prepare thoroughly.
After Black Blade rested for an hour, his stamina, life energy, and other attributes had fully recovered, leaving only minor injuries.
These were not significant issues.
Scars on a formidable fighter like Black Blade were hardly a problem.
Fang You lightly touched his phone screen and pressed the crucial "Guide Awakening" button.
Moments later,
He watched intently. Black Blade showed no outward change. He simply sat quietly in the training room for half an hour, then suddenly stood up and drew his blade, slashing.
*Swish—*
The blade cut through the air with a piercing cry, and waves of invisible force erupted from around Black Blade.
Although his physical form hadn't changed, he now exuded a more chilling aura, like a blade honed by countless anomaly slaughters.
However, the second awakening wasn't entirely without changes.
In a place Fang You couldn't see, beneath Black Blade's mask, a red mark appeared on his face.
This was the change brought by the awakening.
Compared to awakened individuals in the Investigation Bureau, this change was quite subtle.
Fang You opened Black Blade's status panel.
[Black Blade]
[Physique: 7.4+7]
[Spirit: 2.1+1.6]
[Mystery: 0]
[Life Energy: 10.12+5]
[Skills: Omitted]
[Abilities: Cold Killing Intent (Second Tier)]
His Physique had nearly doubled again, making Black Blade even more formidable.
Besides that, the primary change was in his abilities. Second-tier awakenings typically didn't manifest entirely new abilities but rather enhanced existing awakened abilities and extended their usage.
Black Blade's "Cold Killing Intent" now allowed him to imbue his killing intent into his blade, enhancing its lethality.
He'd see how Black Blade used this new technique next time he fought an anomaly.
Fang You then looked at his own character.
With Black Blade's successful awakening as a good omen, he hoped his own awakening would also go smoothly.
Once his stamina fully recovered, he would proceed with his awakening.
...
Baijiang, Investigation Bureau.
Two days had passed since the Southern Suburb Hellgate incident, and the bureau felt somewhat deserted.
Many investigators had suffered varying degrees of mental damage after facing the flesh-and-blood giant and were now recuperated in the sanatorium.
It was unclear how long their recovery would take.
In the Director's office, Director Zhou's expression was somber. This was partly due to his heavy heart and partly because, like many investigators, he had sustained mental trauma.
If the trauma hadn't been relatively mild and if he hadn't held the position of Director, Zhou Bureau would have also gone to the sanatorium.
Master Ma sat beside him.
His mental state was good, but his body was wrapped in bandages, and he appeared much thinner. Beneath his clothes, his body was skeletal, a side effect of repeatedly using the "Blood Curse."
He could recover slowly with nourishing supplements, but whether he could fully recover was doubtful.
He was grateful just to be alive.
If not for the intervention of that mysterious master in black, he might have perished in the sea of lightning.
Master Ma took a sip of wolfberry water from his thermos:
"Speaking of which, that lightning was terrifying. In an instant, it turned a hundred-kilometer radius into a sea of lightning. No matter how terrifying the anomaly was, it was all annihilated by the destructive lightning."
"It was like divine might. Was that something humans could achieve?"
Master Ma and the others leaned towards the theory that a powerful anomalous object was used at a great cost.
But even with a powerful anomalous object, such a scene could only be described as a miracle, as greatness.
Had humans, through awakening, reached such heights?
"Do you think that person was a third-tier awakened, or fourth-tier, or even higher?"
"Could they really awaken so many times?"
Jiang Tingqiu was also present. He appeared more cheerful than Director Zhou and pressed Master Ma: "What's the highest tier of awakening in the General Bureau? Fourth-tier, fifth-tier?"
"You're dreaming too big, young man."
Master Ma said, "As far as I know, the highest is only second-tier awakening, and they are extremely rare. Of course, it's not impossible for there to be higher tiers, but any higher than that..."
If there were such powerful individuals, why would they have to fight so desperately?
"Why do I guess that person was fourth or fifth tier? Master, even as an awakened individual, I've never seen anything so outrageous! It's reasonable to guess high. Since they can achieve first and second-tier awakenings, I suppose having eight or ten tiers is also reasonable, right?"
It was very reasonable.
But he hadn't even achieved a first-tier awakening yet!
Jiang Tingqiu wondered, "Although our Investigation Bureau was merely assisting in this battle, we still eliminated quite a few anomalies. We should have accumulated a lot of Mystery points by now, enough to awaken, right?"
Master Ma glanced at him.
He didn't say anything to dampen his spirits, but Jiang Tingqiu was a super senior investigator with several years of service, his seniority not much less than his own. He should have accumulated enough Mystery points long ago.
The fact that he hadn't awakened yet likely meant he had a very difficult time awakening, lacking potential.
"After this battle, it's possible some individuals may touch upon awakening. We need to pay close attention to the mental state of investigators during this period for any abnormalities."
"It's a good thing to have new awakened individuals, but we must also guard against failed awakenings... the failure rate is extremely high."
Master Ma said.
Director Zhou nodded, his expression heavy.
He hoped that the Baijiang Investigation Bureau would produce more awakened individuals, but he also worried about the possibility of some failing their awakenings and dying... in fact, it was highly probable that some would die, the question was how many.
The battle at the Southern Suburb Hellgate had already resulted in numerous injured and deceased investigators and apprentices. If there were more sacrifices...
Perhaps still affected by the anomalies, Director Zhou wore a look of deep sorrow.
He seemed a bit depressed.
"Little Zhou, I suggest you go to the sanatorium for a while. This bureau isn't completely reliant on you. Master here is holding down the fort. Don't mind my appearance, I can still easily take down a few anomalies."
"Cheer up. Remember, we achieved a great victory this time."
"Think about the situations in other places..."
The Sunset Empire encountered a Hellgate yesterday. They managed to resist but suffered heavy losses, far more than theirs, and the Hellgate's scale was reportedly much smaller than theirs.
On the other side of the ocean, the White Eagle Federation also had a Hellgate appear in a city, and the situation there is still unknown.
The neighboring Sakura Country, a land of misfortune, encountered another Hellgate. However, an incredibly terrifying anomaly appeared in a prosperous area, and it's rumored to still be wreaking havoc.
Although the severity was primarily abroad, domestic disasters were also not uncommon. As Master Ma spoke, his mood grew heavier.