parentshiftbook Chapter 42 Abyss Challenge - First Trial! Advanced Skill - Lightning Release
Chapter 42 Abyss Challenge - First Trial! Advanced Skill - Lightning Release
East No. 3, Abyss Rift Valley, Outer Zone.
After getting off the car, everyone walked for about four kilometers and arrived at an open space.
At the edge of the clearing, several black, withered trees stood crookedly, their trunks covered with a layer of grayish-white fungal patches. The branches looked as if they had been burned, charred and twisted.
In the distance, there were large swathes of fallen trees, piled up haphazardly, with dark red sap seeping from their broken ends, emitting a faint stench of decay in the air.
In the center of the open space, to the left, lies the skeleton of a demon wolf.
Zhou Chengjie crouched down, his fingers hovering above the skeleton, without touching it directly.
He observed it carefully for a few seconds before gently turning the skull with the barrel of his gun.
"Judging from the position of its head and eye sockets, it is a three-eyed demon wolf."
His voice wasn't loud, but his tone was firm: "Judging from the bone density and skeletal structure, it should be a mid-level soldier, with a body length of about 1.8 meters and a shoulder height of around 90. An adult individual, in its prime."
He pointed to the abnormal grayish-black layer on the surface of the bone.
"The blackened part is likely the venom of the black-bellied black snake. It has penetrated into the bone, indicating that it wasn't a scratch, but a direct bite, with the venom directly injected into the bloodstream."
He raised his head and looked at the crowd.
"The venom of the Black-bellied Ink Snake is a neurovascular type. Prey below the peak of the soldier level will lose their ability to move within three minutes."
Su Chen stood to the side, listening attentively.
Textbooks will only tell you about the venom composition, lethal dose, and preparation method of antivenom for the black-bellied ink snake.
However, many things are difficult to translate into practical skills without firsthand experience.
Zhou Chengjie took out a palm-sized communicator from the tactical bag at his waist.
It has a silver-gray casing and a miniature rotating camera on top.
He filmed several short videos of the skeleton from different angles, then pressed the call button on the side.
"East Zone 3, Group 3 has arrived at the designated location. All personnel are in position and fully equipped."
There was a two-second silence on the communicator, followed by a cold, emotionless synthesized voice.
【receive】
[Five minutes until the exam begins. Please check your equipment and ensure your energy protection device is functioning properly.]
[Once the test begins, please proceed along the designated route deeper into the contaminated area.]
Best of luck to all students.
Zhou Chengjie stood up, dusted off his knees, and turned to face the crowd.
"Everyone, double-check your equipment. Make sure you're wearing your standard armor, especially your energy protectors!"
Su Chen glanced down at the equipment at his waist.
The main unit of the energy protector hangs on the belt. It is a palm-sized black square box with a green indicator light on its surface, which is currently flashing rhythmically, much like a transformation device for an armored warrior.
But that's not all!
The main unit extends several hair-thin sensor lines that are laid out along the lining of the tactical vest and connected to sensor patches in key locations such as the shoulders, chest, back, and knees.
These patches adhere closely to the skin and are normally undetectable. However, once an attack intensity exceeds a threshold, a psionic shield is triggered within milliseconds.
The shield is strong enough to withstand a peak-level Warlord-class magical beast for three minutes!
Su Chen stretched his shoulders to confirm that the sensor patches had not shifted, the buckles on his protective suit were fastened, and the indicator light on his waist was flashing normally.
"It's working perfectly!" he said.
The others have also been confirmed one after another.
Wang Yichuan moved his wrist, and the metal fasteners of the armor made a slight clinking sound.
Xiao Zi, on the other hand, was in a state of extreme excitement.
It circled the group, its four legs moving swiftly, its tail held high, and its light golden eyes constantly scanning the surrounding woods, clearly impatient!
He was originally a battle pet trained by the city guards, so it's normal for him to have a strong fighting spirit.
Su Chen looked at its appearance and smiled helplessly.
"Little Purple!"
Upon hearing its owner's voice, Xiao Zi immediately stopped spinning around, ran over, and sat properly at Su Chen's feet, looking up at him.
Su Chen took out a ring-sized, bluish-green pill from his tactical pouch at his waist.
Wind and Thunder Pill produced by the system!
He had already witnessed the effects of this thing.
The last one was almost five days ago.
Xiao Zi's seven skills combined increased by nearly 1,500 points! That's quite astonishing.
When Su Chen first formed a contract with Xiao Zi, he used the learning machine to practice Xiao Zi's skills all night.
The total only adds up to 160 points!
Although you can get 300 experience points a day this way, it consumes precious energy points!
Now...all you need are pills!
Thinking about the experience points, Su Chen glanced at the task panel again.
Task 1: Intensify Training
Content: The cumulative proficiency of all skills of the Wind and Thunder Fierce Dog has increased by 2500.
Progress: 428/2500
Rewards: Pet Energy x100, Wind and Thunder Pill x5, Skill Stone - Wind Wing
428!
"Without the Wind and Thunder Pills produced by the system, this mission would be really difficult to complete," Su Chen sighed to himself.
Now, Xiao Zi has mastered seven skills.
If I learn another one...
Windwing!
Xiao Zi's mobility is already quite high; with Swift Step and Lightning Release, her short-range burst damage and displacement are sufficient. But if you add Wind Wings...
Su Chenguang found it absurd just thinking about it.
Xiao Zi looked at the pill in Su Chen's hand, her nose twitched suddenly, and her ears perked up.
It let out a short "howl" from its throat, and its tail wagged as if it were about to take off.
It smelled it.
Same taste, same recipe, same manufacturer.
It also consumed Wind and Thunder Pills while serving in the city guard. The ones issued by the quartermaster were of much better quality than those available on the market.
But that kind of pill can't compare to this one!
Su Chen smiled as he looked at Xiao Zi's expression, which seemed to want to pounce on him.
"Come on, eat!"
He tossed the Wind and Thunder Pill into the air.
Little Purple slammed its front paws into the ground and precisely caught the pill.
The moment he landed, his throat moved, and he swallowed it.
Then it shuddered!
Fine blue arcs of electricity suddenly shot out from the silvery-white hair, crackling loudly.
The electric arc lasted for about three seconds before slowly dissipating.
Little Purple shook its head, blinked, and then tilted its head back...
"Awooo—!"
Su Chen looked at its panel and a slight smile appeared on his lips.
[Lightning Release Lv1 (951/1000)]
I need 49 more experience points to break through to level 2 in Lightning Release!
You already have 845 experience points when you first start the contract.
Of the seven skills, Lightning Release has the slowest experience gain.
If one successfully breaks through to level 2, it's equivalent to a human entering a higher level of mastery! The effect will definitely be on another level.
"You... didn't even taste it."
Su Chen rubbed Xiao Zi's ears, and Xiao Zi squinted her eyes, snuggling into his hand with a look of enjoyment.
Zhang Yan, who had been watching the commotion, was filled with curiosity after seeing how effective a single pill could be.
"What was that just now?"
"Wind and Thunder Pill," Su Chen replied casually.
"Oh..." Zhang Yan thought for a moment, "It seems quite expensive, right? Tens of thousands of yuan per piece?"
"Yeah, it's definitely not cheap!"
At this moment, Yang Xin walked over from the side, holding a standard heavy rifle in his hand, and was checking the magazine.
She heard their conversation but didn't look up. She added in a flat tone, "The Wind and Thunder Pills for beasts are much more expensive, costing between 20,000 and 30,000 per pill."
"What?" Zhang Yan's voice rose a half-octave. "So expensive?"
Her gaze then fell on Xiao Zi.
The large, silver-white dog was squatting at Su Chen's feet, its tongue lolling out, panting heavily...
Zhang Yan's lips twitched.
Her expression turned strange as she looked at Su Chen, her lips moving as if she wanted to say something.
"What's wrong?" Su Chen asked, puzzled.
"It's nothing~"
Then she turned her face to the side, her ponytail swinging behind her head in an unhappy arc.
Su Chen scratched his head.
what's wrong?
They were fine just now, why are they suddenly unhappy?
He recalled the conversation he had just had.
Wind and Thunder Pills, for beasts, cost twenty to thirty thousand each...
and many more!
Su Chen suddenly thought of something.
These past few days, he's been using pills to pay Zhang Yan's sparring fees.
Qi-boosting pills, Yuan-nourishing pills.
Moreover... the way he gave it was exactly the same as the way he gave it to Xiao Zi.
He tossed it into the air, and the other person jumped up and caught it.
The main problem is that they don't even eat as well as dogs!
Su Chen's face stiffened for a moment.
He coughed lightly, silently noting in his mind: next time he gives Zhang Yan something, he'll have to do it differently.
As he was thinking, a voice came from the communicator.
[Exam time has arrived. Please begin the first practical assessment of the second month for senior high school students.]
[Assessment Duration: Twelve hours.]
[Assessment Area: Abyss Rift, Outer Zone, Buffer Zone.]
[Scoring criteria: See the assessment manual for details.]
Best of luck to all students!
Zhou Chengjie stood up, clipped the communicator back onto the shoulder strap of his tactical vest, and glanced at everyone.
Let's go!
His finger pointed west.
In the distant core pollution zone, thick fog blanketed the sky, with only the occasional flash of dark red light emerging from the depths of the clouds.
Su Chen took a deep breath and started walking.
Take two steps.
His steps suddenly faltered.
A crisp notification sound rang in my mind...
【Ding--】
[High concentration of abyssal energy fluctuations detected...]
[The Master and Pet have been detected to be in a special testing environment...]
[A large number of Abyss units have been detected in the nearby area...]
[Meets the requirements for creating a copy.]
Su Chen's pupils dilated slightly.
What?
A copy?
This feature has never been mentioned before!
His consciousness sank into his mind, and a semi-transparent virtual interface unfolded before his eyes.
Lines of text emerged in the halo of light.
[Abyss Challenge Dungeon - First Trial]