Chapter 121: The Life-Seed Monster

[Life Skill Card]
[Life Skill Name: Military Strike Art]
[Rarity: Rare]
[Mastery Level: Eighth Floor]
[Effect: Life Power circulation speed increased by 96%; Life Power attack and defense each increased by 96%.]
[Note: Each level gained increases all Life Power effects by 12%.]
[Card Rating: Usable]

Looking at the description on the Life Skill card within his body, Lin Huang was momentarily stunned. He had never expected the Enlightenment Card to have such a terrifying effect, propelling his Military Strike Art from the fifth floor straight to the eighth in one go.

At the eighth floor, the Military Strike Art provided a 96% boost to all aspects of Life Power. Even among top-tier Life Skills, this percentage was exceptional. Most people who practiced the superior-grade Military Strike Art would spend their entire lives stuck at the fifth floor. One in ten thousand might reach the sixth, and those who could reach the seventh or eighth were as rare as phoenix feathers and unicorn horns. That Lin Huang could elevate it to the eighth floor in a single moment of enlightenment was, to some extent, proof of his astonishing potential.

Glancing at the cards inside his body, he noticed an extra Healing Card, which he knew was the reward for the mission card.

"Mission cards, whether activated passively or not, are all damn traps!" he couldn't help but exclaim.

If not for that Enlightenment Card, Lin Huang knew he would never have been able to complete this mission. Fortunately, the effect was so incredible that he had not only finished the mission but exceeded the requirements.

Over twenty days of continuous Life Skill practice had not only raised the Military Strike Art to the eighth floor but had also completely stabilized the Life Power within his body. This led him to consider the matter of advancing to the Bronze rank.

There were about ten days left of Lin Xin’s summer vacation, and Lin Huang planned to set off to hunt Life Seed monsters as soon as she went back to school. He intended to spend these next few days carefully considering which Life Seed to choose.

In the "Compendium of Life Seeds," there were far more Bronze-rank monsters than Iron-rank ones. Lin Huang had many more choices, which made the decision difficult. After some filtering, he narrowed it down to eleven, but he still couldn't make up his mind.

He had originally wanted to consult Yi Zheng, but realized he had only just acquired the Military Strike Art a month ago; normally, reaching Iron rank 2 would be considered a good achievement. Asking about Bronze-rank Life Seeds now would inevitably raise suspicions about the speed of his combat strength growth. Lin Huang immediately dismissed that thought.

After hesitating for a long while, Lin Huang sent a message to Leng Yuexin.

"Ms. Leng, are you still traveling in the Third District?"

"Still in the Third District, but heading back in a few days. Is there something you need?" A few seconds later, her reply came back.

"I wanted you to help me look at how to choose a Bronze-rank Life Seed. I've picked out eleven, but I'm still struggling to decide." Lin Huang wasn't sure if she would be willing to help, but he sent the message anyway.

"Send them over, let me take a look," she replied quickly.

Lin Huang organized his list and sent a screenshot of the eleven Life Seeds he had selected. He chose Leng Yuexin because she had kept his secrets from the very beginning and was tactful enough not to pry into his private matters. Just like now, she didn't ask why Lin Huang was starting to choose his Bronze-rank Life Seed so quickly.

A while later, a video call request came in from her. Lin Huang paused for a moment before answering.

In the video, Leng Yuexin wore a pale white dress, which accentuated her cold temperament while adding a touch of elegance.

"I’ve looked at your choices. Most of them, like 'Electric Speed' or 'Thick Armor,' are meant to improve basic physical fitness, which isn't really necessary," she said, skipping the pleasantries and getting straight to the point.

"Not necessary?" Lin Huang frowned slightly; her words overturned his entire plan.

"Before you promote to Transcendent, most physical shortcomings can be compensated for by cultivation techniques. For physical strength, there are strength-enhancing arts; for defense, there are defensive arts; even for movement speed, there are many movement techniques..."

"Furthermore, after promoting to Transcendent, the body undergoes a metamorphosis. After this, the advantages of those with superior physical builds are reduced to almost nothing. Because the base physical constitution of a Transcendent is so much higher than that of an ordinary person, talents that provide physical boosts lose their effectiveness. This is why, after reaching the Transcendent rank, many who relied on physical advantages have to spend a vast amount of time and resources to re-condense their Life Seeds."

"So physical talents are all ineffective? Does that mean my 'Ghost Hand' will be useless later on?" Lin Huang felt his initial thoughts completely shattered.

"Ghost Hand is still useful. After becoming a Transcendent, it will evolve into a secret art called the 'Demon-Slaying Hand,'" she explained patiently. "It is quite a decent secret art."

"So, considering my future as a Transcendent, I should choose Life Seeds that can evolve into secret arts?" Lin Huang immediately found a new train of thought.

"Exactly. It's best if they evolve into secret arts that enhance self-preservation or lethality. These two types are the most practical after reaching the Transcendent level," she nodded.

"But I don't know which Life Seeds evolve into secret arts. Can the Hunter Association provide such information?" Lin Huang began to worry.

"I'll send you a copy later; you can compare it with the 'Compendium of Life Seeds.'" She hesitated for a second before adding, "Actually, since you mentioned Bronze-rank seeds, I just thought of a monster whose Life Seed evolves into a rather special secret art after reaching the Transcendent level. I'm just not sure if it's suitable for you."

"Let's hear it!" Lin Huang was immediately interested.

"The monster is called an 'Ugly Doll.' It’s not very strong, but it's very troublesome because it has the ability to create decoys. The Life Seed obtained is called the 'Decoy Life Seed,' belonging to the special type. Its ability is quite lackluster—it can only be used three times a day and can only transfer non-lethal damage. It’s far inferior to restorative Life Seeds, so few people choose it. However, after promoting to Transcendent, this talent evolves into the 'Death Substitution' secret art, which can transfer lethal damage nine times a day."

"That sounds great. I think I can add that to my candidate list." Lin Huang wasn't lacking in offensive skills at this stage. While this Life Seed might not be very useful now, it would be an excellent secret art once he reached the Transcendent rank.

"I'll send you the data on secret arts; you can look through the others and consider them yourself."

After ending the call, the data was sent over shortly. Lin Huang thanked her and immediately began reading. There weren't many Bronze-rank Life Seeds that could evolve into secret arts—only about twenty in total. Lin Huang went through them one by one, but none satisfied him until his eyes settled on the Death Substitution secret art.

[Secret Art Name: Death Substitution]
[Secret Art Effect: Uses a wooden stake to substitute for lethal damage. Can be used exactly nine times per day.]
[How to Obtain: Evolution of the Decoy Life Seed talent.]

He then compared it with the information in the "Compendium of Life Seeds."

[Life Seed Name: Decoy]
[Talent Effect: Uses a wooden stake to substitute for non-lethal damage. Can be used exactly three times per day. (Talent effect cannot evolve)]
[How to Obtain: Kill an Ugly Doll.]

"After looking for so long, there's nothing more suitable. I'll pick this one," Lin Huang decided on the Decoy Life Seed recommended by Leng Yuexin.

Closing the books and data, Lin Huang began searching for information on the Ugly Doll online.

"Ugly Doll, Undead type, Bronze rank 3, social monster..." He quickly found the details. "Distributed in the Mist Valley, the Forgotten Land, the first floor of the Undead Black Abyss..."

He had heard of the Undead Black Abyss long ago; it was a forbidden zone. Even the first floor could only be traversed by Transcendents, and only those who were strong enough could hope to return. As for the Mist Valley and the Forgotten Land, he hadn't heard of them and began researching. He discovered the Forgotten Land was a mysterious restricted area in the Seventh District where many explorers, including Transcendents, had vanished. Those who returned claimed there was nothing special—just a desolate desert. The Mist Valley, however, was a Level 4 wilderness zone.

Without hesitation, Lin Huang chose the Mist Valley. He didn't want to lose his life in some inexplicable place. There was too much about this world he didn't understand yet; even with his heaven-defying golden finger, he still needed a long process to grow.

With the destination set, the next few days were quite relaxing. He planned to leave only after Lin Xin went back to school. A week passed quickly, and only a few days remained before her school term began.

Suddenly, his communicator rang. The caller was the fatty, Yin Hangyi. Lin Huang raised an eyebrow and answered the video call.

"Hey buddy, how have you been?" The fatty's large face occupied the entire screen.

"I'm the same as always, though I feel like you've put on more weight," Lin Huang said, staring at the screen. He didn't know where the bad habit came from, but despite having a huge face, the guy insisted on pressing it so close to the camera that there was nothing else to see.

"Would it kill you to be nice for once?" the fatty cursed.

"It wouldn't kill me, but it would be very uncomfortable."

"You, you just can't hold a decent conversation. Whatever, I'm not going to nag. I need your help with something."

"Go ahead, what is it?" Lin Huang asked.

"I'm about to promote to the Bronze rank and I want to ask you to back me up! You must have reached the Iron rank by now, right?" The fatty looked smug, specifically mentioning Lin Huang’s combat strength.

"When is it?" Lin Huang was surprised that the fatty was reaching the Bronze rank at the same time.

"In the next three to five days. I'm just making final preparations."

Lin Huang frowned slightly. Their schedules were conflicting.

The fatty noticed his expression. "If you're busy, it's fine. I can find someone else."

"It's fine. My plans can wait a bit. Which monster are you targeting, and where will you be?" Lin Huang figured it wouldn't hurt to tag along for a few days.

"The location is the Level 4 wilderness zone, the Mist Valley. The monster I chose is the Ugly Doll. How about that? Never heard of it, right?"

The fatty’s answer left Lin Huang speechless. He never imagined that the fatty would choose the exact same monster...