Burning Blade Slash?

Slightly surprised, I opened my bag in a hurry and found a simple skill book surrounded by red flames lying in a corner. When I brought it out and checked its description, I was stunned by what I saw—

Burning Blade Slash: Gather your qi and launch an AoE attack at the enemy in front 3 times in quick succession. The first strike deals 100% of the user’s basic attack, with each consecutive hit gaining 35% additional attack power. Level Requirement 115. Class Requirement: Warrior.

……

Holy shit! It’s a triple-hit skill!

The first strike dealt 100% damage, and each consecutive strike gained additional 35% attack power. This meant that the final strike would deal a whopping 170% damage! How powerful was that?

Moreover, it was clearly stated in the description that the skill was an AoE attack. It was out of this world!

Swhoosh!

The skill book vanished from my palm and transformed into the image of a red blade inside my skill window.

I grinned. Let’s test out your power, shall we?

I put strength into my arms and activated Burning Blade Slash. An intimidating and fiery red energy immediately shrouded the blade of the Heaven-stealing Sword. When I swung my sword, it left three burning scars in front of me and swept the area in front of me, distorting the air. Hmm, the area of effect was basically a wide curve, and it could hit six or seven enemies at most. That being said, it was still incredibly good in PvE and even more so in PvP. I doubted that there were many people who could withstand this skill with Martial God active.

I was happy that I had finally gotten a multi-hit skill. Candlelight Shadow’s Blazing Purgatory Slash had played a huge factor in his tournament victories, and Li Chengfeng’s Dragonbone Flurry, Purple Marquis’s Chaos Universe, Gui Guzi’s Death Combo, Farewell Song’s Blade Vortex, and Little Piglet’s Ice Ray Flurry were all multi-hit skills as well. It was what made them exceptionally great duelists compared to other players. Now that I had Burning Blade Slash, I was like a tiger with a pair of wings attached to it!

……

I happily pocketed the reward while checking my experience bar. As expected of an SS Rank quest, after killing the Earth Lizard Dragon and obtaining the experience reward from the quest, my experience had jumped to Level 119, 67%. A bit more and I would officially enter Level 120. Ah, if only I could have the luck to collect a main quest every day!

Of course, I would be lucky to find an S Rank quest every day, let alone a main quest. I could literally count the number of times I received a main quest on one hand...

Tia was a good girl. Not only did she reward me with a generous amount of experience, she also gave me 3 points of Luck. Currently, I was sitting at 25 Luck. This was absolutely nothing to scoff at, and it was the stat I needed the most right now. I should’ve known that the most direct way to increase a player’s strength was to take part in the main quests!

Clang!

Tia stabbed her dragon spear against a rock and rose to her feet shakily. Clinging onto the green dragon’s neck for support, she smiled at me and said, "I will be returning to Floating Ice City to debrief Princess Karinshan, so this is goodbye, dearest warrior. I pray that we will meet again some time."

I answered, "We will."

Tia nodded and smiled meaningfully. "Indeed, we will. You are an adventurer of Sky City after all. I look forward to the day we meet again, warrior! Farewell!"

The green dragon roared and flapped its wounded wings. After Tia leaped onto its back, it abruptly pushed off the ground and flew into the sky. It only took the blink of an eye for it to vanish completely from my sight.

I looked in the direction they disappeared to with envy. Dragon Knights are so cool, dammit. I wonder when I could ride a giant dragon of my own? However, most giant dragons are of the holy alignment. Would they really submit to an undead like me?

Actually, that was a stupid question. If they refused to submit to me, I would beat them up until they did!

……

I crushed a return scroll and returned to Sky City. It was already too late to turn in the quest for the bounty reward or reorganize because Beiming Xue had come online just to urge me. "Big bro, what are you doing? You’re 10 minutes late already…"

"Beiming, come to the eastern square now!"

"Oh?"

A few seconds later, after Beiming Xue appeared at the eastern square as promised, I passed her the Cold Silver Wristguards and smiled. "Here. It took a bit of time, but the rewards are well worth it!"

"Wow!" Beiming Xue’s eyes were covered in stars in an instant. "Did you really manage to kill that dragon?"

"Yep! It’s just a bigger wall lizard! Easy peasy!"

"But you looked like you were going to die when you fought it earlier…"

"It’s not good to scrutinize the past, Beiming…"

The girl stifled a giggle before clinging to my arm. "Alright let’s go, we really need to log off and head out. It’s already 9 pm, and you’re not planning to stay out tonight, do you?"

"Absolutely not. Come on!"

"Mn."

……

I hastily logged out of the game and took off the gaming helmet. Then, I put on a slightly better shirt than normal; a Jack&Jones brand shirt. I am a millionaire, so I shouldn’t look too much like a beggar before Beiming Xue’s student friends. For now, my Balenos and Semirs must stay in the closet...

When I walked out of the door, I was surprised to find He Yi and Murong Mingyue drinking tea and chatting in the living room.

"You hanging out with Beiming, Lu Chen? Just the two of you?" Murong Mingyue curled her lips. "Why haven’t I been invited? I treat you very well everyday, don’t I?"

A muscle in my face twitched. "What are you talking about? Beiming’s friends came to Suzhou to play, and they invited her out for a gathering. I’m accompanying her because it’s late and I’m worried about her."

He Yi smiled. "Stop trying to make things messy, Mingyue. Lu Chen, make sure to come home early, okay?"

"I will!"

It was at this moment Beiming Xue finally walked out of the room. I felt my eyes widening a bit. Her attire was simple, but it was surprisingly refreshing. She wore a white-colored shirt with a slightly lower cut than normal, and she wore a black silk scarf around her neck. The bottom half of her body was covered in a black lady’s skirt and a pair of black ankle boots. The way her hair spread across her shoulders gave her a pure appearance, and yet she definitely looked a tad more mature and experienced than the standard student. Well, I supposed I should’ve expected this from a girl who had experienced the world...

"Sister He Yi, Sister Mingyue, we’re heading out now!" Beiming Xue grabbed my wrist and said, "We’ll try to come back before midnight, we promise."

He Yi nodded smilingly. "Good. Have fun you two. Also, if you don’t come back by midnight, Mingyue and I will scour the whole city for you…"

Beiming Xue stuck out her tongue once before pulling me toward the door.

After we walked down the stairs and got into my X12, we vroomed toward the address Beiming Xue gave me. It was a Western Europe style KTV. What a luxurious place to have dinner!

……

We arrived at our destination in less than fifteen minutes. After I parked the car, I led Beiming Xue into the KTV and headed to the number one room on the third floor. The moment I pushed open the door, I noticed that it was positively bustling with activity inside. A dozen or so people had already arrived—7 male students and 5 female students—and the tables were covered in snacks, fruits and beers. Some of the guys even looked red in the face already. They must’ve drank a lot of beer before we arrived.

"Beiming Xue!" One of the male students stood up before looking at me in astonishment. "Oh? Who is this handsome guy? Is he your boyfriend?"

Beiming Xue stared at me while giggling. "Yeah. He’s very handsome, isn’t he?"

I shook my head helplessly before extending the male student a handshake. "Don’t listen to her nonsense, we just work in the same gaming workshop, that’s all. How do you do?"

He shook my hand and smiled. "Very well, thank you. I was Beiming Xue’s class monitor during the second year of high school. Nice to meet you!"

I nodded but didn’t say anything this time. Beiming Xue pulled me to a corner as we both took a seat.

It was at this moment a guy sitting next to the class monitor rose to his feet and looked at Beiming Xue with a raised eyebrow. "Long time no see. You look as beautiful as ever. I’ve been trying to contact you for the past half a year or so, but your phone wouldn’t connect. Did you change your number?"

Beiming Xue nodded. "Yeah, I did. I wanted to try leading a new life."

The guy smiled. "I knew it. By the way… you share a workshop with Beiming Xue, right? Does that mean you’re a pro-gamer in Heavenblessed too?"

I nodded. "Mn."

The guy smiled. "I just started Heavenblessed, so I’m only Level 7. I haven’t even walked out of the starting village yet, hehe. I find it difficult to believe that pro-gaming is a viable career path. I’ve always thought that gamers are lazy people, so it seems unbelievable to me that playing games could somehow sustain a person. As for me, I’ve been doing business with my dad all over the place. I even opened a restaurant not long ago. Please visit it if you’re free."

I was a bit displeased with his words, but I didn’t show it on my face. I nodded. "I’ll do that if I have time."

But Beiming Xue frowned and chided him in a stern voice, "Watch your mouth, Ouyang. What do you mean that gamers are lazy people? Have you heard of VR e-sports? Have you heard of the war of wills? Stop judging our world with those narrow world views!"

The class monitor hurriedly played peacemaker. "Haha, it’s been a long time since we’ve seen each other, so can we not argue about this? Beiming, you and your colleague, er, excuse me but what’s your name?"

I replied in an indifferent tone, "I’m Lu Chen."

Two of the girls immediately perked up in surprise. I couldn’t see their expressions because the corner they were sitting at had dim lighting, but I could still judge their reactions through their body language.

On the other hand, the guy named Ouyang paid it no heed at all. He was dressed in a slick suit, and I wondered if he felt hot wearing this much clothing during an Indian summer.

……

I rose to my feet and patted Beiming Xue’s shoulder. "We haven’t had dinner yet, and it looks like they only have snacks here. I’m going to go to the restaurant next door and buy us some food! Wait here for me!"

"Oh. I’m coming with you, big bro!"

"It’s fine, you haven’t seen your classmates in a while, so you should spend time with them. If you need to discuss any taboo topic while I’m gone, be sure to make it quick, haha!"

"Big bro!" Beiming Xue stomped her foot angrily, but I had already walked out of the room.

Suddenly, I heard a girl’s voice from behind me. "I want to catch some fresh air too, so I’ll come with you. Can I borrow your handsome friend for a bit, Beiming?"

"Oh…"

I waited at the corridor as the girl followed me out of the room. She wore a shirt and a short skirt, and she looked a bit familiar for some reason. A second later, recognition clicked in my mind. "It’s you?! How are you…"

The girl cocked her head and smiled at me. "Hmm? Is there a reason I can’t be here? By the way, aren’t you going to buy some food, oh heroic Lu Chen? So what are you waiting for? Let’s go…"