Feng Hao had no idea about Lin Luo’s bungled attempt at playing matchmaker for him. At that moment, he was completely immersed in an ocean of Demon Patterns.
For three days straight, Feng Hao had locked himself in his room to construct a Secret Technique. Meanwhile, Lin Luo had unconsciously slipped into the role of acting Shopkeeper. Although the shop didn’t have many visitors, his loot still attracted a fair number of customers.
Inside the room, after three days of trial and error, Feng Hao finally constructed his own single-target burst skill.
Using the Dark Force Demon Pattern and the "Swift" Demon Pattern as the core, he abandoned the Jinqi Demon Pattern and supplemented them with two general Demon Patterns, "Compression" and "Amplification." He then integrated the Instant Death effect, ultimately keeping the Secret Technique’s circuits at 935, not breaking the one-thousand-circuit threshold for an advanced Secret Technique.
Furthermore, he also inscribed the "Swift" Demon Pattern onto the "Shadow Strike" Talent Branch, greatly enhancing the effect of Shadow Strike.
The Instant Death Demon Pattern was also successfully integrated into his two original Secret Technique Marks. Although this caused their proficiency to drop significantly, it added the powerful effect of the Instant Death Demon Pattern.
As the brand-new Secret Technique Mark took form, Feng Hao’s eyes flew open with delight. He opened his game panel to check it out:
[Unnamed]
Proficiency: 15
Magic Power Cost: 52
Effect: Gathers power for a single potent strike, dealing 245% Dark Force damage and inflicting Instant Death vitality damage.
Attack Range: Weapon Range
Mark Cooldown: 19 seconds
Channeling Time: 0.6 seconds
"Just as I thought! Abandoning the Jinqi Demon Pattern is the key to high damage. The base skill multiplier is 200, and it increases by 3 for every point of proficiency. Once it’s leveled up, the damage will be absolutely explosive!" Feng Hao exclaimed, his eyes shining.
As the saying goes, there’s no time to lose. Now that the Secret Technique was complete, it was time to fuse it with a Soul.
He still had one of the three Dark Moon Souls he had obtained at Rongcheng Academy, which was perfect for augmenting his new skill.
He took a crystal bottle out of his Spatial Ring and skillfully pulled the adorable Dark Moon Soul into his sea of consciousness. After a period of guiding and refining it, he successfully fused it into the new skill’s Secret Technique Mark.
When he checked the game panel again, he saw it had even saved him the trouble of naming it:
[Moon Stab]
Secret Skill Soul: Dark Moon
Proficiency: 15
Magic Power Cost: 52
Effect: Gathers Dark Moon Power for a potent strike, dealing 245% Dark Force damage and inflicting Instant Death vitality damage.
Attack Range: 2 meters
Mark Cooldown: 19 seconds
Channeling Time: 0.6 seconds
"Not bad, not bad. One-shotting a squishy shouldn’t be a problem." Feng Hao nodded in satisfaction and continued scrolling through his skill list. Dark Moon Slaughter and Moon Wheel Dance had also changed after integrating the Instant Death Demon Pattern.
[Dark Moon Slaughter]
Secret Skill Soul: Dark Moon
Proficiency: 76
Magic Power Cost: 35
Effect: Deals 176% Dark Force damage and inflicts Instant Death vitality damage.
Attack Range: 2 meters
Mark Cooldown: None
Channeling Time: None
[Moon Wheel Dance]
Secret Skill Soul: Dark Moon
Proficiency: 68
Magic Power Cost: 71
Effect: Gathers Dark Moon Power and unleashes it in a spin, forming a circling Moon Blade that deals two instances of 168% Dark Force damage and inflicts Instant Death vitality damage.
Attack Range: 3.5 meters
Mark Cooldown: 12 seconds
Channeling Time: 0.9 seconds
Completely satisfied, he closed the game panel, stood up, and left the room. Three straight days of research had left him famished. He had to treat himself to a good meal. As for researching the other Inheritance Demon Patterns, that could wait.
When he got downstairs, he found Lin Luo helping him watch the shop and couldn’t help but feel a little apologetic. "Sorry to trouble you, Big Bro. You really didn’t have to do this."
"It’s nothing. I was bored anyway. Just think of it as a life experience," Lin Luo said with a casual smile.
Feng Hao chuckled, patting his stomach. "Thanks to your guidance, Big Bro, I’ve successfully constructed my Secret Technique. Come on, let me treat you to a meal."
"Uh, what about the shop?" Lin Luo asked, stunned.
"Just close it. It’s not like anyone comes anyway," Feng Hao scoffed, draping an arm over Lin Luo’s shoulders and heading for the door.
And so, with Feng Hao leading the way, the two of them went to the fanciest restaurant on a nearby street, eating, drinking, and chatting cheerfully.
Then, in the course of their conversation, Feng Hao learned about what had happened with Yao Ying, and he was instantly exasperated.
"Bro, seriously... You know I already have a girlfriend, so why would you believe a word that woman said?" Feng Hao asked, speechless.
But Lin Luo just winked at him suggestively, as if expecting praise. "I knew she was lying, but why turn down a beautiful woman who’s offering herself up on a silver platter? I just went with the flow and gave you a little push. So, how about it, Brother Feng? Your big bro here is pretty awesome, right?"
"..." Feng Hao stared blankly at his wine cup, unable to take a single sip.
Seeing Feng Hao’s hesitation, Lin Luo couldn’t help but frown. "What? You don’t like the girl?"
"There’s something you don’t know, Big Bro. That woman is a real piece of work." Feng Hao shook his head with a bitter smile, then recounted the stories of the "Number One Flirt of the Five States."
After hearing Feng Hao’s tale, Lin Luo’s impression of Yao Ying changed completely. He slapped his thigh in regret. "Damn it! I wasted a Level 4 Fiery Sun Stone for nothing."
"And whose fault is that?" Feng Hao retorted.
Lin Luo huffily downed his cup of wine. The more he thought about it, the angrier he got. ’A great disciple of the Thief God Hall, swindled by a little demon! If word of this got out, how could I ever show my face in the Thief God Hall again?’
"This won’t do. After I leave, Brother Feng, you have to find a way to get it back for me. And it’d be best if you taught that girl a lesson," Lin Luo said, his eyes burning with anger.
Feng Hao froze, looking up in surprise. "Big Bro, you’re leaving?"
Lin Luo nodded somberly. "Yeah. The deadline for this mission is tight. I was supposed to leave on the second day."
Feng Hao nodded, a hint of disappointment in his eyes. He raised his cup with a smile and said, "Then let’s make this meal a farewell for you, Big Bro."
"Haha! Come on, then! Let’s have a few more rounds!" Lin Luo laughed heartily.
The two of them drank and laughed, no longer talking about Yao Ying. Before they knew it, the time for parting had arrived.
Lin Luo circulated his Magic Power to dispel the effects of the alcohol, his expression suddenly turning serious. "Brother Feng, a word of warning before I go. You’d best not return to Rongcheng for a while."
Feng Hao frowned in confusion. "Why? Did something happen in Rongcheng?"
"I don’t know the specific details," Lin Luo said in a low voice. "I only know that some time ago, Wanglao City sent a large number of experts there, but most of them were slain by a mysterious master. The other sects are also watching this matter closely. In short, Rongcheng is going to be chaotic for a while."
’What’s going on? Why would Wanglao City target a small border city?’ Feng Hao’s brows furrowed in confusion.
’He couldn’t help but recall the three people from the Ghost Realm he had encountered in Rongcheng. As for the mysterious master, it had to be the Old City Lord, no doubt about it. What he couldn’t figure out was why the Ghost Realm would go to such great lengths. Was it really just because of that minor skirmish back then?’
Lin Luo said thoughtfully, "According to the intelligence gathered by the Grand Hall, Rongcheng seems to be hiding some kind of major secret."
"A major secret?"
Feng Hao was taken aback. Memories of Rongcheng replayed in his mind. ’Thinking about it carefully, Rongcheng really does have many peculiar aspects. The Old City Lord being a Hundred-level Expert is one thing, but there are also the four great families, who just so happen to correspond to the cardinal directions. Their strength is far beyond what small border city clans should possess. And looking at their relationships, a lot of things seem strange.’
’For one thing, after the Beixing Clan was defeated back then, the other three great families showed no intention of wiping them out. Thinking back on it now, it’s rather intriguing.’