Testing His Skills

Yu Xian spent the better part of the day in his room studying his class, only stopping once he had thoroughly mastered his newfound powers. Take the Power of Change, for example. It was an extremely versatile power. His ability to invert flesh and blood, turning palms into the backs of his hands and backs of his hands into palms, stemmed from this very power. In fact, his entire body was now brimming with the Power of Change. A step further, and this power would transform into the rules of change, making him even stronger. Just as he could already use the Power of Change to achieve numerous effects not documented by any skill, once it transformed into the rules of change, a single thought might suffice to warp the world around him and produce countless miraculous phenomena. "Big Brother! Big Brother, come out for breakfast!" Just as Yu Xian picked up the second enhancement stone, Little Nora's bubbly, energetic voice rang from outside the door. After a moment's thought, Yu Xian simply put the enhancement stone away, mainly because he hadn't decided how to use the remaining two. As for the equipment enhancement stone, he didn't rely much on gear, so he had no immediate need for it. As for the summoned beast enhancement stone, he had considered using it on Xielina to make her stronger. Yet Wan Ling'er had ultimately been taken down by the Death Emperor, making him feel it ought to go to the Death Emperor instead. The problem was that the Death Emperor was unpredictable; at any given moment, a stray thought might send it on strike, leaving him hesitant. Well, no need to overthink it now. Time to eat first. Yu Xian opened the door with a smile. But Little Nora, who had been beaming merrily, suddenly widened her eyes and gasped in astonishment as she stared at him. "Big Brother, what happened to your hair?" His hair? Yu Xian glanced at his locks and realized his hair was lengthening and shortening by turns, squirming and lifting as though it had come alive. The transformation of life and death? Realizing what had happened, Yu Xian exerted a slight measure of control over the Power of Change, and his hair promptly settled back to normal. He smiled at Little Nora. "I used another class enhancement stone. Just a minor side effect of getting stronger." He made it sound trivial, but it was actually proof that he hadn't fully mastered his power. He had grown stronger too quickly, rushing into another upgrade before digesting the previous one. Luckily, enhancements up to +5 were guaranteed to succeed; otherwise, he likely would have shattered into pieces already. This served as a reminder: enhancement stones weren't something you could use simply because you had them. One had to thoroughly grasp all the gained power before moving on to the next. He was already this formidable at +3 enhancement. The Zhen Realm surely harbored many beings at +7, +8, or even +9 enhancement. Those powerhouses had to grind monsters far more aggressively and obtain enhancement stones much more easily. Yet did they dare use them recklessly? First, there was a failure rate. Second, failing to digest the enhanced power would prove fatal even if the enhancement succeeded. Yu Xian and Little Nora happily finished breakfast and headed out of the city together again. This time, however, he didn't use a Secret Realm Teleportation Talisman, opting instead for a Level 55 grinding spot. Skeleton soldiers and summoned beasts were merely tools for farming experience; he couldn't rely solely on external help. Carrying the pavilion on its back, the Cannon Fodder Crocodile ambled up a hill and halted at the top. From inside the pavilion, Yu Xian and the others could see numerous clamshell bull monsters roaming nearby. [Clamshell Bull Monster] [Level: 55] [Skills:] [Shell Power: During combat, abruptly snaps its shell shut with immense closing force, instantly clamping enemies in two.] [Sudden Strike: Abruptly pops open its shell and punches the target with full force, dealing heavy damage.] [Flying Shell Meteor Impact: Flaps its shell while leaping high into the air, closes the shell, and plummets from the sky to bombard the target.] [Molted Bull: Drops the burden on its back, dramatically boosting its strength and speed.] [Note: Even with shells, minotaurs cannot pretend to be angels.] ... ... "Such weak mobs," Yu Xian commented with a trace of disdain as he looked at the clamshell bull monsters. "Far too weak indeed," the Death Emperor agreed indifferently. Little Nora was running a livestream. Hearing Yu Xian's remark, several viewers began mocking him in the chat. Cats Squat Then Dogs Squat: "Clamshell bull monsters are weak? Are you kidding me? They're notoriously troublesome! Their defense is insanely high, and once they're at low health, they molt and enter phase two. They might be normal mobs, but they're basically elite monsters!" Kong Yiji: "Look at the clamshell bull monsters ahead of you—is anyone fighting them? The easy mobs were claimed by other people long ago. Only troublesome monsters like clamshell bulls are left completely untouched!" Wealth from All Directions: "I'd rather fight a Water-Spurting Chicken than a clamshell bull monster. Shining Duckie, talk some sense into your teammate before he drags you down with him!" Watching the barrage of comments, Little Nora stubbornly retorted, "Big Brother won't lose!" Meanwhile, Yu Xian stepped out of the pavilion and strolled over to the Cannon Fodder Crocodile's head. Looking down upon the horde of clamshell bull monsters, he decisively unleashed Chaos Dragon Bullets. A swirling mass of chaotic power condensed in his palm, spinning frantically before gradually forming into ten Eastern dragons. Yu Xian fixed his gaze ahead. With a shift of his thought, the energy in his palm surged forth as dragons. The ten dragons soared high into the sky before swooping down, exploding upon impact with the ground. Nearby clamshell bull monsters were instantly obliterated in the blasts, dissolving into white light. Dozens of wounded monsters on the perimeter locked onto Yu Xian, roaring and charging toward him. But just then, a flurry of miniature dragons burst out from the billowing dust. These small dragons gleamed with vibrant colors: the red ones were Fire-attribute energy dragons, the golden ones Metal-attribute, and the blue ones Water-attribute. Each type of dragon possessed unique properties. A red dragon slammed into an injured clamshell bull monster, instantly exploding into flames that engulfed the creature whole. A golden dragon pierced straight through a monster's thick shell, detonating inside its body; the clamshell bull monster split right down the middle and collapsed in two halves. Elsewhere, monsters were frozen solid, collapsed from poison, charred by lightning, or petrified into stone... With a single skill, Yu Xian had wiped out every clamshell bull monster across the entire grinding spot. "Amazing!" Clutching the Dimwitted Puppy, Fang Qinghao stared at the cratered grinding spot and the sea of loot strewn everywhere, her eyes nearly popping out of her head. "Look! I told you Big Brother would win!" Little Nora cheered, jumping with excitement as she addressed the livestream viewers. The chat fell dead silent. Yu Xian's attack looked like Qiao Feng unleashing the Eighteen Dragon-Subduing Palms from the '97 adaptation of *Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils*—the visual spectacle was utterly outrageous. The viewers who had been itching to mock and jeer completely chickened out. A heavyweight like this was best left unoffended. After all, what if they ran into him offline?