Chapter 467 - 3: New Talent, Barbarian

[Make Celestial Hunter the new number one on the Dark Web.]

The message ended there, offering no further information.

Lu Chao stood in place, pondering for a few breaths before finally logging out of the Dark Web and powering off his communicator once again.

"Number one on the Dark Web," he murmured.

Rubbing the space between his eyebrows, he realized he had never expected Robert’s final test to be this. The top five assassins on the Dark Web leaderboard were all experts at the Transcendence Level, having accumulated an unimaginable number of points.

This step was clearly not going to be easy.

Unless he could directly kill the current number one, using that shortcut to usurp their position.

At this thought, Lu Chao felt it was going to be a thorny issue. People on the Dark Web always hid themselves deeply, making them incredibly difficult to track down.

However...

"The Starry Sky..."

His gaze flickered as he recalled Robert mentioning a gift left behind for his successor. It was highly likely related to the Starry Sky.

With this in mind, he finally made his decision.

CLICK!

He placed the communicator into a specially made signal-blocking box. Glancing out the window, he saw that Ring City’s night sky remained exactly as it always was—heavy with leaden clouds, entirely obscuring the starlight.

Yet, casting his gaze further out, Lu Chao stared at the high-hanging moon.

"The Klar Civilization..."

Back then, the reason the Starry Sky Heroes had left wasn’t just for Earth Star’s development and their aid trade with the interstellar civilizations. Perhaps they also left to break through to a higher Life Energy limit. After all, according to the Life Energy Development Theory, the Non-human Level was the absolute limit for the majority of Planet-level civilizations.

If that was truly the case, then perhaps one day in the future, he would also have to leave Earth Star.

"I hope the gift Elder Luo left behind," Lu Chao murmured, "is truly related to this."

Several days passed.

The news that a Special Investigation Team commissioner had arrived in the Rhombus Ring City Circle spread like wildfire. Whether it was the major government departments and law enforcement agencies, or the Five Major Enterprises and numerous local corporations, many people were privately discussing the matter.

"Weiwei, I heard you were on the same flight as the commissioner. How was it? Did you get to know him?"

"Such a big shot coming to our place... he might have some special mission."

Inside a magnificent villa, numerous wealthy youths were conversing, trying to pry out more information so they could have more bragging rights within their social circles.

Hearing this, Lin Weiwei’s face stiffened, and she could only shake her head in response.

"Ah, that makes sense. A figure like him definitely wouldn’t be easy to approach.

"Don’t overthink it. It’s rare for you to come back, and we finally have a gathering. Just enjoy yourself."

The elegantly dressed young men and women changed conversation partners, yet every word they spoke inevitably circled back to the commissioner.

The same was true for many local politicians and martial arts dojo members, who were all quietly discussing the matter over dinner tables. Many even sent out invitations or organized charity banquets, hoping to invite him to make an appearance so they could meet and network with him.

Yet, as it turned out, Lu Chao stayed inside his Cultivation Chamber the entire time, going nowhere.

His only appearance was to instruct Yue Zhenhong and the others to deliver the resources he had exchanged with his contribution points.

"WHOOSH!"

"HAAH..."

Lu Chao dedicated all his time to cultivation.

Looking his way, one could see him bare-chested, wearing white Martial Arts pants. His legs were spread evenly apart, rooted into the ground like tree stumps. Wisps of sweat evaporated from the surface of his body, gathering into a mist. With every breath he took, his muscles twitched slightly. Every pore on his skin seemed to come alive, collectively inhaling and exhaling the cloudy vapor.

Ten Thousand Jins Return Flow was undoubtedly worthy of being the high-level Martial Arts inheritance left behind by Robert. Every single session allowed him to visibly feel his own progress.

Mobilizing his Qi Flame time and time again tempered his body further. Additionally, he thoroughly refined all the absorbed medicinal efficacy. This harmonized almost perfectly with his [Plunderous Growth] talent, allowing him to convert all his contribution points into the most fundamental nourishment.

"Almost there," Lu Chao murmured.

With bright, piercing eyes, he looked at his interface.

[Life Energy: 205 → 211]

Over the course of ten consecutive days, a full eight portions of the Essence of Qi had been refined into the purest nourishment. He was inching closer and closer to the Peak Exploration Level, every ounce of his strength quietly surging upward.

And then...

HUM!

The very last trace of medicinal efficacy inside his body was finally fully absorbed, and it felt as if a certain invisible energy had been independently intercepted by his physical form.

Lu Chao’s heart stirred, and he glanced at the interface once again.

[Potential Progress: 99% → 100%]

[Potential Perfected!]

The accumulated energy had finally reached its threshold, and the data on the interface before him refreshed entirely.

In almost the blink of an eye, Lu Chao felt that familiar pulling sensation once more.

HUM!

His vision blurred as his consciousness instantly sank into his mind, crossing through his spiritual world to arrive at a much deeper realm. It was like a higher-dimensional space, yet also like the absolute depths of his soul.

Lu Chao’s eyes were bright. He quickly spotted the boundless darkness and the phantom of the giant towering in the center.

"Gourmand..."

He didn’t know how many times he had come here to look at this reflection of his mind. Lu Chao looked the giant phantom up and down before turning his gaze toward the four pillars standing to its front, back, left, and right, towering into the sky like colossal trees of talent.

There was the scarlet light of the Violence Dimension, the golden-rock fire of the Survival Dimension, the pale silver hue of the Feeding Dimension, and the bright blue glow of the Spirit Transformation Dimension.

These four different colors corresponded to different dimensions, which, to a certain extent, determined the general effects of the talents.

In an instant, his gaze swept over the four major dimensions. Although Potential Fission had already been born, the rules regarding Potential Progress and the awakening of mid-level talents remained the same as always, without any major changes.

In other words, he could still choose a dimension himself and allow a talent badge to randomly awaken within that specific scope.

"Which one should I choose?" he wondered.

Lu Chao’s eyes flickered slightly as an idea gradually formed in his mind.

Only the Violence Dimension and the Survival Dimension could allow his strength to spike significantly in a short period. In contrast, the Feeding Dimension and the Spirit Transformation Dimension leaned more toward late-stage development and growth potential, making them less of an urgent priority in the short term.

With this in mind, Lu Chao’s gaze steadied, ultimately settling on the scarlet pillar.

The best defense was a good offense.

His Resilient Body was sufficient for now and more than enough to handle most crises. Moreover, he had already experienced the might of Titan’s Power; unfortunately, that talent had rather poor endurance.

If he could obtain a similarly powerful talent...

"I choose you."

HUM!

The world trembled. As if sensing Lu Chao’s choice, the scarlet pillar of light flared brightly.

Within just a few breaths, the fog surrounding the pillar partially dissipated, revealing several badges. And very soon after, under the influence of some profound rule, all the light flashed past and eventually converged onto a single badge.

It was as though rust was being scrubbed away, allowing its color to transform inch by inch from a dull gray mark into a vibrant scarlet badge.

In the blink of an eye, Lu Chao’s gaze sharpened, and an influx of information flooded his mind in a moment of pure clarity.

[Talent Specialty: Barbarian!]

[Quality: Mid-level — Violence Dimension!]

[Effect 1 — Critical Hit: When in a combat state, you will find it easier to discover the weaknesses and flaws of others (including Non-human creatures and other lifeforms). When attacking their weaknesses, you will receive a 100% physical damage bonus, dealing a critical hit!]

[Effect 2 — Berserk: When in a combat state, and having continuously fought for over five minutes, you will receive a three-stage comprehensive attribute enhancement! First Stage — 50% bonus. Second Stage (after fifteen minutes) — 100% bonus. Third Stage (after thirty minutes) — 150% bonus!]

[Prompt 1: The critical hit effect requires no additional consumption!]

[Prompt 2: The Berserk state requires no additional consumption. The longer you fight, the stronger you become!]