Volume One, Chapter 17: A Decisive Strike—Lin Yi’s Power Greatly Amplified!
At that moment, a dark halo imbued with the aura of death suddenly appeared. In the blink of an eye, it tightly enveloped Lin Yi. It even effortlessly pierced through the carefully arranged light shield!
Lin Yi’s heart clenched sharply as he instantly felt his mental energy rapidly ebbing away like a tide.
[Casio casts Spirit Wither; your mental power is instantly halved, effect lasts for sixty seconds!]
“Hiss—”
Lin Yi drew in a sharp breath, his complexion changing slightly.
It was clear that after Casio unleashed that necrotic aura, he himself had paid a heavy price, yet he looked quite pleased.
“Let’s see how you break my spell now!”
Casio chuckled inwardly and then began chanting loudly.
Cheng Muqing and Bai Jia were so anxious their hearts seemed to leap into their throats. They could tell that Casio’s strike was extremely troublesome for Lin Yi. Halving one’s mental power was enough to prevent an ordinary mage from even concentrating!
Yet Lin Yi remained unusually calm.
He discovered that even with half his mental power, his spellcasting was unaffected. Even at half mental attribute, the damage remained considerable!
Lin Yi looked at the smug Casio and curled a cold smile at the corner of his lips.
“Bone Spike!”
A ghostly white bone spear shimmered like the kiss of death, slamming heavily against Casio’s staff.
–14,157!
Not only that, this strike interrupted Casio’s spell.
“How is this possible?!”
Casio’s eyes widened, unable to believe that Lin Yi still possessed such strength despite his mental power being halved.
Immediately after, an ice spear shot straight for his vital spot.
Terrified, Casio hastily cast Float, retreating quickly, and simultaneously summoned a skeleton knight.
Seeing this, Cheng Muqing patted her chest, breathing a long sigh of relief. She exchanged a glance with Bai Jia, both sharing a wry smile.
This rollercoaster of events was more thrilling than any coaster ride!
“Fire Meteor!”
Flaming meteors descended once again upon the altar; batch after batch of skeleton knights were summoned only to be swiftly sent back to the underworld.
At this moment, experience points skyrocketed like a rocket, filling Lin Yi with immense satisfaction.
Though Casio tried to fight back, a single ice spear made him significantly more obedient.
“Whoosh!”
After the twenty-fifth wave, a dazzling white light burst forth from Lin Yi’s body.
[Level Up to LV15!]
Lin Yi saw his mental power surge once again to 700 points, feeling wonderfully at ease.
Cheng Muqing shared the experience and easily rose to level five. She was very satisfied with this achievement, especially since many adventurers of the same cohort were still struggling between levels one and two.
Yet when she thought of Lin Yi reaching level fifteen, she felt like a complete failure.
By now, Casio had completely transformed into a ghastly skeleton! His originally frail body was now nothing but a bare frame. The hatred and fear in his gaze toward Lin Yi were unmistakable.
---
Lin Yi’s expression showed a hint of regret, as if lamenting that Casio no longer had any value to extract.
“So feeble.”
Lin Yi’s disdain almost brought Casio to tears.
Good heavens!
Who truly ruled this place?
“Well then, time to send you on your way!”
Though Lin Yi’s words were playful, his eyes brimmed with lethal intent.
“Bone Spike!”
The ghostly white spear struck Casio’s skeleton with force, sending him flying.
–31,057!
“Ice Spear!”
This time, the ice spear pierced Casio’s body, pinning him to the altar.
–63,189!
“Human, you... cannot escape death!”
Casio’s words barely left his lips before he turned into a cloud of black mist and vanished from the altar.
[Defeated Level 15 Demon Mage Casio, gained 13,482 experience points!]
A brilliant light exploded outward, scattering equipment across the ground!
Silver!
At the very least, bronze!
Lin Yi was even more delighted to find two skill books among the loot.
“What a great haul!”
He eagerly moved toward a staff that shimmered with silver light.
[Devil’s Staff]
Grade: Silver
Attributes: Spirit +165, Attack Power +850, grants Spirit Wither skill which reduces the target’s spirit by 25%!
After reading the description, Lin Yi’s eyes sparkled with joy.
This silver staff was truly formidable!
The staff was matte black throughout, with a black crystal embedded at its tip. Deep within it flowed a blood-red glow.
Its appearance was extraordinarily cool, and its attributes were beyond ordinary.
As a silver-grade item, it instantly boosted Lin Yi’s combat power by more than half.
What excited Lin Yi even more was the special skill it carried.
Even a 25% mental debuff was terrifyingly powerful.
In certain situations, it would undoubtedly turn the tide of battle!
Just after reaching level fifteen, acquiring such a new piece of equipment was exhilarating!
Upon equipping the new staff, Lin Yi’s spirit value immediately surged to 865 points!
Now, even a basic fireball could deal sixteen to seventeen thousand damage.
To those of the Black Iron profession, encountering Lin Yi was like a chick facing an eagle—utterly helpless.
Next, Lin Yi turned his attention to the next piece of equipment.
[Nether Robe]
Grade: Silver
Attributes: Spirit +65, Magic Resistance +125, grants Float skill allowing the caster to levitate in the air up to fifty meters!
The black robe’s back was adorned with a cluster of flaming skulls, exuding an imposing aura!
Wearing the Nether Robe, Lin Yi was enveloped in a mysterious and sinister aura.
---
His handsome face seemed to gain an extraordinary charm.
The subsequent items, though bronze-grade, were by no means simple.
[Skeletal Ring]
Grade: Bronze
Attributes: Spirit +30, Mana +300
[Quick-Chill Waistband]
Grade: Bronze
Attributes: Skill cooldown time reduced by 25%
[Giant Bone Greatsword]
Grade: Bronze
Attributes: Strength +120, ignores 35 defense
[Skeleton War Boots]
Grade: Bronze
Attributes: Agility +30, Stamina +25
[...]
The Skeletal Ring and Quick-Chill Waistband were genuine combat enhancers.
Especially the waistband; though it had only one special effect, reducing skill cooldown by 25% was enough to double Lin Yi’s combat effectiveness!
This effect was almost comparable to silver-grade equipment.
Without hesitation, Lin Yi equipped these two items.
As for the remaining two, he stored them in his spatial pendant for future lucrative exchange.
Having finished sorting his gear, Lin Yi turned to the two precious skill books.
One was a Black Iron skill exclusive to mages: Ghost Meditation!
The other was a Black Iron skill for assassins: Shadow Vanish!
Without hesitation, Lin Yi clasped his hands and decisively learned Ghost Meditation!
His talent instantly activated, and the skill maxed out immediately!
[Ghost Meditation: While active, restores 50 mana per second and enhances dark magic damage by 20%.]
Lin Yi’s face could not hide his amazement; this effect was stunning!
Ordinary meditation only restored 2 mana per second—this was twenty-five times more!
Lin Yi now had 12,000 mana at full capacity.
With Ghost Meditation, he could fully recover in just four minutes!
Moreover, all his skills were max level, so mana consumption was pitifully low.
Only about a tenth—or even less—of what others used.
[Level Up to LV15, unlocked new skill: Stun!]
Thanks to his talent bonus, Stun was auto-maxed.
[Stun: Ignores defense, causes the target to be stunned for ten seconds. The effect breaks if attacked. Cooldown: ten seconds.]
“A powerful hard crowd control ultimate!”
Lin Yi’s heart surged with excitement.
Previously, his Delayed Spell and Swamp Domain counted as control, but at most they slowed enemies.
This Stun could immobilize foes for ten seconds—a completely different nature!
Thus, Lin Yi’s combat strategy became far more flexible and versatile.
“First, let me check my attribute panel!”