Chapter 200: Frantically Grinding the Ice Freeze Technique
The Perfection of the Cyan Snake Breathing Skill brought Duane 5.5 attribute points.
Coupled with Basic Spear Skill, Sword Mastery, and three perfected Combat Techniques,
he had gained a total of 7.6 attribute points in the past nine days.
[Level]: Earth Tier Warrior, Level 1 Mage
[Strength]: 45.0
[Spirit]: 6.8 (+)
[Attribute Points]: 7.6
His Strength Attribute had already been pushed to its limit; he only needed to allocate his attribute points to Spirit.
Duane allocated the points one by one. When his Spirit reached 9.0, his power smoothly ascended to the Celestial Tier, and his Spirit naturally increased by another 1.2.
As the bottleneck shattered, a cataclysmic transformation occurred within his Qi Sea.
The dense Fighting Qi, as if under immense pressure, began to compress and condense.
The first drop of liquid Fighting Qi formed, followed by a second, a third...
It was as if a downpour had started in his Qi Sea. Countless drops of liquid Fighting Qi condensed, completing the Fighting Qi Transformation Liquid process.
A Celestial Tier Warrior’s Fighting Qi is vigorous yet adaptable. After further tempering their body to perfection, they can easily shatter an Iron Shield.
Upon reaching the peak, they must draw upon external forces, causing their bodies to resonate with the world’s Elements. This allows them to draw the Power of Heaven and Earth Elements into their bodies for tempering, thereby imbuing their Fighting Qi with elemental attributes.
Blazing flame Combat Techniques, freezing ice Combat Techniques, and surging thunder Combat Techniques—these are all hallmarks of the Shooting Star Level.
To break through, Celestial Tier Warriors usually choose to cultivate in an Elemental Secret Realm.
This is one of the reasons why the Nobility who control Elemental Secret Realms can easily attract powerful experts to join them.
The Kennedy Clan was wealthy and had deep research into Magic, but they possessed no Secret Realms, especially no Elemental Secret Realms. This was why many talented Warriors hesitated when deciding whether to follow them.
’With the enhancement from my Celestial Python Bloodline, even though I’ve just entered the Celestial Tier, my strength is probably comparable to the Peak of the Celestial Tier.’
Duane was very confident about this.
The power gap between Celestial Tier Warriors lay in the strength of their Combat Techniques, physical fortitude, and the amount of their Fighting Qi.
Duane was already at the apex for the first two, and his Fighting Spirit Amount had increased immensely with his bloodline’s awakening.
His current strength was indeed no less than that of an ordinary Celestial Tier Peak Warrior.
’It’s been nearly a year since I transmigrated, and I’ve finally grown from an ordinary person into one of the top warriors on the Shadow Mist Continent.’
As long as he didn’t try to single-handedly take on an entire top-tier Legion or face the combined assault of multiple powerful enemies at once, his safety was more or less guaranteed.
The improvement of his own strength was one of the cornerstones of his bid for continental dominance.
He knew full well that being powerful alone was not enough. To vie for supremacy on the continent, he needed more powerful subordinates and armies.
And if he wanted to strengthen his subordinates and create more Magic Products, he needed to raise his Mage Level.
’Next, I’ll raise my Mage Level.’
Duane allocated all his remaining attribute points to his Spirit Attribute, raising it to 15.6 in one go.
During this process, when his Spirit reached 12.0, his Mage Level rose to Level 2.
Duane hadn’t even perfected his Level 1 Magic, and now a new batch of Level 2 Magic needed to be learned. He suddenly felt immense pressure.
After this series of upgrades, Duane’s condition was fully restored.
He stood up and looked at the corpses of the Frog Fish Monsters not far away.
Excluding the ones that had escaped, at least seven or eight hundred Frog Fish Monsters had died at their hands.
Although they had obtained many Water Attribute Demon Cores, the meat of the Frog Fish Monster could be used to make Delicious Fish Soup, and its Fish Glue could be used to make Magic Ink.
It would be an incredible waste to throw them all away.
Duane took out a Demon Core. Upon sensing it, he found a Level 2 Magic inside.
Considering the Ice Freeze Magic cast by the Frog Fish Monsters, it should contain the Spell Model for the Ice Freeze Technique.
When he became a Level 1 Mage, Duane had observed that his attributes included Arcane, Thunder, Wind, and Fire.
But in his subsequent cultivation, he had also sensed a faint, azure element—this was Water Affinity.
It was just that his affinity was too low, and with the interference from the blue-white Thunder Element, Duane hadn’t realized he possessed Water Affinity.
’Although my elemental affinity is low, it only affects the casting time and power of my Water Magic, not the difficulty of learning it. However, as long as I raise the Skill Level, both of these aspects can be improved.’
Duane began to learn it.
Thanks to his experience learning Level 1 Magic Shield, Clear Wind Technique, and Flame Technique, Duane easily mastered the Ice Freeze Technique.
He pondered for a moment, then said, "Gaius, you don’t need to continue with this training expedition."
"Return to the Territory as fast as you can. Then, bring a team over here and transport as many of the Frog Fish Monster corpses back as possible."
Gaius had no objections to the Lord’s command; he also knew the value of these Demon Beast corpses.
Gaius assessed the feasibility of the task and said:
"The straight-line distance to the Territory from here is about forty to fifty kilometers. If I run at full speed, I can be back before sunset."
"However, if I bring others back with me, it will probably take until tomorrow afternoon. The Frog Fish Monster meat will probably spoil by then, won’t it?"
Duane stacked three or five Frog Fish Monsters together and said:
"I’ll use the Ice Freeze Technique to freeze as many of the Frog Fish Monster corpses as possible, extending the time before they spoil."
As he spoke, he began to cast the magic.
Water Elements gathered over the Frog Fish Monster corpses and then solidified into ice.
In three to five seconds, those five Frog Fish Monsters were completely frozen.
’Compared to casting Arcane Magic, for which I have Super Class affinity, Water Magic consumes more Spiritual Power and Magic Power!’
’And, the time it takes to convert Water Magic Power through Meditation will also be longer.’
Duane made a mental comparison.
He could only wait until he became a Level 4 Mage and use Arcane Shaping to cast Water Magic. It would surely be more convenient and less trouble than it was now.
Gaius was moved once again.
On their journey, he had seen the Lord use the Flame Technique to light a bonfire, and only then did he realize he was a Mage.
Now, he knew that he wasn’t just a Mage, but a Level 2 one at that!
A Celestial Tier Warrior and a Level 2 Mage.
For both of these Levels to exist in one person... it was simply incredible!
"Alright, I’ll head back right away! But, how many people should I bring?"
Currently, Black Forest Island had 200 Guards and 100 Militia.
There was no external pressure at the moment, and Duane had already cleared out many of the Demon Beasts in Thorn Valley, so the defensive pressure on the Territory was relatively light.
Duane pondered for a moment and said, "Go back and mobilize ten Guard Squads, plus five Militia Teams. A total of 150 men. Have them come overnight."
"The road through Thorn Valley is difficult at night. Besides torches, go to Forest Castle and get some Magic Lamps."
Although Thorn Valley was dangerous, with Gaius leading and so many people, ordinary Demon Beasts wouldn’t dare to approach unless they were a swarm on the scale of the Frog Fish Monsters.
’This seems like a good opportunity for some nighttime forced march training,’ he thought.
"Yes, I understand!"
Gaius tied a frozen Frog Fish Monster to his back, took his leave, and began to return at top speed.
"Kaelon, help me gather the other Frog Fish Monsters to make it easier for me to cast the spell."
"You got it!"
The two of them split the work and got started.
The process was quite strenuous for Duane.
He worked intermittently, and by midnight, he had only managed to freeze a little over half of them.
The remaining three or four hundred corpses could only be thrown onto the ice, using the low ambient temperature to delay their decay.
Duane lay on the grass and gazed at the starry sky. The feeling of mental exhaustion was even more debilitating than physical exhaustion.
He lay there, not wanting to move another inch.
The only silver lining was that his Ice Freeze Technique had become Skilled and his Meditation Skill had reached Mastery.
「Around ten o’clock the next morning.」
Gaius began to arrive, leading more than a hundred men.
After a night of forced marching, they looked exhausted, and some were pale-faced.
Fortunately, after joining the Guards and Militia teams, they were able to eat three full meals a day; otherwise, they would have been worked to death.
"You all have great perseverance!"
Duane said with approval, "When you return, everyone will receive ten catties of grain, and as an additional reward, each person will get three bowls of Chrysanthemum Fire Soup!"
Instantly, the exhausted soldiers cheered.
The grain was one thing; since following the Lord, the problem of feeding themselves and their families had been solved.
The key was the Chrysanthemum Fire Soup. This was something that could potentially lead to a breakthrough.
Especially for those Guards who were Quasi-Primary Warriors, there was a good chance they could break through with the help of the Chrysanthemum Fire Soup.
In that instant, they felt that the entire night of hardship had been worth it.
While the soldiers rested, Duane strengthened the freezing effect and instructed Gaius to notify the kitchens to start processing the meat immediately upon his return.
After finishing all this, he led Kaelon into the Heavenly Mountain.