The Strongest Talent Tree

Within the Ice Valley, hundreds, even thousands, of Snow Demons howled and raged as a sky full of icicles rained down.

But Feng Hao and Solos handled the onslaught with incredible ease. One was a top-tier Mage, the other a top-tier Assassin, and they worked together in perfect sync, every move and technique flawlessly coordinated.

In just over ten minutes, only two or three hundred of the swarming, howling Snow Demons remained, and their piercing shrieks had died down considerably.

"It’s been a long time since we fought together. You’re still as incredible as ever," Solos remarked softly, his blue eyes glinting.

"You too." Feng Hao smirked, casually unleashing several Darkmoon Strikes as he spoke. "Let’s push a little harder. There aren’t many Snow Demons left!"

"OK." Solos wasted no words. The crude Magic Staff in his hand flared with light, and raging flames shot into the sky. Swept up by violent winds, they crashed down with the force of an avalanche, engulfing the hundreds of Snow Demons.

The next moment, the tragic howls of Snow Demons echoed through the Ice Valley, and the once-gray sky was stained crimson...

Feng Hao’s eyes widened in astonishment. "Holy crap, isn’t that the Level 40 Mage ultimate, Heaven-Scorching Flames?"

"That’s right." Solos smiled, though his face was a little pale. He had clearly expended a massive amount of Magic Power.

Though Feng Hao was confused, he didn’t press for answers just yet. Instead, his figure leaped between icicles, finishing off the few who had escaped the inferno.

In the blink of an eye, the thousands of Snow Demons had been completely slaughtered. The surrounding ice was piled high with their corpses, layer upon layer, creating an incredibly gory scene.

When Xiyue Frost and her two companions arrived, they were just in time to witness Solos’s incredible display of power. All three of them stared, their eyes wide in disbelief.

"My god, what did I just see?" Houhuiyao subconsciously tightened his grip on his Magic Staff.

Man Tiaotiao also exclaimed, "What a powerful Magic-type Mage! He seems even stronger than Senior Sister Bai Yin."

"Come on, let’s go take a look," Xiyue Frost said, her eyes filled with curiosity.

By the time they reached Feng Hao, the thousands of Snow Demons had already been completely wiped out.

"Boss, are you okay?" Houhuiyao asked hurriedly.

Feng Hao froze for a second. He had been so caught up in the moment that he’d almost forgotten he came with a group. "I’m fine. I just ran into an old friend and got a bit carried away. Sorry for making you worry."

"Hmph!" Man Tiaotiao snorted softly, her gaze turning curiously toward Solos.

Meanwhile, Xiyue Frost and Houhuiyao also had their eyes fixed on Solos.

Feng Hao couldn’t help but chuckle. He quickly stepped forward to make the introduction. "This is a good friend of mine from back home. His name is Solos."

"From Rongcheng?" Xiyue Frost asked with a surprised frown.

"Not Rongcheng. My real home," Feng Hao said, a lonely expression in his eyes.

Hearing this, Solos seemed to realize something. He stared at Feng Hao in astonishment and asked, "You’re not on Earth?!"

Feng Hao nodded with a wry smile. "That’s right. When the apocalypse began, I was just about to log off, and then I was somehow transported to another planet."

"No wonder I never saw you pop up back on Earth. So you were transported to another planet," Solos said thoughtfully, not looking particularly surprised.

"Uh, you don’t find that strange?" Feng Hao asked in surprise.

"Is it that strange?" Solos shook his head with a wry smile. "If you saw what Earth looks like now, you wouldn’t think so."

Startled, Feng Hao turned to Xiyue Frost and the others. "You three go on and start clearing away the Snow Demon corpses. Solos and I need to talk."

Xiyue Frost and her companions were completely baffled. They couldn’t understand a word of the conversation, so they just went about the task of clearing away the Snow Demon corpses.

"Sister Xiyue, isn’t Boss from the same place as you? What did he mean just now?" Houhuiyao asked curiously.

"I’m not sure. Maybe it’s a place he lived in the past," Xiyue Frost said with a slight frown.

Houhuiyao nodded as if he understood, but didn’t press the matter further.

Meanwhile, Feng Hao had pulled Solos aside and was questioning him urgently. "Quick, tell me about the situation on Earth."

Solos pondered for a moment, then began to explain with a strange expression on his face. "The situation on Earth is much better than you’d imagine. The apocalypse didn’t wipe out humanity. In fact, in the days that followed, large numbers of evolved humans and creatures began to appear, and they gradually started fighting back against the invasion of the otherworldly beasts."

’Thank goodness,’ Feng Hao thought, sighing in relief.

Solos continued, "Speaking of which, the main reason humanity was able to adapt to this new world so quickly was thanks to the game, *Mage*."

"The servers for *Mage* are still up?" Feng Hao asked, surprised.

Solos shook his head. "The servers were destroyed on the day of the apocalypse. But all the knowledge from the sub-professions in *Mage* could be applied in this new world. That’s how humanity was able to establish a new order so quickly."

"You guys have a game interface, too?" Feng Hao asked in amazement.

"What game interface?" Solos asked, confused.

"Oh, nothing." Feng Hao shook his head thoughtfully, growing even more confused.

’I thought I was only able to keep my Ninth-Level Alchemy Techniques because of the game interface,’ he mused. ’But now it seems like Alchemy Techniques can be retained even without one. So what’s the deal with the interface inside my body?’

’On second thought, it makes sense. Sub-professions are different from game levels. Levels are just virtual data from *Mage*; there’s no way they could be brought into the real world. But sub-professions are knowledge-based skills. Once you learn them, you know them. It’s not so strange that they could be brought into reality.’

"But wait," Feng Hao said, frowning. "Even if the sub-professions carried over, Earth shouldn’t have the right materials, should it?"

Solos laughed. "The old Earth didn’t, of course. But after the apocalypse, everything on the planet underwent a massive transformation—plants, animals, minerals, the elements, all of it."

"Huh? The changes were that drastic?" Feng Hao asked, stunned.

"They were. Sometimes, I feel like I’m living in a dream," Solos sighed.

"By the way, what’s the situation on Earth now? Do nations and governments still exist?"

Solos grinned. "Long gone. Now, various factions have risen up across the globe, and the situation is far from stable. Speaking of which, a lot of these factions are led by old friends from *Mage*."

"Is that right?" Feng Hao mulled this over for a long moment before looking up. "Which faction do you belong to?"

"Me? I built a pretty decent settlement in Europe. I have a lot of my old guild members from the game with me, and things are developing quite well," Solos said with a grin.

’From the look on this guy’s face, his settlement is more than just ’decent.’ It’s probably one of the top factions by now,’ he thought.

"In that case... could I ask you for a favor?" Feng Hao asked, hesitating slightly.

"Just say the word," Solos replied with a light chuckle and a nod.

"After you get back, I hope you can make a trip to Huaxia and see if my family is still alive."

"Well..." Solos suddenly hesitated.

Feng Hao couldn’t help but frown. "What is it? Is it difficult?"

Solos nodded, a strange expression on his face. "Huaxia is the Dragon Maiden’s territory now. If I go there rashly, I’ll definitely get beaten up."

"The Dragon Maiden?!" Feng Hao was stunned. He asked in shock, "You can’t be talking about Dream Dragon Immortal, can you?"

"Who do you think?" Solos pursed his lips. "Besides you and her, who have I, Solos, ever been afraid of?"

"Holy crap, it really is her!" Feng Hao felt his face darken with exasperation.