Undead Mage: I Have a Skeleton Clone-Chapter 492 - 356: Both a Whale and a Cheater

Unlike other ordinary Skills, [Soul Enemy] was a product of humanity’s most advanced alchemical technology. It possessed the unique feature of automatically evolving as a Professional grew.

When Fang Zhou transitioned from the Apprentice Stage to officially become a Black Iron Undead Mage, [Soul Enemy] had also automatically upgraded to a Black Iron-level Skill.

Unfortunately, Fang Zhou had spent his Apprentice Stage cultivating safely at the Sea City Military Academy, never engaging in combat with Abyssal Demons. Although he had a few live combat experiences, those had all occurred in academy-controlled environments against captured Demons.

Under such circumstances, the quantity and quality of these battles were insufficient to elevate the [Soul Enemy] Skill from Perfection proficiency to Instinct proficiency. As a result, after advancing to a Black Iron-level Skill, its proficiency dropped from Perfection to Skilled.

[Soul Enemy] (Black Iron, Skilled): The latest research achievement of the Human Civilization Guardian God. It guides the endless Heroic Spirits from the river of time, awakening an infinite hatred for Abyssal Demons hidden within the souls of human Professionals, thereby increasing their combat power against them to a certain extent. The user’s affinity with Abyssal Demons is significantly decreased. Damage dealt to Abyssal Demons below the Black Iron level is slightly increased, while damage received from Black Iron-level Abyssal Demons is slightly decreased. The extent of the damage increase and reduction depends on the Skill’s proficiency, as well as the number and quality of Abyssal Demons killed.

As Fang Zhou examined the information on his attribute panel, an unprecedented sense of urgency surged within him.

The Skill Combinations and Equipment that had seemed perfectly reasonable and sufficient during his Apprentice Stage now felt completely inadequate. Many of his Skills and pieces of Equipment could no longer meet the demands of his current level; they needed to be replaced or upgraded.

Fortunately, he had previously accumulated a substantial amount of Soul Power and contribution points, which should be more than enough for a major shopping spree.

Fang Zhou opened the resource library of the Sea City Military Academy.

First, the most direct and effective way for him to improve was to acquire the Secret Medicines that boosted basic Attributes. These Secret Medicines were designed specifically for Black Iron-level Professionals and could significantly enhance the four basic Attributes: Strength, Constitution, Agility, and Spirit. Most importantly, they came with no side effects, making them extremely precious Cultivation Resources.

Fang Zhou naturally planned to redeem and use them right away.

For most cash-strapped students, the limits on their personal contribution points meant they could only afford to carefully select the single Secret Medicine that best suited their Profession’s path. However, Fang Zhou’s situation was different. As a highly regarded Seed Student, he not only possessed outstanding strength but had also accumulated a vast number of contribution points for his excellent performance.

Therefore, while other students hesitated over a single bottle of Secret Medicine, Fang Zhou decided without hesitation to acquire all four types.

These Secret Medicines were not cheap. Each bottle was priced at 500 contribution points, a full ten times the price of their Apprentice-level counterparts. The four bottles totaled 2,000 contribution points. Even with his special discount reducing the price to 30% of the original, he still needed to pay 600 contribution points.

This was a significant expense, but for the ambitious Fang Zhou, this investment was undoubtedly worthwhile.

Aside from the direct Attribute enhancements from the Secret Medicines, Fang Zhou, upon advancing to the Black Iron level, also faced the need for an equipment upgrade. With his Spiritual Power having evolved into Mana, his capacity to bear the load of equipment had naturally increased significantly.

He could replace his entire Gray Inferior Apprentice Set with the White Ordinary New Star Mage Set.

By doing so, all eight pieces of his gear were replaced with White Ordinary quality equipment. He now also enjoyed the amplification effect on his Undead Attribute Skills from the Undead Magic Ball, as well as the New Star Set’s effects of slightly enhancing magic and reducing Mana consumption. These changes provided an obvious boost to Fang Zhou’s overall combat power, allowing him to be much more effective on the battlefield.

However, Fang Zhou also realized that upon entering the Black Iron level, some of the Marvels he had relied on during the Apprentice Stage were no longer effective due to level restrictions.

The Sealed Bone Bell, Bone Shield Crystal Stone, Ripple Ring, and other Gray Inferior attack-type Marvels had performed well against Apprentice-Tier enemies. But when facing Black Iron-level opponents, their effect was negligible, almost nonexistent. The Flower of Sighs, Regeneration Phylactery, Mirror of the Heart, and other Gray Inferior general-purpose Marvels were also proving insufficient for his current cultivation, offering almost no substantive help.

These Marvels, once indispensable partners during his Apprentice Stage, now lay quietly in a corner, symbols of a bygone era of his growth.

Of course, not all of his Marvels had become useless. The Charging Scroll, Heroic Spirit Battle Banner, Berserk Mark, Small Space Storage Capsule, Sea City Military Academy’s No. 1 Seed Medal, Celestial Curtain Magic Bottle, and Longxia Blade Medal, due to their higher quality, could still provide him with necessary support for some time to come.

Of course, if Fang Zhou could successfully advance his Apprentice Alchemist Sub-profession to Basic Level Alchemist and obtain sufficient Alchemy Resources, he might have another option. Perhaps under Instructor Su Xinyan’s guidance, he could attempt to upgrade these Gray Inferior Marvels to White Ordinary quality, thereby extending their lifespan.