C21 Blood Mage Secret Spell(1)
Chen Ye's eyes brightened as he considered the Blood Mage's three skills. Whether it was the defensive Blood Curse Shield or the Blood Control for manipulating the undead, each skill was incredibly useful. The "Bloody Corpse Revival," however, was something he hoped he wouldn't need to rely on due to misfortune.
Yet, Chen Ye felt uncertain about using the scroll. He decided to assess the situation before making a decision. To conserve space in the Celestial Vault, he kept only one bottle of Basic Upgrade Medicinal Potion and consumed the rest in one fell swoop, significantly enhancing his basic skills. Upon reaching the heart of the secret realm, brimming with confidence, he was taken aback by what he found.
Before him lay a vast, two-square-kilometer expanse, slightly sunken at its center where a solitary altar stood, bathed in a golden glow. Surrounding the altar was an endless horde of zombies, among them a particularly striking Blood Mage towering as high as a bloodthirsty beast, his form bent, radiating with blood-red luminescence and wielding a dark staff. More than twenty Blood Mages clustered around him, flanked by over a hundred blood beasts, and on the outskirts, nearly a thousand Bloody Warriors.
The terrain offered no tactical advantage. A single charge would bring hundreds of enemies swarming toward him, and even if each inflicted only minor damage, the cumulative effect could be lethal in seconds.
With just over eight hours remaining on the countdown, Chen Ye dispatched the last Bloody Warrior trailing him, refreshing the Bloody Massacre timer. Without a moment's hesitation, he activated the "Blood Mage Secret Spell (Scroll)."
Upon using the "Blood Mage Secret Spell (Scroll)," Chen Ye gained an understanding of "Basic Spell (E)" and learned "Witch Poison Blood Corpse."
Witch Poison Blood Corpse (G): Silver grade; a dark art of the Blood Mage that requires a living creature as a medium for casting. The medium becomes the nourishment for the spell, drawing enough life from the caster to transform into a living corpse. If the caster's constitution is insufficient, they risk death from a fatal backlash. The living corpse is bound by the caster's mental strength, restricting its range of movement (1 meter per mental strength unit). The capabilities of the Witch Poison Blood Corpse are determined by the medium and the caster's own attributes. The quantity of Witch Poison Blood Corpses one can control is limited by the "spell" level, which is currently "Basic Spell," allowing for only one Witch Poison Blood Corpse.
Basic Spell (E): Increases Mana cap by 50, Spell Hit Rate by +1.
Initiate the achievement quest "Living Creature Creation," where you must create 0/10 living creatures using the spell and earn a Basic Skill Advancement Potion.
"Damn it!" Chen Ye's eyes blazed with frustration. Setting aside whether the skill was any good, the real issue was finding a living creature to serve as the spell's medium. In this place, there were only undead monsters and himself. It was out of the question to use himself as the medium. And even if he had one, where would he find a living spellcasting creature? Was there no hope at all? Should he just leap to his death?
"Living creature?" A thought struck Chen Ye as he opened the Celestial Vault, his eyes landing on the "Silver Ring Snake Egg" he had acquired from his first completed mission. Unsure if it qualified as a "living creature," he was desperate enough to try anything. If it failed, he'd have no choice but to return to grinding time in the bloody slaughter, waiting for the "Sniper Rifle" cooldown, and then using it to forge a path, hoping luck would be on his side in battle.
Chen Ye cast the "Voodoo Blood Corpse" skill on the Silver Ring Snake Egg. As his Mana dropped by 1 point per second, it took only ten seconds for the egg to transform into a blood-red powder, signaling the successful creation of the spell's medium.
Chen Ye was invigorated. "It worked!" The Silver Ring Snake Egg was indeed recognized as a living creature.
Without delay, Chen Ye sprinkled the medium onto another Silver Ring Snake Egg and continued with the "Voodoo Blood Corpse" skill. As his Mana dwindled to 20 points, the egg trembled and began to quiver. Chen Ye's health started to drop rapidly—from 1 point per second to 5, then to 10 points. In just a few seconds, his health had plummeted by more than half from its original 180 points.
In a panic, Chen Ye quickly used a "Blood Essence (Small)," a valuable item usable in combat. He had been reluctant to use it, but after having just slain a Bloody Warrior, he was still in a state of battle and had no other choice.
With only 55 health points remaining, Chen Ye knew he wouldn't last long. His health rapidly dwindled to just over 10 points, prompting him to quickly use "Blood Essence (Intermediate)"—a potent potion that instantly restored 150 health points. Coupled with the "First Aid (E)" effect, he gained a total of 165 health points, bringing him back from the brink. Once the minute of combat time elapsed and he transitioned into a non-combat state, Chen Ye hastily applied a first-aid bandage and periodically popped pills to sustain himself. The peculiar "Silver Ring Snake Egg" had drained a whopping 500 health points before it finally ceased. With a faint crack, the eggshell split, and a finger-length, blood-red snake wriggled free.
The Blood Beast (Snake): An inherently flawed Poison Blood Corpse, born only after consuming an ample supply of fresh blood. As a Blood Corpse, it lacks spiritual consciousness but retains most of its powers. It is of white quality, indicating an imperfect Blood Corpse, though there may be ways to remedy its shortcomings. Health: 20/20, Stamina: 20/20; Strength: 1, Constitution: 1, Agility: 3. Poison Fang: It possesses the natural venomous ability of the Silver Ring Snake, inflicting a "poisonous" state upon its target, reducing all abilities by 1. This effect can stack up to two layers and lasts for 1 minute. Devour: A fusion of Black Sorcery and its innate abilities allows it to consume blood and gain strength, though digestion takes time. Satiety: 0/100.
Chen Ye was ashen-faced after the harrowing two-minute ordeal that nearly claimed his life. The attributes of the Silver-Ringed Snake were underwhelming, but its two unique abilities caught his attention. He felt a new presence in his consciousness and, with a mere thought, the Blood Beast (Snake) slithered over to the fallen Bloody Warrior and began to feast. Despite its adorable appearance, the creature was eerily formidable, capable of consuming the dead—a truly acquired taste. Chen Ye decided to aptly name it the 'Gluttonous Snake'.
Despite its diminutive size, the Gluttonous Snake devoured half of the Bloody Warrior's palm in a single bite, increasing its satiety by five points. Chen Ye let it continue feeding while he used the last Silver Ring Snake egg as a spellcasting medium, sprinkling it over the Gluttonous Snake.
The Gluttonous Snake found itself in the throes of a spell cast by a kindred medium, its essence invigorated by the voodoo blood curse. As a result, its quality began to ascend. For the next hour, its maximum satiety surged by 300%, and its digestive prowess tripled. Once the effect wore off, the snake's quality would be assessed based on its true capabilities.