"Skill: Tracking."
A simple na paired with a straightforward description.
"Every 100 hours, the skill user gains 3 seconds of target search and lock-on capability within a 5-kiloter range."
When Ye Zhongming read this description, he couldn't suppress the smile on his face.
At first glance, this ability might seem unremarkable—just a radar-like function that modern technology could replicate.
But that interpretation would be far too narrow.
The Tracking skill, while seemingly simple, was incredibly powerful. The key lay in its description: search for targets! How? Essentially, it functioned like a search engine—within a 5-kiloter radius, anything the user wanted to find could be located!
Whether it was materials, mutant lifeforms, or even a specific enemy, if it existed within range, it could be found.
This was practically omniscient vision.
Crucially, anything within range would be detected without fail. No hiding spot, stealth skill, or concealnt equipnt could evade it.
Additionally, it allowed for target locking, aning Ye Zhongming could launch attacks at will, especially with firearms, giving the King of Cloud Peak an innate and absolute advantage.
Xia Bai, Xiao Min, Dai Zhi, and the others watching nearby shook their heads in awe. This ability was truly ga-breaking.
Ye Zhongming imdiately learned and mastered the skill, though he soon discovered so limitations.
Many skills and equipnt had surface-level descriptions, with finer details—like cooldowns, damage resilience, and other base stats—only revealed upon acquisition.
Tracking was no exception. After learning it, Ye Zhongming realized:
It consud massive amounts of ntal energy. This wasn’t an issue for him—his ntal reserves could sustain over a hundred consecutive uses… if not for the 100-hour cooldown.
It strained the user’s vision. Each use inflicted temporary damage to eyesight, with longer search tis worsening the effect. The maximum damage occurred at the full 3-second duration.
Fortunately, this damage wasn’t permanent and could recover.
Testing the skill, Ye Zhongming searched for Ella, the Won Guard leader who had just left. Instantly, his vision transford—distant landscapes beca grids of intersecting lines, with Ella’s figure appearing at the edge of this pattern.
An impulsive urge struck him: to take a shot at her. Not out of malice, but sheer curiosity about the skill’s limits.
Though Ella was within the 5-kiloter range, a snow-covered hill obstructed the direct line of sight. Normally, even with a sniper rifle, aiming would be impossible.
But with target locking, he could attack without line of sight.
At that mont, Ella whirled around, scanning the empty ice plains behind her. Her abrupt movent alard Gianna, who imdiately went on alert, assuming danger was near.
But after a thorough search, she found nothing but snow and wind.
"What’s wrong, dear?" Gianna asked, genuinely puzzled. The rest of the Won Guard also sensed no threat.
Ella shook her head, murmuring, "Nothing."
But internally, she was unsettled. She’d felt it—a piercing, amplified sense of danger, as if a level-nine mutant lifeform had locked onto her from point-blank range.
The intensity made her question if it was just exhaustion playing tricks on her.
Ye Zhongming, having spared her, rubbed his eyes. The 2-second search had inflicted moderate strain. Based on his recovery rate, without potions or healing skills, his vision would fully restore in about 2 minutes, with negligible downti.
Fully grasping the skill’s potential, Ye Zhongming turned his attention to the crystal.
A bloodline!
And a high-grade one at that!
This aligned perfectly with his earlier speculation—though he hadn’t expected it to be max-level outright.
"High-Tier Mountain King Bloodline."
"Requirents: Male, strength-based evolved, heavy weapon proficiency, gold-grade or above heavy weapon, exceptional physique."
Like the Tracking skill, the description was brief, but the implications were monuntal.
Judging by the na and prerequisites, this seed like a burst-type bloodline. In reality, the High-grade Mountain King was a sustained-combat bloodline, making it even more terrifying.
It embodied the essence of a super-soldier with bloodline augntation.
Such a potent bloodline demanded an equally formidable vessel.
A male proficient in heavy weapons, excelling in strength and stamina, with gold-grade gear—was that hard to find?
Perhaps. The "exceptional physique" requirent was the toughest hurdle. But for Ye Zhongming? Money solved everything. Cloud Peak had the resources to scour the nation for permanent stamina potions.
As he examined the bloodline crystal, another realization struck: all core mbers already had bloodlines, and bloodlines couldn’t stack. He needed soone without one to inherit this.
Which brought him to Ocean-Shattering Quake—the staff he’d just acquired. Did it qualify as a heavy weapon? If so, he could cultivate a devastating frontline juggernaut.
With this exhilarating plan forming, Ye Zhongming finally unsealed the certificate, the last reward aside from the crown.
"Father of Puppets."
The na gave no imdiate clues, but the description sent his heart racing.
"No matter how willful a war puppet may be, it shall acknowledge you as its father. You may bestow upon them a father’s glory, power, and even life, though not without personal cost."
Clearly, this was another item whose full effects would only reveal themselves upon use.
But even this cryptic, almost divine proclamation made one thing clear:
Ye Zhongming would beco the sovereign of war puppets, capable of reshaping their very existence.
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