NOVEL WEB Ch. 28
Chapter 28: The Evil Wolf of the “Wolf Pack”
In a room paved with black stones, the boy and girl sat face to face.
They had already changed clothes, from their daily wear to specially made fire-resistant suits.
These suits were very similar to tight-fitting clothes. When Du Lingwei wore them, they completely outlined her body’s curves.
Jiang He sat opposite her, not knowing where to rest his gaze, so he could only force himself to look upwards.
Du Lingwei, however, was poised and at ease: “The first skill point you obtained after transferring to Fire Controller, do you still have it?”
“I already used it. I lit up the Fire Control Path with 【Arson】,” Jiang He said.
Just like the Rumor Bearer, the Fire Controller also had two skill paths.
Each path had three initial skills.
The Fire Control Path was:
【Arson — Growth Skill. When consuming one’s own Fire Source, slightly increases Spirit Value.】
【Wildfire — Passive Skill. Slightly increases flame intensity.】
【Conflagration — Active Skill. Consumes Spirit Power, increases the blaze.】
The Fire Resistance Path was:
【Storing Fire — Growth Skill. When burned by flames, absorbs a portion of them, slightly increases Spirit Value.】
【Fire Resistance — Passive Skill. Increases one’s resistance to flames.】
【Ignition — Passive Skill. When burned by flames, increases flame intensity.】
In total, there were two paths, each with two branches.
The Wildfire branch increased intensity, the Conflagration branch increased range, the Fire Resistance branch increased flame defense, and the Ignition branch absorbed flame power…
Just like with the Rumor Bearer, every path and branch was extremely tempting.
Unfortunately, Jiang He only had one skill point, which could only be used to learn 【Arson lv1】.
Moreover, the Fire Controller’s method of leveling up was not as easy as that of the Rumor Bearer.
Its only real advantage was probably the saving of Spirit Power—
Because a Fire Controller’s advancement required absorbing others’ Fire Seeds, it was equivalent to shifting part of the cost onto others. As long as someone was willing to feed him, his own consumption would naturally drop significantly.
This was the same principle as Spell Words.
“Good. Then try releasing the power of your Fire Source, ignite the Fire Spirit Stones around you, and attempt to control the flames,” Du Lingwei said. “Don’t worry about consumption, I’ll condense Fire Seeds for you.”
This was a special Fire Spirit Room. The black stones paving the floor of the room were special 【Fire Spirit Stones】.
They could absorb power and prolong the duration of flames, allowing Fire Controllers to manipulate fire more easily, indirectly saving Spirit Power.
At this moment, Jiang He released his Fire Source, turning the entire room into a sea of fire.
Because the walls were made of fire-resistant material, there was no need to worry about the flames spreading. The Du Lingwei opposite him was also a Flame Gifted; this level of heat meant nothing to her.
Jiang He could recklessly unleash flames and consume power.
At that moment, his stagnant Spirit Value began to grow once again.
【Skill triggered. Spirit Value +0.1】
The Transcendent flames a Fire Controller could unleash were extremely limited.
Jiang He’s Fire Source was quickly consumed and nearly extinguished.
At that time, Du Lingwei lifted her hand, sending out a Fire Seed, which Jiang He guided to absorb quickly. The nearly extinguished Fire Source ignited once more.
【Profession Growth. Experience +2】
……
Time quickly passed.
After all, Jiang He was only an F-rank Transcendent, and his Spirit Value was not very high.
Even if the Fire Controller’s cultivation saved Spirit Power, he soon reached his limit.
Du Lingwei, however, was a C-rank Transcendent. Even after Jiang He was completely drained, her expression remained calm, her consumption barely noticeable.
She had Jiang He rest first, while she herself changed into firefighting gear and went out with the team to take on tasks—
After yesterday’s attack, there was still a mountain of work waiting for the firefighters today. They had no time to rest.
By the afternoon, Jiang He had finished resting, and Du Lingwei had returned.
She brought Jiang He back into the Fire Spirit Room, teaching him fire control experience while replenishing his Fire Seeds, draining his Spirit Power all over again.
After two rounds of cultivation, Jiang He’s Spirit Value and Fire Controller profession had both grown considerably.
Among these, his Spirit Value had even reached the F-rank “Shackle.”
……
Name: Jiang He
Attributes: Body 20.5, Spirit 50.1, Energy 11.0
Gifts: Ferryman of Time, Word-Spirit (temporary)
Professions: Student lv11, Rumor Bearer lv9 (63/100), Fire Controller lv3 (23/40)
Specialties: Focus, Universal Lingual Intuition, Fire Command
Skills: Arson lv3, Babble lv6, Voice of Thunder lv1, Weight of Words lv1, Final Word lv1, others omitted.
Comprehensive Energy Level: 36.4 (F-rank)
……
The F-rank “Bottleneck” was 50 points.
Correspondingly, the single-attribute “Energy-Level Shackle” was also 50 points.
When Jiang He had just broken through to F-rank, his Spirit Value had already surged to 40.0.
Afterwards, he experienced the Arc Light Organization attack, repeatedly pushing his Word-Spirit ability to the limit, and then, with Du Lingwei’s help, had his Spirit Power drained twice.
This directly pushed his Spirit Value up to 50 points.
From 50 points onward, if Spirit was to grow further, the speed would plummet dramatically.
Unless he could break through to E-rank.
But—
The prerequisite for breaking through Energy Level was reaching the “Bottleneck.”
Jiang He’s Comprehensive Energy Level was only 36.4, far from the limit, completely unqualified for breakthrough.
To attempt a breakthrough, he would either have to raise his Body and Energy attributes to fill the gaps, or increase his Profession level to learn more skills, or else directly force Spirit upward to 100 points.
In short, he had to enhance his overall strength in order to raise his Energy Level.
“Never thought I’d be troubled because my attributes grew too fast, leaving my Comprehensive Energy Level behind.”
“So this is what it means to be a genius.”
The day’s cultivation had ended.
Jiang He said goodbye to Du Lingwei and went home, intending to discuss with White Crane how to quickly improve his Comprehensive Energy Level.
When he returned to the Lidu Residential Area and arrived at the entrance of his apartment building, he stopped in his tracks.
He saw a middle-aged woman with a haggard expression and red, swollen eyes, holding a stack of missing-person notices with photos attached, sitting by the flowerbed weeping.
The photo showed a boy with a sunny smile.
This was…
Jiang He stepped forward: “Auntie Yang.”
“Xiao He?” Auntie Yang turned her head, and a glimmer of hope surfaced in her reddened eyes. She reached out and grabbed Jiang He’s arm: “Xiao He, have you seen my Xiaozhi?”
Jiang He: “No…”
Auntie Yang’s hand fell limply, her eyes full of despair.
Seeing her expression, Jiang He’s heart sank.
Auntie Yang was Jiang He’s neighbor. Back when his parents were still alive, the two families had frequent contact. Jiang He often went to her house for meals and to play with her son, Li Zhi.
Later, after Jiang He’s parents had their accident, he entered high school, his studies became more demanding, and he had less time.
Added to that, since he had never awakened, he gradually grew more withdrawn, and contact faded. They would only exchange brief greetings when they met.
Now…
Jiang He asked: “What happened to Xiaozhi?”
Auntie Yang’s tears would not stop: “He never came home after school last night. I asked the school teachers…”
She rambled on, but it boiled down to one sentence.
Last night after school, Xiaozhi went missing.
Even under normal circumstances this would be worrying, let alone after yesterday’s terrorist attack in Central State City—it was even more terrifying.
But right at this moment, with Central State City having so many deaths, the Security Bureau’s manpower was stretched thin. Cases like this, which were 【not part of the attack site】 and had only been missing a short time, could not even make the list even if reported.
Auntie Yang had been searching all day and was on the verge of collapse.
Seeing her dazed and despairing expression, Jiang He lifted his head and looked toward White Crane.
“White Crane, this is…”
“Missing,” White Crane said calmly. “Before the destruction of the neighborhood, Auntie Yang never found Li Zhi.”
Missing?
In today’s Central State City, missing was almost no different from dead.
Jiang He recalled the child who used to follow behind him, calling him Brother Jiang He, and his heart grew heavy. He clenched his fists.
“Can you find the killer?”
“Killer? Who told you he was dead?” White Crane said. “I told you, he’s missing.”
Jiang He was stunned: “Xiaozhi isn’t dead?”
“Of course not.” A cold smile tugged at White Crane’s lips. “Until 2034, he was still alive—”
“Alive as the Evil Wolf of the Transcendent Terrorist Organization, the 【Wolf Pack】.”