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"It's finally over..."
Su Yuan released his left hand, blood oozing from the corner of his mouth. His body was covered with burns and wounds from the desperate struggle with the Green Flame White Wolf—one that possessed the "Wolf Nature" talent.
Fortunately, it was only a matter of seconds; otherwise, he would've really been overwhelmed soon.
"Even at the Bronze Level, the gap between an elite and an ordinary one is much bigger than I imagined..."
Su Yuan felt a chill in his heart. The strength of the Green Flame White Wolf was much higher than he expected. This time, he had indeed been too rash.
Perhaps it was because he had suppressed himself for a year, now that his strength had erupted and advanced by leaps and bounds, and he had also slain a Bronze Level Wind Running Weasel, his mentality had become impatient as well.
"I really need to reflect on this. After all, you only have one life."
As Su Yuan was summarizing his thoughts, Zhuang Xun walked over, wide-eyed and slack-jawed. Staring at the corpse of the Green Flame White Wolf on the ground, he said uncertainly, "Is... is it really dead?"
Su Yuan, still in self-reflection, nodded casually, "It's dead."
"To kill such a formidable Green Flame White Wolf and still be so unruffled, is this what a true master is like?" Seeing how calm Su Yuan was, Zhuang Xun silently marveled, "Indeed, I'm still not at the level of 'master composure'. Stay calm, stay calm. It's just a Green Flame White Wolf, a small fry!"
"But how exactly did Su Yuan get on top of the Green Flame White Wolf's head? Could he actually fly?"
Zhuang Xun was still very puzzled.
Earlier, when facing the Gray Flame Strike, Zhuang Xun was fully committed to producing fireballs and had no time to see how Su Yuan had suddenly appeared.
Zhuang Xun was about to ask again, but Su Yuan had already bent down to start extracting the Green Flame White Wolf's Star Core.
"As we agreed earlier, the Star Core is mine, and the Flame Crystal Stone is yours."
"Right, the Flame Crystal Stone!" Zhuang Xun slapped his forehead, looked at the Flame Crystal Stone on the distant ground, and no longer bothered asking Su Yuan, he ran over joyfully to pick them up.
After examining and lovingly holding the Flame Crystal Stone in his hand, a white light flashed on Zhuang Xun's left hand, and the Flame Crystal Stone disappeared from his grasp.
"A Space Ring? No wonder he didn't carry a backpack. He truly is the scion of a wealthy family..." Su Yuan's gaze fell on the ring on Zhuang Xun's left hand, and he smacked his lips, "That thing really is convenient. I'll have to buy one too when I have the money."
As Su Yuan pondered, he carefully tucked the Green Flame White Wolf's Star Core into his chest pocket, then retrieved his backpack and sheath from afar and sat down to rest.
Zhuang Xun patted his hands satisfactorily and walked over to Su Yuan in a few steps, "Su Yuan, I really owe you one this time! Not only did you save my life twice, you also helped me obtain the Flame Crystal Stone by killing the Green Flame White Wolf!"
Su Yuan shook his head with a smile, "It was nothing. And being able to kill the Green Flame White Wolf so smoothly was mainly because you drew its fire."
Hearing Su Yuan say this, Zhuang Xun laughed, "Alright, then I won't thank you anymore. Let's exchange contact information. If you ever need help in the future, just let me know."
Su Yuan nodded, "Sure."
The two exchanged contact information and then went their separate ways.
Zhuang Xun returned directly to Qingye City after finding the Flame Crystal Stone, while Su Yuan planned to first head back to the suburbs of Guangchuan City to resupply and regroup. Then, he intended to report his safety to his parents before continuing to hunt for Star Dust in the Great Barbarian Mountain Area.
After all, whether it was Hardened Iron Skin, Instant Movement, or the imminent Gray Flame Strike, all required a considerable amount of Star Dust.
There were still three weeks left of the winter break, and he had to make the most of his time.
Upon leaving the Great Barbarian Mountain Area and returning to the hotel in the eastern suburbs of Guangchuan City for a day of rest and resupplying, Su Yuan went back to the mountain area to continue hunting Star Beasts.
...
Time flew by, and the winter break was almost over.
Su Yuan left the Great Barbarian Mountain Area once again, cleaned up well in the hotel, and then took the light rail back home.
Apart from the time spent resting in the hotel and on the return journey, Su Yuan spent roughly three and a half weeks in the Great Barbarian Mountain Area.
On good days, he could hunt more than a dozen Star Beasts, and on bad days, only five or six.
Because the Star Beasts on the outer edges of the Great Barbarian Mountain Area were sparse and Su Yuan didn't rush into the depths recklessly.
After his battle with the Green Flame White Wolf, Su Yuan realized that he should be more cautious in his growth.
After nearly a month of hunting, Su Yuan had accumulated nearly 2000 points of Star Dust, and his status panel had undergone earth-shattering changes!
[Host: Su Yuan]
[Level: Star Apprentice Eighth Stage]
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[Soul Card: Azure Sky Phoenix]
[Grade: Master Quality]
[Species: Phoenix]
[Element: Space]
[Talent: Azure Sky: Boost the might of space-related skills by 20% when used]
[Six Dimensions: Strength C, Agility C, Defense C, Constitution C, Spirit C, Star Power C]
[Soul Skill: Instant Movement (Blue, Master): Casting time reduced to 0.5 seconds, casting interval 4 seconds, the distance of instant teleportation is affected by Skill Level and Star Power]
[Skills: Steel Flame Finger (White, Transformation Realm), Hardened Iron Skin (White, Transformation Realm), Wind Walking (White, Transformation Realm), Gray Flame Strike (Green, Great Success)]
[Star Dust: 160]
Su Yuan had set colors to directly represent the grades of Star Cards on the system panel.
The three White Card skills had the best cost-effectiveness, and Su Yuan had upgraded all of them to the Transformation Realm, which, apart from increasing their power, had also caused a qualitative change.
The Transformation Realm Steel Flame Finger could cover the entire palm and fingers, which he had used against the Green Flame White Wolf, and its lethality was very sufficient.
The Transformation Realm Hardened Iron Skin could complete the full-body steel transformation within a certain period, akin to the Iron Shirt technique on Earth, virtually impervious to blades and spears!
Moreover, the Transformation Realm Wind Walking allowed one to manipulate wind currents during its activation to deflect trajectories of long-range attacks, thereby dodging attacks of certain strength.
Additionally, the Green Card skill, Gray Flame Strike, had been upgraded to Great Success; it was quite costly, but the corresponding power was also very strong! Even if it couldn't match the blow from the Green Flame White Wolf back then, it wasn't far off.
Finally, there was the Soul Skill Instant Movement. Since upgrading a Blue Skill cost too much Star Dust, Su Yuan had only upgraded it to Master Level. Nevertheless, it was becoming more and more handy, with further reductions in casting time and interval, and the distance of instant movement had once again increased.
After so many upgrades, Su Yuan's understanding of the System's features had also deepened.
Enhancing a White Card cost 10 Star Dust, a Green Card 40, and a Blue Card 200.
If one wanted to use the System's extraction feature for targeted selection, it would cost the amount of Star Dust needed for one upgrade.
"It's just that the E-3 Longsword is basically scrapped now, and with the joint trial approaching, I need to buy a new sword," Su Yuan sighed softly.
The month's hardships had rendered the nearly new Longsword battered and damaged, and it had even been broken by a Star Beast in the fight two days ago.
In the end, Su Yuan buried it somewhere in the forest of the Great Barbarian Mountain Area when he left.
"It would be great if I had a Weapon Card; no matter what its attributes were like, at least a Star Device wouldn't be as easily damaged as Mortal Iron."
Thinking of Zhuang Xun's black and red longsword with its burning trait, Su Yuan felt quite envious.
...
Having received news of her son's return, Tang Shiyang had already been waiting in the living room early on. As soon as Su Yuan arrived, she eagerly looked him over and asked after him, full of concern.
It took nearly two hours before Su Yuan finally managed to extricate himself from the deep concern and warm inquiries of his mother.
Retreating to his bedroom, Su Yuan collapsed onto the bed in a spread-eagle position and slowly closed his eyes.
"Overall, the trip to the Great Barbarian Mountain Area was incredibly fruitful, and the feeling of rapid strength enhancement is indeed quite addictive. But I really am tired, both physically and mentally exhausted..."
The warmth of his home eased the tension in Su Yuan's nerves quickly, relaxing him. Lying there with his eyes closed, Su Yuan began to drift into thought, but within seconds, he was sound asleep.
Soon after, Tang Shiyang, carrying a plate of freshly cut fruit, followed to the bedroom: "Little Yuan, this is fresh fruit your father just got from the suburbs this morning..."
Tang Shiyang pushed open the door, but she found that Su Yuan had already fallen asleep and quickly stopped herself mid-sentence.
"To think he's already asleep in such a short time, this child..."
A tender expression appeared on Tang Shiyang's face, and her eyes couldn't help but moisten.
Spending a month in a place like the Great Barbarian Mountain Area, as his mother, how could Tang Shiyang not feel heartache, not worry?
But seeing her son working so diligently, she and his father could only support him, striving not to become an obstacle to his growth.
Quietly placing the fruit platter on the bedside table, Tang Shiyang carefully pulled the blanket over Su Yuan and then quietly left the bedroom...