TL: Etude
Due to the considerable distance between the warriors, Ye Tian naturally couldn't inspect the talents of all of them. After all, the range of his talent inspection ability only covered about 200 meters. Yet, within this mere 200-meter radius, many warriors were encompassed.
"Inspect!"
In an instant, phantom screens appeared on his retina. Each screen represented the talent of a warrior. He could simultaneously inspect the talents of 100 warriors, a capability generated by his upgraded talent-copying ability, eliminating the need to check them one by one.
"High-level sight talent, not bad. It would be quite useful for tracking people, but it's not very useful to me right now!"
"Basic shape-shifting talent, pretty good! With this talent, one can change one's size, appearance, and even—well, that. Truly, a boon for men. However, it's currently not of much use to my strength."
Various talents flashed before Ye Tian's eyes, but none caught his fancy. The ones that could be considered worthwhile were top-tier cultivation talents. If he copied several more of those, perhaps his top-tier cultivation talents could metamorphose into extraordinary talents.
However, he could only copy one talent at the moment. Maybe in the future, if his talent-copying ability evolved, he might be able to copy multiple talents at once. But not now.
"I've already wasted a lot of time. I must copy a satisfactory talent for this round," Ye Tian thought to himself.
Suddenly, there was a commotion on a nearby mountain.
"Who is that person?"
Ye Tian looked in the direction of the disturbance and saw a young man in white, who was the subject of much discussion among the crowd. Many people were looking at the young man in white.
"That's Yun Feng," Yue Ling introduced.
"So, he is Yun Feng," Ye Tian realized.
He had read the files on the prodigies; Yun Feng was ranked first among combat talents. Yun Feng possessed a top-tier Wind Blade talent and a basic Speed talent. These were the two talents known to the public. Whether he had other talents was unknown, but it was unlikely.
Given his status as a combat prodigy, many people would be studying him, making it difficult to conceal any talents. Moreover, possessing two special talents was already a phenomenal feat, unless one had the talent-copying ability, which could allow for even more talents.
"Wind Blade talent is indeed a good talent, amplifying attacks by 20 times and offering a long-range attack option. But it can't amplify my combat strength," Ye Tian lamented inwardly.
His actual physical strength was only at 250,000 catties, but with a 10x strength talent and a 6x Bronze-level mastery in Qingfeng Slash technique, these two talents could stack, resulting in a 60x amplification.
The reason the strength talent and blade technique could stack was because the blade technique wasn't considered a talent. It was an attack method developed through a blade skill talent, so the strength talent could enhance it. The two formed a stacking effect.
But Wind Blade talent wouldn't work in that way.
Wind Blade talent couldn't stack with the strength talent, as both were attack-type talents. If they could stack, it would throw things into chaos. If that were possible, he would have copied a slew of attack talents long ago, and their stacking effect would let him vanquish anything—maybe even gods and demons.
But that was unrealistic.
"My physical strength is only 250,000 catties, and it becomes 500,000 catties after the elemental power amplification. Even if I copied Wind Blade, my attack power would only be 10 million catties, equivalent to the power of 10 elephants. It wouldn't contribute much to my combat strength; at best, it would compensate for my weakness in long-range attacks," Ye Tian thought.
Therefore, he wasn't keen on copying the top-tier Wind Blade talent, at least not for now.
Just as Ye Tian was lost in thought, the void started to quiver.
"The spatial rift is about to emerge!" Yue Ling whispered, her gaze shifting upward to the sky.
Crack, crack, crack! The sky seemed as if it were shattering, making a sizzling sound that sent shivers down one's spine.
Boom! Accompanied by a thunderous noise, a surge of elemental energy erupted from an unknown source. A small black dot appeared a hundred meters up in the air, gradually expanding into a tiny rift. Then, the rift widened until it was about a meter long. But there it stopped, expanding no further.
A measly one-meter-long spatial rift with an estimated width of less than ten centimeters—such a rift was hardly large enough for a person to pass through. Anyone foolish enough to try would likely be torn asunder, even if they were a top-tier Grandmaster.
Ye Tian wondered what to do next, and many of the martial warriors seemed equally puzzled.
Suddenly, Grandmasters from various major families respectfully bowed and exclaimed, "May Lord Yunhe Wang take action!"
"Alright," a voice pervaded the air, echoing like the sound of heaven and earth.
In the next moment, everyone cried out in astonishment. Suspended in mid-air appeared a figure who looked to be in his early thirties.
But Ye Tian knew better. The person was certainly much older than that; the lifespan of someone beyond the realm of Grandmaster was considerably longer than that of ordinary people. For instance, a Grandmaster could live up to 200 years. Ye Tian wasn't sure about the lifespan of those even more advanced, but they could undoubtedly live much longer. Such warriors should not be judged by their appearance.
"He's flying in mid-air; this is a King-class warrior!" Yue Ling said, admiration filling her voice.
"King-class?" Ye Tian whispered, "Is that the next realm above Grandmaster?"
Yue Ling nodded, "Exactly, King-class is the next realm beyond Grandmaster. Not only can they fly, but their lifespan also extends to about 500 years. However, even those with top-tier cultivation talents have less than a 10% chance of reaching this level. And for those with extraordinary cultivation talents, the probability isn't 100%—it's more like 80%. It's said that one must satisfy certain conditions to achieve King-class status."
"Is this figure an individual with extraordinary cultivation talents?" Ye Tian ventured to ask.
"It seems so, but I'm not sure," Yue Ling shook her head.
"Extraordinary cultivation talents! Extraordinary cultivation talents!" Ye Tian's mind was consumed by these words. The next moment, his eyes were filled with desire and determination.
He wanted to observe the talents of this King-class entity. If he confirmed that the figure possessed extraordinary cultivation talents, he would copy them without hesitation. Opportunities for extraordinary cultivation talents were rare, and Ye Tian didn't know when he would encounter another. Missing this would be too regrettable.
Ye Tian estimated the straight-line distance between him and the King-class warrior to be just over 200 meters.
So, Ye Tian started walking toward the other side, slowly approaching the King-class figure.
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Yunhe Wang means Cloud River King.
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