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Chapter 92
Chapter 92: Skill and Job Class Conflicts, Gaining New Magic
Tang Zheng looked at the information revealed by Item Appraisal. Surprised, his eyes flickered slightly. "If this magic item was artificially created, then so be it."
"But if it was naturally born, that would be truly astonishing."
In this otherworld, naturally occurring magic items existed, such as the Lizardmen's "Frost Pain," one of their Four Great Treasures. It was crafted from ice at the center of a lake that never freezes, during the single time it ever did.
What a pity.
Without High-Tier Item Appraisal, he couldn't get a direct answer; that was a spell capable of identifying even the creator.
"An energy value of 300... I wonder how this is calculated."
Tang Zheng looked at the Item Appraisal information, a flicker of doubt in his eyes. "Summoning a bone dragon requires 100 energy. Can I summon up to three of them?"
If he remembered correctly, Khajiit had spent five years gathering enough energy to summon just two bone dragons.
Tang Zheng squinted, staring at the Orb of Death, which appeared unremarkable on the surface. And the remaining 100 energy...
It couldn't have been consumed by the Orb of Death itself, could it?
*Thud!*
The Orb of Death suddenly vibrated in the Flame Archangel's hand, emitting a faint, black-iron glow.
Staring at this Orb of Death, Tang Zheng suddenly felt an urge to pick it up with his own hands and examine it thoroughly.
The moment this thought appeared, Tang Zheng immediately grew wary. An unprepared person might have been tricked, but since he was already aware of the danger, he naturally had his guard up.
"Undying Spirit!" Tang Zheng chanted.
As this spell, specifically designed to counter "Charm" and other will-influencing effects, activated, the urge to pick up the Orb of Death immediately dissipated.
But Tang Zheng remained internally vigilant. Khajiit had also mastered this spell yet was still affected by the Orb of Death, which proved it couldn't be completely resisted.
Ignoring the Orb of Death as it continued to emit its faint, black-iron glow, Tang Zheng turned his attention to the large amount of skill information on his status panel.
These were all the spells Khajiit had used during their battle.
[Negative Ray]
[Third Tier: Create Undead]
[Third Tier: Summon Undead]
[...]
[Flame of the Dead]
[Armor Reinforcement]
[Lesser Strength Boost]
Aside from [Undying Spirit], Tang Zheng didn't immediately choose to learn these spells.
"[Summon Undead]."
Tang Zheng's eyes lit up upon seeing this spell. He was currently very interested in such summoning-type magic.
With a thought, he searched through the information on his status panel.
*Discovered Spell [Third Tier: Summon Undead]. Required Level (15-21). Current conditions met.*
*Do you wish to consume 1 Skill Point to learn? This skill conflicts with [Angel Summoning]. Do you wish to proceed? Learning it may cause unknown risks...*
Tang Zheng stared at the displayed information, stunned.
Skill conflict? What was this?
Tang Zheng frowned slightly and quickly realized that it wasn't just [Summon Undead] that had a skill conflict; even [Create Undead] showed a similar warning.
Among the three signature spells of a necromancer, only [Control Undead] had no skill conflict warning.
Skill conflicts weren't hard to understand. The problem was, such a situation shouldn't exist in the game YGGDRASIL, right?
Tang Zheng's face was filled with surprise.
Suddenly, he recalled something mentioned in the light novel about summoned creatures originating from other worlds. For example, when Albedo saw the Elf King naming the Primal Earth Elemental he had summoned, she specifically quipped, "How can he be sure that the Primal Earth Elemental he summoned is the same one?"
Did this mean that some of YGGDRASIL's background settings had truly become reality in this world?
Tang Zheng shook his head.
Since [Summon Undead] and [Create Undead] had skill conflicts, he naturally wouldn't try to learn them. At most, these two spells would provide him with additional options, but their future usefulness was far less than that of [Angel Summoning].
His main opponent, after all, was the Bone King, who specialized in necromancy to an extreme degree. Playing with the undead in front of him might cause his summoned creatures to defect on the spot.
In that case, there was no need to learn the other spells from Khajiit's list that could be used in conjunction, such as [Flame of the Dead] and [Negative Ray].
After careful consideration, Tang Zheng felt there were only three he could learn: [Lesser Strength Boost], [Armor Reinforcement], and [Control Undead].
After further consideration, he excluded [Lesser Strength Boost] and [Armor Reinforcement].
Among enhancement spells, only one of the same type could be active at a time. For example, [Lesser Strength Boost] and [Greater Strength Boost] could not be stacked. Tang Zheng had no intention of wasting skill points on such low-tier enhancement spells.
[Control Undead]!
This spell was tempting. He hadn't forgotten the thousand-plus corpses in his item box. The goblin corpses were one thing, but there were also fifty ogre corpses in there. Furthermore, if he were to slay powerful monsters in the future, their corpses would have an additional use instead of going to waste.
"So frugal," Tang Zheng mocked himself quietly. But what choice did he have? With no resources to speak of, he had to make a habit of being thrifty.
Just as Tang Zheng silently decided to master this spell...
*Buzz—*
The status panel vibrated.
*Do you wish to learn the spell [Control Undead]? Requires basic job class "Necromancer."*
*Warning: This job class conflicts with the living. Successfully acquiring this class will result in continuous influence from negative energy, forming a persistent negative status effect.*
The information that suddenly appeared made Tang Zheng realize a problem he had just overlooked.
If "skill conflicts" existed, then "job class conflicts" must also exist!
Undead-type job classes were originally intended for heteromorphic races. Khajiit, having mastered this class as a living being, had long since become "neither human nor ghost" under the corrosion of negative energy. In the future, he would hide in E-Rantel for five years, solely to absorb enough negative energy to perform a ritual and completely transform himself into an undead.
In short—he would abandon his humanity!
Before Tang Zheng could even react, the information on the status panel changed again.
*"Genius" trait activated. Conversion successful: "Genius → Necromancer."*
*Skill acquisition successful!*
【Skill Points: 40 → 39】
Skill: Control Undead (Third Tier)
Cost: 15 MP
Description: Control the corpses of the dead. The higher the user's level, the greater the number of corpses that can be controlled, depending on the levels of both the user and the corpses.
...
"Huh?"
Tang Zheng blinked.
He had always considered it a drawback that the basic classes converted by "Genius" didn't come with their unique class traits and abilities. Now, it seemed that might not truly be a drawback.
Under the dark, silent night, the numerous gravestones and withered trees made the entire environment appear terrifying. It formed a stark, fractured scene against Tang Zheng's own illuminated position, surrounded by six angels.
Illuminated by the light from the Flame Archangel, Tang Zheng withdrew his gaze from the status panel and looked at the Orb of Death held in the angel's hand.
Its irregular, uneven surface, coupled with its dusty gray appearance, would make it easy to mistake for a random stone picked up from a riverbank, were it not for the black-iron-like glow it was currently emitting.
Tang Zheng expressionlessly raised a finger and tapped the irregular surface of the Orb of Death.
Almost simultaneously...
"Human, death is the ultimate destination for all, the only true eternity. I represent the will of 'Death'."
"If you desire eternal life and power, I can bestow it all upon you..."
A cacophonous and tempting voice appeared in Tang Zheng's mind.
However, the next moment, the voice abruptly ceased.
Tang Zheng had already placed the Orb of Death into his item box.
"As expected. Even with [Undying Spirit] active, it still couldn't block that voice's intrusion."
Tang Zheng reached up and rubbed his ear.
He had no plans to research this magic item until he dealt with the consciousness inside the Orb of Death. As for the solution, he had thought of it long ago.
It was the ability of the Cursed Knight!
The curse trait possessed by this job class had the ability to destroy items below level 40, and the Orb of Death's level was exactly 40.
Of course, this trait was both an ability and a curse. Players with this job class could not use equipment below level 40, as their own gear would also be affected by the curse. This was also why he had always purchased ordinary weapons unless absolutely necessary; buying anything else would be a waste.
Tang Zheng's original plan had been to first acquire the Cursed Knight job class and then get his hands on the Orb of Death. He intended to use the power of the curse to see if he could obliterate the consciousness within it.
However, he had suddenly obtained the technique for scroll manufacturing, so the plan had been slightly altered.
(end of chapter)
Tang Zheng looked at the information revealed by Item Appraisal. Surprised, his eyes flickered slightly. "If this magic item was artificially created, then so be it."
"But if it was naturally born, that would be truly astonishing."
In this otherworld, naturally occurring magic items existed, such as the Lizardmen's "Frost Pain," one of their Four Great Treasures. It was crafted from ice at the center of a lake that never freezes, during the single time it ever did.
What a pity.
Without High-Tier Item Appraisal, he couldn't get a direct answer; that was a spell capable of identifying even the creator.
"An energy value of 300... I wonder how this is calculated."
Tang Zheng looked at the Item Appraisal information, a flicker of doubt in his eyes. "Summoning a bone dragon requires 100 energy. Can I summon up to three of them?"
If he remembered correctly, Khajiit had spent five years gathering enough energy to summon just two bone dragons.
Tang Zheng squinted, staring at the Orb of Death, which appeared unremarkable on the surface. And the remaining 100 energy...
It couldn't have been consumed by the Orb of Death itself, could it?
*Thud!*
The Orb of Death suddenly vibrated in the Flame Archangel's hand, emitting a faint, black-iron glow.
Staring at this Orb of Death, Tang Zheng suddenly felt an urge to pick it up with his own hands and examine it thoroughly.
The moment this thought appeared, Tang Zheng immediately grew wary. An unprepared person might have been tricked, but since he was already aware of the danger, he naturally had his guard up.
"Undying Spirit!" Tang Zheng chanted.
As this spell, specifically designed to counter "Charm" and other will-influencing effects, activated, the urge to pick up the Orb of Death immediately dissipated.
But Tang Zheng remained internally vigilant. Khajiit had also mastered this spell yet was still affected by the Orb of Death, which proved it couldn't be completely resisted.
Ignoring the Orb of Death as it continued to emit its faint, black-iron glow, Tang Zheng turned his attention to the large amount of skill information on his status panel.
These were all the spells Khajiit had used during their battle.
[Negative Ray]
[Third Tier: Create Undead]
[Third Tier: Summon Undead]
[...]
[Flame of the Dead]
[Armor Reinforcement]
[Lesser Strength Boost]
Aside from [Undying Spirit], Tang Zheng didn't immediately choose to learn these spells.
"[Summon Undead]."
Tang Zheng's eyes lit up upon seeing this spell. He was currently very interested in such summoning-type magic.
With a thought, he searched through the information on his status panel.
*Discovered Spell [Third Tier: Summon Undead]. Required Level (15-21). Current conditions met.*
*Do you wish to consume 1 Skill Point to learn? This skill conflicts with [Angel Summoning]. Do you wish to proceed? Learning it may cause unknown risks...*
Tang Zheng stared at the displayed information, stunned.
Skill conflict? What was this?
Tang Zheng frowned slightly and quickly realized that it wasn't just [Summon Undead] that had a skill conflict; even [Create Undead] showed a similar warning.
Among the three signature spells of a necromancer, only [Control Undead] had no skill conflict warning.
Skill conflicts weren't hard to understand. The problem was, such a situation shouldn't exist in the game YGGDRASIL, right?
Tang Zheng's face was filled with surprise.
Suddenly, he recalled something mentioned in the light novel about summoned creatures originating from other worlds. For example, when Albedo saw the Elf King naming the Primal Earth Elemental he had summoned, she specifically quipped, "How can he be sure that the Primal Earth Elemental he summoned is the same one?"
Did this mean that some of YGGDRASIL's background settings had truly become reality in this world?
Tang Zheng shook his head.
Since [Summon Undead] and [Create Undead] had skill conflicts, he naturally wouldn't try to learn them. At most, these two spells would provide him with additional options, but their future usefulness was far less than that of [Angel Summoning].
His main opponent, after all, was the Bone King, who specialized in necromancy to an extreme degree. Playing with the undead in front of him might cause his summoned creatures to defect on the spot.
In that case, there was no need to learn the other spells from Khajiit's list that could be used in conjunction, such as [Flame of the Dead] and [Negative Ray].
After careful consideration, Tang Zheng felt there were only three he could learn: [Lesser Strength Boost], [Armor Reinforcement], and [Control Undead].
After further consideration, he excluded [Lesser Strength Boost] and [Armor Reinforcement].
Among enhancement spells, only one of the same type could be active at a time. For example, [Lesser Strength Boost] and [Greater Strength Boost] could not be stacked. Tang Zheng had no intention of wasting skill points on such low-tier enhancement spells.
[Control Undead]!
This spell was tempting. He hadn't forgotten the thousand-plus corpses in his item box. The goblin corpses were one thing, but there were also fifty ogre corpses in there. Furthermore, if he were to slay powerful monsters in the future, their corpses would have an additional use instead of going to waste.
"So frugal," Tang Zheng mocked himself quietly. But what choice did he have? With no resources to speak of, he had to make a habit of being thrifty.
Just as Tang Zheng silently decided to master this spell...
*Buzz—*
The status panel vibrated.
*Do you wish to learn the spell [Control Undead]? Requires basic job class "Necromancer."*
*Warning: This job class conflicts with the living. Successfully acquiring this class will result in continuous influence from negative energy, forming a persistent negative status effect.*
The information that suddenly appeared made Tang Zheng realize a problem he had just overlooked.
If "skill conflicts" existed, then "job class conflicts" must also exist!
Undead-type job classes were originally intended for heteromorphic races. Khajiit, having mastered this class as a living being, had long since become "neither human nor ghost" under the corrosion of negative energy. In the future, he would hide in E-Rantel for five years, solely to absorb enough negative energy to perform a ritual and completely transform himself into an undead.
In short—he would abandon his humanity!
Before Tang Zheng could even react, the information on the status panel changed again.
*"Genius" trait activated. Conversion successful: "Genius → Necromancer."*
*Skill acquisition successful!*
【Skill Points: 40 → 39】
Skill: Control Undead (Third Tier)
Cost: 15 MP
Description: Control the corpses of the dead. The higher the user's level, the greater the number of corpses that can be controlled, depending on the levels of both the user and the corpses.
...
"Huh?"
Tang Zheng blinked.
He had always considered it a drawback that the basic classes converted by "Genius" didn't come with their unique class traits and abilities. Now, it seemed that might not truly be a drawback.
Under the dark, silent night, the numerous gravestones and withered trees made the entire environment appear terrifying. It formed a stark, fractured scene against Tang Zheng's own illuminated position, surrounded by six angels.
Illuminated by the light from the Flame Archangel, Tang Zheng withdrew his gaze from the status panel and looked at the Orb of Death held in the angel's hand.
Its irregular, uneven surface, coupled with its dusty gray appearance, would make it easy to mistake for a random stone picked up from a riverbank, were it not for the black-iron-like glow it was currently emitting.
Tang Zheng expressionlessly raised a finger and tapped the irregular surface of the Orb of Death.
Almost simultaneously...
"Human, death is the ultimate destination for all, the only true eternity. I represent the will of 'Death'."
"If you desire eternal life and power, I can bestow it all upon you..."
A cacophonous and tempting voice appeared in Tang Zheng's mind.
However, the next moment, the voice abruptly ceased.
Tang Zheng had already placed the Orb of Death into his item box.
"As expected. Even with [Undying Spirit] active, it still couldn't block that voice's intrusion."
Tang Zheng reached up and rubbed his ear.
He had no plans to research this magic item until he dealt with the consciousness inside the Orb of Death. As for the solution, he had thought of it long ago.
It was the ability of the Cursed Knight!
The curse trait possessed by this job class had the ability to destroy items below level 40, and the Orb of Death's level was exactly 40.
Of course, this trait was both an ability and a curse. Players with this job class could not use equipment below level 40, as their own gear would also be affected by the curse. This was also why he had always purchased ordinary weapons unless absolutely necessary; buying anything else would be a waste.
Tang Zheng's original plan had been to first acquire the Cursed Knight job class and then get his hands on the Orb of Death. He intended to use the power of the curse to see if he could obliterate the consciousness within it.
However, he had suddenly obtained the technique for scroll manufacturing, so the plan had been slightly altered.
(end of chapter)
