NOVEL NEXT Chapter 203: Bull Rush
Gabriel sat motionless inside a spacious room. Just a few metres away lay the severed hand of the Hero-rank cultivator, Bai Young.
It had been quite a while since Gabriel last used his Extraction Talent, so he had saved up a considerable amount.
Presently, his total Extraction Points stood at 599, which meant he had more than enough to use as he wished.
'From my last extraction, cultivator-type enemies seem to give options related to martial arts,' Gabriel noted. 'I wonder what option he would give.'
It was the first time Gabriel would use extraction on a Hero-rank enemy, so he was both excited and anxious.
Quickly, he activated the ability. Fifty-five points were deducted, and several options were presented before him.
Gabriel narrowed his eyes as he took in every option.
[Qi Vein Fragment (Silver)]
[Bull Rush (Legendary)]
[Cultivator's Stubborn Will (Elite)]
[Bai Young Memory Fragments]
[Condensed Qi Pill (Silver)]
'Just as I expected,' he frowned. 'Almost all the options were tailored for cultivators.'
Because he didn't possess a martial arts class, Gabriel didn't even dare to pick options like Qi Vein Fragment or Cultivator's Stubborn Will.
The last thing he wanted was to choose something that wouldn't be compatible with him. Furthermore, he didn't even have a martial artist ally to hand it over to.
Sure, he could always sell it off to Damian, but right now Gabriel's main goal was to strengthen himself.
He wasn't clueless. He knew he had already made a ton of enemies, and none of them were weak. In fact, there were families like the Tempest clan and the Edgeburne military that could crush him if he encountered them now.
So the best he could do was improve his strength and complete his class advancement quest as quickly as possible.
'The only options that could be beneficial to me right now are Bull Rush and the memory fragments.' A thoughtful expression crossed his face.
He recalled from the fight that Bai Young had used a skill like this, and his speed had skyrocketed through the roof.
It was much more powerful than Vicious Pounce, which only launched him forward a few metres.
Secondly, there were the memory fragments.
'The last time it took at least 24 hours to fully go through it… but do I really want to do this again?'
Although choosing the fragments would help him learn more about the Eastern and Northern Camps, Gabriel felt it would be a waste.
He already knew a lot about them thanks to Chief Maiden Amelia. Besides, there was also something nagging at the back of his mind.
What if Bai Young was just a lackey who didn't have much access to the lords of the camp?
Considering all this, Gabriel quickly dismissed that option, leaving him with only one choice—Bull Rush.
Bull Rush was a movement-type skill, and it perfectly complemented Vicious Pounce.
Gabriel made his decision and selected it. Instantly, a scroll appeared in his grasp, followed by its details.
[Bull Rush Lv.1]
[Rarity: Legendary]
[Description: Launches forward like a charging bull, ignoring terrain and knocking enemies aside. Grants +40 Agility for 5 seconds. Cost: 35 MP/Qi]
+40 Agility points. That was quite the amount and could make a huge difference in battle. It made sense why Bai Young had suddenly become so overbearing.
Unfortunately for Gabriel, he needed to learn the skill before he could use it. For now, all he could do was put the skill away.
Suddenly, a thought struck him.
'Wait… what if I delete one skill I'm no longer using?'
In this world, when someone learned a skill, it was imprinted into their soul. However, these skills were not permanent. You could get rid of them if you wished.
The only downside was that once a skill was deleted, it could never be recovered again. Not even the system could bring it back unless he was lucky enough to re-extract it from another source.
Gabriel tapped his finger against his knee, frowning in thought.
'That means every choice I make will carve my path permanently. Delete the wrong skill and I cripple myself. Keep too many useless ones and I stay weak.'
He glanced down at the glowing scroll in his hand. Bull Rush's faint golden radiance pulsed like a heartbeat, eager to be absorbed.
Summoning his system interface, he briefly went through his skills one by one.
[Burrow Shift LV.1]
[Rarity: Rare]
[Description: Vanish underground and reappear within a 10-meter radius. Cooldown: 30 seconds. MP Cost: 35]
[Vicious Pounce LV.1]
[Rarity: Uncommon]
[Description: Launches the user in a fast burst up to 2 meters. Cooldown: 45 seconds]
[Dark Flame Orb Lv.2]
[Rarity: Rare]
[Description: Summon up to three condensed orbs of dark flame. Upon command or contact, the orbs detonate, dealing high fire-based damage in a moderate radius. Leaves a burning zone for 3 seconds. Cost: 30 MP]
[Stonebind Trap LV.1]
[Rarity: Elite]
[Description: Places a rune circle on a surface. When a target steps on it, it activates, emitting binding magic that roots enemies in place for 5 seconds.]
[Iron Body LV.1]
[Rarity: Elite]
[Description: Temporarily reinforces the user's skin, reducing all physical damage taken by 20% and allowing the body to withstand attacks from enemies up to 3 levels higher. Duration: 12 seconds. Cooldown: 120 seconds.]
[Parry LV.2]
[Rarity: Rare]
[Description: Instantly deflects melee and ranged physical attacks if timed correctly. Reduces incoming damage by 90% and staggers the attacker for 1 second. Cooldown: 15 seconds]
[Decay Touch LV.1]
[Rarity: Elite]
[Description: Upon direct contact, the user's touch unleashes a necrotic force that rapidly decays organic material. Targets struck may begin to crumble into dust over the next 3 seconds. Instantly kills weak or low-end enemies. Stronger foes resist full decay but still take severe damage over time. Cooldown: 45 seconds. MP Cost: 40]
[Silk Combustion Thread LV.1]
[Rarity: Rare]
[Description: Summons an explosive web dealing AoE fire damage. Cost: 30 MP]
[Undying Will LV.1]
[Rarity: Legendary]
[Description: Your soul rejects domination. Immune to fear, charms, confusion, and most mental control effects. Increases resistance to soul-based attacks by 20% and grants unwavering focus under extreme pressure.]
[Blood Rush LV.1]
[Rarity: Legendary]
[Description: When activated, the user feels a primal rush of battle. While active, the body moves purely on instinct. Pain is dulled, and strength is amplified to terrifying levels for 10 seconds.
+20% Strength, +20% Agility.
After the skill ends, the user enters Blood Exhaustion for 60 seconds, during which they cannot use Blood Rush or other high-output burst skills. Cost: 20% of current HP.]
After reading through all the skills, a deep frown appeared on Gabriel's face. Every one of them was useful in its own way and had helped him countless times.
However, one needed to go.
But the question was—which one?