Chapter 35: E-Rank Sword Draw!

[Sword Draw] (Unique Skill, Lv12)
[Grade: E-Rank] (Upgradeable)
[Skill Effect: When drawing your sword, release a sword shadow that deals (150% Attack + 99) points of true damage, ignoring defense, to a single enemy within range; also increases your own Attack by 10% for 10 seconds.]
[Cooldown: 60 seconds]
[Skill Cost: 51]
[Proficiency: 0/1000] (Each use of Sword Draw automatically grants 1 point of proficiency; upon reaching maximum proficiency, it can be upgraded to D-Rank.)

The improvement to the skill itself was not particularly significant. However, for Lu Ming, who possessed the "Comprehensive Amplification" talent, it was a transformative leap.

"After a twenty-fold reinforcement, the skill damage effectively jumps from 20 times my attack to 30 times."
"Furthermore, the new 10% attack boost becomes 200% after reinforcement, lasting for 200 seconds. This perfectly covers the 60-second cooldown, meaning as long as I trigger Sword Draw once every 200 seconds, I can maintain this attack buff continuously!"

Looking at the Sword Draw skill that had evolved from F-Rank to E-Rank, Lu Ming couldn't help but feel a surge of excitement. A ten-star talent combined with a unique skill created a level of power that was truly world-shattering. However, the difficulty for the next skill upgrade had increased tenfold compared to the previous one. Naturally, such a high barrier to entry was fitting for a skill of such monstrous caliber. It made perfect sense.

With the upgrade of the [Sword Draw] skill, Lu Ming’s damage output exploded.

*Swish!*
Sword Draw—
-6222!

With damage that was half again as much as before, he instantly killed a level 15 Undead Knight standing before him, triggering the skill effect.

[Ding! Attack increased by 200%, lasting for 200 seconds!]

As Lu Ming’s attack soared from 108 to 324 points, the lethality of his Undead Legion became even more terrifying. The "War Stomp" skill relied primarily on Lu Ming’s attack power to buff his Undead Warriors. At this moment, the attack power of all his Undead Warriors instantly surged from 1,672 to 2,501 points. Even against the level 15 undead monsters—the highest level in the Night Watchman Camp of the first plane of the Phantom Demon Tower—they could be dispatched with a single blow.

Under such extreme damage, the Undead Legion left nothing in their wake. Two hundred and forty Undead Warriors harvested the entire map. At the same time the skill upgraded to E-Rank, a beam of golden light descended upon him; Lu Ming had leveled up to 13!

With the capacity for Undead Warriors expanding from 240 to 260, he consumed 200 Soul Power points to summon another twenty Tier 2 Undead Warriors. Under Lu Ming’s mental command, they continued their slaughter.

***

Meanwhile, every time the Sword Draw skill came off cooldown, Lu Ming would release it. Though he didn't need it to kill monsters, he needed to grind for skill proficiency.

"It’s a pity the subsequent attack bonuses don't stack, otherwise it would be even more insane."

Before he knew it, it was already noon. Lu Ming had reached level 13 with 91% progress, just one step away from level 14. Lin Youwei, following behind him, had managed to level up from 10 to 12 in a single morning, despite only receiving 80% of the kill experience—a staggering speed.

In the Heaven Abyss World, leveling up was no easy feat. For ordinary players, once they passed level 10, the experience required for each level increased drastically, making it standard to take two to three days to gain a single level.

As his stomach began to rumble with hunger, he checked the time; it was twelve o'clock. Lu Ming decided to head back to the city, log off for lunch, and continue grinding in the afternoon. He mentally recalled all two hundred-plus Undead Warriors scattered throughout the camp back into the summoning space. He glanced at Lin Youwei and said, "Back to the city."

Seeing Lu Ming open the exit portal of the Phantom Demon Tower, Lin Youwei replied with an "Oh" and quickly opened her own portal behind him.

After exiting the Phantom Demon Tower and heading back to Star Glory City, Lu Ming tallied his spoils. Although the Phantom Demon Tower was rich in high-value Soul Stones, it had one drawback: the monsters inside did not drop equipment. Players who wanted gear had to go to other maps. As a result, Lu Ming’s inventory contained only Soul Stones.

He counted them. Whoa! That was a significant amount! There were 625 Soul Stones in total. Among them, 578 were fifth-tier Soul Stones with 1%–40% purity, and 47 were fourth-tier Soul Stones with 41%–70% purity. Additionally, he had farmed over 4,300 copper coins, which, at a 100:1 conversion rate, came out to 43 silver coins.

Having spent five years in his previous life living frugally, Lu Ming began to calculate out of habit. "At market prices, a fifth-tier Soul Stone is 20, and a fourth-tier is 50. Add in the silver coins at 200 each... that's over twenty thousand dollars earned in just one morning?"

Lu Ming couldn't help but marvel again at how easy it was to make money. "At this rate, buying a house is just around the corner!"

Soon, they arrived back at Star Glory City. Lu Ming said to Lin Youwei, "Let's log off and eat. Meet back here before one o'clock."

***

After speaking, Lu Ming was just about to log off when he saw Lin Youwei standing there motionless, showing no signs of logging out.

"Aren't you going to eat?" Lu Ming asked.

Lin Youwei shook her head and said, "I'm not hungry."

No sooner had she spoken than her stomach let out an uncooperative growl. Lin Youwei immediately lowered her head in embarrassment. Lu Ming realized then that she might not even have the money for a meal. Without another word, Lu Ming opened WeChat and immediately transferred two thousand dollars to her.

Lu Ming felt no reluctance. He knew full well that two-thirds of the twenty thousand he had made that morning was thanks to Lin Youwei. If not for her talent, "Drop Rate Increase," combined with his own comprehensive amplification, he would have made less than a third of his actual earnings. Furthermore, with a "God of Wealth" like her by his side, Lu Ming could already see his future prosperity.

Lin Youwei was startled and hurriedly said, "Brother Youming, I'm already grateful enough that you're helping me level up; I can't take your money!" As she spoke, she prepared to decline the transfer.

Lu Ming said, "Just borrow it. You can pay me back later." Of course, this was just an excuse; he didn't actually intend for her to pay him back.

Lu Ming wouldn't tell Lin Youwei that once her account ban was lifted, she would obtain a priceless treasure: the Scroll of God-Sealing. He wouldn't tell her how much her seemingly trashy one-star "Drop Rate Increase" talent actually mattered to him. And he certainly wouldn't tell her how much extra money he had made thanks to her help.

Because his Undead Warriors were always in the shadows, automatically picking up loot after kills and handing it to him, Lin Youwei assumed that Lu Ming hadn't picked up any profit the entire morning. The idea that he was spending his own money to grind while dragging her along to level up left her filled with guilt.

Only by letting Lin Youwei feel constantly indebted would she stay loyal to him, never lying to or betraying him. This was a lesson Lu Ming had learned at the cost of his own life from Ye Ling'er.

Hearing the word "borrow," Lin Youwei finally accepted the transfer, but then immediately sent 1,950 back!

"You gave too much, 50 is enough!"
"Don't worry, Brother Youming, I will definitely pay you back for this money and the five thousand you helped me pay off before!"

Lu Ming couldn't help but think to himself: *To think there is such an innocent and naive girl in this world!*

Lu Ming didn't say much more and immediately logged off. Meanwhile, Lin Youwei logged off as well.