After Han Xiao got the items, he immediately went to find Bennett. Since the mercenary troops and assassins were allowed into the manor, Bennett and Wang Yuan often appeared. Everybody knew that they lived on the highest floor.
The staircase of the villa was made of mahogany and gave out a special scent. Han Xiao walked up the staircase to the top floor and knocked on Bennett's door.
"Sit anywhere you want."
Bennett was holding a cup of herbal tea in his hand, and after opening the door, he sat on the sofa and looked at Han Xiao happily. He liked Han Xiao as Han Xiao was the first to recognize his true identity. He then asked, "What do you want? Oh wait, let's not rush into the talking. I made a pot of herbal tea; do you want to try?"
He then pointed to the cup in his hand.
The herbal tea in the cup was so thick. The tea was green in color and had freakish bubbles.
Han Xiao closed his mouth, but he finally could not withstand his urge to speak. He pointed to the herbal tea and said in a breathless voice, "So what is the tradeoff I need to make?"
Bennett had confusion written all over his face. He did not understand what Han Xiao was saying.
Han Xiao coughed and put the conversation back on track. "I want to learn fighting techniques from you."
Bennett did not know whether he should laugh or cry. "I thought I said no… eh, is that the Sliver Defender Leader's Saber?"
The Silver Defender Leader's Saber was manufactured in an ancient country that no longer existed. That country's weapons' manufacturing techniques had a history of more than hundreds of years. Every weapon manufactured was considered as a prized piece that displayed great craftsmanship. There were only about a hundred of such sabers left in the world.
The saber was truly a classic. There were carvings of scriptures on the blade of the saber. The words inscribed were aesthetically pleasing, and every saber was carved with a different paragraph. The paragraphs were joint together to form a saga of the ancient country.
Bennett stared hard at the saber. One could tell from the look in his eyes that he liked the saber a lot. However, he did not stretch out his hands to reach for it. Instead, he looked at Han Xiao in astonishment. "You want to give the saber to me? How did you know that I like collecting antique weapons? You must be my admirer!"
"I…" Han Xiao was speechless. Indeed, what he was doing to Bennett was a little out of the ordinary. It was hard to explain why he wanted to give the saber to Bennett. He thought to himself, As long as I can learn new skills, I can accept any form of misunderstanding. Maybe my actions can even improve relations with Bennett.
It's fine as long as you're happy.
After receiving the Silver Defender Leader's Saber, Bennett could not take his hands off that prized possession. He was also feeling pretty tangled up. Han Xiao had handed him a gift that he had always longed for. Also, Han Xiao seemed like a hardcore fan of his, so he could not bear to reject Han Xiao's request.
Bennett thought for a while and then raised his head. He smiled at Han Xiao and said, "Let's do it."
Han Xiao could feel his goosebumps rising, and he immediately retreated backwards. He held his hands in front of his body. His body was tensed up and prepared to face the upcoming move he expected from Bennett.
"What are you thinking about‽ I meant that I am willing to teach you some skills." Bennett slapped his hand on his forehead.
"Can you say the full sentence next time‽"
"… you should clear up all these filthy thoughts in your mind." Bennett did not know how he should react. He shook his head and contemplated for a moment. He eventually confirmed the skill he wanted to teach Han Xiao.
"In the early days when I was weak and young, I experimented and discovered many fighting techniques. One of such techniques gave me the power to make a comeback when I was down. I named the technique [Flaming Will].
"The brain is the protector of one's body but at the same time a limiting factor. If one can remove the limiting factor, even an average individual without any form of training will be able to release an immense amount of power.
"However, such a method takes a heavy toll on one's body. Once, when I was faced with danger, I unexpectedly unlocked the limiting factor, and with a few tries, I managed to uncover a way to remove the limiting factor for a short period of time without hurting my body."
Bennett started to explain the theory behind the technique and patiently highlighted the key factors behind mastering the technique.
——————————————————————
Bennett Anderson (LV 60) taught you the skill [Flaming Will]. Your intelligence exceeds 100 points and met the pre-requisite to learn the skill. Your current progress is 3%.
——————————————————————
The lesson lasted all the way from morning to afternoon. The soothing voice from the interface highlighted Han Xiao's progress up till the point when Han Xiao mastered the skill entirely.
——————————————————————
Flaming Will Lv.1 (General Skill)
The young Bennett Anderson was previously mastering his skills in the extreme wilderness of the Northern Continent. Seven Northern Leopard-Bears tried to attack him, and one of the creatures was as large as a small tank. Nobody wants to hear the roars of a Leopard-Bear. Once the creature roars, it means that it has locked onto you. Their thick skin, muscles are impenetrable even by bullets.
Bennett only had a small dagger with him when he was faced with the impending attack. He did not have any thermal weapons. In such a time of desperation, Bennett mastered the technique and used his small dagger to deal damage that was comparable to that dealt the by High-frequency Wave Blade!
The skill has both passive and active abilities.
Active ability: When the upper limit of 10% of energy and stamina is exhausted, the next attack will deal 130 to 150% of damage. There is even a small likelihood of 180 to 200% damage and a minute likelihood for 250 to 300% damage. Lastly, although super-rare, there is a microscopic chance of 500% damage being dealt! The cool-down for the ability is ten minutes.
Passive ability: When HP is less than 20%, the ability will be activated. The cool-down time is thirty minutes.
The increased attack is calculated from the damage dealt by the basic attack. It is similar to the concept of defense. The original damage received is then converted into the true damage dealt after taking damage reductions into account.
Note: Cooldowns for the active and passive abilities are calculated separately.
——————————————————————
What a solid move. Han Xiao was feeling very excited. He had longed to master the skill since his past life, and today, he finally accomplished the feat.
There was another name given to [Flaming Will] by the players. The ability was also known as the 'Explosion of the Little Galaxy'.
The skill was a general skill that could be mastered by players of all professions. The pre-requisite was that one's intelligence must exceed 100 points. There were a hundred Silver Defender Leader's Saber; therefore, about hundred individuals could master the skill.
Han Xiao was one of them.
[Flaming Will] was a perfect complement to his sniping abilities. The damage depended on his intelligence and luck. The two attributes when combined could mask the weaknesses of each other and average out.
Once the skill was activated, there was a minimum increase in damage dealt of 1.3 to 1.5 times. Together with the sudden strike, sneak attack, and sniping shots, the ability could elevate the strength of the sniper rifle to a greater extent. If there was an energy surge, it could mean 3 to 5 times additional damage. In his previous life, Han Xiao had met players who used [Flaming Will] against him. One shot from the opponent completely shattered his shied. There was no way he could continue the fight.
The ability had a relatively long cool down time so was more suited for the final shot to secure victory. There was another line of skills that a sniper could use that involved firing secret shots to ambush the enemy. Such ambush snipes hit the enemies at their weakest spots without them even knowing.
The other item that Han Xiao had, the Lock HOC Sniper Rifle, could activate more missions for the side profession he was planning to take up. His side profession involved more secretive and covert operations. Han Xiao did not plan to activate the side missions with the item yet. He wanted to do so only after he completed his mission of defending the manor so that he had sufficient time to focus on it.
After seeing the excitement in Han Xiao, Bennett felt puzzled and asked, "You finished learning?"
"Fast right." Han Xiao beamed with pride.
Bennett was shocked and could not believe what he heard. He moved backwards and said, "Give me a punch, and I will know if you have really mastered the skill."
Upon hearing that, Han Xiao, who could no longer wait to test out his new ability, threw a powerful punch at Bennett.
——————————————————————
You used [Flaming Will].
Initializing…
Initialization complete. Your next attack will deal 136% of the basic damage.
——————————————————————
The punch landed on the left side of Bennett's face. Bennett's face felt like an indestructible wall that was harder than steel. A -1 damage was shown above Bennett's head.
——————————————————————
You entered combat mode.
Based on your level, you have access to the following information.
Bennett Anderson
Level: 60
Profession: ?
Type: ?
HP: ?
State: Hidden injury (Reduction of all attributes)
Energy: ?
Energy Level: ?
Stage: D+ (C)
Strengths:
- Lucky Glow: What you wished for will come true and adversity will be turned into opportunity.
- Legendary battle techniques: With twelve attacks, there will be additional damage of up to 40-70%.
- ???
Skill:
- Strike the weakness Lv.8
- Instant shadow charge Lv.9
- ???