"A bit surprising, actually more practical than I imagined..."
Tao Yu looked at the wisp of black mist floating around his fingertip, flicked it casually, and then dissipated the sliver of Shadow Force.
On the nearby wall was a scratch, its edges tinged with some black mist that seemed to slowly erode the notch, only to gradually disappear after a moment.
The secondary Deification of [Ambush] indeed didn't result in a new way of creating Shadow Force, but it brought Tao Yu the ability to store and control it!
Before the secondary Deification, [Ambush·Improved] allowed attacks executed from within one's own shadow to be supplemented with the Shadow Force that had been accumulated while using Shadow Evasion.
Whether it was slashing zombies, Inner City Pioneers, or even the Alien Queen, it had played a tremendous role for Tao Yu.
That was also the reason why, once he had satisfied the requirements for the Breathing Technique, it was the first ability he thought of.
After all, the secondary Deification of a Skill like Five Forms as One was even more expensive than a talent; it was definitely something to save for later.
As a result, Tao Yu felt that the enhancement of this ability turned out to be even better than the highly valued [Basic Breathing Technique] at the beginning.
In the past, if he didn't attack while using Shadow Evasion, the accumulated Shadow Force would simply dissipate, but now he could store this force within his own shadow!
And he could use it at any time and even control it!
Although there was a limit to how much Shadow Force he could store, which depended on his mental strength and the level of the Skill,
this without doubt significantly increased his flexibility.
And even though the Shadow Force would rapidly decay once it left his body, this new ability still provided the bonus of acting as a projectile, even if its effect was not as strong as that of close combat.
Besides that, it also came with a slight increase in the upper limit of mental power as an extra bonus.
"Ah, there's still not enough Yuan Force. Now that I've stacked two Deified Stealth Skills, it's like using a sledgehammer to crack a nut. The creation of Shadow Force is still too little."
Although very satisfied with the pleasant surprise that [Ambush] brought, Tao Yu directly renamed it to [Shadow Manipulation].
He still felt the inadequacy of Yuan Force within him.
However, as someone from the outer city who had only awakened for two months yet managed to gain such rewards, Tao Yu knew he was quite lucky.
Under normal circumstances, with his own strength, it would take a very long time to earn a hundred thousand Yuan Force, which he nearly stumbled upon for nothing this time.
"Now it seems like all the good opportunities in the vicinity are gone. If I want more Yuan Force, aside from hugging the thigh of a wealthy lady for quests, I probably have to continue hunting Aliens..."
Tao Yu did some calculations and sighed.
Taking into account the time for traveling and searching, even if on average he could gather a set of Alien Skills every ten days, including the subsidies for hunting Aliens,
it would still take him half a year to save enough. And that's assuming that the Skill prices in the new Development Zone don't plummet too severely, and the wealthy lady's Alien breeding business doesn't take off.
Otherwise, the bounty from hunting Aliens would soon become dirt cheap.
"The real income still depends on quests, and on pioneering new territories, but right now my strength is not quite secure."
Tao Yu made an evaluation within his heart: through pioneering, he had obtained a Fragmented Heart of the World and the Corpse Refinement Skill,
"Pity it's just a hastily made product of seven days; its defense is obviously much weaker than the other one's. Now it's relying on material quality alone. Although it doesn't have the weakness to sunlight anymore, its adaptability has greatly increased."
Tao Yu realized that under a seven-day crash course, the strength of this zombie body might not even be as high as Cao Shaolin's was when he was alive.
Compared to the 'intuitive communication' brought by Little Black's [Riding], this zombie, cultivated using Tao Yu's own essence blood, gave him a feeling of being an extension of his own body.
Even though it occupied part of his mental capacity, this control was quite convenient.
"Shadowfy."
Tao Yu intensified his mental energy expenditure, and in the next moment, black tendrils that resembled tentacles emerged from shadowy areas such as the mouth, nose, and armpits of the previously stiff Cao Shaolin. They rapidly enveloped his body and, like melting putty, dragged him into the shadows.
"Huh?"
After pulling Cao Shaolin into the shadows, Tao Yu's eyes lit up with a slight surprise.
He discovered that the effect of shadowfication from [Corpse Refinement · Improved] actually allowed the zombie to continuously absorb Shadow Force.
Especially at night, Tao Yu could feel a flow equal to about one-thousandth of the Shadow Force he absorbed while using [Stealth], steadily filling his shadow reserves.
Although one-thousandth might seem minuscule, it was the constant accumulation that mattered.
At full strength, layering two Stealths could drain all of his energy in just over a dozen seconds.
Ordinarily, it would take Tao Yu four or five exhaustive efforts to fully store Shadow Force in his shadow, which was not only cumbersome but also required constant eating to replenish his energy.
It felt like a horse pulling a heavy cart.
Now, it meant he could automatically fill up each day without doing anything, significantly reducing some of the tedium for him.
And this was an unexpected delight he hadn't anticipated, a little surprise that made Tao Yu very happy.
"If I were to refine for forty-nine or eighty-one days, I wonder if this absorption effect would be enhanced. With just one instance of Deification skill, who needs anything else?"
Tao Yu felt an itch of anticipation.
However, since this seven-day experiment had already turned out like this, he planned to carefully map out the forty-nine-day upgrade.
He needed to communicate well with his family and also find an even better Land of Extreme Yin, as well as prepare ample materials.
"The Shadow Force absorbed by the zombie is probably just for its own recovery and nurturing, and is most effective at night and during a full moon," Tao Yu judged using his expertise from [Ambush], the second Deification of [Shadow Manipulation], and the knowledge gained when absorbing with [Corpse Refinement].
"Recovery? One-eyed isn't so bad. Let it restore functionality later," Tao Yu unceremoniously redirected the Shadow Force absorbed by the zombie into his own shadow reserves without a care for how much the zombie absorbed, since it all belonged to him anyway.
Once the shadow was full, he'd then consider using it for nurturing.
The next moment, he brought Cao Shaolin out again to find him some clothes.
Otherwise, if he really needed to use him, having a naked man leap out of the shadows to fight every day would be a bit too much for the eyes.
Even if his looks were only slightly less impressive than Tao Yu's own, it was still the case.
"As an upbeat and sunny youth, I can't be labeled as a pervert..." Tao Yu muttered, tightening his slightly loose [Inner Scales Armor] and complaining that it didn't fit snugly enough.