【Blood Qi Blade】 proficiency +20

As expected, it takes high-level magical creatures to provide such gains - a single monster gives 20 proficiency points, bringing Blood Qi Blade's proficiency directly to (28/40).

However, as the Flame Rotted Corpse before him fell, just as Lin Mo had anticipated, an ice arrow suddenly shot toward him!

Prepared in advance, Lin Mo instantly activated 【Rock Shield】, this time utilizing the mana amplification effect of his mithril gloves, injecting an additional 20% mana that significantly strengthened the rock shield's defensive power.

"Bang—!"

Under the powerful force of the Ice Arrow spell, the rock shield still shattered without suspense, but it had weakened much more of the attack's power than before.

【Rock Shield】 proficiency +3

Lin Mo casually deflected the now nearly spent ice arrow, then looked in the direction from which the Ice Arrow spell had been fired.

In his line of sight, another ice arrow came flying toward him.

Coming again, are you?

Lin Mo's expression darkened, flames swirling around his hand as a fire arrow enhanced by mana amplification shot out.

【Flame Arrow】!

This was also one of the seven skills he had learned at the City Lord's Mansion earlier - an excellent-grade single-target fire magic that should be similar to the opponent's Ice Arrow spell attacking him.

The Flame Arrow strengthened by mana amplification burned even more fiercely, colliding head-on with that icy arrow!

Lin Mo naturally possessed 25% fire element affinity, making his fire-based skills more powerful, plus the 20% additional enhancement from mana amplification - this move could already fully rival magic from a Level 4 mage!

The facts proved this true - the two arrows mutually extinguished each other, ultimately disappearing almost simultaneously.

Lin Mo glanced in the direction the Ice Arrow had come from, but ultimately restrained himself from directly pursuing.

The opponent was quite strong - he couldn't guarantee victory, so it was better not to take unnecessary risks. The battle situation currently favored them, so the enemy would naturally become impatient.

Sure enough, after Lin Mo withdrew back to the group, the offensive of those undead creatures clearly became more frantic.

Soldiers wielding weapons joined the battle - these soldiers were noticeably more powerful than ordinary skeleton monsters, yet weaker than Professional-level Rotted Corpses. In terms of feel, they had strength approaching that of Sub-adult Mutated Goblins, completely mismatching their crude appearance.

Moreover, these magical creatures weren't few in number. Combined with the Rotted Corpses that occasionally emerged, the pressure on everyone increased considerably compared to before.

The usually talkative Huck had fallen silent, fully immersed in combat. Benny's pressure had grown so immense he could barely hold on, his body already covered with many wounds. If not for Finnie's Healing Art, he likely would have collapsed already.

Landon's situation was relatively better, still steadily outputting damage and clearing monsters. Ellie was also under great pressure, but due to her favorable position and being on the same side as Lin Mo, she immediately felt much more relaxed when Lin Mo returned.

Finnie had cast several 【Light's Assistance】 spells plus Healing Arts, consuming quite a bit of her mana.

But she was still gritting her teeth and persevering, occasionally swinging her mithril staff to knock those soldiers on the head.

Surprisingly, it was actually effective...

Because Finnie's staff was embedded with light-attribute magic stones of considerable quality.

Upon impact, the slight light-attribute mana dispersing from these magic stones could cause some damage to these undead creatures.

"Mr. Benny, watch out!"

Finnie suddenly exclaimed, then light flashed from her staff.

【Purification Art】!

A holy light shone upon the Rotted Corpse attacking Benny, causing the creature to immediately emit monster-like low roars as its body visibly melted at rapid speed.

Incredible!

Light-attribute mana naturally had some restraining effect on undead creatures, and 【Purification Art】 was specifically designed to counter such evil beings. Thus, what was originally a support-type skill now displayed power far exceeding that of attack skills.

That Rotted Corpse ambushing Benny was no ordinary specimen - its color was noticeably deeper than typical Rotted Corpses, probably approaching Level 2 strength, yet it was instantly killed with a single move.

"Thank you!"

Benny said gratefully with lingering fear, then quickly returned to the battle.

The magic from Lin Mo's left hand almost never stopped.

Several Ice Crystal Falls were cast in succession, each time crushing a group of soldiers and Rotted Corpses.

【Ice Crystal Fall】 proficiency +16

【Ice Crystal Fall】 proficiency +20

【Ice Crystal Fall】 proficiency +14

.......

In just a short while, this skill's proficiency had passed the halfway mark again.

But with continuous high-intensity magic casting, Lin Mo's mana had already been depleted by more than half, and the mental pressure was growing increasingly heavy, forcing him to temporarily stop to avoid affecting his performance in other professions.

That Icy Rotted Corpse should be about to lose its patience.

Lin Mo constantly observed the surroundings, and sure enough, moments later, a massive ice crystal suddenly fell from the sky, targeting the group.

Landon also noticed the abnormality immediately, immediately casting 【Piercing Gale】 that directly shattered the large ice crystal.

Lin Mo held 【Rock Shield】 in his left hand, blocking the many ice crystals falling from above, while Landon used 【Gentle Breeze】 to scatter the remaining shattered ice crystals.

With its attack foiled again and its minions being continuously slaughtered, the Icy Rotted Corpse finally had no choice but to reveal itself, appearing before the group.

Its entire body was covered in a layer of "ice armor," revealing only half of its pale face, holding a long spear covered in hard frost...

To be honest, it looked quite cool.

Among the many magical creatures Lin Mo had seen, this was one of the more impressive types, and much more pleasing to the eye than the previous Flame Rotted Corpse.

The Frost Rotted Corpse emitted low growls from its mouth. It raised its left hand, sending an ice arrow flying toward the group, then charged forward with its spear.

Humans found it difficult to simultaneously master both magic and qi and blood power, but these magical creatures, relying on their innate talents, could often accomplish this.

This was why humans of the same level often found themselves at a disadvantage when facing powerful magical creatures.

Especially those lord-tier or even epic-tier existences, like dragons - even two humans of the same level working together would find it difficult to achieve victory.

"Hah!"

Landon let out a light shout, sending an arrow wrapped in fierce wind flying out to collide with the Ice Arrow, the two perfectly canceling each other out.

In terms of magical prowess alone, Landon wouldn't be inferior to his opponent.

But close combat was more troublesome.

Whether it was Huck or Benny, including Sid, none clearly possessed the strength to confront that monster head-on, so it had to be left to Lin Mo.

"Brother Lin Mo, it's up to you!"

Lin Mo immediately responded, holding his Black Sword as he stepped forward to meet the challenge.

Simultaneously, 【Fortitude】 and 【Lightness】 were both activated, including the 【Light's Assistance】 from Finnie that was already in place.

【Accumulated Sword Combo】!

Several sword energy blades flew out consecutively. Using these as cover, Lin Mo accelerated again, executing a Consecutive Thrusts aimed at the Icy Rotted Corpse's chest.

The Icy Rotted Corpse swung its spear, dispersing the sword energy blades one by one, then hurriedly used the spear's shaft to block Lin Mo's thrust.

"Ding—!"

The sound of metal clashing rang out. Lin Mo slightly angled his sword blade, followed immediately by the second thrust of the combo that caught the Icy Rotted Corpse off guard, striking its chest with the sword.

However...

Looking at the cracked ice armor, Lin Mo frowned.

This ice armor's defensive power was quite strong.

From their exchanges so far, the Icy Rotted Corpse's strongest attributes should be strength and magic power, but this ice armor somewhat compensated for its defensive weaknesses.

Its only remaining weakness was speed.

The opponent was unexpectedly strong, but Lin Mo didn't panic. Although there was still some gap in raw strength between him and the Icy Rotted Corpse, it wasn't large, and various buffs had compensated somewhat, so he had been at almost no disadvantage in their direct confrontation.

Most importantly, it had weaknesses, while Lin Mo had none.

Slow speed, is it?

In that case, let's play with speed!

Lin Mo quickly withdrew, dodging the Icy Rotted Corpse's counterattack, then directly used 【Vanish】, disappearing on the spot.

Lin Mo circled behind the corpse, unleashing a fully charged 【Accumulating Sword Progressive Strike】. The Icy Rotted Corpse couldn't react in time, taking the full force of the sword energy. The ice armor on its back shattered accordingly, with the remaining sword energy leaving numerous wounds on its body.

It angrily turned around, but Lin Mo was nowhere to be seen.

The next moment, Lin Mo who had activated 【Vanish】 again suddenly appeared from the side, a blood-colored energy blade slashing forth.

The Icy Rotted Corpse hurriedly raised its hand, shooting an Ice Arrow that was brutally sliced in two by the energy blade!

【Blood Qi Blade】 was originally an exceptional-grade skill to begin with - a high-burst skill that traded self-damage for power. Combined with Lin Mo's attributes that already rivaled Level 4, it naturally wasn't something a mere Ice Arrow could withstand.

The Icy Rotted Corpse's spear-raising movement was half a second too slow. The blood-colored energy blade struck directly on its body, shattering the ice armor and leaving a deep wound.

The next moment, a sharp gust of wind almost simultaneously hit, making it feel as if struck by a heavy blow.

Landon had seized the perfect timing, using 【Piercing Gale】 to directly pierce through the Icy Rotted Corpse's body.

But the Icy Rotted Corpse was, after all, an undead creature. Such injuries might significantly affect ordinary races, but to it, they seemed not to matter much.

It channeled magic power, repairing the ice armor on its body, then attacked Lin Mo again.

So troublesome!

Without Sherfilia's help, dealing with Level 4 magical creatures was actually this difficult...

Of course, it was also because this Icy Rotted Corpse before him was stronger than the Bronze Goblin he had encountered in Silvermoon Town.

Even among elite magical creatures, there were differences in strength. Goblins, being lower-tier magical creatures, remained relatively weak even after evolving compared to others of the same tier.

But the Icy Rotted Corpse was clearly among the outstanding ones.

A single Level 4 Professional, whether warrior or mage like Landon, probably couldn't defeat it alone.

This was why threat level definitions were never based on individual Professionals, but rather complete Professional teams led by Professionals of that level.

Even then, it only meant they could fight, not necessarily that they could win.

Especially when the opponent also had minions, and in numbers far exceeding theirs.

Fortunately, Lin Mo had almost single-handedly restrained the Icy Rotted Corpse, so after withstanding the pressure of the fierce assault, the battle situation for the other members of Azure Orchid and Silver Radiance Team was currently quite favorable.

This allowed Lin Mo to be patient and play with it slowly.

【Flame Arrow】!

Flames swirled in Lin Mo's left hand as he shot a mana-amplified Flame Arrow. The Icy Rotted Corpse immediately responded with an 【Ice Arrow】, its movements remarkably fast.

Clearly, it remained somewhat wary of fire-attribute magic.

Moreover, after such prolonged combat, its mana consumption was also considerable.

Especially that ice armor - maintaining it continuously came at no small cost!

If mages could so easily solve their most troublesome defense problems, they would truly be invincible...

Clearly, this required paying a substantial mana cost as the price.

That Icy Rotted Corpse showed obvious slowing in both reaction and movement - the best evidence of this.

Lin Mo wouldn't give it any chance to catch its breath. Gripping the Black Sword, he launched another offensive.

"Blood Qi Blade!"

Facing that layer of ice armor, he still needed to use such powerful skills to pose sufficient threat.

Fortunately, Lin Mo had mainly used magic in previous battles, so his qi and blood were still relatively abundant, allowing him to spend freely.

The Icy Rotted Corpse had already suffered from this move earlier and clearly understood its power well, instinctively trying to dodge. However, its speed was its weakness to begin with, and Lin Mo precisely predicted its dodging direction, directly giving chase.

Thus, the blood-colored energy blade swept across half its body, shattering the hard ice armor. Simultaneously, its other half was struck by Lin Mo's following 【Shadow Strike】, covering the ice armor with cracks.

The powerful impact sent the Icy Rotted Corpse stumbling backward repeatedly, its condition having hit rock bottom.

Landon seized the opportunity, sending a wind-wrapped arrow flying that once again pierced through the Icy Rotted Corpse.

Not allowing it to catch its breath, 【Gale】 followed immediately, sealing off its retreat. Lin Mo then charged in with 【Vanish】, finishing it off with another 【Blood Qi Blade】. This time, without the ice armor's protection, he finally severed its spine.

Even for an undead creature, being directly bisected like this left the Icy Rotted Corpse with no strength for a final counterattack, collapsing to the ground unwillingly.

Lin Mo, quick-eyed and deft-handed, spotted that piece of bone emitting cold light on its chest and immediately cut it off with his Black Sword.

This thing should be the Rotted Corpse's core bone, right?

With the core bone removed, the opponent completely perished. A prompt floated before Lin Mo's eyes.

【Vanish】 proficiency +25

【Blood Qi Blade】 proficiency +25

These 25 proficiency points were truly hard-earned...

Fortunately, it was just enough to level up 【Blood Qi Blade】, so there was some gain at least.

"Skill 【Blood Qi Blade】 Lv3 (40/40) leveled up!"

"Current skill 【Blood Qi Blade】 Lv4 (13/100)"

"Gained attribute points Strength +3!"

Base strength attribute reached 38 points, approaching Level 4 warrior...

The skill 【Blood Qi Blade】 subsequently welcomed its second evolution direction selection.

Please choose evolution direction—

Evolution Route 1: Steadiness I: Blood Qi Blade's "self-damage" effect on the user reduced by 50%, power decreased to 95% of original

Evolution Route 2: Violence I: Blood Qi Blade's "self-damage" effect on the user increased by 50%, power enhanced to 125% of original

Still two directions.

This time, which one should he choose?