Demon Cultivator in Abyssal Era

Chapter 53: Chapter 53: Qi Concealing Technique

As the giant creature fell, Chu Xiu’s vision was suddenly filled with a barrage of notifications!

This made him exhale a long breath of relief.

Before he could fully process it, a surge of immense power flowed into his body!

This Warrior Tier elite, under the 100% experience gain bonus, directly leveled him up!

[Name]Chu Xiu

[Tier]Mortal Tier Level 8 (714/1600)

[Constitution]20.27

[Spirit]10.24

[Energy Level]31.74

[Others]Omitted

All attributes increased again, with a large overflow of experience! He was now just over halfway to the next level!

At the same time, new inheritances continued to unlock as expected.

[Qi Concealing Technique]

[Tier: Mortal]

[Quality: Superior]

[Description: Mobilizes mana within the body, obstructs others’ investigation, and reduces one’s presence.]

[Evaluation: Once mastered, it can operate automatically according to the user’s intent.

[When actively used, both detection interference and concealment abilities are greatly enhanced.

[As a sly and cunning demon cultivator, how could one not know stealing, assassination, and the art of hiding in plain sight?]

”A secret technique for hiding, is it?”

Chu Xiu thoughtfully touched his chin.

This secret technique could be said to be extremely important.

The ability to conceal significantly increased his safety margin and decision-making flexibility in future explorations.

It made operations like sneaking into monster camps for reconnaissance or suddenly appearing to claim glory after others fought the monsters to death possible.

And the ability to hide one’s strength, in some sense, is even more important than the former.

Whether his talent or profession is too astonishingly remarkable, once exposed, it would be like a Tang Monk mistakenly entering a demon cave, bound to be devoured alive sooner or later!

In this world, there are no laws strong enough to restrain, especially for those high-level Awakened ones.

When you think about it, the cost of maintaining social order far exceeds the cost of crime!

Take the country Chu Xiu lived in his previous life as an example, with a police force of over two million, there were still about thirty thousand criminal cases every year.

And this is with the police having an overwhelming advantage in equipment, creating only a relatively safe environment for the people because of such a huge disparity.

If we focus on a neighboring major power where police equipment suppression isn’t as exaggerated, we’ll find that, with nearly a million police officers, just in 2023 alone, 42,000 people died due to gun violence! Since 2014, the number of deaths from gun violence each year has exceeded 39,000!

And high-level Awakened ones are equivalent to individuals possessing the most advanced tanks and fighters. Imagine the cost it takes to capture an Awakened who can move at the speed of sound!

If capturing them leads to a massive fight in a densely populated area, it would be a horrific disaster!

Under such circumstances, if the government doesn’t allow any gray area buffer, the entire society’s order would collapse!

The Abyss is just such a gray area.

The Abyss is not bound by law, and it is the place to resolve all grievances, disputes, and benefits.

”In the Abyss, all sorts of peculiar and strange artifacts exist, calling it a miraculous wishing pool would not be an exaggeration; you can think of it, and it can achieve it.”

”Among them, there are even artifacts that can plunder talents and professions!”

”Although professions and talents degrade by 2 to 3 levels after being stripped, even a perfect A-level refinement is enough for countless high-level Awakened ones to fight over!”

”My profession and talent must not be exposed!”

Although occupations with investigative skills are very rare, upon returning to Blue Star, it would easily attract probing attention.

So, with almost no hesitation, Chu Xiu directly invested a large number of Cause and Effect Points into the Qi Concealing Technique!

[Spent 47 Cause and Effect Points, Qi Concealing Technique Skill Level increased to Entry Level!]

[Spent 132 Cause and Effect Points, Qi Concealing Technique Skill Level increased to Skilled!]

[Spent 501 Cause and Effect Points, Qi Concealing Technique Skill Level increased to Minor Mastery!]

The Qi Concealing Technique’s consumption was slightly higher than Mist Step, spending nearly seven hundred Cause and Effect Points to elevate it to Minor Mastery.

In one fell swoop, he consumed more than half of the Cause and Effect Points he just acquired, leaving him with only 420 Cause and Effect Points now.

However, these investments were all worth it.

As Chu Xiu focused his mind, he felt as if he had transformed into a rock; the sound of breathing, heartbeat, and blood flow were all mysteriously suppressed, greatly minimized. Visually, he seemed to blend in with the environment, making him hard to spot without careful observation.

This skill is not only extremely useful for ambushes and evasion but can also aid in direct battles! It allows Chu Xiu’s movements to become even more ghostly and elusive!

Moreover, the energy consumption is very low, requiring barely a bit over 1 Energy Level per minute.

The automatic operation further reduces energy consumption, nearly approaching zero.

As for concealing his strength, his current Qi Concealing Technique can block most Same Tier Investigation Skills, and when actively used, even Warrior Tier Awakened individuals cannot see through it!

With the automatic operation of Qi Concealing Technique, Chu Xiu adjusted his aura to Level 6.

”Whew!”

Exhaling deeply, he felt his inner sense of security increase slightly.

”Once I gain the power to crush everyone, there will be no need for this hiding act anymore. It’s time to expedite my upgrade.”

Shaking his head, Chu Xiu stopped pondering too much and continued to check his other gains.

Two pieces of equipment exploded; although the armor was of Collection Quality, it was far inferior to the +7 Heavy Energy Absorption Armor. Chu Xiu decided to sell it.

As for the ring, it was quite good; after wearing it, it could increase +1.0 Energy Recovery per hour and +25.0 Energy Reserve.

Equipping this quickly doubled Chu Xiu’s energy, greatly enhancing his combat durability, truly befitting Collection Quality equipment!

As for the last Frenzy Hormone, like the skill used by the Warrior Tier Corpse Demon, it can greatly enhance physical abilities for a short period, becoming more like a Berserker, although the effect will gradually weaken within 10 seconds, afterward entering a weakened state, serving as a desperate gambit.

What surprised Chu Xiu the most was...

”A trait actually exploded!”

Traits are essentially a weakened version of talents, generally one to three levels lower than the similarly named talents.

However, even so, they are quite precious! After all, even a D-level talent can provide substantial assistance! Consider Wang Long’s Power Burst, capable of tripling power in a short period! This is even more impressive than the Warrior Tier Corpse Demon’s Frenzy Skill! And it has no side effects!

Of course, absorbing traits is not without limitations.

Otherwise, if one were to absorb hundreds of traits, even if each is slightly lacking, the combination would be astounding, able to make even a pig comparable to an SSS-level genius!

The most significant issue with traits is the unavoidable occurrence of [Alienation].

Alienation is highly random and uncertain; although theoretically, beneficial alienation could occur, most alienations are negative buffs, with some even leading to instantaneous death due to adverse reactions!

Besides physical rejection, there’s rejection between different [Traits].

Meaning, the more [Traits] integrated, the higher the likelihood of larger, more uncontrollable [Alienation].

Thus, the key to determining a [Trait]’s value, besides level, is primarily the stability of [Alienation].

Typically, common [Traits] like Power Burst, Life Recovery, Endurance Enhancement, etc., have the highest alienation stability.

Next, consider whether they are of the same race, related to the same profession, or if there is fusion of big data, etc.

For instance, the most common trait [Power Enhancement (E)], has an average alienation deviation rate of just 0.0037%, with big data indicating an alienation rate around 5.7%, mostly resulting in negligible side effects, making it a very stable trait.

However, if a human insists on integrating traits like [Multiple Eye Balls] or [Regenerating Tentacles], the alienation rate will definitely skyrocket.

Finally, there’s a rare occurrence where one obtains an upgradable trait.

This type of trait may initially have poor fusion, but each upgrade allows it to better adapt to the absorber’s body, eventually becoming indistinguishable from talents.

However, such traits are extremely rare and each one is invaluable.

Chu Xiu lowered his head to inspect the trait he had in hand.

[Tough Skin]

[Tier: C]

[Attributes: Skin Protection +3.6, Insulation Effectiveness, Acid Resistance, and Shock Absorption all greatly enhanced]

[Alienation Deviation Rate: 0.15%]

The effect is indeed impressive, directly obtaining 3.6 points of protection. What appeals most to Chu Xiu are the various resistances, enhancing his capability to face different monsters.

His Heavy Bone Armor provides high defense, but its heat insulation and corrosion resistance are somewhat lacking; it can withstand bullets but would be carbonized by a flamethrower.

However...

Looking at the 0.15% alienation deviation rate below, Chu Xiu rubbed his chin.

It’s already quite high.

There’s at least a 30% chance of alienation occurring.

However, given that it seems to be a common trait, the alienation side effects should not be severe.

Without much thought, Chu Xiu activated his mind, and the trait began to fuse.

As an Awakened, who hasn’t experienced some alienation?

I won’t be human anymore!