Wizard starting from shoeing donkeys

Chapter 522: Chapter 231: It Really Wasn’t Me (Two-in-One Mega Chapter)_3

At the next moment, having finished absorbing, the strange phenomenon vanished into the night!

Looking around the entire underground hall, it once again returned to its previous state, slightly damp, with the smell of blood and decay lingering.

[Ding! 1 Talent Point has been transformed. Please select a talent to upgrade: ‘Primary Weapon Mastery (Passive),’ ‘Primary Extraordinary Understanding (Passive),’ or ‘Primary Steel Body (Passive).’]

(Note: Upgrading the talent ‘Intermediate Giant Force (Active)’ requires two Talent Points, and you currently lack sufficient points to do so.)

As he saw the system prompt, Rein quickly understood that his first three talents with the ‘Primary’ prefix were of one rank, while ‘Intermediate Giant Force (Active)’ was a higher-tier talent.

Since the ‘Intermediate Giant Force (Active)’ talent couldn’t be upgraded, which of the remaining three talents should he choose?

Rein couldn’t help but fall into contemplation.

‘Primary Extraordinary Understanding (Passive)’ was immediately ruled out by Rein, as it wasn’t an immediate combat-oriented talent.

This talent increases the speed at which one masters Extraordinary Battle Techniques.

However, for later advancement in Extraordinary Battle Techniques, Rein generally increased his capability through adding Skill Points directly.

Because generally speaking, even with ‘Primary Extraordinary Understanding’ shortening the time by almost a third, advancement still required a considerably long time past skill level 7.

As for ‘Primary Weapon Mastery (Passive)’ and ‘Primary Steel Body (Passive),’ both could be categorized as immediate combat-oriented talents.

Each had clear characteristics, one leaning towards offense, the other towards defense.

After a brief consideration, Rein decided to choose the defensive upgrade!

“After experiencing this incident, if it weren’t for that ‘Heavenly Hammer’ at the end, facing the Great Knight who had surpassed Peak Knights and advanced to the next level, the Dark Flame High Priest, the battle would have been exceedingly difficult for me,”

“but with stronger defensive power, my margin for error naturally would be a bit higher.”

Having made up his mind, Rein silently willed to add a point to ‘Primary Steel Body (Passive).”

Instantly, a surge of warm energy flowed over his skin, and Rein extended his hands, looking down to see his palms and the back of his hands suddenly shimmering with a metallic, silver-gray glow.

This glow, resembling quicksilver, flowed over the surface of his body, flickering on and off.

After a few seconds, the glow receded, and Rein’s skin returned to its original hue.

At that moment, a system prompt appeared:

[Congratulations, your Talent ‘Primary Steel Body (Passive)’ has been upgraded to ‘Intermediate Steel Body (Passive)’!]

Seeing the newly advanced second-tier talent on his attribute panel, Rein couldn’t help but reveal a bright smile.

Just as Rein was about to inspect it further, suddenly, he heard a series of hurried rustling footsteps coming from the opening above!

Rein turned his head to look and saw a team descending from above, among whom were Rudolph, the familiar head of the Goddess Church, and a small group of elite Holy Knights.

However, Rein found it peculiar that Rudolph and the others were slightly behind, while two unfamiliar, firmly stepping men led the group.

The party moved forward hesitantly, weapons in hand, pausing in shock when they caught sight of the current state of the underground hall!

The cavernous underground hall was now almost akin to a butcher’s floor.

The stench of blood and the rank odor of decaying bodies assailed their senses!

Especially at the center of the hall, the pile of numerous corpses stacked like a small hill and the nearby several meters tall corpulent high priest’s corpse were particularly eye-catching!

Of course, even more striking at the moment was Rein, holding a war bow and wearing a party suit.

Everyone instinctively aimed their weapons at Rein until Rudolph seemed to recognize him and cautiously uttered, “Rein?”

Rein smiled and nodded, responding, “Head Rudolph, thank you for coming to the rescue!”

Relieved upon hearing Rein speak human words, Rudolph breathed a sigh of relief, “Rein, you’re unharmed, that’s great!”

The two unfamiliar men looked at the young man before them with a hint of surprise.

They had not expected that under such circumstances, this young man would have survived.

Great Knight?

At his age, it was a commendable strength, yet it still seemed insufficient to have withstood even a sliver of the Evil God’s projection.

The younger man, holding a short staff, stopped Rudolph, who seemed about to step forward, saying, “I need to perform the Soul Appraisal Technique.”

“Are you worried…” Rudolph immediately grasped the implication.

Thus, he turned to look sternly at Rein, “Rein, as a precaution, these two gentlemen from the Empire’s Sword Bearers must perform the Soul Appraisal Technique on you.”

“The Soul Appraisal Technique does no harm, it merely serves to assess any changes in one’s spiritual radiance.”

Rein, upon hearing this, came to a realization.

Were they concerned that he was being controlled or possessed by the great being worshipped by the Black Flame Cult?

“Of course, go ahead!” said Rein without hesitation.

Additionally, hearing that these two men belonged to the organization of the Empire’s Sword Bearers, Rein took another careful look at them.

The two men, one with a shield and imposing stature, the other comparatively leaner, wielding the short staff, who was about to conduct the Soul Appraisal Technique on him.

With Rein’s forthright agreement, the group visibly relaxed.

As the man with the short staff softly recited an incantation, soon a tiny serpentine stream of energy appeared in front of his staff, as if conjured from thin air.