Chapter 12: Skill Mutation, The Wanted Scorpion

Skill mutation? Such a fortunate occurrence? Xu Han gazed at the corpse of the Iron-armored Giant Crocodile. If he consumed the entire creature’s meat, surely the Steel Armor skill would mutate. Though his stomach was already about eighty percent full, for the sake of skill mutation, Xu Han cut off another slab of meat and continued grilling.

Soon enough, the second piece of crocodile meat was devoured. Yet, the system prompt failed to sound. Xu Han rubbed his distended stomach, his face contorted with discomfort. Though the odds seemed to have increased tenfold, skill mutation still relied wholly on luck.

“One more piece! If it doesn’t work, I’ll let it go!” Xu Han forced himself to cut another slice, grilling it once more. Before long, the meat was ready, its aroma wafting enticingly. Yet Xu Han had lost all appetite. No matter how tender and delicious the crocodile meat was, when one has overeaten, even the finest delicacies lose their appeal.

Suppressing the urge to vomit, he bit into the first mouthful. No sooner had he swallowed than the system prompt chimed.

“Steel Armor mutating…”

Xu Han was stunned for a moment, then wild joy lit his features. At last, the mutation had begun!

The system prompt sounded again. “Steel Armor successfully mutated into Damage Absorption.”

Xu Han opened his status panel. As expected, Steel Armor had been replaced by Damage Absorption.

Damage Absorption LV.1: Upon activation, absorbs one instance of damage and reflects it fully back to the enemy; lasts for one second, cooldown of five minutes.

A surge of delight filled Xu Han’s heart. The effect of Damage Absorption was far superior to Steel Armor! Not only could it absorb harm, but reflect it in full—if used well, it would be a deadly counterattack skill.

His appetite revived, Xu Han looked upon the crocodile meat with renewed satisfaction. Determined not to waste food, he resolved to finish the piece.

With the second bite, the system prompt sounded again.

“Dragon Scales mutating…”

Xu Han froze. What did that mean? Two mutations in succession? How had his luck suddenly soared?

“Dragon Scales successfully mutated into Dragon Claw.”

Xu Han opened the status panel to review his new skill.

Dragon Claw LV.1: Transform one hand into a dragon’s claw, increasing attack power by 100%, attacks pierce 10% armor, 1% chance to destroy enemy defense; duration of five seconds, cooldown of five minutes.

Xu Han was ecstatic. The original Dragon Scales had only defensive properties, but now, mutated into Dragon Claw, his offensive power had risen sharply. At last, he possessed a formidable attack skill! He quickly finished the remaining crocodile meat. This time, no further skills mutated, but Xu Han was already more than satisfied.

He stood and extinguished the flames, preparing to leave, when suddenly a sharp sound of something slicing through the air came from behind!

Xu Han felt a chill at his back and instinctively dodged to the left.

Whoosh!

A stone grazed his clothing and struck the tree trunk with a dull thud.

“Who’s there?!”

Xu Han spun around, his face darkening, a surge of anger rising within his chest. The stone had been aimed at the back of his head. Had his reaction been a fraction slower, it would have struck his skull and killed him instantly. The assailant was no weakling!

A thin figure emerged slowly from behind a tree.

Xu Han’s brows knitted tightly as he stared at the man. Appearing to be in his thirties or forties, the stranger was lean but his musculature was pronounced. His hair was a tangled mess, his face unshaven, and his clothing tattered, giving him the air of a wild man. On the left side of his face was a centipede-like scar. Whenever his facial muscles shifted, the “centipede” squirmed, lending him a frightening aspect.

“Heh, quick reflexes,” the man said, a sinister smile curling his lips as he spoke languidly.

Xu Han felt unsettled under the man’s gaze. He replied coldly, “Who are you? Why did you attack me?”

The man responded lazily, “So the official investigation bureau’s wanted posters aren’t as widespread as I thought. You really don’t know who I am?”

Xu Han stared at him, and suddenly a familiar face flashed through his mind. Recently, Donghai City had been searching for a beast hunter known as Scorpion. It was rumored he had been a member of the beast hunter guild. During a hunt for a leader-class beast, he had clashed with his teammates over equipment. In the aftermath, not only did he seize the loot, he killed all his companions and even committed unspeakable acts against several female members.

After the incident, Donghai City’s investigation bureau issued an immediate warrant for his capture, sending elite agents to search the advanced training zones. Who would have thought Scorpion would hide in a low-level area like Shadow Marsh?

Xu Han’s brow furrowed. He said coldly, “Scorpion?”

Scorpion sneered, “Hmph, finally recognized me, did you? I’ve been stuck in this forsaken place so long my tongue’s gone numb! Grill some meat for me—if it tastes good, I might spare your life. Otherwise, you die.”

Xu Han quietly activated his Eye of Detection, examining Scorpion’s attributes.

[Name: Song Kui]
[Race: Human]
[Class: C-rank Assassin]
[Level: ???]
[Skills: ???]
[Weakness: Hidden injury on his back]

Xu Han gained a rough understanding. Though the level was obscured, he recalled that Scorpion was a third-tier professional, meaning his level was at least sixty or above. With each tier, attributes increased dramatically. The gap between tiers was nearly insurmountable; two tiers apart, there was no contest—even a third-tier professional fighting with one hand could easily crush a first-tier.

Yet there was good news: he had learned Scorpion’s weakness. If he could exploit it, there was still a chance for victory!

Seeing Xu Han silent, Scorpion’s expression grew impatient. He glared, toying with a dagger in his hand. “You have three seconds. Refuse, and you’re as good as dead.”

“Three!”

“Two!”

“One!”

As soon as he finished, the dagger in his hand flew toward Xu Han.

In an instant, the dagger was before him. Just as it was about to strike, Xu Han raised his hand and a pitch-black vortex appeared, Damage Absorption in action!

The dagger vanished into the vortex.

Scorpion was stunned. This scene was beyond his comprehension.

The next moment, the dagger shot out of the vortex, aimed directly at Scorpion!

Whoosh!

With a piercing sound, the dagger sped toward him. Scorpion’s eyes narrowed; he tilted his head just in time to evade it. Yet the razor-sharp wind sliced his face, blood trickling down to stain his features.

Instead of anger, Scorpion’s face lit with excitement. “Looks like you’ve got some impressive equipment! I want it!”

With a flash, he lunged at Xu Han, intent on killing.