Kane leaned against the ice-cold rock wall, his chest heaving with violent tremors.
It wasn't the exhaustion of overexertion.
It was an extreme, primal exhilaration originating from the depths of his soul!
He forcibly suppressed his surging thoughts and commanded himself to calm down.
His brain, acting like a high-precision instrument, began to whirl—dissecting, analyzing, and reassembling everything that had just occurred.
Soon, three conclusions capable of subverting all his past knowledge surfaced clearly in his mind.
First.
The unlocking mechanism of The Five-Star Soul Seal.
He spread his right hand open, his gaze locking onto the dark red pentagram mark on his palm.
One green pinpoint of light.
One blue pinpoint of light.
They occupied two separate points of the five-pointed star like celestial bodies in the night sky—distinct, yet resonating with each other.
"So that’s how it is..."
Kane whispered to himself.
The five points of The Five-Star Soul Seal corresponded to five skill slots that could carry abilities.
And the condition for unlocking a slot was not, as he had previously thought, the total number of skills acquired.
It was... the highest quality of the skills he obtained!
[ Phase Burrow ] was Green-rank; it had unlocked the first slot for him.
The recently acquired [ Shadow Veil ] was Blue-rank; thus, it naturally lit up the second star and unlocked the second slot!
By that logic...
If he wanted to unlock the third slot, he had to acquire an Orange-rank skill!
To light them all up, he would need to collect one skill of each quality: Green, Blue, Orange, Red, and Gold!
That was the first and most fundamental rule.
Then came the second.
A rule so heaven-defying it made his breath hitch—Skill Fusion!
Once he possessed two or more skill slots, he could attempt to freely combine his existing low-level skills.
As long as the internal logic of the combination was self-consistent, they could fuse into an entirely new, higher-level skill!
Just like [ Phase Burrow ] and [ Aerial Step ] both related to "spatial displacement," they fused into the Blue-rank [ Earth Flash ].
Just like [ Aero Blade ] and [ Aerial Step ] both related to the manipulation of "wind," they fused into the equally Blue-rank [ Vortex Slash ].
"Two Green-rank skills... can fuse into one Blue-rank skill..."
Kane’s eyes instantly became incredibly scorching.
A mad thought sprouted uncontrollably in his heart, spreading like wildfire.
Then...
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If he possessed two Blue-rank skills, could he fuse them into a higher-tier Orange skill?
What if he had two Orange skills?
Did that mean...
Kane didn't dare think further.
He felt as though his heart was about to leap out of his chest!
This led to the third, and most bone-chilling ultimate inference.
Chapter 55: The Path of a God! Hunting Time!
Kane leaned against the ice-cold rock wall, his chest heaving with violent tremors.
It wasn't the exhaustion of overexertion.
It was an extreme, primal exhilaration originating from the depths of his soul!
He forcibly suppressed his surging thoughts and commanded himself to calm down.
His brain, acting like a high-precision instrument, began to whirl—dissecting, analyzing, and reassembling everything that had just occurred.
Soon, three conclusions capable of subverting all his past knowledge surfaced clearly in his mind.
First.
The unlocking mechanism of The Five-Star Soul Seal.
He spread his right hand open, his gaze locking onto the dark red pentagram mark on his palm.
One green pinpoint of light.
One blue pinpoint of light.
They occupied two separate points of the five-pointed star like celestial bodies in the night sky—distinct, yet resonating with each other.
"So that’s how it is..."
Kane whispered to himself.
The five points of The Five-Star Soul Seal corresponded to five skill slots that could carry abilities.
And the condition for unlocking a slot was not, as he had previously thought, the total number of skills acquired.
It was... the highest quality of the skills he obtained!
[ Phase Burrow ] was Green-rank; it had unlocked the first slot for him.
The recently acquired [ Shadow Veil ] was Blue-rank; thus, it naturally lit up the second star and unlocked the second slot!
By that logic...
If he wanted to unlock the third slot, he had to acquire an Orange-rank skill!
To light them all up, he would need to collect one skill of each quality: Green, Blue, Orange, Red, and Gold!
That was the first and most fundamental rule.
Then came the second.
A rule so heaven-defying it made his breath hitch—Skill Fusion!
Once he possessed two or more skill slots, he could attempt to freely combine his existing low-level skills.
As long as the internal logic of the combination was self-consistent, they could fuse into an entirely new, higher-level skill!
Just like [ Phase Burrow ] and [ Aerial Step ] both related to "spatial displacement," they fused into the Blue-rank [ Earth Flash ].
Just like [ Aero Blade ] and [ Aerial Step ] both related to the manipulation of "wind," they fused into the equally Blue-rank [ Vortex Slash ].
"Two Green-rank skills... can fuse into one Blue-rank skill..."
Kane’s eyes instantly became incredibly scorching.
A mad thought sprouted uncontrollably in his heart, spreading like wildfire.
Then...
If he possessed two Blue-rank skills, could he fuse them into a higher-tier Orange skill?
What if he had two Orange skills?
Did that mean...
Kane didn't dare think further.
He felt as though his heart was about to leap out of his chest!
This led to the third, and most bone-chilling ultimate inference.
If all five slots were eventually unlocked.
If he possessed five skills that he could freely manipulate.
Did that mean he could perform ultimate combinations of three skills, four skills, or even… all five?
Just what kind of world-shattering existence would that new capability be?!
At the mere thought, even with Kane’s ice-cold temperament, he couldn't stop his entire body from trembling.
Blood surged through his veins, roaring like a tsunami.
This was no longer just a simple ability to plunder.
This was a… path to godhood!
A road with infinite growth potential, one that could turn every impossibility into a reality!
What he possessed wasn't just a simple "cheat code" or a tool for stealing powers.
It was a complete system… with limitless creative possibilities!
"Kid… you…"
Crag’s voice finally pulled Kane back from the ecstasy that had nearly swallowed his reason.
He stared at Kane, his gaze complicated to the extreme. He wanted to ask something, but he didn't even know where to begin.
Those inconceivable sights had utterly crushed his understanding of the world.
Kane slowly turned his head.
Under the shadow of his hood, his black eyes were startlingly bright, as if stars were burning within them.
"Crag."
His voice returned to its usual calm, but beneath that stillness lay a sharpness capable of chilling anyone to the bone.
"Do you remember 'Hammer' Greg?"
"The one… whose entire skeleton was reinforced."
Crag nodded subconsiously.
That name represented the strongest combat power under Commander Andrew Zoe—a mountain weighing down on the hearts of every resistance fighter in Blackrock Town.
The corner of Kane’s mouth curled into a cold, cruel arc.
"Before, I came to the Darkwind Mountains to find an invisibility ability to assassinate him."
He paused, lifting his hands as if admiring a perfect work of art.
"But now…"
"I don't need to 'assassinate' anymore."
An assassination was a life-or-death gamble initiated by the weak against the strong.
And he was no longer weak.
Kane reached into his coat and pulled out the map he had bought from the broker, Booker.
He slowly unfurled the map in front of Crag.
With eyes burning like sparks, he precisely locked onto the marker in the center of the Silicon Desert—the abandoned Military Base C-13.
His fingertip pressed heavily onto Greg's location.
His voice wasn't loud, yet it was like a poisoned icicle piercing through the whistling cold wind of the cave.
"Greg."
"Are you ready for a surprise?"
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