Chapter 571 - Taboo
Both the Tier 3 Illusionist and the Tier 4 Black Wizard were NPCs at the very top of White River City.
With both of these great characters going out of their way to come here, one could see just how much importance the Adventurer’s a.s.sociation was placing on Anna.
“Who’s the one who achieved an SSS-rank?” the Black Wizard Glynne asked.
“a.s.sociation Master, Miss Anna has earned that rank,” the test officer hurriedly said.
Glynne’s glowing green eyes immediately began to size up Anna, who stood behind s.h.i.+ Feng. Although Glynne’s actions held no ill intent, s.h.i.+ Feng could still feel an immense pressure from his gaze, his movements growing sluggish as a result.
If s.h.i.+ Feng, a Tier 1 player, reacted in such a way, the pressure that an NPC, who had yet to become an Adventurer, felt would be even greater.
Yet, Anna showed no reaction as if she had not felt the pressure from Glynne at all.
“Sure enough, your concentration is extraordinary,” the Black Wizard Glynne laughed, satisfied. “We haven’t had a talent in White River City for many years now. I didn’t think that the next one would be so extraordinary. Irene, I’ll leave this little lady in your care. You are the strongest Summoner in our White River City’s Adventurer’s a.s.sociation. If you fail to guide her properly, I will find you.”
“a.s.sociation Master, please rest a.s.sured. I will nurture Anna with every resource I have,” the Tier 3 Illusionist Irene said, chuckling.
“Alright, show this little lady around the a.s.sociation and familiarize her with the place for now.” Glynne nodded as he caressed his white beard. He then looked at s.h.i.+ Feng, saying, “You must be the brat who recommended the little lady, right?”
s.h.i.+ Feng nodded silently.
The high-tiered NPCs of G.o.d’s Domain all possessed extremely high intelligence. As for Glynne, the a.s.sociation Master of an Adventurer’s a.s.sociation, he possessed intelligence that far surpa.s.sed even ordinary humans. Moreover, he also wielded immense authority in White River City. A single word for him could end s.h.i.+ Feng’s career here.
Hence, before such an NPC, s.h.i.+ Feng had to maintain a certain degree of humility.
If he dared to act conceited in front of an NPC like Glynne, he would suffer for it. In the past, only after countless players had gone down that route had they understood the importance of propriety.
“Since you have introduced such a genius to White River City, as the a.s.sociation Master of White River City’s Adventurer’s a.s.sociation, I will not be stingy with you. Since you are a Tier 1 Swordsman, this item should suit you. If you can master it, you will face fewer hards.h.i.+ps on the road ahead,” Glynne said as he took out a gray book surrounded by an ancient aura.
The word “Taboo” graced the bottom-right corner of this old, gray book.
“Taboo Skill!” s.h.i.+ Feng was stunned.
There were many Skills in G.o.d’s Domain. However, a majority of them were ordinary Skills; their might was only subpar, and they could not increase a player’s combat power significantly. Only those rare Skills could impact a player’s combat power.
For example, the Skills s.h.i.+ Feng had learned such as Thundering Flash and Thunder Flame Explosion were rare Skills. These Skills allowed a player to fight an enemy that was slightly stronger than they were.
Meanwhile, sure-kill Skills were stronger than rare Skills. These Skills had the ability to instant-kill players of the same Level, changing the tide of battle. One such Skill was s.h.i.+ Feng’s Flame Burst.
However, there was an even more powerful type of Skill that could allow players to threaten enemies that were stronger than themselves.
This type of Skill was known as a Taboo Skill.
The gray book Glynne had just revealed was a Skill Book for a Taboo Skill. A Taboo Skill even allowed players to challenge enemies of a higher tier.
The instant s.h.i.+ Feng received the gray book, he inspected it.
[Instant Strike] (Tier 2 Taboo Skill)
Utilizing the power of thunder, instantly move in front of the target. For the next 3 seconds, Attack Speed increased by 500%, and each attack will deal 400% damage to the target and inflict the Serious Numbness effect. Instantly kill targets below 20% HP.
Cooldown: 1 hour
Cla.s.s Restriction: Swordsman
Isn’t he a little too generous? He actually gave me a Tier 2 Taboo Skill. s.h.i.+ Feng was slightly surprised after reading the item description.
Taboo Skills were different from other Skills. They did not require Proficiency to upgrade, and players of any Level could learn them. Only, one needed to fulfill certain conditions before they could learn them. Taboo Skills were also categorized into different Tiers.
Tier 1 Taboo Skills were the most common, and only players who were Tier 1 or higher could display their maximum potential. The effects of a Tier 1 Taboo Skill could rival even an ordinary Tier 2 Skill.
Tier 2 Taboo Skills were slightly rarer, and only when players obtained their Tier 2 cla.s.ses could they fully display the Skill’s might. Their effects could rival a Tier 3 Skill.
Tier 3 Taboo Skills were extremely rare, and only a few players would actually get the chance to learn such a Skill. However, any Tier 3 players who learned such a Skill would struggle to find a worthy opponent among players of the same Tier because a Tier 3 Taboo Skill was just as strong as a Tier 4 Skill. Even a Tier 4 player would lose over half of their HP, not to mention Tier 3 players.
As for Tier 4 Taboo Skills, their rarity could rival even Legendary items.
Tier 5 Taboo Skills were little more than legend. If a Tier 5 player grasped such a Skill, they could even pose some threat to a Tier 6 G.o.d-ranked player. Hence, one could just imagine the rarity of a Tier 5 Taboo Skill.
Based on s.h.i.+ Feng’s knowledge, there had only been a single person who had learned a Tier 5 Taboo Skill throughout the entire G.o.d’s Domain in the past. Back then, that person had become the most powerful player below Tier 6 G.o.d-ranked players as there was no Tier 5 player capable of defending against that person’s Tier 5 Taboo Skill. In addition, that person’s skills and equipment were top notch in G.o.d’s Domain. Hence, he had been publicly acknowledged as the number one player beneath Tier 6.
Currently, players’ average Level was only slightly over Level 20. The majority of players in G.o.d’s Domain had not even obtained their Tier 1 cla.s.ses yet.
Meanwhile, s.h.i.+ Feng had obtained a Tier 2 Taboo Skill.
Even if he did not possess any Level or equipment advantages, with this Tier 2 Taboo Skill, it was still possible for him to instant-kill any enemies that were Tier 2 or below. Even if he couldn’t kill them instantly, he could still inflict heavy damage. If he factored in his Level and equipment advantages, as long as he managed to grasp this Taboo Skill, he would stand at the very peak of all Tier 2 cla.s.ses. It was the same even if he stood against an NPC.
Of course, G.o.d’s Domain was fair. If one wished to obtain great power, they first needed to pay the appropriate price.
Although Taboo Skills could increase a player’s strength, the learning processes of Taboo Skills and ordinary Skills were different. Taboo Skills could not be learned by the click of a b.u.t.ton.
One needed to train with a Taboo Skill.
That’s right; they needed to train.
Players were required to learn the movements recorded in the Skill Book, and at the same time, fulfill the book’s learning requirements. Most importantly, one needed to achieve a Completion Rate of 90% or above to learn the Taboo Skill.
Moreover, the higher a Taboo Skill’s Tier was, the more difficult it would be to learn it. Some Taboo Skills were so difficult that even expert players could not learn them.
Hence, many players who had obtained Taboo Skills had complained about this in the past. However, there were even more players who gloated over their misfortune.
So what if you were lucky?
Even if you obtained a Tier 6 Taboo Skill, what would it matter if you couldn’t learn it?
Due to this, Taboo Skills had become many players’ heartache. In the past, many players had no choice but to trade with others for a lower tiered Taboo Skill after obtaining a high-tiered Taboo Skill. After all, there was no point to owning a high-tiered Taboo Skill if one could not learn it.
Fortunately, it is only a Tier 2 Taboo Skill. If it were a Tier 3 Taboo Skill, I would have no choice but to treat this thing as a decoration. s.h.i.+ Feng was very satisfied with the Taboo Skill Instant Strike. As long as I learn this, I will have a much easier time when I go to the Dark Den.
In the past, the most powerful Taboo Skill s.h.i.+ Feng had learned was a Tier 3 Taboo Skill. However, the price and time required for learning one were simply too high. The conditions were not something players at his current Level could meet.
However, even a Tier 2 Taboo Skill was extremely difficult for current players to learn.
Other than the fact that only Tier 2 cla.s.ses or above were capable of displaying the full potential of a Tier 2 Taboo Skill, Tier 2 Taboo Skills were labeled as Tier 2 because Tier 2 or higher players had a much easier time learning them.
In the past, many Tier 3 players had only managed to learn a Tier 2 Taboo Skill after a lot of struggle. One could just imagine how difficult it was to grasp a Taboo Skill.
Soon, s.h.i.+ Feng left the Adventurer’s a.s.sociation.
Currently, Anna was still a cla.s.sless NPC. She would have to spend the next week building her foundations to become an Adventurer. Naturally, s.h.i.+ Feng would not wait inside the Adventurer’s a.s.sociation for an entire week.
First and foremost, he needed to learn the Taboo Skill Instant Strike.
After s.h.i.+ Feng returned to the Candlelight Trading Firm, without hesitation, he entered a private lounge and began studying the Skill Book.
“I wonder what the conditions are? Hopefully, they won’t be too harsh.”