Wizard: My career panel has no upper limit

Chapter 196 "The Third Hand"

The black giant's fist was as powerful as a mountain; ordinary defense was like paper in the face of such power.

Fortunately, Ron's fluid barrier was not an ordinary defensive measure.

It forms a special buffer structure under the force of the giant's punch, dispersing most of the impact in all directions.

Even so, Ron felt a sharp pain in his chest and was thrown back several meters uncontrollably, nearly crashing into a stone pillar.

However, this level of attack, though powerful, was still within his expectations.

"Owner!"

"Dale cried out in alarm, and water elements rapidly gathered at her fingertips, preparing to launch an attack."

Her large, violet-blue eyes were filled with worry and anger, and her small body trembled slightly with the power that was about to be released.

"Don't worry, Dale."

Ron's voice was unexpectedly calm as he ran his fingers over the stand-in puppet at his waist. "I still have a secret weapon I haven't brought out yet."

"It's time to test your strength."

A portion of consciousness was slowly infused into the substitute puppet.

With the infusion of a large amount of magic, the inconspicuous little wooden puppet immediately reacted.

It expanded rapidly, growing to the size of a human in just a few seconds.

Ron could feel a portion of his consciousness diverting into the puppet, creating a peculiar dual perception.

It can sense its own physical state and also perceive its surrounding environment through the puppet.

The black giant seemed to sense some kind of threat, and its originally calm posture became alert, its dark blue eyes fixed on the deforming puppet.

Under Ron's mental manipulation, the puppet's appearance began to change.

Countless tiny scales emerged on the smooth surface, shimmering with a metallic sheen like snakeskin; this was a characteristic of the snake demon that had been fused with previously.
The limbs became thick and powerful, with clearly visible muscle contours, demonstrating the strength of the lion scorpion;

A powerful tail grows from its back, with a venomous stinger at the end that gleams with a pale purple light.

Ron could sense that some of the instinctive memories of the snake demon and the lion scorpion were circulating in the puppet's "consciousness".

Those combat skills and body control experience all became resources he could draw upon.

But the puppet itself has no independent will; it is like a highly sophisticated tool, completely controlled by Ron's will.

"Dair, step back a little."

Ron gave the order, while simultaneously controlling the Stand puppet to assume a fighting stance via the mental link.

Without any hesitation, the black giant raised his hand and delivered a powerful straight punch, aiming directly at the head of the stand-in puppet.

The punch was so powerful that it cleaved through the air, producing a piercing whistling sound.

Ron didn't have the puppet dodge; instead, he commanded it to raise one arm and meet the giant's fist head-on.

This choice stemmed from his precise calculations of the puppet's abilities.

From previous experiments, he had determined that the puppet had a special ability to absorb abyssal matter.

"boom!"

The two forces collided, producing a deafening thud.

The shockwave spread outwards from the two points, sending pebbles flying several inches into the air.

To Dale's astonishment, the substitute puppet was not only not repelled by the enormous force, but the black giant's fists were crackling loudly.

The moment the two fists made contact, it was as if the giant's fist had struck some kind of extremely unstable substance.

After a strange ripple appeared, it began to disintegrate as if it were being corroded.

Black matter peeled off the giant's fist, dripping down like ink.

However, these substances did not scatter on the ground; instead, they were directly absorbed by the puppet's skin.

"Just as I predicted!"

A flicker of excitement crossed Ron's eyes.

This ability to absorb abyssal energy is one of the most valuable characteristics of the stand-in puppet, and the absorption effect is far more significant than he imagined.

At the same time, through his connection with the puppet, he sensed a strange flow of energy.

The absorbed abyssal energy was not completely assimilated into the puppet's body, but was filtered in a special way, retaining only the useful parts.

This process is so similar to his "furnace concept"!
The black giant seemed to realize the danger as well, and immediately withdrew his damaged right fist, while his left hand transformed into a sharp blade, sweeping towards the waist of the substitute puppet.

Ron uses a mental link to command his stand-in puppet to dodge.

The puppet's movements combined the incredible flexibility of the serpent demon with the explosive power of the lion scorpion, easily dodging the sweeping attack.

While dodging, he used his scorpion tail to thrust forward, aiming straight for the giant's chest.

The poisonous stinger pierced the black giant's chest, immediately triggering a series of energy reactions.

The black giant's body rippled like a boulder thrown into a lake.

The originally stable black matter began to shake and separate irregularly.

"Continue the attack!"

With a thought, Ron's puppet immediately launched a fierce and relentless attack.

Under Ron's control, the puppet displayed amazing combat skills:
The right fist aimed straight for the giant's weak spot, the left leg swept across to trip him, and the scorpion tail followed like a shadow, aiming for vital points.

Every attack was incredibly precise, with no wasted energy, perfectly combining the serpent demon's pinpoint accuracy with the lion scorpion's ferocious power. What pleased Ron most was that whenever the puppet made contact with the black giant, a portion of the black energy was absorbed.

As a result, the giants grew weaker and weaker, while the puppets grew stronger and stronger.

"Boom!"

Another powerful punch landed, the puppet's right fist slamming into the black giant's abdomen like a cannonball, producing a dull thud.

The black giant staggered backward, a huge hole appearing between his chest and abdomen, from which black energy continuously overflowed.

Ron did not hesitate to manipulate the puppet to follow.

His left leg swept out, striking the black giant precisely at the knee.

"Crack!"

Despite being a body made of energy, it emitted a cracking sound similar to bones breaking.

The black giant's right leg bent at an incredible angle, causing his entire body to lose balance and tilt to one side.

Seizing the moment, he manipulated the puppet using both hands through a mental link.

— With the ferocity of a lion tearing apart its prey, it viciously clawed at the sides of the black giant's head.

The claws sank directly into the black giant's head, then suddenly pulled it outwards...

"Crack...bang!"

The black giant's head exploded like fireworks, turning into countless black fragments that drifted into the air.

"Master is amazing!"

Dale jumped up in surprise, all her previous worries vanishing.

Ron did not bask in this brief victory.

He noticed that although the black giant had lost its head, its body was still stubbornly regenerating, trying to continue fighting.

This regenerative ability is one of the terrifying aspects of abyssal creatures.

But what surprised him even more was the reaction of the puppet on his waist.

After absorbing a large amount of black energy, its body spontaneously grew a third arm!
This newborn arm extends from the right scapula and has a completely different structure from the original arm.

Its entire body is covered with dark purple scales, and its fingertips are sharp as claws, emitting a ghostly blue light.

“This is… the puppet adapting to and integrating the newly absorbed energy.” A sense of amazement welled up in Ron’s heart.

He quickly adjusted his tactics, directing his third arm to extend forward, pierce through the black giant's chest, and directly grasp the glowing core.

That is the energy center of the Shadow Nightmare Hunter after its fusion.

With the core in his grasp, the black giant's body completely lost its support.

Like a sand sculpture being washed away by ocean waves, it collapsed rapidly, turning into a pool of black liquid that gathered at the feet of the stand-in puppet.

Ron controlled his stand-in puppet to pick up the core, while simultaneously reaching out to touch the pool of black liquid, beginning to absorb large amounts of energy.

As energy is continuously absorbed, the substitute puppet's body begins to undergo subtle changes:
The surface becomes smoother, the muscle lines are clearer, and the overall outline is closer to that of a human.

Most importantly, the third arm has been completely integrated into the overall structure, as naturally as if it had always been there.

“Master…it…is becoming more like a living thing,” Dale whispered, her voice tinged with unease and curiosity.

"Don't worry, it's completely under my control."

Ron reassured her while checking the status of the substitute puppet through the mental link.

He could clearly perceive one piece of data:
[Automatically absorbed active abyssal substances, charging progress +5%]

Current Energy: 8%/100%

"Energy increased by 5%."

Ron calculated in his mind: "If we really go to the Great Abyss to explore in the future, the charging progress should increase very quickly."

A 50% charge level is the critical point for the stand-in puppet to unlock the "two-way communication" feature.

Once this level is reached, not only will the puppet be able to completely replicate Ron's abilities, but Ron will also be able to acquire the characteristics absorbed by the puppet to a certain extent.

"By then, I can transform my puppet into a Witcher."

Ron pondered this in his mind, a slight smile unconsciously curving his lips:
"Gain all the ability bonuses of the Witcher without having to bear any risks or side effects of changing classes."

Imagine the possibility—the Witcher's extraordinary perception, enhanced physique, poison resistance, and various specialized skills, all at his disposal.

But without having to endure the painful physical transformation process and long-term side effects, Ron couldn't help but feel a surge of anticipation.

Especially when facing various mutated creatures or "Awakeners", Demon Hunters have a special attack bonus from their class characteristics, which is an advantage that other classes cannot replace.

As his thoughts raced, the puppet had already finished absorbing the energy and stood there quietly, awaiting the next instruction.

With a single thought from Ron, it immediately shrank back to its original size, transforming back into an ordinary little wooden puppet, which returned to his hand.

"Now, it's time to take care of the final things."

He carefully put away the substitute puppet and walked towards the glowing stone pillar in the center of the altar.

The stone pillars were covered with ancient runes, emitting a faint blue light.

Ron used "Supernatural Identification" to carefully study the runes and discovered that they formed a complex teleportation array.

(End of this chapter)