Sequence adventurers roaming between two worlds

The reconnaissance by the Goblin Squad took much longer than Leo had anticipated.

For the next nine days, the Brother Extinction Squad went out early and returned late, only coming back in the evening. After eating, they were so tired that they would fall asleep as soon as their heads hit the pillow.

Judging from the bloodstains on them, Leo deduced that every day, quite a few goblins died at the hands of the three of them.

This puzzled Leo.

How many goblins are there near Huashi Village?

While he was puzzled, a sense of unease also began to rise in his heart.

So he practiced his skills even more diligently.

On the second day after arriving in Flower Stone Village, Leo made up for the remaining 90 experience points and upgraded [Cleave] to level 3.

Thanks to this, the "experience buff" of the [slide step] greatly improves practice efficiency.

On the fourth day after arriving in Huashi Village, at noon, he relearned the [Slide Step] skill from level 0 to level 3.

The two skills merged and became:

-

[Chop Lv.3]: ...

Skill effect: Accuracy +0.6, Strength bonus +0.6

Current experience: 310/400

-

On the fifth day after arriving in Huashi Village, at noon, Leo made up for the missing 90 skill experience points, and his [Cleave] skill was successfully upgraded to level 4.

Following the same method, Leo spent another three days, and by noon on the eighth day, he had improved the [Slide Step] from lv.0 to lv.4.

After fusion, the skill became:

-

[Chop Lv.4]: ...

Skill effect: Accuracy +0.8, Strength bonus +0.8

Current experience: 710/800

-

It was noon on the ninth day after we arrived in Huashi Village.

Leo stood in the courtyard, staring at the blazing sun, and swung his iron sword down with all his might.

"call out--!"

The deep, resonant sound was enough to send chills down the spine of anyone who heard it.

The iron sword was slashed out, and by the time the tip was only one centimeter from the ground, it was all over in the blink of an eye.

Then, upon gaining the last 1 point of skill experience for [Slash Lv.4], Leo felt a jolt throughout his body, and in an instant, an indescribable heat surged through his entire being.

He felt as if he were soaking in a hot spring in the dead of winter, feeling warm and comfortable all over.

"Finally upgraded!"

After nearly ten days of arduous training, the moment of triumph has finally arrived.

Leo eagerly looked at the panel.

-

【Slashing Lv.5】: One of the most basic blade weapon techniques. Abandon all fancy moves and perfectly concentrate all your strength and center of gravity into the weapon to pursue ultimate destructive power.

Skill effect: Accuracy +1, Strength bonus +1

Mastery Bonus: Strength +1, Stamina +1

Current experience: 0/1600

-

"Strength +1, Stamina +1?"

"Not a bonus, but an improvement to the base attributes?"

Leo was deeply shaken.

He looked at his personal panel.

-

【属性】：力量6、体质6、敏捷5、精神5、感知6

[Skills]: Slash Lv.5, Slide Lv.0

[Talent]: Primordial Mirror (Odd Color - Crimson)

-

The base stats have really improved!

"Is this the effect of mastering a professional skill to the 'proficiency' level...?"

He lowered his head and looked at his transformed body.

The boost from +1 to Strength and +1 to Stamina was far greater than Leo had anticipated.

The strength of 6 points of power is almost 1.5 times that of 5 points of power!

Feeling the powerful energy surging within him, Leo's face was filled with amazement and emotion.

He stood up, holding a wood-chopping axe, and went to a section of ironwood about half a person's height in the courtyard.

Sunlight falls on the ironwood surface, giving it a faint metallic sheen.

This ironwood was a special type of wood that Leo had the villagers obtain specifically to verify the extent of his skill improvement.

Compared to ordinary wood, it not only has a hard outer skin, but the wood inside is also quite tough.

Previously, when the [Chop] skill was only level 4, Leo had tried it, but even with all his might, he could only leave a shallow mark on the surface of the ironwood.

but now……

"call!"

He took a deep breath and gave a low shout.

The power originates from the feet, passes through the waist, abdomen, shoulders, and arms, and finally converges on the wood-chopping axe in the hands.

"Snap!"

With a dull thud, the ironwood split open, and the wood-chopping axe sank several centimeters deep into it.

Seeing this, Leo breathed a sigh of relief, a look of joy appearing in his eyes.

"This destructive power is at least several times greater than before the breakthrough..."

"No, you can't compare them like that."

"Before the breakthrough, my slashes couldn't even break through Ironwood's 'defense,' but now, not only can I 'break through' its defense, but I can also deal considerable damage."

The upgrade to the [Slash] skill not only makes Leo's slashes more accurate and powerful, but the increase in basic attributes at lv.5 also gives him a fundamental improvement!

This creates a completely different destructive force.

"Now, I have barely managed to protect myself."

Leo thought to himself.

He couldn't help but recall the pathetic scene when he first arrived in this world, being chased by several goblins.

If he had the strength he has now back then, perhaps he wouldn't have needed to run away, and could have even turned the tables on his opponent?

"Having mastered a skill, I guess I should consider myself a prospective professional now..."

Leo touched his chin.

Mastering any skill to the point of "proficiency" qualifies one as a prospective professional.

However, the skill gap between reserve professionals is actually quite large.

After all, mastering one skill or mastering three or four skills both qualify one as a prospective professional.

Leo composed himself and turned his attention to the panel, a thoughtful look on his face.

"When a skill reaches level 5, you gain a mastery bonus. So, if the skill reverts to level 4, will the attribute increases already gained be retained?"

This is quite important.

Leo immediately gave it a try.

With a thought, he reduced [Slash] to level 4, and the excess primordial power transformed into a ball of light, hovering in the primordial mirror.

At the same time, he felt a strong sense of weakness.

He seemed to have degenerated from a strong and robust man into a frail and weak man who couldn't even kill a chicken.

Leo glanced at the panel.

as predicted.

The attribute boost from the mastery bonus has disappeared.

"pity……"

He couldn't help but sigh.

Since the mastery effect can't be retained, let's try another skill.

-

【Slide Step lv.5】: Avoid fatal damage with minimal cost in muddy, rugged battlefields or forests.

Skill effect: When using the slide step, Agility bonus +1, Perception bonus +1

Mastery Bonus: Agility +1, Wisdom +1

Current experience: 0/1600

-

"【Slash】is about strength and stamina, 【Slide】is about agility and perception... These two skills do have distinct characteristics."

After calming himself down, Leo began to analyze the situation rationally.

"As it stands, the mastery effect of a skill cannot be retained after the skill is rolled back. To retain it, you have to keep the skill at a certain level."

"Based on this, the best way is to practice a large number of low-level skills to maintain the level of the main skill."

Leo twitched the corner of his mouth.

That being said, Captain Gomez won't be able to acquire any new skills.

In other words, if he wants to maximize the effect of the primordial power, he must go to White River City.

Only in towns teeming with adventurers can one acquire a large number of professional skills.

"Furthermore, the conversion speed of the Primal Power is quite rapid. During breaks in combat, I can look for opportunities to switch between [Slash] and [Slide Step], and gain the corresponding mastery bonus depending on the situation."

"call……"

Leo let out a soft breath.

At that moment, he glanced around out of the corner of his eye and suddenly froze.

For the past nine days, the three members of the Brother Extinction Squad, who always left early and returned in the evening, have returned ahead of schedule?

Noticing the solemn expressions on the three faces, Leo immediately went to greet them.