Chapter 512: Chapter 512: Skill Fusion

When players take on quests, they are essentially signing contracts with the NPCs who issue those quests. The game system supervises these contracts, guaranteeing rewards upon completion and imposing penalties if the quest fails.

However, the indigenous inhabitants of this game world were not aware of the game system; they preferred to have a “Spirit of Notarization” to supervise when making agreements.

Regardless of the supervisor, as long as Song Jian accepted the task, it would simply appear as a quest in his quest log.

Qi Yun pulled out a small silver knife and cut his finger. A drop of dark red blood flowed out. Then, Qi Yun signaled for Song Jian to do the same.

After cutting their fingers, Qi Yun recited an incantation. Summoning the Spirit of Notarization to oversee the contract was a skill that ensured both parties abided by the terms of the contract. Once breached, the consequences would be severe.

Suddenly, the light in the tent dimmed. In the space between the pair, a milky-white light appeared out of thin air, followed by a translucent, octopus-like shadow.

Qi Yun dripped his blood onto a parchment detailing the quest requirements, then handed it to Song Jian.

Song Jian carefully read through the quest requirements and found no traps. He also dripped his blood onto the parchment.

The Spirit of Notarization waved its tentacles and rolled up the parchment, slowly reading it out loud. Its voice manifested directly in their minds, leaving the tent in silence.

“…The contract is established. Violators will be erased at a soul level!” The voice of the Spirit of Notarization echoed in the depths of their minds.

“Agreed!”

“Agreed!”

Both of them said.

Whoosh~

The parchment burned in the Spirit of Notarization’s tentacles. Then, it sent two translucent tentacles towards the pair, wrapping around them before the spirit slowly disappeared.

Song Jian felt as if something was entangling his soul, leaving him with an uncomfortable sense of restraint.

A quest notification appeared in his quest log. However, at the bottom of the notification, there was a line of small red text: The contract may be nullified by using Blood of Blasphemy.

Seeing this last line, Song Jian couldn’t help but smile.

“It seems that this so-called Spirit of Notarization is of a much lower grade than the game system…” Song Jian glanced at Qi Yun and thought, “Moreover, not every NPC in the game has the right to issue quests!”

If Qi Yun could directly give quests to Song Jian like the Shadow Circus Troupe leader, there would be no need for the Spirit of Notarization.

Using the so-called Spirit of Notarization not only required blood, but the contract could also be nullified by Blood of Blasphemy, a perfect method to avoid penalties for failed quests.

After signing the contract overseen by the Spirit of Notarization, Qi Yun seemed relieved and directly handed the Skill Crystal over to Song Jian.

Song Jian looked at the Skill Crystal and chose to use it without a second thought.

Boom~

A burst of black flame suddenly erupted from Song Jian’s body, emitting an intense aura that forced Qi Yun, who was caught off guard, to retreat two steps, his back pressing against the tent.

“This… what is this…?” Fear flickered in Qi Yun’s eyes as he stared at the black flame surrounding Song Jian’s body, disbelief evident in his gaze.

System: You used the player-specific skill Rebirth in Fire! This skill perfectly resonates with Abyssal Raging Flame. Do you want to bind these two skills? Note: If bound, a special unforeseen effect may occur, making the skill potentially more powerful or weaker.

“Fusion mutation?” Song Jian was startled but quickly showed a look of joy.

This kind of skill upgrade fusion rarely occurred before both skills reached level 10. Since the system already indicated a perfect fusion, there was a high probability that merging them would result in an even more powerful skill.

“Fuse!” Song Jian declared inwardly.

The black flame on Song Jian’s body gradually diminished and disappeared. The Rebirth in Fire skill he had just acquired also began to change.

“Enemy of Death God (Passive): Level MAX. Skill Effect: After Vitality Points reach zero, gain invincibility for 10 seconds, removing all skill costs and cooldown times. Skills on cooldown can still be used normally. After 10 seconds, the player can revive at any location within a 1000-meter radius. Upon revival, both Vitality Points and Spirit Points are restored to full, and all skills enter a cooldown period and cannot be used. Cooldown time: 12 hours. Skill Description: Fire is not synonymous with destruction. It also possesses the power to nurture life. This power is so potent that even the Death God cannot face it directly. Those who wield this power are considered the Death God’s greatest enemies!”

“Perfect!” Song Jian looked at the new skill that had formed from the perfect fusion of Abyssal Raging Flame and Rebirth in Fire, his face breaking into a delighted smile.

The 10-second invulnerability and the ability to ignore skill costs and cooldown times gave Song Jian incredible retaliatory power. Even an enemy with one-grade combat power would be unable to withstand Song Jian’s 10 seconds of all-out assault.

Moreover, after the 10 seconds, Song Jian could revive at any location within a one-kilometer radius. Though his skills would enter a cooldown, his fully restored Vitality and Spirit Points would grant him over 80% of his total combat power. This would allow him to choose his revival location based on the situation at hand.

After the fusion, the cooldown time was reduced by half, down to twelve hours. In other words, after a fight, Song Jian could sleep and wake up with the skill available for use once more.

Once the fusion was complete, the Abyssal Raging Flame skill disappeared and was replaced by Enemy of Death God. For Song Jian, this only meant that he couldn’t benefit from the bonus of the Abyssal Magic Flame during secondary professions like alchemy or engineering. He rarely had the opportunity to use Abyssal Raging Flame during regular combat anyway.

After the black flame vanished from his body, Qi Yun stared at Song Jian with a puzzled expression: “What was that…?”

“It seems that this skill clashes somewhat with the power of the Abyss,” Song Jian smiled and casually replied.

As for whether or not Qi Yun would believe his explanation, Song Jian didn’t concern himself with it. He just didn’t want Qi Yun to know that the Rebirth in Fire skill had already fused and changed, significantly altering its properties.

If Qi Yun ever tried to thwart him based on the effects of the Rebirth in Fire skill, Song Jian would deliver a significant surprise.