Chapter Fifty: Group Synergy Skill

At that moment, over a hundred earthen whirlpools activated, spreading across the entire swamp and forming a massive vortex.

“Damn, is this a group synergy skill?”

Qin Chuan couldn’t help but be startled; these mud creatures were more formidable than he’d thought.

Indeed, this was the mudmen’s group synergy skill, and it was precisely why they still had the confidence to remain here.

The enormous vortex spanned nearly a hundred meters. Even with Qin Chuan’s multiple dashes, escape was impossible.

The mudman lord resurrected at the center of the vortex, eyes still full of terror.

Due to the vortex, he now stood about twenty meters beneath Qin Chuan.

“Damn it, how can there be such a monstrous guy? Only level fifteen and so powerful, and he’s not even a lord!”

“No, I can’t keep fighting like this!”

“My Golden Lotus is almost ripe. I’ll take revenge after I’ve refined it!”

The thought of the Golden Lotus made the mudman lord unwilling to continue the battle. If Qin Chuan trapped him again, it would be a disaster.

So, the mudman lord plunged headlong into the vortex, intending to flee back to his lair.

But to everyone’s astonishment, Qin Chuan shot forward in a flash.

“Falling Torrent Strike!”

In that instant, Qin Chuan unleashed his long-range skill, locking onto the mudman lord.

The Cold Iron Sword shot into the vortex, darting straight toward the mudman lord.

He glanced back and was so terrified his soul almost fled his body. “Damn, he can hit me from this far? His range is insane!”

The mudman lord had already experienced Qin Chuan’s ferocity and knew his attacks were truly abnormal.

This time, he didn’t dare be careless. He instantly switched to his earthen form.

“Transmutation!”

Had the mudman lord simply fled, it might have ended there. But seeing an opportunity, he made the same mistake as the first mudman.

“Spinning Quagmire!”

With a splat, the moment his skill activated, the Cold Iron Sword plunged in silently.

“Ha! Fell for it, didn’t you? Let’s see if you survive this!”

“Assimilate!”

“Ha, our lord is truly mighty—to have swallowed that shabby sword!”

“That’s right, and he’s using Assimilation. That guy’s dead for sure!”

“Yes, with our lord’s strength, there’s no way he can turn things around. In a moment, he’ll be nothing but dust.”

“Hmph, those who cross us mudmen always meet this fate!”

...

Seeing the Cold Iron Sword subdued, the mudmen finally relaxed.

The mudman lord was overjoyed and hurried back to the lair with Qin Chuan in tow.

The Assimilation skill, however, had a significant delay; it needed time to fully digest what it absorbed—just like food that must be broken down.

The mudman lord believed he’d subdued Qin Chuan, but he had no idea this was all part of Qin Chuan’s plan.

The combined power of more than a hundred mudmen truly wasn’t to be underestimated.

Qin Chuan had found it nearly impossible to escape the control, which led to the scene just now.

The mudman lord happily returned to his lair. Seeing the Golden Lotus almost ripe, he decided to finish refining Qin Chuan first.

But something happened that the mudman lord could never have anticipated.

Within the state of Assimilation, the Cold Iron Sword was entwined by a rapidly spinning mass of black mud—a portion of its blade already turned to black earth.

“Ding! Host’s main body detected as damaged. Repair now?”

“Repair!”

“Ding! Repair successful. 20,000 evolution points consumed.”

Suddenly, purple light burst from the Cold Iron Sword, and a sharp aura filled the air.

With a series of slashing sounds, Qin Chuan, restored to full strength, unleashed a furious barrage of attacks—didn’t even bother to reposition.

“Ha! You tried to swallow me? Then I’ll gut you from inside out!”

Violent sounds erupted within the spinning quagmire, which quickly slowed and, within seconds, ground to a halt.

“No! This can’t be!”

In his black mud form, the mudman lord immediately sensed something was wrong, but there was nothing he could do—he was frozen.

Once the mud stopped spinning, the mudman lord’s spirit core was laid bare before Qin Chuan.

The dazzling core shone so brightly it was impossible to miss.

“Farewell. May you rest forever in the earth! Ha!”

Without hesitation, Qin Chuan blinked forward and struck.

The mudman lord, terrified beyond words, could only watch as the sword’s tip pierced his spirit core.

“No! I don’t want to die!”

“Ding! Fatal Strike triggered.”

“Ding! You have slain a level 17 rare variant Mudman Lord. Gained 18,000 experience. Level bonus: 100% extra experience. Congratulations, you gain 36,000 experience.”

“Yes, done!”

Hearing the system prompt, Qin Chuan knew the mudman lord was well and truly dead.

As black mud scattered all around, the Golden Lotus nearby swayed in the air, emitting a delicate fragrance.

“Ding! Tier-three superior Golden Lotus Seed detected. Please harvest within ten seconds.”

“Only ten seconds? Sorry, my friend—seems I can’t let you remain here.”

With a sigh, Qin Chuan’s sword trembled slightly, and an invisible suction began to swirl around.

“Ding! Golden Lotus Seed absorbed successfully. Gained 600,000 experience, 60,000 evolution points.”

“Ding! Absorption successful. 2,400 evolution points gained.”

“Ding! Acquired 10 points of Earth Essence.”

...

“Ding! Congratulations, host has reached level 16. New skill point awarded.”

“Ding! Congratulations, speed evolution points maxed. Please choose an evolution path.”

“Damn, this is amazing! Ha!”

Qin Chuan couldn’t contain his joy; after swallowing five Golden Lotus Seeds, he was doubly blessed.

The Golden Lotus gently swayed, turning into flecks of golden light that drifted into the black mud—perhaps, after many years, a new Golden Lotus would grow again.

Whether it was the Earth-Infused Fragrant Fruit or the Golden Lotus Seed, these natural treasures were of the highest spiritual grade—nourished over long years by the energies of heaven and earth, utterly unmatched by ordinary spiritual herbs or fruits.

At this moment, Qin Chuan’s quality upgrade chance was a meager 18.3%.

But his chance for variant evolution had soared to an astonishing 90%.

The higher the chance of variant evolution, the greater the likelihood of mutation, which meant more attribute bonuses and even the possibility of acquiring new skills.

So, Qin Chuan chose variant evolution without hesitation.

“Ding! Variant evolution selected. Please wait.”

Each time he underwent variant evolution, Qin Chuan brimmed with anticipation—after all, variant skills were exceedingly rare.

“Ding! Congratulations, host. Lucky variant evolution succeeded. Gained: Sharpness +20, Endurance +5, Speed +5.”

Amid the joy, Qin Chuan felt a trace of disappointment. “Damn, another lucky evolution!”

With two previous lucky evolutions, he knew this level of evolution would not yield a variant skill.

“Well, one can’t be too greedy. Lucky evolution is already quite remarkable.”

He quickly cast aside that slight dissatisfaction.

If a variant skill appeared now, even Qin Chuan would find it too improbable.

“Ding! Host has a new skill point. Please choose an upgrade path.”

“Upgrade Falling Torrent Strike!”

“Ding! Upgrade successful. Falling Torrent Strike’s range increased to twenty meters. Sword shadows now inherit 70% of the main body’s sharpness.”

“Hmm, just as I expected.”

With his current sharpness, Qin Chuan’s ultimate move was enough to cut through anything at his level—earth, sky, or even air.

With such results, Qin Chuan couldn’t possibly be more satisfied.