Chapter 54: Extraordinary Charisma
No wonder the livestream viewers were going crazy—it was just too mind-blowing, and insanely cool to boot. Before today, none of them would've imagined someone could cause such devastation with sheer presence alone. XB had only brushed against the edge of it, yet he collapsed like he'd been cleaved by an axe.
Even Zhou Ning himself was surprised by the effect of his Conqueror's Haki this time. This skill was especially effective for clearing out mobs. The Blood Worms were troublesome, sure, but they were under level 10 and had only about 100 HP. What made them annoying was their ability to endlessly split by feeding on blood. At their core, they were still low-tier blood elements driven by bloodlust—low HP and weak mental resistance, which happened to be their biggest weaknesses.
That's why the release of the Haki had such an unexpected and overwhelming result—it nearly wiped out the entire wave. Over half the Blood Worms were instantly killed, and the remaining ones were left stunned. However, the skill also drained over half of Zhou Ning's stamina in an instant.
Excessive stamina consumption was probably the one and only drawback of Conqueror's Haki.
But the cost was clearly worth it. Not only did he save the battlefield, but he also instantly racked up nearly 50,000 experience points—recovering most of what he'd spent earlier on synthesizing skills.
As the aura receded, Zhou Ning looked around again, finding the entire battlefield frozen in eerie silence.
Everyone stood rooted in place, collectively gasping. They had been bracing for an epic battle, ready for a drawn-out, grueling fight—but the tables had turned so fast that they were completely stunned.
They had all personally experienced the weight of Zhou Ning's Conqueror's Haki. That moment of overwhelming pressure had felt like staring down a giant dragon. Even now, they were still shaken.
Even Sherlock, who had fought alongside Zhou Ning many times before, looked completely dumbfounded. He had always known Zhou Ning was strong, but not this strong!
"Don't just stand there—we've still got monsters to clean up!" Kien West reacted the fastest, muttering, "Justice gives me strength." In a flash, two radiant wings of light unfolded from his back.
Whoa! Zhou Ning widened his eyes in surprise. There were nineteen knight families in the Kingdom of Bryston with hereditary mottos, and in his previous life, he had never seen the West family's ability in action. He hadn't expected it to be this flashy.
Kinda cool, actually.
It was only then that the Sunwatchers snapped back to reality and scrambled into action. Among them were mages who could cast fireballs and agents armed with Zhou Ning's custom bullets—perfect for taking down stunned Blood Worms with ease.
Zhou Ning stood still to recover some stamina, and in the meantime, he edited a new mission and sent it to XB. Then, he pulled out a revolver identical to his own and handed it over. "Here, take this gun. Use it to protect yourself."
XB accepted it with excitement, and a new mission popped up on his panel.
[You've triggered a D-Rank Mission: Cleanup Duty. Accept? Yes/No?]
[Mission Tip: See those remaining monsters around you? Kill them!]
[Mission Rank: D]
[Objective: Eliminate as many remaining monsters as possible. Don't let them hit you.]
[Reward: 2,000 EXP.]
In the end, XB managed to grab a few kills for himself, finally getting a bit of a sense of participation.
Once all the remaining Blood Worms had been wiped out, everyone on the battlefield finally let out a breath of relief.
It wasn't an exaggeration to say that if these creatures had made it into the city of Darkland, not only Darkland but the entire Bryston Kingdom might've been doomed.
Kien West retracted his wings of light, and when he looked at Zhou Ning, his eyes were filled with admiration. Honestly, that oppressive force just now had stunned even him—it felt like facing a natural predator.
Based on his intuition, this had to be some extremely rare spiritual-type secret art.
At that moment, Charles VI stepped out from the crowd and made his way over with a broad smile full of appreciation. "Well done. You saved my life."
"You're too kind," Zhou Ning replied with a wave of his hand. "With the Sunwatchers around, Your Majesty was never in real danger."
"That's not necessarily true," Charles VI snorted, then unhooked a sword from his waist and handed it over. "This is my personal sword. Keep it well. I hope you'll use it to serve the kingdom one day."
[You've obtained a rare weapon: An ornate rapier.] Zhou Ning accepted it with a half-amused smile and thanked him.
After offering a few more words of encouragement, Charles VI patted Zhou Ning on the shoulder and climbed into his carriage.
The moment Charles VI was seated, Zhou Ning's panel finally chimed in.
[A-Rank Mission "Conspiracy" completed. You've earned 90,000 EXP and 1 Specialty Reward. Draw now? Yes/No?]
Finally—the damn mission was done!
Zhou Ning let out a breath and chose Yes. The final step of the mission might've seemed simple, but it had only been possible because he had learned Conqueror's Haki. Without it, the outcome could've been a disaster.
[Drawing... Complete.]
[Please select one of the following three abilities as your reward:]
[1. Ascetic Cultist (Advanced): +30% resistance to abnormal mental states.]
[2. Dragon's Might (Elite Specialty): +10 Defense, +8 HP regeneration/sec, +7 Stamina regeneration/sec.]
[3. Forest Elf (Elite Specialty): Partial high-elf bloodline. +28% movement speed. Enhanced proficiency with ranged weapons. +9 Agility, +1 Charisma.]
As expected—two elite specialties! Zhou Ning's eyes lit up. Honestly, he wanted both: one boosted sustainability, the other was a perfect match for his combat style. Why couldn't he pick them all?
After a hard decision, Zhou Ning reluctantly chose the third option.
With this, his combat power had undoubtedly taken another leap forward—but what surprised him came right after.
A new notification appeared on his panel:
[Your Charisma has reached its maximum value. You've gained an Elite Specialty: Extraordinary Charisma.]
[Extraordinary Charisma: You possess a mysterious, bloodline-originated aura. Your attraction to the opposite sex increases by 15%. All contract creatures, including mechanical constructs, receive +15% to their stats. This specialty is effective in both reality and simulations.]
"I can't believe that ever since I crossed over, I've been sprinting down the road of being ridiculously handsome with no brakes," Zhou Ning muttered with a mix of amusement and resignation. Still, it wasn't a bad thing. In fact, he could now consider shifting some resources toward precision mechanical crafting—his Puppet Alchemy skill could complement it perfectly.
Didn't expect a bonus elite specialty out of it. It might not boost his combat power much for now, but it definitely expanded his development path by a wide margin.
…
"Wayne."
While Zhou Ning was still going over his panel, Kien West walked over, clapped him on the shoulder, and smiled. "Sherlock told me what happened. You really saved the day—Sunwatchers won't forget your contribution."
"No need to thank me. I already told him—I did it for my own survival," Zhou Ning replied calmly. He had a hunch about why Kien was approaching him: this was probably a recruitment attempt.
Sure enough, after a bit of small talk, Kien got straight to the point. "Wayne, as you know, supernatural incidents have been happening more frequently. We need new forces like you. Would you be interested in joining the Sunwatchers?"
A new notification appeared on Zhou Ning's panel:
[Kien West, leader of the Sunwatchers, is inviting you to join the Sunwatchers. Accept? Yes/No? Accepting will grant you a unique Bryston Kingdom sub-profession: Sunwatcher.]
Zhou Ning pondered for a moment. If this had happened right after he first crossed over, he might've said yes without hesitation.
After all, it came with stable income, a solid sub-profession, and a convenient way to farm EXP.
But now, this sub-profession seemed a bit optional.
"Give me a couple of days to think about it," Zhou Ning replied without committing. After all, plans rarely keep up with reality.
"Of course," Kien West nodded with a smile. "Your firearms trade with the Sunwatchers will continue in any case. I'll have Sherlock stay in touch—when you've made your decision, just let him know."
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