Weapon Specialization

With Stone's guidance, Fang Zheng clearly felt that life in that world had become much easier.

The reason Fang Zheng had died so miserably before was not only because he lacked understanding of that world, but also because he had no idea how to handle sudden situations like those. Especially when he encountered four- or five-meter-tall giants, or bizarre monsters of all kinds—Fang Zheng simply had no clue how to deal with them. Was he supposed to charge up and slash at them with a sword?

Even an iron head could not withstand that, let alone those damned Treasure Chest mimics brimming with malice!

Stone, on the other hand, was highly experienced in such matters. Just a few pointers from him could benefit Fang Zheng immensely. In return, Fang Zheng often told Stone about that world. Stone seemed quite interested in it as well, constantly dragging Fang Zheng over to ask about its latest developments. It sometimes gave Fang Zheng the illusion that he had returned to his school days, discussing game strategies and walkthroughs with his classmates every day...

Still, his hard work had finally paid off. Fang Zheng could clearly feel that he was dying less and less often from unexpected incidents in that world. After successfully defeating the Abyss Watchers deep within Farron Keep without taking any damage, Fang Zheng finally gained his first reward from the free Dungeon.

Skill Specialization: Weapon Specialization!

Weapon Specialization: Through endless cycles of death, you have comprehended the true essence of combat. Starting with nothing but a sword, life and death are left to fate. At last, you understand that in this world, only the weapon in your hand is your most trustworthy comrade. (Initial proficiency with all weapons is 100%)

After acquiring this specialization, Fang Zheng eagerly tested it out, and the results thrilled him. Under the effects of Weapon Specialization, not only did he use Royal Cross Swordsmanship with greater fluency, but even when he picked up weapons such as greatswords and shortswords, those once-unfamiliar weapons felt like extensions of his own body. He could wield them as effortlessly as his own arms.

This was truly an excellent specialization reward.

Through gaining this specialization reward, Fang Zheng finally realized that Dungeon rewards seemed to depend on whether he could defeat the BOSS without taking damage. When fighting other BOSSES before, Fang Zheng had always died several times, and even if he won, he would be utterly exhausted. This time, he had managed to defeat the enemy without injury entirely thanks to Stone's guidance, Fang Zheng's thorough preparations, and a little bit of luck...

After mastering this specialization, Fang Zheng eagerly returned to the Holy Temple, intending to train properly with Stone. But to his surprise, before he could even step through the Holy Temple's gates, he saw the armored Stone striding out. Stone slapped a hand onto Fang Zheng's shoulder, grabbed him, and dragged him toward the interior of the Holy Temple.

"Come on, kid. We have something to do!"

"A fight?"

Fang Zheng had already grown accustomed to Stone's unpredictable behavior. He only froze for a moment before immediately catching on. After all, the Holy Temple was not supporting him out of charity. As a Guardian Knight Trainee, since Fang Zheng had enjoyed the benefits provided by the Holy Temple, he naturally had to contribute as well.

"That's right."

As Stone led Fang Zheng down the corridor, he rapidly explained the situation.

"Just now, we received a request for aid from Shadow Canyon. A group of Knights tracked the Cultists' trail and entered the depths of the canyon. But they accidentally fell into the enemy's trap and are now stranded on the Plains of Bones... What a bunch of idiots. Who gave them permission to go to Shadow Canyon? Don't they know that place is part of the Twilight Borderlands? And now I have to clean up their mess..."

Hearing that, Fang Zheng could not help twitching his mouth. Why did he have the feeling that these Paladins might be the unlucky fellows this body had gotten killed?

"I'm going too?"

"Of course. You're no slouch, kid. And from the looks of it, you don't lack combat experience either. Starmoon City is short on manpower right now. The only ones we can put forward are you and me. Besides, your power is Sacred Power too, so you can counter those undead bastards. Let me see what you're capable of!"

As they spoke, the two had already reached the end of the corridor. Upon seeing Stone and Fang Zheng, the Holy Temple Warriors stationed there hurriedly saluted them, then pushed open the heavy Stone Gate behind them.

Behind the Stone Gate was an enormous circular teleportation array. This was also the Holy Temple's most powerful weapon. Such arrays could enable unrestricted long-distance linked teleportation. During wartime, they could even draw upon the Archbishop's power to transport troops directly onto the battlefield.

Of course, although such teleportation arrays looked invincible, they did have a countermeasure. As long as the enemy casually set up a spatial anchor and sealed off the entire space, the teleportation array would be completely useless.

Even so, teleportation arrays were still an excellent choice for travel.

"Hm?"

What Fang Zheng had not expected was that after entering the teleportation hall, he soon spotted two figures beside the teleportation array. One was the Old Bishop, whom Fang Zheng already knew well. The other surprised him somewhat—a cute young girl dressed in a black robe. When she saw Fang Zheng, her face flushed slightly, and she immediately lowered her head to stare silently at the ground.

...If he remembered correctly, wasn't this the timid girl from City Hall who had verified his Star Pattern?

What was she doing here?

"How is the situation?"

Upon entering the teleportation hall, Stone immediately looked toward the Old Bishop standing beside the array. Hearing Stone's question, the Old Bishop shook his head helplessly.

"It's not good. I barely managed to establish contact with them just now, but it was cut off again almost immediately..."

"These idiots."

Hearing the Old Bishop's answer, Stone rolled his eyes helplessly.

"What about their Teleport Crystals?"

"The enemy has deployed a Space Barrier. The Teleport Crystals cannot be used..."

"So that means at least one Lich-level opponent is waiting for us there?"

The more information Stone received, the darker his expression became.

"What is wrong with these fools? Running to the Plains of Bones to fight Liches? Since they're so capable, why don't they charge straight into the Twilight Borderlands? Do they think they've gotten so full of themselves that they can just go wild? I told you those people directly under the Bishop Council couldn't be trusted. Every one of them thinks they're superior to everyone else, but they're actually useless beyond belief... They've barely crawled out of their mothers' arms and haven't even been weaned, yet they already think they can save the world!"

It had to be said that one took on the traits of those around them. After spending so long with Fang Zheng, Stone had smoothly picked up those baffling yet oddly logical phrases of his.

"So what do we do now?"

"From here on, it will be up to her."

As he spoke, the Old Bishop looked toward the girl beside him. Feeling everyone's gaze, the girl trembled, then timidly raised her head and nodded at them.

"Miss M can provide coordinates that will allow you to teleport to the nearest location..."

M...

Hearing that name, Fang Zheng could not help chuckling. Still, he was not particularly surprised. During his time at the Holy Temple, Fang Zheng had gained a fairly thorough understanding of this world. He knew that to Astrologers, names were an especially guarded secret. They believed their names had some special connection to the stars, so Astrologers generally used codenames rather than their real names in public. Only an Astrologer's mentor and family were qualified to know their true name.

However...

Looking at the trembling young girl before him, who resembled a little squirrel, Fang Zheng felt that the codename truly suited her... Judging from her appearance, she was definitely the delicate type.

"Her?"

Compared to Fang Zheng, Stone was concerned with an entirely different issue.

"Hasn't that place already been sealed by a Space Barrier? How is she going to lead us in?"

Upon hearing this, the girl finally spoke in a soft voice.

"Um... actually... I can observe the paths of the constellations and point out a Starpath for you. It won't be affected by the Space Barrier... But..."

"You can do that?"

Stone was greatly surprised upon hearing this.

"As far as I remember, finding a Starpath is something even high-level Astrologers struggle to accomplish!"

"Miss M is Royal Astrologer Lord Oscar's most prized final disciple."

The Old Bishop finally managed to get a word in.

"So you must ensure her safety. You cannot let anything happen to this young lady. Otherwise, if that old man comes knocking, I won't be able to handle him."

"Wait... what do you mean by that?"

Hearing the Old Bishop's reply, Stone's expression changed again, while the Old Bishop merely smiled.

"Just as you heard, this young lady will be accompanying you to the Plains of Bones..."

"...Huh?"