Hero

Taelan Fordring

Level 10

Race: Nephalem (partially awakened)/Human

Class: Paladin

Health: 100%

Mana: 100%

Faction: Alliance/Lordaeron

Combat Rating: Weakling

...All right!

He couldn't see any of his stats anymore. His health and mana were displayed as percentages, all his skills had been consolidated under a single Skills tab, and the abilities granted by his talent awakenings had been grouped under a brand-new tab called Power of Nephalem.

In the Diablo skill tree, he'd now unlocked five skills: Mortal Strike, Strength, Prayer, Contempt, and Holy Bolt. The Life Skills tab had disappeared, too. Only Hammer of Justice remained, all by itself, under Other Skills.

Then Taelan Fordring opened the newly created Power of Nephalem tab. It had changed dramatically. All the descriptions were gone. In their place was a separate space with a towering tree at its center. Two numbers, 5/30, appeared on the trunk. They represented the amount of World Power he'd gained. Like a measuring stick, they indicated the tree's height. The ground was divided in two by the tree at its center: one side was called Supernatural Abilities, and the other Basic Abilities. They were like the tree's roots, representing its thickness. A crude thatched hut stood beside the tree. This was the level-one Nephalem's Hut!

The human talents that had been listed under Other Skills had been moved into Supernatural Abilities. There were two new abilities here as well: Energy Perception (Beginner, passive ability) and Mental Lock. They were both branches awakened through Occultism. The other section, Basic Abilities, was divided into three categories.

The first category was Knowledge, and it contained three skills—the ones he'd just gained:

Occultism (Intermediate)

Advanced Mathematics (Beginner; you have a bizarre longing for mushroom bombs, but unfortunately, you're no mage.)

Ysera's Dream Meditation (Beginner)

The middle category was Combat Skills: combat abilities he'd learned and mastered himself. Parry, Block, Weapon Mastery, and Evasion were all here.

The third category was Life Skills.

Languages: Chinese (Advanced),

Common Tongue (Advanced)

Thalassian (Intermediate; you can thank this system, you illiterate fool!)

Wilderness Survival: Your Perception increases by 3.

Fishing (Beginner)

Gourmet (Grandmaster)

(A citizen of the Great Foodie Empire! Three women have taken great care of you!)

Three women? All right, those were his mothers from both of his lives and his tutor!

"Ding! You've got it wrong! As expected, rotten wood can't be carved, and walls made of dirt can't be plastered! Forever alone!"

...There it went again!

World Power 5 corresponded to a skill on the tree: Nephalem. Clicking on it would bring up the full description.

Nephalem: Hero Template, Energy Resistance, Awakening Skill Tree

(You are a noble Nephalem. No one can make you yield! You will one day master the ultimate power of the world!)

World Power 30: Retribution, Affinity

Retribution: Every time you attack, you deal an additional amount of true damage equal to one-tenth of that attack's damage!

Affinity: Handsome! (There's nothing else to say!)

Higher up, the tree split into three branches: Mystic Mastery, Absolution, and Coercion. They were all written in red and hadn't been activated yet. Mystic Mastery was the lowest of the three, while Coercion was the highest. Clearly, each required a different amount of World Power to unlock. Above them, a bank of clouds obscured the tree's crown.

This consolidated tab was clearly laid out and much simpler. It was far better than the old one, where all his abilities had been jumbled together!

His paper doll showed the equipment he'd obtained: Blessing of Tirion Fordring, Eye of Violet, Janice's Blessing Pendant, Infantry Leggings, Gentleman's Belt, Knight's Shortsword, and Lordaeron Standard Shield. It seemed the system's budget had finally come through!

The Dragon Codex had also turned into the Holy Tome, which now hung from his person. He was a proper knight with a book of his own! Back when he'd seen the paladin Maraad flipping through a book as he cast spells, he'd thought it looked incredibly cool.

Unfortunately, Maraad's book was filled with chivalric tenets and Holy Spells. Every space between the words in Taelan's book, meanwhile, was packed with energy, arcane secrets, and meditation techniques! It had nothing whatsoever to do with the tenets of the Holy Light.

After taking stock of his items and familiarizing himself with the system's changes, Taelan Fordring opened the Dragon Codex and began to meditate. He could read the book now! It contained an ancient meditation technique called Ysera's Dream Meditation.

Taelan didn't know why the consort of Alexstrasza the Life-Binder, the Red Dragon Queen, would have Ysera's meditation technique. But that didn't change the fact that it was excellent. It greatly accelerated mana recovery, increased his maximum mana, and even gave him plenty of experience toward leveling up. It made him feel like he was cultivating immortality!

Perhaps that was why Malfurion had spent so many years sleeping in the Emerald Dream! Taelan was now completely absorbed in meditation every day. Level 12 wasn't far off! He would soon gain his first core skill: Zeal.

Once he learned the skill, he could apply to take the Initiate Paladin test. After passing, he'd be able to go to Light's Hope Chapel for further instruction, improving his combat skills and Occultism level. He'd also be preparing for the coming Orc incident!

A fledgling had to leave the nest before it could spread its wings and soar.

Taelan Fordring was meditating, while his tutor Solarian was writing a letter. First, she sent Prince Kael'thas a magical letter. It would be delivered directly by magic.

In the letter, she gave a detailed account of the business's progress. In just one short month, she'd established the company. She'd also used her teleportation spell to deliver the first shipment to Hearthglen and hired five employees: a low-ranking mage apprentice to work as a shopkeeper, three young women to serve as maids and handle cleaning and inventory, and a retired veteran to act as the guard. Every morning, she taught Taelan High Elf writing and language. In the afternoons, she worked part-time as a shopkeeper, and in the evenings, she taught Taelan Fordring Occultism.

She'd realized that she'd adapted to life in her new home in just a month. Aside from when he was on official business, Tirion Fordring was a carefree, easygoing man. He was kindhearted and never interfered in her affairs. Karandra, meanwhile, was a kind mother, if a little nagging. Her biggest flaw was probably that she spoiled her child a bit too much. Then there was the "domestic violence"! Old Fordring had been beaten by Karandra several times for taking his son hunting.

Taelan Fordring was a disciplined and clever child. He had an excellent talent for magic, and in just one short month, he'd mastered a language and Occultism. Solarian also suspected that Taelan had already mastered Energy Perception, a prerequisite for becoming a legendary spellcaster. Without it, no matter how many spells you learned, you could never ascend to legendary status. In other words, this little boy was already a "hero"! One of the prince's advisers had also told her that in Dalaran's mage circles, the child was known as the "Light of the Holy Light!" He was a natural spellcaster.

His strange Holy Spell could not only damage enemies and cause explosions, but also heal allies. It was an extremely powerful, unique skill.

After magically sending the letter to the prince, she picked up a quill and prepared to write a personal letter to her friend Liadren. It would be sent along with the goods to Quel'Thalas by a newly appointed dedicated mail carrier.

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I really enjoy chatting with people. I like reading Records of the Grand Historian! Unfortunately, my writing isn't good enough to produce the kind of work I'm happy with!

And because I'm careless, I make lots of mistakes! I recently bought a copy of Shuowen Jiezi Zhu. After reading it, I felt like an expert myself! An expert at typos!

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