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The [Equipment Controller] innate talent had sent Ling Zhan straight to the regular class when the students were assigned to classes.
Sun Ze and Su Rou had decent innate talents, but they hadn't wanted to be placed in the elite class.
The exact reason was unclear.
Innate talents weren't particularly useful to many people.
That was because they were granted at random.
Take [Eye of Perception], for example. It could only be used to scout the surroundings and survey the terrain in labyrinths and secret realms.
It wasn't much help in battle.
Of course, some people were practically spoon-fed by the heavens.
For example, Zhu Yaoguang, hailed as Nanzhou Province's number-one genius girl, had two innate talents.
The first: [King of the Night (S+)].
The second: [Shadow Kill (S+)].
She had two S+ innate talents, and both were a perfect match for her female Assassin class.
[King of the Night (S+)]: During nighttime, all of the user's attributes increase by 300%.
[Shadow Kill (S+)]: While in Shadow Stealth, the user's attack power increases by 500%.
Those two innate talents were practically tailor-made for an Assassin.
And Zhu Yaoguang had become a female Assassin.
It was as if the heavens had put food right into Zhu Yaoguang's mouth.
In other people's eyes, [Equipment Controller] was indeed a rather useless innate talent.
But for Ling Zhan, it was practically tailor-made for his system.
The system was very special.
It was called the "Strongest All-Class System."
At the time, Ling Zhan had been overjoyed.
At long last, he had his own cheat.
Of course,
the system was also quite straightforward.
It wanted Ling Zhan to become the strongest in every class!
It was just that...
Ling Zhan couldn't change class, either. The system made that a strict requirement.
Back then, Ling Zhan had been torn.
Should he give up his cheat and become a noble Mage...
or accept the easy ride the system offered him?
He'd thought it over for a long time.
He couldn't make up his mind.
Being a Mage was his faith.
Being an all-class freelancer was his reality.
Sigh!
In the end,
Ling Zhan had compromised and given up on becoming a noble Mage.
He hadn't changed class. So while he looked like he was "classless," in truth, he was "all-class"!
The outside world called him a "Jobless Freelancer."
But he thought of himself as an "All-Class Freelancer"!
Of course,
with the system's help,
a Jobless Freelancer was stronger than a Mage.
He could learn both physical and magical skills.
In this world, almost everyone who reached Level 10 chose to change class.
Ling Zhan was probably the only one who had taken the path of a Jobless Freelancer.
Because the path of an All-Class Freelancer was simply impossible to follow!
A Jobless Freelancer had two obvious weaknesses.
First: poor attributes across the board.
Second: an inability to learn advanced skills from other classes.
The first weakness was relatively easy to overcome.
The second was much harder.
As you leveled up, the monsters in the secret realms you entered would also grow stronger. Their health, defense, agility, and everything else would increase.
Basic class skills didn't use much mana, but they were weak, too.
When you tried to clear a Level 20 D-rank secret realm, you'd realize that your basic class skills barely did any damage!
And learning advanced class skills was even harder!
First of all, there were only two ways to get skills.
The first: browse skill books.
The second: clear special trial secret realms and claim the rewards.
The first way was practically impossible.
Many advanced class skill books had prerequisites for learning them. For example, only Mages could learn them, or only Warriors. A Jobless Freelancer didn't meet the prerequisites at all.
And even if an advanced class skill book had no prerequisites, how could you get one?
Skill books of that caliber were kept only at major Key Combat Academies, and only outstanding students could obtain them.
With those restrictions, the odds of a Jobless Freelancer getting an advanced class skill through a skill book were practically zero.
As for the second way...
Well, imagine a Jobless Freelancer struggling to reach Level 20, only to enter a secret realm and find that his attacks barely hurt the monsters.
How was he supposed to clear it?
Then you might say, "I can hitch a ride!"
"An expert team could carry me through and let me claim the rewards. Problem solved, right?"
Sure!
Of course that could work!
But how, exactly, would a Jobless Freelancer convince an expert team to carry a deadweight like him through a secret realm?
By kneeling down and kowtowing to them?
So,
apart from Ling Zhan, no one would ever take the path of a Jobless Freelancer.
It was simply too difficult.
They were inferior to people who had already changed class in every way.
That was why everyone had been dumbstruck when Ling Zhan, a Jobless Freelancer, had claimed the top spot on the Nanzhou Province Trial Ranking.
Even the cold, stern King Yama Zhou had looked as if he'd seen a ghost.
And one more thing.
Now, Ling Zhan had received plenty of cheers in Yundong City.
But he knew that plenty of people were also mocking him in their hearts.
"A Jobless Freelancer like you can only enjoy the perks of low-level trials!"
"The national trial for students changing class may be hard, but it's still a low-level secret realm. No way, no way, you don't really think coming first in a low-level secret realm proves Jobless Freelancers are amazing, do you?"
"Once he reaches Level 20, this Nanzhou Province Trial Ranking champion will show his true colors!"
Ling Zhan was completely unmoved.
Just as he'd been when he was watched by the provincial top hundred today, and when his junior schoolmates had rallied around and supported him.
His mind had always been clear, still as an ancient well.
He had never cared what others thought of him.
Huff.
Ling Zhan let out a soft breath, stood up from his chair, and turned on the light. Its gentle glow lent a touch of warmth to the dim, silent room.
He looked out the window.
Night had fallen, and the city lights had come on.
What he looked forward to most now was the reward from the system!
But the reward hadn't arrived yet, perhaps because his ranking hadn't been officially confirmed.
Everything would have to wait until all the examinees' scores were finalized and officially announced.
Only then would the system's reward be issued.
Over the following week,
apart from occasionally going out to buy daily necessities and food,
Ling Zhan hardly ever left home.
Even when he did go out, it was only to complete the system's daily challenge.
He never missed it. Even when it rained, Ling Zhan still completed it diligently.
The daily mission rewards were quite generous, too.
① Intelligence +5.
② Perception range +5%.
③ Ice resistance +3%.
Ding!
[System Notice: Host successfully claimed the reward. You may view it on your status screen.]
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