Kill the Red-armored Elite Giant Scorpion, Snatch Every Skill!

Soul Snatch.

[Soul Snatch successful!]

[Innate talent acquired: Vital Renewal (passively restores the health of nearby allied units, restoring an amount equal to 3% of the user's Spirit attribute per second. Range: 10 meters.)]

[Specialization skill acquired: Healing Enhancement (increases the effectiveness of healing skills by 40%.)]

[Specialization skill acquired: Mass Restoration (casts healing on all allied units within 15 meters, restoring each target's health by 200% of the user's Spirit attribute. Cooldown: 30 seconds. Mana cost: 35.)]

[Specialization skill acquired: Status Purification (removes one negative status from the target. Cooldown: 15 seconds. Mana cost: 12.)]

[Skill acquired: Healing. Duplicate acquisition converted into talent proficiency.]

[Skill acquired: Shield Art. Duplicate acquisition converted into talent proficiency.]

[Skill acquired: Radiance Art (releases a ray of light to attack the target, dealing magic damage equal to 100% of the user's Spirit attribute. Cooldown: 8 seconds. Mana cost: 10.)]

[Skill acquired: Battlefield First Aid (immediately restores 30% of the target's maximum health. Cooldown: 45 seconds. Mana cost: 25.)]

[Skill acquired: Weakness Perception. Duplicate acquisition converted into talent proficiency.]

[Skill acquired: Danger Sense. Duplicate acquisition converted into talent proficiency.]

The notifications flooding the panel practically filled the screen.

He had obtained three specializations.

Damn!

Ten out of eleven!

Three specializations and one innate talent—all taken!

He had secured every key skill!

Then the four duplicate skills fed another batch of experience to his talent.

Gan Ming stored the staff wielder's corpse back into his ring.

He rose to his feet and looked at the Soul-Stealing Panel.

The suffixes on every acquired skill jumped from +6 to +7, rising across the board.

Gan Ming reached into his pocket.

There were too many rings, and his pocket was visibly bulging.

He put away the crossbow.

Then he took two short swords from a ring and weighed them in his hands.

The green-quality Standard Dual-Blade Short Swords had been well maintained.

Their craftsmanship was a little rougher than his Steel-Edge Sword, but they came as a pair.

An equipment information panel popped up before him.

[Standard Dual-Blade Short Swords (Excellent) ×2]

[Type: Weapon · Short Sword (Dual-Wield)]

[Physical Attack: +19 (per sword)]

[Additional Attributes: Strength +1, Agility +3, Endurance +1]

[Equipment Requirements: Agility ≥16, Strength ≥45]

[Effect: When equipped as a pair, attack speed increases by an additional 8%.]

[Creator: Chen Tiesheng (Production-type Awakened)]

[Note: Excellent-quality standard dual blades, tempered together with source essence.]

He tapped the equipment, and both palms flashed.

The dual-blade wielder's short swords materialized.

Then [Dual-Wield Mastery +7] replaced [Tracking Shot +7].

The instant the skill was equipped, the feel of both swords changed noticeably.

There seemed to be an indescribable coordination between his left and right hands.

Sword angles, alternating rhythms, and timing for coordination all became muscle memory.

Just like Crossbow Mastery, he got the hang of it in two seconds.

Soul Snatch was just that unreasonable.

Gan Ming readjusted his active skills.

[Crossbow Mastery +7] and [Shadowmeld +7] were removed.

[Ambush +7], [Hard Shell +7], and [Double Blades +7] were activated.

He kept [Lock-On +7].

It did not specify melee or ranged combat, so it should work for both.

Whatever. If it did not work, he could always switch it to [Potential Stimulation].

Nine slots, just enough.

He turned and walked toward the elite giant scorpion.

At that moment, the Red-armored Elite Giant Scorpion was still where it had been.

Its two pincers were spread before it, while its severed tail was tucked behind it.

Carapace Regeneration was slowly repairing its wounds, but the deep gashes cut into its shell were still far from fully healed.

It patiently held its ground, waiting for an opportunity.

Gan Ming stood before it with a sword in each hand.

"Been waiting long?"

The scorpion ignored him.

"You'd better call your underlings over. Otherwise, you won't get another chance."

[Ambush]!

A boar-shaped phantom condensed before his chest and slammed into the pincers with a bang.

Both pincers were knocked aside.

2.5 seconds of stun.

Gan Ming struck with both swords at once.

Streak after streak of sword light alternately cleaved into the scorpion's abdomen.

Those old wounds that had been cut open before

had only just grown a thin layer of shell beneath Carapace Regeneration's repair.

This round of slashes directly sliced through the thin shell and the newly grown tissue beneath it.

Pfft!

Insect slurry sprayed out again.

Without its scorpion tail, the elite giant scorpion only had its pincers and Armor-Shattering Pincer Strike left to attack with.

Gan Ming circled to its side, where its pincers could not even reach him.

Though he was occasionally grazed by the aftershock of Armor-Shattering Pincer Strike,

the fixed damage reduction from [Hard Shell +7] absorbed it, and he lost little health.

Less than three minutes later,

all six legs of the Red-armored Elite Giant Scorpion had gone limp.

It sprawled over the gravel, its pincers opening and closing weakly,

while the cracks in its shell were as dense as shattered porcelain.

Squelch!

Gan Ming's final sword stabbed into the center of its abdominal shell.

As he pulled the sword free, he quickly stepped back to avoid the spraying insect slurry.

Even so, he did not completely avoid it.

Fine.

Enough kinds of slime had gotten on him today. A little more made no difference.

[Red-armored Elite Giant Scorpion (Lv. 15) killed. Experience gained: 5800.]

[Level up! Current level: 15]

[Unassigned attribute points gained: 5]

"Damn! That's a lot of experience!"

Gan Ming crouched down.

Soul Snatch.

[Soul Snatch successful!]

[Specialization skill acquired: Armor-Shattering Pincer Strike (clamps the target with both pincers, dealing 180% physical damage and reducing the target's defense by 25% for 8 seconds. Cooldown: 18 seconds. Mana cost: 14.)]

[Skill acquired: Earth Vein Perception (Passive) Perceives ground vibrations to determine the location and approximate direction of movement of objects in contact with the ground within 30 meters.]

[Skill acquired: Carapace Regeneration (slowly restores carapace integrity after being injured, restoring 1% of maximum health per second. Only takes effect after leaving combat.)]

[Skill acquired: Scorpion Tail Barrage (launches three rapid consecutive stabs, each dealing 90% physical damage. Cooldown: 16 seconds. Mana cost: 15.)]

[Skill acquired: Venomous Tail Sting. Duplicate acquisition converted into talent proficiency.]

[Skill acquired: Hard Shell. Duplicate acquisition converted into talent proficiency.]

Good!

Six out of six.

The specialization [Armor-Shattering Pincer Strike] was his.