King Bloodline

Zhang Ping felt that something was off.

He looked at his hands, and the next moment, they turned into pure water.

"..."

The tent suddenly fell silent. Liu Sishan's eyes widened as she watched Zhang Ping's entire body turn into a puddle of liquid.

It took her about a minute to react. With a serious expression, she walked over to the liquid, lightly dipped a finger into it, and frowned. "Pure water?"

At that moment, Zhang Ping's voice came from the liquid. "Sister Sisi, you poked my stomach."

"Zhang Ping, you're still alive?" Liu Sishan pulled back her hand and asked in surprise.

"I should still be alive, but my current state is a little strange. Let me get used to it first."

The sensation was extremely peculiar. His body seemed to have become a single whole.

No.

It was more like his body had become a mass of water.

No, that wasn't right either.

How should he describe it?

Anyway, there was no distinction between head, neck, torso, arms, legs, and so on. Yet he seemed able to form a head, neck, torso, arms, and legs at any time. He could even grow countless heads and become entirely made of heads.

This was a little hard to control.

Zhang Ping tried his best to adjust. Slowly, he controlled himself to grow an arm, then another arm beside it.

No.

That was wrong.

He first grew shoulders above the arms.

Liu Sishan stood nearby and watched Zhang Ping gradually return to a humanoid shape.

Finally, after half an hour, Zhang Ping had completely recovered, though he was now a humanoid made of water rather than a human being.

Looking at the water-man Zhang Ping before her, Liu Sishan asked, "Zhang Ping, can you change back?"

"I should be able to, but I haven't found the trick yet. Wait while I appraise myself first," Zhang Ping answered.

He raised his hand and immediately activated Appraisal Technique.

[Appraisal successful]

[Summoned Beast: Zhang Ping]

[Master: Zhang Ping]

[Race: Human]

[Potential: ??????]

[Lifespan: 99]

[Rank: Novice Awakened]

[Level: 9]

[Talents]

[Contract Gem: Can consume stamina + mental power to condense a Contract Gem. Once a target willingly accepts a Contract Gem, their life, soul, and consciousness will all be governed by the summoner. At the same time, they will gain the summoner's potential and luck enhancement. After taking it for the first time, every subsequent dose will slightly increase their own potential, with a 1% chance of awakening a new talent. Note: A talent ability obtained by Summoner Zhang Ping through overdrafting his intelligence, potential, and luck. Although extremely powerful, it also possesses some enormous flaw. Perhaps being too ambitious is not a good thing.]

[Absolute Command: You possess absolute authority over your summoned beasts. Your commands cannot be disobeyed by summoned beasts.]

[Absolute Obedience: You absolutely obey the summoner's commands. You will faithfully carry out every command issued by the summoner.]

[Collector's Edition Appraisal Technique: Can appraise a target, with a 60% chance of obtaining the target's information. After succeeding on the first appraisal, the success rate when appraising the same target afterward will increase to 100%. Note: A talent ability born from the thirst for knowledge shared by Summoned Beast Zhang Ping and Summoner Zhang Ping.]

[Nethermist Nightwalker: Gains night vision. Presence is greatly reduced at night, movement speed is greatly increased, and body weight is reduced. Completely invisible while in shadows. When the body is shrouded in nethermist, presence is drastically reduced.]

[Fire Eater: Can restore stamina by consuming flames, while converting excess flames into fire-element energy stored within the body. After releasing the energy, the user will temporarily gain a flame-wreathed effect until their fire-element energy reserves are exhausted.

This ability will gradually increase the user's resistance to high temperatures.

Note: Potential is ultimately only potential. Only when it is converted into strength does it become true power.]

[Wind Whisperer: The wind will bring you all kinds of information, whether you wish to know it or not.

Note: There are no walls without cracks, and no secrets unknown to the wind.]

[Other-Eater: When consuming special items, there is a 10% chance of obtaining a corresponding special physique.

Note: Why does this kid eat everything?]

[Nethermist Body: Can absorb the fear of living creatures and convert it into controllable nethermist.

Note: Your fear, my food!]

[Pure Water Body: The body can transform into a pure water form. In pure water form, it can absorb moisture to restore stamina and injuries.]

He really had gained another ability.

Not only had his strength increased tremendously overnight, but his abilities had also become far more well-rounded.

He was now completely confident that he could challenge opponents above his rank. Forget Intermediate Awakened—he felt that even against High-Level Awakened and high-level Mutated Beasts, he had a chance of winning.

"Well? Can you change back?" Liu Sishan asked worriedly.

Zhang Ping's transformation had happened because of her. If he could only live in this neither-human-nor-ghost form from now on, she had a responsibility to help him recover, no matter the cost!

"I can!"

Zhang Ping answered with a smile.

The description of the ability made it clear that his body could transform into pure water form. Then pure water form could definitely change back as well.

However, he still needed to study how to revert. After all, this ability had appeared out of nowhere. He did not even know whether it was an effect of the Contract Gem or Other-Eater.

"Nethermist Body, Pure Water Body..."

If Nethermist Body was truly an effect of Other-Eater, then Pure Water Body was most likely an effect of Other-Eater as well.

So far, most of the abilities from the Contract Gem had been various "-ers": Nightwalker, Fire Eater, Wind Whisperer, and Other-Eater. The abilities brought by Other-Eater, on the other hand, were various "Bodies."

Zhang Ping guessed silently.

He did not dare say he was right, since Appraisal Technique was still an exception.

However, based on that guess, he believed Nethermist Body and Pure Water Body must have something in common. He tried to focus, carefully feeling his body. Gradually, his body began to shift toward a human form.

In the blink of an eye, he changed from a water-man back into a human.

"Got it!"

He opened his eyes, clenched his fists, and laughed happily.

Then he realized that all his injuries had healed. His body was clean and spotless.

"Put your clothes on first!" Liu Sishan threw Zhang Ping's spare clothes at him, then turned around and faced away from him.

Zhang Ping immediately felt awkward. He hurriedly put on his clothes, only to discover that he was sitting on his old clothes, which were covered in a layer of dust.

Did Pure Water Body repel impurities too?

Thinking this, he transformed an arm into water and swept at the dust on the ground. Sure enough, it remained spotless.

"Keep eating the Salt Frost Fruit. Don't waste it."

Liu Sishan turned around and saw one of Zhang Ping's arms still maintained in pure water form. She spoke irritably.

She admitted that she was a little jealous.

Zhang Ping's growth was simply too fast. Pure water form in particular was an ability she had dreamed of possessing.

If she had pure water form, her strength would rise by at least two hundred percent. Even against a Top-Tier Awakened, she would be confident of winning.

And it had only been one night.

Sure enough, Zhang Ping's ability was Infinite Tier, not the Useless Tier that the school had appraised.

Infinite Tier was far too powerful.

Possessing an Infinite Tier ability practically meant being destined to become strong.

Just like the captain she respected most, Situ Shibai. Not only did he have an exceptionally long lifespan, but his abilities were nearly omnipotent. He was the stabilizing pillar of the entire team.

However, she did not envy others for having stronger abilities than hers.

Because Situ Shibai had once said that every Awakened craved power far more than ordinary people. Every ability was feedback from the deepest desires in an Awakened's heart, and the more powerful the ability, the greater the price that had to be paid.

Some prices were clearly marked.

Others could neither be seen nor touched. Only when the moment came to pay would one understand: this was the price!

The night passed without incident.

Early the next morning, Zhang Ping was awakened by Liu Sishan.

The two arrived in an uninhabited valley. Zhang Ping ate a compressed energy bar and asked, "Sister Sisi, what are we doing today?"

"First, we'll test the new abilities you gained. Your strength has increased too quickly, and I'm no longer sure whether the plan I made before will still be useful to you," Liu Sishan answered.

Zhang Ping's face immediately fell. He said bitterly, "Sister Sisi, I actually think your arrangements aren't very useful. If I hadn't been lucky last night, that rabbit alone would have killed me."

"..."

Liu Sishan said nothing. She merely looked calmly at Zhang Ping.

The two remained silent.

Silent.

In the end, Zhang Ping raised his hands in surrender. "Fine, fine. Let's do it, then. Test away."

"Then let's begin."

Waterlight immediately swirled around Liu Sishan, and spheres of water rapidly formed.

A water whip lashed toward Zhang Ping. His body shifted into pure water form, and without dodging or blocking, he took the blow head-on. Once the water whip merged into his body, Liu Sishan immediately felt that some of the water under her control had vanished.

As expected... this ability perfectly counters mine!

Awakened, especially elemental Awakened, naturally restrained one another.

When she had seen Zhang Ping's pure water form last night, she had already had a feeling that her ordinary attacks would find it difficult to threaten him.

Zhang Ping's body was entirely made of water, while the only water she could influence was water under her own control. She could not influence water in nature, nor could she influence water created by other ability users.

Next, she tried attacking Zhang Ping with ice spikes and boiling water, but after a series of attacks, Zhang Ping remained completely unharmed.

Though Zhang Ping's screams were especially loud whenever he was attacked by ice spikes and boiling water.

"Sister Sisi, are we done?" Zhang Ping asked weakly.

Pure water form was not actually invincible. Flames, lightning, ice, boiling water, and even fists could injure him. It was only that he could recover from ordinary injuries by absorbing water molecules from the air, making it appear as though he had not been hurt.

But that recovery had limits. Once those limits were exceeded, he could still be beaten to death.

Liu Sishan created a bubble of water around herself and said, "Now attack me. Let me see how strong your attacks are."

"Oh, I like this one." Zhang Ping nodded repeatedly.

The instant he finished speaking, a Nethermist Flying Knife appeared an inch before Liu Sishan's brow, while the protective water bubble around her had already been pierced.

Liu Sishan stared in shock at the flying knife hovering before her brow. It took her a while to recover.

If Zhang Ping had intended to kill her just now, she probably would not even have had time to react.

Although her carelessness had played a part, nethermist was simply too terrifying. If a High-Level Awakened underestimated it, they could easily suffer a crushing defeat from this ability.

"Sister Sisi, why does the Nethermist Mutated Beast's ability deal damage beyond its rank?" Zhang Ping beckoned, and the Nethermist Flying Knife turned into black mist before returning to his hand. Then he asked.

Recovering from her shock, Liu Sishan answered, "Some scholars once speculated that Nethermist Mutated Beasts might be descendants of King-level Mutated Beasts. Because they inherited a certain trait from Kings, their abilities deal damage beyond their rank to all beings below King level."

"Kings?"

Zhang Ping could not help thinking of Prince Yue.

If Nethermist Mutated Beasts were so extraordinary because they possessed King Bloodline—

What about Prince Yue?

And what about the Moon King, who was himself a King?

Zhang Ping did not dare continue thinking about it, because the more he thought, the more despair he felt.

He did not even know whether Mingzhu City could still be saved.