Chapter 415: Power of the Wind
Zhou Ning understood immediately—red-haired Robinson was indeed connected to both the Church of the Sea God and the military. Most likely, he was another example of a pirate who'd been pardoned and taken into service, using his role as a passenger ship captain to monitor this sea route.
Just like the bounty system, this was one of the Church and the three coastal kingdoms' methods of maintaining naval dominance and combating piracy.
As for why Zhou Ning had spared "Hurricane" Spike and "Sea Serpent" Steinbeck, there were two reasons. First, living pirates were far more valuable than corpses—the Church could extract important intelligence on the Northland pirates from them. Second, the two were too badly injured to cause trouble. As a former great pirate himself, Robinson was no weakling. If he couldn't handle two half-dead captives, he'd have no right to call himself captain.
After slaying the Wind General Gallagher, the bad luck from the Lucky Clover continued for more than an hour—headwinds, leaks in the hull, and sudden storms. In short, plenty of noise but little real harm. If Gallagher hadn't genuinely posed such a huge threat, Zhou Ning might have thought the Clover's "misfortune" effect was just a blessing in disguise this time.
Still, when the three-hour duration finally ended, Zhou Ning couldn't help exhaling in relief. He swore to himself for the umpteenth time never to use it again—the side effects were just too torturous.
He returned to his cabin, entered the washroom, and took care of himself with his usual idol-like composure. Afterward, he took off his storm-soaked coat and hat, hung them neatly on the rack, and opened his control panel to check the escort mission results.
[Escort Mission: Protect the Wings of Freedom — Completed]
[West Continent Reputation +5]
[New Regional Reputation Unlocked!]
[Location: West Continent]
[Legend Rating: 8]
[Regional Fame: 5]
[Rank: Renowned]
[Claim reward?]
The regional reputation unlock didn't surprise Zhou Ning. The West Continent and East Continent were separate zones; reputations were independent. Only when players traveled to a new continent would its corresponding reputation system activate. Regional fame was tied to the player's starting reputation with local factions—the higher one's fame, the higher the initial favorability.
Moreover, once a player's regional fame reached 10, it converted into 1 point of Legend Rating, one of the few reliable ways to earn Legend points aside from participating in major version events.
However, earning regional fame was notoriously difficult. If he hadn't just defeated Gallagher, Zhou Ning wouldn't have gained a full 5 points in one go—half a Legend point in a single step.
After claiming his mission reward, the panel displayed new notifications:
[You completed a B-rank mission: Protect Wings of Freedom. You gained 178,500 EXP and 1 Random Reward.]
[Drawing reward… Draw complete.]
[Please choose one of the following three rewards:]
[1. Hidden Template Random Card ×1]
[2. Extract one of Wind General Gallagher's abilities (Skill/Feat)]
[3. Spider Sense (Cosmetic) ×1]
For a moment, Zhou Ning wondered if he had somehow reactivated the Lucky Clover—three-choice rewards were exceedingly rare.
Still, the third option was out immediately. Now that he had both the Alchemical Armor and the Batman Suit, the Spider-Man outfit wasn't remotely necessary. Besides, he couldn't see himself wearing something as garishly red-and-blue as that.
That left the first two.
The second choice was undeniably tempting—though a bit shameless, really. Killing a man and then robbing his corpse of its powers felt like squeezing every last drop from the dead.
The first option, however, allowed him to forcibly draw a random "Transcendent Template" in Simulation Mode—like Lord of the Seven Seas, Lich King Joker, White Emperor, Traveler, First Emperor, or the newly unlocked Over Heaven.
Every one of those templates was absurdly powerful—drawing any of them practically guaranteed a full clear. But after some thought, Zhou Ning chose the second option anyway. Shameless or not, it was practical. Hidden Templates were all about luck, while Gallagher, being nearly a Demigod, had to possess some truly legendary skills or feats.
[You selected Option 2: Extract one of Wind General Gallagher's abilities (Skill/Feat).]
[Notice: Gallagher's classes were Shaman Priest/Reader. Some skill effects have been automatically adjusted for compatibility with your current class.]
[Select one of the following five abilities as your reward:]
[1. Arachnoform – Skill: When HP drops below 40%, activate Arachnoform. All stats +50%, Wind Affinity +33%, Sanity −20%. Grants a unique skill set. Energy/Focus decreases by 0.5% per second. When Energy/Focus reaches zero, Arachnoform ends.]
[2. Wind Summon – Skill: Summon two colliding cyclones that merge into a tornado. Has a chance to pull in all nearby enemies, inflicting Laceration / Weightlessness / Confusion. Success rate depends on Spirit and environment. Cooldown: 35 seconds.]
[3. Wall of Tempest – Skill: Creates a 5-second Wind Wall that blocks projectiles and boosts defense. Consumes Focus over time. When damage exceeds a threshold, the wall shatters, dealing wind-blade damage to nearby enemies. Can also be launched forward to blow away targets. Cooldown: 20 seconds.]
[4. Wind Blades – Skill: Generates several homing wind blades that inflict heavy slashing damage. Damage scales with Spirit and environmental conditions.]
[5. Power of the Wind – Feat: Enhances your Wind Affinity. All your skills now gain minor knockback effects imbued with wind energy.]
Every single one of these was something Zhou Ning had seen Gallagher use before—each had left a strong impression on him. The effects had clearly been modified for compatibility, since Zhou Ning wasn't a Shaman and couldn't commune with elemental spirits, nor could he become a follower of the Dark Spider Mother, Matalita.
Fortunately, all the options were well-balanced and suited to his playstyle.
The first one, Arachnoform, was immediately off the table—it looked hideous and completely clashed with his polished idol persona, not to mention its ties to the Dark Spider Mother made it the least cost-effective choice.
Among the next three skills, Zhou Ning's favorite was Wind Summon—offense and defense combined, practically a divine technique. He'd seen Gallagher use it mid-battle—it was instantaneous. The only downside was the long cooldown.
The other two attack skills were decent, but since Zhou Ning fought mainly with firearms, he knew their usage would be limited.
That left the final feat—Power of the Wind.
In Zhou Ning's judgment, it was clearly the best choice. Though the feat's grade wasn't listed, its description implied at least a boss-tier or higher feat. Anything that enhanced all skills simultaneously was exceedingly rare—and unquestionably worth taking.
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