Chapter 15: The Trait "Scales of the Sea"

After a long while, the drizzling rain finally extinguished the raging flames.

The town’s central square was covered in blackened, scorched marks. Scorched, withered bodies of the native monsters lay strewn everywhere, thin wisps of white smoke curling from them.

Occasionally, a few aberrant creatures that had not yet died would writhe feebly, struggling to rise, only to have a broad-bladed chainsaw sword cleave through the rain and bring their misery to an abrupt end, severing body from head.

A gloved black hand gripped the hilt, raised the chainsaw sword, and moved on to the next target.

“The chainsaw sword’s teeth won’t turn; it’s only a little better than a regular blade, and it’s heavy for me. If I fight for too long, my arm will go numb,” muttered Li Nanke as he worked, his movements swift and precise. Soon, he had cleared all lingering threats around the square.

The chainsaw sword left by Lady Liliana needed a specific rune bestowed by the Church to operate its teeth—only an Armored Monk could unleash its true ferocity.

[Chainsaw Sword of the Slayer]
[Type: Weapon/Blade]
[Quality: Common]
[Rating: 16/100]
[Details: An unusual weapon whose serrated teeth are meant to rotate along the blade, driven by a mechanism—like a chainsaw. However, this weapon lacks a power source and requires some supernatural force to function. Because of this, its fearsome potential is greatly diminished.]
[Remark: For those unable to wield a chainsaw sword properly, it’s just a heavy, single-edged blade, maybe even worse... Just give it up; stop showing off.]

Reinhold had fallen unconscious from severe wounds and blood loss, yet his formidable Armored Monk’s constitution allowed his breathing to gradually steady after Li Nanke quickly bandaged him. It seemed his life was no longer in danger, but the injuries were so grave that he would be out of action for a long time.

After the battle in the square, Li Nanke felt a vast accumulation of source energy within his ‘Self’ mark—a result of the many monsters around the plaza, especially the ‘Advanced Seaborne Chosen.’ That one creature alone had provided more source energy than all the others combined.

However, he also noticed that the source energy gained from ordinary native monsters wasn’t constant; the more he absorbed, the less he gained each time...

Having dealt with all threats, Li Nanke approached the corpse of the Advanced Seaborne Chosen.

The torrential, superheated metal rain had melted holes all over the body, leaving it covered in blackened scars. Yet within those brittle, filthy scales, one remained intact, glowing with a soft white radiance.

With his previous experience, Li Nanke knew immediately—this was the node reward: the unique trait, ‘Scale of the Sea!’

He drew a deep breath, grasped the scale, and wrenched it free.

At the same time, that mad, chaotic whispering echoed again in his mind. Gritting his teeth, fists clenched, Li Nanke endured the mental assault that came with the ‘Scale of the Sea’ trait.

In a daze, he found himself alone at the nighttime harbor. The cold moonlight could not pierce the pitch-black sea.

He was helpless to stop himself from plunging into the waters. The icy sea closed over him, crushing darkness and immense pressure bearing down.

His eardrums began to ache, pain stabbing at his temples, while his chest, torso, and limbs were all squeezed by the tremendous weight of the water, as if a massive, corpulent figure were pressing down on him—an intolerable oppression.

The deeper he sank, the more the pressure grew, as though it would squeeze his very organs out of his body.

Dread and despair engulfed him, nearly shattering his will.

In his final, fading consciousness, his vision blurred. He thought he saw some colossal, scaly being glide past him.

Older and vaster than anything else, even a single scale from its body could fill the entire field of vision of any onlooker...

Suddenly, Li Nanke awoke with a jolt, breathing hard and shaken. When the psychic assault finally subsided, a diamond-shaped mark was etched into his mind—‘Scale of the Sea.’

The diamond-shaped mark appeared beside ‘Breath of the Lake,’ the two unconnected but both subordinate to ‘Bestiality,’ like two branching limbs sprouting from the same trunk.

[Trait: ‘Scale of the Sea’]
[Subordination: Bestiality]
[Rank: 0]
[Level: 0/10]
[Details: This trait allows a layer of illusory scales to manifest beneath your skin at vital points, providing excellent protection against physical attacks, though its defense against energy attacks is lacking.]
[As the trait’s level rises, the coverage of the subdermal scales will increase, and its defense will strengthen. Eventually, the scales can temporarily become physical, offering astonishing protection...]
[Remark: All the dragons in the village have given you their hardest scales. This sea-scale armor is indestructible—rely on it!]

Subdermal illusory scales, enhanced defense, and the possibility of temporary physical scales...

Whether it was the underwater breathing of ‘Breath of the Lake,’ or the tangible armor of ‘Scale of the Sea,’ it seemed that only at a very high trait level—perhaps at the maximum level of ten—could one unlock their ultimate abilities.

Now, Li Nanke had accumulated a wealth of source energy in his ‘Self’ mark. After a brief consideration, he began channeling it into ‘Scale of the Sea.’

With ‘Breath of the Lake’ at a higher level, his lung infection could be completely cured, but at level five it no longer hindered him in combat.

Compared to healing his lungs or breathing underwater, upgrading his defensive capabilities was the urgent need. After all, his top priority was surviving the Black Dream.

According to Reinhold, the docks were infested with far more native monsters than the central square. Although armed with a thermite rifle—a deadly weapon—Li Nanke’s self-preservation was woefully lacking. One glancing blow or thrown weapon could easily cripple or kill him.

As he poured in the source energy, the ‘Scale of the Sea’ trait began to shimmer with light.

Li Nanke felt a tingling and numbness spread through his body, goosebumps rising as ripples seemed to flow across his flesh, as if something was growing beneath the skin.

The uncomfortable sensation started from his left chest, spreading gradually over his upper body. Only when the source energy was exhausted did the tingling and itchiness finally fade away.

[Trait: ‘Scale of the Sea’]
[Level: 0 → 6 (81%)]

He carefully examined himself, pinching his skin but finding nothing unusual—neither to the touch nor in appearance did he differ from an ordinary person.

He tried punching his own chest hard, wincing involuntarily. “Damn, that hurt.”

Painful, yes—but the protection of the Sea’s Scale was impressive. A heavy blow that would have left a huge bruise or swelling left him merely a little breathless, without any real injury.

He tried slicing his arm with a blade. The skin split and blood welled up, but once the edge bit into the dermis, it met enormous resistance, as if he’d struck sheet metal.

After some experiments, he concluded: the Sea’s Scale offered the best protection against slashing attacks, with lesser resistance against blunt force and piercing weapons.

Possessing the ‘Scale of the Sea’ was like wearing an invisible suit of armor with superb defense—no added weight, no hindrance to movement, and twenty-four-hour protection that didn’t even need to be removed for sleep.