Starting Unlimited Evolution from Grinding

Chapter 278: Skill Fusion, and External Participants in the Hunting Competition?

Upon reaching the city gates, they retrieved their carriage from the storage shop as usual.

Eve and her group also had their own carriage... though it wasn't provided by the academy, but rather purchased collectively by the students themselves.

While the academy was quite accommodating to students and offered many benefits, it wasn't a nanny after all. Many aspects still had to be handled by the students themselves.

Fortunately, these students were among the top performers in their year, and their financial situations were relatively comfortable. So, the quality of the carriage they bought was quite decent, at least its speed wouldn't be too slow.

The two carriages traveled side by side, leaving the Royal Capital and heading straight for the Silent Forest.

The Royal Capital was relatively farther from the Silent Forest compared to Fargard City, so just reaching the forest's vicinity would take nearly a full day.

This time, of course, couldn't be wasted. During every journey for practical training, these students would review the content taught by their mentors in the previous stage, repeatedly memorizing and understanding it, digesting the theoretical knowledge and attempting to apply it during the subsequent training.

As students in the academy's second academic stage, these were essential basic procedures.

And these top students within the second stage naturally performed these tasks even more diligently and thoroughly.

Milun, being a mage, had the additional option of meditation compared to her companions, which was one of the perks of magic-based professions.For physical-based professions, improving skill proficiency or honing techniques basically only came through practice and combat, meaning they couldn't engage in such activities during travel.

Magic-based professions, however, were different. Manipulating mana and constructing mana circuits could still be practiced while sitting in a carriage. They could also enter a meditative state to adjust their condition and increase their mana.

Of course, increasing mana solely through meditation was quite slow, requiring long-term accumulation.

Unless there were sufficiently powerful, corresponding elemental materials as assistance, which could accelerate mana gain during meditation.

For example, if there were Epic Level magical creature materials of the fire element, using them as the energy core to construct a mana-accumulation formation and then meditating within that formation could greatly increase the speed at which Milun gained mana.

If an Epic Level magical material was completely consumed, it could directly increase her mana by 3-5 points, or even more.

However, such an operation would deplete the mana within the material. Once the material's mana was consumed, it could no longer be used as material for forging or alchemy, meaning it couldn't be reused. Even if forced, the effects would be greatly diminished.

Therefore, this was a very extravagant cultivation method, similar to physical-based professions consuming high-level magical creature meat and special crops.

In short, aside from those taking turns observing the surroundings, the students were basically studying throughout the journey.

The situation on Lin Mo's side wasn't much different.

Originally, during travel, Finnie would often read books related to the Priest profession or the church. Sherfilia spent most of her time observing their surroundings, vigilant for possible accidents. Only Ellie would get bored; she wasn't fond of reading, so she could only pester Lin Mo to talk.

But this time, after attending classes at the Warrior Academy for a few days, she was now also seriously reviewing the content taught by the mentor in the previous days.

Although it wasn't systematic teaching, physical-based professions, especially straightforward ones like the Warrior, inherently had a lower theoretical barrier compared to mages. Plus, because Flora had specifically put in a good word, their class mentor also took good care of her, often explaining previous teaching content specifically for her.

So, Ellie had still learned quite a bit.

Since everyone was studying diligently, Lin Mo naturally shouldn't disturb them. Coincidentally, he had just borrowed three skill scrolls using his points, and now was the time to study them.

Physical-based profession skills posed little difficulty for Lin Mo. Taking the Knight profession skill scroll, he read it from beginning to end, and a very clear understanding formed in his mind.

Attempting to mobilize the Qi and Blood within his body and circulate it according to the description on the skill scroll, he quickly completed the route required by the skill.

"Skill [Endurance] learned, gained +2 Constitution basic attribute points!"

A green excellent-grade skill, granting 2 basic attribute points upon learning.

[Endurance]: Consumes Qi and Blood to grant oneself the "Endurance" state. During the duration, reduces stamina consumption by 10% and weakens collision impact by 10% (including pressure and reaction forces applied by enemies).

This skill was still quite important for the Knight profession.

But its main function wasn't really in reducing stamina consumption. The Knight profession's main attribute was Constitution, so Professionals in this class generally had ample stamina. In most situations, stamina consumption wasn't a major concern.

In comparison, the more important effect for them was the latter 10% reduction in collision impact.

Although the Knight profession gained some Strength attribute upon leveling up and learning most dual-attribute skills, their Strength still couldn't compare to Warriors who had Strength as their main attribute. This often led to them being suppressed by the opponent's formidable strength during head-on confrontations with Warriors.

Even if the opponent couldn't inflict much substantial damage, the powerful force could continuously knock them back. In certain scenarios, this might prevent them from protecting their teammates in time, or even cause them to lose grip on their shield or lose balance.

And the [Endurance] skill could, to some extent, solve this problem.

For Lin Mo, this skill was the icing on the cake. It wasn't of tremendous use, but it wasn't useless either. The reason he chose it was thinking about leveling it up. After evolution, it might turn into a passive skill.

For the current Lin Mo, passive skills were much more useful than active ones.

After all, he already had more active skills than he could use, often unsure which one to employ.

Next were the two Priest profession skills.

One was [Constitution Increase], the other was [Agility Increase], both similar to the [Strength Increase] skill Lin Mo had learned before.

The learning difficulty of these two Priest profession skills was much higher than [Endurance].

Lin Mo hadn't used the light element that many times, and his proficiency with it certainly wasn't as high as with the fire and ice elements. Fortunately, these two skills were only green excellent-grade. So, after some attempts, the mana circulation gradually became smoother.

"Skill [Agility Increase] learned, gained +2 Mana basic attribute points!"

"Skill [Constitution Increase] learned, gained +2 Mana basic attribute points!"

The two skills together gave a total of 4 basic Mana attribute points. Currently, Lin Mo's basic Mana attribute was 135 points, only 1 point away from leveling up to Level 12 again.

These three stat-boosting skills could help Lin Mo improve several physical attributes considerably.

The trouble was, he now had many status-type skills. Before each fight, he had to activate them one by one. Moreover, the durations of these skills were relatively limited. If a battle lasted a bit longer, he also had to remember to refresh them.

With Lin Mo's current Spirit attribute, he could certainly manage these things. But being able to do it was one thing; it still required diverting some attention and was quite bothersome.

If only these skills could be integrated, combined into one skill...

Just as Lin Mo was thinking this, a prompt suddenly appeared before his eyes:

"[Strength Increase], [Constitution Increase], and [Agility Increase]—same-type skills have been automatically fused, obtaining the blue Exceptional-Grade special skill [Attribute Increase]."

What's this?

Lin Mo immediately focused his gaze, studying it for a while before discovering the so-called skill fusion mechanism.

It essentially made using the skills more convenient. By consuming triple the mana and directly using [Attribute Increase], he could gain the effects of all three skills. There weren't any additional effects.

Of course, correspondingly, it didn't affect the individual proficiency and level growth of these three skills, nor did it impact the basic attribute rewards obtained upon leveling them up.

Overall, it saved some trouble, which was good.

The initial part of the journey after leaving the Royal Capital was very peaceful. They didn't encounter any magical creatures, nor were there any bandits.

The security near the Royal Capital was good, not chaotic like in smaller, remote areas.

However, after the carriage had traveled for about half a day, gradually moving farther from the Royal Capital, the surroundings were no longer so tranquil.

From time to time, they would come across some wild beasts or low-level magical creatures. Lin Mo had spent a good while researching matters related to combining mage and warrior skills, and had just meditated for a period. Feeling bored and stifled, he immediately went to the front of the carriage, took out the previously purchased Bow of Hurricane from his Spatial Ring, and nocked an arrow.

The [Eagle Eye] skill and [Attribute Increase] were both activated. There was still some distance to the forest. Lin Mo currently had plenty of mana and didn't mind spending a bit. He might as well use them to gain some proficiency.

Of course, he also activated the [Rapid Shot] skill.

[Returning Arrow]

A fully buffed arrow shot towards the magical creature ahead, predictably piercing its heart in one shot. The arrow then performed its returning motion, also finishing off another fleeing magical creature nearby.

They were all magical creatures below Level 1, so Lin Mo couldn't be bothered to specifically stop the carriage to collect the loot.

The carriage continued its rapid journey. Taking advantage of the skill effects still being active, Lin Mo kept observing the surroundings, shooting arrows at any magical creatures he saw, killing them in passing.

This did have a feeling of hunting...

When encountering more valuable "prey," Lin Mo would use the [Shadow Split] skill, sending the clone to collect it. After collecting, they would swap positions, putting the items into the Spatial Ring, and then swap back.

Part of the reason Lin Mo chose the evolution route for [Shadow Split] that allowed two position swaps was for convenience in situations like this.

By evening, they finally reached the edge of the Silent Forest. Lin Mo's [Returning Arrow] had also leveled up from 3 to 4, not far from reaching Level 5.

However, it was no longer suitable to continue advancing at this time, so they simply set up camp at the forest's edge to rest for the night.

In such a place, there was little need to worry about encountering dangerous magical creatures, so everyone was relatively relaxed. After completing the necessary preparations, they split into small groups of two or three and went "hunting" nearby.

Although they had brought food from the Royal Capital, since they were at the forest, of course, eating fresh was more enjoyable. Moreover, the stockpiled food could serve as insurance against unexpected situations.

Soon, the teams that went out returned with various prey like wild rabbits, pheasants, and wild boars.

"The fire is ready. Hurry and process them, wash them at the river over there, and put them on to roast."

The students were very familiar with these tasks.

Although they were top students of the Empire, because the academy pursued a philosophy of practical combat and comprehensive ability development, they often trained and operated outdoors. Naturally, they had long since learned all the necessary skills.

Lin Mo directly hunted a wild ox.

Compared to wild rabbits or boars, this thing was more exciting, tasted better, and was larger, so there was no worry about not having enough to eat.

These relatively ordinary animals didn't contain much energy within them, so they could still eat a lot.

Especially physical-based Professionals could truly eat to their heart's content.

Lin Mo snapped his fingers, igniting the bonfire. Sherfilia and Ellie were already processing the wild ox, while Finnie arranged the simple tableware and brought out the seasonings.

Soon, the two returned with the cut steaks.

Looking at the genuine steak that was as large as his torso, Lin Mo scratched his head and made the fire a bit larger.

The steak sizzled over the fire, and before long, a rich aroma wafted out.

"Wow, it smells so good over there..."

Some students were immediately attracted, their gazes turning.

Since the wild ox Lin Mo hunted was large enough, he waved them over. "Come, let's eat together."

After a burst of cheers, these students brought over their roasted rabbit and wild boar meat. Everyone sat in a circle, beginning to enjoy this barbecue feast.

After eating to their satisfaction, they naturally started chatting. Unsurprisingly, the main topic of their conversation was related to the upcoming Hunting Competition.

"I heard this year's Hunting Competition might be held earlier."

"Right, I heard that too... Originally, based on past experience, it should still be over ten days away. But this year, due to the increasing instability in some areas of the Silent Forest, the competition date was moved up a few days. There's less than a week left now."

"After we finish this mission and return, it should be about time to head to Fargard City..."

"Thinking about it this way makes me a bit nervous! After preparing for so long, we're finally going to compete!"

"I wonder if we can achieve good results in the Hunting Competition."

"I heard many outsiders are coming to participate in this Hunting Competition."

"What's strange about that? Doesn't it happen every time?"

"No, I'm not referring to people from other cities... but people from outside the Kingdom."

"People from outside the Kingdom can also participate in the Hunting Competition?"

That person was shocked, and Lin Mo also looked over with curiosity.

Although strictly speaking, he wasn't a person of the Doria Kingdom either.

"It's news that just came out a few days ago... It seems because the Hunting Competition has become increasingly popular in recent years, especially after Mentor Flora won first place last year, which greatly boosted its fame. The competition's reputation rose another level. Now, people in several surrounding kingdoms know about our Hunting Competition."

"So other kingdoms have also sent people? That's not good..."

If the opponents were only from within the Kingdom, these students from the Royal National Academy actually didn't feel much pressure.

It wasn't arrogance, but at least over ninety percent of the most elite young talents within the Doria Kingdom were studying at the academy.

They were very familiar with the opponents they might face and could easily determine their own standing.

But adding people from other kingdoms was different.

The Doria Kingdom, as a small, remote kingdom, was considered relatively weak in national power even among small kingdoms. The entire country couldn't produce a single combatant above the Transcendent Level.

The surrounding kingdoms, whether it was the Lisad Kingdom or the Donis Kingdom, were more prosperous than their kingdom, not to mention the large kingdom a bit farther away—the Lonia Kingdom.

The Doria Kingdom was a small kingdom. The surrounding Lisad and Donis Kingdoms were small-to-medium kingdoms, much more prosperous than theirs, but still struggled to rank as medium kingdoms, let alone large ones.

The prosperity of the Lonia Kingdom was unimaginable for a small kingdom!

Just the Heroic Realm experts, which the Doria Kingdom lacked, numbered a full four in the Lonia Kingdom! The gap in the number of Transcendent Level experts was similarly vast.

Such a prosperous and large kingdom like Lonia undoubtedly had countless geniuses, far surpassing the Doria Kingdom.

Even though the top geniuses of such a large kingdom might look down on their Hunting Competition and might not participate, just some of their small-to-medium level geniuses would be enough to make the competition much fiercer.

"Hah, I wonder what that guy Satt thinks hearing this news? Still fantasizing about taking first place? Does he dare think about it now?"

"With his level of strength, if not for his father, he originally couldn't have won the Hunting Competition anyway!"

Talking and talking, they mentioned the son of Duke Morin again.

It seemed his reputation in the academy was truly terrible. At least in the eyes of a considerable number of students, he was scum.

Eve didn't speak. Her expression was somewhat grave.

Although she had come to terms with some things now, her competitive spirit wouldn't be extinguished just like that.

She still wanted to give her all in this Hunting Competition. If she couldn't get first, then she'd aim for second.

But now...

It seemed even second place might not be guaranteed.

"Don't worry, Sister Eve."

A male student noticed her expression, immediately realized something, and opened his mouth to comfort her. "With your talent, Sister Eve, even placed in the Lonia Kingdom, you'd still be a top-tier genius... If their kingdom's top few geniuses don't come, no one can compete with you."

"Yeah, Big Sister Eve, we still have a chance!"

It seemed they weren't discouraged by this.

Eve also nodded, clenching her fist. "I will win!"

Lin Mo, watching from the side, was momentarily stunned.

Although the words were positive, why did he feel something was off?

It faintly reminded him of a certain "old acquaintance."

He wanted to say something, but speaking up now didn't seem appropriate... It felt a bit like showing off.

"Speaking of which, it's fortunate Brother Lin Mo is here. Otherwise, the pressure on us would really be quite big."

"Indeed... If the championship of our kingdom's Hunting Competition was taken by people from other kingdoms, the loss of face would be huge."

The Kingdom's already limited prestige would be trampled underfoot once more.

"Haha, thinking about the expressions of those people from other kingdoms when they see Brother Lin's strength, I'm suddenly looking forward to them coming..."

"True!"

Their previous discussion had always deliberately excluded Lin Mo.

After all, this completely "overpowered" existence was, in their eyes, the default champion.

Never mind the Kingdom, even if geniuses from the Empire came, it would be hard to find someone stronger than him.

Those guys, just wait to be crushed into doubting their life choices!

"Alright, it's about time. Let's stop chatting here. I still need to review what was taught before. I didn't have time to practice during the day, always traveling..."

"Shall we practice together? We can spar."

"Sure!"

...

Lin Mo watched, somewhat bewildered, as these students who were just happily chatting immediately started grinding intensely, momentarily at a loss.

Those who could make a name for themselves in an academy teeming with geniuses were indeed all grinders.

Everyone was a talent monster. When talent couldn't completely crush the competition, wanting to stand out naturally relied on effort.

Including Eve, even though she stood at the academy's pinnacle, she didn't dare relax in the slightest and also went to practice her swordsmanship.

Lin Mo shook his head helplessly. Thankfully, he didn't need to grind.

Then he turned his head and saw Ellie, who was just laughing and joking, also pick up her sword to practice. Finnie used light element to illuminate the area, attempting to learn magic.

Even the little maid Sherfilia had disappeared somewhere...

"Hiss—!"

What's the meaning of this? Everyone's grinding now?

This made him feel too embarrassed to just lie back and relax.

Helplessly scratching his head, Lin Mo could only sigh and close his eyes to meditate.

Of course, there were still people responsible for observing the surroundings.

[Primary Meditation Technique] proficiency +1

"Skill [Primary Meditation Technique] Lv3 (40/40) leveled up!"

"Current skill [Primary Meditation Technique] Lv4 (1/100)"

"Gained +3 Mana basic attribute points!"

As Lin Mo's Mana attribute and level continuously increased, he became more and more proficient with meditation, and its effects improved as well.

The speed of [Primary Meditation Technique] proficiency growth also accelerated accordingly, finally reaching Level 4.

This was precisely the level at which blue Exceptional-Grade skills granted attribute points. Moreover, the recent meditation, combined with previous accumulation, helped him gain 1 more basic Mana point.

Now his basic Mana attribute had reached 139, only one step away from leveling up.

I didn't want to grind, but you forced me...

Lin Mo opened his eyes and exhaled a breath of turbid air.

Continuing meditation wouldn't be as effective now. Might as well go guide Finnie a bit...