Chapter 71

Chapter 14: Dragon Vein

The moonlight was as bright as mercury, enveloping the central castle and the six towering steps. The night wind was brisk, and the heavy rain from yesterday and today had immersed the entire Shak in a curtain of water; but it was precisely because of this that the warmth of the room and the comfort of the bed became especially inviting.

The rooms of the newly appointed apostles in the central castle were not spacious, but they were comfortable enough. Ye Qi leaned back in his recliner, gazing up through the window at the night sky, which had been washed clean by the rain, making it exceptionally clear and transparent. The sky was filled with stars, but unfortunately, Ye Qi, who had no knowledge of astrology, could not identify them, even with his mystic knowledge reaching level 26. His understanding of astrology was still superficial and offered no help in accurately identifying the constellations.

Astrology is also part of mystic knowledge. Could there really be divination and star-gazing spells?

Shaking his head, Ye Qi sighed,收回了视线，目光转向了床上熟睡的女骑兵长——在被子的包裹下，女骑兵长深陷柔软的床铺，疲惫的呼吸带着胸膛有节奏地上下起伏。Ye Qi gently reached out and slowly brushed away the bangs from her forehead, then leaned down and gave her a light kiss.

Today was the second day since their return from the Deko Manor. After arranging the camp's affairs, the female cavalry captain had stayed in the central castle to take care of Jacob—Jacob, who had launched such a powerful attack that day, was not in good shape, not only exhausted but also injured. He only regained consciousness after nightfall today. Although still weak, he was much more reassuring than when he was unconscious.

The female cavalry captain, who had not rested for several days, finally put her mind at ease and, at Ye Qi's insistence, was brought to his room to rest.

"You always make me worry," Ye Qi said softly, looking at the sleeping female cavalry captain, his gaze lingering on her weary expression. "Why don't you rely on me a bit? My shoulders are actually very strong and solid..."

He tucked the blanket around her again, then picked up his coat from the hanger and quietly left the room. Due to his performance at Deko Manor, he was now granted special permission to freely read and copy all the books on the first floor of the Tower of Knowledge for a week. Even though the cost of copying was still exorbitantly high, the ability to access hidden knowledge made Ye Qi happy. Although it was only a small part, it was enough to keep him busy in the limited time he had.

Of course, copying was a luxury for him, who was about to go into debt, so he could only go to the Tower of Knowledge to read. Fortunately, the Tower of Knowledge was open to him 24/7 for the next week, with no time restrictions, which was undoubtedly a stroke of luck for Ye Qi, who had been quite busy in the past two days.

"Please follow me!"

A scribe, who had been waiting outside the Tower of Knowledge, bowed respectfully to Ye Qi and then turned to open a small side door for him—since Ye Qi was the only one there for the entire night, there was no need to open the main door.

The scribe respectfully led the way for Ye Qi, though Ye Qi did not need it, the scribe still performed his duties. Of course, it was not just his duty that made the scribe so respectful, but also Ye Qi's display of strength against the six-armed snake demon at Deko Manor and some changes in his current state.

After all the demons were cleared out, the task completion notification soon sounded.

"B-rank task: Uncovering the Black Hand completed; gained 20,000 experience..."

"Congratulations, your character level has been upgraded to 10, and your profession level meets the requirements for advancement. Your injuries and energy have been fully restored, and you have gained one free attribute point. You have gained ten skill proficiency points. You have the opportunity to choose an optional feat. Please make your choice!"

"Advance or not?"

"Advance!"

Without hesitation, Ye Qi immediately chose to advance.

Instantly, the familiar darkness descended again. Under the endless starry sky, a black square card descended from the heavens, its ancient and elegant design adorned with dark golden patterns like ripples in water. At the center, a dragon with outstretched wings and a raised head was depicted, its colors and form constantly changing: red, blue, green, black, and white interwoven, and metal, crystal, stars, and jade alternating...

Finally, when the changes stopped, the dragon on the black card was completely different from before—still a dragon, but the scales on its body were now charcoal gray, and its spine was not prominent, giving it a smooth appearance. Hourglass-shaped black scales covered its eyes like a mask, and twelve unevenly distributed ring-shaped black scales radiated from its body, like tree rings.

A needle-like protrusion extended from the back of its skull, doubling the length of its head. Its triangular wings extended from a narrow point on its back, giving it a shape like an hourglass. Two protrusions of different lengths at the end of its tail gave it two tail tips.

"Dragon Vein compatible, awaken or not?"

"Awaken!"

With the experience from his previous class change, Ye Qi was much smarter this time. He only began the advancement process after returning to his room in the castle.

The pain, even more intense than before, erupted from the depths of his soul, drenching Ye Qi in sweat in an instant...

In the midst of the pain, Ye Qi felt a moment of dizziness, and he experienced a hallucination—two parallel lines that never intersected stretched across everything, and "he" was lying between them, sleeping soundly...

"Dragon Vein Mage advancement successful!"

After a long time, the system notification freed Ye Qi from the pain. He immediately opened the attribute panel to view the new advanced profession.

Dragon Vein Mage: There are rumors that the magical powers of mages and bards are related to their inheritance of dragon blood. Dragon Vein Mages are either former mages or bards who use their magical powers to activate their inherited dragon blood, unlocking its full potential. Their chosen lifestyle includes both adventure and seclusion. Due to their familiarity with magic, many of them enjoy pursuing adventures, especially those that allow them to delve deeper into the study of their dragon blood. They are often drawn to areas where dragons gather.

Class Features:

- Skill Points per Level: +3

- Gain a Feat every three levels

- Gain an Attribute Point every three levels

- Level 1: Dragon Aura (Young): If the target's willpower fails, they will fall into fear, panic, or unconsciousness; Dragon Scale Armor (Young): Natural Armor +1; Dragon Strength (Young): Strength +1

- Level 2: Gain one 6th-level spell slot, one 5th-level spell slot

- Level 3: Dragon Breath (Young): Requires physical contact, releases a linear dragon breath that steals time and a conical dragon breath that banishes time

- Level 4: Gain one 7th-level spell slot, one 6th-level spell slot

- Level 5: Dragon Constitution (Young): Constitution +1; 20% resistance to all elemental damage

- Level 6: Dragon Aura (Adult): Difficulty of willpower checks doubled; Dragon Breath (Adult): Can breathe, distance varies by level; Dragon Strength (Adult): Strength +2

- Level 7: Gain one 8th-level spell slot, one 7th-level spell slot; Dragon Heritage: Adult dragons pass on their combat memories through blood

- Level 8: Dragon Scale Armor (Adult): Natural Armor +2; Dragon Constitution (Adult): Constitution +2; 40% resistance to all elemental damage

- Level 9: Gain one spell slot below 8th level; Dragon Wings: Adult dragons can fly; Dexterity +3

- Level 10: Gain one 9th-level spell slot, one 8th-level spell slot; Humanoid Dragon Transformation: Darkvision, immunity to sleep and paralysis; all attributes increased by 200%; full energy and stamina; 1 time/10 days

"C-rank task: Class Advancement completed; gained 3,000 experience..."

"B-rank task: Legendary Class Unlocked; character level 20, class level 10, unlock legendary class advancement!"

Staring straight at the Dragon Vein Mage class attributes, Ye Qi was so shocked that he did not even hear the system notification...