Welcome to the Ability Shop!

Chapter 140 His Gift
What would happen if we put these two abilities together?

Can forbidden powers stack up?
Chen Xuan moved the coin toss a few spaces, from the top left corner to the bottom right. The black tentacles, as if they had caught a whiff of something, began to writhe and swarm the coin!

Is this the exhilarating Martial Soul Fusion Skill?

"Good evening, everyone! This is your host, Huanxin!" came the host's voice from the front. "Welcome to this episode of the Skill Showdown!"

The audience waved their glow sticks in response to the host's greeting.

A burst of cheers erupted from all around.

Chen Xuan also glanced up at the stage. The woman in the center of the venue was wearing a purple dress and bright white gloves, making her look quite elegant. She was also good-looking, with willow-leaf eyebrows and phoenix eyes, and an elegant figure. She exuded a calm and composed aura in every gesture.

Those who can host such popular programs must be pillars of the TV station.

Chen Xuan didn't think much of it and turned his gaze back to the screen of the barcode scanner.

He was shocked when he saw it.

In just a few seconds, only half of the coin toss remained!

Indeed, half of its lettering has disappeared, while the other half is still being devoured by black whiskers, and its outline is becoming increasingly blurred.

This is clearly not a fusion, but a one-sided absorption!

Chen Xuan quickly pointed the barcode scanner at himself, dragged the coin toss from the storage box onto his body, and swapped positions with his "Spiritual Body." However, the blank half did not return to its original state; it appeared in his ability box like a tattered piece of paper.

Is this ability still usable?
He tried to summon the coin, but what appeared in his palm was not the special cheat coin, but a rotten and blackened copper coin.

Just then, several black tentacles suddenly emerged from the barcode scanner and snatched the coins from his hand!

For a moment, Chen Xuan thought he was seeing things!
He even nudged Lin Qing next to him with his elbow, "Do you see what I have in my hand?"

The latter shook his head directly, "No, why?"

"No...it's nothing." Chen Xuan realized that only he could see what was happening. The "power battle" in his palm had entered a white-hot stage, and the cheers around them seemed to be encouraging them. The tentacles held the coin in place while frantically stabbing at it; the coin also changed its shape, no longer maintaining its round shape, its outer ring wobbling and loosening, actually taking on the shape of an insect! Not only that, dozens of legs grew from its edge, constantly kicking the black tentacles.

He was initially quite averse to the forbidden power of flesh and blood fusion, but when he thought about how the coins he had flipped before were all transformed from insects, and that these insects were even more bizarre than centipedes and centipedes, he couldn't help but want to support the splitting and refusion.

In the end, they lost the coin toss.

Each time the tentacles pierced it, they took away a small piece of it. As its body became more and more mutilated, it finally lost the strength to resist and was completely devoured by the black whiskers.

Once all this was done, the tentacles vanished without a trace, as if they had never existed.

Chen Xuan had a premonition. He pointed the barcode scanner at himself again and found that the coin toss was gone, replaced by another ability in the grid.

"Seed of Flesh and Blood" LV9, White.

"Don't make yourself the price; the enemy should be the one to pay the price."

I lost a purple ability, but in return I got a white ability? Chen Xuan was stunned. Wasn't this a huge loss?

However, he still tried to experience the new ability... After all, it was a bit strange to start with LV9, since it wasn't something he obtained through trading.

A moment later, Chen Xuan opened his eyes with mixed feelings.

This ability is indeed useful; it can actually be used as a piggy bank to store flesh, spirit energy, and power to pay for the cost of disintegration and remelting.

It was precisely because it destroyed and absorbed the power of the coin toss that it was displayed as LV9. To put it roughly, LV1 is roughly equivalent to the total amount of flesh and blood of one Chen Xuan, and LV9 is nine Chen Xuans. Although it still cannot destroy the Tower of Flesh and Blood by itself, compared to before when it only dared to use hair, nails and skin as the price, it now undoubtedly has a lot more leeway.

However, its problems are also obvious. First, it takes up an ability slot, and second, it can only absorb the essence of specific enemies.

What constitutes a specific enemy?

It was not explicitly stated, and Chen Xuan received no hints.

But he could guess a thing or two... that in another world, abilities are neither learned nor awakened through talent; they come from the bestowal of some power, and these abilities will be displayed as forbidden in the store app.

This can be glimpsed in the evolved hunger for flesh and blood—"Before the Great Fusion is achieved, He allows you to remain elegant."

He... likely refers to that kind of power.

But there is clearly more than one. The coin toss likely originates from a different kind of power.

And they are enemies of each other.

In other words, Chen Xuan must kill those with opposing abilities to increase the chances of obtaining the "Seed of Flesh and Blood." Conversely, there is a thirst for flesh and blood, which can absorb anyone... as long as they are alive, and make them the price for casting "Disintegration and Remelting."

One is designed for a specific group, while the other is not picky at all. The problem is that the former has no side effects, while the latter, even if its negative effects are suppressed, is still a curse.

Possessing all three abilities seems like the optimal solution, but Chen Xuan cannot accept transforming himself from a traditional immortal master into a representative of flesh and blood fusion. Isn't the Thousand Thoughts Sword elegant enough? Why does he have to adopt a heretical approach?

Thinking of this, Chen Xuan removed the "Seed of Flesh and Blood" and replaced it with his previous "Spiritual Body".

He doesn't need to rely on spiritual energy for cultivation, but there's no harm in letting his body absorb more spiritual energy. The Heavenly Cloud Technique will continuously convert this spiritual energy into his own power, which manifests as running faster, jumping higher, and feeling less tired. That's why cultivators regard the mental cultivation method as the core of all methods.

The show on stage had just begun.

A middle-aged man with a stocky face and a broad, heavy build walked to the center of the stage and waved to the audience. However, compared to the cheers when the host appeared, there were far fewer responses to this man.

Chen Xuan discovered that he actually recognized him!
When he worked at the big company, this person was considered the company's big boss. He only appeared at the annual meeting and when the company was doing promotions. I never expected that he would come to participate in the TV station's superpower program.

Has he awakened as well?
"Let's welcome our special guest for this episode, Mr. Jiang Wenbin, President of Gaosheng Group!" Huanxin introduced enthusiastically. "Many of you have probably heard of this name, as Gaosheng Group is a well-known large enterprise in Jiangcheng, with businesses spanning the internet, information media, and electronic entertainment industries. President Jiang is also a frequent contributor to the Jiangcheng Daily. Today, President Jiang will unveil the theme of this episode's 'Battle of Abilities'!"

It really was him! Chen Xuan thought to himself.

Jiang Wenbin raised his hand and pressed a button on the ceiling. A section of suspended steel suspension bridge slowly descended from above.

The bridge was clearly piled with things, and then covered completely with a red silk cloth.

Once the suspension bridge was firmly in mid-air, Jiang Wenbin calmly walked to the bottom of the bridge, grabbed a hanging rope, and pulled hard!
The silk cloth slowly slid down.

The audience members stared in astonishment!

What was piled up on the bridge was money! Stacks of money neatly arranged! Although the red color wasn't as dazzling as silk, it was even more captivating!

Although everyone uses mobile payments now and hardly uses paper money anymore, this does not diminish the influence of physical currency. Especially when there are so many of them that they can be piled up like a mountain, it is enough to excite everyone present.

"Here is 100 million in cash," Jiang Wenbin said calmly. "It's a lot for everyone here, but a little for what I'm about to do. So this is just the beginning, and I will invest more and more money in the future."

"Oh? What are you investing so much money for?" Huanxin asked enthusiastically.

"Safe," he replied firmly.

(End of this chapter)