Chapter 748: Cheater of the Second-Generation
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Without a choice in the matter, Han Sen quickly brought Zhou Yumei back to the shelter.
Although the little angel could distract the maniacal fairy, the creature would not allow them a single break or moment's rest if they attempted the trip while it was after them. And this was a trip that would require stops, so they couldn't continue with the fairy on their heels. And Han Sen was responsible for the life of Zhou Yumei right now, as well. So, he had to share concern for her, too.
Therefore, Han Sen decided to return to the shelter and formulate a plan for how they might kill the fairy, or at the very least lose its pursuit. If they couldn't figure that out, they'd never be able to leave.
After a few days, Han Sen had come up with a number of ways he might be able to fight the fairy. But if he could not kill her, he could not lose her.
"Does that thing really want to fight to the death with me?" Han Sen thought it was an awkward predicament.
Fortunately, the fairy did not dare to enter the shelter. As such, he planned to stay in the shelter for an even longer amount of time and see whether or not she would leave. No matter how much she despised Han Sen, she couldn't remain watching this place forever.
There was nothing to do while staying in the shelter, however, so Han Sen returned to the Alliance and researched the sheet of leather and its scripture. He wanted to find whatever information he could on Blood-Pulse in the army.
Han Sen had seen the Blood Legion's Blood-Pulse before, and it was little more than a religious doctrine that spoke of lore and mythology. He had never heard of them teaching skills before. The Blood-Pulse he had in his possession now was completely different.
"What is all this about, huh?" Han Sen mulled the questions he had for a while, but eventually decided to ask Qin Xuan. He wanted to ask whether or not there was a person called Qin Huaizhen in the seventh team of the Secret Service.
Han Sen called her up, after some time of deliberation and hesitation. He said, "Team Qin, I remember you once told me you had an elder in the Secret Service."
"Yes, what about it?" Qin Xuan looked a little confused when Han Sen asked her this.
"I have recently heard of this man called Qin Huaizhen. Is that him?" Han Sen said.
Qin Xuan nodded and said, "There was a person called Qin Huaizhen in our family; so who did you hear it from? And why would someone mention his name?"
"I was on my way to the Blue Crystal shelter, when I happened to meet an old man on the road. He said he was a friend of Qin Huaizhen, one who used to travel around with him in the Second God's Sanctuary. He mentioned that his last contact with Qin Huaizhen was on a trip he took to the Black Desert. He never heard from him again, so it's possible that he died there. I just thought I should mention this to you, that's all," Han Sen said.
Qin Xuan laughed in response, saying, "You must have been told a tall tale! There was an elder of ours called Qin Huaizhen, but he was a member of the Secret Service's seventh team. He must have been amongst the very first people to ever set foot in this world. He died shortly after returning. How could he have died in that world? And how could it have been the Second God's Sanctuary? Back then, they had only just discovered the existence of god sanctuaries. When he was alive, they didn't even know about the difference in tiers between sanctuaries."
Han Sen froze for a moment, having not thought of this issue before. When Han Jingzhi first entered, it was shortly after the discovery of the sanctuaries. Even he would not have known about the tiers that separated them. Even if they did know, they couldn't have been there long, and they most certainly couldn't have been in the Second God's Sanctuary already.
After returning from the sanctuaries, people died one-by-one. They didn't return to the sanctuaries, so there was no way they could die there. And they especially couldn't return to the Second God's Sanctuary.
But this only added to Han Sen's confusion. "If that person was not Qin Huaizhen, who was he? Why would he possess Qin Huaizhen's working license?"
"Hm, I must have been fooled then. I apologize." Han Sen coughed afterwards.
"Where are you now, anyway?" Qin Xuan smiled and did not press the issue further.
"I'm still in the Black Desert." Han Sen did not dare to say he found the body of that man. If it really wasn't Qin Huaizhen, telling her would only confuse her.
After he ended the conversation with Qin Xuan, Han Sen found himself trapped in a perplexing quandary. Identifying that person seemed hard, and trying to learn what may have transpired there seemed even more difficult.
But Han Sen was not a truth-seeking person. If there was a puzzle that was proving too difficult to solve, he'd rather shelve the issue than continue confusing himself with it.
Han Sen did not plan to learn Blood-Pulse. After all, his Dongxuan Sutra was one of the best Qi Gongs. He didn't want to waste time teaching himself a new one that wouldn't produce further benefits.
Han Sen was researching the Blood-Pulse to see if there was anything particularly special about it.
But after his time reading, Han Sen began to pick up on the fact that Blood-Pulse had a greater depth to it than Jadeskin.
While Han Sen had only unlocked one, Jadeskin had nine tiers he could unlock in total.
His Dongxuan Sutra had ten tiers.
Blood-Pulse also had ten tiers of possible unlocks, which placed it on the same level as the Dongxuan Sutra.
Through Han Sen's research, he came across the knowledge of a function of Blood-Pulse he thought to be particularly remarkable.
Practicing Blood-Pulse could extend your powers with it. The powers you earned could also be genetic, and their traits and benefits could be passed down to your children when they were born.
To put it more scientifically, after practicing Blood-Pulse, it would be written down in your genetic code. The generation that followed the learner would be granted the powers when they were born.
It was a scary thought. Technology had come so far, it had allowed humans to modify certain genes and cure genetic afflictions that carried across generations.
But passing skills to children via their genes was supposedly impossible.
Human genes were affected after a few generations or dozens of generations; it was something that humans referred to as evolution.
This manner of evolution was rather slow, but the results were easier to see following the discovery of the god sanctuaries. Every new generation of the sanctuaries' inhabitants naturally possessed a greater fitness level.
The increases weren't massive, however. And noticeable differences only arose after a few generations. But for the learning of Blood-Pulse to become a natural, genetic gift to your children was quite a shocking aspect.
A power like this was scarier than simple gene modification. Heirs of such a talent could be considered cheaters, even. For those who inherited the skill, it would undoubtedly prove to be a big leg-up right from the moment they were born.
It was like being a few generations ahead of your peers.