Chapter 69 – Hero's Token

“Thunder Goblin, Gargoyle, and Goblin Warrior.”

During the tactical maneuvering earlier, Mu Yuan had thoroughly scouted the entire Land of Filth using several Hurricane Falcons and War Falcons.

The truly troublesome enemies were only these three.

While three Professional Tier monsters might drive other novice lords to despair, Lord Mu found them merely… manageable?

No, he mustn’t get overconfident.

He merely possessed General Dolai, capable of slaying these formidable foes.

He also had General Deadbone, equally capable of eliminating these powerful enemies.

By concentrating firepower with elite units like Bone Two and Bone Three, they could blast one or two major threats to pieces.

That was all.

Under his command, Dolai lured away the Thunder Goblin, not rushing to deliver a killing blow but using the goblin’s thunderous power to temper itself—enhancing its lightning resistance while developing traces of arc lightning abilities.

This was, of course, the Lord’s command.

Otherwise, Dolai would have long ago employed its signature palm strike from the heavens to splatter the goblin into paste.

Other monsters rapidly thinned out under Mu Yuan’s direction—divided, isolated, and systematically eliminated.

Soon, only two major enemies remained before the grand stage.

Deadbone strode forward slowly.

Whoosh—!

From its scapulae, silvery bones extended two to three meters, instantly unfurling into a pair of pale Bone Wings.

The wings appeared tattered, almost porous, yet wreathed in eerie tendrils of black mist. This darkness spread from the wings, coiling around Deadbone’s entire form.

The next moment, without even flapping, Deadbone levitated into the air.

Crossing its arms, it resembled a Devil King coldly surveying the Gargoyle and Goblin Warrior below.

“The main event is coming!”

Mu Yuan watched with anticipation, curious about Deadbone’s current strength.

The Gargoyle lunged forward.

The Goblin Warrior charged headlong.

Deadbone gripped its Greatsword… and set it aside. Raising its right hand, skeletal fingers fully exposed, its digit bones abruptly fractured. Propelled by compressed energy and explosive force, they launched like pale bullets.

This was merely the beginning.

After firing several bone projectiles, new skeletal fingers rapidly regenerated. One after another, Bone Spikes shot forth like machine gun fire—rat-tat-tat-tat-tat—sweeping across the battlefield.

The times have changed!

A curtain of bone spikes relentlessly pummeled the Goblin Warrior and Gargoyle.

These spikes, forged from Bonesorrow, were inherently sharp and durable. They immediately pierced the Goblin Warrior bloody, riddling the ground with holes.

The Gargoyle’s defenses proved far sturdier, deflecting countless bone spikes with resonant pings.

However,

Deadbone’s technique incorporated not just multiple energy manipulation methods or the Bonesorrow skill alone—each projectile also shimmered with faint gray radiance, carrying the power of Withering Sorrow.

The hailstorm of bone spikes hammered relentlessly, causing the Gargoyle’s skin to grow increasingly ashen.

Its once lustrous gray hue deteriorated into a dull, decrepit gray.

Before the Gargoyle could close the distance, it horrifiedly discovered its prideful body surface cracking with fractures. More and more appeared, growing increasingly prominent.

It had become fragile! Its movements significantly slowed.Deadbone gripped his sword with both hands, pulling out a black blade aura several meters long. As the gargoyle pounced before him, he delivered a steady strike.

Boom—!

……

“It’s over now.”

“But that makes sense.”

How much effort could ‘mere’ Professional Tier monsters possibly require?

Meanwhile, Dolai was already happily collecting the spoils. With its Dimensional Pocket skill, its title as Transport Captain had become even more fitting.

“Guji guji~” (Yes, yes, throw all these edibles in too, I’ll keep them safe for you~)

Under the protection of Deadbone and three Imperial Guards, Mu Yuan ventured deep into the Land of Filth. After some searching, he finally found this segment of the Root of Filth.

The Root of Filth was over two meters long, resembling a small tree with slight branching, flowing with crimson liquid like blood.

Mu Yuan took a few steps forward, and as expected, the prompt sounded.

“Purify.”

「Ding!」

Pure, sacred white light burst forth from his Lord’s Mark, rapidly spreading to envelop the brownish-red root before him.

After a moment, the Root of Filth shattered, and the ominous Crimson Mist lingering in the air dissipated significantly. The parched earth showed slight improvement, with faint traces of new green visible.

Simultaneously, gifts from the world, enveloped in green light, materialized before him.

「Prompt: Obtained 2 Soul Crystals.」

「Prompt: Obtained Random Remnant Soul (Rare).」

「Prompt: Obtained Material ‘Thunder-Magnetic Core (Rare)’.」

「Prompt: Obtained Item ‘World-Breaking Stone (Rare)’.」

「Prompt: Obtained Special Equipment ‘Skeletal Warhorse (Rare)’.」

……

The Skeletal Warhorse lived up to its name—its entire body was composed of pale white bones. It could travel a thousand miles a day with just a small amount of Soul Sand as feed.

To Mu Yuan’s surprise, riding the fully-boned warhorse wasn’t uncomfortable on the rear, and it didn’t jolt much when galloping. It was a relatively excellent mount that required no daily maintenance.

However, riding the warhorse was still a bit too conspicuous for Mu Yuan, making him prone to ambushes—not steady enough.

The Undead General agreed completely.

But the Skeletal Warhorse wasn’t just for travel. As rare-grade equipment, it could enhance the rider’s energy, achieving unity between horse and rider, and even leave powerful enemies eating dust behind them.

“The Skeletal Warhorse has utility, and the Thunder-Magnetic Core is also a key material I need. Selling off the other Remnant Souls would net a profit of about 6 or 7 Soul Crystals.”

Not bad at all.

As for the remaining special item, the World-Breaking Stone…

According to the description, it could open or shatter barriers. Mu Yuan immediately thought of that place.

……

That afternoon, Mu Yuan remained in the territory while the Undead General and Dolai, along with the Hurricane Falcon, arrived at the Ancient Architectural Ruins located in the Gloomy Forest.

Well, after creating his Bone Wings skill, Deadbone’s mobility had undoubtedly improved greatly. Venturing deep into the forest no longer required bulldozing through everything.

Whoosh~

A chilling wind swept through, bringing bone-piercing cold. Frost lightly coated the scattered building debris on the ground.

Deadbone retracted his Bone Wings and cautiously approached the barrier gate leading underground.

Through the luminous curtain, he could vaguely see inside—the space within the barrier wasn’t large, only about the size of a basketball court. Scattered bones and remnants lay around, with a stone platform at the center. On the platform was embedded a broken blade.”The important item the mysterious powerhouse mentioned is probably this broken blade, but what kind of treasure could a mere fragment be?”

Mu Yuan pondered.

After observing, Deadbone had already taken out the World-Breaking Stone.

He gripped this Strange Stone, channeled energy into it, and slammed it fiercely against the luminous barrier before him!

Thud—!

Violent ripples spread across the barrier.

The luminous barrier, which even Dolai’s full-force plummeting strike couldn’t leave a single crack on, now crackled as fractures rapidly spread across it, shattering to pieces in the blink of an eye.

At the same time, Mu Yuan’s ears unusually caught the sound of a game notification.

“Ding!”

“Special item ‘Hero’s Token’ has been discovered. Use it?”

(End of Chapter)