Chapter 178 – The Light of the Undead General's Will

Land of Trials.

Fourth level of the Crimson Giant Tower.

The vast grassland stretched endlessly, lush green grass swaying gently in the breeze, but…

Boom—

Distant roars came one after another, visible shockwaves like turbid water waves swept across, carving out white arcs. Wherever they passed, the earth was torn up and uprooted, while further areas saw grass fragments flying and the ground left in disarray. Only at the edge of the field, after being weakened over the long distance, did the shockwaves reduce to mere strong winds, bending the tender young grass.

If someone stood here looking into the distance, they would notice that the further ahead they looked, the more devastated and lifeless the land became.

Some flying grass fragments had already withered and decayed, the soil turning murky black, as if the entire earth had died.

At the center of this dead land stood a mountain, pale white with bones.

However, within this Undead Holy Mountain, dazzling Holy Light repeatedly pierced through the black mist enveloping the sky and earth, washing over it until the mist grew sparse.

Inside the mountain, armored giant scorpions surged upward, their massive pincers smashing down recklessly, creating crater after crater.

Outside the mountain, more armored giant scorpions raised their tails high, shooting needle-like projectiles like cannonballs, falling like pouring rain.

The current Undead Holy Mountain was a battlefield resembling a meat grinder, a bone crusher, and the Undead Legion was retreating step by step, on the verge of collapse.

“Although, this was expected.”

Mu Yuan sighed.

Even with Tianyuan’s entire high-end combat force deployed, they only had an 80% chance of victory. Let alone now, missing Dolai’s heavy firepower, without powerful supporters like Isloria, Tree Spirit Grandma, Lu Liu, and more, and without him, Lord Mu, coordinating and supporting…

Defeat was only natural.

But if they could forge the prototype of a military soul, the Undead Legion could reverse their decline and easily crush the giant scorpions and nuns.

The prototype of a military soul wouldn’t just allow the Skeleton Generals to unleash immense power; it would also be a great boon to the Undead General himself.

After all, Deadbone was also a member of the legion, and its commander!

The Undead General wasn’t surprised by this outcome, but…

Watching the magnificent bone holy mountain crumble bit by bit; seeing the Skeleton Generals and Bone Buriers revive only to be swiftly cut down again; witnessing the tide of undead summoned by the Death Legion turn to ashes like rotten wood under the charge of the giant scorpions and nuns, it…

It still felt deeply unwilling.

It couldn’t blame the enemy for being too strong, nor could it blame Bone Two and the others for lacking strength—it could only blame itself.

“I am still, too weak.”

Deadbone leaned on its sword, standing atop the mountain peak.

Its armor was tattered, its bones missing several pieces, unrepaired. Repairing would consume energy, and at this moment, every bit of energy was precious.

Yet, after fighting until now, no matter how much Deadbone conserved, and even drawing energy from the holy mountain and the undead creatures, it was nearly depleted.

Mainly, it couldn’t withstand the scorpions’ Charge.

In the initial stages, it had no choice but to unleash energy bursts multiple times, summoning the River of the Underworld.

And now—

Clatter—

Even the most steady Bone Four, covered in wounds and too slow to dodge, was struck by over a dozen beams of Holy Light. Its mottled bones sizzled and smoked, its remaining meager energy unable to resist the brilliant, soaring Holy Light.It knelt, its bones disintegrating inch by inch from the bottom up until it completely vanished within seconds, leaving behind only a few gray-black crystalline dust particles and the damaged armor that clattered to the ground.

Elsewhere, Red Robe was also driven to a dead end.

“Ah, ah, about to die again. Be gentle, won’t you?Red Robe straightened her bright red dress, smiled freely, and then turned to ashes under the Holy Light, not even leaving half a strand of her red wedding gown.

Soon, on the severely damaged mountain peak, only Deadbone remained.

He looked around, like a peerless General who had reached the end of his road.

Only the glorious fate of dying in battle on the field remained.

“But it shouldn’t be.”

“It shouldn’t be like this.”

“The weak should also have the power to strike at the heavens.”

His gaze was calm as he watched, and deep within his pupils, a faint light suddenly bloomed.

A faint but radiant golden light, as if it were the most brilliant color in the world.

Deadbone seemed to understand something. The light in his eyes brightened, and the azure soul flame inside his skull, which had been like a flickering candle in the wind, blazed vigorously.

It was as if he were experiencing a final rally.

Yes, but not entirely.

“Lord once said that the power of will can rewrite everything. As long as one’s belief is firm enough, all things and miracles can be grasped in hand.”

“It took so long, but Bone finally understands.”Bone is indeed dull.””

He murmured, the golden light in his eyes shooting up into the sky.

This was not the glow of a soul flame but light born when will surpasses its limits.

Everyone can have light.

Willpower Light!

This light shone in Mu Yuan’s eyes, more colorful than the auspicious clouds on the horizon.

“I originally thought Lu Liu, with his ‘Unshakable Will’ talent, would be the first to break through the limits of will. I never expected Undead General to take the lead.”

It wasn’t that he looked down on Deadbone, but the birth of Willpower Light had little to do with Comprehension Ability.

It all depended on personal will.

And one’s own experiences.

Certain rare talents also aided in the formation of Willpower Light, like Lu Liu’s Unshakable Will.

As for Deadbone… regardless of how strong his will was, he had never truly engaged in a life-or-death struggle, never exhausted his power to fight to the last moment, and thus naturally lacked any tempering from experience.

Until now.

This was Deadbone’s first true, all-out battle.

Watching many of his brothers and sisters fall before him, powerless to turn the tide, he broke through his limits.

Now, Deadbone held two keys to becoming a legend.

But all he wanted was to tear his enemies to pieces.

Rumble—

The giant scorpion continued its ascent along the mountaintop.

The nuns clasped their hands together, emitting increasingly brilliant light that continuously dispersed the black mist.

Before them, Undead General seemed to have less than one ten-thousandth of his energy remaining, struggling even to lift his Sword.

“But I can.So he lifted his Sword, as if infinite power surged within his body.

“I still have strength.His energy pool was clearly drained and exhausted, yet with a wave of his hand, vast black mist poured forth.

He said he could still endure, that he had strength left, and so… he did.

Thus, the black mist on Undead Holy Mountain, which had been growing increasingly thin, slowly gathered again, obscuring the sky. Streams of black mist flowed like rivers from Deadbone’s hands, drifting to various parts of the Holy Mountain, transforming into wisps of smoke that merged into the broken limbs and bones or the black crystalline dust.

In an instant,

The fallen, slumbering undead warriors, Red Robe, Rakshasa, and other subordinates, revived and returned once more.Once again, they clashed with the giant scorpions and the nuns.

Deadbone initiated the assault once more.

Since the Land of Trials prohibited the use of items like Soul Crystals, he relied entirely on his own energy as a foundation to unleash the strategic skill ‘Death Legion’.

This consumed an immense amount of energy, yet at this moment, his energy seemed inexhaustible.

Or rather, no matter what he did, there was no energy expenditure.

Only 0.01% of his energy remained, solidified at this level, not diminishing any further.

This was the power of will!

The Willpower Light did not greatly enhance combat power, nor was it as mystical and extraordinary as a Domain.

It had only one effect—absolute stasis!

In simpler terms, it meant “hold on”!

Because I want to hold on, because my willpower is strong enough, I held on.

Even if energy is depleted,

Even if severely injured,

I can still fight until the Dao is worn away.

“Of course, the Willpower Light cannot maintain stasis indefinitely, but at least for now…”

A reviving power enveloped the sky above.

Skeleton Generals fell in battle, only to be resurrected and return the next moment.

The Death Gate in the distance continuously spewed forth undead creatures.

Deadbone charged into the fray, his Death Lament sweeping out a vast Nether River, engulfing countless giant scorpions and nuns. In the blink of an eye, not even their bones remained.

In just a few minutes, the already depleted numbers of giant scorpions and nuns visibly dwindled.

And Deadbone persisted.

His Heavy Sword fell relentlessly.

Suddenly, his blade halted, suspended before a buxom nun with golden hair and blue eyes. The gust of wind sent her hair flying wildly; her clothes were tattered, and her body bore ashen scars left by various death energy impacts.

She was still gathering Holy Light energy, struggling to strike.

But Deadbone did not counterattack.

He looked around. Unnoticed, the enemies had been wiped out, and the nun before him was the last survivor of this formidable enemy force.

He had won.

Deadbone’s trembling hand could no longer grip the hilt, and his entire body swayed unsteadily, but…

He had won.

Boom—

The world shattered like a mirage, yet the experience and improvements gained by the legion through their arduous battle remained real.

…

「Willpower Light: The possessor can retain full combat power even at the brink of death and resist attacks that do not exceed a certain threshold. The number of times this can be used depends on the strength of the will and the intensity of the attacks. Additionally, those who ignite the Willpower Light are immune to most Illusions.」

This was the effect of the Willpower Light.

There were also some hidden benefits, such as absolute control over one’s own power, among others.

After the battle, Mu Yuan gave Deadbone some time off.

Using the Willpower Light drained one’s potential; even if the state was reset, there would still be some fatigue.

Thus,

It was time for him, Lord Mu, to step up and train.

He led Dolai, Isloria, and others to challenge the fourth stage, facing terrifyingly powerful enemies.

Daisy wagged her fox tail and pleaded with wide eyes, “Do we have to go?”

Mu Yuan rejected her plea, “No. Even though you’re administrative staff, you still need a little bit of self-defense capability.”

He held up two fingers to emphasize how important this was.

“Right, right,” Sophia agreed, grabbing Daisy’s arm and assuring that they would be there.

Soon,

On the vast, boundless grassland.

Screams echoed one after another.Mu Yuan loaded the Deadbone template and used the Undead Holy Mountain to block the enemy, but he only possessed a flawed version of the skill and lacked the Willpower Light, along with Deadbone’s unique application methods.

They ultimately lost the battle.

Mu Yuan was already accustomed to it.

It was just death, after all.

It’s just that Daisy died too quickly and seemed to have provided little tempering effect.

As for himself… he truly wasn’t strong enough.

Relying on templates for power at best made him a lesser Deadbone or a lesser Dolai, whereas top-tier Lords all possessed their own unique combat methods.

“A Lord’s combat system must be built upon the foundation of their own territory, troops, commanders, and innate talents, integrating them seamlessly.

“Although many Lords only begin to contemplate constructing it when they reach the senior stage, but…”

He had already begun to form some ideas. Perhaps it was time to start pondering and conceptualizing.

Second update…

(End of chapter)