Chapter 38 – This Must Be the Skeleton Soldier's Talent!

“He actually has a full ten skeleton soldiers? Incredible!”

“This rookie, I remember he’s not some rich second-generation, right?”

“Even if he were a rich second-generation, it would be difficult… no, almost impossible to buy so many Three-Star Remnant Souls of the same unit type.”

“This rookie probably encountered a randomly appearing wild Unit Building. Hmph, just another lucky bastard.”

“Lucky bastard? How could a wild Unit Building not have monsters guarding it? If you encountered one during your rookie days, could you even recruit the units successfully?”

The examiners in the distance were buzzing with discussion. Ten skeleton soldiers were nothing to veteran players, but for a newbie who had only been selected six or seven days ago, it was quite astonishing.

After all, this newbie came from a common background.

Comparing it to their own lineups back in the day, the examiners from common backgrounds in the assessment team looked at Mu Yuan with even more approval. Some examiners began to space out, considering whether to introduce their daughters to this young man.

Especially since, even after summoning ten skeleton soldiers, this young man was clearly far from reaching his limit—a clear sign of excellent physical fitness and the potential for a happy marriage.

On the opposite side of the arena, the chief examiner Jiang Cheng was quite satisfied.

Both with the lineup Mu Yuan had presented and with Mu Yuan’s physical condition.

With this level of ability, as long as he played it steady, passing the Lord trial would definitely not be difficult.

Thinking this, Examiner Jiang didn’t show it outwardly. He merely reminded, “You still have two and a half minutes to prepare. You can familiarize yourself with controlling your units.”

On the other side,

Mu Yuan was breathing slightly heavily. For one, he had to put on a bit of an act to show respect for the other examinees; for another, he had indeed expended some stamina and Mental Energy.

If he had summoned Bone Two, Bone Three, or even Deadbone, the consumption would have been smaller. But this time, he had only summoned first-evolution skeleton soldiers, which required some expenditure.

He really was still too weak, far inferior to the Macho Man next door.

His thoughts racing, Mu Yuan also noticed the differences in real-world control at this moment.

—In reality, he had only ever summoned General Deadbone. Deadbone was different from other skeletons; he had strong autonomy and never needed Mu Yuan’s direct command or control. Now, trying it out, he realized it was as if a Mental Link connected him tightly to the ten skeleton soldiers.

He didn’t need to speak, didn’t need any visual cues. With just a thought, he could command these skeleton soldiers to do exactly what he wanted.

Moreover, the control was much more precise than computer-based control.

At the very least, with a computer, he could only command skeleton soldiers to attack, defend, or move left thirty centimeters. But now, he could also specify whether they should attack high or low.

However, more specific maneuvers, such as the “Millennium Kill” or “Fatal Groin Strike,” still depended on the unit’s specific Comprehension Ability.

Overall, direct command was far quicker, more convenient, and more precise than computer control. No wonder the written exam for resource assessment only accounted for 20% of the score.

Interface-based control was something players only used in the early stages.

That said, real-world control wasn’t without its drawbacks. Mu Yuan speculated that this kind of “Mental Link” likely consumed his own Mental Energy. The more units he controlled, the greater the consumption.At the same time, his control range was only 50 meters. Beyond this limit, phenomena such as ‘disconnection’, ‘lag’, and ‘delay’ would occur, which required attention.

…

Although Mu Yuan had summoned ten Skeleton Soldiers, creating a far more imposing presence than the opponent, his highest-level Skeleton Soldier, Bone Four, was only Level 5, while most of the others were merely Level 3 or 4—far inferior to the opponent’s ‘Level 9 Great Perfection expert’.

At most, he held a slight advantage in tier and numbers.

Examiner: “???”

You call this a slight advantage.

But in Mu Yuan’s view, without using skills, his overall combat power wasn’t much stronger than the opponent’s. At best, the odds of winning this battle were seven to three or eight to two.

At that moment, the burly Examiner Jiang snapped his fingers again.

Amidst the shimmering light of the snap, two figures emerged.

They were two brawny, muscular Great Goblins. Not only were they a star higher in tier, but they were also ‘Level 9 Great Perfection’ experts, exuding a terrifying aura of pressure from head to toe.

Mu Yuan: “???” You’re not playing fair!

Examiner Jiang grinned widely, “With your lineup, just three Lancers can’t fully demonstrate your command skills. It’s only reasonable for me to summon two Great Goblins as well.”

“Of course, regardless of the outcome of this battle, you’ll secure a qualifying spot, and…”

“If you can defeat this 2+3 lineup, I’ll take it upon myself to apply for additional newcomer benefits for you.”

The full name was the Genius Newcomer Support Benefit, exclusively for players of common origins.

However, this support was sometimes not activated even once a year.

Chief Examiner Jiang crossed his arms and looked at Mu Yuan: Come on, let this examiner see your true strength.

Mu Yuan: “…”

Would it be awkward if he summoned another Skeleton Warrior now?

But…

“Two Great Goblins and three Lancers, huh.”

He narrowed his eyes, scanning the muscles, torsos, and thighs of the Great Goblins, and decided… to take out the Lancers first.

After all, the Great Goblins were tanky.

…

The three-minute preparation time passed in the blink of an eye.

The moment the countdown reached zero, the two Great Goblins roared fiercely, as if released from their restraints.

The roar was deafening, even causing Mu Yuan’s eardrums to buzz. This was his first time facing military units in reality, and in reality, one was inevitably affected.

Confronted with the oppressive presence of the hulking goblins, Mu Yuan couldn’t help but think that only firsthand experience could truly convey the feeling.

He gritted his teeth sharply, and by the time he regained his focus, the two hulks were already charging toward the Skeleton Soldiers.

One defending, two attacking!

He quickly directed one Skeleton Soldier to step forward in a defensive stance, while ordering two others to follow slightly slower. This way, when the Great Goblins launched their attacks, they could seize the moment to strike back with a fierce saber blow.

Simultaneously, the other Great Goblin clashed with the Skeleton Soldiers, fists against blades.

The speed was so fast that Mu Yuan had little time to think, but as Lord Mu, he was accustomed to multitasking. Observing his surroundings with his peripheral vision, he continuously issued commands.

Boom—

A green fist slammed into a Skeleton Soldier, shattering the small round shield used for blocking and crashing directly into the soldier’s armor.

The impact dented the armor, sending fragments flying in all directions.

One of the armor fragments shot toward Mu Yuan, rapidly enlarging in his pupils.

Thud—Shards pierced into the Skeleton Soldier blocking the saber. Mu Yuan found himself unusually calm, unhurriedly ordering the remaining Skeleton Soldiers to seize the opportunity, gripping their war sabers and slashing fiercely at the Great Goblin’s legs.

A life-sacrificing slash!

Perhaps due to frequent use of Cleave in daily practice, the Skeleton Soldiers struck with exceptional force, achieving significant results in just a few blows.

The two large brutes were afflicted with ‘Slow’ and ‘Bleeding’ debuffs.

This was the drawback of lacking command.

Although three of Mu Yuan’s Skeleton Soldiers sustained injuries in this short time, their armor dented, they quickly rose to continue fighting.

Slaughter!

Slaughter!

This was a true blood-soaked struggle—even if Skeleton Soldiers had no blood, the Great Goblin and Lancers shed crimson fluid.

Mu Yuan adhered to a tactic of overwhelming the enemy with numbers and trading injuries. However, the Skeleton Soldiers’ Rank was ultimately low. By the time he had fended off the Great Goblin and eliminated three Lancers, two of his own Skeleton Soldiers had been swept out of bounds, while three others were nearly combat-ineffective.

He retained five units of combat strength.

Opposing him were two injured but still frenzied Great Goblins.

It was time for close-quarters combat.

Bone Four picked up a fallen war saber and suddenly fired one at the Great Goblin.

Then, leveraging its speed advantage, it continuously kited the injured, mobility-hampered Great Goblin—sometimes picking up sharp objects from the ground to harass and throw, other times seizing moments when the Great Goblin focused on other skeletons to deliver a surprise slash.

This persisted for over ten minutes, until the heavens crumbled and the Cosmos faded. The two Great Goblins finally knelt, collapsing from excessive blood loss.

By then, Mu Yuan’s side retained four Skeleton Soldiers, securing victory in this battle with a clear advantage.

Examiner Jiang: “…”

Other Examiners: “…”

To be fair, this was a rather excellent tactic, with troop types performing steadily and the rookie’s command skills being outstanding, but…

Earlier, they had fought so fiercely, appearing to trade blows in a life-or-death manner—how did it suddenly turn so…Sleazy?

This command was truly…

Brilliant!

Any tactic that leads to victory is a good tactic.

As a top player and the on-site examining officer, Jiang Cheng discerned deeper nuances.

While the tactics were indeed brilliant, the ability to steadily defeat two Great Goblins also stemmed from these Skeleton Soldiers’ abnormal combat effectiveness.

They were stronger and more agile than ordinary Skeleton Soldiers.

So that was it.

Jiang Cheng understood, completely understood.

This must be the unrealized talent of Skeleton Soldiers!

——

Book recommendation: “Killing the Immortal”

Male lead has a succubus constitution—his bodily fluids addict women. The author is the god of NTL.

(End of chapter)