Chapter 73 – Vengeful Spirit

Compared to Deadbone’s personal power increase, his Hero identity was actually more important.

“A Hero can not only replace the Lord in purifying the Roots of Filth and command legions, but can also maintain real-time communication with the Lord, serving as a fulcrum to extend certain powers of the Lord. Additionally, a Hero can handle many special tasks on behalf of the Lord, such as constructing Miracle Buildings, recruiting troop types, gathering refugees, establishing territory regulations, etc…”

“Oh wait, I’m not an official Lord yet, so I can’t use any of these functions? Never mind then, skipping.”

Deadbone’s promotion to Hero marked a brand new step for the territory, but the daily affairs of the territory remained largely the same.

—Exploring, subduing enemies, collecting loot, selling loot, purchasing Remnant Souls, cultivating.

That was about it.

If there was any notable change, it was that after Deadbone organized all the troops into legions, the combat strength of the troop types had significantly improved.

This was the power of the Hero’s aura.

As long as they were incorporated into the legions under Deadbone’s command, the troop types could basically enjoy the aura buffs. Even non-undead troop types like Dolai, Lu Liu, and Seventeen could benefit from basic increases in attack, defense, and movement speed.

Mu Yuan tested it out: a Level 1 Little Skeleton, after receiving the buffs, found its rusty machete becoming noticeably sharper, and its brittle bones turned sturdier—a gray wolf couldn’t even bite through them without exerting significant effort.

Even Mu Yuan incorporated himself into Deadbone’s legion to enjoy the aura buffs.

“Today is the 21st day since obtaining the game qualification. In about four to four and a half days, the greatest challenge—the Lord Trial—will arrive.”

Time was running short.

Newbie Lords were all pushing themselves to the limit, and the latest achievements of many well-known newcomers could be found on the forums. Some boasted about their own feats, some had friends hype them up, and many were promoted by commercial teams aiming to increase their visibility in preparation for future territory management.

“Boss October has already trained three Level 9 troop types and is preparing to charge into the Professional Tier!”

“Latest battle report: Boss Ten Billion a Night has broken through to the sixth level of the Challenge Realm, definitely a strong contender for this period’s trial rankings.”

“Boss Red Rain broke into the sixth level long ago—isn’t that miles ahead of someone?”

“Our Southern District’s Boss Liu Miumiu is the strongest newcomer! There are rumors that Boss Liu Miumiu has even cleared the entire Challenge Realm!”

“Stop the baseless hype. How can the Challenge Realm be cleared? The sixth level is clearly an endless mode!”

“The previous commenter has some knowledge but not enough. The Newbie Challenge Realm can indeed be cleared.”

As time passed, more and more newcomers discovered and defeated the Guardian monsters, entering the Challenge Realm. The waiting area of the Secret Realm had become quite lively.

However, Lord Mu hadn’t gone back there again.

Gradually, players from various regions began using Challenge Realm achievements as a metric to rank the top newcomers of the year.

Of course, this only applied to those who had publicly disclosed their achievements with audience verification. There were still many top-tier second-generation players who didn’t care about outside opinions, challenged without any spectators, and silently enhanced their strength in preparation for the upcoming Lord Trial.The forums were bustling with activity, but the excitement was all for the onlookers. The new Lords had little mind or leisure to join in the fun; they were growing increasingly tense and stressed.

The strong aimed to compete for the rankings.

The weak feared for their lives.

Because this round had taken an unexpected turn.

Even the big spenders and second-generation heirs felt the pressure, compelled to invest even more resources to cultivate Professional Tier troops before the trial arrived. This wasn’t just for ranking—it was for survival.

“After all, this round is unusual. The Crimson Mist foretells ill omens.”

“In previous years, having a batch of eight or nine-star three-star main forces, along with a few Arrow Towers and watchtowers for defense, was enough to withstand the Lord’s trial. But who can say for sure this year?”

The second-generation heirs felt the pressure, and so did Mu Yuan.

He was indeed a bit stronger than the other newcomers, but the Eternal World was full of unforeseen dangers. Even a Great Lord could fall, let alone a small fry like him.

Mu Yuan—the budding newbie—gazed at his Professional Tier Dolai, his Hero Deadbone, and his dozens to hundreds of Rare Tier troops, and couldn’t help but sigh.

He made a trip out to the association to pick up a batch of Remnant Souls and supplies he had purchased online and shipped to the White River Association.

Over the past few days, as his territory’s strength grew, the two exploration squads had been slaughtering left and right, and their gains had risen accordingly.

Even without tackling special areas like the Land of Filth or monster camps, his daily income was 2–3 Soul Crystals. After deducting the costs of troop training and territory maintenance, he spent the rest on shopping sprees, transforming into a big spender.

As the monsters around his territory grew scarce, his daily income would eventually peak and begin to decline. Hunting monsters for Soul Sand was not a sustainable long-term strategy; managing his territory and earning passive income was the way to go.

But for now, at least, the rewards from clearing out monsters were substantial.

Returning home, after offering a large amount of Soul Sand as taxes, Mu Yuan sent the entire batch of several dozen Remnant Souls into his territory.

He opened his panel.

Skeleton Series: 220 units.

Slime Series: 100 units.

Wandering Soul Series: 80 units.

…

These days, he had mainly been purchasing Little Skeleton Remnant Souls, because Skeleton Warriors were versatile—capable in both melee and ranged combat—and far more reliable than the neighboring Slimes. They were the absolute main force of his current territory.

The number of Sentinels and Archers was too small to form a proper corps. Mu Yuan’s plan for them was to assign them to secondary roles, responsible for patrolling and defending the territory in the future.

Another series with potential to become a main force was the Wandering Souls.

Mu Yuan went to the side of his territory, where Deadbone, along with a group of intelligent Skeleton Warriors, had painstakingly dug out a cave.

He descended along a winding path wide enough for only two people side by side, soon arriving at this eerie underground space.

He wasn’t there in consciousness, so he couldn’t feel the chilling cold, but he could still hear the howling wind and see droplets of water freezing into frost.

In this small underground space, dozens of ghosts drifted about, emitting strange laughs like “ge ge ge ge” or “jie jie jie jie,” their voices echoing incessantly, as if from the depths of Hell.

As soon as Mu Yuan descended, countless apparitions floated over, swirling around him.

An ordinary person witnessing this scene, even through a screen, would find it hard not to be terrified. Mu Yuan… was a little unnerved too. Even though he knew these Specters and Wandering Souls were just “acting cute,” he couldn’t help but wipe away a cold sweat.

“Silence!”

“Stand properly.”

Among the eighty Wandering Souls, twenty-two had already advanced to Specters, and they still retained 52 units of Evolution Points.Mu Yuan had the two most unique specters step forward.

The specter on the left wore a flowing long skirt with specks of glaring crimson staining its hem; the one on the right had eerie green pupils and a ferocious, hideous face… in simpler terms, it was rather ugly.

But as long as they differed from other units of the same type, it indicated these individuals possessed exceptional “natural talent.” And ugliness was also a form of uniqueness.

「Specter (Red Robe / Rakshasa)」

「Rank: Zero Tier Level 5」

「Skills: Fear, Tear」

The miraculous light of evolution showered down.

The wandering souls scattered in panic like startled birds, but after realizing the dazzling radiance didn’t scorch their spiritual forms, they curiously gathered around again like inquisitive children.

When the light faded, the two spirits’ forms grew clearer—one with a blood-soaked long skirt as if dripping with gore, the other with darkened skin, fearsome and burly.

「Wraith (Rare ★★★)」

「Talent: Grudge Absorption」

The two conspicuous wraiths drifted about, showing little discomfort even under sunlight.

They swiftly floated to Mu Yuan’s side and, in the blink of an eye, transformed into two fingernail-sized glass beads attached to his bracelet.

If all goes well, the release should be on September 1st, though this clumsy author is working hard to stockpile chapters QAQ

(End of Chapter)