Chapter 79 – The Undead General's War Weapon

Mu Yuan: “!!!”

“Are you sure you didn’t see wrong?”

“Gurgle~!”

Through the mental link, Dolai sent an emoji of itself with hands on hips, confirming it hadn’t made a mistake.

Wait, you described the snakeman monsters as utterly pathetic, yet when making custom emojis you show such remarkable intelligence?

Dolai crept forward another stretch, moving to within less than twenty meters of the shrine statue, secretly peering.

With sufficient proximity, Lord Mu was able to gather more information.

“These few snakes are all snakeman warriors, equivalent to ordinary three-star units. Their sudden increase in strength and size was likely due to…”

Leveling up!

When units or monsters level up, they become taller, stronger, and more imposing, a change particularly noticeable at the Apprentice Tier.

Could it be that this shrine structure is capable of…?

Just then, several more snakemen entered from outside.

The leading snakeman had a bulging chest with assets larger than basketballs and wielded a dusty staff topped with some kind of crystal.

This was a snakeman wizard, equivalent to a goblin shaman.

She too approached the shrine statue, muttering some incantations as she pressed half her body against it. The next moment, the statue emitted strands of radiant light that enveloped the snakeman wizard.

Her brown hair began floating as if in wind, her whole body emitting low hisses as her snakeskin seemed to shed and regrow into new garments. A powerful aura burst forth from her, startling the surrounding snakemen into kneeling prostrate.

Mu Yuan was equally shocked.

“This is… a Professional Tier breakthrough?”

For units or monsters to breakthrough to Professional Tier, using materials isn’t the only method, but other approaches typically suffer from drawbacks like lengthy breakthrough processes, low success rates, and requiring extended accumulation periods.

Material breakthroughs are not only quick and convenient but also provide greater enhancements post-breakthrough.

This snakeman wizard appeared to be undergoing a material breakthrough, advancing realms in the blink of an eye.

This was likely a blessing bestowed by the shrine!

But such blessings usually come with usage costs. Every time the Snakefolk Tribe uses it once, he has one less use remaining.

Mu Yuan’s eyes turned red with greed.

This was his treasure! Being pointlessly consumed by these snakemen – damn it all!

He considered having Dolai approach for a touch after the snakemen left, but the newly-breakthrough snakeman wizard detected something amiss. She let out a sharp screech, seemingly intent on turning the entire shrine upside down.

Dolai had no choice but to make a quick escape.

Well, mainly because it was the Lord’s command – Lord Dolai itself wasn’t afraid of any snakemen.

Muttering to itself, Dolai swiftly retreated along the shrine’s edge, not forgetting to pocket some local specialties before leaving – discarded weapons, ore, and various odds and ends piled within the shrine. Regardless of value, it took whatever it could, never leaving empty-handed.

As Dolai passed through, large piles of miscellaneous items grew sparse. By the time the snakeman wizard discovered they’d been robbed, Dolai had already made its getaway.

Off we go~

…

Captain Dolai was returning.

Lord Mu frowned in contemplation.

He desperately wanted to launch an immediate campaign against the Snakefolk Tribe, but having witnessed the snakeman elite receiving the shrine’s blessing made him even more cautious.

He needed to prepare to face over a dozen Professional Tier powerhouses.

General Dolai couldn’t withstand so many powerful enemies – he would have to rely on the Undead Emperor.Night fell. After diligent cultivation, Deadbone had finally filled his soul energy to the brim required for the Apprentice Tier. His entire body felt immensely saturated, and he could vaguely ‘see’ that barrier. An intuition told him that by gathering all his strength, he would qualify to charge against this barrier and shatter it.

Of course, it was merely an intuition.

He might have the capability to charge the barrier, but it was far from certain. His intuition warned him that if he failed to break through the barrier on his own, he would likely be injured and his Rank would fall.

This made it even more imperative not to attempt it recklessly.

Mu Yuan immediately fetched the ‘Perfect Breakthrough Stone (Beginner)’ and handed it to Deadbone.

The man and the skeleton locked eyes, understanding passing between them without a word.

He would uphold the glory of the territory!

Deadbone took the breakthrough stone and placed it in his palm. The next moment, the stone turned to dust, and the profound power contained within surged through his hand into his body, striking directly at his soul.

The barrier swung open like heavenly gates.

Energy erupted from the undead, resembling mist, smoke, and clouds all at once.

The breakthrough lasted only an instant. Mu Yuan had already received the prompt about Deadbone’s breakthrough, but the skeleton before him remained motionless as a statue, his ‘eyes’ tightly shut.

He wasn’t surprised.

This was just standard procedure for the Undead Emperor.

As it was getting late, he simply ordered the Skeleton Warriors to guard the surroundings and ensure no creatures disturbed Deadbone. After washing up, he climbed into his six-foot bed, pulled up the covers, and slept soundly.

…

The next day,

Having left no fatigue for the following day, Mu Yuan was in excellent mental condition. As he washed up, he sorted through his plans for the day.

The main event was undoubtedly the war against the Snakefolk Tribe.

Otherwise, the Snakefolk Tribe, with their giant snake, would pose a significant threat during the trial period.

“The Snakemen hold the advantages of terrain and defensive positions, and they might even set up ambushes along the way…”

But he had his own advantages: the War Falcon’s aerial reconnaissance could spot most enemy movements; his sacred Mental Energy linked all his troops, unifying their coordination;

His main skeleton forces weren’t afraid of the Snakemen’s exhaustion tactics—even if they fought to the death, they could return to battle under Deadbone’s resurrection spell.

Most importantly, there was the Undead Emperor.

Deadbone alone was an army.

“With Deadbone’s capabilities, he must have grasped many advanced energy manipulation techniques during his breakthrough. Perhaps he can unleash a twenty-meter-long sword aura, or condense it into a solid form and strike from afar with minimal loss?”

“Or maybe he’s created some new skill?”

He shook his head, dismissing such wishful thinking.

Deadbone had only recently created a skill on his own, and during this time, he hadn’t evolved or learned any new ‘basic skills.’ Even the Undead Emperor couldn’t make something out of nothing.

With these thoughts, Mu Yuan headed toward the Training Ground.

Sure enough, Deadbone was still there training and researching. Countless bones lay scattered around him, turning the entire Training Ground area into a ghastly bone domain.

He stood still, head bowed, as if deep in thought, brewing something.

Was he practicing ‘Withered Bone Earth’? Indeed, after advancing to the Professional Tier, Deadbone now had enough power to activate this skill.

The ground began to rumble violently. The Skeleton Warriors guarding in the distance and the Sharpshooters on the watchtowers turned their gaze, but they were already accustomed to such scenes.

The tremors grew more intense. Countless bones sprouted from the ground, defying gravity as they slowly rose into the air, hovering for a moment before rapidly assembling and interlocking.

Boom—Massive forelimbs and hind legs crashed onto the ground, denting the earth and sending clouds of dust and sand billowing outward. Within the swirling dust, the colossal figure loomed faintly visible, its pale gray bones—each thicker than a human torso—gleaming under the sunlight.

Crack—

The remaining white bones encircling Deadbone, suspended mid-air, assembled into the behemoth’s head and slowly locked into place.

It lowered its head slightly, casting a sprawling shadow that engulfed the surrounding land.

「Notification: Your Hero ‘Deadbone’ has independently created the combined skill ‘Undead Behemoth,’ based on abilities such as Withered Bone Earth and Bonesorrow. Details available for review.」

(End of Chapter)