Chapter 80 – Grand Commander Ghost Chief

In the southwestern region of the territory, an area Mu Yuan had named the “Serpentfolk Swamp,” a military force of over a hundred units was advancing slowly.

War Falcons and Hurricane Falcons soared through the skies.

However, the swamp was dense with water plants and vegetation, hiding dangers everywhere—far more than what the falcons’ aerial reconnaissance could uncover.

Snakemen familiar with the terrain lurked within, suddenly emerging from beneath the swamp. The swamp itself was home to a variety of monsters. Aside from minor nuisances like “Rotting Walkers,” “Mud Worms,” and “Spike Rats,” there were also more troublesome foes.

From Mu Yuan’s earlier reconnaissance, he had identified:

Swamp Mud Monsters—large creatures with soft, mud-like bodies, somewhat similar to Large Slimes but far more troublesome. Their forms blended almost seamlessly with the swamp, making them extremely difficult to detect until one was very close.

Blood Vultures—flying monsters with bulging, muscular bodies, as if countless capillaries were exposed to the air. They posed a significant threat to the War Falcons.

And even rarer monsters like the “Spitting Poison Dragons”—wandering creatures with no fixed lairs, making it hard to predict where such formidable enemies might appear.

Nevertheless, a straightforward push… no, a steady and methodical advance would suffice.

At the forefront of the army, Skeleton Warriors waded through the muddy marshes, spread out as scouts—or perhaps, scouting cannon fodder. Isolated, they were sometimes dragged into the swamp by Swamp Mud Monsters or ambushed and killed by hidden Snakemen squads. Yet, their sacrifices served to alert the main force behind them.

More importantly…

As Deadbone stepped forward, a wisp of black smoke drifted down.

“Rise again, my comrades.”

Several fallen Skeleton Warriors returned to glory, and the army continued its advance without losses.

…

Meanwhile, within the Snakefolk Tribe, the great Serpent Overlord stood before a massive totem pole, hands clasped behind his back.

“Praise the Great Serpent.”

He murmured.

Unlike other Snakemen, who mindlessly followed their instincts, he had “awakened” one day—gaining the ability to think, to strategize, and to harbor ambitions.

Thus, the Ghost Chief, leader of the Snakemen, began his legendary journey.

He led his camp of Snakemen in scavenging for Treasures far and wide. Once the camp’s overall strength had grown, he led his forces to subdue and assimilate two other Snakemen camps in the vicinity.

After consolidating the three camps, Ghost Chief established a tribal-level settlement, proclaiming himself the Serpent Overlord. He then systematically cleared out other powerful monster factions in the area, commanding authority over the region.

By now, his Snakefolk Tribe had become the absolute dominant power in the eastern part of the swamp.

Ghost Chief understood that all of this was a gift from the Great Serpent, and he intended to fulfill its expectations.

A few days ago, he received a revelation from the Great Serpent: a new Chosen One had descended.

“Two—so far, we’ve discovered the territories of two Chosen Ones.”

One was very far away, spotted only from a distance by his scouts. The other was quite close, just outside the swamp, but this territory’s defenses were remarkably strong.

After some probing, Ghost Chief decided to postpone a full-scale assault—not out of disobedience to the Great Serpent’s command, but to avoid unnecessary losses among his forces.

He had planned to wait until the day the Crimson Mist spread and all things grew restless, then lead his tribal army to attack, leveraging the chaos caused by other monsters to fulfill the Great Serpent’s decree. Little did he expect that the foolish Chosen Lord would deliver himself to their doorstep.

“Excellent.”

“This swamp shall be their burial ground.”A Snakeman Wizard slithered in, hissing, “Reporting, Chief…”

“It’s Overlord!”

“Yes, Great Chief, we have followed your orders and stationed our men in various parts of the swamp. We’ve even lured some monsters there, steadily depleting the enemy’s main force. The number of enemies killed has reached double digits.”

Snakemen Wizards couldn’t actually speak, only hiss, but the Ghost Chief, relying on its superior knowledge and wisdom compared to the Snakemen, managed to mentally piece together the meaning.

Just as it had anticipated.

“By the time the enemy struggles through all hardships to reach our Tribe, they’ll be nothing but a battered and exhausted remnant. Hehehehehe—”

…

Two hours later,

The Serpent Overlord, Ghost Chief, gazed into the distance at the neatly marching formation of several hundred troops and fell into deep thought.

Something was wrong!

Very wrong!

But what exactly was it?

At the forefront of the Skeleton Warriors’ advance, a massive Silver Slime descended from the sky, while inside and outside the formation, numerous skeletal monsters accompanied them, pushing forward slowly.

Some skeletal monsters even erected frames three to four meters high, with human Sharpshooters standing atop them, firing arrows with unerring accuracy and effortlessly picking off its warriors.

And it could vaguely make out that some of the skeletal monsters’ frames resembled those of Snakemen.

Ghost Chief: “???”

Mu Yuan: Thanks, bro, for delivering these bones from afar.

Reviving skeletal monsters along the way to bolster their presence and resurrecting many Skeleton Warriors had taken a significant toll on Deadbone. However, when spread over a timescale of more than two hours, Deadbone could restore its condition to its Peak using various basic potions.

The rest of the main force was also nearly at their Peak.

Without war drums or the sound of horns, the battle to decide who would dominate the twenty to thirty square kilometers of territory erupted in silence.

“Fight!”

The fearless Skeleton Warriors advanced steadily, hurling Bone Spears at the Snakemen archers perched on the distant watchtowers.

However, the defensive layout of the Snakefolk Tribe was as solid as a rock.

The Tribe was situated on elevated terrain, with a murky, still river in front, dense with aquatic grass hiding dangers. Behind it, earth and rocks were piled to form high ground, where watchtowers, Arrow Towers, and even catapults were constructed.

The watchtowers and Arrow Towers had sturdy cover, and the Tribe’s perimeter was crowded with massive rocks several meters high. Only a single narrow path, wide enough for a few Snakemen to walk abreast, wound its way into the Tribe’s interior.

Under these circumstances, relying solely on ranged attacks would achieve little, and a full-scale Charge would inevitably bury many soldiers here.

Mu Yuan’s original battle plan was to use a surprise attack, with Deadbone striking from within and without simultaneously.

But now…

Skeleton Warriors and Sharpshooters harassed the Tribe from a distance, while Deadbone, leading a host of skeletal monsters, launched the real Charge.

Boulders crashed down from above, and giant snakes surged from the murky river, smashing skeletal monsters to pieces.

Deadbone’s original intent in creating undead revivals was simply to prevent its companions from falling in battle. Naturally, the skeletal monsters revived as a byproduct weren’t particularly strong, and they fell one after another during the Charge.

Clad in silver armor with a black cloak fluttering, Deadbone also seemed like a hero marching to his doom, appearing minuscule before the giant rocks and the forest of watchtowers and Arrow Towers.

But only until this moment!The next second, as if time had frozen, the shattered bones hung suspended in midair before converging toward Deadbone half a second later. The skeleton monsters still in the midst of their Charge disintegrated at that same moment, scattering into countless bone fragments that reassembled in the air.

Reviving skeleton monsters to bolster their presence was merely a diversion—the true purpose was to spare Deadbone from having to cast ‘Withered Bone Earth’ at this moment, allowing him to both keep an ace up his sleeve and conserve substantial energy expenditure.

Everything was proceeding according to plan.

Deadbone struck in the form of a giant beast.

The Undead Behemoth, constructed in the blink of an eye, landed heavily on all fours, splattering murky water and mud everywhere. It advanced step by step, allowing arrows and hurled stones to rain upon its body without flinching. Forging ahead, it waded through a turbid stream that only reached its legs, then raised its front claw—seemingly slow but actually swift—and slammed it down violently.

(End of Chapter)