Chapter 1614

"Look, that skeleton—what was it just doing?"

Suddenly someone cried out in alarm.

"Hiss, look, that skeleton can actually move?!"

"How is that possible?!"

Everyone was startled, their eyes widening one by one.

"Quick, quick, notify the Commander! Some unknown creature has entered here!" a soldier immediately shouted.

……

"Hm? Some unknown creature has entered Heishuicheng?" Soon, the sound of something tearing through the air came, and a squad of soldiers rushed over.

And when they saw the scene clearly before them, they were all dumbfounded, utterly baffled, completely unable to figure out what was going on.

"Commander!" The soldiers, upon seeing the newcomer, immediately bowed respectfully.

The newcomer was a man wearing armor, about thirty years old, with a resolute, handsome face, a large black banner slung over his shoulder.

This was Heishuicheng's landmark structure, the "Black Wood Banner."

This banner represented the City Lord of Heishuicheng, the Lord of Heishuicheng!

In Heishuicheng's history, the Black Wood Banner had stood tall here.

"What's going on?" The City Lord of Heishuicheng glanced at the soldier's corpse, frowning: "Were you ambushed?"

"Y-yes, an unknown creature appeared outside Heishuicheng, we're no match for it at all!" a soldier hurriedly explained.

Hearing this, the City Lord of Heishuicheng narrowed his eyes slightly, as if thinking of something.

"An unknown creature outside Heishuicheng? Are you certain?" the City Lord of Heishuicheng asked again.

"Certain, Commander. That thing is incredibly fast, and immensely strong—one punch blew the stone pillar at the city gate to smithereens," a soldier replied.

Hearing this, the City Lord of Heishuicheng fell silent.

After a long while, the City Lord of Heishuicheng finally raised his head to look in the direction the skeletons had fled: "Black Wood Corps, heed my command!"

Swish!

Instantly, the gazes of every soldier around turned in unison toward the City Lord of Heishuicheng.

"Follow me in pursuit of those unknown creatures!"

"Yes, sir!" The soldiers, upon hearing this, all responded with a shout.

……

"Roar~~~"

And at this very moment, inside Shicheng, roughly every hundred meters, a skeleton was wandering about.

Moreover, these skeletons were all extremely powerful, even stronger than those soldiers.

Because their strength was tremendous—every gesture carried the force of ten thousand jin.

This kind of power was absolutely beyond what ordinary soldiers could match.

"Damn it, what kind of monster is this?" At this moment, the soldiers' hearts were filled with bitterness.

These skeletons were too terrifying—virtually invulnerable, their attacks fierce and wild, their defense formidable.

Even when they used weapons, or advanced skills, they could not harm these skeletons in the slightest.

"Commander!"

"Commander, save us, we can't hold on!"

"Save us!"

Many soldiers suffered grievous injuries while fighting those skeletons.

Some soldiers in particular were directly smashed into powder, vanishing completely.

1359's careless demeanor

"Retreat!" In the end, the City Lord of Heishuicheng gave the order, leading the group back toward the city wall.

……

"Huff~ huff~ huff~ huff……"

At this moment, atop a large tree, a black skeleton lay resting on a branch, exhaling Bai Qi from its mouth, its figure blurred and indistinct.

Suddenly, it sensed something was off, and turned its head to look.

It saw a youth in blue standing right beside it.

The blue-clad youth wore a lazy, nonchalant air, as if he had done nothing at all just now.

Seeing this, the skeleton's muscles tensed all over, watching the human before it warily.

However, the next second, the skeleton relaxed—the blue-clad youth's strength, though not weak, still fell short of its own.

The blue-clad youth was also watching the skeleton, an excited look on his face, seemingly eager for its performance.

"Awoo~~~"

Suddenly, the skeleton let out a roar, leapt up, opened its jaws full of sharp teeth, and lunged to bite the blue-clad youth's head.

Bang!

At that moment, a slender, fair-skinned hand shot out and slapped solidly onto the skeleton's skull.

Crack!

Instantly, a crisp sound rang out from the skeleton's head.

Immediately after, its entire head exploded, turning into a rain of blood that poured down.

"Ding, system prompt: Host has triggered a side quest—defeat the skeleton before you, reward: 10,000 points!"

"Haha, this quest feels great." Xiao Ye, seeing this, immediately grew excited.

Then, he walked slowly to the skeleton's side to collect the drops.

【Skeleton Essence】: Contains a trace of pure energy imbued with the Law of the Undead, capable of increasing the grade of a martial soul.

【Undead Ghost Slash】: Can condense an undead battle-blade; its might is tremendous.

【Undead Ghost Dance】: A superb footwork secret art. Once performed, it allows rapid movement across the ground to dodge enemy attacks and counterattack using the terrain.

【Nether Ghost Shield】: Can summon a ghost shield to resist damage.

【Undead Ghost Step】 (High Grade): A wondrous and bizarre footwork possessing unfathomably strange effects.

……

"Ding. Congratulations to the host on obtaining 2,000 points."

"Ding. Congratulations to the host on a successful level-up. Your current realm is Beginner Zhu Wushi."

"Ding. Congratulations to the host on obtaining a hidden skill, 'Skeleton Replication.' Learning it requires consuming 10 points of proficiency."

"Ding. Congratulations to the host on level +1!"

"Ding. Congratulations to the host on advancing to Second-Stage Zhu Wushi."

"Ding. Congratulations to the host on obtaining a new skill — Undead Ghost Slash."

A string of notification sounds rang in Xiao Ye's ears, lifting his mood even further.

"Hehe, keep slaughtering. Let me see just how many points these skeletons are worth!" Xiao Ye, beaming, leapt straight down and charged toward another skeleton.

……

And at this very moment, outside Blackwood City.

Swish, swish, swish, swish…

Countless pitch-black skeletons surged like a tide toward Black Stone City.

The densely packed skeletons gave one a hair-raising, spine-chilling feeling.

And those undead creatures were like an ocean, blotting out the sky and earth, their momentum overwhelming.

"Quick! Quickly report to the commander — a batch of unknown creatures has appeared here!" A soldier ran hurriedly toward the city.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, whoosh…

In an instant, from within Blackwood City, countless arrows were loosed, blasting toward those undead creatures.

Puchi!

Puchi!

Puchi!

Streaks of fresh red blood spurted up.

Those arrows lodged in the bones of those undead creatures.