Chapter 237 - Chapter 237: Killing Yaska, Intermediate-Grade Skeleton
Chapter 237: Killing Yaska, Intermediate-Grade Skeleton
Camp (2)
Translator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation
“Those fallen warriors will eventually find their way to the Hall of Heroes of the Half-Orc God, forever basking in the glow of glory.”
Other Half-Orcs also thumped their chests in unison. While no words were spoken, their resolute gazes conveyed their inner thoughts.
Observing them for a while, Ji Chen nodded slowly.
“I am proud of all of you.”
“Bury these warriors here for now. Once we’ve slain the Skeleton King, we’ll come back and give them a proper burial on the New Moon Islands.”
“Thank you for your generosity,” Daro expressed his gratitude once more with a bow.
The bodies of the Half-Orcs and Naga Berserkers were temporarily interred in the sand dunes where the battle took place. A marker was placed to ensure they wouldn’t be easily buried by wind and sand.
The dry air and humidity of this place would preserve the bodies for quite some time, so rapid decay wasn’t a concern.
After thoroughly cleaning up the battlefield, they set out again, searching for an exit from this desert.
As for the departed Skeleton Knights, Ji Chen had no time to worry about them. He wasn’t sure whether they would follow orders to seek reinforcements or immediately return to the Skeleton King to report the situation here.
During their journey, contemplating the losses over the past few days, he recalled something he had acquired when he slew Malevolent Wind.
[Resurrection Altar Blueprint]
[Tier: Special]
[Effect]: Can resurrect units
[Usage Limit]: 2/2 times per month, each revival restores 1 unit to 5000 units
The Resurrection Altar could revive up to ten thousand units per month, a quantity more than enough to encompass all the troops except the Lizardmen in the Crown of the Ocean.
He had held onto this blueprint for some time, but at first, resource shortages and later distractions had prevented him from using it, causing it to gather dust in his backpack.
Considering the current Crown of the Ocean, the few thousand precious resources required for its construction were no longer an issue.
He decided that after dealing with the matters of this Illusory Realm, he would promptly construct the Resurrection Altar.
Indeed, Ji Chen’s luck seemed to be holding up.
After another day’s travel through the crimson sand, he saw a different hue on the distant horizon.
The dark land on the horizon indicated a departure from the desert terrain.
Seeing this, even the usually composed Alice couldn’t help but smile, let alone the other heroes.
Daro and the Half-Orc warriors began to cheer and wave their weapons.
Ji Chen’s face relaxed, and he let out a deep breath, shouting loudly.
“Everyone, pick up the pace!”
“Yes!”
Fueled by their exhilarating spirit, their pace immediately quickened significantly.
Half an hour later, they arrived at the pitch-black land.
It was an equally expansive marshy terrain, with the ground covered in smelly mud patches, large and small mud puddles, and eerie, twisted black trees rising from them.
Amidst the muck and mud, countless bare white bones were scattered, shrouded in a thick mist that obscured the view into the depths.
At first glance, it was a scene full of strangeness and unease, resembling something from a horror game.
However, as Ji Chen spotted the roaming skeleton creatures in the marsh, his unease instantly dissipated.
Looking more closely, these skeleton creatures appeared somewhat adorable.
Without much ado, he led the army forward, quickly capturing the attention of the skeleton creatures.
They rushed toward them with gnashing teeth and waving limbs, only to be shattered upon impact, their remains adding to the new white bones hidden in the mud beneath.
Fighting and carefully maneuvering through the mud and puddles went hand in hand.
Soon, they saw a grand skeleton encampment deep within the swamp.
Unlike the previous ones they had encountered, this camp was located on an island in the midst of a massive mud pool, resembling the central island of a lake.
A bony outer wall towering up to thirty meters high enclosed the camp, adorned with various watchtowers occupied by armored skeleton archers. Equally bony gates remained tightly shut.
Ji Chen gazed at this skeleton encampment with a slightly excited expression.
With such grandeur, there was a good chance that an intermediate-grade bone forge was nestled within.
As of now, there had only been one publicly known intermediate-grade bone forge, and the player who obtained it had become a formidable figure in the Undead faction.
One could easily imagine that if an intermediate-grade bone forge appeared on the market for sale, it would cause a massive frenzy, driving countless Undead players to madness.
However, they encountered five low-grade skeleton camps before finding an intermediate-grade one.
Clearly, capturing an intermediate-grade skeleton camp wouldn’t be easy.
Just the thirty-meter-tall, clearly reinforced bony city walls in front of them posed a formidable barrier to breach.
The terrain was akin to that of a central island in a lake, with only a narrow road several dozen meters wide leading to the city gate, surrounded by mud puddles.
Such a defensive formation was inherently tough to breach, and the lack of siege weaponry made the task even more challenging.
After a moment of contemplation, Ji Chen decided to give it a try and test the city’s defenses.
“Fifty Naga Berserkers in the front line, protecting twenty Dragon Blood Murlocs and twenty Elemental Sea Pixies attacking the city walls.”
Fifty Naga Berserkers stepped forward, forming a semicircular formation, while twenty Dragon Blood Murlocs and Elemental Sea Pixies remained hidden behind, filling the center of the semicircle.
This simplified formation proceeded along the road, slowly advancing toward the skeleton encampment.
The skeleton archers stationed atop the watchtowers quickly spotted them.
The entire camp burst into action as numerous skeleton archers ascended the city walls, drawing bows and nocking arrows.
Thanks to the height of the walls and watchtowers, the skeleton archers had an effective range of up to a hundred meters, slightly longer than that of the Dragon Blood Murlocs and Elemental Sea Pixies.
In other words, they had to endure several waves of attacks before reaching their optimal attack distance.
As they entered the enemy’s range, a barrage of bone arrows was launched, forming a rain of arrows that descended upon them.
Although the bone arrows weren’t as sharp as iron arrows, they still inflicted considerable damage on the Naga Berserkers. Many arrows penetrated their scales, embedding themselves into flesh.
However, the Naga Berserkers paid no heed to these wounds, using their broad bone blades as shields to protect vital areas like their heads and hearts.
As long as their vital points weren’t targeted, and given their vitality and resilience, taking a few arrow hits wasn’t a major issue.
Soon, braving the dense arrow rain, this unit of fewer than a hundred warriors entered their own effective range.
Among them, the Dragon Blood Murlocs wasted no time and launched an attack on the city walls.
Their tridents shot out with a resounding thud against the wall, producing a dull sound before they were deflected away.
The wall bore only a slightly concave mark.
Seeing this, Ji Chen’s heart sank slightly. It seemed that the physical damage dealt by the tridents had minimal effect on the bony city walls.
Now it was up to the Elemental Sea Pixies to prove their worth.
In no time, as the distance shortened to the range of the Elemental Sea Pixies, streams of water arrows shot out.
Boom—
Amidst a continuous series of explosions, visible cracks appeared on the bony city walls.
Though short and thin, these cracks were enough to invigorate their spirits.
There’s a chance!
Ji Chen immediately ordered the team to retreat and regroup into a larger force.
The Naga Berserkers continued to serve as the vanguard, while the Elemental Sea Pixies filled the ranks.
Soon, a force consisting of over a hundred Naga Berserkers and two hundred Elemental Sea Pixies set out. They braved the arrow rain and entered the effective range once again, commencing a fierce bombardment.
Sequential bursts of explosive water arrows hit the city wall, triggering explosions that disrupted the stability of the skeleton archers stationed atop. Their positions became unsteady, and their arrow accuracy notably declined.
Seeing this, the cuties launched their attacks even more enthusiastically.
They spared no magical energy, and the consecutive explosions vividly showcased their vibrant vitality.
The cracks in the wall gradually increased in number, expanding and lengthening.
With a snap, a damaged section of the bony city wall shattered into pieces, revealing a gap several meters wide. Skeleton archers stationed on top stumbled and fell from the wall, swallowed by the mud puddles below.
Seemingly unable to withstand such an assault any longer, the city gates slowly creaked open, unleashing a wave of skeleton creatures charging forth.
Witnessing this, Ji Chen cracked a smile.
He didn’t fear their absence; his concern was that they might evade him.
They had no fear of facing the enemy head-on..