The Undead Calamity Begins with a Graveyard Demon

Chapter 59: Chapter 59: Level 2 Soul Summoning Technique

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[A Skeleton Warrior (Summoned Creature) has killed a Sewer Kobold (Level 1). You have gained 2 Experience. Your Summoned Creatures have shared 6 Experience.]

[...]

As a series of system notifications popped up one after another, the battle before the Graveyard Demon’s gate gradually died down.

The battlefield was a total mess. Dark red bloodstains soaked the earth before the gate, mixed with Kobold corpses, shattered Stone Axes and wooden clubs, and the scattered fragments of Red Balloons—all trampled beyond recognition.

A few of the slain Kobolds were frozen in the act of fleeing, their bones broken and fur peeled back. Blackish-red blood dripped from the edges of their bodies, forming small puddles on the ground.

The Undead Team had also suffered minor losses. The Bone Swords of a few Skeletons were chipped, and the Walking Dead Warriors’ Wooden Shields had gained several new cracks. The air was thick with the pungent, intermingled stench of rot and blood.

Thanks to the previous night of continuous harassment from the Suburban Wolves, coupled with the surprise attack from the Flash Bomb, the battle had gone exceptionally smoothly for Gu Su.

The Skeleton Warriors’ Bone Swords struck with precision, each slash severing a Kobold’s neck, while their Black Iron Shields firmly blocked the sporadic counterattacks.

The Walking Dead Warriors swung their Heavy Warhammers, a single blow enough to shatter a Kobold’s bones and tear its sinews. Their thick Wooden Shields formed a defensive line, holding the panicked Kobolds firmly outside the gate.

Wielding Long Spears, the Ordinary Skeletons precisely pierced the Kobolds’ torsos. They worked in perfect coordination, giving the enemy no room to breathe.

Of the more than one hundred Kobolds, over eighty were slain by Gu Su’s Undead Team.

The remaining twenty-odd Kobolds, seeing that the tide had turned, didn’t even think of resisting. They simply turned and fled in disarray deep into the woods.

They fled in a blind panic. Some tripped over the bodies of their comrades, landing flat on their backs. Without even bothering to get up, they scrambled and crawled forward.

In their haste, some tore the Red Balloons from their backs. The balloons burst with a POP, showering their faces with fragments, but they didn’t even notice, focused only on running for their lives.

Others were grazed by the Undeads’ attacks, their wounds bleeding profusely as they shrieked and staggered away. They ran erratically, unable to even tell which way they were going. A few even ran blindly straight into tree trunks. Dazed, they would resume their mad dash, ignoring the calls of their companions.

Their faces, originally painted with bizarre clown makeup, were now caked with dirt, bloodstains, and balloon fragments. Most of the pale white powder had flaked off, and the dark red patterns had smeared. Combined with their twisted expressions, all that remained was wretchedness and fear, with no trace of the frenzied rage they had shown during their charge.

Seeing this, Gu Su’s subordinates pursued them for only a hundred meters or so before all turning back.

The Kobolds had already routed completely, focused only on scattering and fleeing. Some dropped their weapons, others broke their limbs. They didn’t even have the courage to look back, leaving behind only a trail of chaotic footprints and sporadic screams that faded deep into the woods.

This was not the time to hunt down the remnants of their forces.

Gu Su had more important matters to attend to.

"Move all these Kobold corpses over to the large Gravepile."

"Fill grave pit number four first."

"After that’s done, bring the Ash Squad back to full strength."

Gu Su’s tone was decisive as he issued one crisp command after another.

But after giving the orders, Gu Su hesitated, a troubled look on his face.

This was because once an Empty Tomb was upgraded to a large Gravepile, it could no longer be advanced further.

Ultimately, the Empty Tomb was just like a population building in a city-builder game. Its core function was to expand the Undead population.

It was impossible for a single Empty Tomb to accommodate tens of thousands of units.

The hundred-unit Gravepile was the final form of the Empty Tomb.

Gu Su had to find another way to deal with the remaining corpses.

Just then, a DING sounded in Gu Su’s ear.

[The large Gravepile has automatically used your Soul Summoning Technique (Level 1), creating Skeleton (Level 0) x39. Soul Summoning Technique proficiency +39.]

[Your Soul Summoning Technique has successfully leveled up! Please choose an upgrade path.]

[1. Soul Summoning Expert: Increases the success rate of on-site Soul Summoning (from 75% to 85%).]

[2. Memory of the Dead: Undead created via Soul Summoning have a 20% chance to retain the Talents and Skills they possessed in life.]

[3. Soul Summoning Elite: Undead created via Soul Summoning will start directly at Level 1.]

As soon as the system notification faded, the large Gravepile not far away began to stir.

Soil slid from the top of the Gravepile. First, a few grayish-white skeletal hands broke through the earth. Their fingertips, still caked with damp grave soil, dug into the edge of the mound as they struggled to climb out.

Next, bare Skeleton skulls emerged one after another, eerie green Soul Fires flickering in their eye sockets, radiating the dazed coldness of the newly awakened.

As soon as they climbed out, they immediately began to gather in one direction. Gu Su’s other Skeletons also seemed to have noticed something, as all their gazes focused on the same spot.

However, at that moment, Gu Su clearly hadn’t noticed the anomaly before him.

He was preoccupied with his own thoughts. After all, he’d never expected his Soul Summoning Technique to level up at such a critical juncture.

What was even more surprising was that he had been given three enhancement paths to choose from.

’Objectively speaking, the most practical option right now is the first one.’

’Soul Summoning Expert.’

’After all, there are still a lot of corpses here that I can’t deal with yet.’

’With this Skill, I could perform on-site Soul Summoning, convert all these corpses into Undead, and solve my immediate problem.’

’On the other hand, the second option, Memory of the Dead, is also quite attractive.’

The ability to retain Talents or Skills from life after Soul Summoning was something Gu Su had witnessed firsthand.

Previously, when the slain Harpies Leader had been converted into a Magic Skeleton, it had come with the Lightning Arrow Skill.

Back then, it had just been a coincidence.

’But if I choose Memory of the Dead, this sort of coincidence would become the norm.’

’As long as my Luck isn’t too bad, many of my Undead will end up with their own unique Skills or Talents.’

’In that case, the overall combat power of my Undead Team would take a qualitative leap.’

’But neither Soul Summoning Expert nor Memory of the Dead can compare to the third option.’

’Soul Summoning Elite.’

’I have to remember that my Soul Summoning Technique is still in its infancy.’

’No matter what Level a monster was in life, the Undead I summon from its corpse is always Level 0.’

’And for these Level 0 Undead to level up, they need at least 100 Experience points.’

’But if I choose Soul Summoning Elite, everything will be completely different.’

’From now on, the Undead I summon will start at Level 1.’

’The difference in combat power is like night and day.’

’As for the downside of on-site Soul Summoning, it’s just a 10% lower success rate.’

’With just one or two corpses, that might be a problem. But with a large number of them, it’s not a problem at all.’

’I’ve only used about half of the eighty-something Kobold corpses here, and who knows how many more Kobolds will show up later. I can afford to lose that 10%.’

’I’ll choose it!’

’Soul Summoning Elite!’

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