Chapter 50: Encountering a Level-Ten Corpse Monster King on the Road

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Night fell, and darkness enveloped the entire Apocalypse Continent. Within Ancient Tomb Valley, sinister winds blew in waves as a thin mist drifted through the air.

At that moment, Lin Yi followed the old village chief, Gu Tianshi, slowly making his way through the shrubs toward the inheritance cavern deep within Ancient Tomb Valley.

Only the two of them had come. Old Fourth Gu had originally intended to follow, but after being sternly reprimanded by the village chief, he had been sent back.

Along the way, the old village chief once again gave Lin Yi a detailed account of the upheaval that had taken place in Ancient Pool Village three hundred years ago.

“...At first, the village’s spirit tamers performed quite well, and nothing seemed amiss. Regardless of whether a person had reached level ten, anyone who could form a contract with a ghost spirit could become a spirit tamer. With such a low threshold, more and more spirit tamers began appearing in the village.”

“But there is no such thing as a free lunch. Before long, the first batch of spirit tamers began to undergo drastic changes in temperament. Their way of thinking became entirely different from that of ordinary humans. They grew more cruel, indifferent, and bloodthirsty. Of course, they themselves were unaware of it. They only believed that everything they did was for the sake of the village...”

“And so, unrest broke out within the village. The spirit tamers united to oppose the priesthood and sought to turn Ancient Pool Village into a village belonging entirely to ghost spirits.”

“That upheaval completely destroyed the enormous Ancient Pool Village. You should know that the original village was at least four or five times larger than the one you see now, and far more prosperous...”

Just then, a corpse monster suddenly crawled out of the ground nearby. It seemed to have been roused by the old village chief’s voice.

The corpse monster was not particularly large. Lin Yi estimated that it was only level seven. Just as he was preparing to attack, a flash of white light swept across the old village chief’s hand.

The level-seven corpse monster was instantly torn apart by the white light, turning into a pile of bones that fell back into the pit.

Curious, Lin Yi asked, “Chief, was that a divine talisman?”

“No. It was merely a basic divine art. After becoming a priest, one can learn certain basic divine arts.”

“Chief, are divine arts difficult to learn? Which is more powerful, divine art or a wizard’s spells?”

Gu Tianshi smiled. Along the entire journey, aside from the old man’s own explanations, Lin Yi had done nothing but ask questions without pause, like an endlessly curious child.

Still, Gu Tianshi knew that the first-generation Descenders had little understanding of supernatural knowledge.

“Using divine arts consumes divine power, which is obtained through worshiping the gods. As for wizards, they do not use spells, strictly speaking. Their techniques are called sorcery, and using sorcery consumes their mental power.”

“To put it simply, the former draws its power from the gods, while the latter draws its power from the user. Each has its own strengths and weaknesses, so it is difficult to say which is superior. However, most divine arts can inflict considerable damage on ghost spirits, and in that regard, sorcery cannot compare.”

The divine power mentioned by the old village chief was the same as the Faith Power listed among the four advanced attributes on Lin Yi’s status panel. They were merely different names for the same thing.

Lin Yi nodded. It seemed that the old village chief held the priesthood in higher regard.

“What is it? Are you interested in becoming a priest?”

Lin Yi shook his head, but still asked another question. “Chief, how can a Descender know whether he possesses an aptitude for the priesthood?”

The old village chief thought for a moment before replying, “Whether someone possesses priestly aptitude must be verified through a temple. That applies to the people of the Apocalypse Continent, and it applies to you Descenders as well. However, the first-generation Descenders were selected by the will of the world, so their innate talents are generally very high. As long as they possess the inheritance of one of the four great professions, becoming the corresponding class is not difficult.”

Lin Yi continued asking, “Then, once someone meets the aptitude requirements and has sufficient basic divine power, what is needed to change class into a priest after reaching level ten? Earlier, Old Fourth Gu, the captain, and I worked together to kill a Mist Wraith. It dropped a core item, and Old Fourth Gu said he needed it to break through into the priesthood.”

The old village chief nodded slightly. “What he said was true. Anyone wishing to change class into a priest must possess a ghost-spirit core item. Such items can only be dropped by ghost spirits that have reached at least the semi-class level.”

“As for the other three professions, to my knowledge, all of them require certain key items when changing class, to one degree or another. Warriors need the heart blood of a class-level monster to temper their bodies. Wizards need to bring their meditation techniques to the entry level and meet the required mental-power threshold. Those who fall short must prepare rare treasures capable of increasing mental power.”

“As for the final profession, the Sequence Bearer, even more is required. Some paths demand a ghost-spirit core drop as the primary material. Others require the organs of monsters, while still others need extremely rare treasures of heaven and earth as the main material for breaking through.”

At the end, the old village chief, Gu Tianshi, looked at Lin Yi and said, “Qingshan, if you wish to become a warrior or a priest, the village can help you obtain the key materials. But if you choose to become a wizard or a Sequence Bearer, you will have to find a way on your own.”

Lin Yi nodded. “Thank you, Chief. I understand.”

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“Yes. Ancient Pool Village is ultimately only a small village, while the Apocalypse Continent is vast beyond measure. As a talented Descender, you will sooner or later be able to leave and see the world beyond. Besides, what I have told you is merely basic common knowledge, not any precious inheritance.”

And so, the two of them walked through the pitch-black valley for more than an hour. The number of corpse monsters they encountered along the way gradually increased.

Lin Yi glanced at the surrounding terrain and guessed that they had entered the deepest part of Ancient Tomb Valley. The inheritance cavern was probably not far away.

But at that moment, the old village chief suddenly stopped and held Lin Yi back.

A humanlike black shadow flashed through the damp, mist-shrouded forest a hundred meters ahead.

Lin Yi took one look and his pupils immediately contracted. The shadow was at least three meters tall.

He hurriedly took the Gleaming Silver Longblade from his backpack.

“Chief, is that a level-ten Corpse Monster King?”

“I’m not sure, but it probably is.”

The old village chief frowned slightly. Instead of using a divine talisman, he took a palm-sized wooden puppet from the pouch at his waist.

The puppet held two axes. It had the body of a man and the head of a bull, with a sturdy build resembling that of a minotaur warrior.

The old village chief lightly tapped it with one finger, and a strand of white divine power flowed into the puppet’s brow.

In the next moment, the puppet—which had been only four inches tall—suddenly expanded until it stood more than two meters high.

The ax-wielding minotaur warrior then knelt on one knee before the old village chief and spoke in a language Lin Yi could not understand. Judging by its tone, it seemed to be performing a ritual of allegiance.

“Go scout ahead. If you encounter danger, kill it immediately!”

At the old village chief’s command, the minotaur warrior rose and disappeared into the white mist ahead.

A few breaths later, a furious roar echoed from within the mist. It seemed to have come from the level-ten corpse monster.

Under the faint light of the night, Lin Yi could only make out two enormous creatures grappling and fighting within the white fog. Even the ground nearby trembled faintly.

Before long, the larger level-ten Corpse Monster King seemed to have been pinned to the ground, where the minotaur warrior hacked at it with its axes.

Thud! Thud!

Corpse fluid splattered in every direction. The scene within the mist was undoubtedly gruesome.

Lin Yi was deeply astonished.

Impressive. This minotaur was vicious.

But what level was this minotaur warrior, if it could defeat a level-ten Corpse Monster King in such a short time?

Lin Yi hurriedly asked, “Chief, what method did you use just now? And this minotaur warrior should be at the class level, right?”

The old village chief explained, “This is called a divine puppet, one of the methods available to priests. This minotaur warrior was left to me by the previous village chief. It possesses the strength of a class-level combatant. In a direct charge and confrontation, even a one-star warrior would not be its match.”

After hearing this, Lin Yi sighed inwardly. The priesthood certainly had a wide variety of abilities. In addition to cultivating divine arts and refining divine talismans, priests could even create divine puppets.

The shattered corpse-monster bones beneath the tree that morning had probably been the work of this minotaur warrior as well.

At that moment, Lin Yi suddenly thought of something and said, “Chief, can you leave the final blow to me?”

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The old village chief paused, then laughed. “I had forgotten that you are still a Descender. Go on. The minotaur warrior will hold back.”

Lin Yi nodded and walked into the thin mist ahead, the Gleaming Silver Longblade in hand.

On the ground, the level-ten Corpse Monster King had been hacked into pieces. Three of its four limbs had been severed, and black corpse fluid seeped from its wounds into the soil.

Even so, the level-ten Corpse Monster King still possessed a trace of vitality. It writhed with one remaining arm, displaying an astonishing tenacity.

Lin Yi glanced at the tall and imposing minotaur warrior beside him. The creature’s expression was cold and indifferent, and it showed no intention of paying him any attention.

Fine. A cold-hearted cow.

Lin Yi then used the system to inspect the Corpse Monster King’s condition.

[Mutated Corpse Monster King of Ancient Tomb Valley — Green]

Health: 23/1005

Status: Near Death

Level: 10

Skills: Vajra Technique, Blazing Sun Blade Art

Description: This is a Corpse Monster King possessing considerable intelligence. Through its roars, it can issue commands to ordinary corpse monsters.

This was Lin Yi’s first time seeing a Corpse Monster King. He had to admit that its health was impressive—more than a thousand points, fully twice that of a level-nine corpse monster.

Lin Yi did not waste any time. He raised the Gleaming Silver Longblade and brought it down.

Unexpectedly, this ordinary slash removed only 16 points of the Corpse Monster King’s health. When Lin Yi attacked level-nine corpse monsters, a normal strike would deal at least thirty to forty damage.

It seemed that, aside from possessing much greater health, the Corpse Monster King’s other attributes were also far superior to those of a level-nine corpse monster.

Lin Yi frowned slightly and brought down a second slash, completely depleting the Corpse Monster King’s remaining health.

Ding! You have slain a level-ten Corpse Monster King and gained 90 experience points...

Although the level-ten Corpse Monster King provided little experience, it dropped three items.

[Corroded Corpse Monster Heart — Green]: A heart that has not yet completely decayed and contains an enormous amount of corpse energy. Feeding it to a level-nine corpse monster will very likely accelerate its evolution. This item also has other special uses.

[Corpse Fang — Green]: The hardest fang on a Corpse Monster King. It can be forged into a spirit artifact or ground into powder...

[Blazing Sun Blade Art — White]: An external blade technique of the Fire attribute that can inflict considerable damage on ghost spirits.

Seeing the three dropped items, Lin Yi could not help but reveal a pleased expression.

In addition to producing two precious green-grade materials, the Corpse Monster King had unexpectedly dropped an external skill manual as well.

And it was the comparatively valuable Blazing Sun Blade Art.

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