"152nd skeleton, push a bit harder, just 28 more and we're done!" Zhao Lun directed his skeleton minions, tossing the bones of a level 3 Giant Axe Skeleton onto the pile as he silently counted.
It had already been two days since Zhao Lun acquired the Territorial Will, and he had to admit, his work efficiency was impressive. In just two days, he had hunted and killed a total of 152 skeletons of level 3 or higher. Of course, his skeleton minions played a huge role in achieving such a high efficiency.
Over these two days, Zhao Lun had also replenished his skeleton minions, and he now had five skeleton archers to support him. Moreover, their combat strength had improved as well. All of his seven skeleton minions had reached level 3, and he was just one step away from leveling up himself.
With such a powerful team, killing skeletons was undoubtedly swift. If it weren't for Zhao Lun's hesitation to take action on his own territory, he would have already completed the construction of his Territory Altar.
But that wasn't Zhao Lun's fault. After inheriting the Territorial Will, every skeleton he encountered in his territory would tremble in fear and become motionless, like lambs to the slaughter. How could Zhao Lun bring himself to harm them?
Plus, once he established the altar, these skeletons would become his subordinates, and internal strife was something he preferred to avoid.
"Another skeleton's come up, this time I'll handle it myself." Zhao Lun, admiring his results, was interrupted by a simple report from his newly appointed archer minion number one on patrol.
"Huh, is it a Skeleton Mage? Heh, this won't be interesting." When Zhao Lun saw the approaching Skeleton Mage, he became indifferent. He immediately rushed at it, planning to follow his usual tactic: a good old-fashioned beating.
If it weren't for Zhao Lun needing to absorb the Skeleton Mage's soul fire, it wouldn't even be on his hunting list. The Mage's bones were too weak compared to the Skeleton Archers, who were constantly refined after each upgrade. In terms of building the altar, it would be much better to use Giant Axe Skeletons or Greatsword Skeletons.
"Ah, what's going on?"
Just as Zhao Lun was about to close the distance, his foot suddenly slipped, and his entire skeleton body sank halfway into the ground. Panic set in as Zhao Lun struggled, only to realize his skeleton frame was sinking deeper into the earth.
"It's Swamp Curse!" Zhao Lun gasped.
It seemed that Zhao Lun had finally encountered the spell he had been waiting for. He had absorbed countless Skeleton Mages in the hopes of finding it, but had never been successful. To his surprise, he had finally encountered it today.
"Damn, that's a Magic Missile! This Skeleton Mage is off the charts!" Before Zhao Lun could fully rejoice, the Skeleton Mage raised its staff and fired a Magic Missile straight at him. Zhao Lun barely ducked in time, narrowly avoiding the blast.
"Why are you still standing there? Take its head off!" Feeling the intense rush of the Magic Missile pass over his skull, Zhao Lun couldn't help but feel a surge of panic. Immediately, he yelled at his skeleton minions to take action.
"Swoosh swoosh..."
A quick volley of arrows, and the Skeleton Mage was reduced to fragments.
However, things didn't go as smoothly for Zhao Lun. After the Swamp Curse wore off, he found that he couldn't get free. The earth had quickly hardened again, trapping him even deeper. Frustrated, Zhao Lun almost swore, but in the end, it took his skeleton minions about twenty minutes to dig him out.
Once freed, Zhao Lun immediately rushed to the Skeleton Mage, relieved to find its soul fire still intact. It seemed his minions weren't completely useless after all.
Zhao Lun quickly extracted the soul fire from the Skeleton Mage, tossing it into his own skull. As soon as he enveloped it, the magic array and incantation for Swamp Curse poured into his soul fire.
Moments later, Zhao Lun couldn't contain his overwhelming joy. He had finally acquired another 1st-level spell. With this new addition, he now had three 1st-level spells in total. The sense of accomplishment and satisfaction from gaining new spells was enough to keep Zhao Lun thrilled for a long time.
However, there was a slight regret. Zhao Lun had too little magical energy at the moment. Even though he could cast the 1st-level spells, his total magical energy was limited. At his peak, he could only cast the most energy-draining spell, Earth Spike, about five times before running out of power. It was a bit lacking.
"Huh, wait a minute, what's going on? When did my luck get so good?" Zhao Lun's pale soul fire flickered. Just as he was lamenting the lack of magic energy, he suddenly felt his magic energy surge at an incredible rate. There was no doubt about it—he had leveled up.
"Huh? Huh? Huh... Is this good fortune coming in twos?" Zhao Lun was ecstatic, almost feeling like he had won a lottery. He was on the verge of losing control of his emotions.
At that moment, Zhao Lun could clearly feel a new magic array form in his soul fire. Yes, he had just broken through to level 3 and had gained a new innate spell. Zhao Lun was on the verge of madness, diving into the new spell with unrestrained joy.
Since it was an innate spell, Zhao Lun quickly grasped it. In no time, he had fully mastered this new magic.
To Zhao Lun's surprise, this spell was an instant-cast spell. Although it was a 1st-level spell, it consumed only the magic energy required for a 0-level spell. Could such a spell really exist?
Yes, it could.
The spell Zhao Lun had awakened was called Perception, a 1st-level auxiliary spell. Its purpose was to allow the caster to perceive the strength of the target.
"Mm, this is quite a useful spell!" Zhao Lun grinned with satisfaction.
Of course, for a spellcaster like him, there was no such thing as an impractical spell.
After mastering Perception, Zhao Lun realized that his magic energy growth had leveled off, meaning his breakthrough was complete.
Feeling his magic energy, Zhao Lun found it had doubled from before. Now, he could cast the most magic-consuming spell, Earth Spike, up to ten times in a row. This was a huge improvement. With the addition of Swamp Curse, Zhao Lun now felt confident enough to take on any level 4 skeleton—except for skeleton archers. Against them, it was still uncertain who would win.
"Alright, just 28 more skeletons. Let's get them all today and go for a threefold victory!" Zhao Lun leaped up with renewed energy and determination.