Dagger Squad

Inside the council chamber of Black Dragon City.

Rein, Ymir, Mafat, Tuster, and other high-ranking officials gathered together, their expressions solemn.

Captain Mata of the Kolman Wyvern Knight is recounting the amazing discovery they made during their patrol.

The pterosaurs beside him had fist-sized holes pierced through their wings. Strangely, black flames burned at the wounds, like maggots clinging to their bones, impossible to get rid of, causing the pterosaurs to howl in agony.

Elder Rain Master Fofa personally asked, "Mata, are you saying that the area around that temple is full of skeletons and living corpses, all of them at the fifth rank?"

"Yes, Elder. Not just one or two, but a whole horde of fifth-tier skeletons!"

Dragon Rider Captain Mata nodded, her expression grave. "Those Skeleton Monster are not only powerful, but they also know how to attack in teams and retain strong fighting instincts from their previous lives. We wanted to get closer to observe the temple, but after they spotted us, the skeleton archers unleashed a barrage of black fire arrows, killing one wyvern mount and wounding three others. Fortunately, everyone is safe."

The Black Tide has been raging for some time now. With more battles, they have gone from knowing nothing about the "living corpses" to now having a general understanding of their characteristics and being able to deal with them with ease.

Generally speaking, the better a corpse resurrected by demonic energy is preserved, the closer its strength level is to its state before death.

However, once completely reduced to bones and devoid of muscle tissue, the resurrected "living corpse" will lose at least a significant amount of its combat power and rank.

Based on their observations over this period, a fifth-tier creature turning into a skeleton is lucky to maintain Third Tier. Ordinary Skeleton Monster are usually only First Tier, or even lower -First Tier cannon fodder.

There are indeed fifth-tier skeleton earth dragons, but they are extremely rare, one in hundreds of thousands.

Those are the remains of beings from ancient times whose strength in life exceeded that of a fifth-tier being.

At least in the vicinity of Black Dragon City, they haven't encountered a single fifth-tier human zombie!

Therefore, upon hearing Mata's statement that the Skeleton Monster in a certain part of the basin were all fifth-tier beings, they couldn't help but guess that those undead were a group of "super-tier" beings in ancient times.

Upon hearing this, the first thing that came to mind for Rein and the others was "the Black Emperor's Tomb"!

Tuster, however, was most concerned about the [Angelas Black Iron]. He turned to Rein and said, "Rein, could you ask me about the situation with those shields? Are there any mines?"

"Um."

After Rein relayed it in Coleman Language,

Dragon Rider Captain Mata continued, "We discovered a very spacious underground area near the temple, which should be a large mine. Those shield skeletons came from underground. When we tried to go inside to investigate, a large number of Skeleton Monster emerged. Although the shield skeletons are generally of high rank, they are very short, with human-like skeletons and slightly large heads, but they are only about this tall."

As he spoke, he gestured, indicating that the skeletons only reached his knees. He added, "But the skeletons in the ground temples are generally about the same height as us, or even slightly taller."

"So small?"

Rein estimated that the shield skull described by Mata was only about 1.1 or 1.2 meters tall.

The fifth-tier skeletons in the Monkell Civilization Temple are over three meters tall, while the shield-wielding skeletons in the underground caves are only 1.1 meters tall. Clearly, the skeletons in the temple on the surface and those in the underground mines may represent two different ancient civilizations.

It was precisely because of the Black Tide that it erupted in one place.

Being three or four meters tall is considered normal, given the readily available example of the Kolman people.

But if he's short, that's a bit hard to figure out; it's clearly not the height of a normal human.

Upon hearing this, Tuster pondered for a moment, then said, "I do recall a few strange races from mythology that fit this description, such as goblins, dwarves, or perhaps hobbits."

At this place, it is said that everyone fell into deep thought.

Myths and legends?

This seems to have gotten a bit off-topic.

If that "mine" is indeed a relic from the mythological era, it would probably generate just as much anticipation as the "Temple of Monkl".

Tuster examined the shields brought back by the Wyvern Riders closely and could no longer suppress his urge to investigate further.

He suggested to the group, "I think we should go there as soon as possible. The matter of the [Angelas Black Iron] should be addressed sooner rather than later. If there really is a mineral deposit, we can start planning its development as soon as possible."

Everyone present was a calm and collected person. As soon as these words were spoken, no one rushed to express their opinion; they all fell into deep thought.

No one spoke for a moment, then Ymir glanced at Rein.

Lei then realized that the others were waiting for him, the city lord, to speak first, as they were not allowed to overstep their bounds.

He didn't mince words, stating directly, "I think we must go there as soon as possible."

He then explained his reasoning, "The 'Abyssal Demonic Qi' spewing from the ground is becoming increasingly concentrated, and those undead will grow stronger. Although we've now confirmed that there aren't any beings above the fifth rank in this misty space, they are, after all, super-ranked experts from ancient times. No one knows if they retain any special abilities after death. Like what Captain Mata just mentioned, those Skeleton Monsters that retained their fighting instincts from their previous lives—that's the first time we've seen that. If we don't deal with it quickly, they might become a potential threat to Black Dragon City in the future."

After Rein finished speaking, Ymir agreed, saying, "I agree with Lord Rein's statement."

The Great Shaman Mafat didn't speak, but he nodded.

Then everyone expressed their agreement.

The shield has now been confirmed to have come from a cave in what appears to be a mine of a mythical civilization, and Black Dragon City will definitely be investigating it.

Moreover, regardless of whether that ground temple is the "Tomb of the Black Emperor," it is still worth investigating.

After all, if there is a temple, there is a high chance of finding a "Divine Power Crystal", and that thing is worth the risk of snatching!

Finally, after discussing it, everyone decided to set off immediately.

According to intelligence, the Skeleton Monster on the ground are at least level five, so a major battle is inevitable.

Therefore, those who go this time must be High-tier Extraordinary.

Moreover, since the situation is not yet clear, it is not advisable to have too many people.

In case of problems, it will be easier to retreat.

Old Master Tuster volunteered; he was very interested in the mine and planned to go and see for himself.

Moreover, his six-armed Mechanical Armor is impervious to blades and spears, making him truly the most suitable person to participate in this kind of zombie hunting operation.

If it involves combat, several medical-type Transcendent will definitely need to go.

Rein is probably the best healer in Black Dragon City besides Mafat, and he plans to go with them. Besides, although he's not strong in combat, he's extremely good at staying alive, so no one needs to worry about him.

He went, so naturally, his bodyguard, Bazel, had to go too.

Ymir has a great need for that temple. Now that she knows there are even higher realms of Transcendent Beyond the Mist, increasing her strength is urgent. Although she is not as legendary as some, she is still much stronger than an average fifth-tier being.

When she went, several fifth-tier combat power guards, including the [Magic Swordsman] Rhine Lute and the [Storm General] Baron, naturally followed.

Black Dragon City needed to be guarded by a master, so the Great Shaman Mafat stayed in the city.

An elder from the Kolman Tribe, a legendary warrior with Transcendent and mysterious abilities, Imyu, was sent.

After a final deliberation, the three legendary warriors, "Ten Great Legends" Bazel, "Mechanical Legend" Tuster, and "Insect Master" Imyu, led a sharp team of nearly eighty people, ready to trigger the attack.

This is probably a super luxurious early-game lineup that even the two great empires of Omar and Sid couldn't put together.

The parliament was extremely efficient; within an hour, the "sharp team" was already fully prepared and ready to go.

Wyvern Knight and Blue-tailed Hawk patrolled the skies, drawing away monsters that didn't want to fight, while the rest rode motorcycles and magical beast mounts, speeding towards the southwest of Black Dragon City.

The further you go into the "Karatva Basin", the more high-level dinosaurs there are, and the higher the level of the undead also becomes.

If this were a typical Scavenger Gang, diving headfirst into the wilderness, they would likely be wiped out at any moment.

However, the group from Black Dragon City had "air force," which saved them from too much trouble.

Blue-tailed Hawk and Wyvern Knight patrolled and cleared the way in the sky, so Rein and his group easily avoided those big guys and had a relatively smooth journey.

Moreover, the team's combat strength was already extremely high. Even when they encountered formidable opponents, they were almost instantly crushed, and the zombie horde never had a chance to surround them before the team had already made their way away.

After traveling for a day and a night, they finally arrived at the place that the Kolman Warrior had described as the "Cold Wind Temple".

It was a valley, and a mountain a thousand meters high seemed to have been cleaved in two by a sword, with a large crack extending deep into the earth.

The temple is located in the valley.

Because the Wyvern Riders had scouted the terrain, Rein and his group went straight up the hillside to the summit, securing the most advantageous position. This was also the place with the fewest wandering undead.

When Rein and his group arrived, a light rain began to fall.

Like a blizzard, the wind carried rain and blew against people's bodies, making them feel a chill as if ice knives were scraping against them.

Eighty people lay in ambush on the mountaintop, their expressions serious, even their breathing deliberately kept low.

Ymir, as the supreme commander of this operation, addressed the group. "Before the battle begins, everyone should try to conceal your presence. The longer we stay, the farther our scent will travel, attracting more and more zombies."

Everyone: "Yes."

Captain Mata, who had been there before, pointed to a spot in the thick fog below the valley and explained, "That's where the temple is. I flew down there before and saw the altar and temple pillars. About three miles to the north is the collapsed mine shaft. The undead in the temple have a perception range of about three kilometers, so if you're discovered, be careful of a barrage of arrows."

Upon hearing this, everyone looked over and saw a dense fog that obscured everything.

After that, no one spoke, and the mountaintop fell into absolute silence again, as if everyone was waiting for some information.

Before long, strands of "black quicksand" drifted over from all directions. Upon closer inspection, they turned out to be a string of sesame-sized insects.

At this moment, Imyu, the "Insect Master Elder" who had not spoken until now, said calmly, "There are at least two thousand skeleton zombies in the mist."

The insect accurately discerned the number of enemies that even high-level Perception Extraordinary could not determine; this is the Transcendent ability of a "Mushishi".

"Um."

Ymir nodded.

She not only possessed outstanding domestic political skills, but also had extremely strong command abilities in military operations.

She immediately gave the order, "The undead can only sense the presence of the living within a certain range, and our presence hasn't drifted too far yet. So let's lure out a portion of the Skeleton Monster first, clear them out, and then enter the temple. We need to finish this as quickly as possible."

"Good."

Everyone present was a top-tier Transcendent with extremely rich combat experience and exceptional execution capabilities.

As soon as he said this, the two assassins stealthily moved forward.

As everyone expected, less than two minutes later, the thief's figure burst out of the mist again.

The Perception Extraordinary standing nearby recognized the footsteps and immediately counted. "Forty-three in total!"