Preparation

After learning Basic Wisdom Spell, Rhode's reading speed from the Spellbook noticeably increased.

Before long, Rhode closed the book and began to digest its contents.

The first half of the Spellbook recorded Alot's experiences and insights on practicing controlling undead and Meditation, while the latter half contained some Spells. The majority of the book, however, consisted of blank pages.

Recalling the contents of the book carefully and comparing them with the Knowledge he had acquired in his previous life, Rhode felt new Knowledge flood his mind. He checked the system log and found that it was indeed true.

"Through reading the Spellbook, you have learned Tier 1 Spells: [Magic Arrow], [Great Slowing Spell], and [Body Protection Shield]."

"[Magic Arrow Lv1]: Tier 1 Magic. Consumes 6 Mana, fires a magic lightning strike at an enemy, dealing 16 damage. Experience Points required for upgrade: 20."

"[Great Slowing Spell Lv1]: Tier 1 Earth Spell. Consumes 6 Mana, reduces an enemy's speed by 2 points for 22 seconds. Experience Points required for upgrade: 10."

"[Body Protection Shield Lv1]: Tier 1 Earth Spell. Consumes 5 Mana, reduces melee damage taken by 10% for 22 seconds. Experience Points required for upgrade: 10."

"By reading the cultivation insights of other Mages, you have gained some Knowledge regarding controlling Undead Creatures. You can choose to master it yourself or spend 80 Experience Points to master it directly."

The damage a Spell could inflict, as well as its duration, were related to the caster's own mental attributes.

When Rhode first awoke in the Crypt, his mental attribute was only 2 points. Later, due to a series of Speed Achievements, his current mental attribute is 6, and the Spell effects have been somewhat enhanced.

According to Rhode's estimation, his current mental attribute should only be at the level of an apprentice, far below Alot's attributes.

Even so, Rhode was quite satisfied because he had not actively allocated attribute points to his mental stats. His mental attribute had increased solely through the attribute bonuses from achievements.

Rhode knew that when he could perform deep Meditation, his mental attribute would leap forward again.

What Rhode was most concerned about was not the effects of learning these Spells. With his experience from his previous life, the effects of these Spells were not mysterious to him. Instead, the last message at the end caught his attention more.

Rhode checked his status panel. After killing the Magic Apprentice and other Undead Creatures, he currently had 215 Experience Points.

The amount of Experience Points was sufficient to upgrade his Tier, but Rhode chose not to. Instead, he decided to spend 80 Experience Points to learn the skill [Mental Mark], which was used to control Undead Creatures.

Creating undead and controlling undead required two completely different skills.

Creating undead relied on the Necromancer's handling of corpses and the special skill Soul Summoning. Soul Summoning was the signature skill of a Necromancer, requiring Skill Points to learn. Most Undead Creatures were transformed through Soul Summoning.

Controlling undead only required a common skill, [Mental Mark]. This skill could be acquired using Experience Points or by learning the relevant Knowledge oneself.

The principle behind the [Mental Mark] skill was not complicated, but it required prolonged practice after understanding the principle. After mastering it with Experience Points, Rhode was able to use it directly, skipping the practice process.

It was said that this skill was originally developed by Archmages to control inanimate golems, and later became widely spread due to its use by Necromancers.

Rhode learned this skill precisely to deal with the Wolf Pack below. Rhode remembered that before the Necromancer Apprentice entered the Crypt, he had sent two Skeleton Warriors into it.

Since the apprentice was dead, after learning this skill, Rhode could directly control these two Skeleton Warriors!

With [Mental Mark], a Necromancer could control low-tier, unclaimed Undead Creatures, but it was not as effective against undead with their own consciousness.

With these two Skeleton Warriors to draw fire and distract the Wolf Pack, Rhode could then use his swordsmanship to kill the wolves one by one.

While considering how to deal with the Wolf Pack, Rhode had also thought about using the original corpses in the Crypt to minimize the risk. The Ghoul that apprentice Alot had not activated could be activated by Rhode.

But the prerequisite was that Rhode had to learn Soul Summoning.

Soul Summoning was a unique skill for Necromancers. Ordinary players who learned it would be forcibly assigned to the Necromancer Faction, and their choices of advancement classes would be restricted.

Rhode hesitated about whether to learn Soul Summoning.

In his previous life's game, most of Rhode's adventuring experiences were in the Mage kingdom of Brakada. His understanding of Necromancers came mostly from game forums.

Brakada extremely repelled Necromancers. Once he learned Soul Summoning and joined the Necromancer Faction, that experience would likely be useless.

After a brief moment of hesitation, Rhode made up his mind and chose to learn Soul Summoning.

Rhode understood that for his current self, Soul Summoning was the most effective way to increase his strength, not just to deal with the Wolf Pack in front of him, but also for future enemies...

Even if he didn't learn Soul Summoning now, he would have to learn it in the future to enhance his strength in a short period.

Moreover, Rhode was confident that even if he didn't follow the old path of his previous life, with his experience from two lifetimes and the attribute bonuses from Speed Achievements, he could still become a high-tier powerhouse.

Rhode used his last Skill Point to learn Basic Soul Summoning.

"Soul Summoning is a unique skill for Necromancers. Confirm learning? Yes/No."

Unusually, the system sent a prompt before Rhode learned Soul Summoning, a treatment no other skill had received.

Clearly aware of the side effects of learning Soul Summoning, Rhode chose to learn it.

(Basic Soul Summoning: Through the study of Necromancy Spells, you no longer believe in the boundary between life and death. Death is no longer the end of life in your eyes, and you have stepped through the gate to the world of the dead. You can awaken the dead, but it seems difficult with your own power alone.)

"You have obtained the Speed Achievement [Necromancer]."

"[Necromancer]: Learned Soul Summoning. Base Reward: Necromancer Faction Favorability +10%, Good Race Faction Favorability -50%. When advancing, you can only choose advancement classes related to Graveyards. Equip Reward: Soul Summoning Level +1."

Seeing the Equip Reward behind the achievement, Rhode's eyes lit up.

Soul Summoning consumed a lot of his own Mana at low levels. For an apprentice-level Necromancer, without the aid of external Death Energy, they might exhaust all their Mana without being able to awaken a single Skeleton Soldier.

Because of this, increasing the level of Soul Summoning by one, whether it was to reduce Mana consumption at low levels or to save a lot of Skill Points at high levels, this Equip Reward was very practical.

In comparison, the other positive effect of increasing Necromancer favorability was not very useful.

Even if the favorability was negative, Necromancers would still give you various quests to extract value from you. And even if the favorability was positive, Necromancers would not give up the benefits they had obtained for a little favor when competing for resources.

After activating Soul Summoning, all preparations were complete. Rhode put away his weapon into his Space Ring and looked towards the dim entrance of the Crypt, ready to act.