Skeleton Soldier

Rhode observed the terrain, finding himself in a long, narrow space with clear passages ahead and behind. The passage to his left was where the roars had come from earlier, and it was relatively narrow. The passage to his right, however, only had a faint light, not as bright as the dim glow within the current long chamber.

"Since the denser the Death Energy, the faster Undead Creatures are converted, these corpses should be placed closest to the main crypt. Therefore, this must be the area closest to the main crypt."

"That apprentice will surely station some of his undead as guards in the passage leading here. The one with the roars is the passage, while the other leads to the main crypt. That Necromancer surely wouldn't expect anyone to bypass the guards and enter the main crypt directly. There shouldn't be any danger inside the main crypt."

"I'll check the main crypt for supplies first. After all, I can't deal with the undead in the passage with my bare hands."

With that thought, Rhode began to act, carefully stepping over the corpses laid out at his feet and slowly walking into the main crypt.

Using the dim light within the main crypt, Rhode surveyed the surroundings. Large amounts of supplies were piled up on both sides, including valuable items looted from the village, enough rations for one person for half a month, and several sets of Worn Leather Armor. In the corner, several Rusty Iron Swords were stacked, likely intended to arm Undead Creatures.

At the end of the crypt lay an intact coffin. Though he hadn't examined it closely, the Death Energy emanating from it indicated that a mid-to-high-tier Undead Creature was slumbering within.

Seeing this, Rhode stepped forward, selected, and put on a set of relatively intact-looking leather armor. He then picked up a reasonably complete Iron Sword from the corner. Although he hadn't carefully checked the system's evaluation, from the appearance of these items alone, Rhode knew their stats wouldn't be great.

[Worn Leather Armor]

Equipment Requirement: None

Basic Attributes: Armor +3, Durability 13/20

Evaluation: It's better to place your hope in your footwork than in this.

[Rusty Iron Sword]

Equipment Requirement: None

Basic Attributes: Damage +3, Durability 4/10

Evaluation: An Iron Sword left for who knows how long. Its past good maintenance still allows it to fight for you for a while.

Having equipped himself with the best gear available under the current circumstances, Rhode prepared to act. According to Rhode's guess, since the status panel was still active and various equipment could still display their attributes, the method of gaining Experience Points wouldn't change much.

With his gear equipped, Rhode returned to the spot where the corpses were laid out and then slowly advanced towards the passage outside the crypt.

Upon entering the passage, Rhode observed the terrain. The road suddenly changed from open space to a narrow path. This was undoubtedly good news, as it meant Rhode wouldn't have to face multiple enemies at once.

Continuing to advance slowly, Rhode could now clearly hear some unintelligible roars. Rhode focused his mind, gripped his weapon, and looked into the darkness of the passage.

Rhode was certain that his first opponent would be a Skeleton Soldier. Although he couldn't see the enemy's full form yet, its skeletal body undoubtedly revealed its identity.

Skeleton Soldiers, low-tier Undead Creatures, had stats slightly higher than an adult male except for Constitution. They retained only the most basic combat instincts and couldn't defeat a well-trained Swordsman without the control of a Necromancer. On a larger battlefield, they could only be used to deplete the enemy's stamina, and along with Ghouls, they were known as the two main cannon fodder units on the battlefield.

The player forums were constantly debating whether Skeleton Soldiers or Ghouls were the most trash Undead Creatures, but none of that was useful to Rhode at the moment, as his current body was still developing, and his own stats were even lower than the average adult male.

"I can only go head-to-head then..."

Rhode sighed. To kill a Skeleton Soldier, unless its head was severed, one could only deplete the energy of its Soul Fire by dealing damage, which was commonly known as depleting its Health.

Since he didn't know the number of enemies ahead or the possibility of encountering a Necromancer, Rhode was obviously unwilling to get bogged down with the Skeleton Soldier in front of him. With slightly inferior stats, he could only try to decapitate it.

This reliance on combat technique alone, placing one's life entirely on the line, was actually a disadvantageous choice. If there were any better options, Rhode certainly wouldn't choose to force a decapitation. It would be much easier to win a battle with an advantage in stats and other aspects.

The main issue was the poor base stats of this body. If he had the stats of a normal adult male, Rhode would be confident in wearing down the Skeleton Soldier with his combat skills. However, Rhode wouldn't complain; after all, the fight still had to happen, just in a different way.

Rhode's contemplation on the spot had already wasted some time. No one knew what would happen if the Necromancer Apprentice returned.

Thinking of this, Rhode glanced at the ground around him, then bent down and picked up a stone about the size of an egg. He then suddenly hurled it towards the Skeleton Soldier in front of him.

Due to the poor lighting and his low stats, the stone didn't hit the Skeleton Soldier's skull as Rhode had hoped. Instead, it struck its chest bone. The impact of the stone caused the Skeleton Soldier to stagger back two steps.

The nature of Undead Creatures meant the Skeleton Soldier didn't show any surprise at the sudden attack. After steadying itself, it immediately drew its sword and charged at Rhode.

The Skeleton Soldier rushed to Rhode's side and fiercely swung its sword at him.

Logically, to counter this charge attack from the Skeleton Soldier, Rhode should have retreated, blocked, and looked for an opportunity to counterattack. However, Rhode didn't do that. Instead, as the Skeleton Soldier was about to reach him, he met its attack, thrusting his sword sharply upwards diagonally while bending his body at an unnatural angle.

If someone were watching at that moment, they would realize that rather than Rhode's sword striking the Skeleton Soldier's cervical spine with maximum force from his arm, it was more like the Skeleton Soldier actively rammed its cervical spine into Rhode's thrust. Rhode's body, by a hair's breadth, narrowly avoided the Skeleton Soldier's attack.

Clang!

With a crisp sound, a skull fell to the ground. The Soul Fire within the skull slowly extinguished, while Rhode, completely exhausted, leaned against the wall to rest, calming his racing heart.

Although the previous battle was extremely short, lasting only an instant before a victor was decided, it had taken a tremendous toll, especially mentally.

It seemed like Rhode had simply swung his sword to kill the Skeleton Soldier, but it involved immense danger.

First was the timing of the strike. If the timing was off, and the blade didn't hit, or hit but didn't kill the Skeleton Soldier, then dodging the Skeleton Soldier's subsequent attack would be impossible, and he would be injured. Second was dodging the original attack after killing the Skeleton Soldier, which consumed even more mental energy.

Perhaps due to the mental exertion, Rhode felt that his physical strength had also been significantly depleted.