Departure

One day later.

Rhode stood outside the Crypt, waiting for the Vampire to return from within.

Rhode remembered that creatures like Vampires, when sleeping in coffins, should have a special item placed inside. Since the Crypt was filled with gases produced by burning flames, Rhode couldn't enter himself and had to let the Vampire go in to retrieve it.

While the Vampire was moving the barrier blocking the way inside the Crypt, Rhode also recalled what had happened earlier.

At the end of the previous day's battle, Rhode had planted a Mental Mark in the dying Vampire's consciousness. Under the threat of death, the Vampire submitted to Rhode.

With the Mental Mark, Rhode could completely command the Vampire. It could be said that the Vampire's life and death were entirely in Rhode's control at this moment.

Mastering a Mental Mark was equivalent to mastering everything about an Undead Creature. Through a Mental Mark, a Necromancer could control any Undead Creature to do anything, regardless of its type.

Undead Creatures with their own consciousness, even if they chose to pledge loyalty to an Undead Lord, would not easily have a Mental Mark planted in them by a Necromancer.

Unless their lives were threatened, Undead Creatures like Vampires would not willingly be controlled by a Necromancer.

The Vampire's Mental Mark occupied 3 points of Rhode's Spirit attribute.

Based on his previous experience controlling Undead Creatures, Rhode knew that if he chose to kill the Vampire, he would gain 300 Experience Points.

As a character's level increased, the Experience Points required to advance to the next tier grew, and 300 Experience Points was only enough for Rhode to level up once at his current stage.

Judging by the strength the Vampire had displayed earlier, Rhode was confident that by controlling the Vampire, he could easily gain more than 300 Experience Points.

While checking the system log, Rhode also saw the achievements he had obtained during the battle.

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

"[Rest]: All Undead Creatures under your control (at least 10) have perished in a single battle. Base Reward: 2 Control Spirit."

"You have obtained the Speed Achievement [Conquer Undead]."

"[Conquer Undead]: Control an Undead Creature one tier higher than you. Base Reward: 2 Control Spirit."

The Control Spirit gained from the Speed Achievements allowed Rhode's Control Spirit attribute, which was used to control the Vampire, to be returned. Conversely, Rhode's Control Spirit had increased by 1 point.

After the battle, the heavily injured Vampire, relying on its remaining life force, forcibly devoured the flesh and blood of the other Undead Creatures before falling into a deep sleep, only waking up a day later.

Upon waking, the Vampire exhibited the powerful undead attribute of Undead Creatures. A large amount of flesh and blood allowed the Vampire to recover. Although its combat power had not returned to its peak state, it could move freely, showing no signs of the severe injuries it had suffered the day before.

While waiting for the Vampire to wake up, Rhode, besides meditating, also organized the items he had acquired.

After putting away the items placed near the Crypt into his Space Ring, Rhode flipped through another copy of Basic Pathfinding he had obtained from Alot, finding two sheepskin parchments tucked inside.

Rhode took them out. The first parchment was somewhat worn, its paper a dark brown color. Based on his experience from his previous life, Rhode knew it depicted a map of the continent, but most locations only showed general terrain and a single place name.

The second parchment was more complete, showing some terrain and various symbols representing landmarks. Most of the paper was blank. Rhode guessed this was likely a map of the surrounding area drawn by Alot.

After reading Basic Pathfinding, Rhode was able to understand Alot's map based on the landmarks and terrain recorded in the book.

After studying it for a while, Rhode understood the scope of the map. The area shown wasn't very large, roughly radiating outwards from the Crypt. It clearly marked several villages and towns around the Crypt.

At this moment, Rhode observed that several consecutive village markers on the map had an 'X' drawn beneath them. Rhode knew these were the villages destroyed by Alot.

In addition, as if to remind himself, Alot's map had clear warning marks in various directions.

After finishing Basic Pathfinding, Rhode also received a system prompt.

Just like in his previous life, all special skills were difficult to acquire through learning. After reading the book, Rhode only gained 3% progress in Novice Pathfinding. However, this 3% was no different from 0; as long as he didn't spend Skill Points to learn Pathfinding, it would still have no effect.

At this moment, while waiting for the Vampire to return, Rhode began to check his character attributes:

[Name: Rhode
Hero Specialty: Unawakened (1/3)
Class: Tier 2 Swordsman Level 3 (0/300)
Attributes: Strength 15, Speed 12, Constitution 15, Knowledge 5, Spirit 6, Control Spirit 2 (5)
Health: 74/75
Mana: 50/50
Stamina: 150/150
Experience Points: 145
Skills: Heavy Slash Lv3, Burst Lv2, Double Slash Lv1, Shield Bash Lv1, Mental Mark
Special Skills: Expert Swordsmanship, Basic Resistance, Novice Eagle Eye, Novice Scout Technique, Basic Wisdom Spell, Basic Soul Summoning, Beginner Fire Magic
Spells: Magic Arrow Lv1, Great Slowing Spell Lv1, Body Protection Shield Lv1
Achievements: Warrior's Heart, Beginner, Brave, Blood of the Hero, On the Path, Necromancer, Undead Controller, Rest, Conquer Undead]

Just as Rhode was viewing his status panel, the Vampire returned from the Crypt with the item Rhode wanted, bringing it to Rhode's side.

Rhode took the item the Vampire handed him and played with it.

It was a black crystal with a rough surface. A large portion of the center was worn down, and the interior was cloudy. The flames had not harmed it in any way; instead, the crystal was constantly releasing Death Energy.

Rhode knew this was the item he was looking for: a Soul Crystal.

A Soul Crystal constantly released Death Energy. Due to this characteristic, it was very effective for both transforming Undead Creatures and increasing their tier.

This type of item was commonly found in Dya and was favored by Necromancers, making it quite expensive. Even the one Rhode held, despite being damaged and with little remaining internal energy, would cost hundreds of gold coins.

Truly pure Soul Crystals were hard to obtain even for thousands of gold coins.

Soul Crystals had a low yield, mostly produced in cursed crystal mines. How to mass-produce Soul Crystals had always been a research topic for Necromancers.

Placing the Soul Crystal into his Space Ring, Rhode led the Vampire and headed towards the forest, following the records on the map.

Leaving the Crypt where it had awakened, the direction Rhode was heading was the same as the direction Alot had returned from.