Promotion to Second Tier

"No, how did I end up looking like this too!"

Bob belatedly stared at his own hands and feet, now reduced to bone.

Their memories were frozen at the moment before death, and accepting their transformation into skeletons would take some time.

His gaze landed on Ling Chu beside Titch. The connection and bond in his soul made him clearly feel that the immense power sustaining his movements came from her.

"My master, did you revive me and the Captain?"

Bob knelt on one knee before her, lowering his head respectfully. "I will swear loyalty to you unto death."

"No need to call me master. I'm your new Captain now."

Ling Chu kept both hands resting on the iron shovel, striking a pose of hidden merit and concealed fame.

"Bob, how did you all end up buried here?" Titch wanted to know what had happened to them.

"It was Lucas! After that celebration banquet that day, we all drank too much. When we woke up, we found ourselves tied tight with ropes, thrown into a deep pit on this uninhabited island and buried alive. He took the ship and sailed off."

Bob recounted their ordeal with indignation. Titch wasn't surprised to hear Lucas's name from him.

"You didn't drink too much. Lucas put sleeping pills in the wine."

Bob's eyes widened in realization. "I knew it! My tolerance can handle a thousand cups without falling. That day I only had three cups of wheat wine—how could I have gotten so drunk I passed out?"

From their conversation, Ling Chu learned that Lucas was Titch's deputy. He had betrayed them, drugged and buried them alive, then taken the ship.

As for why he did it, that remained unknown. Maybe to pocket the treasure alone, or maybe he'd already fallen out with Titch, the Captain? Who knew. The grudges between these NPCs weren't something Ling Chu wanted to meddle in.

Her eyes were fixed on the pit full of bones.

These weren't just bones—this was her path to promotion as a Ghost Pirate!

If she revived ten skeletons, she could advance to the second tier. If she missed this chance, where else would she find so many bones?

Bob was about to ask Ling Chu to revive his companions too, but didn't know how to bring it up. Then he saw Ling Chu grab the iron shovel, lower her head, and dig away with gusto. When they finally stopped talking, she pulled an iron pickaxe from her Ring and tossed it to Bob.

"Save the reminiscing for later. Get to work first—dig out your friends!"

Bob choked up with emotion. "Master... no, Captain. You're truly a kind, upright, and loyal pirate."

Ling Chu scratched her head. Why did that sound so off?

Three people digging made the work much faster.

One by one, they unearthed Joseph, Gale, Aldrich, Blair, Edmund...

Each Bone Revival cost 100 Mana Value. Her natural mana recovery was slow—only 1 point per minute. It would take her an hour and forty minutes to fully recharge.

Ling Chu couldn't wait for automatic recovery, so she downed a Primary Mana Potion.

She still had a bounty on her head. Whoever had accepted it could show up anytime, so she had to keep her Mana Value topped up at all times.

After chugging five mana potions, the not-so-large deep pit suddenly came alive.

Ling Chu found their Western-style names too hard to remember, so she gave them new names based on their distinctive features: Big Gold Tooth, Round Head, Flat Head, Lefty, and Big Toe.

Bob also earned a cute new name: Little Hook.

Titch's name was already smooth enough, so Ling Chu didn't bother changing it.

"Captain, how did you know my old nickname was Big Gold Tooth?"

One skeleton grinned, a large front tooth gleaming gold.

Joseph's old nickname had been Big Gold Tooth, and as a skeleton, that golden tooth shone even brighter.

"Heh, my mom used to say my head was really round too."

Another skeleton beside him rubbed his own head sheepishly.

Luckily, her new henchmen all liked their new names.

Ling Chu didn't want to strip them of their original names, but they all looked pretty much the same, and with names that hard to remember, she'd never match them up. Nicknames were just easier.

With more people, digging went even faster.

Soon, only four skeletons remained in the deep pit, but Ling Chu had nearly used up all ten mana potions given to her by Lingering Wind and Fading Moon.

She had no choice but to message him.

"Do you have any more mana potions? I'm almost out."

Lingering Wind and Fading Moon replied quickly: "? Ten bottles in one day—are you drinking potions like water?"

"Ran into an emergency," Ling Chu said.

Bone Revival was just too mana-hungry.

"I only have five bottles left on me."

Lingering Wind and Fading Moon traded her the last of his mana potions.

"When will the next batch be ready?"

"At least half a day."

"Fine, get it refined and send it over as soon as you can."

Ling Chu closed the private chat. By then, Titch and the others had dug up another skeleton, but no matter how they searched, they couldn't find its skull.

She tried using Bone Revival on the skeleton, but the system prompted: "This skeleton's integrity is below 80%. Skill cannot be used."

They had no choice but to set that skeleton aside and keep digging deeper.

It wasn't until they revived the ninth skeleton.

[Your profession, Ghost Pirate, has advanced to Tier 2.]

[You have gained new profession skills: Soul Perception, Ghost Revival, Soul Mark.]

[Soul Perception (Passive Skill): You can see souls.]

[Ghost Revival: Revive a soul in ghost form. This skill does not require a skeleton. Consumes 100 mana. (Once revived as a ghost, it cannot be revived as a skeleton, and vice versa.)]

[Soul Mark: Imprint a soul mark on the target's forehead. With their consent, establish a fair soul contract. The party who breaks their promise will have their soul dissipate instantly. Consumes 10 mana.]

Her Ghost Pirate had advanced to Tier 2! And she'd gained three new skills.

Ling Chu checked her character panel. Advancing to Tier 3 required reviving 50 skeletons/ghosts.

The moment she saw the number 50, Ling Chu's head started to ache. She felt this profession shouldn't be called Ghost Pirate—it should be called Ghost Grave-Digger. Scouring the world for graves to dig, digging them up, and then reviving the occupants. The skeletons would stand right in front of her, unsure whether to curse her or thank her.

Ling Chu closed the panel and noticed two Skeleton Henchmen whispering beside a headless skeleton. A faint, translucent blue ghostly figure was floating above them.

One Skeleton Henchman said, "This skeleton should be Hemlock's."

The ghost cut in irritably, "That's right, who else could it be? You two ungrateful little brats, don't even recognize my bones anymore?"

The other Skeleton Henchman: "He got his head chopped off by Lucas. Lucas took his head away."

"Oh yes, damn Lucas. His blade was really fast, but it didn't feel like much. Just a little pain, that's all."

The ghost tried to touch his own neck, but his intangible fingers passed straight through his body.

The two skeletons chatted quietly among themselves, but the ghost barged into the conversation. The skeletons couldn't hear him at all. The ghost clearly realized this too. After muttering to himself for a while and finding it boring, he drifted back down to the ground, crouched in a corner, and started drawing circles.

"When I was your first mate, you never listened to me. Now that I'm a ghost, you can't even see me. So I'm the one destined to be forgotten..."

The ghost poked at the dust on the ground, utterly dejected.

"Hemlock."

A somewhat cool, clear female voice rang out.

The ghost immediately lifted his head. Who? Who was calling him?

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