Opening the Treasure Chest (Seeking Collection)

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[You cast Raise Undead (Level 1) once, obtaining Skeleton (Level 0). Raise Undead proficiency +1.]

With an explosion of blood and fur, a skeleton rose from the flesh.

As soon as it formed, it lunged towards the Long-Haired Rats at the forefront, drawn by the scent of its own kind. Its bone claws directly pinned the creature's body.

The magic-using skeleton, following closely, reacted swiftly. It swung its wooden staff again, smashing down heavily on the entangled Long-Haired Rat.

With a yelp, the rat died on the spot.

[Skeleton (Summon) killed Long-Haired Rat (Level 1). You gained 1 EXP, Summon gained 3 EXP.]

In just a moment, nine Long-Haired Rats were brutally killed by Gu Su.

The skeleton squad behind Gu Su had also rapidly expanded to six members thanks to Raise Undead.

After killing all the Long-Haired Rats, Gu Su surveyed the blood and fur splattered on the ground. He pointed at two newly summoned skeletons and gave an order.

"You two, collect all this blood and fur.

The rest of you, push these shopping carts outside to the plaza. Place them in a conspicuous spot. Other skeletons will come to clean them up later."

The skeletons immediately responded. Two skeletons deftly gathered the blood and fur.

The remaining skeletons worked together to pry open the rusted shopping carts, inching them towards the mall entrance. The battlefield quickly entered the cleanup phase.

Gu Su leaned against a collapsed wall, his gaze sweeping over the newly added skeletons. He couldn't help but sigh inwardly.

Necromancers truly had the easiest time establishing themselves in this post-apocalyptic wasteland.

As long as they themselves didn't die, their troop size could expand after every battle, and their combat power would gradually increase.

Just then, a magic-using skeleton that hadn't joined the cleanup effort quickly returned, rushing up to Gu Su and making clattering sounds. "Master, I've found something good!"

Gu Su's eyes lit up, and he immediately followed the magic-using skeleton's pace, hurrying towards a spot not far away.

After a few steps, they arrived at the locker area next to the supermarket entrance.

This was originally a place for customers to store their belongings, but it had long since become a nest for Long-Haired Rats.

Most of the locker doors were ajar, stuffed with grayish-brown rat fur and dried leaves, resembling nests built by the rats.

Rotten, blackened chunks of meat, gnawed-clean small bones, and a few drops of congealed dark red blood were scattered on the ground, mingling with the characteristic musky, foul odor of rats that assaulted the senses.

However, the magic-using skeleton was guiding his attention not to the dilapidated nest scene, but to three still-closed locker compartments.

These three compartments were faintly emitting a soft, eerie green light, with a subtle, strange energy fluctuation.

Clearly, after the nine Long-Haired Rats were all killed, the lingering death energy had stimulated them, triggering something.

Gu Su understood. This was what players in the community often called a post-battle treasure chest, a special reward for clearing out monsters in an area.

But he immediately felt a strange intuition.

This time, it wouldn't be possible to take all three treasure chests. He would likely have to choose one out of the three compartments, and the other two would dissipate upon his selection.

This realization made Gu Su pause, and he couldn't help but hesitate.

Which one should he choose? All three compartments emitted green light, and their quality seemed consistent, at most yielding a green-quality item.

But the contents within would undoubtedly be vastly different. Each choice could affect his future development, and he had to pick the one that best suited his current needs.

His gaze swept back and forth between the three compartments as he rapidly analyzed the possibilities.

The bottom locker was the largest. According to common game settings, these large-capacity chests often contained usable equipment or supplies.

For example, weapons suitable for skeletons, repair materials, or similar items that could quickly fill current combat power or resource gaps.

The top locker was the smallest. Its limited space likely meant it wouldn't contain very large physical items. Instead, it might hide blueprints, architectural designs, or magic scrolls—rare items.

Especially magic scrolls. If he could find a suitable beginner spell scroll for the magic-using skeleton, it could directly activate its magic abilities, offering extremely high cost-effectiveness.

As for architectural designs, they might unlock new functions for the graveyard demon, which would be valuable in the long run.

As for the middle compartment, it was neither large nor small, situated right on the edge of the Long-Haired Rat's nest. The green light fluctuation was slightly more murky than the other two.

Gu Su guessed that this compartment was likely related to the Long-Haired Rat clan. Perhaps it would yield an item to control rat undead, rat bloodline fragments, or a special item that could detect monster nests. Its practical utility was hard to predict.

The sounds of cleanup continued around him, but Gu Su grew increasingly cautious.

Currently, he was lacking equipment that could quickly boost his combat power, he needed to strengthen his graveyard demon, and he also wanted to explore more areas with special items.

The three options each had their pros and cons, making it difficult to decide.

He squatted down, his fingertips tentatively reaching towards the green light, trying to discern differences from the energy fluctuations, but he found no clues.

In the absence of precise judgment, a series of thoughts flashed through Gu Su's mind.

Since he couldn't discern the pros and cons from the outside, why not eliminate the worst option first to narrow down the choices?

The first one he ruled out was the middle locker, situated close to the rat nest and likely related to the Long-Haired Rats.

This was useless to him.

He was a Necromancer, his core combat power derived from his undead troops.

Skeletons themselves weren't top-tier fighters, and undead rats or living rats were far weaker than skeletons.

Even if he obtained relevant items, they wouldn't boost his overall combat power; it would just be a waste.

Next came the small storage slot at the very top.

Items like scrolls and blueprints were full of uncertainty, essentially a gamble.

Even if he got a magic scroll, it depended on whether it was compatible with his magic-skeletons and if it was a practical spell.

If he got a building blueprint or design, given his current state of the Graveyard Demon, he wouldn't be able to use it in the short term.

The Graveyard Demon was still lacking in materials and resources, with many facilities yet to be repaired. How could he have the energy or resources to unlock new buildings?

Comparing them, only the large storage slot at the bottom best fit his current needs.

According to standard game settings, physical items from large-capacity chests were either weapons and armor that could be immediately equipped, or materials that could be directly used to repair or upgrade the Graveyard Demon. Each could solve an urgent problem.

Rather than gambling on an uncertain future, it was better to seize the tangible benefits at hand.

Understanding this, Gu Su no longer hesitated. His eyes narrowed, and he quickly reached out, pressing the door of the largest storage slot.

The moment his fingertips touched the cool metal surface, the faint green light surrounding the other two storage slots instantly converged here.

Flowing through Gu Su's fingertips into the cabinet, the cabinet door made a soft click and slowly creaked open a gap.