Luring Monsters in One Wave

After the Elite Ghost was eliminated, the remaining ordinary Ghost was no match for it and was easily taken down.

After the two Ghost died, they left no bodies, but instead turned into black mist and vanished completely. Only the silver treasure chest remained in their place.

Bai Xiaowen's finger touched the treasure chest, indicating that the battle's rating was D.

The Dead Spirit Lake Treasure Ground Space is slightly more difficult than the Broken-Spine Mountain Grand Rift. Most of the monsters, including the Boss Tier, are only level 5 or 6, with only a very few reaching level 7 due to chance.

Given Bai Xiaowen's current strength Hero Class, the Ghost he killed was only a level 6 Elite Tier, so giving him a D-Tier rating is perfectly normal.

With a 1/3 chance of getting nothing for D-Tier rating, Bai Xiaowen didn't have high hopes for the loot. He casually opened the treasure chest and selected a silver card. However, a notification from the Spirit Realm Rules that followed made him suddenly open his slightly narrowed eyes, revealing a look of surprise.

"You have obtained a special item: Unclean Essence."

Bai Xiaowen quickly examined the item and saw a pale gray energy body. Although the color was slightly different, its shape and name were exactly the same as the "Unclean Essence" obtained from killing the Vengeful Spirit in the Jiajing Plane World!

Additionally, [Absolon's Blood Essence Stone (Slightly Damaged)] also emitted a slightly warm sensation. Clearly, this essence can be used to feed Absolon's Blood Essence Stone to restore its integrity!

Absolon's Blood Essence Stone, being a product of a lord, was certainly extraordinary. However, due to Bai Xiaowen's punishment for killing Absolon by trickery, the Blood Essence Stone remained incomplete until it was repaired after the Jiajing Plane World slew the Vengeful Spirit, the White Ghost Queen, and the Black Zombie King.

Bai Xiaowen was very much looking forward to seeing what power the Blood Essence Stone in its complete form would possess. He quickly checked the detailed description of the newly acquired Unclean Essence.

[The Unclean Essence: This spirit harbors deep resentment, which can only be cleansed by the blood of the Nightmare Alligator.]

"Nightmare Alligator?"

Bai Xiaowen repeated the name; the Nightmare Alligator was not mentioned in the materials provided by previous Awakened alumni of Jinghai University.

"If you break down the name 'Nightmare Alligator,' 'Nightmare' means having nightmares or being confused, while 'crocodile' in ancient China refers to a crocodile, or a pig-dragon..." Bai Xiaowen analyzed for a moment and muttered to himself, "Nightmare Alligator, these two characters together are very strange. Could it be a crocodile that is good at mental attacks?"

Regardless, the Unclean Essence need to be cleansed with the blood of the Nightmare Alligator means that these Ghost may have been killed by the Nightmare Alligator in their previous lives. Bai Xiaowen already had experience with this kind of task of cleansing the spirits of Vengeful Spirit.

"However, in order to repair Absolon's Blood Essence Stone, the more of this essence, the better."

Bai Xiaowen looked at the giant lotus leaves in the swamp ahead and grinned lewdly. Then he gestured to Kitz, "Kitz, go say hello to these dormant Ghost... Remember to lead them towards me from far to near."

The Vampire Kitz laughed heartily and walked step by step along the giant lotus leaves, passing through hundreds of lotus leaves until he reached the other side of the swamp depression, where he began to hop around.

"Friends in the trees, friends in the water, put down what you're doing and let's have some fun together!"

Kitz imitated a joke he saw online, swaying his hips and bouncing rhythmically two or three times, then turning back towards Bai Xiaowen, he jumped onto the second lotus leaf, bounced twice more, and then jumped onto the third lotus leaf...

What's more exciting than dancing on a grave?

Dancing in a cemetery.

Behind Kitz, a large group of Ghost quickly gathered. After a brief search, they swiftly located Kitz, the culprit who had disturbed their slumber, and charged at him with a howl.

As Kitz hopped back to the middle, the first wave of Ghost caught up with him. Kitz had to use his Bat Transformation ability to temporarily deprive the Ghost of their target, then flew to the next lotus leaf to continue hopping. When the Ghost caught up again, he would repeatedly use his Bat Transformation ability...

When Kitz returned to Bai Xiaowen, he was followed by hundreds of Ghost, forming a dense Ghost army that charged forward. A third of them were Elite Ghost.

Bai Xiaowen had been waiting for this moment. When the Ghost Legion pounced on him, he took a deep breath and suddenly unleashed flames from his palm.

Orochi Nagi!

A massive wave of fire surged forth, covering a space of several meters in front of them and engulfing the densely packed Ghost ranks.

The burning impact lasted for three seconds, and coupled with the Ghost' magic vulnerability that caused them to suffer an additional 50% spell damage... the damage from this Orochi Nagi was astonishing. A dense array of damage numbers such as "-65", "-71", and "-69" appeared above the Ghost ' heads.

Each Ghost needs to endure three seconds of burning, with three damage numbers flashing above its head.

After three seconds of burning, hundreds of Ghost were wiped out—even the Elite Ghost were fragile with less than 20 points of constitution, so of course they couldn't withstand the Orochi Nagi's extra 50% damage.

Only a few dozen Silver Treasure Chest remained on the ground, the ground gleaming with silver light, a truly magnificent sight.

Bai Xiaowen's face suddenly turned pale; he had exhausted a great deal of his energy. He took a breath, sat cross-legged, and ordered Kitz and the Skeleton Sword-and-Shield Soldier to pick up the treasure chest.

Bai Xiaowen's Kusanagi Sword is currently in a state of absorption and fusion, so the Kusanagi Sword's built-in Orochi Nagi skill, which requires 10,000 Psionic Points to charge, is temporarily unusable. Bai Xiaowen's Orochi Nagi was unleashed by controlling the Blazing Flame Bloodline and expending his own physical energy.

In this Yin Aura environment, Bai Xiaowen's physical strength could not be effectively restored, and she immediately felt a heavy sense of fatigue.

Kitz was different. He had used his bat Incarnation ability multiple times, and his physical strength was almost at its lowest point. But in this Ghost Mist Zone, he only needed to take two deep breaths, and his breathing returned to normal. This was the advantage of Undead Species creatures in the Ghost Mist Zone; their physical strength recovery speed not only did not decrease but actually increased.

Fortunately, Bai Xiaowen had Incomplete Necromantic Disguise, which slightly suppressed the effects of the Yin Aura. He took a few breaths, and while he was out of combat, he drank a small barrel of ale, and his strength gradually recovered.

The Yin Aura the Ghost Mist Zone Suppression the awakened's natural recovery abilities. Effects such as the restoration of stamina with ale, the restoration of Divine Might with rice wine, and the restoration of Life Value with foods like steamed buns are not affected by the Yin Aura.

Bai Xiaowen had recovered about half of her physical strength and habitually took stock of her gains.

Having slain hundreds of Ghost in a single battle, including nearly a hundred Elite Ghost, Bai Xiaowen reaped a substantial amount of Psionic Points, approaching 70,000! The Black Soul Stone were also feasting on them, their growth rate soaring to 966/1000, and their Soul Essence reaching 851 points.

"So refreshing, so refreshing!" Bai Xiaowen exclaimed. This swampy depression, Stealth Ghost, was originally a very dangerous area. Other awakened individuals, especially those specializing in physical attacks, would find it difficult to easily kill Elite Ghost.

Once locked in combat, Elite Ghost only needs one Ghost Scream skill to send the awakened one scurrying about in the dangerous swamp, drawing out more Ghost. Then comes the endless Ghost Scream, a near-death experience, ultimately leaving the awakened one with no choice but to leave the Dead Spirit Lake Treasure Ground Space.

However, Bai Xiaowen had Kitz, a skilled monster-lurer with strong survivability, who attracted a large number of Ghost to him. He also had the powerful area-of-effect skill, Orochi Nagi, which, more importantly, dealt magic damage and was effective against Ghost, allowing him to reap the full benefits.

Unfortunately, the Ghost in the vicinity have all been lured here by Kitz, and the swamp has become a safe zone; such good fortune is no longer possible.

Bai Xiaowen opened the Silver Treasure Chest one by one. Apart from a few chests that he didn't get, the other chests each gave him a "Unclean Essence". Bai Xiaowen now had twenty-three essences in his possession.

After resting for a while, Bai Xiaowen continued towards Yinwind Ridge. Although he was exhausted, the ale kept him moving. Moreover, unless a large group of Ghost appeared, Bai Xiaowen wouldn't need to expend too much energy; he could simply command the undead creatures in the Black Soul Stone to attack.

While undead creatures like Kitz and Bone Warlock also consume stamina and Divine Might, their recovery speed is very fast. Bone Warlock, in particular, become like turrets after being freed from the limitations of Divine Might; their Thunderstrike Art have a Bane of Evil bonus against most monsters in the Dead Spirit Lake Treasure Ground Space.

After killing some Drowned Zombie, Bai Xiaowen collected some Drowning Bone and Netherworld Grass. He tried to integrate these two materials into the Incomplete Necromantic Disguise, and finally obtained a complete Undead Disguise (lower grade).

The complete Undead Disguise was still in the shape of a raincoat, but unlike its previous tattered state with a hole on the left and a hole on the right, it now completely covered Bai Xiaowen's neck and back. The mist from the Ghost Mist Zone lingered outside the raincoat, and the bone-chilling feeling that seemed to be constantly absorbing heat finally dissipated.

Bai Xiaowen took a breath, feeling as if she had been freed from all her shackles.

"This Undead Disguise is only low-grade? Then there must be intermediate, high-grade, and even higher-grade Undead Disguise, right? I wonder what their effects would be."

Bai Xiaowen felt that the materials provided by the school only covered some basic things, such as the creation of Undead Disguise and the basic topographical map of the Dead Spirit Lake. However, some truly high-end and in-depth information was missing.

For example, the Nightmare Alligator, and the intermediate and higher levels of Undead Disguise effects, are all things that were not mentioned in the intelligence data.

After walking for several kilometers, Bai Xiaowen finally arrived at the most potentially rewarding, yet also most dangerous, area within the Netherworld Rift – Yinwind Ridge.

According to the information, Yinwind Ridge is actually a Mass Burial Ground, containing countless remains of the dead. Every so often, Yin Soldiers pass through Yinwind Ridge, and various Undead Species monsters appear to patrol their territory.

However, Yinwind Ridge has several special products that are hard to resist, such as Netherworld Grass and Netherwind Flower, both of which are high-grade medicinal materials. In addition, the Undead Species Yin Soldiers of Yinwind Ridge drop Necrotic Essence, which is also very popular in the market of Advanced Awakened.

Necrotic Essence can only be obtained by killing monsters, but Netherworld Grass and Netherwind Flower can be picked with a bit of luck.

As soon as Bai Xiaowen arrived at Yinwind Ridge, he heard the sounds of fierce fighting. He quickly walked a few steps, went around a pile of bones, and saw several awakened individuals fighting against more than a dozen "Yin Soldiers".

Yin Soldiers are a collective term for the Undead Species monsters of Yinwind Ridge, including Drowned Zombie, Ghost, Water Ghost, and a creature that has never been seen before— Zombie Hound.

Zombie Hound are about the same size as other Mutant Dog, but their appearance is extremely creepy. They look like dogs that have been skinned alive, with their gums all turned outward and a putrid smell emanating from their bodies.

To be on the safe side, Bai Xiaowen first used his Insight on one of the Zombie Hound.

[Zombie Hound (Level 5)]

[Race: Undead Species / Corpse Demonfolk]

[Attributes: Strength 21, Agility 18, Constitution 17, Spirit 5]

[Skill 1: Corrupting Blood: Zombie Hound ' attacks have a chance to inflict Bleeding and apply Corrupting Toxin, causing continuous poison damage.]

[Skill 2: Bite: Omitted.]

The second skill, Bite, is similar to the Bite skill of Rageclaw, both of which cause a bleeding effect.

This is an ordinary Zombie Hound; both of its skills are offensive, making it relatively weak in terms of threat.

Bai Xiaowen then examined an Elite Tier Zombie Hound. In addition to the overall enhancement of its attributes, its Bite skill had been changed to "Savage Bite," with an added crippling effect.

The Elite Zombie dog's third skill is quite interesting; it's called [Bloated Self-Destruction], which activates upon death, requires a 1.5-second preparation time, and then deals 150 magic damage to all targets within a 10-meter radius (whether friendly or enemy).

150 points of magic damage may not seem like much, but it's still terrifying for fragile Awakened beings with a Constitution level below 20. One hit can take away half their health (after damage reduction). Keep in mind that this is in the middle of a chaotic battle, where attacks from other monsters will also deduct Life Value.

As for using Elite Zombie dogs to bomb other monsters? While this tactic might be advantageous in combat, the Life Value taken by the Elite Zombie dogs doesn't count towards the Awakened One's Kill Contribution, resulting in a reduction in loot. Experienced Awakened Ones are unwilling to do this.

Several Awakened Ones were clearly experienced in dealing with Elite Zombie dogs. After bringing it to low health, an agile ranged Awakened One lured it away and then finished it off from a distance.

Zombie Hound are not very intelligent. When they die far from people, the explosion has no effect, which means their skill was wasted.

Bai Xiaowen didn't recognize these people, and besides, they were more than enough to deal with the monsters, so he had no intention of making a move. Instead, he strolled around Yinwind Ridge, searching for Netherworld Grass and Netherwind Flower.

However, this doesn't mean others don't recognize Bai Xiaowen. Some awakened individuals immediately recognized him and whispered among themselves.

That's all for today, only two updates. We have guests over—so I'm huddled in my small room writing on my old laptop.