The arrow struck the Skeleton Captain squarely in the chest. Its shaft sank into his armor, throwing him off balance. He stumbled and staggered back several steps.
At that moment, two enlarged Blood-colored Fireballs came crashing down among them.
"Boom! Boom!"
Two deafening explosions rang out. The Blood-colored Fireballs burst, scattering sparks and unleashing a tremendous shockwave that sent all the Skeleton Warriors flying. The Skeleton Captain was no exception.
The Skeleton Captain was sprawled on the ground, struggling to get back up, when another Blood-colored Fireball landed on him. Zhao Fu also cast Hellfire Ball.
"Boom!"
An explosion erupted, sending the Skeleton Captain, who had just tried to stand, flying another three or four meters.
The other Skeleton Warriors got back up as well. Without their captain to lead them, they gathered together again and instinctively charged forward.
"Archers, fire and suppress them!" Zhao Fu shouted again.
The Archers fired arrow after arrow, buying Old Luo time to cast. Two Blood-colored Fireballs formed and flew out once more, landing among the Skeleton Warriors and blasting them into the air again.
Meanwhile, the Skeleton Captain was slowly getting to his feet when an ordinary Fireball landed on him right on cue, sending him flying another three or four meters.
Seeing that the Skeleton Captain had been separated from the other Skeleton Warriors, Zhao Fu immediately called out, "Bai Qi! The Skeleton Captain is yours!"
Bai Qi nodded and ran toward the Skeleton Captain.
As for the remaining eleven Skeleton Warriors, Zhao Fu and his group kept them occupied. Whenever three or four of them gathered together, a Fireball came flying at them, while the Shield Bearers and Infantry charged in to attack.
Zhao Fu's side soon had the situation under control. On Bai Qi's side, the Skeleton Captain had been weakened several times by Zhao Fu and Old Luo, and his strength was failing. He was gradually being pushed onto the defensive, but he was still formidable. Gripping his blade in both hands, he attacked Bai Qi with savage strikes, each one sweeping out a broad arc of blade-light.
Seeing that things were under control on his side, Zhao Fu turned his attention to Bai Qi and drew the Ironwood Bow again. He used Stone-Shattering Arrow, gathering wisps of dark yellow energy around the arrow shaft.
The Skeleton Captain spun around and swept his blade horizontally toward Bai Qi's waist.
At that moment, an arrow struck the Skeleton Captain in the waist, stopping him in his tracks. Bai Qi seized the opening and thrust his sword forward, unleashing a sharp sword aura that pierced straight into the Skeleton Captain's skull. The blue soul-flame inside flickered, growing smaller and smaller until it finally went out.
The Skeleton Captain's body collapsed into a heap of bones. Bai Qi quickly turned and joined the battle on Zhao Fu's side, taking on three Skeleton Warriors at once.
Zhao Fu ordered a full-force attack. He and Old Luo also cast Fireballs, and in the end, all eleven Skeleton Warriors were killed.
The battle had lasted half an hour, and everyone was exhausted. Zhao Fu and Old Luo were especially drained, their minds weary.
They began gathering the spoils. The eleven Skeleton Warriors had dropped eleven blue-quality weapons and eight Souls of Martial Refinement. Then they went over to the Skeleton Captain's remains and inspected his blade first.
[Hundred-Edge Blade] Grade: Silver. Attributes: Strength +3, Constitution +3. Description: The Hundred-Edge Blade was once a top-grade golden weapon, but even it could not withstand the ravages of time and had become an ordinary silver weapon.
Zhao Fu was somewhat pleased to find a silver weapon. He continued by examining the Skeleton Captain's armor.
[Cyan-Gold Armor] Grade: Blue. Attribute: Constitution +1. Description: This armor was once of golden grade, but after being weathered for tens of thousands of years, it had eventually fallen to blue quality.
After obtaining the armor, Zhao Fu had Bai Qi put it on for the time being. The Cyan-Gold Armor was certainly more protective than leather armor, though Bai Qi would only wear it for now. Once they returned, they would need to make a few simple repairs.
As for the blue leather armor Bai Qi had taken off, Zhao Fu put it on without hesitation. Besides those two pieces of equipment, the Skeleton Captain had also dropped a faintly glowing orb. Inside it seemed to be a soldier holding a large blade and wearing armor.
Zhao Fu took it and examined it.
[Soldier Soul] Description: A powerful essence left behind after a soldier's death. It can be integrated into a City Heart to become a guardian spirit, or into a weapon to strengthen it. (Note: 100 Soldier Souls can be fused into a General's Artifact. A lord who possesses 24 General's Artifacts can use 1,000 Soldier Souls to fuse a King's Artifact.)
Zhao Fu was pleasantly surprised. It seemed quite powerful, though he wondered what a General's Artifact was and what a King's Artifact might be. Curious, he put it away for now.
After resting in place for a while to recover their strength and mental energy, they continued onward.
After that, they did not encounter any particularly troublesome enemies. They killed another twelve Skeleton Infantry and five Skeleton Archers, obtaining thirteen Souls of Martial Refinement.
Zhao Fu had thought things would continue so easily, but the situation soon changed: Skeleton Shield-Bearers appeared.
Until now, Zhao Fu had relied on his advantage of having defensive units while the enemy had none, allowing them to explore with ease. But now the enemy had defensive units too, and the situation became rather unfavorable.
This time, Zhao Fu encountered five Skeleton Infantry, three Skeleton Archers, and five Skeleton Shield-Bearers.
This was more difficult than facing more than a dozen enemies of a single type. When they shot arrows again, the Skeleton Shield-Bearers blocked almost all of them. Charging in was difficult too; Shield Bearers could only stalemate against other Shield Bearers.
Their only real advantages now were their greater numbers and the explosive skills of Zhao Fu and Old Luo.
The Skeletons formed up as well. The Skeleton Shield-Bearers raised their shields, the Skeleton Infantry took cover behind them, and the Skeleton Archers drew their bows and nocked their arrows.
There was no other choice. They could only rely on their numerical advantage and meet the enemy head-on.
Zhao Fu's side put their Shield Bearers in front, with the Infantry behind them. The Archers drew their bows as well.
The two sides clashed. Zhao Fu's Archers focused on suppressing the enemy Skeleton Archers. His side was made up of living people; if they were hit, they could be wounded or killed, unlike this group of undead.
Zhao Fu could only watch the battle with complete concentration. He wanted to use Fireballs against the Skeleton Archers, but magic skills did not have a very long range, so he could only wait for an opportunity.
Still, the situation favored Zhao Fu's side. Each of his Shield Bearers teamed up in pairs to slam their shields against a Skeleton Shield-Bearer, hoping to knock them apart.
But even as undead, the Skeleton Shield-Bearers knew that they could only be powerful by standing together. No matter how forcefully Zhao Fu's Shield Bearers rammed them, they remained firmly united.
The battle was at a stalemate, so Zhao Fu could only tell Bai Qi to make his move.