Chapter 44, New Members and Rewards
Chapter 44, New Members and Rewards
Two zombies walked out of the bedroom.
Judging by their appearance, one was an old man and the other a middle-aged man.
Wu Heng glanced at the ghost floating in the air; the little girl immediately darted through the wall and ran away.
"I got tricked by a little ghost."
Watching the two approaching zombies, Wu Heng casually cast a [Witch Arrow], the blue energy spear hitting the target and causing the zombie to shudder slightly.
He turned and opened the door behind him, stepping aside, "Attack!"
The skeleton warriors waiting in the hallway entered the living room.
Dropping the bags of rice, flour, and oil they had been carrying, they pulled out their kitchen knives and rushed forward.
The zombies were instantly knocked to the ground, and countless kitchen knives rained down, killing the zombies on the spot.
[Gained 4 experience points.]
[Summon - Skeleton Warrior, gained 3 experience points.]
[Gained 4 experience points.]
[Summon - Skeleton Warrior, gained 3 experience points.]
The notifications appeared, confirming the deaths of the two zombies.
The living room fell silent, and the skeleton warriors returned to standby mode.
Wu Heng opened the door and looked into the hallway, but the little ghost was nowhere to be seen.
She probably ran away out of fear.
"Didn't she think I could fight my way here? How could two zombies possibly kill me?"
After confirming there were no more zombies in the room, Wu Heng began to explore the place.
The living conditions of this family were quite good, with furniture and decorations that were considered top-tier in the area.
Wu Heng searched around and found another safe in the study.
Using the bronze key, he opened it.
Inside, it was divided into three layers.
The top layer held licenses, various certificates, and contracts; the middle layer neatly held gold bars and some gold jewelry; the bottom layer contained cash, paper savings certificates, and bank cards.
Looking at the gold, Wu Heng wasn't sure what to think.
The little girl hadn't completely lied; there was indeed a lot of gold in the house.
After packing up all the gold and searching for other valuable items, Wu Heng returned to the living room and cast [Raise Skeleton] on the two corpses.
The two skeletons slowly stood up and rejoined the squad.
Wu Heng didn't linger any longer and left the residence, leading the skeletons back to the street with the shops.
He had the skeletons carry the unconverted corpses and headed back to the building where he lived.
The residential area he had cleared several times before was much safer.
The return journey to his residence was smooth and without incident.
Wu Heng continued casting [Raise Skeleton] on the bodies.
It was a tedious and monotonous task.
...
Blackstone Town, Adventurer's Guild.
Due to the recent incident with the Divine Punishment Sect, multiple areas in the guild hall were under repair.
Even in the open areas, sword marks and bullet holes could be seen.
Wu Heng sent Barson to the rest area and headed straight for the reception desk.
"Mr. Wu Heng, how can I assist you today?" the staff member asked with a smile.
"Please check if the commission I issued last time has been completed—the one for the antidote," Wu Heng said.
The antidote commission had been out for a few days.
He had provided the materials and the recipe, so it shouldn't have taken this long.
The staff member nodded and began flipping through the records.
"It's ready. I'll go get it for you," the staff member said, nodding.
Shortly after, the staff member returned with a wooden box.
Opening the box revealed the potions inside.
"These are the antidotes you commissioned, three bottles in total, all completed."
[Special Antidote]
(Description: A potion made to counter specific toxins.)
After confirming the items, Wu Heng nodded, "Thank you."
He stored the potions and called Barson to head towards the rest area.
It had been several days since he last visited, so he figured he should check in and show his face.
He walked through the corridor and reached the rest area.
Opening the door, he entered the room.
Inside, besides Captain Otruluk and Kavina, there was also a short-haired girl with brown hair sitting on the sofa.
"Wu Heng, you're just in time. Let me introduce you to our new member, Yuli, a Druid."
Then, turning to the girl on the sofa, Otruluk said, "This is Wu Heng, our squad's necromancer."
A Druid? The kind that can transform into a bear or wolf?
Wu Heng took another look at her.
The girl was petite, with tanned skin, and didn't seem very old.
Her brown shoulder-length hair was slightly curly and fluffy.
She wore leather armor decorated with symbols resembling crescent moons, branches, and leafy plants.
"Hello, Yuli!" Wu Heng greeted her proactively.
"Hmph!" Yuli snorted, turning her head away.
She didn't seem interested in engaging with him.
Uh... what's going on today?
It seems like the young girls all have an issue with me.
Given her attitude, Wu Heng didn't say much more.
He sat down and asked, "Captain, Kavina, how are your injuries?"
Otruluk replied, "Nothing serious."
Kavina moved her arms and smiled, "Not as bad as the captain's; I just need a few days of rest."
This highlighted the difference between the front and back lines.
The front liners were mostly injured, even Skeleton Barson had a broken rib.
Wu Heng, staying in the back and focusing on output, didn't get hurt, and he ended up taking most of the kills during the battle.
Of course, the credit also goes to the three of them for keeping the Divine Punishment Sect elder occupied; otherwise, things could have been much worse for him.
But the physical resilience of adventurers in this world was indeed remarkable.
Such serious injuries seemed like mere scratches to them.
"Captain, is there any update on the Divine Punishment Sect situation?" Wu Heng asked.
Otruluk said, "The guild is still investigating why the elder of the Divine Punishment Sect came to Blackstone Town and the reason for the serious intelligence failure."
Last time, they had led the main city forces out of the city, which was no small matter.
It could be seen as an intelligence failure or a leadership decision error.
Someone would have to take the blame for it; otherwise, it wouldn't be acceptable.
Wu Heng nodded, understanding the situation.
Otruluk continued, "But our squad's high-grade item rewards have already arrived. Since you're here today, let's go choose them."
"Ah, sure!"
Otruluk left the rest area and returned with several items in his hands.
He placed them one by one on the table and said, "After discussing with the deacon and Blackstone Town, we were awarded a 3rd level merit, which has been reported to the guild headquarters. With this merit, once you reach Level 8 or higher, the lowest you can be assigned is as a squad leader in a branch."
3rd level merit?
Wu Heng was momentarily stunned but quickly understood.
In the guild's system, aside from recording files, there was also a merit system.
Regular commission tasks only provided monetary and item rewards, but being recorded for merit was reserved for those who made 'special contributions' or 'prevented major incidents'—only those who were key players in serious matters would earn merit.
As Otruluk said, with this merit on their record, as long as they had the necessary level and strength, becoming a squad leader was almost guaranteed.
In slightly larger cities, there were no shortages of high-level adventurers, but most were stuck as squad members due to a lack of merit.
Of course, this didn't affect Wu Heng much; it was nice to have but not essential.
Leveling up was still the most important thing for him.
"Alright," Wu Heng responded.
Kavina also smiled with delight.
Otruluk then laid out the rewards he brought, "These are the high-grade item rewards. The three of us can each choose one."
There were seven items in total, lined up on the table.
The first item was a wooden bracelet, intricately carved with patterns. Upon closer inspection, the patterns appeared more like symbols.
"This bracelet is engraved with a natural formation. It can heal injuries twice a day, similar to taking a regular healing potion," Otruluk explained.