Chapter 16: Chaotic Battle
Chapter 16: Chaotic Battle
Stab!
Stab again.
Step forward and stab again!
Under the command of the skeleton leader, Combat Squad 3 repeatedly thrust their spears forward.
Each thrust accurately pierced the black figures.
There were so many black figures that the skeletons in the combat squad didn't even need to look at their positions; the spears always hit one or two enemies.
Due to the skeletons' height, their spears hit the enemies in the chest. Sometimes, with a bit more force, they pierced through two or three enemies at once.
After three thrusts, one of the black figures finally couldn't withstand the skeletons' attacks and fell to the ground.
[Skeleton (Summoned) killed Shadow Wraith (Level 2), you gained 1 experience point, the combat squad gained 1 experience point, and the summoned creature gained 8 experience points.]
As soon as the prompt sounded, Gu Xi attacked the spot where the black figure had fallen.
"Minor Corpse Explosion."
However, just as Gu Xi's magic touched the spot, he heard a soft pop, and the fallen black figure disappeared like a bubble.
There was no explosion, and even the sound was barely noticeable, something Gu Xi only heard because he was paying attention.
This made Gu Xi quite unhappy, but there was nothing he could do.
The fact that Shadow Wraiths left no corpses after being killed was something Gu Xi couldn't change.
Frustrated, Gu Xi altered his plan, changing his outward-pointing gesture to an inward one.
At that moment, another prompt sounded.
[Skeleton (Summoned) killed Shadow Wraith (Level 2), you gained 1 experience point, the combat squad gained 1 experience point, and the summoned creature gained 11 experience points.]
Gu Xi grabbed a few soul fragments with his inward motion.
A soul without a body?
A strange situation indeed.
Without overthinking, Gu Xi focused on the battle ahead.
Extracting souls was a basic skill for all necromancers. It required no mana; as long as enemies died, it could be done easily.
Since he couldn't use Corpse Explosion now and didn't have a Soul Summoning Tower from a city of the dead to help extract souls, gathering some souls as materials for future spells was a good way to pass the time.
After all, Gu Xi didn't know what the next two waves of enemies would be like, so he needed to have something in hand.
Whether it was enough mana, enough souls, or enough skeletons.
As Gu Xi extracted souls, many more Shadow Wraiths died under the skeletons' spears. However, more and more Shadow Wraiths crowded in from nearby, breaking through the makeshift barricades the skeletons had set up and even managing to strike Combat Squad 3's skeletons.
"Combat Squad 4, move up to block them. Combat Squad 1, flank them. Scattered skeletons, start moving. One ring of barricades isn't enough. Can't you set up more?"
Seeing the situation, Gu Xi couldn't help but issue more commands.
He even had to stop extracting souls.
Gu Xi realized that the leader-level undead were somewhat dumb. Their intelligence was only slightly better than that of ordinary skeletons—present but limited.
Without Gu Xi's instructions, they sometimes just stood there, not knowing what to do.
At this moment, Gu Xi had to act as a commander, arranging the attacks and retreats meticulously.
Otherwise, the undead would end up with one squad fighting to the death in front while the others stood around watching.
If Gu Xi's undead were stronger, it might be better.
But most of these undead were Level 0 skeletons, not even considered skeleton soldiers.
They were facing Level 2 Shadow Wraiths. If they didn't act, fine, but if they did, the Level 0 skeletons were no match at all.
This was evident when Combat Squad 4 moved up.
Combat Squad 3, being farther away and protected by barricades, hadn't directly engaged the Shadow Wraiths.
But Combat Squad 4, equipped with swords and shields, relied on close combat. Their weapons didn't allow for long-range attacks.
So, when Combat Squad 4 faced the Shadow Wraiths, they were immediately hit.
Ten skeletons were killed on the spot.
As the skeletons fell, Gu Xi acted.
"Minor Corpse Explosion!"
Gu Xi targeted the spot where the skeletons had fallen. In the absence of bodies, undead corpses could still be used for explosions.
The Shadow Wraiths didn't expect Gu Xi to use his own troops as bombs and continued to surge forward.
Then came four loud explosions.
Four fallen skeletons exploded, sending bone fragments flying. These fragments spun and sliced into the Shadow Wraiths.
Each fragment flew at least thirty meters. The four skeleton explosions killed over sixty Shadow Wraiths.
[Killed Shadow Wraith (Level 2), gained 45 experience points.]
[Killed Shadow Wraith (Level 2), gained 33 experience points.]
[Killed Shadow Wraith (Level 2), gained 36 experience points.]
[...]
However, Gu Xi was puzzled.
"Why only four explosions? I clearly used Minor Corpse Explosion five times. Could it be that Minor Corpse Explosion can fail?"
Gu Xi pondered the situation in confusion.
At this moment, Combat Squad 1 had flanked the Shadow Wraiths, attacking them with short axes and curved knives from behind.
These Shadow Wraiths clearly had some awareness.
Though they were attracted to the front, they weren't mindless; they retaliated when attacked.
But they faced Gu Xi's oldest combat squad.
This squad had experienced many battles, with many skeletons having leveled up.
Their weapons had also been upgraded multiple times, making them the strongest combat squad under Gu Xi.
They didn't care about their safety, diving into the black figures and hacking away.
Their chaotic attacks were effective, swift enough that one axe strike followed by a knife slash was often enough to finish an enemy.
If they were quicker, the Shadow Wraiths had no chance to counterattack.
For a moment, the Shadow Wraiths' advance halted, and their already chaotic formation became even more disordered.
Combat Squad 3 seized this opportunity, thrusting their spears forward again and killing more Shadow Wraiths.
But at this moment, the leader of the Shadow Wraiths, wielding a spear made of arms, finally acted.