Chapter 211 : The Invasion of the Bonefolk! Wen Pin’s Powerful Fate Skills!
Chapter 211: The Invasion of the Bonefolk! Wen Pin’s Powerful Fate Skills!
North of Wo Niu Mountain.
A player squad was currently grinding monsters and leveling up.
The squad leader was a player named Peashooter. Although he had only just reached Level 11, he was quite skilled and possessed considerable leadership ability.
The entire squad consisted of nine people.
Everyone else was at Tier One cultivation.
Their levels generally ranged between 8 and 10.
Having just wiped out a group of wild monsters, Peashooter’s squad was happily counting their loot and calculating the overall gains from this outing.
“Everyone, look! What’s that?”
A female player responsible for keeping watch suddenly noticed something.
“What happened?”
Peashooter and the others quickly climbed a small hillside.
They saw a massive expanse of white mist ahead, like an upside-down bowl covering an area several kilometers in radius.
A warrior player said, “That’s Huangmei Hamlet.”
Another warlock player said, “That’s strange. There was nothing unusual just now. Where did all this come from?”
“Should we go take a look?”
“I’ve got a bad feeling about this!”
“Yeah. Losing some experience from dying once isn’t a big deal, but we’ve been grinding all day and have quite a lot of magic stones on us. Dying now would be expensive!”
“There could be a rare encounter!”
“Aren’t you guys curious?”
“...”
Just as the players were divided and hesitating—
A game notification suddenly rang in their ears.
【Ding!】
【Quest Triggered!】
【Quest Name: Investigate the Anomaly at Huangmei Hamlet!】
【Quest Description: The Huangmei Hamlet Blessing Point appears to have been occupied by a foreign race. This is a rare opportunity to gather reconnaissance intelligence and must not be missed!】
【Time Limit: 59 minutes 59 seconds!】
【Quest Rewards: 10,000 Abyssal Essence Points, 20,000 Contribution Points, to be distributed among squad members!】
“Holy crap!”
“A quest triggered!”
“A foreign race? It should be one of the Starsea races!”
“Since yesterday, we’ve been getting quests to search for foreign races, but nobody seems to have completed one yet!”
“Did we actually run into them?”
“No way! This is headline-level news!”
“Doesn’t this mean we can complete two quests at once?”
“Damn, if that’s true, this is a massive profit!”
“What are we waiting for?”
“Charge!”
Peashooter’s squad immediately became excited.
The news that Starsea foreign races had invaded Wo Niu Mountain had already spread throughout the player community and forums during the past day.
Yet no one had encountered the invaders so far.
This concerned the next major enemy of the Calamity Army.
It might even determine the safety of the territory itself!
How could they ignore it?
Even without rewards, once they learned the anomaly ahead might be caused by foreign races, the players would still rush in without hesitation.
Not to mention the generous rewards being offered.
Peashooter’s squad immediately set out.
Only after entering the affected area did they discover that what covered Huangmei Hamlet was not ordinary fog, but a freezing blizzard.
It felt as though they had stepped into the polar regions.
Icy winds carrying frost and snowflakes whipped through the air. A thin layer of ice coated the grass and ground beneath their feet. The closer they moved toward the center, the colder it became.
The players in Peashooter’s squad were not high-level.
If they remained in such an environment for too long, their bodies would soon be unable to endure it.
Without hesitation—
They pushed forward through the snowstorm.
Upon reaching the vicinity of Huangmei Hamlet, they were shocked by what they saw.
The Huangmei Hamlet Blessing Point was an abandoned village.
The place had already fallen into ruin before the arrival of the Dragon-Lizard Tribe.
However, because it had produced a Fate Stone and could activate a Blessing Point—
It had once been occupied by the Dragon-Lizard People.
After the Dragon-Lizard defeat, humanity reclaimed the area.
Because too little time had passed and manpower was scarce—
The Lord had not yet had the opportunity to rebuild the village.
As a result, it was usually used only as a teleportation node for players going out to adventure or grind monsters.
Yet now—
The ruins of Huangmei Hamlet were engulfed in snow and ice.
Hundreds, perhaps even thousands, of figures were clearing rubble and constructing defensive positions.
Several structures resembling arrow towers had even appeared, radiating the aura of the Stars.
“We found them!”
“They really are foreign races!”
Peashooter’s squad was overjoyed.
This mission was far too easy.
So easy it practically amounted to free money and experience.
As for what race had occupied the area—
The squad was astonished after taking a closer look.
The creatures active throughout Huangmei Hamlet were actually grotesque skeleton monsters.
【Bonefolk Skeleton Warrior】, Level 10 Elite... Introduction: A Star Blessed Kin unit of the undead race. While not especially powerful, they are cheap, numerous, and extremely easy to summon.
【Bonefolk Skeleton Warlock】, Level 10 Elite...
【Bonefolk Skeleton Archer】, Level 10 Elite...
【Bonefolk Skeleton Priest】, Level 10...
“Skeleton soldiers?”
“So they’re just skeleton soldiers?”
“Looks like we’re up against a skeleton lord this time!”
“What the hell? That’s pretty lame. I don’t even think they’re as strong as the Dragon-Lizard Tribe!”
“Don’t underestimate them!”
“...”
Peashooter’s squad attempted to move closer so they could better examine the structures being built in Huangmei Hamlet.
Unexpectedly—
Several arrows suddenly whistled toward them.
“Watch out!”
“We’ve been spotted!”
Peashooter reacted quickly.
His short sword flashed repeatedly, knocking away the incoming attacks before he immediately located the attackers.
Three skeletons appeared not far ahead.
Though they appeared humanoid at first glance, a closer look revealed clear differences from normal human skeletons.
They looked more like two or three skeletons fused together into a single humanoid skeletal monster.
Now that they had been discovered—
There was no point hiding anymore.
Peashooter held his sword in his right hand and drew a crossbow with his left.
He aimed at the Bonefolk Warlock and unleashed a rapid volley, interrupting its spellcasting before immediately leading the squad into battle.
After a fierce fight—
Peashooter’s squad ultimately defeated the three skeletons at the cost of four deaths.
“These skeleton soldiers aren’t weak!”
“They’re only Level 10, but every one of them has elite monster strength!”
“Grab the loot first!”
【You picked up loot: Abyssal Essence Points +4000, Magic Crystal +20, Skeleton Spear (Bonefolk Skeleton) +1, Skeleton Breastplate (Bonefolk Skeleton) +1!】
【You picked up loot: Abyssal Essence Points +4000, Magic Crystal +20, Skeleton Helmet (Bonefolk Skeleton) +1, Skeleton Longbow (Bonefolk Skeleton) +1!】
【...】
The moment they saw the loot—
Every player became ecstatic.
“Magic Crystals?”
“These monsters actually drop Magic Crystals directly!”
“One Magic Crystal equals one thousand Abyssal Magic Stone Fragments. Doesn’t that mean each skeleton soldier drops twenty thousand fragments?”
“The essence rewards are amazing too!”
“Higher than elite wild monsters of the same level!”
“...”
It was no wonder they were so excited.
After all, they had never participated in the battle against the Dragon-Lizard Lord.
This was their first encounter with monsters that dropped Magic Crystals so generously.
The magic crystal drops from Star Blessed Kin were exceptionally high, while their essence rewards were no worse than same-level humanoid monsters.
A simple comparison made it obvious.
The Stone-Winged Demon Soldiers and Tiger-Leopard Demon Cavalry of Old Wan City were genuine Tier-Three elites, and particularly strong ones at that.
Yet they typically dropped only thirty to fifty thousand magic stone fragments.
Equivalent to thirty to fifty Magic Crystals.
Now these mere Tier-One skeletons were dropping twenty Magic Crystals each.
That was only because skeletons were relatively weak and low-value units.
A Dragon-Lizard unit of the same level would likely drop thirty or forty Magic Crystals.
“I suddenly feel like a foreign race invasion isn’t such a bad thing!”
“Yeah! These skeletons aren’t that strong. They’re basically delivering money and experience to the Calamity Army!”
“Alright, don’t get carried away.”
Peashooter said, “Let’s withdraw first.”
The squad was far too weak.
There was no way they could deal with larger numbers of skeletons.
They planned to retreat and bring reinforcements.
Unexpectedly—
At that moment—
The snowfall suddenly thinned.
A skeleton force numbering over a hundred had somehow arrived nearby.
They completely surrounded the remaining players.
“Holy crap!”
“We’re surrounded!”
“Ahhh! Our magic stones and Magic Crystals are gone!”
The destruction of this Calamity Army squad carried absolutely no suspense.
…………
【Player “Dating While Riding a Pig” has died. Abyssal Essence Points +3000...】
【Player “Little Sapling” has died. Abyssal Essence Points +2500...】
【Player “Peashooter” has died. Abyssal Essence Points +4000...】
Hang Yu received notifications of these player deaths.
Xiao Ba said, “Master, the enemy lord has begun moving. The northernmost Blessing Point of Wo Niu Mountain, Huangmei Hamlet, has already fallen.”
“Hmm. That’s actually rather surprising.”
Xiao Ba replied mechanically, “Huangmei Hamlet is the Blessing Point closest to the enemy territory. If the enemy lord wishes to invade your territory, this location is an unavoidable route. Its temporary fall was inevitable.”
Hang Yu said, “What surprises me isn’t that Huangmei Hamlet was lost. It’s merely a village-level Blessing Point with almost no defenses. Why did our opponent take so long to occupy it?”
Most of the population of Wo Niu Mountain had already been relocated.
Even Sanxiang Ancient City housed only local garrison forces and a small number of residents.
The villages surrounding other Blessing Points retained only minimal personnel.
The mass relocation from Wo Niu Mountain was not solely because of the invasion.
The primary reason was that the main city required labor, while many abandoned villages surrounding Blessing Points also needed population for reconstruction.
Once rebuilt, these locations could become effective Starsea strongholds.
This would increase the territory’s Magic Crystal income and potentially expand barracks capacity.
The recently fallen Huangmei Hamlet Blessing Point—
Was one such unreconstructed abandoned village.
Before this, Hang Yu’s forces and attention had been tied down by New Wan City.
He had not possessed enough manpower to invest in Wo Niu Mountain.
Furthermore, Huangmei Hamlet was too far from Sanxiang Ancient City, while its terrain and infrastructure were unsuitable for defense.
It was obvious—
From a military perspective—
Once the enemy lord opened a route into Wo Niu Mountain, Huangmei Hamlet would inevitably become the first target.
It could serve as a forward base for invading Hang Yu’s territory.
It would also prevent Hang Yu from using the Blessing Point to teleport forces behind enemy lines and sever their retreat.
Under such circumstances—
There was little value in defending it.
The moment he received notice of the Lord War, Hang Yu had already ordered the evacuation of over a hundred workers engaged in construction there.
Since it could not be held under current conditions, a tactical withdrawal was the better option.
Preserving every valuable citizen was more important.
From another perspective—
The unknown was the true problem.
By occupying a stronghold, the enemy lord could gain a forward foothold within Hang Yu’s territory.
Yet Hang Yu also wanted to lure the enemy deeper inside.
As the defending lord in this Lord War—
Hang Yu could not enter the enemy territory during the first seven days.
If the enemy remained hidden while preparing in secret, Hang Yu would have no way to gather intelligence.
Without intelligence, he could not formulate targeted countermeasures.
Thus, he was not afraid of an attack.
He was afraid of the enemy quietly preparing some massive scheme.
The moment the enemy acted—
Information would inevitably be exposed.
That was not a bad thing for Hang Yu or his territory.
Thus, he was not surprised that Huangmei Hamlet had fallen.
He was simply puzzled as to why it had taken so long.
Was this Starsea Lord truly that inefficient?
Or had he spent all that time preparing something in secret?
A lord’s strength—
Was heavily influenced by the race of the lord.
Through Lord’s Vision, Hang Yu had already observed the foreign race occupying Huangmei Hamlet.
It appeared to be a Starsea force belonging to the Bonefolk.
The Bonefolk were one of the myriad races of the Stars.
They belonged to the undead category and were commonly called the Bone Race.
Like humanity, the Bone Race contained numerous subtypes, each possessing vastly different levels of strength.
Species such as Bonefolk Death Dragons, Bonefolk Titans, and Bonefolk Nether Angels were considered powerful upper or middle-tier races.
The ones currently visible, however, were Bonefolk Skeletons.
They occupied the very bottom of the Bone Race hierarchy and possessed little advantage even compared to humans.
If his opponent truly was a Bonefolk Skeleton Lord—
Then in terms of racial talent strength, it would likely be weaker than the Dragon-Lizard Lord he had previously faced.
Assuming both sides were Tier Three, the threat posed to the territory should not be especially great.
Of course—
He could not be careless.
First, it was still too early to draw conclusions.
He suspected the opponent was deliberately exposing these skeletons.
Perhaps it served a strategic purpose.
Or perhaps it was intended to conceal the lord’s true race.
Although hundreds of Bonefolk Skeletons had appeared in Huangmei Hamlet—
Due to the characteristics of undead races, one could not conclude with certainty that the lord himself was a skeleton.
Second—
Even if the opponent truly was a relatively weak skeleton lord, that still did not mean he should be underestimated.
Bonefolk Skeletons might be a lower race.
Yet they possessed unique advantages.
According to what Hang Yu had learned at the Lord Academy—
Bonefolk Skeleton units were extremely cheap and could be produced in enormous numbers.
They excelled at overwhelming opponents through sheer quantity.
If Hang Yu happened to be facing a skeleton veteran with over a century of experience, the opponent could easily amass an enormous army before unleashing a devastating tide-like offensive.
Such a threat required careful handling.
The priority now was gathering more intelligence.
According to current reconnaissance reports, there were already several hundred, perhaps nearly a thousand, Bonefolk Skeletons near Huangmei Hamlet.
That was not a force to be ignored.
After thinking it over—
Hang Yu decided to have Zhou Cang lead a force from Sanxiang Ancient City to attack Huangmei Hamlet and further probe the enemy lord’s true capabilities.
After issuing the order—
He returned Wen Pin to the main city.
He intended to grant him a Starsea Mark as soon as possible and formally promote him into a territorial general so that he could independently command forces.
Before granting the mark—
Hang Yu opened Wen Pin’s status page.
————
Name: Wen Pin.
Level: 23.
Race: Human.
Tier: Three.
Base Attributes (excluding acquired cultivation bonuses): Health 8625, Mana 6900, Strength 897, Agility 828, Spirit 759, Willpower 828.
Talents: Famous General Aptitude (Blue), Advanced Commander (Green), Guardian’s Heart (Green), Adamantine Fortress (Green), Self-Healing (White).
Skills: Charged Qi-Gathering Slash (Green), Charged Whirlwind Slash (Green), Berserk Shield Bash (Green), Shockwave Shield Bash (Green), Rebounding Force (Green), Three Armies Armor (Blue), Guardian Earth (Blue).
Essence Value: 63,440/210,000.
————
As expected—
Wen Pin’s stats were exceptional.
Hang Yu first examined his talents.
【Famous General Aptitude: Shield General】, Aptitude Talent (Blue). Health +25%, Strength +30%, Agility +20%, Willpower +20%, Agility +10%, Shield Skill Effects +40%.
【Advanced Commander Template】, Aptitude Talent (Green). At the current tier, each level grants 300 Health and 30 points to the four core attributes.
【Guardian’s Heart】, Fate Talent (Green). At the current tier, defensive skill costs -50%, cooldowns of all defensive skills -20%, all abnormal status resistances +200, automatically restores 300 Health and Mana per minute.
【Adamantine Fortress】, Fate Talent (Green). At the current tier, all equipment Independent Defense +35%, generates 1000 points of Damage Negation per minute.
【Self-Healing】, Territory Talent (White)...
————
As expected of the Shield of New Wan City!
Every one of Wen Pin’s talents and skills revolved around defense.
He was essentially a walking fortress.
Besides his excellent talents—
Wen Pin possessed five Green skills and two Blue skills.
Though they had not yet formed a complete cultivation system, they were already sufficient to ensure he would not lose against top-tier commanders of the same level.
Following the usual procedure—
“I formally grant you a Starsea Mark so that you may represent the territory in future campaigns and expansion.”
Hang Yu reminded him:
“This differs from an ordinary oath of loyalty. Once you receive the mark and become a Star General, you will be permanently bound to the territory. You must obey my commands and can never act against the interests of the territory.”
“Of course, the territory will also devote its full resources to cultivating you, allowing you to grow at a speed hundreds of times faster than normal.”
Wen Pin did not hesitate.
He knelt on one knee and accepted.
“This subordinate has already sworn loyalty. Since I willingly serve beneath the Lord’s banner, I shall remain loyal unto death without a trace of betrayal. I am willing to become the territory’s strongest shield, defending its lands, protecting its people, and resisting all invading enemies.”
“Excellent!”
Hang Yu began the ceremony.
The instant it was completed—
Wen Pin felt the mark take shape.
At the same time, a notification from the Will of the Stars appeared.
【Ding! You have unlocked Fate Skills: Guardian Aura (Blue), Adamantine Defense Line (Blue)!】
【Guardian Aura】, Fate Skill. Consumes 1500 Mana. Grants up to 5000 allied combat units within a 1000-meter radius: Abnormal Status Resistance +50 and restores 300 Health or Mana per minute. Duration: 25 minutes. Cooldown: 1 hour.
When used within a town, it receives Starsea Blessing enhancement. The number of affected units and duration are doubled.
【Adamantine Defense Line】, Fate Skill. Consumes 1500 Mana. Grants up to 5000 allied combat units within a 1000-meter radius: Equipment Independent Defense +20% and generates 100 points of Damage Negation per minute. Duration: 25 minutes.
When used within a town, it receives Starsea Blessing enhancement. The number of affected units and duration are doubled. Additionally, all defensive buildings below Tier Four gain +30% effectiveness.
——
As expected!
Wen Pin had also obtained Fate Skills!
Hang Yu had already anticipated that Wen Pin’s Fate Skills would focus on defense.
Yet even he was shocked after seeing the actual effects.
This was absurdly powerful!
As expected of someone with Famous General Aptitude.
His Fate Skills affected an enormous number of targets and provided astonishing benefits.
Guardian Aura functioned like an enormous area-wide healing spell.
It restored not only Health but Mana as well.
Three hundred points per minute.
Even Zhang Zhongjing, the divine physician, could not heal an entire army simultaneously.
This would dramatically improve the endurance and staying power of any force.
Adamantine Defense Line enhanced both defense and damage negation across the army.
While the increase for any single individual might not seem overwhelming—
The cumulative effect across an entire force would be immediate and significant.
Such powerful Fate Skills naturally came with limited duration.
Under normal circumstances—
Each skill lasted only twenty-five minutes.
The cooldown was a full hour.
Yet Wen Pin’s uniqueness lay here—
Using these skills in field battles and using them within towns were entirely different concepts.
During a defensive battle—
Their duration doubled.
The number of affected units doubled.
That was the truly shocking part.
In practice—
The effective downtime was only ten minutes.
This would massively increase the combat power of the entire army.
Even more unbelievable—
Wen Pin’s Fate Skills affected not only combat units but buildings as well.
For example—
If a Barrier Tower normally generated 10,000 shield points—
Then with Wen Pin stationed in the city and activating his skill, every Barrier Tower in that city would produce 13,000 shield points.
They had truly struck gold this time.
Even Hang Yu had rarely heard of Fate Skills capable of affecting structures.
Wen Pin’s value exceeded expectations.
Although his offensive capabilities were somewhat lacking—
As long as he was present, the territory’s defenses would become as solid as an iron fortress.
The more Hang Yu looked at his new general, the more satisfied he became.
From the perspective of Fate Skills alone—
Wen Pin’s value clearly surpassed Zhou Cang’s.
To maximize his usefulness—
Hang Yu immediately spent territorial essence and raised Wen Pin from Level 23 to Level 26 in one go.
Within mere seconds—
He broke through three minor bottlenecks consecutively.
Feeling the changes within his body—
Wen Pin was stunned.
He immediately knelt on one knee.
“Thank you for your grace, my Lord!”
Hang Yu calmly replied,
“This is nothing. Continue serving well, and the territory will never treat you unfairly.”
Wen Pin was deeply moved.
He realized he had made the most correct decision of his life.
By following this Lord—
His future would never be confined to Wan City.
His limits would surpass imagination itself.
Most importantly—
Everything this Lord was doing was precisely what Wen Pin had always wanted to accomplish but never could.
The Lord’s ideals and ambitions were things Wen Pin had never even dared dream of.
To serve such an existence—
To contribute even a small part to such a great leader—
Wen Pin felt that his life had already been worthwhile.
After some thought, Hang Yu said,
“The situation in Wanland is stable for now, but a new challenge has emerged in the direction of Wo Niu Mountain. For the time being, you will be stationed in Sanxiang Ancient City.”
Wen Pin immediately accepted the order.
“Yes, my Lord!”
Hang Yu still felt uneasy about this enemy lord.
Thus, he dispatched Wen Pin as well.
Having only recently joined the territory and eager to earn merit—
Wen Pin naturally accepted and departed at once.
“No matter who that lord is, sending two major generals to deal with him is already showing considerable respect.”
That should be more than enough.
No matter how the situation developed—
Hang Yu could maintain his own pace and focus on governing the territory.
He could not spend every moment watching the enemy’s every move.
There were far too many important matters awaiting him.
Beyond territorial expansion, military recruitment, and upgrades—
He still needed to cultivate the Hundred Birds Paying Homage to the Phoenix Spear as quickly as possible, resolve Jia Xu’s situation, and handle countless other affairs.
Personal growth remained the highest priority.