NOVEL WEB Chapter 26: A Dead-End
Character: Yang Haoxuan
Level: 15
New World Level Division: Martial Artist Level 9
Occupation: Full-Time
Health Points: 7412/7412
Mana Points: 1214/1214
Strength: 598
Wisdom: 1121
Mentality: 340
Agility: 524
Class Skills:
Fireball +4 (Mage)
Swift Slash +4 (Warrior)
Earth Flame +2 (Mage)
Thunderstrike +1 (Warrior)
Fury of Heavenly Flame +1 (Mage)
Eagle Eye +1 (Healer)
Dance of Healing +1 (Healer)
Crafting Skills:
Alchemy
Attention! Attention! Pay close attention to Yang Haoxuan's health points!
A staggering 7,412 health points—this was more than even Yang Jianwu, his martial teacher! No, it was far beyond that. Health points were directly tied to the degree of physical refinement, and for a martial artist, the most important aspect was the body itself. Martial artists refined their bodies, and at each stage, their physical form underwent a transformation. At this point, Yang Haoxuan's body was far stronger, and it could rival that of a Martial Master.
In just a month and a half, Yang Haoxuan had skyrocketed from Martial Artist Level 6 to Martial Artist Level 9. It was nothing short of a miracle—terrifying, even. Of course, much of this was due to his own talent and efforts. Setting aside his natural abilities, it was his boldness and meticulousness that had allowed him to take down the Blood Wolf King so perfectly, proving his great intelligence.
If someone else at Martial Artist Level 6 had come, they probably wouldn't have even been able to handle a single Blood Wolf. And even more crucially, his game interface allowed him to kill monsters for experience and level up, which simultaneously enhanced his physical body.
"With my current strength, I could barely fight Yang Jian, but my chances of winning are slim!" Yang Haoxuan thought to himself as he glanced at the two fallen kings. He suddenly remembered that the bodies of such kings were often quite valuable. The iron-like snake skin could be used to craft magic robes, but that would require wasting skill points. However, he soon realized that, until his strength improved, it would be better to focus on cultivation.
Having leveled up by three tiers and seen a slight increase in his stats, he had reached level 15. For a Mage, he finally unlocked a key skill: Punishment Thunderstorm.
Punishment Thunderstorm: Deals 77.6% attack damage to enemies within a 5-meter radius, causing an additional 260 points of damage.
Clearly, this was an area-of-effect skill, not ideal for single-target combat. However, to meet the requirements for learning the next skill, Yang Haoxuan decided to invest the points. To learn this, he needed to upgrade Earth Flame to level 4 and Fury of Heavenly Flame to level 3, which he promptly did. With that, six skill points were used up.
In terms of learning skills, Yang Haoxuan didn't focus on a particular one but instead aimed to meet the requirements for higher-level skills. He knew that leveling up was not easy in this world, and only by mastering later skills would he be able to advance faster.
After organizing his state, Yang Haoxuan prepared to enter the final stage. From the first two stages, it was clear that the last one would be a significant breakthrough.
However, the materials from the two fallen kings were tempting. Unable to resist, Yang Haoxuan cautiously tried to store the bodies in his inventory. To his surprise, the bodies of the two kings vanished with a simple touch, appearing directly in his inventory.
Curious about the inventory's capacity, Yang Haoxuan didn't dwell on it for long. He pulled his battle blade from the ground and made his way toward the Ghost Cavern.
"Heh heh! Now that I've reached Martial Artist Level 9, I don't need to worry about the people inside. If I can find a Blood Pill, everything will be perfect!"
...
The Ghost Cavern, located in the desolate mountain range behind the prairie, was a labyrinth of dangerous cliffs, jagged stones, and towering peaks. The mountain was barren, devoid of life, with no vegetation in sight.
The entrance to the Ghost Cavern was unmistakable. From a distance, one could see a deep, eerie opening that exuded a chilling aura.
Inside, there was a straight passageway, and after a certain distance, the path split into ten more tunnels, repeating in cycles. This maze-like structure gave the Ghost Cavern its nickname: the Nine Turns and Eighteen Bends.
Somewhere inside the cavern, footsteps echoed ominously, rising and falling for a full three seconds, indicating the high level of the person approaching. Soon, a white figure, like a ghost, appeared. It was Yan Ya, but her usually calm demeanor was replaced by urgency, her beautiful eyes furrowed in worry.
Behind her, a soldier, covered in blood, staggered forward. Though most of the blood was not his own, he was clearly exhausted. "Princess, there's no time! You go ahead, I'll hold them off!"
"No!" Yan Ya replied coldly. "There's still a month left before the deadline. If I leave, you'll surely die, and I will be caught. We're better off fighting them to the death!"
"Ha ha! The princess is right!" A disordered group of footsteps soon followed, and five uniquely dressed figures emerged. The leader, a bald man, sneered, "You can't escape. Why not stay and entertain the five of us outside?"
As he spoke, four more men appeared behind him, each exuding an air of menace. Among them was the very same rat-faced man who had mocked Yang Haoxuan previously.
"Hmph! You're bold beyond belief!" Yan Ya's eyes narrowed as she stared down the five of them, her anger fueled by the death of the soldier.
"Who told you to rely on your ten-tier soldier team to kill the Corpse Kings and take the Blood Pills without leaving any for us? We had no choice but to take matters into our own hands!" A woman with a twisted expression added quickly.
"And now, with the snake swarms outside, the death of a princess can be easily explained!" The rat-faced man sneered.
It turned out that while the battle between the wolves and snakes was taking place, Yan Ya and her group had infiltrated the Ghost Cavern. Normally, dozens of people would enter the cavern, but now only a few dozen were left, significantly increasing their chances of obtaining the Blood Pills. This led to strong dissatisfaction from the adventurers.
However, Yan Ya, leading her team of fifteen Level 10 Martial Artists, was familiar with the terrain and managed to find seven Corpse Kings, obtaining more than half of the Blood Pills. This triggered a massacre among the adventurers.
Yan Ya's team of fifteen Level 10 Martial Artists resisted a group of adventurers at Level 9, with only one soldier and her remaining. Five were peak Martial Artists of Level 9, and the rest were traitors of Level 10.
Yan Ya had only recently broken through to Level 10 and had come to the terrifying valley for body tempering. The soldier had already been pushed to his limits.
"Ugh! Ugh! Ugh!" Suddenly, a horrifying shriek echoed from the cavern entrance.
The sound made both sides pause in shock. Listening carefully, one of the traitors said, "It sounds like someone is killing the soldier corpses!"
"Soldier corpses?" Yan Ya's eyes flickered. The term referred to the remains of dead beasts, humanoid in shape and wearing strange uniforms. It was rumored that a massive army had been buried beneath the cavern, and their corpses would rise to attack anyone who entered.
The soldier corpses moved slowly, but their defenses were incredibly strong. Even a Level 6 Martial Artist could drag a battle with a Level 10 soldier corpse for days, exhausting it. However, once they detected a target, they would howl, and countless other corpses would emerge from the ground to surround and devour their prey.
Normally, adventurers would evade the soldier corpses, knowing better than to attack them. But now, the situation seemed different. It seemed someone was frantically slaying the corpses, and countless more were drawn toward the battle.
"How could there be someone else!" The bald man was taken aback. "If someone's coming now, they definitely aren't one of ours."
"Boss, remember that guy we left in the Black Forest? He's probably the one!" The rat-faced man spoke seriously. "I thought he wouldn't make it past the prairie, but now..."
"I see! Good, let him lure the soldier corpses and block the exit!" The bald man breathed a sigh of relief, clearly pleased.
"Princess! There's a new force outside, we must join him!" The soldier whispered urgently.
Yan Ya nodded.
At the cavern entrance, Yang Haoxuan was busy cutting down a group of soldier corpses that resembled the zombies from Plants vs. Zombies. They moved slowly, but there were many of them, each possessing the strength of a Level 10 Martial Artist. That meant a huge amount of experience. Moreover, Yang Haoxuan discovered that these soldier corpses, while having high defense, were particularly vulnerable to Thunderstrikes and Earth Flames—this gave him a significant advantage. Using his position, he didn't need to worry about
attacks from behind. He cast his Mage Fire skills on the ground, setting it ablaze.
Meanwhile, Punishment Thunderstorm spread out from his body, electrocuting every soldier corpse around him, causing dozens to fall at once.
The soldier corpses were Level 10 Martial Artists, but the experience they gave was still far less than that of the Blood Wolf King or the Five-Colored Snake King. After all, these corpses were just minions. Despite this, Yang Haoxuan was confident that with this speed, he could break through to Level 10 Martial Artist.
At this rate, he was already pleased. Level 10 Martial Artist would be enough to face Yang Jian.
Bang! Bang!
Suddenly, Yang Haoxuan heard the sounds of fighting from within the cavern, but he didn't pay them much mind. However, it seemed those people were intentionally drawing the soldier corpses towards him.
The soldier corpses, once pursuing him, were now drawn to the others. Yang Haoxuan quickly took down a batch, but the numbers dwindled quickly. By the time he realized, only a few remained, but the newcomers were surrounded by hundreds of corpses, each falling one by one.
Yang Haoxuan was furious.
"What the hell! Can't you see I'm busy farming monsters?! You don't just drag monsters like this! So immoral!" He muttered angrily, but inside, he saw clearly who it was. He immediately recognized Yan Ya, her soldiers, and five adventurers battling fiercely.
"This Martial Artist! The Royal Guard of Great Yan requests your help to protect the princess! You will be greatly rewarded!" One of the soldiers, still a Royal Guard, rushed forward and bowed to Yang Haoxuan.