LOST CULTIVATION METHODS

The first explosion shook the eastern wall before dawn.

Ash rained from the sky. The ground rumbled under heavy steps. And the scent of rotting magic returned.

Valeria stood ready. Jin was atop the wall, eyes narrowed, robe billowing in the bitter wind.

Then the necromancer came.

He hovered above the forest, a staff of twisted bone in his hand, his eyes twin abysses. The Bone Legion spread behind him like a living tide — silent, endless, hungering.

He smiled.

"We meet again," the necromancer said, voice calm, like greeting an old friend.

Jin didn't smile back.

"Ohhh, I can't say the same. You smell worse than last time."

The necromancer chuckled. "Still full of spirit. I wonder how long it'll last this time."

"I severed your mark. Took your talisman. Led your horde on a merry run. And now you show up with more bones and less brains." Jin cracked his neck.

"Tell me, old corpse, are you trying to die twice?"

The necromancer's eyes burned.

"That talisman does not belong to you. It was forged with ancient souls—my souls. You stole what cannot be owned."

"And yet here it is," Jin said, summoning the floating talisman beside him. Its silver-blue light shimmered with quiet power. "And it listens to me now."

The air grew colder. The dead began to hiss.

The necromancer's tone dropped. "Give it back, boy. Return it, and I'll let your little fortress live. Defy me, and I'll turn your women into hollowed brides of the grave."

Jin's eyes went dead cold.

"You had your answer the moment I kept running instead of crawling."

"So be it," the necromancer snarled. "Then let this be your last sunrise."

The Battle Began

The Bone Legion surged.

Jin gave the signal, and the sky lit with flame. Fire arrows rained down. Oil traps erupted. Magic walls crackled with lightning.

Selene led the charge at the north wall. Lila and Lana held the southern flank. Arielle rained wind-blades from the sky. Together, they made the first few waves burn.

But the undead kept coming.

"System, numbers?" Jin called.

[Enemy Forces: 1,200 confirmed. Estimating 3,000 more approaching.]

[Note: This may be a diversionary legion. Primary force unconfirmed.]

Jin's jaw clenched.

"They're testing us."

The battle raged on for hours. The undead came in waves, tearing at the defenses. They climbed over their own fallen. Some exploded on death. Others stitched themselves together mid-fight.

Jin moved like lightning across the field. Using wind bursts to fly, dragon qi to burn, and the Cloak of the Hidden Realm to vanish when overwhelmed.

But slowly… cracks began to show.

Lana took a gash across her ribs. Selene's blade chipped. Arielle stumbled, drained of qi. The fires dimmed.

And then, the true force came.

The real Bone Legion.

Thousands of skeletal beasts, undead mages, stitched-together giants, and cursed banners filled the horizon. Black magic filled the air. The necromancer chanted in a forgotten tongue, standing atop a floating throne of ribs.

Jin stood atop the wall, panting, blood dripping from his mouth.

"System…"

[You are reaching critical fatigue. Beast transformation will shorten lifespan temporarily. Proceed?]

He stared at the endless wave of death.

"Do it."

Beast Mode: Tyrant Ascends

His body cracked.

Scales surged across his skin. Horns tore from his brow. Wings of burning wind and shadow erupted from his back.

Jin roared.

He dove into the battlefield like a star falling from heaven.

He tore through undead lines, fists glowing with dragonfire, feet cracking the earth. Every blow unmade a dozen foes. His voice became thunder, his eyes burning suns.

Still, they came.

Still, they fought.

Until—

The talisman began to glow violently.

And time seemed to pause.

[System Alert: Synchronization with Ancient Artifact complete. New Skill Unlocked.]

[Skill Acquired: Soul Liberation — Lost Technique of the Pre-Demonic Age. Effect: Frees enslaved souls from necromancy, unbinding their fate. May convert freed souls into followers.]

Jin's beast form snarled. He lifted the talisman and unleashed it.

A wave of light burst across the battlefield.

Chains broke.

Undead stopped mid-strike. They twitched — then turned.

Their eyes, once empty, now flickered with fading memory… then glowing loyalty.

They turned toward the necromancer.

And charged.

The Fall of the Bone King

The necromancer screamed as his army betrayed him. The souls he spent centuries binding now ripped at his magic. His floating throne shattered beneath their fury.

Jin landed before him, his beast form fading.

Blood poured from his nose, but his eyes never blinked.

"I told you," he said, raising the talisman again. "This isn't yours anymore."

"No!" the necromancer shrieked, casting black flame toward him.

Jin caught it barehanded. Burned. But he held.

Then he stepped forward and slammed his palm to the old man's chest.

[Initiating Soul Bind Transfer…]

The talisman wrapped around the necromancer's chest in light.

His soul screamed.

A war puppet nearby — a hulking suit of enchanted armor — opened its chest as if waiting.

Jin forced the necromancer's soul inside it.

Chains of light snapped into place.

The puppet's eyes lit crimson.

The necromancer now knelt — trapped inside, his voice distorted and low.

"I… serve…"

[System Notification: Host has completed emergency objective. Necromancer converted to Bound Soul Puppet. Threat: Neutralized.]

Aftermath

Jin stood, barely able to breathe.

He turned to see the undead — once his enemy — now standing silently outside the walls of Valeria. Thousands of them. Still. Silent. Waiting.

They did not breathe. Did not speak.

Just stood.

Like their new master, they had entered stasis.

Then Jin coughed — hard.

Blood sprayed from his mouth. His knees gave out.

"JIN!"

Lana caught him first. Arielle and Selene arrived a second later, helping steady him.

His skin was hot — too hot. His body radiated heat like a furnace gone mad.

"His yang qi… it's surging wildly!" Arielle shouted. "He's burning from the inside!"

"We have to get him home. Now!"

Together, the three carried him back to his house in the heart of Valeria.

The people cleared a path in stunned silence.

Behind them, the undead remained.

Thousands of bodies unmoving in the twilight mist — all standing… watching… as if waiting for their king to wake again.