Chapter 76: Chapter 74: Lynch’s Strength Surges
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Old Baal hurriedly replied, "My Lord, these damned Tidal Fishmen only started appearing suddenly in the last month or two. Before, they only dared to operate around the distant sea islands, occasionally ambushing lone fishing boats."
"But recently, I don’t know what’s gotten into them; their area of operation has been growing larger and larger. A few days ago, we even fought off a small group and killed two of them. I never expected... I never expected so many to come today. If you hadn’t arrived in time, My Lord, Silver Sand Bay would have truly been finished."
As he spoke, the rims of Old Baal’s eyes grew red, and he prepared to describe in detail the fear, anxiety, and losses of the past two months.
Lynch had no interest in hearing about it.
He raised his hand to cut him off again. "I understand. Handle the casualties yourselves and calm the villagers. Now, find me a quiet place to stay."
"Yes, yes! Please follow me, My Lord!" Old Baal quickly stopped talking and hurriedly led the way.
He led Lynch through the Fishing Port, heading straight for the small fortress behind the bay.
"This is the Garrison Post, My Lord."
A militiaman stepped forward and pushed open the heavy, iron-bound wooden door, revealing a small courtyard and a two-story main building made of stone and wood.
But it was clearly long-neglected. The courtyard was overgrown with weeds, and the doors and windows of the main building were shut tight, covered in a thick layer of dust and cobwebs.
"Three years ago, after the previous commander was transferred, the higher-ups never sent a new officer... so..." Old Baal explained nervously, simultaneously ordering the militiamen behind him, "What are you gawking at? Hurry up and clean a room for the Lord."
The two militiamen accepted the order and quickly and deftly cleared out a room with a fireplace. They then lit a fire, dispelling the damp, cold air inside.
Wringing his hands, Old Baal asked tentatively, "My Lord, about tonight... should we have the villagers prepare...?" He was hinting at whether some kind of welcoming ceremony was needed.
"That won’t be necessary. Just take care of yourselves for now," Lynch said with a wave of his hand. "Don’t disturb me unless it’s important. All of you, leave."
"Yes, My Lord." Old Baal hastily withdrew with the militiamen.
After they left, Lynch ate some dry rations to fill his stomach and prepared to rest.
After all, he had been roughing it in the wild for four or five days and was truly mentally exhausted.
He sorted through his luggage, took out a change of clothes, and quickly washed up. Then, mustering his energy, he set up his defensive wards and immediately fell asleep.
****
In the days that followed, Lynch gradually adapted to life in the Fishing Port.
Here, there was more than enough seafood to go around—all sorts of fish, shrimp, and crab—and meat was not scarce either.
After all, the forest was right next door. He just had to send his Bone Wolves to hunt in the woods, and they would always manage to bring back something, like small deer or wild boars.
As for the Tidal Fishmen, ever since Lynch’s Undead Army had utterly routed them, they had quieted down recently. There were no more cases of them attacking fishermen, and the Fishing Port gradually returned to its former tranquility.
It was only then that Lynch finally experienced the peace and quiet Amadis had spoken of.
His daily routine became extremely regular.
Every night, he would start by downing a focus potion and, under its effects, enter a deep Meditation to hone his Spiritual Power.
His days were dedicated to strengthening his Skeletons.
The large amount of enhancement bone powder he had brought from the academy was consumed in a steady stream, as the radiance of the Skeleton Enhancement Skill fell time and again upon his core Soul Fire units: Bone Jade, Bone Mage, Red Rabbit, and Bone Shadow.
Because he had prepared so thoroughly before coming, he had an abundance of enhancement materials.
Therefore, Lynch also added the Bone Wolves, the Fish Priest, and his newly acquired Fish Bone to the enhancement queue, allocating some resources to them.
In this way, three months passed in the blink of an eye.
During this period of peaceful days, Lynch’s gains were immense.
First was his Spiritual Power, which had reached the peak level for a Mage apprentice. With one more breakthrough, he would reach the standard of a fully-fledged Mage.
However, this often required slow, patient grinding, or else he would need to find a catalyst for a breakthrough.
Previously, to find her own breakthrough catalyst, his senior Amadis had gone to the front lines to temper herself.
But even though he was temporarily stuck at a bottleneck, Lynch’s strength had undergone an earth-shattering transformation.
Now, just by himself, he could directly command fifty to sixty ordinary Skeletons, which was far more than double the strength he had five months ago when he was grinding his Skeleton Summoning Skill at the monastery.
Of course, besides using focus potions to aid his Meditation daily, the most important reason for his rapid growth was the high level of his Basic Meditation Skill.
By now, his Basic Meditation Skill had reached Lv. 2 (6,455/9,000).
At his current rate, he could break through to Lv. 3 in about a month and a half, at which point his Meditation efficiency would surely rise to another level.
The even greater changes, however, came from the transformation of the elite Undead Units under his command.
At that moment, inside Lynch’s exclusive Skeleton Enhancement Room, his Soul Fire underlings stood in a neat row.
He first glanced toward Bone Shadow.
Since recovering to Tier One, the beautiful Skeleton Assassin’s Soul Fire had become more condensed, and her bones had grown finer and denser. Her movements were more agile and nimble, and her abilities in stealth and explosive power had taken a qualitative leap.
She was now easily a match for the strength she possessed in life.
This beautiful Skeleton Assassin could help lead troops or act alone for reconnaissance and assassinations. She was his absolute treasure, and Lynch never tired of admiring her.
Next, he looked over at Red Rabbit.
Over the past three months, the Hellhound Skeleton had grown another size larger. The patterns on its bones were deeper, and it exuded the aura of a Skeleton Fierce Beast.
Naturally, its strength had also returned to Tier One.
Beside Red Rabbit was Bone Mage, whom Lynch valued the most.
It had recovered to a Tier One Skeleton Mage with relative ease. Its bones were now as deep and dark as jade, and its Soul Fire eyes held a considerable degree of wisdom.
What was even more surprising was that it had also relearned two of the Undead Magic skills it knew in life: Skeleton Armor Skill and Bone Spear Skill. Unfortunately, it hadn’t yet recovered Corpse Resurrection Skill.
Otherwise, Bone Mage alone could have created an endless army of zombies.
In addition, the Fish Priest, the Bone Wolves, and Fish Bone had also grown stronger, their Soul Fires transforming one after another through waves of enhancement.
Although limited by their innate aptitude, making it difficult for them to advance to Tier One anytime soon, they were now no worse than the barely-developed Bone Valor, the Witch Demon King.
Of course, among all of Lynch’s favorite commanders, the one who had changed the most was Bone Jade.
As his number one Skeleton general, Lynch had poured the most resources into Bone Jade.
The current Bone Jade had reached the strength of a Tier One Peak Skeleton Warrior. Its frame was even more stalwart and powerfully built, its Soul Fire vigorous and condensed.
Just by standing there, the oppressive aura Bone Jade exuded was enough to make the other underlings scramble out of its way. Only that Black Corpse fellow was still a match for it.
Lynch admired his precious, beloved Skeletons as if he were inspecting his troops, growing more and more satisfied the longer he looked.
Just this "officer corps" standing here represented a formidable force.
For a moment, a sense of heroic pride swelled in Lynch’s heart.
’This is my foundation—the capital I will use to make my stand, develop, and grow powerful in this Otherworld.’
Just then, Old Baal, accompanied by two militiamen, ran panting heavily into Lynch’s residence. He started shouting the moment he crossed the threshold.
"My Lord, it’s terrible! Something’s happened!"
Hearing this, Lynch’s eyes narrowed slightly.
’Oh? Which blockhead decided to show up now? Did they hear I had vacancies in my ranks and come to deliver me some fresh troops?’
...
