Pale skeletons, flames flickering within their skulls, and that Skeleton Spear, already stained red with blood.
Everything seemed to be telling Gu Ran that this was a creature that had appeared in numerous novels and games.
An undead skeleton among the undead.
Of course, that wasn't the focus. What caused Gu Ran's complexion to suddenly turn pale was what the suspected skeleton creature was holding in its hand.
It was a head, still dripping with blood, eyes wide open, the expression on its face forever frozen.
Clearly, this suspected undead skeleton had already killed at least one person, and it must hold great malice towards humans.
"Damn it!"
Gu Ran cursed under his breath, gripping the Mechanical Compound Bow in his left hand tightly, yet he did not choose to attack.
His quiver wasn't full of arrows, and he couldn't afford to shoot hastily without being certain he could kill his target.
His current task was to further observe, to ascertain the exact strength of the skeleton creature, and the specific situation of the surroundings, before deciding whether to take action or not.
Blind action was not his style.
Ten minutes later, Gu Ran was soon grateful for his earlier decision.
Within a short time, the number of skeleton creatures that had appeared in his sight had already surpassed that of a palm's count; one could imagine that where they couldn't be seen, there would only be more.
With that in mind, Gu Ran felt a heavy weight in his heart while also feeling relieved. If there were indeed more of these skeleton monsters than he had imagined, his predicament would become extremely dire.
However, Gu Ran had made an unexpected discovery during this time. The monsters that appeared in the city weren't only skeleton creatures. He spotted another type of creature lurking in a corner, albeit too far away to see clearly.
But he was certain that its build was completely different from that of the skeletons, definitely another distinct type of creature.
......
More than an hour later, Gu Ran let the curtain fall back into place and returned to the sofa in the living room.
After a long observation, he had roughly determined the strength of those skeleton monsters outside. They were far stronger than the average adult human male. In a one-on-one situation, they could completely overpower, yet they weren't so strong as to induce despair.
He roughly estimated that in a 5-to-1 scenario, the two sides would be evenly matched.
In other words, each skeleton monster could take on five opponents.
To this, Gu Ran not only didn't feel a trace of fear, but his heart actually felt a sigh of relief. At least these creatures weren't so powerful that one would feel suffocated. With the strength of five men, as long as the timing and positioning were right, and adding his Mechanical Bow to the mix, there was still some chance of success.
Having reached this conclusion, Gu Ran didn't continue to wait around. It was already nearing evening, and nightfall was on the horizon; who knew what could happen once darkness fell.
Without making the most of the time now, when a crisis arrived, he might not even be able to put up the most basic resistance.
No sooner said than done, he hurriedly ate a piece of bread to fill his stomach. Gu Ran, with the Mechanical Bow in hand, stepped up to the front door, and after repeatedly ensuring that no monsters were present in the hallway outside, he unbarred and opened the main door.
After making sure to lock the door and secure the keys, Gu Ran began his actions, not choosing to go downstairs but slowly heading towards the upper floors.
His building had a total of seven floors, and he was only on the third. Naturally, before going out, he had to be sure of the whole building's situation.
As soon as he walked up to the fourth floor, Gu Ran noticed something was amiss.
"Thud thud thud!"
The heavy thumping sounds kept coming, which was absolutely abnormal in the current circumstances.
After determining the source of the crashing sound, Gu Ran, with the tools he had brought along, manipulated them several times. Accompanied by a "snap," the door to the room was pried open by him.
However, as soon as the door was pried open, the eerie, intense crashing sounds from within stopped abruptly. At this, Gu Ran instantly felt his body break out in goosebumps, without the slightest hesitation, he immediately retreated at high speed.
Almost the next second, with a loud "bang," the pried-open door was violently forced open, and a grey-green figure roared as it burst out of the room.
In its hand, the grey-green figure wielded a small Wolf Fang Club. It didn't stop after dashing out of the room but instead lunged straight at Gu Ran, who had retreated several meters. Raising the Wolf Fang Club high, Gu Ran suddenly felt overwhelmed by the stench.
With an expressionless face and while continuing to retreat swiftly, he lifted his left hand, pulling the fully strung Mechanical Bow to its limit.
"Whiz"!
The arrow whistled out, aimed at the monster's head.
But perhaps due to nervousness, even though he had aimed at its head, the arrow eventually struck its shoulder.
The monster let out a painful howl, its figure trembling slightly, and then, ignoring everything, it lunged at Gu Ran again.
Seeing this, Gu Ran bit the tip of his tongue, forcibly suppressing the anxiety rising in his heart, while retreating, he swiftly drew a second arrow from behind.
Seconds later, another arrow streaked through the air; this time it was unerring, hitting the monster squarely in the head, sinking into its left eye, causing thick green blood to gush out instantly.
What infuriated Gu Ran was that even so, the monster's momentum did not cease; this blow to a vital spot seemed to have caused it no fatal damage.
"Damn it!"
Muttering a curse, without time to think further, Gu Ran could only repeat his previous action. Fortunately, the fourth-floor corridor was long, and he took advantage of this to run towards the staircase, with the chase continuing to the third floor.
Below the staircase, the Mechanical Bow was once again pulled to its full extent.
"Die"!
With a low roar from his mouth, while his spirit was strong, Gu Ran felt a wave of weakness inside. The monster already had 7 arrows lodged in it, and he had only three left. If he couldn't kill it, his only option would be a humiliating escape.
If that happened, retrieving the arrows he had shot would be difficult, which would greatly affect his plans afterward.
The arrow flew, and this time, by a stroke of luck, it pierced the monster's right eye. With that, the monster lost its sight completely and, with a thud, tumbled heavily onto the floor.
Seeing this, Gu Ran hurriedly shot two more arrows. Dozens of seconds later, the monster finally stopped struggling.
"Phew!"
A heavy sigh escaped from Gu Ran's nostrils, and a smile tugged at the corners of his mouth.
His effort had not been in vain after all.
In the midst of his joy, a white light spot suddenly emerged from the corpse of the monster in front of him. Before Gu Ran could react, it entered his forehead at high speed.
In that instant, Gu Ran felt a sudden surge in strength, his body seemingly filled with inexhaustible energy.
If before his physique was that of an average common person, then after this enhancement, Gu Ran felt confident he could easily take on two opponents at once.
As his body was strengthened, a mechanical alert sound suddenly rang in his ears.
[You have gained 2 Origin Energy points, your Lifebound Cardbook has awakened, the first killing of an otherworldly race, you've received a novice reward (Card Point*10, select one of three random Miracle Cards).]
Additionally, with the sound of the mechanical alert, Gu Ran discovered something new had appeared in his mind.
It was a square cardbook, radiating a pristine white light.