As the skeleton warriors collectively charged towards the oasis, they were met by an onslaught of desert giant scorpions. Undeterred, a single skeleton warrior took the lead, luring the scorpions along the oasis waterway with impeccable speed control, matching that of their pursuers. The horde swelled as more scorpions joined the chase, drawn by the calculated retreat of the skeleton warriors.
Lin, maintaining a strategic distance of about 1,000 meters, observed the growing procession. After a relentless half-hour pursuit, he finally encountered the young ants, prompting an immediate acceleration to join the fray. The battle that ensued was a display of overwhelming force as the skeleton warriors decimated the giant desert scorpions one after another, turning the confrontation into a one-sided massacre.
Upon Lin's arrival, the battlefield was already littered with the carcasses of one-third of the desert giant scorpions. Without pause, Lin unleashed his skill: Corpse Explosion, igniting the air with successive booms that sent yellow sand flying. Even in the absence of enemies, Lin spared no effort in practicing his skill, pushing his mental energy to its limits. His persistence was rewarded with the anticipated upgrade of his Corpse Explosion skill to level 3, enhancing its range and damage significantly.
Approaching the ant cave, Lin's hopes of finding cacti bearing fruit were dashed, yet his disappointment was fleeting. "Then just treat it as leveling up, don't waste points," he resolved, leading his skeleton army into the depths of the ant cave. This time, armed with prior knowledge, Lin navigated directly to the queen ant's lair, amassing a formidable following of various ant types.
As the skeleton warriors formed a barricade at the intersection, Lin arrived and decisively ended the skirmish with his upgraded Corpse Explosion skill. Amidst the battle's chaos, Lin couldn't help but smile at the prospect of gaining another level of experience, a testament to his efficiency within the dungeon.
After downing a primary mental potion to recuperate his mental energy, Lin and his army confronted the queen ant's guards, dispatching them with a combination of concentrated attacks and strategic skill usage. Even as the queen ant attempted to retaliate with a sonic attack and a Storm Strike, Lin's skeleton armor and the resilience of his warriors rendered her efforts futile.
In a final display of tactical prowess, Lin ordered a devastating series of Corpse Explosions, incapacitating the queen ant and silencing her screams. Unlike the previous encounter, Lin refrained from clearing the ant cave of monsters, instead opting to wait for them to come to him, fully prepared to exploit the situation to its fullest.
As anticipated, a massive wave of ants converged on Lin's position, only to be met with a barrage of skills from the skeleton mages and a series of calculated Corpse Explosions. The cave trembled under the force of the explosions, each one meticulously timed to maximize damage and efficiency. In the aftermath, the ant corpses accumulated, forming a morbid hill that incoming ants could not navigate without trampling over their fallen brethren.
Finally, with all adversaries vanquished and the queen ant slain, Lin emerged from the ant cave, setting his sights on the lion tribe's territory. Confronted by the formidable castle gate, Lin opted for direct confrontation, dismissing the need for siege equipment in favor of brute strength. "World-class BOSS, I'm here again!" With his skeleton army in tow, Lin advanced, ready to face whatever challenges lay ahead, his progress marked by a relentless pursuit of power and mastery.