"So that's how it is," Ander thought, finally understanding the reason why his absorption of the crimson moonlight energy was faster. The inherited undead soul fire formed the outer shell, while his soul, which had crossed over, occupied the inner core. The combination of the two—1+1 greater than 2—was what accelerated the process.
Ander, now fully awake, was quite satisfied with the significant strengthening of his bones. He had also figured out why his speed of absorbing the moonlight energy was faster. He realized the immense mistake he made the night before—the feeling of his soul being devoured by pests and insects was something he never wanted to experience again. This only made him more determined to hunt other undead creatures.
After all, with his current strength, his success rate would be much higher. According to the memories he inherited, he was now at least a level 1 Skeleton Mage, though whether he had reached level 2 was unclear.
A Skeleton Mage who leveled up could seek out the Skeleton Mage Temples in the wasteland to learn advanced necromantic spells. Before level 10, this was free; after level 10, one had to offer sacrifices to the Grim Reaper, Haedric, in order to learn further spells.
The nearest Skeleton Mage Temple was located 30 kilometers southeast. Given Ander's current walking speed, he should be able to reach it before the next crimson twin moons rose. In the undead realm during the day, there was no sun, only the dark, deathly sky that covered the land.
After weighing the options, Ander decided to abandon the trap he had been digging and set off toward the southeast.
He found it strange that he encountered so few undead creatures along the way, especially level 1 and 2 creatures—he barely came across any. This was in stark contrast to the previous day when there had been at least a handful of undead in sight. Ander couldn't figure out why this had changed, nor did he realize that the reason was himself.
Being cautious of higher-level undead, Ander arrived at the Skeleton Mage Temple about half an hour later than expected.
The so-called "temple" was little more than a severely weathered stone building resembling a church. At the entrance stood two large stone statues, both of skeletal figures cloaked in robes and holding staffs. As Ander stepped onto the temple's stone steps, the dragon-bone eyes atop the staffs glowed red for a moment, confirming Ander's identity as a Skeleton Mage. The red light slowly faded after that.
The stone doors of the temple creaked open, and a cloud of dust billowed out, indicating that there was no one inside.
Once inside the dark temple, Ander immediately noticed forty crystal wheels, which represented the complete forty levels of a Skeleton Mage. Aside from the abilities gained at level 0, a fully upgraded Skeleton Mage could learn forty different skills here. Every undead creature who reached level 24 would be honored as a "King," regardless of their class.
True to his inherited memories, the first wheel closest to Ander began to glow with a greenish light. As he reached out to turn the wheel, the pointer spun and stopped at a set of tightly etched symbols, and Ander scanned the names of hundreds of level 1 skeleton spells.
Click-clack—
Before Ander could even decipher the wedge-shaped characters, the crystal pointer stopped, and the spell indicated by the wheel shone with light. A red glow shot out, precisely entering his right eye socket and fusing into his soul fire.
Rebirth of the Bones: A support spell that summons scattered bones and reattaches them to form the body of an undead creature.
"Dammit!" Ander cursed inwardly, frustrated. All his hopes had been dashed with such a simple spell—one of the weakest support spells! Why couldn't it have been Bone Spear? Even Bone Shield would have been better!
Disappointed, Ander cursed the wheel in his mind, though he dared not speak ill of Haedric, the Grim Reaper. The inherited memories warned him that once, a King who had merely expressed slight dissatisfaction with the Reaper was instantly erased, and the land known as the Withered Bone Mountains was leveled into the Withered Bone Plains.
The Grim Reaper was not one to tolerate even the smallest offense.
As Ander prepared to leave with a heavy heart, he was stunned to notice that the second crystal wheel was slowly starting to glow. Had he leveled up twice in a single try?!
With renewed hope, Ander rushed to the second wheel and turned the pointer.
"Almighty Grim Reaper, please let me draw a better spell this time! If I get a good one, I swear I'll offer you a worthy sacrifice," he muttered nervously, hoping for the best as he spun the wheel.
He had made similar promises when alive, such as when he bought lottery tickets and prayed fervently to all the gods, vowing to offer gold statues of them if he won—even though he had never won more than five bucks.
As Ander prayed, the pointer finally stopped, and, as before, a red glow flew into his right eye and merged with his soul fire.
Necromantic Control: Forces an undead creature of a lower level to sign a master-servant contract, compelling it to fight for the caster.
Ander blinked in surprise and immediately understood the power of this spell. Unlike higher-level undead, who were controlled through sheer dominance, this master-servant contract allowed him to control the undead in minute detail—down to the smallest movement. It was almost like being able to control a separate body!
The downside was that with his current mental energy, Ander could only control up to five undead minions at a time. However, he had a unique advantage: Rebirth of the Bones. While others would have to give up on a minion if it was severely damaged, Ander could simply restore the bones and have it revived.
The problem now was that, aside from the mental energy needed for control, Ander could only use Rebirth of the Bones three times a day.
He was already aware of the Yin-Yang Fish in his mental sea, and though it contained massive energy, he couldn't draw any power from it yet. The red and black Yin-Yang Fish simply helped his mental energy recover faster, especially under the twin moons' light.
Despite the limitations, Ander felt more secure now—his life was no longer as fragile. The next step was figuring out how to acquire undead minions.
Thinking to himself, Ander began to walk out of the temple but hesitated as he made sure the third crystal wheel had not changed color. Satisfied, he left the temple.
However, as he stepped onto the temple's steps, he suddenly stopped. His soul fire flickered, and his bones creaked as he nearly lost his balance.
"Remember your promise," a chilling voice echoed in his mind, freezing his soul with its cold presence. "When you reach level 10, I want to see the sacrifice that satisfies me. If you fail..."
A deep chill wrapped around Ander's mind, threatening to extinguish his soul fire. If not for the Yin-Yang Fish swiftly absorbing the cold energy, he would have perished on the spot.
"Interesting little skeleton... Remember my words, you may leave now."
Ander barely managed to regain his composure, and a much less cold voice echoed in his mind, telling him he could leave. Relieved, Ander staggered away, barely making it out of sight of the temple.
Exhausted and filled with regret, Ander collapsed behind a withered tree stump, cursing himself.
"If I had known, I would never have prayed to the gods like that!"