"Young warrior who bears the Hero’s Emblem, on behalf of the entire town of Guping, I humbly ask for your help… Will you save us from an impending disaster?"
A disaster?
A quest!?
Ye Tianxie narrowed his eyes slightly, then calmly put away his Return Scroll. Adopting a listening posture, he replied, “Please, go on. If I have the ability to help, I will.”
The mayor’s gaze lingered on the Hero’s Emblem for a brief moment before he let out a soft sigh and began, “Our town was not always called Guping. Long ago, it was known as Little River Village. A hundred years ago, a terrifying Undead Lord emerged from the Skull Caverns to the south. It left its domain and came here, intending to annihilate all living beings in its path. Just as our ancestors fell into despair, a hero appeared—his name was Guping. And on his chest, he bore an emblem identical to yours…”
The mayor spoke slowly and carefully, recounting a tale neither distant nor forgotten. He described the terrible power of the Undead Lord, the mighty strength of the warrior named Guping, and the final battle that ensued. In the end, the hero perished, but his name was forever remembered by generations of townsfolk.
Then, the mayor’s tone shifted as he moved from the distant past to the present threat—the Blood Phoenix.
“No one knows when or where the Blood Phoenix was born. Three years ago, we first laid eyes on it. Phoenixes are creatures of fire and should prefer bright, hot environments. Yet, the Blood Phoenix is different. It dwells in a place of darkness and dampness, where neither sunlight nor moonlight ever reaches… And that place is none other than the Skull Caverns.”
Ye Tianxie: “!?”
“Undead creatures fear fire, yet they show no fear of the Blood Phoenix’s flames. Perhaps… the crimson flames of the Blood Phoenix are not true fire at all. Since its arrival, it has coexisted with the undead of the Skull Caverns without conflict. Right now, it resides in the very depths of the caverns.”
Ye Tianxie frowned and asked, “So… what is it that you want me to do?”
The mayor gestured toward the wounded soldier from Tianchen City. “This brave warrior barely made it back with a dire warning—on the fifth floor of the Skull Caverns, after a hundred years, the lingering dark energy has begun to give rise to a new Undead Lord…”
Ye Tianxie: “……”
The mayor’s voice turned grave. “Once the Undead Lord fully matures, it will be able to leave the darkness and exist in the world above. When that happens, our town will be doomed. Young warrior, I implore you—will you use your strength and courage to eliminate this menace before it is too late? You bear the Hero’s Emblem—just like Guping. I believe you are the hero sent by the heavens to save us!”
Ding! The mayor of Guping Town has entrusted you with the mission: ‘Slay the Undead Lord of the Skull Caverns’ (Quest Type: Hidden Unique).
- Time Limit: 6 months. If the Undead Lord matures, the quest will automatically fail.
- Rewards: Unknown. (The longer you delay, the lesser the rewards.)
- Failure Penalty: -10 favorability with all residents of Guping Town.
Will you accept?
Defeat the Undead Lord!?
What kind of joke is this!?
The Undead Lord… A level 100 max-level boss, with at least Heavenly Extinction tier ranking—a monstrous death-type super boss!
And he, a mere level 14 player with no class… That thing could probably sneeze and kill him a thousand times over!
Ye Tianxie didn’t accept immediately. Instead, he maintained a calm expression and said, “Mayor, I would love to help, but I’m only level 14. There’s no way I could possibly defeat the Undead Lord.”
“No! Young warrior, you can do it. Anyone who bears the Hero’s Emblem has the power to achieve the impossible!”
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The mayor’s confidence took Ye Tianxie by surprise. He continued, “The creature in the caverns is not yet a true Undead Lord—it is still in its infancy. Its strength has not fully developed. Based on our knowledge, right now, it should not be above level 20. With your power and the Hero’s Emblem, you can definitely defeat it and prevent the disaster looming over our town. But if we delay, it will reach level 100 in just six months, and then… it will be invincible.”
The mayor’s words struck a chord in Ye Tianxie’s heart. Level 20 or below…
At level 10, he had slain the level 20 Elite Boss, the Amethyst Battle Tiger. Why should he fear a newly born Undead Lord now?
Moreover, this was a Hidden Unique Quest—rarer than Hidden or Unique quests alone, one of the rarest quest types!
They were incredibly difficult, but the rewards… were always beyond imagination!
With that thought, Ye Tianxie’s eyes flashed. He let out a confident chuckle and said, “Alright. I’ll take care of it.”
Ding! You have accepted the quest: ‘Guping Town Mayor’s Request—Slay the Undead Lord of the Skull Caverns.’
The mayor’s aged face lit up with relief and gratitude. “Thank you. You have given us hope. For the first time in years, the weight on my shoulders feels lighter.”
“The Skull Caverns lie directly south of here. If you continue straight, you will see a land of darkness and a gaping, pitch-black entrance. If there is anything you need before you set out, just let us know—we will do everything in our power to assist you.”
Very soon, Ye Tianxie discovered what ‘everything in our power’ actually meant…
30 bottles of Advanced Healing Potions (usable at level 10, restores 400 HP instantly, 5-second cooldown).
30 bottles of Advanced Mana Potions (usable at level 10, restores 400 MP instantly, 5-second cooldown).
Staring at the 60 tiny bottles in his inventory, then back at the mayor and townsfolk sending him off with enthusiastic, hopeful, and reverent expressions… Ye Tianxie nearly choked.
So stingy… This is way too stingy…
Would the quest rewards be just as stingy? Ye Tianxie sighed gloomily.
———
———
The mountain path was treacherous, with barely a flat surface in sight. As Ye Tianxie pressed forward, the vegetation grew increasingly sparse. An hour into his journey, the ground was almost completely barren, with only a few withered plants clinging desperately to life, as if on the verge of decay.
This was only natural. Any place capable of spawning undead creatures—even an Undead Monarch—was bound to be steeped in an overwhelming aura of Yin energy, also known as the Breath of the Dead. Death and life were mortal enemies; the presence of such energy devoured life itself, effortlessly extinguishing the weak. Because of this, no birds or beasts could be seen in the area—let alone humans.
The Skeleton Cave was not far from Gu Ping Village. After an hour’s trek, Ye Tianxie came to a halt on a stretch of land so dark it was almost unnerving. Before him lay a pitch-black entrance—not merely a horizontal cavern, but a maw-like abyss that seemed to descend into endless darkness.
A faint gust of wind carried an eerie chill, its sinister touch making his teeth chatter. Mixed within it was a stench so putrid it was almost unbearable, the unmistakable scent of decay.
Ye Tianxie stood still for a moment, silent. Then, he stepped inside.
The Skeleton Cave had existed for as long as anyone could remember. Its origins and purpose had long been lost to time. As Ye Tianxie ventured deeper, the silence around him grew heavier, the light dimmer, and the stench of rotting flesh increasingly suffocating. His brows furrowed.
When his eyes finally adjusted to the darkness, he found that it was not an endless void that surrounded him—but a faint, eerie blue glow. A ghastly, corpse-like phosphorescence. This was no light from the outside world, no warmth of the sun, but the weak luminescence of decaying corpses. By this dim glow, Ye Tianxie could barely make out a range of five or six meters ahead.
The ground beneath him was a lifeless black, unexpectedly smooth. But the cave was too silent. Deathly silent.
Skeleton Cave, First Floor.
And since this was a Skeleton Cave, there was no doubt about what kind of creatures lurked within.
Creak…
The eerie silence was finally broken. A sound that, to any listener, would instinctively be recognized as bones grinding against each other.
Ye Tianxie spun around sharply, his eyes locking onto a shadow emerging from the darkness—as if clawing its way up from the depths of the earth itself. He immediately activated Insight.
Skeleton Soldier – Level 17, HP 680.
An undead creature born from the lingering aura of death, using the remains of the deceased as its vessel. Instinctively hostile toward all living beings. Though it lacks true consciousness, its body is unnaturally durable.
Passive Ability – Undead Physique: Recovers HP automatically in darkness or areas filled with undead energy. Immune to 70% of death-type attacks.
Skill – Skeletal Claw: Swings its bone-white hands to tear into its target, with a 20% chance of dealing 150% damage.
Creak… creak…
The sound of bones scraping against each other echoed in chaos—from the front, the back, the left, and the right.
The once-silent cave was now filled with an orchestra of deathly rattles, as if countless skeletal figures were rising all around him.
Yet, instead of growing tenser, Ye Tianxie relaxed.
Normally, the farther one strayed from the main city, the stronger the monsters became. Yet, on the first floor of this Skeleton Cave, the enemies were only Level 17. Numerous as they were, they posed no real threat to him.
Creak… creak… creak…
Creak… creak…