ocean-life Chapter 88: Giant's Tomb (2)
Chapter 88: Giant's Tomb (2)
[Translator - Hestia]
[Proofreader - Kaya]
Chapter 88: Giant's Tomb (2)
Rumble—
The ceiling of the [Giant's Tomb] slid open.
Inside, it resembled a massive coffin, except for the control room, which was about the size of 66 square meters.
"Move it here."
【Do you think I'm a pack mule?】
Grumbling, Fafnir still followed the instructions and moved the Ogre's corpse into the tomb.
It looked like it was lying in a giant coffin.
"Ah, there should be Troll bones in the Unholy Graveyard."
【Are you talking about the ones we hunted when you were increasing the number of Black Spires?】
"You remember that?"
【The flesh would have rotted away, leaving only bones.】
"Actually, I needed bones that were well-fermented in spirit power."
Hearing that, Fafnir didn't say anything more and brought the Troll bones stored in the graveyard.
With a snap of his fingers, the ceiling that had been slid open moved again, blocking out the light.
【What do we do now?】
"Wait outside."
After sending Jo Seungchul, who was in the control room, out as well, Yoojin was left alone in the Giant's Tomb.
Kronos seemed puzzled.
〔Hmm. Weren't you going to leave the operation of the structure to your subordinates?〕
'It's the first time. I'm going to try it myself, also to test its performance.'
Rolling up his sleeves, Yoojin placed his hand on the skull located in the center of the control room.
A whitish energy flickered in the empty sockets.
Whoosh—
A portion of spirit power flowed into the skull through his palm.
It wasn't a large amount.
This was the process of confirming control over the structure.
[Connected to the Giant's Tomb control room.]
[Confirming user's abilities.]
[User possesses skills suitable for tomb control.]
[Select the undead you wish to create.]
As he linked with the structure through the skull, an emotionless voice pierced his mind.
A translucent panel appeared before his eyes.
Well, even if he had a choice, there was only one option.
Yoojin firmly pressed the [Brutal] option.
[All necessary corpses and catalysts for creating the selected undead have been confirmed.]
[Commencing creation.]
'Now, let's focus.'
Modifying a corpse was much easier with the assistance of the structure.
There was no need to strengthen the bones or rigor mortis-stiffened muscles by individually infusing them with spirit power.
He just needed to infuse the appropriate amount of spirit power in the processed order.
‘Easy, right? Like playing a rhythm game.'
Swish— Swish—
He infused the Necropolis's spirit power with precise timing.
The Ogre's already stiffened muscles repeatedly swelled as if about to explode, then subsided.
Its eyes, as large as a human head, shrunk under the excessive pressure.
〔Nothing special. It's so mundane compared to the antics you've pulled off so far.〕
'It looks easy because I'm the one doing it. Look at Jo Seungchul. He's only at 12% efficiency.'
The immense power gushing from the Necropolis's spiritual veins.
Because it wasn't his own spirit power he was handling, the control difficulty was much higher.
If he poured in more spirit power than programmed, the corpse would be damaged.
If he infused too little, the work progress would slow down.
'If you can't control spirit power properly, both the creation speed and completion level will drop.'
Spirit Power control was directly linked to necromancy proficiency.
The only necromancy spell Jo Seungchul had learned was [Raise Dead].
Even that wasn't at a high proficiency level.
His proficiency would surely increase rapidly while working at the Giant's Tomb.
〔You don't lose your concentration even while conversing with me.〕
'This much is basic.'
The Ogre corpse modification proceeded smoothly.
Some of the Troll bones, aged for a long time, became soft after being exposed to the high-density spirit power.
They transformed into a whitish liquid and seeped into the Ogre's corpse.
'Now!'
Click— Click—
Its nails lengthened and curved like hooks.
Its fingers also grew to twice their length.
The bones of the large monster, which had absorbed spirit power for a long time, permeated the corpse and transformed it from within.
Sharp protrusions, protruding through the muscles that had swollen by about 1.3 times, possessed sharpness comparable to well-sharpened spears and swords.
[Brutal successfully created.]
-GROOOOAR!!!
The Ogre's corpse let out a chilling cry.
The monster, now a new being called [Brutal], glared with ferocious eyes.
* * *
⋯⋯⋯
[Brutal]
Race: Undead
Rank: ★★★★★
◎ Stats
Strength: 1,531 (+755) / Agility: 725 / Health: 1,648 (+824) / Toughness: 1,624 (+812) / Spirit Power: 300
◎ Traits
▷ Immortal Being [B+] / Large Species [B+] / Frenzy [B] / Imperfect Giant [B]
◎ Skills
▷ Herculean Strength [B] / Raging Charge [C+] / Great Recovery [C+] / Shockwave [C+]
◎ Special Notes
This monster is classified as Large. Receives a 50% bonus to Strength, Health, and Toughness.
⋯⋯⋯
Three stats exceeded 1,000.
Agility was lower than the original Ogre.
Instead, Strength and Toughness were much higher than the original.
〔Even so, doesn't that black skeleton subordinate also have high Spirit Power?〕
'It's around the mid-1,000s.'
Don't misunderstand.
Fafnir opened his mouth to protest, but Yoojin cut him off.
“Besides, you were so eager to learn before. Surely a little refresher won't hurt?”
Trapped by his own earlier enthusiasm, Fafnir could only manage an awkward chuckle.
* * *
A week had passed since returning to the border region.
Yoojin, with two Dark Minions in front of him, grumbled incessantly.
"You blockheads."
【.....】
"Where else in the world would you find someone who teaches you this well?"
【.....】
Jo Seungchul and Lee Seungyeon hung their heads.
[Dark Minion (Jo Seungchul) has acquired the Raise Dead skill.]
[Dark Minion (Lee Seungyeon) has acquired the Raise Dead skill.]
Yoojin hadn't left the Necropolis once in the past week.
Whenever he had time, he taught necromancy.
Or he created Brutals one by one.
It had been a while since the three Ogres he initially brought had been reborn as undead.
He read nearby memories with [Memento] and found three more Ogres, increasing the number of Brutals to six.
'Still not enough.'
These were the guys who had dumped Ogres from their cargo ship like trash.
What if they held back their elite monsters and instead captured the monsters spawning throughout the border region and sent them charging?
'We'd be at a disadvantage in a war of attrition.'
Huh.
Yoojin's face contorted.
He couldn't just stand by and let his Necromancer pride be hurt.
"You need to learn at least Dead Rise to get the tomb's operating rate to around 40%. Work harder."
【As Master commands.】
"Yeah. Look at Fafnir over there. He's already learned it all."
The blue flames of the two Dark Minions flickered.
Perhaps the training at Yeonpyeong wasn't in vain, as Fafnir had significantly improved his [Raise Dead] proficiency.
Proficiency = Understanding of undead creation.
Naturally, this gave him an advantage when learning other undead creation skills.
'Still, he's incredibly fast.'
His learning speed was impressive every time he saw it.
【Master, I brought three more.】
Thump—
The corpse of an Ogre, its tongue lolling out, was sprawled on the ground.
Song Myeongseok was riding on top of the Brutal.
He wasn't talented in necromancy, so he was tasked with hunting Ogres based on the information obtained through [Memento].
"Put it inside the tomb."
【As you command.】
"And don't splatter blood everywhere like you did the day before yesterday."
【.....】
Sigh.
Really. There was no one he could trust with tasks.
Even while teaching necromancy to the three undead, he had no time to rest.
⋯⋯⋯
[Necromancy Research Lab construction complete.]
▷ Rank - 1
▷ Size - Medium
▷ Durability - 700/700
Research can be conducted within the domain to enhance the effects of necromancy.
▷ Currently Researchable List
- Automatic Undead Creation
- Undead Enhancement Lv1
- Fog Range Increase Lv1
⋯⋯⋯
Necromancy Research Lab.
It was the highest priority building among the 1st tier structures.
The only reason he hadn't built it yet was that it required someone who had learned [Necromancy] to operate.
Now that Lee Seungyeon had learned the basics of necromancy, it was time to stick him in the lab.
"You incompetent fools. You need to learn quickly so I can use you more."
Yoojin grumbled as he stretched his back.
While he was bolstering the Necropolis' forces, the rest of the group also achieved results one by one.
"Finally, 3 Star!"
"Wow. I thought you were going to be stuck at 1 Star forever."
"It's all thanks to Hyung-nim."
All members of the Little Runts team reached 3 Star.
An incredible hunting speed.
This was the result of minimizing rest and slaughtering monsters in the border region.
Im Jaebaek, who had been hunting with them, also leveled up considerably.
'Ha. This is really tough.'
How many times had he felt the urge to throw away the greatsword in his hand?
The Little Runts team's pace was that phenomenal.
"Yes!!! Finally!!! I did it!!!!"
At the same time.
Shin Joonseok, who was staying at the Black Herb farm, shouted in triumph, holding a black pill.
The initial version of the Gangshim Pill.
This was the first time he had created a 'Product' that was stabilized.
[You have awakened a new possibility in alchemy.]
[Level up!]
His level increased thanks to his improved understanding of alchemy.
Shin Joonseok was overjoyed.
'It's all thanks to my partner!'
An opportunity that any alchemist would want even if it cost them a fortune!
Without Yoojin's support, Shin Joonseok would still be struggling with the debt from excessive investment, living a life of anxiety.
'From now on, only loyalty, loyalty!'
More alchemy recipes.
And more opportunities!
Everything would be fulfilled if he stayed by Yoojin's side.
Shin Joonseok was convinced.
Unbeknownst to anyone, Black Company, stretching its wings in the border region, was preparing to expand its influence.
[Translator - Hestia
[Proofreader - Kaya]