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Chapter 325 - A Ghastly Face

The new [Blood Refining Art] manuals Leon pocketed were much more complete than the other manuals he previously looted from the other disciples back in Extreme Misty Forest.

But no matter how complete the [Blood Refining Art] is, if the essence of the technique is flawed, it would not be beneficial for Leon to practice it.

"Reap, wash, and assimilate… With the power of blood, one will never know weakness…"

Reading the first part of the manual, Leon began to frown. After he finished the rest of the first passage, his lips subconsciously twitched.

The wording of the first passage was too vague to understand the core values of the technique. What was the focus? What is the goal of practicing this technique? It did not explain anything in detail.

Leon did not know anything about the [Blood Refining Art], but he could immediately tell that the technique was problematic at a glance.

The introductory verses were one of the most important sections of a technique.

It must not only impart the core teachings of the technique but also give the practitioners a clear direction of practice.

If an introductory verse is vague, it becomes susceptible to misinterpretation. Misinterpretation then leads to variations. In the end, the chance of practicing the technique incorrectly was highly probable.

Nevertheless, Leon did not give up on the [Blood Refining Art] immediately and continued to study it. The manual was recorded with notes of the core disciple's experience and doubts during their practice.

He felt that the [Blood Refining Art] would be useful for him, but what he needed was not another Awakening cultivation technique either.

As such, he was not seeing how the [Blood Refining Art] could be useful to him. The contradiction baffled him.

Shortly after reading through all the cultivation manuals in their entirety, Leon gained a more in-depth understanding of the technique and drew some conjectures.

The original version of the [Blood Refining Art] should have been entirely different from the current version when it was first founded by the Bloodfiend Sect.

Leon would not find it surprising if the original technique were altered due to its incompleteness or incompatibility to Awakeners.

Whichever the case was, he believed that the original version [Blood Refining Art] focused on something else entirely.

Generally, when Leon hears the name [Blood Refining Art], he would not think of it as some Awakening cultivation technique. Instead, he would think it is a body forging method.

When he thought of this point, he figured out why the [Blood Refining Art] might be useful. He was in dire need of body forging methods, and the original version might have been one such method.

The incomplete [Hegemon of Primal Chaos] technique provided him with pseudo-Grandmist energy for tempering his body. But without a proper body forging method, he can only temper his body blindly.

He might have completed his meridian tempering previously, but this was much more useful for energy cultivation than body cultivation.

After all, only energy cultivation place particular emphasis on channeling energy through the countless meridian pathways, while body cultivation focuses on the overall strengthening of the body.

Leon recalled the little bit of body cultivation knowledge from treating body cultivators in his past life and remembered that body cultivation had five primary areas of focus in body forging.

These five areas of focus are flesh, blood, bone, marrow, and viscera. If Leon were to divide these into stages and named them, they would be called Tempering Flesh, Refining Blood, Forging Bone, Cleansing Marrow, and Consolidating Viscera.

The order of these five stages did not matter in body cultivation. The only true measurement for the level of body cultivators is the weight of their punches.

Leon had the [Black Turtle Heavenly Guard] for flesh tempering, but he was still lacking body forging methods for the other four areas.

"If I can grasp the original version of the [Blood Refining Art], I will make better progress in the blood refining stage. The Bloodfiend Sect's headquarters might have a copy of the original version. I should pay a visit when I get back." Leon mused.

If Leon learns that his mother had burned all the books, scriptures, and manuals on the Blood Mountain before leaving, he would be quite depressed.

"It'll be some time before I get back, though. How can I make use of this [Blood Refining Art] now?" Leon began to ponder with a frown.

"Reap, wash, and assimilate… With the power of blood, one will never know weakness." Leon repeated the first verse again.

"This verse should at least be original… Hm?" Leon was in deep thoughts when he felt Lumi's presence appear next to him.

"What do you want—" Leon turned to ask when he suddenly froze at an unfamiliar and ghastly face smiling creepily at him.

"What the fuck!"

Leon was so spooked he almost fell off the tree branch. However, he recovered quickly and reacted immediately.

Swoosh!

Leon reflectively backhanded the ghastly face away with a flaming strike. The ghastly face was very weak. After one flaming palm, it sent blazing away until it vaporized into nothingness by the fire.

"Fucking hell! That scared me. Where did this thing pop out from?" Leon cussed.

The ghast face appeared spiritual and had no body.

"Lumi, stop cultivating! We have company!"

Lumi was deeply immersed in cultivation and did not know what happened. Only after Leon shook her was she roused awake from deep cultivation and became startled in the next moment.

"Ah? W-What is it, Leon?"

"We have company," Leon repeated.

"W-Where?" Lumi looked around but did not see where this so-called 'company' was. She looked around with confusion before asking, "Are you playing a prank on me, Leon?"

"No, I'm not. There was something here just now, but I killed it."

Leon frowned.

After activating [Spirit Eyes] to search the surrounding, he found nothing. Even his divine sense did not pick up anything.

"This is strange. I am not picking anything." Leon stated. His senses would not fail him, not unless he was experiencing an illusion or a hallucination of some sort.

Did he unwittingly get himself affected by the hallucinogens again? No, that should not be possible. He would not feel anything from an illusion or hallucination, but he definitely did when he struck the ghastly face.

"How did that thing sneak up without me noticing though?"

Leon began feeling a bit of dread towards the Weeping Forest. People had always feared the unknown, and he was no exception.

"Um…"

"What is it, Lumi? Did you discover anything?"

"Well… I don't know what you saw earlier, but there seem to be people coming from over there though."

Lumi pointed in the distance to the left of them.

A few hundred yards away, a group of six figures traveled on the thin stretch of empty dry land located between the Black Swamp and the Weeping Forest.

These people wore fur cloaks and had fairly massive builds compared to the average adult human. Some had bone swords and daggers strapped to their side, while the others had large bone hammers and spear strapped to their back.

Although they were all hooded, Leon could tell that they were humans through his [Spirit Eyes]. After he confirmed this, he said with surprise, "Oh? It's a group of six humans."

"Really? We didn't have to wait long at all."

Lumi was also surprised, not expecting to encounter humans first.

Also, they had only been on top of the Weeping Tree for 20 minutes at most.

"Yeah, but we do not know if they are friendly just yet, so we will continue watching them for now. Try not to make any noise for now."

"Mm, got it."

While Leon was facing the approaching six humans' direction, he vigilance was raised to the max.

He had not gotten over the previous matter with the ghastly face and did not know when another one would suddenly pop out.

If possible, he did not want to stay in the Weeping Forest for too long. It seemed very eerie and dangerous. But at the same time, he also wanted to get to the bottle of it.

…

"Pick up the pace, everyone. If we are too slow, we may not have time to pick up treasures."

"Haiz, why did the Chief have to send us out to look for survivors? If anyone had been left behind in the Black Swamp, they would have already joined the pile of bones. Don't tell me, the Chief wanted to collect their remains?"

"Maybe. In any case, those people don't t seem to be from around here. They wear strange clothes and know some weird skills too. Perhaps, the Chief found some use for these people."

"Do you remember the way, Big Brother?"

"En, it should have been around here. Alright, let us get this over and done with quickly. We don't want to lose a layer of skin while we are in here now." The leader of the group said.

"Haha, I'm not worried about that at all. I can hold on for a whole day before these black waters do me any harm. I am more concerned about whether we run into more of those patrol demons." The most robust person said.

"Alright, alright, can we hurry? You all have Tier 4 soul weapons, but I'm still using a Tier 3! I want a Tier 4 soul weapon too!" The younger male of the group complained.

With that, the group of six soon disappeared into the shroud of miasma.

Meanwhile, back on the Weeping Tree's top, Leon's eyes lit up slightly as he overheard their conversation.. The talk was brief, but he was able to learn a lot.

Chapter 326 - They Are Being Chased

"What do we do now, Leon?" Lumi asked shortly after the people disappeared into the Black Swamp. When Leon told her to be quiet, she had been so nervous that she even forgot to breathe—Oh, wait a minute…

Leon flashed Lumi a glance and took a moment to ponder.

"We will continue to wait. After they come out, we will follow them and find out where their tribe is. We can decide on our next course of action after that."

"Hmm, alright—Eh? Is that the thing you were talking about before?" Lumi suddenly exclaimed after noticing a ghastly face appearing from behind Leon.

"What?"

He quickly turned.

After seeing the ghastly face creepily smiling at such close proximity, his expression dropped.

"Piss off!"

Swoosh~!

In the blink of an eye, the ghastly face was swatted with another flaming palm strike.

Just like the first ghastly face, the second one was sending blazing into nothingness. But before it disappeared, it retained the same creepy smile like it had not felt the pain of its existence burning away.

Leon felt his hair rising at this scene. It was too bizarre. No one can endure the searing pain of their soul burning. Yet this ghastly thing felt nothing, utterly nothing.

"Dammit, I let another one sneak up on me. Did you see how it appeared, Lumi?"

"Eh? N-N-No, it was already there by the time I noticed it."

Lumi could not help but distance herself from Leon by a few steps. She felt some fear of Leon's flaming palm strike. There was a trace of lightning in the attack that felt way scarier than the fire.

Leon did not notice Lumi's reaction, but he would not find it odd even if he did.

Lightning was an element of extreme Yang and contained the Power of Annihilation. Even living people are afraid of lightning, let alone spirits.

It was perfectly normal for vengeful spirits of Yin alignment like Lumi to be afraid of extreme Yang.

Leon had his brows tightly knitted.

The ghastly face was not an illusion nor a hallucination, but it was able to bypass his detection. And not just once, but twice it did.

'Nothing under the Divine Origin Realm should be able to bypass my divine sense. For something like this to happen more than once, it cannot be a mere coincidence. This ghastly thing sure is something else, alright.'

Leon was quite confident in his divine sense. It had never failed him before.

And because he was confident that he did not miss anything with his divine sense, there were only a few plausible explanations he could think of.

For instance, the ghastly faces could have spatial abilities, allowing them to warp through space and appear next to him from outside his detection range. This would explain how he was only able to sense their presence next to him after they appeared.

But to do that, their spatial ability had to be pretty powerful. They themselves had to be pretty powerful too, but this does not seem to be the case.

At his current level, if he wanted, the range of his divine sense could reach up to 300 yards.

However, he could barely feel any energy fluctuations from the ghastly faces, nor could he see anything from the Weeping Forest.

His divine sense only reached 300 yards, but he can still see quite far with his pair of eyes. The Weeping Forest was not densely clustered together.

The fact that he found nothing meant that it should be another possibility.

It was also hard to say that ghastly faces were even sentient beings. He could not sense any will or any shred of intelligence from them. They seem like soulless dolls that only know how to smile. This might explain why they feel no pain from burning, but he was not too sure. It was only a brief glance. He needed to observe another 'live' one to be sure.

Even so, a soulless soul makes no sense.

Leon wracked his brain, trying to figure out how these ghastly faces were appearing behind him.

"Look! It's another one, Leon!" Lumi spotted.

Leon's eyes turned sharp and immediately created some distance between him and the ghastly face. Why do these ghastly faces like sneaking up on his back so much? It was already the third time.

Seeing that Leon did not kill the ghastly face, Lumi was about to 'eat' it instead.

"Wait, Lumi. Don't kill it just yet." Leon said in a hurry.

"Eh? Why not? I want to eat them. They kinda look delicious."

To Lumi, the ghastly faces were just Yin energy for her to absorb.

Leon was speechless.

What part of a ghastly face looks delicious to you? It has the face of a person who died horribly!

Although Lumi had regained her humanity, it seems she was still a vengeful spirit in the end.

Leon shook his head and said, "Let me observe it for a bit. It won't be too late to kill it if it attacks us."

After the ghastly face appeared, it did not attack or anything. It merely continued to smile creepily at Leon.

"It seems this ghastly thing is only attracted to living things."

Leon swept his divine sense over it, but all he picked up was a body of Yin energy.

The ghastly face was not a 'live' spirit like Lumi. It was just the empty shell of a vengeful spirit without any sentience.

After some time, the ghastly face descended and disappeared into the Weeping Tree's branch they were standing on.

Shortly after, Lumi exclaimed, "Ah! It's behind you again, Leon!"

While Leon was worried about potential danger, Lumi found it fascinating. Since she was not the one being targeted, she had nothing to worry about.

Leon's eyes flickered with shock.

He swept his divine sense over the Weeping Tree but still failed to find the ghastly face in the tree. All he picked up was rich amounts of Yin energy.

It was brought to his attention that he had been too trusting of his divine sense. The world was full of strange and unexpected things. He could never be too sure of something.

"I was too confident in my divine sense. I have been humbled." Leon sighed.

Time and time again, his preconception and understanding of the world were challenged. His knowledge and abilities from the Divine Realm had been useful, but it would only take him so far.

He already understood that Gaia was nothing like the Divine Realm. A different yet more powerful set of laws seemed to govern this world. Even so, he was still surprised by each and every new discovery.

Why was this world different from the Divine Realm? What made it different?

He wished he had answers to these questions, but he was still too weak to seek out the truth of the world.

"What are you talking about, Leon? What is divine sense?"

Lumi was confused.

"Never mind that. I think I have a general understanding of what these ghastly faces are now."

"Aren't they just bodies of Yin energy?"

"Yes, and no. To be exact, these ghastly faces are bodies of Yin energy that contain a memory fragment of the Weeping Tree's victims at the time of their death."

"Normally, people with a strong mind would not be affected much by the hallucinations, but people with weak minds would fail to escape and become eternally trapped within sad dreams. They would be tormented by tragic events continuous until they receive a single ray of salvation at the end."

"But that is also when the victims are successfully lured inside the Weeping Trees and become their nutrients. In other words, the Weeping Trees eat away at people's minds and absorb nutrients from their bodies."

Leon explained.

"So, these so-called Weeping Trees basically eat people?" Lumi was startled. She looked at the trees in a different light, before returning to Leon, "Since there's only a memory fragment of the victims in these bodies of Yin energy, why do they keep appearing next to you, Leon? And aren't you afraid of becoming these tree's next victim?"

"Nah, not really. We are only on the outskirts of the forest. I would be worried if we to enter deeper into the forest, though. As for that matter…"

"...This is only my guess, but the memory fragments might have contained the victims' last wish at the time of their deaths. This is why they are drawn towards living things."

Leon no longer paid too much attention to the ghastly faces after realizing they were harmless. The real threat came from the Weeping Trees and the Weeping Trees alone.

"Ehhh? Then that means that the victims must have broken free from their dreams at the last moment and realized their impending doom!" Lumi said in realization with wide eyes and gaping mouth.

Leon clapped his hands and praised Lumi with a smile, "That's right. That should have been the case. Lumi has gotten smarter."

"Hehe—Wait, what do you mean by smarter, Leon? Are you saying I was stupid?" Lumi pouted with her hands on her hips.

"Err… I mean, Lumi is so smart."

Leon smiled wryly.

"Hmph!"

Suddenly Leon's ears were perked before he hushed with a quiet but urgent tone, "Shh! Those humans are coming back!"

Although Lumi was a bit disgruntled, she nodded and tone down her volume.

Shortly after, she raised an eyebrow and asked, "Don't you think they came back a bit too quickly? We spent 5 hours to leave the Black Swamp, but they haven't been gone for even an hour."

Leon furrowed his brows and said, "They are being chased."

Chapter 327 - Bone Calamity

Lumi followed Leon's line of sight and gazed in the direction of the Black Swamp's outer perimeters.

The cloud of miasma covered the entire Black Swamp and made it impossible to see anything inside.

Lumi could not find the people mentioned. She whispered in a doubtful tone, "Where are the people being..."

She did not finish asking before she began hearing the sound of splashing water. It came from the Black Swamp.

Shortly after, she saw the humans came out of the cloud of miasma and continue rushing straight towards their direction.

These humans did not see Lumi and Leon hiding on one of the Weeping Trees. They intended to enter the Weeping Forest.

"Eh? Why are they running over here? I thought this forest is supposed to be dangerous for living things..."

"Maybe they believe running to this Weeping Forest will give them a better chance at survival."

Leon already deactivated [Spirit Eyes], but he continued to observe with a serious gaze.

The six humans ran with frantic looks and urgency. In their hurry, their hoods dropped and revealed their facial features. A hint of horror could be seen in their eyes.

It appeared that whatever was chasing them must be quite powerful, if not outright horrifying.

"Who's chasing them, Leon? Could it be the demons?" Lumi asked. She was quite curious about demons. She heard of them in the stories, but she has never actually seen one.

"There's a chance it could be the demons, but there's also a chance it could be something else. Whatever it is, we will find out soon enough." Leon answered vaguely with a bit of speechlessness.

"What the heck? What difference is there between saying that and saying nothing at all?"

"I don't have the Heavenly All-Seeing Eyes or something like that, alright? You ask me, but who do I ask?" Leon shrugged.

"Ahh... I was just asking anyway." Lumi pouted.

"Let's just observe quietly for now. I'm curious to see what is chasing them."

"Are we just going to observe? If we help them, they will become grateful to us, you know?"

"Ha... that goes without saying. But if we want to help them, we must first ask ourselves if we can even help them or not."

From what Leon could see, these people had very robust bodies. They might be body cultivators, and reasonably strong ones at that. They might not be all that much weaker than he was.

If Leon were sent out his divine sense, he would be able to gauge their level, but doing so would also give away his location.

…

After the six humans entered the Weeping Forest, they did not stop until they were roughly 50 yards deeper into the forest.

The group leader swept the others a look and frowned immediately. He barked, "What are you all waiting for? Quickly put on your gas masks! Do you want to hug trees until death or something?!"

Everyone hurriedly wore their gas masks after hearing the group leader's stern reminder.

"Big Brother, can you tell us why we needed to give up on the mission? We haven't even found the people were tasked to find, nor did we get time to look for treasures! How are we going to explain to the Chief?"

"Yeah, what exactly is going on, Big Brother? Demon patrols are easy to spot, but I did not see any signs of them. Even if we run into one, there was no need for us to fear them, right? We did finish off the last group of patrols we encountered last time…"

"We rarely get the chance to enter the Black Swamp. Why did we have to leave without looking for some treasures? Boohoo, I still want a Tier 4 soul weapon…" The youngest male complained.

No one except the group leader seemed to understand what was going on. They were suddenly told to quickly get the heck out of the Black Swamp and run towards the Weeping Forest if they did not want to die.

They had never seen the group leader so fierce before. But because of that, they were able to understand that they were in a dangerous situation.

"Shut up! Forget about the mission. We will just tell the Chief that the people we were looking for are dead! As for the treasures… We can forget them too! We need to worry about our own lives right now!"

Beads of cold sweat ran down the side of the group leader's face, and his eyes darted between the Black Swamp from time to time.

Evidently, the group leader was incredibly nervous. Everyone noticed this and frowned.

Their group leader was by no means a coward. Otherwise, he would not have been able to become their group leader. Only the more valiant of warriors within the tribe can become group leaders.

The group leader was someone who can go toe to toe with Lesser Demons on their own. Although he stood no chance against Greater Demons, he would not show such fear. Only Archdemons could instill such fear in the group leader.

Could it be that they were being hunted by an Archdemon?

While everyone was guessing the danger, the group leader exhaled a wisp of foul air and recovered his wits. He then swept everyone a sharp look, and his ferocious aura exploded.

"Alright, which one of you motherf*ckers laid your hands the ancient bones? Have you all forgotten about the number one law of the Black Swamp?! Soul weapons can be looted, but NEVER touch the ancient bones!!"

The group members all looked at each other with confusion.

The Black Swamp's number one law was ingrained into every hunter before they are allowed to explore the Black Swamp. This is something enforced by not only their tribe but every human tribe that neighboured the Black Swamp.

After the initial confusion, their bodies shook upon realization.

"Oh, no! The Bone Calamity! Is it happening again!?"

"That's right! Whoever did it better come forward and admit now! I promise I won't beat you to death!" The group leader's eyes blazed with fury as he spat these words.

If the culprit could not be found, the blame would fall on his shoulders! Sparking the Bone Calamity had always been punishable by death! Even if the Chief spared him, the other tribes would not.

How can he not be angry?! Was someone scheming against him for his position?!

"It wasn't us, Big Brother! We would never be so stupid! We wouldn't dare even if we had ten lives!"

"That's right, Big Brother! How could you suspect us?! Don't you know what kind of punishment awaits lawbreakers?!"

"It must be those people, the Chief sent us out to find! I don't know where they came from, but only they would be stupid enough to break the law! That must be the reason why the Chief sent out to look for them!" The youngest member shouted.

After listening, the group leader found this reasoning quite sound. He retracted his ferocious aura, and his anger was somewhat abated. Afterward, he apologized, "What you said makes sense. I have blamed you all injustice."

"Never mind that, Big Brother. We need to hurry back and warn the tribe!"

"It's too late for that. We won't make it. Every tribe will be affected by Bone Calamity. We can only brace ourselves for what's to come." The group leader shook his head and sighed.

Back on the treetop, Leon overheard everything. After Lumi flashed him a peculiar look, Leon rubbed his head with a slightly guilty conscience. Obviously, they both knew who the culprit was.

It did not take long before there was a great stir in the Black Swamp.

The low rolling clouds of miasma began to gather and rise to form a colossal ancient demon's visage with two horns and three eyes.

"Wretched humans! For the act of profaning this sacred land with your insatiable greed, I grant you death!"

"Arise! Arise, my children! Arise and punish these wretched humans for disturbing your king's slumber!"

The colossal figure spoke with deafening volume that seemed to ripple across space and entered the ears of every being within a 10-thousand-mile radius.

After that, the colossal figure slammed into the sea of bones with its billowing body of miasma, disappearing shortly thereafter.

For an unknown period of time, the darkness looming over the Black Swamp was cleared, and the land within was revealed for all to see.

The endless miasma had disappeared without a trace, and the sea of black water dried up. All that was left behind was the rattling of bones.

The rising of the undead army was nigh.

Leon stared dumbly as he watched everything unfolded.

Unexpectedly, taking a few ancient bones would summon a fricking army of endless skeleton soldiers!

"Leon, Leon... You shouldn't have taken their bones... Look, you made them mad. Do something."

Lumi tugged his sleeve.

"Do you think they'll be happy if I return their bones and apologize?" Leon asked rhetorically with a stiff smile. He wanted to cry, but no tears would come out.

If the people found out he was the culprit, he would most like be hunted by every human tribe.

Chapter 328 - Who's Luring Them Over?

Leon never realized how big the Black Swamp region was until he triggered the so-called Bone Calamity.

After the Black Swamp was revealed, he realized it was much bigger than he had assumed. He could not see the ends of it. Only the tip of the iceberg had been revealed. The deeper parts of the Black Swamp were still obscured by the darkness of miasma.

If Leon had headed in a different direction, it was unknown how long it would take him to leave the Black Swamp region.

Chances are, he would not have survived. The deeper parts of the Black Swamp were demon territory.

If he had not left the Black Swamp and encountered the humans, he would have found himself in the middle of an ocean of undead skeleton soldiers.

When Leon thought of this point, he could not help but break into a cold sweat. Sure enough, the other side was dangerous, incomparably dangerous.

Subconsciously, Leon labeled the Black Swamp as a Perilous Land, a place on the same level of danger as Extreme Misty Forest, if not more dangerous.

Leon observed the changes of the Black Swamp with an incomparably serious gaze.

The colossal demon figure just now was only a remnant will, but it was the will of a mighty ancient demon when it was alive.

Archdemons were only comparable to Void Realm practitioners in strength, but what Leon sensed from the colossal demon figure seemed stronger than that.

A being of a higher level than Archdemons could only be Demon Lords. These were powerful existences with the ability to comprehend the Laws of Death.

The miasma from the outer parts of the Black Swamp had not truly disappeared. They were infused into the millions of bones that rest within the Black Swamp.

Threads of darkness weaved around the bones like snakes and pieced them together to form the bodies of undead bone soldiers.

Their empty eye sockets were dark as the abyss, and no sign of life could be seen from them—only a strong feeling of death and oppressiveness.

However, a dot of red light soon appeared in their empty eye sockets, and the menacing feeling of oppressiveness and death was magnified by twofold.

Their bodies erupted with miasma, and a layer of darkness wrapped around them like a cloak made of black flames.

Bone soldiers were one of the weakest types of demons, but these Bone Soldiers cloaked in black miasma gave off a different feeling.

Although they were weaker than Lesser Demons, their sheer numbers made them a terrifying force to behold.

As if this army of a million Bone Soldiers were not enough, a more terrifying Bone Soldier rose from among them.

This Bone Soldier was thrice the size of the average Bone Soldier, and its eye sockets flashed with a more profound and brighter ray of red light. It was the spark of intelligence.

This Bone Soldier was called the Bone King, and its entire body was comprised of ancient bones. Its strength was naturally different from the average Bone Soldiers. It was a Lesser Demon with power on par with Transcendents.

The surrounding Bone Soldiers did not display an ounce of intelligence, but despite this, they still knelt in the subservience of the Bone King.

There was no sentience in the Bone Soldiers. There was only a will to carry out the Bone King's orders, the servant of their master.

As if that was still not bad enough, there was more than one Bone King. Within every 100 thousand Bone Soldiers, a Bone King would rise to command them.

Rumble…

The Bone Army began to march on the spot in unison, and their collective might shook the earth.

The Bone Kings issued commands with a mighty roar, and the marching stopped. Shortly after, a bunch of Bone Soldiers collided into each other. Their bone dislocated and began reconstructing themselves to form one giant bone weapon after another for their Bone Kings.

There were giant hammers and buster swords among other varieties of strange weapons such as spiky maces and giant sickles.

After grasping their weapons, the Bone Kings each pointed their weapon towards a different direction leading outside the Black Swamp and gave a mighty howl.

"KILL!"

With that, the army of bones began marching out of the Black Swamp. Gradually, they started picking up the pace before finally charging in all directions.

As undead beings under the influence of the Death Law, the Bone Soldiers were quite sensitive to the lifeforce of living beings.

Seeing a portion of the army heading their way, Leon quietly muttered, "I hope this works."

A layer of Divine Will soon wrapped around Leon and masked away his presence, body, and lifeforce, blending himself into the background.

For some time, it seemed like Leon had turned invisible. One would not notice anything amiss if he did not move or paid particular attention to his location.

"Huh? Leon? Where did you go?"

Lumi was surprised to see Leon disappear before her eyes. She began to panic as she thought she just got ditched.

Seeing her reaction, Leon knew that his Divine Will was working as intended. He immediately patted and assured her.

"I'm still here."

Lumi calmed down slightly after hearing his words. Nevertheless, her surprise and curiosity grew. She could see some sort of distortion in the air. After reaching out her hand to touch the distortion, she asks, "Eh? How are you doing this, Leon? What kind of ability is this?"

"Just some ability to bend light and darkness. Alright, you can stop picking my nose now."

Lumi was immediately given a fright and retracted her hand, but Leon was not serious. After she found out, she pouted with annoyance.

Leon ignored her and focused on the group of humans below.

Things had gotten a little chaotic after a portion of the Bone Army entered the Weeping Forest.

"Dammit, they sensed our presence! Keep retreating! We can't fight here!" The group leader shouted with a stern and desperate look.

"It's just a group of 50 Lowly Bone Soldiers. There isn't even a Bone Knight among them, Big Brother! We should make our stand here and fight them off! On the other hand, it'll be much dangerous if we continue retreating deeper into the forest! Our gas masks aren't made for venturing that deep in the forest!" The youngest male spoke.

"Dammit, what do you know?! If we fight them here, we will attract more of them over! We can fight off 50, but what about 500? 5000? They will just keep coming until they exhaust us to death! We have a better chance if we fight a bit deeper inside the Weeping Forest!" The group leader shouted.

"What Big Brother said makes sense. If we fight here, we will soon find ourselves overwhelmed. But don't you think this strange, Big brother? How did they sense our presence? The forest should have helped us mask our lifeforce…"

"I do find that strange, but there's no time to think too deeply. We need to retreat for now!"

Once the group leader finished his piece, there were no more objections.

If they were to learn that Leon was the reason why a group of 50 Bone Soldiers was headed their way, they would have been livid with indignation. Leon was like a disaster magnet for them. Perhaps one of them would even think that they may have been archenemies in their past life or something.

After reaching 100 yards deeper into the Weeping Forest, the group leader spoke, "This should be deep enough. The other Bone Soldiers shouldn't be attracted if we fight here. Let's quickly finish these off these small fries and head back. We can't stay here for too long."

"Haha! I was just waiting for those words! How dare these lowly Bone Soldiers forced us this deep into the Weeping Forest?!" The youngest member roared.

"That's right, this is the first time I've been this deep into the Weeping Forest." The only female member said.

"It's the same for me too."

"Are you guys going to help, or are you all just going to stand around and talk?" The youngest member asked.

After charging into the group of Bone Soldiers with his heavy bone staff, the first Bone Soldier was directly pulverized from head-down in a single swing. The group joined him shortly after he took down another five Bone Soldiers.

After the group of Bone Soldiers was finished off, they were revived shortly after by the Death Law's lingering power.

However, the Bone Soldiers were noticeably weaker than before. The group of Bone Soldiers stopped reviving after they were killed over ten times.

Just when the human group thought they were done, another 100 Bone Soldiers made their way over and forced them to battle. Among the 100 Bone Soldiers were 5 Bone Knights.

The strength of Bone Soldiers is usually between 1-6 Stars, but the Bone Knights were all slightly stronger than 9-Stars.

"Dammit! Why is there another group coming?! Who the fuck is luring them over?" The group leader cursed with red eyes.

"I think someone has a grudge against us or something. Today is such a bad day. Anything that can go wrong, will go wrong..." The female member said with a depressed look.

Back on the treetop, Leon scratched his head with distress.

'I swear I didn't do it on purpose!'

Chapter 329 - Following The Group

No matter what he did, he must not let the humans discover he was the culprit, the bringer of their misfortune. They would surely hate his guts and hunt him down to the ends of the earth.

'I haven't been here for a day, and I already brought such a huge disaster upon the humans… Ahem, they sure have it hard.'

Leon quietly watched the humans battle and observed their fighting style.

"Leave the Bone Knights to me." The group leader said strictly, leaving no room negotiation.

"Hahaha, by all means, take them, Big Brother. We know our limits. Bone Soldiers are not a problem, but Bone Knights are still a little too strong for us to handle alone. There's just too big of a jump between the two."

"That's right, Big Brother. I ain't going to fight you over that."

Everyone was more than happy to let the group leader handle the Bone Knights. Time was short, and they could not drag out the battle.

"Good to know."

The battle was resumed shortly after the distance between the two sides was shortened.

The group leader was, no doubt, a powerful fighter. He easily swept the Bone Soldiers towards the others and dived straight into 5 Bone Knights.

Bang!

A Bone Knight was directly cleaved in half by the downward slash of his giant bone sword, kicking up a storm of dust from the ground.

The battle against the second group of undead was immediately thrown into full swing.

Although they were quickly surrounded and outnumbered, the human group did not feel the slightest pressure, not in the least. Rather, there was a battle-crazed look on their faces with glints of excitement.

And despite that, the battle was not disorderly but very clean and well-coordinated. They could cover each other's flanks and dish out attacks continuously like flowing water, constant and without pause.

This level of coordination could be said to have reached the epitome of perfection. The coordination brought out 100% of their battle efficiency, and they moved like a practiced choir, very well synced and harmonious.

It was clear that this kind of coordination cannot be achieved overnight but through long years of constant battles and growing familiarity.

These people were all certified warriors with great battle sense, honed through hundreds of life or death battles.

Leon's eyes flickered subtly.

If he had these kinds of people as subordinates, they would greatly aid him in his conquest when he kills his way into the Divine Realm's Four Divine Regions.

There was no use of fancy techniques and abilities. Just raw, overwhelming strength brought forth by the explosive might of their bulging muscles.

Each attack was simple, clean, and very straight to the point. One blow to fell one Bone Soldier.

Over time, Leon's interest was shifted to the Soul Weapons.

He could see that the Soul Weapons allowed humans to display battle prowess beyond their level.

The runes on each weapon were suffused with strange powers and glowed with a whitish-blue light.

Each time the whitish-blue light contacted the undead beings, the black flame-like darkness on their body would diminish slightly and weaken the empowerment of Death Law.

It could be seen that these Soul Weapons were vital for fighting the undead forces. Without it, the undead army would indeed be undying and infallible, reviving endlessly.

Just as Water counteracts Fire and Light counteracts Darkness, Death was counteracted by Life.

Although elements of the Yang-alignment like Fire, Lightning, Light has some effects in destroying Death, it is not as effective as Life energy.

That being said, the Soul Weapon did not seem to use any of these elements to destroy the Death and Darkness Profound Energy within the Bone Soldiers and Bone Knights.

Rather than destroying the Death and Darkness Profound Energy, the Soul Weapon appeared to be absorbing them instead.

Leon noticed this subtle detail when he sensed the aura surrounding the Soul Weapon growing stronger.

"These weapons can grow stronger by hunting undead beings." Leon softly muttered. He was pleasantly surprised by the discovery.

Half an hour later, the battle between the two sides ended.

The 100 Bone Soldiers and Bone Knights were reduced to piles of bone fragments, while the humans barely suffered a scratch.

Shortly after, the whitish-blue light coming from the Soul Weapon began to dim. Traces of Darkness Profound Energy were seen seeping out from the weapons and flowing back into the humans.

"What?"

Leon widened his eyes.

After being surprised for a moment, he quickly recovered and began to reevaluate the humans below him.

Their bodies were well built, and their complexion was on the darker side of colors. It was a similar tan to the people of the Ishaan Kingdom.

However, this tan was not caused by strong sunlight, but long-time exposure to the Darkness Profound Energy on this dark land.

That being said, Leon did not notice any obvious signs of discomfort from their facial expressions after the Darkness Profound Energy had settled inside their bodies.

Their physiques had grown tough to adapt to the harsh environment, but this should not have been enough for them to wield Darkness Profound Energy, not unless they all possess Special Physiques or become demonized.

However, Leon found these two possibilities to be very unlikely.

It was hard to imagine that an entire tribe of these humans were all in possession of Special Physiques, let alone the 6 of them.

On the other hand, the changes of a demonized person were undeniably obvious. According to his knowledge, every demonized person or beast would experience deformity in some way.

Whether it is growing extra pairs of limbs, eyes, heads, horns, or anything different for that matter, it was not something a 'normal' person would usually have.

Leon did not discover any of these unique features on the six people, but he did not outright deny these two possibilities after the failed instance with his divine sense.

Nevertheless, he began looking into a third possibility.

"Perhaps these people have developed a suitable refinement method for Darkness Profound Energy…" Leon narrowed his eyes in thought.

If that were true, it would be hot news in the Divine Realm, spreading like wildfire. Everyone would be dying to seek out such a method, especially the people that live near the Divine Demon Region.

Shortly after the battle ended, one of the group members, Big Tooth asked, "What are our plans now that the Bone Calamity is here, Big Brother?"

"It has been some time since the Bone Calamity started. The Bone Army should have already left the Black Swamp region. This is our chance to leave the Weeping Forest and—"

"And search for treasures in the Black Swamp?!" The youngest member interrupted with sparkling eyes.

Whack!

"Search! Search your fucking head! There's an army of undead heading for our tribe right now, and yet you still have the mind to be thinking about treasures?!" The group leader snapped and smacked the person on the back of the head.

"Aiyo, it was my bad, alright? I won't think about treasures anymore! Did you need to hit so hard, Big Brother?" The person rubbed his sore with complaint.

"Hmph! We will head back to the tribe and check out the situation there. If there's a chance, we must get inside the tribe!"

"Isn't that just asking to get killed? By the time we reach the tribe, it would already be swarming with Bone Soldiers. We won't be able to get close, let alone inside the tribe, Big Brother." The male with the biggest build raised his opinion.

"It's going to be difficult, but we have to try. To cower in the face of adversaries is not the warrior's way. Ask your conscience, Big Bone. Will you be happy hiding away while your brothers and sisters are doing their best to protect your families and the tribe?" The group leader eyed the male with the biggest build.

"I will not be happy!"

Big Bone answered without hesitation.

"What about the rest of you?" The group leader shifted his gaze to the rest of the group members.

"We will not be happy!"

"We will not be happy!"

The other four answered in unison.

"And that is why you are on this team. Remember this, our Darkmoon Tribe only has brave warriors. There's no room for cowards."

"Yes, Big Brother!"

The group leader nodded with a smile and clapped, "Alright, we all don't want to stay in the Weeping Forest for any longer. Let us leave quickly."

"That goes without saying, Big Brother. Let us hurry! I don't want to spend a second longer here!"

Everyone obliged without complaints. No one was willing to stay within the Weeping Forest for any longer.

By the foot of the Weeping Trees, they could see a bunch of skeletal remains wrapped in the tree roots.

They would barely see any of these near the outskirts of the Weeping Forest, but they could see many of these skeletal remains when they are deeper inside.

Not all of the skeletal remains belonged to humans. Some belonged to demons, some belonged to demonic beasts.

The human's strong bodies provided some resistance against the Weeping Trees' hallucinogens, but it was not enough to be fully immune to it.

It was okay if there was someone to drag them out of the Weeping Forest when they get affected by hallucinations. But if they did not have anyone there for them, then they might as well forfeit their lives.

"We're moving too, Lumi. We are going to follow them. Try not to make any big noise, alright?" Leon instructed after seeing the group almost leave the Weeping Forest.

"Alright, alright." Lumi gave a halfheartedly response, before she inaudibly muttered, "Stop treating me like a kid…"

Chapter 330 - Infertile Plains

After the small group of humans left the Weeping Forest, they traveled westward along the empty path between the two dangerous regions. To their left was the Black Swamp, and to the right was the Weeping Forest.

As they continue to take this road, the distance between Black Swamp and Weeping Forest would gradually widen and lead them to an open field where their tribe lies.

Some distance behind their group, Leon darted from tree to tree nimbly like a monkey in following. Lumi floated by his side while matching his pace.

After hopping past a few Weeping Trees, Leon raised an eyebrow as he looked back.

"It doesn't seem like every tree has these ghastly faces popping out. I don't know whether my luck is just too good or what, hitting the jackpot on the first pick." Leon quietly muttered with a rueful smile.

Apart from the very first Weeping Tree he climbed and a few Weeping Trees deeper in the forest, he had not encountered anymore Ghastly Face while he was traveling along the very edge of the Weeping Forest.

"Did you really need to eat it?" Leon asked after a quick glance to the side. Parts of Ghastly Face were sticking out from Lumi's mouth as she was trying to devour it.

As a body of Yin Energy, the Ghastly Face was easily twisted and deformed out of shape to fit her small mouth.

Slurp!

After hearing Leon's question, Lumi quickly swallowed the remaining parts of the Ghastly Face and smacked her lips with great relish before licking her fingers like they still had lingering Yin Energy from the Ghastly Face on them.

Lumi's actions were like a cat swallowing its mouse prey with some tail sticking out, and when they finish their meal, they will clean their paws.

On one hand, it was kind of cute, but on the other hand, it was actually quite terrifying if you think about it.

Yin Energy was tonic to vengeful spirits like her. When she devours Yin Energy and absorb them, a refreshing feeling would wash over her soul.

"Am I not allowed to eat them? It is actually very nice and refreshing, Leon. Have you ever had ice cream or cold drinks before? It is kinda like that. You'll understand if you try one." Lumi said coyly before suggesting with a reluctant look.

Leon looked at her speechlessly for a moment before saying, "Not interested."

"Hmph, hmph! You don't know how to appreciate favors. Fine, I wasn't willing to share it anyway!" Lumi pouted.

Leon rolled his eyes and focused on not losing the group ahead of them.

The Yin Energy on the Ghastly Faces came from dead people. He would not be surprised if there were traces of Corpse Energy in them.

Ingesting something like that, even if he does not get sick, poisoned, or catch some strange disease, he would most likely not have a good time on the toilet for a few days.

They were in a situation where a fight could break out at any time. If he were to have an unstoppable urge to drop a big turd in the midst of battle, his life would be very miserable.

Leon recalled a few instances in his younger days when he went out to eat some common street delicacies from the Lower District and shivered. The food is often not clean and gave him terrible stomachaches each time.

More often than not, he would not be able to make it home in time and had to knock the doors of strangers to borrow their toilets.

The feeling of needing to use the toilet badly, but not being able to are one of the worse feelings.

Leon lamented that he had not awakened his memories sooner. His medical knowledge would have saved him from these embarrassing experiences.

Shaking his head, Leon pushed these thoughts to the back of his mind and continued to follow the group. From time to time, he would flash a glance towards the Black Swamp on his left.

The outer regions of the Black Swamp had been swarming with undead beings earlier, but not even an hour later, they were all gone.

Nothing was left behind except muddy grounds and large ancient bones. These were all excellent materials for weapon crafting, but Leon resisted the urge of going over to pocket them.

These ancient bones contain the remnant wills of powerful demons during their prime.

He did not doubt that all the Bone Soldiers, Knights, and Kings would come pouring back into the Black Swamp if he touched any of these ancient bones.

On that note, the ancient bones he already looted also contained remnant wills. If not for them being stored in an independent space, the Bone Army would have easily locked onto his location.

He needed to find some time to erase these remnant wills to avoid future complications, but not now. The human group has had enough trouble. There was no need to recall the Bone Army back and give these people more trouble.

…

1200 miles west, the Darkmoon Tribe was located on the Infertile Plains.

The Infertile Plains was a barren land with rocky ground, devoid of any plants, or rather 'live' plants. Only dead, withered grass could be seen.

As its name suggests, it was a land that cannot be cultivated. But it was precisely this type of barren land that the Darkmoon Tribe have settled their people and made it their home.

The Infertile Plains was also home to many demonic beasts. Hunting was their way of life and survival.

There is never a peaceful day for the Darkmoon Tribe on this barren land, but this is also the norm for the Darkmoon Tribe. They are a warring tribe that lives for battle. Demonic beasts were their primary source of sustenance and also the source of all their clothing.

The demonic beasts' hunts humans, and the humans hunt them back. It was a land for the survival of the fittest.

The precise location of the Darkmoon Tribe was situated around the bottom of a rocky plateau. Unsurprisingly, the Darkmoon City of the Darkmoon Tribe was built very primitively.

Whether it was due to a scarcity of resources, technology, or both, one should not have expected a tribe of warriors to be proficient in anything else.

Nevertheless, Darkmoon City had its own unique sense of beauty.

From the buildings to the walls and gates, everything was built from with demonic beast bones as the frames and special bricks made from the mixture of clay and demonic beast blood, painting the entire Darkmoon City a reddish-black color.

Atop the rocky plateau, there were only two buildings, the tribal palace where the Chief resides and the colossal amphitheater where the finest of the tribe's warriors contested each other for entertainment and positions of authority within the tribe.

Even the position of the reigning tribal chief can be challenged on the battle arena within the amphitheater. As such, the tribal chief was usually the strongest warrior within the tribe.

At this moment, the current reigning tribal chief was standing on the edge of the rocky plateau with another two warriors, overlooking the bustling Darkmoon City as the tribesmen man the defenses.

"Do you remember how long the last Bone Calamity lasted, Sabertooth?" Chief Valencia asked casually.

Chief Valencia was a person with a very large build that makes even many men pale in comparison. Standing at a height of 6fts and 10 inches, she was indeed a behemoth compared to some men who could not even reach 6fts in their lifetime.

She had ocean blue eyes, long wavy chocolate brown hair, and a creamy tan complexion. She wore a furry cloak and little to no other clothing, just enough demonic beast hides, and leather clothing to cover her body parts. The rest of her exposed skin was riddled with battle scars.

As one should have already guessed, the current reigning tribal chief of the Darkmoon Tribe was not a man but a woman. But despite being a woman, Chief Valencia was indeed the current strongest warrior in the tribe with her battle record of 9984 wins and 0 losses.

She was the undefeated champion of the battle arena.

"It lasted 14 nights, Chief Valencia," Sabertooth answered.

"And the Bone Calamity before that?"

"21 nights, Chief."

"And the previous Bone Calamity even before that one?"

"30 nights, Chief." Sabertooth continued to answer faithfully, despite being unsure of whether the Chief was heading with this conversation.

"What about the one before that?"

"There wasn't another one, Chief Valencia."

Chief Valencia nodded.

She stared towards the Black Swamp direction and continued, "There had only been a total of 3 Bone Calamities in the past, and today marks the start of the fourth one. Bone Calamities have been getting shorter, but each time they come, it's always been stronger than the last."

The Black Swamp had not always been called the Black Swamp. It used to be called the Bone Mountain. But after the past 3 Bone Calamities, the number of bones on the Bone Mountain had significantly reduced.

"If you are worried about the Bone Calamity—"

It's not this Bone Calamity that I am worried about." Chief Valencia interrupted with a shake of her head before continuing, "We can expect quite a few Bone Kings this time round, but this not what I'm afraid of."

"With my strength, I will fear no Bone King, but what about the next Bone Calamity? What if something stronger than Bone Kings crawls out of that wretched place? I'm afraid no one would be prepared for what's to come then."

"And to avoid that possible outcome, we must—"

Chief Valencia suddenly paused and narrowed her eyes on the distant horizon.

It was at this moment that an army of darkness could be seen advancing towards their Darkmoon Tribe. Their numbers were great, and the earth rumbled with each of their marching steps.

"So they have come."

Chapter 331 - Battle At Darkmoon City

After the Bone Army spotted the Darkmoon Tribe, they continue to charge with full momentum. The battle had already started when they were summoned from the Black Swamp and given the order to kill all humans.

The Bone Army was relentless and inexhaustible. They did not know what it means to tire. Their only will is the will to execute commands given to them.

As the Bone Army closed in on Darkmoon City, the people of the Darkmoon Tribe did not stay idle either. They had been waiting on the city walls ever since the colossal demon figure's powerful voice rippled across the surrounding regions.

"The Bone Calamity is here! Let us show them the might of our Darkmoon Tribe. Charge out with me, Brothers and Sisters!" A bulky man with a terrifying scar on his face shouted in a deep but penetrating voice.

The person with the terrifying scar on his face was one of the Great Warriors of Darkmoon Tribe. Under his leadership, the Darkmoon Tribe people leaped off the city walls and charged at the incoming Bone Army fearlessly.

"Everyone, follow Big Brother Scarface's lead!"

"OOOH!"

With an earthshaking war cry, the Darkmoon Tribe people had their blood pumping with excitement as their battle spirits were raised to the peak.

The warriors of the Darkmoon Tribe were not used to fighting passively. Even if their Darkmoon Tribe of 20 thousand odd warriors were vastly outnumbered by the million-strong enemy, they would not shy away from the battlefield.

How can they display their valor if they stayed behind on the city wall while everyone else was fighting at the forefront of the battlefield?

The competitive spirit of the warriors did not allow them to fall behind. When one person charged, the rest followed. No one stayed behind.

Boom!

A shadowy figured dropped from the sky and landed at the forefront of the battlefield with a heavy boom. As the dust settled, the tall figure of Chief Valencia holding her Tyrant Bone Halberd became visible.

"Hahaha! The warriors of my Darkmoon Tribe do not shy away from a battle of such grand scale. How can I, the Chief, dare to fall behind them?!" Chief Valencia spoke wildly on the battlefield.

Her overpowering presence immediately dampened the pressure of the incoming Bone Army and raised the morale of the Darkmoon Tribe to greater heights.

"Chief!"

"The Chief is here to join us!"

The Darkmoon Tribe warriors all cheered.

"Hahaha! Even the Chief has joined us! You all better not embarrass yourself, ya hear me?! Show these wretched things that are neither dead nor alive the might of the Darkmoon Tribe's warriors!" Another warrior spoke in a deep and powerful voice.

This person was another Great Warrior of the Darkmoon Tribe. He wielded an excellent battle mace that kind of looks like a giant garden lamppost, but the sheer weight and power behind this weapon was not to be looked down upon.

Although the Great Warrior made the weapon look light as a feather, the battle mace weighed 3000-jin.

Many warriors had physical strength exceeding 3000-jins, and this might not seem like a lot of weight, but just because a weapon can be lifted, it did not mean it could be used.

To use the heavy battle mace as easily as the Great Warrior, they would need a physical strength of 30000-jins or greater.

"Big Brother Blackbear is also here!"

"Ahh, I am so excited! Under Big Brother Blackbear's lead, everyone!"

These warriors were not in the same location as Chief Valencia. As such, they naturally followed under Great Warrior Blackbear's leadership on the battlefield.

They were on the southeast side, while the main Bone Army came from the southmost direction. However, the Bone Army quickly spread out to surround their Darkmoon City.

Very shortly, both sides collided with great force as they battled furiously!

Swoosh!

Great Warrior Blackbear swept away dozens of Bone Soldiers with a mighty swing of this excellent battle mace. The Bone Soldiers were not his opponent at all!

"Hahaha! Come! This is not even enough for me to break a sweat! At this rate, I alone can take on a 100 Bone Knights!" Blackbear boasted boisterously. His voice could be heard a few dozen miles away!

BOOM!!

On the southmost parts of Darkmoon City's outskirts, dozens of Bone Soldiers and Bone Knights alike were shattered into splinters by an even more tyrannical strike. At the same time, hundreds more were swept away by the generated wind pressure.

This attack came from a casual swing of Chief Valencia's Tyrant Bone Halberd. The weight of this weapon did not seem inferior to Blackbear's battle mace and might even exceed it!

Chief Valencia was like an overlord on the battlefield. Every swing of her Tyrant Bone Halberd would crush dozens and send hundreds more flying.

The previous concerns about the future had vanished entirely from her face. Only the will to do battle was left.

The worries of the future shall be left in the future.

Right now, all she was concerned about was finding a worthy opponent on the battlefield! None of the Bone Soldiers and Bone Knights were her opponent!

She cleaved her way through the Bone Army like she was clearing out the trash. Her strikes were domineering and overpowering while her momentum was unstoppable!

She only had one target in mind. The Bone Kings! Only the Bone Kings are worthy opponents! The rest was a waste of her time! Those can be left to her tribesmen!

The Bone King in the back of the Bone Army carefully eyed Chief Valencia with its chilly gaze. The red light in its empty eye socket sparkled with increasing intensity as it watched the lone human quickly mowing down its soldiers.

"Hmph! Arrogant human! Let me be your opponent!"

A terrible aura of death exploded from its body as it shot forward with alarming speed. In an instance, it closed the distance between then and swept out with its awfully large bone weapon!

"Hahaha! Just what I was hoping for!"

Chief Valencia met the Bone King's attack head-on.

Clanggg!

A powerful shockwave was generated from their clash and swept away the surrounding Bone Soldiers and Bone Knights, and cleared a large space of empty land for them to fight.

"Stay back! This human is mine!"

The Bone King issued its order, and the Bone Army no longer focused on Chief Valencia. They resumed their attack on the other humans before them.

While the Darkmoon Tribe was busy fighting, similar situations were playing out at other human tribes.

Apart from the Darkmoon Tribe, twelve other human tribes had also settled their homes on the Infertile Plains. But of these dozen human tribes, there were only two other tribes that lived neighboring the Black Swamp.

They were the Blackwind Tribe and Crimsonfog Tribe.

These two tribes were also of similar strength to the Darkmoon Tribe and had a population of 20 thousand warriors.

However, at this moment, the Blackwind Tribe was struggling to fend off the Bone Army that headed their way. They were under siege by a 2.1 million strong Bone Army.

Among this 2.1 million Bone Army, there were 1.8 million Bone Soldiers, 300 thousand Bone Knights, and 21 Bone Kings.

Blackwind Tribe failed to take the initiative of the war and were forced on the defensive side. Unlike the battle at Darkmoon City, the Bone Kings had been very proactive in their fight against the Blackwind Tribe.

They were able to hold on tenaciously under the leadership of their tribal chief, Blackarrow, but the situation was not looking good.

If they cannot break the status quo, they will eventually be worn out by the Bone Army's relentless attack.

"Dammit, why are there many Bone Kings?! This Bone Calamity is much stronger than the last one!" A Great Warrior for the Blackwind Tribe spoke with complaint as he busily hacks down numerous Bone Soldiers that tried to climb the city wall.

"The Bone Calamities had always been getting stronger each time it struck us, but it was never strong to this extent! I fear that our Blackwind Tribe had taken the brunt of the Bone Calamity's attack!"

"Fuck, fuck, fuck! And you wonder why that is the case, huh?! Our Blackwind City is too goddamn close to the Black Swamp! I have suggested relocation many times, but you guys always shoot me down! Ya bastards are all too greedy for treasures! Now, look where it landed us!"

"Do you think relocation is easy?! Everything had been fine until the Bone Calamity happened! They better not let me find out which bastard triggered it! I'll fricking skin him alive and torture him for 100 days before I quench my burning fury!"

…

Somewhere on the Infertile Plains, not too far away from the Weeping Forest…

"Achoo!"

"Are you alright, Leon? That's like the 7th time you sneezed already." Lumi asked with amusement rather than concern.

"After what I did, I wouldn't be surprised if some people are cursing me right now." Leon shrugged after rubbing his itchy nose.

"Achoo!"

He sneezed again.

In fact, it was not just some people cursing him. It was a lot of people cursing him! So much that he could drown in them!

"People's curses can cause you to sneeze?" Lumi asked with a dubious expression. Wasn't that just a superstition?

"Actually… I am allergic."

"What are you allergic to?"

"Curses. Curses directed at me."

"…"

"Ahem, jokes aside, I might really be allergic to something," Leon said as he recalled the strange flower, he picked up not long ago.

Anything that can grow on this seemingly barren and uncultivatable land had to be something extraordinary.

Chapter 332 - Plagued With Bad Luck

"Achoo!"

Leon sneezed before rubbing his nose again. The pollen from the strange flower was like an itch that would not go away no matter how much he scratches it.

"Haiz, I blame this silly hand of mine. Why must I pick up every interesting thing I see?" Leon shook head helplessly with a sigh.

It was a good thing that they were several miles behind the human group. Otherwise, the constant sneezes would have given away their location.

Leon had locked onto the human group with [Spirit Eyes]. As such, despite the long distance between them, he had not lost track of the humans.

'There weren't many situations where I would need to use [Spirit Eyes] in the past due to energy constraints… But now that I am here, [Spirit Eyes] has become an essential tool in navigating my way through this dark land.' Leon mused.

Ever since he had arrived, he had been using [Spirit Eyes] more proactively and frequently. The continuous usage of [Spirit Eyes] had not only allowed him to become increasingly proficient in the skill, but the pseudo-Grandmist Energy used to activate the skill had also tempered his eyes and permanently strengthen them.

'At this rate, I could try upgrading [Spirit Eyes] to the [Earthly Spirit Eyes]. This will allow me to see through all earthly things and not have my vision obstructed by the darkness.'

Achieving the [Earthly Spirit Eyes] was not just breaking through to a higher stage but also a higher realm.

Even in his past life, Leon had never reached the level of [Earthly Spirit Eyes], but this is also because he never needed to.

The Divine Sense ability unlocked by divine practitioners after reaching the Divine Origin Realm was superior to [Earthly Spirit Eyes] in terms of its ability to see through all things. As a doctor, this was honestly all he needed to use to diagnose patients back then.

But now, things were different. He was no longer pursuing the path of a doctor, but that of a fighter.

[Earthly Spirit Eyes] suited his needs better. Its range was far more extensive, and neither was it easily detected like Divine Sense.

The barren and cracked rocky ground filled with dead, withered grass made the strange flower very inconspicuous amongst them. Nevertheless, it was easily spotted by Leon's active [Spirit Eyes].

He did not recognize the plant, and neither did the [Archive] had any information on it. This astonished Leon.

The [Divine Book of Life] supposedly had a record of every plant in existence during the age of Old Gods. The fact that it did not record this strange flower implies that the flower was a rare breed that did not exist during that age but appeared much later.

Leon had carefully stored the flower away, but he did not expect to still be infected by its pollens.

"Achoo!"

"Haiz, this won't do. I need to cure this sneeze. It's not going away."

Having firmly decided, Leon inspected his own body with Divine Sense and located the flower pollen in his body.

The flower pollen had the appearance of cauliflower, except it was yellow with an outer shade of purple in color and was extremely small on the microscopic level.

Leon cannot detect these tiny flower pollen with his normal eyesight, but he had indeed seen these flower pollen when he harvested the strange flower previously and even used Divine Will to isolate it.

It was only natural for him to use Divine Sense to inspect when he comes across an unknown plant. Otherwise, he would never know when and how he got poisoned.

Despite the caution, he was still infected by the flower pollen. This could only mean the effective range of the pollen spread was much more extensive than he anticipated.

Perhaps, he was already infected by the time he noticed the strange flower on the ground.

Come to think of it, the human group did not remove their gas masks after they left the Weeping Forest but continued wearing it throughout the journey to the Infertile Plains.

It became apparent to Leon that the gas masks were not made solely for Weeping Forest expeditions. They were made to protect the humans from other harmful chemicals and substances that could be found throughout the land. The Weeping Tree's hallucinogens just happen to be one of them.

Shaking his head, Leon quickly locked onto the flower pollen. Most of the flower pollen was stuck in his nose like glue, while very few had managed to slip past and infiltrate his respiratory system.

Nevertheless, it took him less than five minutes to locate them and remove them via Divine Will. He did not need to resort to medicine nor any other usual medical practices to cure himself. The convenience of Divine Will was unparalleled.

"Are you sure we haven't lost the other humans yet, Leon? I can't see anyone ahead at all." Lumi asked while looking left and right into the distance with squinted eyes.

All she could see was an uneven rocky land filled with cracks, forming small and large fissures in some areas. Apart from that, she also spotted a few skeletal remains of demonic beasts.

Reactivating [Spirit Eyes], Leon quickly located the human group several miles ahead of them.

The distance had widened by another two miles, but it was still very well within the range of what his [Spirit Eyes] could see.

"I'm very sure." Leon nodded before he said, "Let's go, Lumi. We might actually lose track of them if we let them gain any more distance."

His [Spirit Eyes] covered a lot of distance, but it was still significantly limited by the absence of daylight.

"Alright, it's not like I can see them anyway."

Lumi shrugged.

For all she knows, they had long last track of the human group. Nevertheless, she chose to trust Leon and take his words at face value.

"Haha, we are going to increase our pace. Try to keep up, Lumi." Leon spoke with a partial taunt.

"Hmph! Don't you dare look down me, Leon! I can move very fast!" Lumi pouted with a haughty look. She took his words as a challenge declaration.

"Oh? Then let us see who is faster." Leon smiled.

"Alright! We start on the count of three!" Lumi had a glint of competitiveness before she said with a shrewd smile, "Ready? One, two—"

The counter did not even reach three before Lumi dashed ahead of time.

"This girl…"

Leon shook his head.

Crack!

Unexpectedly, after taking a few steps, the ground beneath Leon's foot caved in and caused him to stagger and tripped.

Lumi was feeling very gleeful despite playing dirty and giving herself a head start. She could feel the distance between them widen very quickly. As such, she decided to look back smugly when her smile froze.

Shortly after returning to Leon's side, Lumi asked, "What happened?"

The surface of the concaved area was rough, dry, and filled with cracked lines, just like any other parts of the land, but surprisingly, it was hollow underneath.

No, rather than hollow, it was soft and mushy.

Leon got back up and dusted his clothes. His forehead was full of black lines when he looked at the sole of his feet stained in brown gooey substances.

"I stepped on shit!"

"Pfft! You what?"

The unexpected answer took Lumi by surprise, but she soon broke down into heavy laughter. If she were still human, her tummy would have hurt from the hard laughter.

"You stepped on poopoo? Of what kind? Hahahaha…"

Oh, this was too funny! How can someone be so unlucky? Of all the places, he just had to walk over a demonic beast's droppings.

Hearing Lumi's laughter, at normal times, it would have been cute. But at this moment, it felt very grating to the ears and made him felt even more terrible. Despite that, he still answered her question, albeit with a gloomy expression.

"Probably from demonic beasts."

It was the first time he stepped on turd. Everyone had to have stepped on turd at some point in their life, right? Even if he escaped the last life, he could not possibly escape this time, right? Leon comforted himself.

"Hahaha…"

Lumi had yet to calm down when she heard his answer and began to laugh even harder.

At the same time, Leon was wondering what he did to deserve this? Actually… he did a lot of things to deserve this, but that was not the point.

If there were free treasures just lying around on the ground, what would people usually do? They would take it, right? How could he have known that it would trigger a Bone Calamity and implicate everyone? Can he really be blamed for that?

Leon felt like all his accumulated karmic virtue had vanished at that moment. He did not doubt that a lot of people will most likely be dying during the Bone Calamity.

Anything with the word 'calamity' in it cannot possibly be a small matter.

Not only did he feel like he had lost all his karmic virtue, but he might also be drowning in karmic sin instead.

That would explain why he was suddenly struck with such ill fortunes when he caused the Bone Calamity! He was being plagued by bad luck!

Whether it was intentional or not, Leon had to admit that it was indeed his fault. He had to help the humans overcome the calamity. That was the least he could do to make up for his mistake, Leon decided.

Hearing Lumi's ongoing laughter, Leon snappily said, "Have you had enough?!"

"Hahaha… Sorry… But… I, I just can't… it's too funny! Hahahaha!"

"I'm leaving!"

After rolling his eyes, Leon spat those words and left, but not before conjuring some water to wash his feet crystal clean.

"Hahaha! Wait for me~!"

Chapter 333 - Disguising Himself

Outside of Darkmoon City, the Darkmoon Tribe's warriors continued fighting fiercely with the Bone Army.

"Chief Valencia! We cannot continue fighting like this! We are taking too many casualties! At this rate, we will be wiped out!" Great Warrior Scarface shouted with dripping sweat and numerous wounds on his body.

He was not the only person like this. In fact, the other 15 thousand warriors on the battlefield were all like this. Despite having a population of 20 thousand people, not all of them were able to fight.

Among the 5 thousand people who stayed behind in the city were elderlies too old to fight, pregnant women, and children below 13.

"You speak too seriously, Scarface! We have only lost about 200 people. We can still fight! It's too early to retreat! Look around you, we are winning!" Another Great Warrior's voice rippled across the noisy battlefield.

"Only 200! That's 200 of our brothers and sisters you are talking about, you hotheaded fool! How many more must we sacrifice for this Bone Calamity?! Don't forget that the Bone Calamity cannot be ended in a single day!"

After several hours of battle, they had managed to slay 300,000 undead from the 1 million-strong Bone Army. However, the remaining 700,000 undead became even more troublesome than when they numbered 1 million.

"Hmph! Where is your valor and spirit, Scarface?! Don't be such a big wuss. Our fallen brothers and sisters had fought valiantly to the end. As a Great Warrior, aren't you ashamed for wanting to retreat behind our walls when their bodies are still lying on the battlefield?!"

"There's a difference between bravery and foolishness! Our stamina and injuries will not let us keep up the offense for long! Defending is the only way! Don't forget that the more of them we kill, the stronger the remaining ones become!" Great Warrior Scarface barked with a deep frown.

He was one of the most ferocious-looking warriors due to the big scar that runs across his face. His bravery did not lose out to anyone. How dare the person accused him of being a coward?! He was simply more level-headed and saw the bigger picture!

What he spoke about was the most significant problem of the Bone Calamity. It would not be called a Bone Calamity without it.

When these undead beings are killed, they revive with weaker strength. But once they are no longer able to revive, their remaining bones are absorbed by the other undead. As a result of this, the undead becomes bigger, stronger, and tougher to kill.

"How do you plan to fight when these wretched things when we become exhausted while they grow to the size of behemoths?!"

Once this question was raised, the other Great Warrior did not know how to answer it.

Great Warrior Scarface immediately followed up, "Nothing to say, huh?! If you have nothing to say, then shut up for me! I am trying to reach Chief Valencia!"

Chief Valencia was deep behind enemy lines. Even if she heard Great Warrior Scarface's voice across the battlefield, she did not have spare effort to respond.

From time to time, the tribesmen would see dozens to hundreds of Bone Soldiers and Bone Knights swept up in the battle between her and the other Bone Kings.

A total of 10 Bone Kings had led their armies to attack the Darkmoon Tribe.

While Chief Valencia held her ground against 7 Bone Kings, some of the stronger Great Warriors were also keeping the other 3 Bone Kings at bay and stopping them from wreaking havoc amongst their tribesmen.

Their tribe had hundreds of Great Warriors, but only a few were able to put up a fight against the Bone Kings. This was also a testimony of how powerful their Tribal Chief was!

Chief Valencia's strength had long exceeded the ranks of Great Warriors! She was a Battle Master, someone who was on par with likes of Rank 2 Transcendent beasts!

"Pitiful human, cease your useless struggle and embrace death! Death is not the end of the road for someone of your caliber! You have the right to join our ranks amongst the undead!" One of the Bone King snarled.

"You wish to recruit me? And the prerequisite for that is that I must die first? Hah! How ludicrous! I will never join you wretched things that are neither dead nor alive!" Chief Valencia spoke with unwavering determination and grandeur.

Although they talked, their bodies never stopped moving as they continued to dish out attacks one after the other.

To someone people, they would have thought that it was a great loss that a fine woman like Chief Valencia was riddled with bulging muscles and scars. Someone like her would have been a great beauty had she live in a different environment.

Unfortunately, she was born and raised a warrior on these harsh lands.

Chief Valencia did not find it a shame that she was riddled with scars and even looked at them with pride. Each scar contained her history and achievement on the battlefield.

…

Some distance away, a small group of six humans finally made their way back to the Darkmoon Tribe. They hid at a relatively safe distance and quietly observed the battle taking place outside their Darkmoon City.

"I think I can also see the Chief fighting 7 Bone Kings in the depths of the Bone Army!" Soft Bone stated with her clenched fist tightening. As a fellow woman, she naturally looked up to Chief Valencia, the object of her idolization.

Everyone was already fighting. They should also be doing something as well since they were already here.

"What are your orders, Big Brother?" Big Bone asked the group leader, but his gaze was fixed on the battlefield ahead with burning intent.

The group leader observed the situation for some time before speaking seriously, "We will naturally be joining the fight!"

"The Bone Army greatly outnumber our people, but their ranks have been spread thin after surrounding our Darkmoon City. We will charge straight into their thinnest ranks and attack their flanks! If we can rejoin with our brothers and sisters on the other side, we will be able to break the encirclement and change the tide of battle in our favor!"

Gasp!

"Wow, Big Brother is so smart—!" Soft Bone praised.

To be praised by the brightest member of their lot, the group leader's ego was inflated. He wore a smug look and said, "Of course, I am! Do you think I became a group leader just for my strength as a Great Warrior?"

However, Soft Bone was finished as she continued, "Except…"

"Huh? Except? Except what?"

"Except it's useless!"

The group leader's expression immediately froze as he asks, "Why?"

"The plan might work if we were up against someone else, but what we are up against isn't a someone but a something! They are undead! Flanking them would not sow any chaos and confusion! Not to mention, there are only six of us! Even if we flank their thinnest ranks, we will still be going up against ten thousand of Bone Solders and Bone Knights!"

The group leader's mouth twitched before he pouted, "I didn't say it would be easy."

"I concur with Big Brother's plan. Although I doubt it will be as impressive as changing the tide of the battle, our efforts should at least cause some ripples and ease the burden off some of our brothers and sisters." Big Tooth spoke after being quiet previously.

"Sounds like a solid plan. Allow us to join you guys in your endeavor." A casual voice spoke to them suddenly.

"Who?!"

The entire group immediately jumped in alarm at the unfamiliar voice and quickly directed their gaze towards the source. It was a male human and a female human spirit.

The male human had a tanned complexion and wore rags for clothes.

Although the male human was not very tall and muscular like a veteran warrior, and the ragged clothes were also strange, the person did have the look of a fellow tribesman living on the Infertile Plains, not from their tribe, but perhaps another tribe.

As for the female spirit, everyone's expression dropped sharply as they shifted all their focus onto her like they were facing a great enemy.

How did these two sneak up on them without any notice?!

"A Banshee!"

Banshees usually sided with the demons and were a source of incredible headaches for warriors like them. They have little means of defending themselves against the screams of a banshee.

"Who are you? What do you want?" The group leader stepped forth asked with a commanding presence.

The human and spirit were precisely Leon and Lumi. Half an hour earlier, Leon made some necessary precautions in order to help the humans openly without being found out and hunted by them later.

He altered his appearance by ripping up spare sets of clothes and tying them into a primitive-looking rag, while a color-changing cream was applied to his skin.

The color-changing cream was something he concocted on the spot and used up simple ingredients. Simple as they were, one of the ingredients was not something Leon wished to be reminded of.

Lumi knew precisely what that ingredient was and could not stop laughing for a small incense worth of time. Even now, her body was still twitching from time to time as she did her best to keep a straight face.

"Easy now, we are not your enemy. In fact, we can be considered your ally. We are here to help your Darkmoon Tribe overcome this Bone Calamity." Leon spoke with a surrendering gesture.

The group leader's eyes glinted with deep thoughts as he further confirmed Leon's identity as a person of the plains. This boy knows about the name of their tribe and also the Bone Calamity…

Nevertheless, the group leader was still dubious of Leon's claims and said, "How can we trust what you say is true?"

"Isn't that simple? Lumi and I will just prove it on the battlefield by killing as many of those as we can."

Leon pointed with his thumb and shrugged nonchalantly.

Chapter 334 - Sincerest Gratitude

"You will? You make it seem like it's a simple thing to do." The group leader gave Leon a quick look-over before his gaze turned disdainful.

Although the human boy had a pretty solid and lean build, he was still considered scrawny compared to the rest of the Warriors and Great Warriors of their Darkmoon Tribe.

"You are too arrogant, kiddo, but I gotta commend your warrior's spirit. At least you are brave enough. If you want to gain our trust, then you should leave the charge." The group leader spoke firmly, leaving no room for negotiations.

"That goes without saying." Leon nodded in agreement.

He had no scruples with this arrangement. It was only natural for them not to trust an unfamiliar person and even most so, a 'banshee' with their backs.

"Alright, after we locate the weakest point, you and your… banshee friend will immediately commence the charge. We will follow after." The group leader spoke.

Leon shook his head and said with a straight face, "There's no need to look. I have already done that earlier while looking for a chance to join the battle. The weakest point in the Bone Army is on the northeastern side of the city. I've only approached you after realizing there were other people nearby."

Naturally, Leon was speaking untruthfully. He had been trailing some distance behind the human group to their Darkmoon Tribe. He couldn't have arrived before them.

However, it only took a sweeping glance of his [Spirit Eyes] to locate the point with the thinnest line of undead beings in the Bone Army.

The group leader looked at Leon deeply before turning to Big Tooth. He ordered, "Go check that area out quickly."

"Yes, Big Brother!"

Big Tooth thumped his chest twice with honor and left swiftly. After the group waited patiently for some time, Big Tooth returned and faithfully reported, "Big Brother, it is indeed much thinner on the northwestern side. I doubt the other side will be any thinner than this."

The group leader nodded before carefully patting Leon's shoulder, "I don't know which tribe you came from, but you have at least proven to be a little bit trustworthy. I don't dare represent the entire Darkmoon Tribe, but know that you have earned the goodwill of I, Great Warrior Ironhead!"

After saying that, the group leader retracted his hand before his nose suddenly twitched.

"If we make it through this Bone Calamity together, I am definitely taking you to visit our tribe's bathhouse. Even among the tribesmen that I know, no one stinks as bad as you!" Ironhead said with a frown.

He was given the impression that the boy was not part of any tribe but a vagabond living on his own. Also, this boy most likely had never washed once in his life. After all, the boy smelt like…

Leon could only smile wryly after hearing the group leader's words while feeling bitterness in his heart.

In his attempt to rid his pleasant odor and match the smell of someone from the plains, he used something he had intended to use as fertilizer.

Shortly after the group arrived at the northeastern side of the battlefield, Ironhead urged, "We'll follow-up after you."

"En, no need to tell me twice." Leon nodded.

This was what they had already arranged and would not change just because their impression of him had improved. It was not easy to gain their complete trust.

All he did was saved them a little bit of time. The information he provided could be gained either way.

Leon quickly unwrapped the clothed Tier 4 Bone Spear he had been carrying all this while. He had seen all the humans using bone weapons.

To strengthen his disguise as a person of the plains, he did not intend to use the black spear and only intended to use the bone spear.

The black spear was forged of rare metal and easily draw suspicion, while Soul Weapons also seemed to be mainstream on the Infertile Plains.

Ironhead and all the group members immediately narrowed their eyes in surprise when they fell on the unwrapped Tier 4 Bone Spear in Leon's hand.

'This Soul Weapon…' Ironhead hummed inaudibly in thought. He seemed to have seen this bone spear somewhere before…

At the same time, the youngest member cast a covetous gaze as he stared at Leon with jealousy. He could not accept the fact that Leon using a Tier 4 Soul Weapon.

He was a peak Warrior soon to become a Great Warrior. What gives a scrawny person like that person the right to use Tier 4 Soul Weapon when he was still using a Tier 3 Soul Weapon?

"Let's go, Lumi." Leon wielded the Tier 4 Bone Spear and said, unconcerned with the thoughts of the group. He was not afraid of someone lusting after his weapon.

The stronger warriors of the Darkmoon Tribe all had their own Tier 4 Soul Weapon. They had no reason to eye his weapon. On the other hand, he was confident of deterring the weaker warriors with his own strength.

"Mm."

Shortly after, Leon dashed straight into the battlefield with Lumi by his side. It was time to test the might of the Tier 4 Bone Spear!

A few hundred yards ahead of them, the Bone Army was ever busy fighting the valiant warriors of the Darkmoon Tribe.

As they closed in on the Bone Army's rear, the numerous Bone Soldiers and Bone Knights at the back of the army picked up Leon's living presence and began turning around.

"Let's give this a try."

Leon immediately tightened his grip on the Bone Spear, and traces of Divine Will began pulling in the surrounding Darkness Profound Energy and fed it to the Bone Spear.

There was some resistance, but the Bone Spear accepted the Darkness Profound Energy before lighting up with whitish-blue light.

Leon only frowned for a split second before no longer paying any mind to the problem for the time being and sweeping out with a powerful horizontal swing empowered by his Spear Spirit.

Shinggg!

The unstoppable spear swept through the undead army and severed dozens of Bone Soldiers and Bone Knights alike. The strength displayed in this attack was not inferior to a Great Warrior.

"Such strength?" Ironhead softly exclaimed with surprise.

"One cannot judge a book by its cover, huh? Those thin arms pack some seriously ferocious power!"

Suddenly something clicked in his mind. A vagabond who can survive the brutal conditions of the Infertile Plains on his own could not possibly be a weak person.

Great Warriors are welcomed wherever they went, just for their strength alone. A tribe could never have too many Great Warriors. The more Great Warriors there were, the greater chance a tribe had at survival in these chaotic lands.

Ironhead was not the only one impressed and surprised. The rest of the group had also been incredibly surprised and alarmed, and among them, their youngest member experienced the most significant impact.

Just a moment ago, he thought of ways to get his hands on the person's Tier 4 Soul Weapon. But as a warrior, he would naturally not think of dishonorable means.

He had been prepared to challenge the person in the battle arena openly with the Tier 4 Soul Weapon as the prize and offer something of similar value, but who was kidding? Challenging a Great Warrior? He was simply dreaming!

After the group recovered from their surprise, they did not keep Leon waiting. Ironhead wielded his Giant Bone Sword and cleaved a path towards him with the group members following right behind.

"Don't focus on fighting! Focus on cutting straight through their ranks and join up with our brothers and sisters fighting on the other side!"

"Yes, Big Brother!"

Leon did not have any problem cutting through the enemy's ranks, but he had an easier time with Lumi's [Banshee Scream].

Although the Bone Soldiers and Bone Knights did not have any souls and acted purely on the commands of their Bone Kings, the [Banshee Scream] was still capable of interrupting their base commands and effectively stun them.

As such, the Bone Soldiers and Bone Knights before Leon were no different to sitting ducks waiting to be slaughtered after suffering a round of Lumi's soul attack.

Under the amplification effect of the bone whistle, Lumi's soul attack became far-reaching. Tens of thousands of victims were caught in each attack, undead and humans alike.

However, the impact on humans became negligible under her deliberate and considerate control.

Some 400-odd yards away from their location, one of the Bone Kings noticed the abnormality and snorted, "Damn, Banshee! How dare you side with humans! Die for me—!"

"Where do you think you're going?! Your opponent is me!" Sabertooth roared after hacking out with a powerful slash and stop the Bone King from leaving.

Sabertooth was one of the few Great Warriors who could fight toe to toe with Lesser Demons like the Bone Kings.

After blocking Sabertooth's attack promptly, the Bone King was evidently incensed as it roared, "Argh! You wretched humans are so annoying! Since you are in a hurry to die, I'll kill you first then!"

"Bahahaha! That is more like it! Come at me!" Sabertooth laughed wildly and traded blow for blow with the Bone King head-on.

At the same time, the news of a Banshee helping the humans quickly found its way to every corner of the battlefield.

"I don't know why you are helping us, but you have our sincerest gratitude, Banshee!"