20 Harvesting the Dead

Kael's mind raced. He was running out of options.

The Elite Zombie before him was fast, strong, and intelligent enough to dodge his attacks—but it wasn't invincible.

Kael had only one chance.

His eyes snapped to his Elite Spirit Zombie, still engaged in its vicious battle.

"Kick it towards me!" Kael commanded sharply, already charging a Mana Bolt in his palm.

The Elite Spirit Zombie didn't hesitate.

With a snarling growl, it twisted its body, raising its foot, and—

BAM!

The impact was devastating.

The Elite Zombie was launched through the air, completely off balance, its arms flailing as it was hurled straight toward Kael.

It was wide open.

Kael's gaze locked onto his target.

The glowing blue Mana Bolt in his palm pulsed violently, charged to its limit.

The instant the Elite Zombie entered his range, Kael thrust his arm forward and released the spell.

"Die."

BOOM!

The Mana Bolt shot forward, whizzing through the air like a meteor.

It collided directly with the Elite Zombie's skull—

And then—

Its head exploded like a watermelon.

Blood, bone, and rotting flesh splattered across the pavement, and the headless corpse crashed into the ground, motionless.

Kael exhaled sharply, his body trembling slightly from the intense burst of mana he had just unleashed.

But there was no time to celebrate.

The second Elite Zombie was already upon him.

"Engage it!" Kael barked at his Elite Spirit Zombie.

The undead creature launched itself forward, intercepting the remaining Elite Zombie before it could reach Kael.

Kael didn't waste a second.

His eyes snapped to the corpse of the Elite Zombie he had just killed and ran towards it.

His fingers stretched out, shaking slightly with adrenaline, as it brushed against the dead zombie.

"Collect."

A dark mist swirled from the decapitated corpse, seeping into Kael's outstretched palm.

[System Notification: Elite Zombie Spirit collected.]

Kael grinned.

"Perfect."

Without hesitation, he raised the newly collected spirit, summoning another Elite Spirit Zombie.

"Assist the other!" he commanded.

With a low snarl, the new Elite Spirit charged into the battle, joining the original in its brutal engagement against the remaining Elite Zombie.

Kael's chest heaved, his mind calculating rapidly.

Two against one. That should do it.

But he wasn't done yet.

The battlefield was still littered with corpses.

Many of his normal Spirit Zombies had fallen against the combined assault of the Elite Zombies and their minions.

Kael clenched his fists.

He had lost some of his forces—but he could rebuild.

His eyes flickered over the countless bodies of dead zombies as he went on touching them.

"Collect."

The dark mist swirled around him once more as he gathered the spirits of the slain undead.

One by one, he summoned new Spirit Zombies, replacing the ones he had lost.

Before long, his horde had returned to its full strength.

Kael turned back to the battle between the two Elite Spirit Zombies and their opponent.

The enemy Elite Zombie was already on its last legs.

Its movements were sluggish, its flesh torn apart from the relentless assault of Kael's spirits.

Then—

One of Kael's Elite Spirits grabbed its arms, restraining it.

The other lunged forward—

And ripped its head clean off.

The body slumped to the ground, lifeless.

The battlefield fell silent.

Kael let out a deep breath, his body relaxing slightly as the tension eased.

[System Notification: You have leveled up.]

Kael's eyes widened.

"Already?"

He had only fought two battles in this new level, and yet—he had already gained a full level.

Spirit Mancer is truly broken…

With a quick motion, Kael pulled up his system interface.

[Status:]

Name: Kael Veran

Race: Human

Class: Mage

Level: 6

EXP Division: Class=100% | Job=0%

Job: Spirit Mancer (Mythic) - Level 1

HP: 150/150

MP: 75/75

Base Stats:

Strength: 5

Agility: 8

Stamina: 8

Intelligence: 12

Luck: 4

Free Stat Points: 6

[Job Skills:]

Spirit Collection: Able to collect the spirit of any deceased organism within 1 hour of death.

Spirit Storage (Lv.1): Stores gathered spirits, including raw and synthesized spirits. (Capacity: 100)

Spirit Synthesis (Lv.1): Allows the creation of custom-made spirit familiars by merging multiple spirits. (Current Slots: 10) [Class Skills:]

Charged Bolt (Lv.1): A ranged magic attack. (5 MP per use.)

Additional mana can be infused (1 MP per second) to increase power.(Proficiency Level: 4%)

Arcane Sensory (Lv.1): Allows the user to perceive mana in the surroundings. (Passive Skill) (Proficiency Level: 71%)

Mana Manipulation (Lv.1):  Allows for more refined spellcasting, reducing energy loss and increasing spell efficiency.(Passive Skill)(Proficiency Level: 4%)

Kael frowned.

Then—his expression darkened.

"Damn it."

He had forgotten something important.

His EXP allocation was still set to 100% for his Class.

Which meant…

None of this EXP had gone into leveling his Spirit Mancer Job.

He exhaled sharply, annoyed at himself.

Gaining levels in his Class was fine, but his Mythic Job was far more valuable.

I need to fix this now.

Kael quickly adjusted the EXP allocation, setting 100% of future experience to his Spirit Mancer Job instead of his Mage Class.

For now, he left his free stat points unallocated.

There was no need to rush.

Kael glanced at his army.

Even after his losses, he had managed to replenish his forces.

With the two new Elite Spirit Zombies now on his side, his army was stronger than ever.

But there were still more corpses to harvest.

He moved swiftly, collecting and raising the remaining zombie spirits until his Spirit Storage reached 62 out of 100.

Three of them were Elite Zombies.

Kael felt a shiver run down his spine.

With this many spirits, he was bordering on something terrifying.

His lips curled into a smirk.

He was unstoppable.

Until—

[System Notification: Your location has been revealed to zombies within a 100-meter radius.]

Kael sighed.

His moment of triumph was short-lived.

He turned toward the shadows shifting in the distance.

More were coming.

His grip tightened.

"Get ready," he muttered to his spirits.

The moaning and screeching of the undead grew louder.

The next battle was about to begin.