The Legendary Journey in My Heart

The Blood-Red Skeleton seemed to completely disregard our presence, remaining motionless while continuously gesturing with both hands and uttering strange, guttural sounds, as if performing some sort of mysterious ritual. Just as we were momentarily stunned, we suddenly heard faint noises coming from the remaining stone coffins.

"Not good! It's summoning whatever is inside those coffins!" Qing Ming was the first to react, shouting in alarm.

"What's inside the coffins?" I asked urgently. According to Qing Ming's earlier explanation, the coffins should contain the remains of Orc Kings from a thousand years ago. But after all this time, they should have long turned to dust.

"They should be the skeletal remains of successive Orc Kings," Qing Ming replied, though he also seemed uncertain. The sounds from within the coffins grew louder. "This is bad! We must stop its ritual immediately!"

Although we had no idea what might emerge from the coffins, just dealing with one Blood-Red Skeleton had already exhausted us. If another six or seven monsters appeared, we would likely perish here. With that grim thought, none of us hesitated any longer. As Qing Ming hurled a Fire Talisman, we launched our second round of attacks.

Since the Blood-Red Skeleton was seemingly focused on its ritual, Qing Ming's Fire Talisman struck its head directly, interrupting both its gestures and incantation. The sounds within the stone coffins ceased instantly as well. The Blood-Red Skeleton, its ritual disrupted, was clearly enraged. Although its expression was unreadable, it abruptly turned around, brandishing its steel fork and charging at us.

At that moment, the Summoned Mutant Skeleton Qing Ming had called forth had already reached the Blood-Red Skeleton, raising its axe and hacking down fiercely. The Blood-Red Skeleton raised its right-hand fork to block, while thrusting its left-hand fork straight at the Mutant Skeleton's chest. However, the Mutant Skeleton showed no fear and continued its relentless assault. Only then did I realize the terrifying nature of this creature—it felt no fear, no pain, completely devoid of the greatest weaknesses of human combatants.

We had no time for further contemplation and immediately joined the battle. Lu Xi and I continued our strategy of flanking attacks, while Chen Xi quickly unleashed two different types of poison powder. The Blood-Red Skeleton's body alternated between eerie shades of green and red, making for a grotesque sight. Qing Ming and Chen Xi then followed up with blasts of Spirit Fire Talismans, while the Mutant Skeleton continued its mechanical onslaught.

I exchanged a glance with Lu Xi, and he immediately understood. Together, we launched a coordinated assault. The Blood-Red Skeleton, forced to fend off the Mutant Skeleton's attacks while dodging fire talismans, struggled to counter our pincer move. Lu Xi and I attacked simultaneously—one from the left, one from the right, one from above, and one from below. I leaped high and brought my sword down upon the Blood-Red Skeleton's head, but its ashen-white helmet was incredibly tough, rendering my strike ineffective. Lu Xi, meanwhile, managed to slash its thigh, leaving a visible mark, though it was far from a fatal blow.

As I pondered how to find its weakness, Lu Xi had already launched his second wave of attacks. He seized the moment when the Blood-Red Skeleton was fending off the Mutant Skeleton, executing a Triple Slash directly at its right side. The first two slashes left minor scratches on its arm bone, but the third was intercepted by its steel fork. Locking his sword against the steel fork, Lu Xi gritted his teeth and shouted to me, "Now!"

Recognizing this golden opportunity, I gripped my sword with both hands and struck down with all my might at the Blood-Red Skeleton's wrist. With a crisp "crack," its left hand, along with the steel fork, was severed in one clean stroke. To my surprise, despite its immense strength, its bones were remarkably brittle.

Having identified a breakthrough point, the battle became much easier. Just as I was about to go for its remaining arm, the Blood-Red Skeleton ignored the Mutant Skeleton's axe strikes and lunged at me. I barely managed to raise my sword to block, but the sheer force of the blow sent me flying, slamming me hard against the wall. A wave of agony surged through my body, making me feel as though my internal organs were about to shatter.

Chen Xi quickly cast a Healing Technique, allowing me to recover somewhat. Meanwhile, the Mutant Skeleton continued mechanically hacking at the Blood-Red Skeleton's right shoulder, while Qing Ming bombarded its right arm with fire talismans. The Blood-Red Skeleton, having seemingly lost patience with the Mutant Skeleton, drove its steel fork into its opponent's waist, attempting to shatter it completely. Yet, the Mutant Skeleton did not immediately fall apart and instead continued its relentless assault. Just as the Blood-Red Skeleton was about to exert more force, Qing Ming's Fire Talisman and Lu Xi's bronze sword struck its wrist simultaneously, severing its remaining steel fork.

Now weaponless and missing both hands, the Blood-Red Skeleton was severely weakened. It raised its remaining arm bone in a desperate attempt to stab at the Mutant Skeleton. Seizing the moment, I leaped up from behind, raising my short sword high. This time, I did not aim for its helmet but rather its neck.

"Crack!" With a sharp sound, the Blood-Red Skeleton's head, along with its helmet, tumbled to the ground, rolling all the way to the corner of the chamber. At the same time, the Mutant Skeleton, having sustained a fatal blow, collapsed into a pile of bones. The Blood-Red Skeleton, now headless, also crumbled, its remains scattering across the floor.

Lu Xi and I slumped onto the ground, gasping for breath. Qing Ming and Chen Xi, drenched in sweat, had soaked through their sleeves. After such an intense battle, none of us spoke for a while. Finally, I broke the silence, "What on earth was that thing? And more importantly, what exactly is inside these coffins?"

The others shook their heads, just as baffled as I was.

"Why don't we open one and see?" I suggested.

After confirming that the surroundings were safe, the four of us worked together to pry open one of the stone coffins. As the lid was lifted, we instinctively stepped back in shock—inside the coffin lay a monster identical to the Blood-Red Skeleton we had just slain.

"What the hell?! There's another one?!" I exclaimed. After ensuring that the skeleton inside was motionless, we cautiously approached. Apart from the Blood-Red Skeleton, the coffin contained a large blade and some scattered jewels, likely burial items that had long since lost their luster with age.

"Junior Sister, you should pick one," Qing Ming suddenly said. Seeing the puzzled expressions on Lu Xi's and my faces, he explained, "Right, Junior Sister's mission was actually to select an item from this King's Tomb and bring it back to the Bairi Daoist Sanctuary."

As Chen Xi examined the items, Qing Ming continued, "We've been here before, and back then, the coffins only contained regular bones. I have no idea why they are now filled with Blood-Red Skeletons."

"What do you think—will the other coffins contain bones or more Blood-Red Skeletons?" I asked curiously. We proceeded to open two more coffins, and sure enough, they also contained Blood-Red Skeletons. This left Qing Ming even more perplexed.

I moved to the center of the chamber and checked the coffin near the Blood-Red Skeleton we had just slain. To my surprise, it was empty. With a realization forming in my mind, I shared my theory, "It seems that some unknown force has revived the remains within this tomb, making them far stronger than ordinary skeletons. The first to be resurrected was the first-generation Orc King from the central coffin. He was attempting to complete a ritual to awaken the other Blood-Red Skeletons, but we interrupted him. Otherwise, if seven or eight of them had risen at once, we might not have made it out alive."

Everyone agreed with this conclusion, but as for what force had revived them, no one had a clue. In the end, we could only speculate that it might be related to the rumored return of the Demon Clan.

In the end, Chen Xi picked out a pair of earrings and stashed them in her backpack, while Qing Ming collected a few pieces of the Blood-Red Skeleton's bones, planning to take them back to the Bairi Daoist Sanctuary for the Taoist Venerable to study.

"Huh?" While sifting through the remains, Qing Ming seemed to have discovered something. "Haha! Looks like we got lucky. No wonder this guy was so powerful! Here, catch!" he said, tossing two items my way.

I caught them and took a closer look. They were a matching pair of rings, neither gold nor silver, seemingly crafted from some kind of beast horn.

"These should be a pair of Horn Rings. Try them on; they should enhance your strength," Qing Ming said with a grin.

"Magic Equipment?" I felt a surge of excitement and quickly slipped the rings onto the middle fingers of both hands. They were initially a bit loose, but as soon as I put them on, they adjusted to fit my fingers perfectly. A warm sensation spread through my body in an instant. I could feel a significant increase in strength, and at the same time, my skin, muscles, and bones seemed to have been reinforced.

"Go check out that helmet over there. It looks pretty decent too," Qing Ming pointed at a grayish-white helmet that had rolled to the edge of the wall.

I walked over and picked it up, finding it extremely heavy. Its material resembled neither bone nor metal. The helmet's design was fierce, with two curved horns on the top and a pair of sharp fangs along the lower edge.

"You should take this helmet," I said to Qing Ming. "I've already got the rings."

Qing Ming hefted the helmet in his hands, chuckling. "I think it suits you better. This helmet is heavy, and its design is rather… dramatic. Wearing it might hinder my movements. But most importantly—"

"It's too ugly!" Chen Xi interjected with a laugh.

"Hahaha! Exactly!" Qing Ming laughed along, "But I believe that once you become strong enough, you'll be able to make good use of it. Just take it."

"But maybe we should give it to Lu Xi. His swordsmanship is better than mine," I hesitated.

"No need," Chen Xi said casually. "If he comes with us to the Bairi Daoist Sanctuary, there'll be plenty of treasures for him."

However, as soon as she said this, the three of us fell silent.

Chen Xi's mission was complete, and we retraced our steps back to the cave entrance. Now, Lu Xi finally had to make his decision regarding Qing Ming's invitation.

"You should go with them," I pulled Lu Xi aside and spoke to him in a low voice. "I can tell they're skilled, and training with them will be much better than wandering aimlessly with me. Learn well—we'll definitely meet again someday."

"Maybe that day will come sooner than you think," I added.

Lu Xi didn't say much. He simply nodded and handed me the medicinal herbs we had gathered before silently following Qing Ming and Chen Xi.

"Take care of yourself! We're brothers—we will meet again! Once I've settled down, I'll have someone send a letter to the Bairi Daoist Sanctuary for you!" I shouted at Lu Xi's departing figure.