This scene made Lynch's blood boil.
A Tier One Netherworld Skeleton Soldier like Bone Jade would normally be considered mere cannon fodder, easily swept aside by an Angel Sentinel or a High Tier Holy Light Nun. But here in this small swamp, it was the undisputed Bone Jade Skeleton King!!!
The other Fishmen weren't faring any better. Their crude Bone Spears and shell-polished weapons seemed pale and powerless against the sheer numbers of the Skeletons. They could barely parry, let alone fight back. After finishing off the robust Fishman, Bone Jade charged into the fray like a tiger among sheep. Every swing of its Bone Knife was accompanied by a Fishman's agonizing howl and fall.
A mere minute or two later, only five mangled Fishman corpses remained on the shoal, their dark red blood turning the mud even slushier.
On Lynch's side, the eight Skeleton Servants had suffered minor injuries, mostly just slight bone fractures. A small injection of Mana from Lynch would swiftly restore them. As for Bone Jade, it stood tall on the battlefield, gripping its Bone Knife and radiating an aura of absolute dominance. Seeing Bone Jade's outstanding performance, Lynch had held back from casting the Weakness Curse to save some Mana.
Looking at the Fishman corpses littering the ground and the Skeleton Army that now exuded a chilling aura after drawing blood, a surge of intense exhilaration washed over Lynch's chest. This was the true power of a Necromancer! Without risking his own life, he could command from behind the scenes, letting a fearless and absolutely loyal Undead Army crush all enemies. Although it was currently just a small squad of Skeleton Servants led by a Tier One Netherworld Skeleton, it was undeniably a fantastic start.
Subsequently, Lynch glanced at the five fresh Fishman corpses on the shoal. These Fishmen were incredibly weak while alive, so the Skeleton Servants they would become after death would likely be the lowest of cannon fodder. But meat was meat, no matter how small. For a Necromancer in dire need of expanding his forces, there was no reason to waste them.
"Bone Jade, pile them up."
Receiving the order, Bone Jade immediately sprang into action, directing the Skeleton Servants to drag the five corpses to a drier patch of open ground. Lynch then raised his eerie Magic Staff, aimed it at the pile of corpses, and chanted the spell for the Skeleton Resurrection Skill.
WHOOSH! A ghastly white light covered the pile.
POP POP POP! A series of flesh-bursting sounds echoed.
Five Fishman Skeleton Servants, only half the height of a human, stood up unsteadily. Their frail bones looked as if a gust of wind could blow them over.
"Tsk, just as I thought." Lynch curled his lips in disgust. "Skeletons of this quality are only good as cannon fodder."
He figured that even a roll of toilet paper had its uses. Lynch ordered the Fishman Skeletons to pick up the weapons they had used in life, then led his newly expanded "army" deeper into the fishery. This was the typical combat style of a Necromancer—no flashy tricks, just a relentless forward push!
Moving forward, Lynch's troops encountered three more small waves of Fishmen, ranging from three to seven per group. The battles proceeded without any surprises. These low-intelligence swamp creatures posed absolutely no threat to Lynch's nascent Skeleton Army. The fights were entirely one-sided massacres, their processes utterly unremarkable.
After each skirmish, Lynch repeated his routine, transforming the fresh corpses into new Fishman Skeleton Servants. Snowballing in this manner, by the time the squad ventured into the core area of the fishery, the total number of Lynch's Skeleton Army had surpassed thirty. The mass of gathered Skeletons had finally begun to project the imposing aura of a proper military unit.
However, a problem soon arose. Lynch gradually felt his brain swelling, his thoughts becoming somewhat sluggish. Maintaining a mental link with over thirty Skeleton Servants simultaneously was simply too heavy a burden for his current strength level. Fortunately, there was a natural solution to this. Otherwise, how could Necromancers ever boast of a Sea of Skulls or an Undead Calamity?
After a brief attempt, Lynch completely delegated the commanding authority over the twenty-plus Fishman Skeletons to Bone Jade. A Netherworld Skeleton possessing Soul Fire naturally exerted Tier suppression and Commanding Power over Low Tier Skeletons. The stronger the Soul Fire, the more subordinate Undead Skeletons it could command. As for himself, he maintained the mental link with the eight Humanoid Skeletons, keeping them stationed around him as his Skeleton Guards. After all, he had paid for these with his own money—a whole Gold Coin per corpse. Losing even one would break his heart.
Once he relinquished the command, the mental pressure plummeted, and Lynch's mood lightened considerably. Of course, this method had its drawbacks. He could no longer micromanage the Fishman Skeletons individually; everything now relied entirely on Bone Jade's instinctual command. And given Bone Jade's current intelligence—which was a notch lower than a dog's—leading them in simple tactics like charging or ganging up was its absolute limit.
But that was enough. Against equally brainless Fishmen, simply steamrolling them with a Sea of Skulls was often the most effective strategy.
Soon, under Lynch's general command, the Skeleton Army advanced to a Fishman encampment built along the water. The camp wasn't large. A few crude shacks made of mud, reeds, and rotting planks were scattered across the shoal. The air was thick with the stench of raw fish mixed with rotting food scraps. Evidently, the able-bodied fighters of this Fishman Tribe had already been "conscripted" into Lynch's Skeleton Army during the earlier skirmishes. Those left in the camp were mostly the old, the weak, and the sick.
In the academy's training hall, a mission to clear out a Low Tier Fishman camp like this usually required a coordinated team of several apprentices from different disciplines. But for Lynch, who was a one-man army, he alone was more than enough.
"Bone Jade, attack!"
Lynch didn't bother with any complex tactics; he simply ordered a direct assault.
Bone Jade's Soul Fire flared intensely. Raising its Bone Knife, it led the twenty-odd Fishman Skeletons in a direct charge against the camp. Lynch detached four of his Humanoid Skeleton Guards to join the vanguard and assist Bone Jade, while the remaining four stayed back to protect him from any unexpected surprises.
Chaos instantly erupted within the Fishman camp. The remaining Fishmen let out terrified shrieks, grabbing their crude weapons to put up a desperate resistance. But under the overwhelming tide of the Sea of Skulls, their efforts were completely futile. Bone Jade, in particular, spearheaded the charge like an unrivaled general. Every swing of its Bone Knife threw up a spray of blood, felling a Fishman with each strike.
However, halfway through the Skeletons' charge, the door to the largest shack in the camp suddenly burst open. An exceptionally massive Fishman leader roared as it barrelled out. It wielded a massive bone club, its bulging muscles radiating raw, explosive power.