Chapter 98: Jungle Skirmish

The dark, swampy jungle exuded a smell of rot from every corner. Countless trees grew in twisted shapes, like giant arms struggling desperately to lift their canopies high, competing for the meager sunlight in the dense canopy above. Thick, python-like vines wrapped tightly around the trunks of the towering trees, coiled so fiercely that the mere sight of them felt suffocating. Myriads of venomous insects and ferocious beasts lurked deep within the thicket, launching lethal strikes at every intruder who dared to enter their domain. On the surface of the bubbling, putrid mud, every step could be a fatal trap; those stagnant quagmires were like greedy, gaping maws, hungrily swallowing every body that fell into them—not even spitting out a single bone.

In such a treacherous jungle, any living soul who manages to walk out could proudly call themselves a "survivor." Yet, we continued to trudge forward, moving slowly and arduously toward a mountain pass between two peaks.

This valley was the only path to the Gravel Fortress and the first objective of our adventure. The group of "Decayed Ones" that Major Gutierrez mentioned as blocking the road was entrenched here. We had no choice but to accept Chief Hondos's demand: first, help him complete the task of "clearing out the Decayed Ones' stronghold."

The mission had two conditions: first, kill the Beast-Bone Skeleton leader, "Corpse-Eater" Fork; second, ensure that Chief Hondos was not killed by the Decayed Ones.

In my view, these two conditions were utterly contradictory.

Yes, the beast-bone skeletons in the valley were indeed difficult to deal with, but given the combat capabilities of our five-member party, wiping them out would not have been too arduous. However, the presence of this green-skinned chieftain made the difficulty of the mission feel as if it had multiplied.

"Watch out, eight skeletons ahead..." B-Flat Minor Nocturne waved his hand, signaling us to stop. He pointed to the two closest to us and said to Ding Ding Xiao Ge, "Warlock, use Shadow Bolt to pull those two first. Be careful not to pull too many. I’ll provide attack buffs. Warrior, prepare to step up and tank. Paladin..."

It was a good plan. If everything had gone as the Bard suggested, we could have picked off these eight Decayed Ones one by one and wiped them out completely in under three minutes. But...

"Wooo! This place does not belong to you! Return to where you came from!"

A rough, booming roar completely shattered Nocturne’s meticulous plan. We could only watch helplessly as the Half-Orc chieftain, wearing nothing but a barrel-shaped cloth skirt, charged screaming into the pile of skeletons, successfully throwing himself into the center of a swarm of eight beast-bone skeletons in the blink of an eye.

Under these grim circumstances, the fierce and warlike blood of the Half-Orcs erupted within Chief Hondos. Surrounded by the beast-bone skeletons, the chieftain showed not a shred of fear. While shouting curses at the "robbers" who had invaded his homeland and driven his tribe from their home, he launched a full-scale counterattack, demonstrating his bravado and martial prowess in a purely wild and savage manner.

He unleashed a...

...a left jab?!

It seemed I had vastly underestimated the rugged, wild traditional culture of the Half-Orc race. Under the vicious onslaught of these skeletal bandits, Chief Hondos neither drew his reliable weapons nor utilized any powerful magic. He simply swung his sand-bowl-sized fists with tremendous courage at the enemies before him, achieving a staggering and "brilliant" combat result:

"-2, -3, -3, -4, -2, -5, -2..."

A long string of bright red single-digit numbers floated high above the skull of the skeleton that was enduring the chieftain's "iron fists." The most damage he dealt was seven points—and that was a critical hit. What a truly inspiring performance.

Please, Chief Hondos, regardless of anything else, you are a level 48 High Shaman. Can’t you fight with the skill of a sentient being?

Perhaps the green-skinned chieftain sensed the complaints in my heart. Just as I thought this, he made a rare use of his magical technique—he cast "Soul Blessing" to restore over two hundred points of health to himself, which was likely his only understanding and application of magic—before he immediately returned to swinging his fists fruitlessly at his enemies.

"What is this idiot doing? Who does he think he is? Mike Tyson?" Watching his plan go down the drain, B-Flat Minor Nocturne glared at Chief Hondos’s back, gritting his teeth.

Mike Tyson? Was that some high-level martial monk from a temple?

"Mike Tyson would be way better than him," Ding Ding Xiao Ge said with utter disdain. "He doesn't even know how to bite ears..."

"Now do you see why I had to ask you guys for help with this mission?" Niu Baiwan said with a look of deep grievance. "I've already been killed by him three times here."

Complaints aside, to complete the mission, we couldn't just stand by and watch Chief Hondos get torn to pieces by a pack of beast-bone skeletons.

"Paladin and Druid, ignore everything else, put all your effort into healing the chieftain!" B-Flat Minor Nocturne commanded loudly. "Warlock, use 'Weakening Mist' first to lower the skeletons' attack power, then summon your minion. Warrior, step up and try to pull as many skeletons away as possible..."

With tasks assigned, the Bard drew his short sword and rushed forward, a bleak and desolate war song erupting from his lips:

"Are you hungry and feeling faint~ ya-hoo yi-hoo hey, if you're hungry and faint..."

Niu Baiwan was just about to cast a Healing Wave on Chief Hondos, but upon hearing this war song, he started coughing violently:

"Ugh... *cough*, *cough*, Little Tune, couldn't you play a more... normal war song?"

Ding Ding Xiao Ge had just cast "Weakening Mist." Hearing Niu Baiwan’s lament, he rolled his eyes with disdain:

"Don't you think this is already his most normal war song?..."

This was a "Song of Vitality," which could significantly increase the recovery rate of health, mana, and battle spirit for nearby comrades.

I didn't know why a song that sounded like it would stimulate one's appetite could have such a miraculous effect. But I soon realized the reason:

If a person has a hearty appetite, perhaps the body's metabolic rate also speeds up.

For us, using such a war song at this moment wasn't really a great choice—our battle had just begun, and we hadn't lost much health, mana, or battle spirit. Using a restorative song now provided no real help to us.

However, the intended target of this song wasn't us, but the besieged Chief Hondos. His foolish recklessness quickly cost him dearly—the combined attack of eight beast-bone skeletons was not easy to withstand. In just a short moment, Chief Hondos’s health had dropped to less than a third and was still decreasing at an alarming rate. At a time like this, allowing this reckless Half-Orc to recover even a little health was a huge success for us.

The effect of the "Weakening Mist" spell was similar: it significantly weakened the attack power of enemies within the mist, effectively slowing the rate at which Chief Hondos’s health was being depleted, buying us precious time for rescue.

Niu Baiwan and Fairy Descending didn't waste this time. They vied to cast various healing spells onto the head of the boxer-style Half-Orc shaman. Holy and Nature magic rained down, casting a glow that made Chief Hondos’s grizzled face look half-pale and half-sickly green. Amidst the interweaving of these two eerie lights, Chief Hondos’s health finally began to bottom out and turn the tide.

A tall beast-bone skeleton swung its battle-axe, attempting a sneak attack from behind the fighting Half-Orc chieftain. It did not succeed; a long sword flashing with a sickly green, poisonous glint blocked its path, parrying the attack just in time. Following up, the sword danced flexibly, sweeping heavily across the skeleton's ribs before it could even react. Over eighty points of vitality flew out of its bone-only frame. It opened its mouth in anger, making a "clack-clack" sound, and shifted all its attention to the warrior holding a shield in the left hand and a sword in the right on the other side—me!

I had no interest in tangling with it. I turned and slashed the backs of three other skeletons before retreating far away. I wasn't worried about failing to pull these four skeletal monsters—following the principle of prioritizing the enemy that deals the most damage, my strikes clearly caused more significant harm. If Chief Hondos wanted to keep these skeletons around him with just his two fists, he would probably have to put in a lot more effort.

The four beast-bone skeletons I had attacked immediately abandoned their original target and chased after me, brandishing their battle-axes. Only then did I have my first chance to observe my opponents at close range.

Compared to the skeleton-type monsters we had seen before, these "beast-bone skeletons" looked significantly different. They were level 50-ish undead warriors with thick, sturdy bones, slightly hunched backs, and flattened foreheads, but with very prominent jaws and two exceptionally thick tusks protruding from their jawbones. They all used heavy, blunt-edged battle-axes as weapons, and their fighting style was crude and violent.

I knew that fighting four monsters of my own level at once would be a grueling task, but the danger of this battle exceeded my expectations. I shielded my chest, barely deflecting an axe that struck toward my left side, and swept my sword horizontally, hacking at a skeleton’s thigh. Its exposed leg bone was hard and slippery, and the sword struggled to gain purchase. I felt a jarring resistance through the hilt, and then saw that the skeleton’s health had only suffered a weak loss of sixty-some points.

Fighting these skeletal monsters, my weapon was at a distinct disadvantage. Many of my longsword skills relied on piercing attacks, but skeletons were almost entirely immune to them; meanwhile, the main secondary attribute of my "Rattlesnake's Wind-Cutting Blade" was poison damage, but these Decayed Ones had quite high resistance to poison.

At this moment, I even missed my old sword, "Red Mountain Ripper." Although its level wasn't high and its stats were low, its serrated blade, capable of dealing tearing damage, was the natural bane of these skeleton frames. Whenever I landed a hit, the sensation of cutting through wood with a large saw always gave me a satisfying tactile pleasure—a combat thrill this current sword could never provide.

Just as I was silently complaining about the powerlessness of my weapon, a tearing, sharp pain erupted from my back. It felt as if my flesh was being pried open by a pair of hard palms; the intense pain was surging out from every pore.

"Ah..." I couldn't help but let out a low groan, rolling to the side. I turned to see a skeleton stretching its neck and opening its mouth wide in a wild, triumphant grin. The battle-axe in its hand was already rusted and mottled, but it was dripping with blood.

The pain didn't cloud my mind; on the contrary, it made me even more alert. My mission wasn't to defeat these four skeletons alone, but to keep them occupied so my comrades could finish off the other four, ensuring Chief Hondos's safety. The longer I held out, the smoother their battle would be, and the sooner they could come to my aid.

Having realized this, I braced myself against another heavy blow to the chest, downed a large bottle of "Concentrated Life Essence," and, with a mouthful of garlic-smelling breath, refreshed my spirit.

Re-engaging in the fray, I became more cautious and conservative, focusing more on defense and protecting my vitals with my shield, not rushing to attack. Although none of the four skeletons suffered fatal damage, they couldn't find a chance to deal me a crippling blow either. Thus, our battle fell into a stalemate; neither side could down the other in the short term.

If things continued this way, the situation would become increasingly favorable for me. Moreover, I carried plenty of high-level health potions. With their help, even alone, I was fully capable of slowly wearing down these four ferocious monsters.

However, the danger of battle often lurks in those seemingly safe moments. In a fight of life and death, any small negligence can lead to a fatal error.

At this moment, I made a mistake!

A deadly mistake!

Just as the battle reached a stalemate, the magical mist surrounding us gradually thinned. With the dissipation of this mist, the beast-bone skeletons' axe blows became heavier with every strike. Whenever my shield blocked an oncoming axe, it felt like catching a falling meteorite; the immense impact left my arm numb and forced me to retreat repeatedly. My defense against their heavy strikes grew weaker, and even when using defensive skills, my health would drop by dozens or even hundreds of points. Unknowingly, the intense offensive of these skeletal monsters had broken the previous balance, and I could no longer compensate for the rate of health loss with potions alone.

"Weakening Mist"—it was Ding Ding Xiao Ge’s "Weakening Mist." The spell had exceeded its duration and could no longer suppress the enemies' destructive power.

The scales of victory were tilting toward the four hideous bone monsters before me. All I could do was hold on bitterly.

Just as I was about to collapse, a bare-chested, muscular green figure suddenly rushed in from the side, unleashing a wild combination of punches onto a skeleton's head, making its jaw clatter so loudly it seemed about to fall off. Finally, the green figure, apparently blinded by the heat of battle, actually lunged forward and slammed his forehead heavily into the skeleton's polished skull, and then...

A red "-15" number floated up from his head, and he immediately entered a state of brief unconsciousness...

This was the first time I had ever seen someone knock themselves unconscious while headbutting someone else. Facts proved that even the thick, solid skull of Chief Hondos the Half-Orc was nowhere near as hard as the bare, bone-only skull of a skeleton.

My heart immediately relaxed—I was saved!

I certainly didn't feel safe because of Chief Hondos's appearance. With this guy’s average damage of three health points per punch, by the time he killed these four skeletons, I would have long since become the fifth skeletal monster.

However, his appearance was a signal: the other four beast-bone skeletons had already been dealt with; otherwise, he certainly wouldn't have abandoned the easy path to challenge the enemies near me.

Since he was here, could my comrades be far behind?

Sure enough, a warm Healing Wave washed over my exhausted body, injecting me with fresh vitality.

An ancient, powerful war song began to play, stirring my heart and significantly boosting my attack power: "Oh, little cabbage... leaves turning yellow..."

A beam of green magical light struck a skeleton to my left, and several thick vines suddenly erupted from the ground, tightly binding the skeleton's ankles, preventing it from taking another step. Immediately following, a bestial roar shook the jungle, and a giant black bear charged out from behind me, waving its massive paws and slamming them heavily onto the skeleton.

A heart-stopping black shadow surged forward from the rear right, dealing over 120 points of damage to another beast-bone skeleton. Close behind, an otherworldly demon—wearing black heavy armor on its upper body, with a green face and fangs, holding a thick mace, its lower body shrouded in black mist, and lacking legs—charged out and tangled with the skeleton.

The remaining two skeleton monsters could no longer pose a threat to me. I immediately switched from defense to offense, swinging my sword. Slashes, horizontal sweeps, Storm Strikes... I no longer held back my battle spirit, ruthlessly unleashing one powerful attack skill after another upon these two monsters. My sword grated against bone, producing a harsh, screeching sound, like the terrified moans of these two skeletal monsters...

"Get lost!" I retracted my sword and kicked out, shattering the last beast-bone skeleton into a pile of bone fragments. Our first skirmish with these Decayed Ones had ended just like that.

I bent down to pick up the loot dropped by the monster and looked back at my comrades. Although we had no casualties in this battle, their health was halved or their mana was bottomed out; it was clear their fight just now had been anything but easy.

"Take your potions, drink your water; let's take a quick break before we head out," B-Flat Minor Nocturne said, sitting on a rock. He took a piece of "Honey-Horn Bread" that increased health from his pack and reminded us. He stuffed the bread into his mouth, and just as he took a bite...

"Wooo! This place does not belong to you! Return to where you came from!"

A rough, heroic roar came from the path just ahead.

"Damn it..." the Bard stared ahead with a wooden expression, a muffled curse coming from his bread-stuffed mouth, spraying crumbs everywhere...