This Necromancer Just Wants to Plant Trees - Chapter 17 (Patreon)

In the past week, Matthew had been busy and fulfilled.

During the day, he planted trees, and at night, he meditated and studied spells. He even found time to have someone build a small cabin in the woods. The cabin was not large, but it had all the necessary amenities. In addition to the functional areas, two carpenters had also built a small loft for him and erected a lovely fence around it.

Matthew sat on a wooden bed, a faint woody fragrance in the air. He had a sense that the green energy within "The Path of Legends: Nature" was increasing in speed, while progress on the "Undead" aspect had slowed down. Perhaps it was due to his recent lack of summoning undead creatures or participating in killings.

However, what Matthew was most concerned about at the moment was the long-awaited "Enhancement."

"No need to rush. I've waited for days; I can wait until night," he thought. He glanced out the window. The dim twilight was gradually fading. Although few people ventured into this forest, he still preferred to summon skeletons after dark, not to disturb the regular townsfolk.

Half an hour later, Matthew stepped out of the wooden cabin. The gentle night breeze brought the joyful sounds of the oak trees. He opened the cellar door of the "Skeleton Dormitory" and awakened twelve skeleton soldiers one by one.

Soon, the skeleton soldiers were assembled. Under the hazy moonlight, Matthew carefully examined them. He needed to choose the best and most promising one for enhancement.

Initially, Matthew had thought about enhancing Peggy. After all, she had 9 job levels and they had been together for years, showing remarkable teamwork. However, Peggy was an "unusual skeleton," which didn't meet the requirements for this enhancement. Matthew had to choose from this group of average level 3 skeleton soldiers, looking for one that stood out.

After a meticulous examination lasting twenty minutes, Matthew finally selected the candidate for enhancement. It was a skeleton soldier who was currently looking bewildered at him.

He had chosen this one based on several considerations. This skeleton soldier's Soulfire was quite condensed, and although it didn't have the highest number of bones, its bone quality was relatively good. Most importantly, Matthew noticed that it was different from the other skeleton soldiers. While the others would just stand idle during his examination, this one had been unconsciously adjusting its hip position.

It was this peculiar behavior that piqued Matthew's curiosity. "I've heard that a very small number of undead creatures can inherit some abilities from their past lives. This skeleton soldier might have a chance to awaken..."

With that in mind, Matthew singled it out for future use and gave it a name. "Since you're a skeleton soldier, let's call you 'Blackthorn.'"

"Hint: Naming successful! Your summoned creature 'Skeleton Soldier No. 11' now has its own name, 'Blackthorn.'"

Blackthorn appeared perplexed by Matthew's naming but still seemed grateful. It adjusted its hip once more.

"Alright, that's enough." Matthew ordered the other skeletons to return to their dormitory. Then he glanced at the creature panel.

"Name: Blackthorn

Race: Skeleton (LV3)

Attributes: Strength 14 / Constitution 8 / Agility 14 / Perception 4 / Intelligence 4 / Charm 4

Traits: Fear Immunity / Disease Immunity / Undead Descent

Abilities: Backstep"

"High agility and strength?" Matthew raised an eyebrow. He decided to invest 10 enhancement experience points.

"Enhancement successful! Blackthorn's level has increased to LV4, and its overall attributes have improved slightly. Blackthorn gained the enhancement keyword 'Elementary Enlightenment.'"

"Elementary Enlightenment (White): Your summoned creature has an intelligence equivalent to that of a five-year-old child and can understand some simple commands from you."

"Enhancement can increase a summoned creature's level, improve its overall attributes, and grant different keywords?" Matthew, an experienced player, quickly grasped the general direction and enhanced Blackthorn again.

"Enhancement successful! Blackthorn gained the keyword 'Short Weapon Mastery.'"

"Short Weapon Mastery (Purple): Your summoned creature excels in using short weapons. When using short weapons, its attack speed, attack power, and critical hit chance all increase by 30%."

"Great!" Matthew didn't hesitate and continued to enhance. The next three enhancements were all successful, resulting in two excellent keywords and a level-up.

"Weakness Observation (Blue): Your summoned creature can identify the weaknesses of enemies before and during battles."

"Assassin Template (Blue) (Prerequisite: Weakness Observation): Your summoned creature has activated the Assassin template, gaining +2 Agility and learning the Assassin abilities 'Stealth' and 'Bludgeon.'"

"I didn't expect your hip adjustments to turn you into an assassin!" Matthew mused, looking at Blackthorn. Thanks to "Elementary Enlightenment," he felt that Blackthorn's Soulfire had become more solid. The look in its eyes also seemed to show more affection and respect towards him.

Seizing the moment, Matthew continued to enhance Blackthorn.

"Enhancement failed! Blackthorn gained the keyword 'Bone Fragility.'"

"Bone Fragility (Gray): Your summoned creature's health is reduced by 10%."

"Enhancement failure results in negative keywords?" Matthew pondered, as this feeling wasn't entirely unfamiliar. The next two enhancements went smoothly, resulting in one more level-up and a purple keyword.

"Dark Trickery (Purple) (Prerequisite: Weakness Observation): Your summoned creature excels in using tricks, including but not limited to 'Groin Kick,' 'Sand Throw,' 'Rectal Probe,' and 'Charge.'"

Matthew couldn't help but smile. "You've turned into quite the trickster with that set of abilities!"

With Blackthorn's enhanced abilities and new keywords, Matthew felt that his power had significantly increased. The investment of enhancement experience had been well worth it.

...

"Dark Trickery is actually purple?" Matthew was quite surprised at Blackthorn's newfound abilities.

Blackthorn looked at him with an innocent expression. With its current level of intelligence, it might not fully understand the changes in its body, but these keywords had become an integral part of its combat instincts.

Matthew marveled at the transformation. He circled around Blackthorn and noticed a significant change in the color of its bones. The once predominantly gray bones had now disappeared, replaced by whiter and even silvery ones.

"Gray, white, silver, gold, diamond..." Matthew's mind flashed through the levels of skeleton bone quality. Blackthorn had evolved into a white-bone skeleton assassin.

While not as gifted as Peggy, who was a golden skeleton, Blackthorn's potential was undeniable.

"Enhancement successful! Blackthorn acquired the legendary keyword 'Bladedancer.'"

"Bladedancer (Gold!): Your summoned creature awakens some of its former life's power, replacing the 'Assassin Template' with the rare class 'Bladedancer' template!"

Blackthorn gained new abilities: 'Bladedance Technique,' 'Dance of Burial,' and 'Cloak of Darkness.'

"Gold-tier legendary!" Matthew's eyes sparkled with excitement. After this enhancement, Blackthorn's demeanor had significantly changed. Its bone structure shimmered with a silver sheen, almost instantaneously transforming into a silvery-white. A black curtain appeared behind it.

Matthew commanded, "Put it on."

Blackthorn hesitated for a moment, and the cloak automatically covered its body. In the next moment, Blackthorn vanished without a trace.

"Your summoned creature, Blackthorn, has used 'Cloak of Darkness.'"

Matthew closed his eyes and activated his blindsense. He could sense a hidden presence nearby but couldn't pinpoint its exact location.

"He should be right in front of me." Matthew was surprised to find that Blackthorn's invisibility could even conceal itself from his blindsense. "It seems not all hidden units can be detected by blindsense."

Despite this, Matthew was increasingly satisfied with Blackthorn. Given time, he believed that this skeleton would become as powerful as Peggy, or even surpass the Bone Dragon.

"I wonder if there are higher-level keywords beyond Gold-tier legendary?" Matthew instinctively wanted to enhance Blackthorn again but suddenly realized that he had run out of enhancement attempts.

He chuckled and patted his cheek. "Now I understand why the gacha mobile games of my past life were so popular!"

Because using the Cloak of Darkness at night didn't consume Blackthorn's energy, Matthew assigned it to patrol outside the cabin, effectively standing guard for him. The cabin was still under construction, and there were many security measures that needed to be put in place, especially considering the deteriorating security in the area.

"Tomorrow, when I go to the market to buy seeds, I'll check if they have any trap-setting scrolls. Doing it manually is too troublesome," Matthew thought.

Lying on the hard wooden bed, he nibbled on a piece of bread and began to miss Peggy's culinary skills.

"Maybe I should have Blackthorn guard the house next time and invite Peggy over? No, Blackthorn's intelligence is still too low, and he's not as adept as Peggy in handling many things."

Matthew yawned and forced himself to meditate. He couldn't afford to be lazy if he wanted to gather Soul Crystals throughout the night.

Meanwhile, to the southwest of the Oakwood Forest, on a small hill.

Two figures, one tall and one short, walked together.

"Dean, we should be close by. The farm down there has already been turned into ruins, undoubtedly the work of Blackthorn."

The tall man had a rugged face. "This guy has no respect. He agreed to meet you on time, but he ran off to some remote place like this without a word!"

Dean, the shorter figure, gazed at the forest ahead. Suddenly, he detected something with his keen sense of smell.

"Blackthorn is dead!" Dean announced.

The tall man was taken aback. "Impossible! Could it be the work of that archmage?"

Dean's expression turned grim. "No, it's impossible. Ronan is trapped in the Star Realm. He wouldn't bother with someone as insignificant as Blackthorn."

The tall man contemplated for a moment. "Could it be the local lord? The Blood Flag Family used to be quite powerful, even though their current head is a useless fellow. I heard his wife ran off with a necromancer."

Dean lightly shook his head. "No, that's unlikely."

The two entered the Oakwood Forest in silence. "Blackthorn's body must be buried around here," Dean said.

"Buried in the forest? Who would commit such an immoral act?"

The tall man scanned the area. Just then, he pointed in the distance. "Dean, look, there's a small cabin!"

Chapter 18 >>

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