Undead Mage: I Have a Skeleton Clone-Chapter 514 - 369: Gold Codex, The Taste of a Moon Elf (Part 2)

As she worked, she remarked, "Fang Zhou, you’ve made another significant contribution to us Undead Mages. You’ve added a very powerful flying unit to our Undead Creatures Atlas."

Fang Zhou shook his head. He wasn’t particularly satisfied with the Skeleton Bat’s combat effectiveness. He shared his actual experience controlling the Skeleton Bat with Su Xinyan, holding nothing back.

Upon hearing this, Su Xinyan wasn’t disappointed in the slightest. Instead, she said, "Regardless, this is the first flying Undead Creature we’ve discovered at the Black Iron Tier. You have to understand, previously, we had to advance to the Bronze Tier before we could even attempt to summon Ghost-series Undead Creatures. Only then could we Undead Mages truly possess flying units and guarantee air superiority."

"Now, the existence of the Skeleton Bat greatly makes up for the deficiency of low-tier Undead Mages in this regard. Although it has a weak constitution and lacks melee combat ability, its incredibly high flight ceiling, speed, and extremely sharp visual acuity are more than enough for it to serve as our scout and eye in the sky."

At this, Su Xinyan glanced at Fang Zhou, her meaning clear. "During your Apprentice Stage, you could rely on that Pearl Bird from your Sealed Bone Bell to maintain a visual advantage. However, now that you’re at the Black Iron Tier, that Pearl Bird, with its potential capped at the Apprentice level, can hardly be of any real use against Black Iron-tier demons. The Skeleton Bat, being faster and having a wider field of vision, is the perfect solution to your urgent problem."

Fang Zhou nodded. He waved his hand, banishing the Skeleton Bat back to the Undead Realm, then turned and said, "You’re right, Instructor Xinyan. That’s why my next step is to improve the success rate and reduce the Mana consumption for summoning the Skeleton Bat."

Su Xinyan’s gaze on Fang Zhou turned fiery. Her soft body unconsciously leaned in as she cooed, "Excellent. Come, follow me inside. Fang Zhou, your instructor is going to reward you well today. In a few days, Master Sandro and his people will be arriving at Sea City Military Academy. We might not be able to be so unrestrained then."

When Su Xinyan issued the challenge, Fang Zhou naturally did not refuse. Under the overbearing might of a Golden Great Mage, what resistance could a mere Black Iron-tier student possibly offer?

「Two days later」

Master Sandro officially joined the Sea City Military Academy as a visiting instructor on exchange from the Purple Iris Federation. His apprentice, a Black Iron Lower Rank female elf named Silvanas, naturally came along as an exchange student.

In the reception room of the Undead Mage research project group, Fang Zhou and Instructor Su Xinyan, who were already waiting, stood up to greet Master Sandro and Silvanas as they slowly walked in.

Master Sandro, from the Purple Iris Federation, had the typical appearance of a Western wizard. He was thin and stooped, as if the years had left heavy marks upon him. He wore a gloomy, chilling Magic Robe embroidered with complex runes that exuded a faint aura of death. Beneath his pointed wizard hat, one could only see wrinkled cheeks and corpse-gray eyes. Those eyes were devoid of any emotion, yet they seemed to see through everything, sending an involuntary shiver down one’s spine. His hands were skeletal, his fingertips tinged with a faint bluish color, seeming to contain immense magical power.

Silvanas’s appearance was equally striking. She was a high-born Moon Elf and, judging by her age, was still a minor. Her hair was silver-gray and her skin was exceptionally pale, almost translucent, from being imbued with Undead Attribute energy. Although she possessed the natural beauty of the Elf Race, she gave off the impression of a cold, unapproachable iceberg. Her eyes were like deep lakes—clear, yet indifferent. She wore a simple black-and-silver gown, its hem swaying gently with her steps, adding to her mysterious air.

After they introduced themselves, Instructor Lu Hu, who had escorted Master Sandro, stood up and laughed heartily. "Alright, my job is done. Master Sandro’s willingness to join Sea City Military Academy as a visiting instructor is a tremendous honor for our academy. Instructor Xinyan, Fang Zhou, you are both Undead Mages. From here on, please take good care of Master Sandro and Student Silvanas. Show them the full extent of the hospitality our Longxia Federation’s Sea City Military Academy is known for."

Su Xinyan and Fang Zhou understood and nodded to Instructor Lu Hu.

Instructor Lu Hu then turned to Master Sandro. "Master Sandro, Instructor Xinyan is our academy’s finest Undead Mage. She recently broke through her bottleneck to advance to Golden Lower Rank. As for Fang Zhou, he is the most talented Undead Mage student in the history of our academy. You’ve already seen his file, so I probably don’t need to go into detail. I hope you all get along well. If you need anything, please feel free to let me or Instructor Xinyan know."

Master Sandro gave a slight nod, his voice hoarse. "Thank you, Instructor Lu." Though his expression was stern, he wasn’t actually cold.

After Instructor Lu Hu left, the four Undead Mages sat, creating the sense of a grand gathering of talent. As the host, Instructor Su Xinyan naturally began. She gave Master Sandro and Silvanas an overview of the research group’s development and its achievements, detailing the group’s results from the past six months. This included studies on different types of Undead Creatures, the development of new summoning skills, and methods to enhance the combat effectiveness of Undead Creatures.

Master Sandro was naturally intrigued when the conversation turned to his area of expertise. Fang Zhou also offered his own insights on the Undead Mage profession at opportune moments. Although Fang Zhou’s professional rank was only Black Iron Lower Rank, he possessed a Corpse Clone that no one else had. It was no exaggeration to say that his understanding of the Undead Realm and low-tier Undead Creatures far surpassed that of any other human Undead Mage.

As she listened to the discourse between two Golden Tier Undead Mages, Silvanas, whose beautiful face was offset by an aura as lifeless as an Ancient Tomb Witch’s, became visibly enthralled. She took out her personal terminal and continuously recorded the discussion between her mentor, Su Xinyan, and Fang Zhou, looking like a devout worshiper of Death.

As time went on, the conversation naturally shifted to Fang Zhou, who had been gaining considerable attention lately. Master Sandro turned his soul-piercing gaze upon him, a rare hint of praise in his raspy voice.

"Fang Zhou, I heard that after you won the championship in the Longxia Federation’s Ten Military Academies’ grand competition for new recruits, you soon broke through your bottleneck and advanced to Black Iron. Judging by the Mana fluctuations emanating from you now, it seems you aren’t far from reaching the Middle Rank."

With a humble expression, Fang Zhou replied respectfully, "Yes, Master Sandro. With the help of resources allocated by the Federation’s military, I was fortunate enough to break through my bottleneck and advance to Black Iron. I also successfully solidified the Summon Undead Creature skill into a Talent Skill."

A look of visible surprise appeared on Master Sandro’s wrinkled face. "With your talent and potential, successfully solidifying a Talent Skill isn’t entirely unexpected. But for it to be a skill like Summon Undead Creature? That’s unheard of."

Among the Professionals of the Human Alliance, those lucky enough to solidify a Talent Skill upon breaking through a Great Realm were few and far between. Those who could solidify a core skill of their Profession—one filled with potential that could advance as their strength grew—were rarer still, practically one in ten thousand.

For an Undead Mage at this stage, summoning Undead Creatures would always be their primary source of combat power.